Training Week 14 June - 20 June

Sun.pm. 14.50m / 1:37:15 / 6:42 miling
Feeling pretty pumped after the Longest Day so did some exploring in Stanley Park, up to the top of Prospect Point and back via Brockton and sea wall.

Mon.pm. 11.50m / 1:06:02 / 6:36 miling
Pretty inspired by the trails in Stanley Park, so back through up to Brockton Oval. I passed a Sikh music festival, great vibe, great dancing. Party in the Park!
Cycling - 16 miles

Tue. Rest - sore calf
Took it easy with a sore calf. My left cleat on my bike shoe broke and screwed up my leg biomechanics. Decided to not to risk it and to take my rest day early.
Cycling - 16 miles

Wed.pm. 7.76m / 48:01 / 6:11 miling
Run over to Kitsilano Beach on the grass for a stretch out. Dropped in 6 x 80m incline strides with walk back recovery. Need to improve my turn over!
Cycling - 16 miles

Thu.pm. 6.23m WU - 2 x 1.83m reps - 5.84m WD
Awesome session in Stanley Park with the guys. See the blog entry for details.
Cycling - 16 miles

Fri.pm. 4.28m / 30:00 / 7:01 miling
Easy grass run lapping David Lam Park by the apartment. Wanted to freshen the legs before the morning track session and felt good for doing it.
Cycling - 16 miles

Sat.am. 2.75m WU - 4 x 1200m hard/400m +25secs continuous - 2.68m WD (0.75m barefoot)
Rep 1 - 3:49 / 1:41 ... Rep 2 - 3:45 / 1:41 ... Rep 3 - 3:44 / 1:39 ... Rep 4 - 3:44 / 1:36
Really nice session where I tracked Jay throughout, trying to keep him in sight. Love the continuous workouts and this was no exception. Great to have Kevin trackside to read the split times.
Total time for 4 miles: 21:42 / ~5:25 miling
Cycling - 10 miles

Run total: 64.08 miles (103km) / 7:10:08 / 6:42 miling avg
Cycle total: 90.72 miles (146km)

Comments:
Really nice week, two great sessions and no recurring injury from last week which is the main thing. Feeling very motivated to run some fast times this summer and the legs are responding well to what I'm putting them through. Hopefully last week's 5k is the start, not the peak, of what I can achieve.

I'm not sure if the cycle commute across Lions Gate Bridge each day is necessarily aiding my training, but psychologically I feel like I'm getting some decent aerobic work in, even if I am only spinning for the most part. My legs are a lot more toned because of it and my quads are certainly more prominent than they have been.

This coming week could be tough with training as I fly to Des Moines, Iowa, on Tuesday ahead of next weekend's elite triathlon. Therefore I'm going to play it by ear, but hopefully I can wangle in a session and a tempo at some point. Next race is when I get back on Canada Day in the Yaletown Grand Prix. As a Yaletown resident I'm looking forward to getting the opportunity to smash it through the streets past my local bars, however if it turns out to be a sub-15min elite athletefest, as I fear it will, then I'll be pulling over to the side for a pint instead!

Signed, sealed and delivered

Well I said my target for tonight was 15:45, and I hit 15:42 at the Longest Day 5k, so how's that for prediction accuracy?

Me (4th in 5k), Ian (9th in 5k), Brad (1st in 10k) and Jay (3rd in 5k)

It was pretty much textbook stuff, exactly as planned. The opening downhill kilometre was quick, and I started conservatively, tucking in behind Mike and Phil from VFAC and Ian from Lionsgate for the opening 500m. I realised we were effectively in a pack sitting in sixth position so I made my move coming off the downhill and into the uphill second kilometre. I managed to get a gap on the bunch and noone came with me, and I quickly reeled in the guy in fifth who had gone off too hard.

I tried to keep my pace on the inclines consistent and strong, focussing on technique and efficiency rather than effort. It worked well and once I was on the flat again I was able to open my stride and get back into a nice rhythm. I visualised Ryan Hall striding out up in Big Bear Lake, California, just wanting to praise God with every turnover of his legs - tonight's run was about using the abilities I believe the Lord has given me rather than trying to run well for personal gain.

This video, Ryan Hall: Passion for the Run, has really inspired me.


Slowly I started to track down Graeme, a 70min half marathoner who clocked 2:31 for the Calgary Marathon just two weeks ago and ran a 32:40 10k last weekend. Going through 3km in 9:18 I managed to latch onto the back of him and made my move on the slight incline back to the main drag. With his incredible strength and stamina I was worried he would manage to cling onto the back, but thankfully for me it was decisive.

The final kilometre was a nice run in to the finish, striding out on the slight downhill gradient, then raising the tempo 400m from the line. Running up onto the grass was tough, but I still felt pretty good and so to finish with 15:42 is very pleasing. Hopefully on a flatter, faster course I can get down to 15:30. Now I've got to decide what to spend my $75 prize money on. Suggestions please.

Jay was always up the road from me, although his race was a solo affair, caught between me and the leaders who ran 14:22 and 14:27 respectively - highly impressive. VFAC were towards the fore throughout the 5k with Phil and Mike right behind along with Ian.

Ooh err missus, check out those socks!

Brad stormed the 10k, running with another two guys for the first 4k before making his move and pulling clear. On a relatively undulating course his 34mins is very solid and he should go well in the Scotiabank Half Marathon in a couple of weeks! I'm not sure about his compression socks/number belt/lycra shorts under split shorts attire though, haha.

Making the Switch

Having come off a British winter into a Canadian spring it dawned on me that my training was never quite going to be the same again.

After enjoying five and a half years at Loughborough, both as a student and a working man, the familiar routine of annual training periodisation, socialisation and racing was to come to an end. Under the regime of infamous coach George Gandy, life for an aspiring athlete couldn't have been much better. Fantastic insight, great facilities, amazing trails and run loops and above all, incredible training partners and friends to share the experience with.


Ed Prickett Memorial Relays 2006 (4 x 2 miles vs. men's 4x400m team - I won!)

Vancouver quickly became a lonely place as far as running was concerned. For the first month I trained alone, unmotivated and fed up with pacing the pavements and the repeated stress on my calves that the relentless tarmac pounding caused. Loughborough was but a distance memory, a holy land amongst the barren suburbia of the city.

I came to Canada in great shape having been training specifically for a spring marathon, however due to work commitments the chance to race and put my large aerobic capacity to use over 26.2 miles faltered and I was unable to take to the streets in anger. With this in mind running became a hassle, a 'should do' rather than a 'want to do' in my list of priorities. For the first time in years I was seriously concerned that my running days were numbered.

However things soon changed with the Vancouver Sun Run, the world's largest 10km road race, where I finished 41st out of 56,000 competitors. I missed my personal best by 12 seconds due to a stitch in the final mile, but realised then that I loved running too much to give it up. I was very fortunate that Kevin O'Connor, a fellow Brit living in the city, had got in touch through the eightlane.com website and spoke to me on the startline, inviting me to train with the Vancouver Falcons.


VFAC track session of 12 x 400m off 1min jog, me in purple shorts, Jay leading us off.

I now run with the Falcons every Thursday in Stanley Park and every Saturday at Point Grey School in nearby Kerrisdale. The two sessions orchestrated by John Hill are pivotal to my week, a chance to train alongside likeminded athletes, aspiring for fast times whilst juggling work commitments and day to day lifestyles. If anything, it's like a mature version of Loughborough where the students are replaced by adults. I owe a lot to the guys towards the front of the group with whom I share the pacing, hand slaps and "good jobs" with each week. They welcomed me with open arms and it's great to feel part of a group. So to Jay, Brad, Simon, Paul, Kevin, Phil and everyone else, thank you!

Of course I miss Loughborough, the seventy guys and girls smashing it up on a Saturday morning, or the throng of athletes making their way to various fixtures week in week out, but I'm glad that I made the decision to move to Vancouver, and right now I can't imagine myself anywhere else.

As a comparison between winter marathon base work in Loughborough and 5k/10k specific workouts in a Vancouver summer, I present my typical training weeks of 2009:

Winter, Loughborough, UK
Sun.am. 18-22 mile long easy hilly run
Sun.pm. Rest
Mon.am. 6 miles easy
Mon.pm. 10 miles easy
Tue.am. 6 miles easy
Tue.pm. 4m WU - long rep session, short recoveries (6 miles) - 4m WD
Wed.am. 12-15 miles easy
Wed.pm. 6m WU - circuit training - 4m WD
Thu.am. 6 miles easy
Thu.pm. 4m easy - 6 mile steady - 4m easy
Fri.am. Rest
Fri.pm. Rest
Sat.am. 2m WU - 10 mile tempo - 2m WD
Sat.pm. Rest
Weekly total: ~100 miles

Summer, Vancouver, Canada
Sun.am. Rest
Sun.pm. 13 miles relaxed
Mon.am. 8m cycle to work
Mon.pm. 8m cycle home + 10 miles relaxed
Tue.am. 8m cycle to work
Tue.pm. 8m cycle home + 12 miles steady
Wed.am. 8m cycle to work
Wed.pm. 8m cycle home + 7 miles easy
Thu.am. 8m cycle to work
Thu.pm. 8m cycle home + 6.5 mile WU - rep session (4.5 miles) - 5 mile WD
Fri.am. 8m cycle to work
Fri.pm. 8m cycle home
Sat.am. 5m cycle - 3m WD - track session (3 miles) - 3m WD - 5m cycle
Sat.pm. Rest
Weekly total: ~65 miles + ~90 miles cycling