Jog On...

The sun was out, frost in the air but at least it wasn't raining so I took the chance to get outside and get some miles in my legs, I was even lucky enough to run with shades on.. I haven't run for over a week and boy did it feel like it. I waned to keep it an slow paced run but important to keep moving at a decent min mile pace. Its a hilly run so I wasnt going to get any land speed records anyway. I managed to average out under 10 minute miles, but I just wanted to get out and turn the legs over, its out of season so I was just keen get a 5 mile effort in as its probably going to be my last run of 2011 as me and wife are due our baby on Wednesday. I definitely noticed that I hadn't run for 10 days as my lungs were burning, and I couldn't get the air in them quick enough, but I think that was partly due to the cold and the amount of up hills on the run. I nearly slipped over twice due to the ice on the path, im glad no one saw my arms swinging trying to keep b

Stressful day in work and its cold outside can only mean one thing, lets de-stress with some training. I've been enjoying the turbo so why not give it another go. I didn't want to make a complex session so I decided to keep it simple and just ride and keep the RPM above 70. I moved the wife upstairs, moved the coffee table and set up next to the Christmas tree. I looked for a movie on the Sky+ box and off I went. A bit of Roadhouse with Patrick Swayze kicking some butt! At the start of the set, I tried to get out the saddle but I couldn't get the balance, so I decided to sit back down and concentrate on keeping my legs moving. The line was mainly flat with no peaks and dips which was the idea of the sessions. Average speed was just under 14 MPH nothing to intense, but enough to make me sweat and tire out the legs. I found a place to put the TV remote while on the bike to stop it getting wet from the sweat, I attached the tube bag that I put my race gels in so its

The rain is falling out side, its dark and cold, so that can only mean one thing for the bike session, get the turbo out and do some sweating. I setup in the front room, next to the Christmas tree and presents, but more importantly in front of the TV with the rugby on and the Bose Ipod speaker on so I had something decent to watch on TV and some tunes to power me through the hour. My cadence and speed Garmin system is still working so im happy to get the output in Garmin connect. I have put some insulation tape over them so they dont move, not sure how that is going to work in the tri race season. After cycling for 20 minutes I noticed that my watch was in km and not miles, so I had no idea how far I had gone (in miles). I was pretty disappointed to finish up and only see that I had gone 15 miles.    I really enjoyed the session and I didn't loose focus all the way through and I could of carried on, I think the next one could/should be one and a half hours. The last s

Its cold, its wet, its windy, why am I out running in this... Because im stupid that's why. Anyone with any sense would be inside sat on the sofa eating mince pies.After last weeks time trial we were back to the interval training and we seem to have gone up a level in reps, this week it went up to 9 and less recovery time again. 9 x 3min 95% 90 sec 75% Recovery I coped with the first 5 reps of 3 minutes, but then I started to tire, I kept my heart rate up but my my legs started to move slower, I think it was down to eh cold weather freezing my joints. I also didn't eat properly in the day and I only managed to get 2 bangles down my neck at lunch time and I bottle of lucozade before I left for the session so my energy level must have been lower. It was a small group tonight due to the weather so I was out in front on my own, which I didn't mind but on each turn I had someone to chase down so it made me work that little bit harder on each max interval. I made sure I

  If you haven't purchased any compression gear this year, then look no further than Compressport UK, they are the only compression gear you need. Thank you Tim at Compressport for sending me some compression calf guards and some quad recovery to assist me with my sporting events most important the recovery of these races. I have been given the ultra silicon (US) compression calf guards and I have used them for both racing and recovery. The US have little silicon beads just above the lower grey band to help with the stress repartition on the base of the leg (when running). You feel the compression 360 degrees around the calf, there are no panels of material that are stitched together so you don't feel and uncomfortable seem digging into your muscles while you train/race/recover. There isn't compression on the grey cuffs these are purely for comfort and they aren't to tight which stops the blood flowing to your foot which could make them swell and make it really uncom

After yesterday core workout my gluts were hurting just walking to work so I was hoping for a simple run tonight at training. But NO! We ended up doing 1km efforts with a bridge recoveries, the bridge was about 50 steps over the road on the high rise bridge. Each side of the bridge it was about 0.5 km so it was a killer session and thankfully it was on 5 sets. My Garmin battery was flat so I had to plot the run when I got home, the map is below, and as the last Monday night run we finished with a 2 mile run. No sloping off this week for some of the group we went in mass and I led us home. I think I should have worked hard on the 5 sets if I could lead the group. The hat and gloves are out on each run now as the temperature is completely changed and dropped about 4'c degrees. Todays session Duration 00 50 00 Distance 4.64 miles Calories 582

A new month and new core work out, I really enjoyed working on my core last month so why not continue this month with a new workout. 2 Reps 40 side turns 3 x 30 sec plank 20 wood chop (Each side) 14 leg lunge (Each side) 3 x 30 sit up twist with ball The thing that hurt the most was the lunges, and it hurt for 2 days after so I was grateful to sleep in my Quad compression from Compressport helped me recover that little bit quicker. I hope its an easy session at run club on Monday night.

This was a tri club session and it was a5km time trial run to see how we are progressing for the cross country league over the winter. Standard warm up and off we went to the time trial, I decided to sit at the front on my own and lead and after the first lap I didn't see anyone, I knew I had gone out a little to fast but its only 5km so I knew I could go out quick it was just to see how long I could hold on for. When I hit the half way marker I was overtaken by one of the group I saw him kick on and I tried my best to stay with him but he was just to strong and the gap grew to about 20 yards and it stayed at that. I could see the end and I could feel another runner breathing down my neck, I tried to push on but he stayed with me and pipped me to the finish line. I clocked in a 00 21 21 5km time - I want to do under 00 20 00 so I've got a bit of work to do. I really enjoyed the session and its good marker point so I measure were I am in a few weeks. I know my heart rate

My Cadence is up and running an I'm really enjoying introducing turbo training into my monthly training plans.     I worked hard for the full 50 minutes, and I kept at a steady pace and work rate for 30 minutes, and then I switched to 3 interval sprint sets before the finish. Todays Session Duration 00 48 01 Distance 15.71 Miles Calories 1110 Average HR 132 BPM Max HR 170 BPM Average Speed 19.6 MPH Max Speed 27.5 MPH Average Cadence 85 RPM Max Cadence 110 RPM

I wasn't in the mood for training tonight so I forced myself to go tonight, my legs felt heavy and I felt tired. Its interval Thursday so I knew it was going to be a tough one, and me feeling sluggish wasn't helping the matter. 8 x 3 mins (95%) & 60 secs recover (75%) I only averaged out at 168 beats per minute which is just enough to get me in the training zone, but it suppose its better to train than no training at all. Todays Session Duration 00 55 17 Distance 5.14 miles Calories 697 Average HR 168 BPM Max HR 179 BPM Average Pace 7.30 Best Pace 5.07

After missing last weeks spin session I was keen to get back in the saddle and blast out a set on the spin bike. It was a smaller class than previous weeks and they have only got 1 fan working so I made sure I was sat in the middle, not that this did much cooling but ever little helps. The session was very much based on sprints and a time trial format and it was definitely a leg buster, my leg muscles were ready to explode by the time we finished, I could feel my legs expending on the final sprint. The best set in the session had to be the hill climb and decent, we started at level 10 (at 120 RPM) and every 30 seconds we upped a resistance gear, we managed to get to gear 18 and the RPM was aloud to drop by 5 on each gear, this was hard.. but not as hard as the way back down to gear 10. On the way back down we were had to up the RPM by 10 and stay in the gear for 30 seconds.. ouch! This better improve my cycling for next season as im working pretty hard in these sessions, perha

I missed running with the elite group they really give me a good work out and I always work that little bit harder than I do on my own. It was a simple set of 1km efforts - I managed to find myself in the top group and ended up doing 5 laps. The fast lot were only about 30 seconds in front of me so after having 2 weeks away from the group I hadn't slipped that far back. The dips so the recovery time between each 1km. After the 5 laps we ended the session with a 2 mile warm down, but only 2 of us went for it, all the others went for a shower. I ended up being pulled along by the lad at the front, he was my pacer and I was grateful he was there to push me as if he wasn't there I would have gone for that early shower. I missed this session with the group, hope I dont miss to many as I want to be in great condition for the next seasons races. Todays Session Duration 00 52 57 Distance 6.39 Miles Calories 878 Average HR 166 BPM Max HR 181 BPM Average Pace 7.55 Best

I recently purchased a my Garmin cadence monitor, but I've been having issues setting it up so I've been trying to research on why its not working. I can get the speed working but not the cadence oh well I'll keep trying. I didn't managed to go very far in this session but it was a hard gear set and keep peddling at a constant speed for the full 30 minutes. The session also included a 5 minute warm up and warm down. The graphs below are for the 30 minute sets Todays session Duration 00 40 02 Distance 9.86 miles Calories 554 Average HR 148 BPM Max HR 166 BPM Average Speed 15.1 MPH Max Speed 21.3 MPH

This is the first session back since the half marathon on the weekend and my legs felt great. I have been tight in the quads and hip flexes but this has eased and I was ready to run this morning. I had no idea of a route its like a labyrinth here, I looked at the park map before I left and decided to stay on the outside roads and that seemed to work. I did 2 laps of the park and it was just shy of 6 miles. One thing I noticed on the run was there were alot of up hills, why did they build Centerparcs on so many hills, but I suppose this was nothing to what I did on the weekend. It was nice to have my own bit of road and not have to worry about cars. There was plenty to look at to keep me distracted on route, so I managed to keep in the training zone throughout the run. My heart rate averaged out at 156 BPM which was fine as this was an active recovery run. I think I'll do a loner run tomorrow kit dependant as there is no washing machine here so I've had to hand w

  My last race of my 2011 calender has arrived and I can still remember writing my first report of 2011 back at Cardiff Try-a-Tri. The weather up to the race had been wet so the ground was already soft so I was hoping the sun would be out for my first off road half marathon. Lucky for me it was, and it wasn't to cold either, an ideal day for running. I arrived at the start line in time to see the ultra marathon runner leave and there were about 30 runners, They have a long day ahead of them as their race was about 35 miles, I'm hoping to get a marathon under my belt in 2012 but that depends on how much training I can get done in the new year, but back to today's race. It was easy and simple to check in at the race, picked up my wristband and timing chip and there were some free samples of Cliff bar so I helped myself to them for after the race as I didn't fancy eating something now that would effect my race and make me stop for the loo half way round the course

As this was my last training session before the weekends race I decided to take it easy, keep the legs moving a decent pace but dont kill myself. The session was 8 x 3 min (75%) & 90 sec (70%) Recovery I ran with the pack tonight and it was good to chat to the group as im normally up front on my own, I worked hard enough to get my heart rate into the training zone but only averaged out at 158 beats per minute. I also decided in this session to run in my weekend race gear, this included my camelbak, its completely different running with this I just hope it doesn't effect my race to much on the day as it stopped me finding a rhythm tonight, but it was only a 50 minute session.. I'm sure I'll be out for over double this time on the weekend. Todays Session Duration 00 56 02 Distance 5.20 miles Calories 701 Average HR 158 BPM Max HR 173 BPM Average Pace 9.20 Best Pace 6.36

Unfortunately I got home late from work which destroyed my plans for a swim it was too late to venture out so it was time to get the gym mat out and do some de-stress from work. As I completed the spin class last night I decided to give the turbo a miss and stick with the core workout. Same set for the month: 3 Reps session 3 x 20 sit ups 1 x 20 side sit ups (Each side) 2 x 20 reverse sit ups 10 Gym ball press ups 10 Gym ball knee roll ups The knee roll ups aren't getting any easier!

They still haven't fixed that fan and im working to hard not to have a fan! (and I dont mean fan base) I mean a cooling fan! I keep on pushing myself at these session and I can feel my legs are starting to feel the benefits, I need to make sure I keep up this intensity. I know im not at the class next week as im on holiday at Centerparks but I'm taking the bike so I'll have to get some workouts on that while im away so I dont loose out at the next class. This was the hardest session as in gears on the bike, we found ourselves at gear 20 for 30 second intervals, and we had to keep the RPM at 65 plus... That was a killer! Todays session Duration 00 45 00 Distance 21 miles

It seems that work has been affecting my training start times recently and tonight was a typical example to work stopping play. I normally meet the group at 18:15 sharp and I turned up at 18:20 and they had already gone. I decided to chase them down and when I got to the bottom of the road I had the choice of right of left... I went right and it was the wrong choice. To top thing off I forgot my Garmin forerunner so I was not only running on my own but without a watch to pace me. I decided to see of the group had gone to one of our normal stopping points but there were nowhere to be seen, so I kept it simple and do 2 x 5km race pace runs. I knew the distances as I've run them many times down the Swansea sea front. There were a few people out running on the sea front, it was pitch black so when I got home I dug out my running lights so people dont bump into me and I can be seen from runners on coming. I used the other runners as targets to chase them down and I managed to pass

  I as up early as we've got family down to stay for the weekend so the only way I was going to get a run was to get up early and sneak out. As I was racing off road in a week I though it would be a good idea to test out my kit and see how I get on off road. As im racing the Endurance Life half marathon at Gower (Swansea) I'm really looking forward giving this a race ago, im told its a completely different race to a road so watch this space. I knew the location of the run but not a clue of the route I was going to take through the woods, I was told there was a path but I couldn't see one so I think I went a bit off the beaten track and by the state of my shoes and trousers you could definitely tell as im was filthy. As it was an offroad run I found myself concentrating on my feet while running, when im running on the road I always look into distance at the furthest point and think its the finish line, but I was worried if I took my eye of my feet and where they we

Its my last hard club run before my half marathon (endurance Life) so I wanted to give this everything and the tri coach told me that my recovery periods in this session had to be at 10km race pace, and the the intense periods had to be at 5km race pace.... i knew my lungs were going to hurt after this session. The set was: 10 x 2min 95% 1 min 90% I was averaging over a quarter of a mile for each 2 minute speed interval and I did work hard I felt it in my legs and lungs after the session. I kept my heart rate over 175 beats per minute and these sessions I tend not to go over 166 beats per minute but I wanted to work hard in this one at the stats dont lie. Todays Session Duration 00 53 06 Distance 5.15 miles Calories 699 Average HR 175 BPM Max HR 185 BPM Average Pace 7.19 Best Pace 5.59

Summer is nearly here and I've decided to get some core work in... well summer is only 9 months away but I dot work on my core enough. Its will help with my physique and help with my running so im told so why not give it a try and I need every need bit of help for next triathlon season. For an introduction I decided to kick off with: 3 Reps session 3 x 20 sit ups 1 x 20 side sit ups (Each side) 2 x 20 reverse sit ups 10 Gym ball press ups 10 Gym ball knee roll ups It takes me about 30/40 mins to complete and I got alot of the ideas from bodyrock.tv and there you tube channel. I really enjoy doing the floor work outs and that is an area I always liked at the gym, so I've got plenty of ideas on how to change the sets going forward. I finish the session on the hardest set the knee roll ups with the gym ball... 10 is plenty for me now and it makes me sweat nearly as much as the turbo trainer. Washboard stomach here I come!

I must of enjoyed last weeks spinning class I went back for more... The advanced class is really enjoyable and my legs are getting a battering but its all for the greater good. Its a nice small class so we dont get lost in the group and the instructor is pretty good in keeping the whole class involved. The only bad thing about this session was that one of the gym fans wasnt working so we had to share one fan between 8 people.... Noooooo!!! I definitely find it easier out of the saddle in these sessions and I find my rhythm and easier to distribute my weight on the bike. I tend not to get out saddle in the race as I think it was cheating but after doing spinning I've found out its important to keep the RPM high so if I need to get my butt of the saddle then so be it going forward to next triathlon season. I've decided that my base gear is 10 and the RPM is about 65-70 - so that's going to be my start point from now on. Todays session Duration 00 45 00 Distance 2