Week 2 of 12 to SCMS

Monday (rest)

Off. Core exercises

Tuesday (interval)
3k w/u, 3 x 3k @ 5:00 pace w/2:30 rest, 2-3k cool down

3k warm-up in 19:29 (avg pace 6:29min/km)

Bidadari Cemetery 3 x 3k @ 5:00 pace

Splits/k (loop) 4:47 4:51 4:57 4:53 5:02 4:56 4:55 5:03 4:43

Splits/3k 14:35 (av 4:51) 14:51 (av 4:57) 14:41 (av 4:53)

in 44:13 (w/o 2:30 JR)

Avg Pace 4:54min/km

3k cool down in 18:29 (avg pace 6:09min/km)

Total session (w/u + c/d) 15k in 82:11 (av 5:28 min/km)

Wednesday (easy)
8k easy pace
49:28mins (av pace 6:10min/km)

Thursday (interval)
2k easy, 6k cutdown (5:10, 5:00, 4:50 each 2k), 2k easy
2k easy (warm up) in 12:33 (avg pace 6:16min/km)
Splits/k(loop) 4:58 5:07 4:53 4:54 4:43 4:23
Splits/2k 10:05 (av 5:02.5) 9:47 (av 4:53.5) 9:06 (av 4:33)
in 29:03mins (avg pace 4:50min/km)
2k easy (cool down) in 12:01 (avg pace 5:59min/km)
Total session (w/u + c/d) 10k in 53:37 (av 5:22 min/km)

I was feeling fresh, over-paced my first k before slowing down on my second k. The average pace for the first cutdown was already almost 5:00min/km pace, so for the second cutdown I decide to aim for 4:55min/km instead. The last cutdown I was going for 4:45min/km and I went all out on the last k. The 6k cutdown ended up looks more like 5:00 4:55 4:45

Friday
Off

Saturday (easy+strength)
8k easy run w/3 x 15 sec explosive hill sprints
8k easy run in 47:33mins (av pace 5:56min/km)
15 sec up hill sprints splits(min/k) 3:10(80m) 3:11(80m) 252(90m)

Sunday (easy)
25k long run - all easy pace
2k easy (warm up) in 12:28 (avg pace 6:13min/km)
2hr 28mins 30secs (av pace 5:56min/km)
2k easy (cool up) in 13:06 (avg pace 6:32min/km)
Total session (w/u + c/d) 29k in 2hr54:04 (av 6:00min/km)

Did my LSD in the evening, in order to save travelling time I did a boring 25x1k loop at Bidadari Cemetery. Well at least it is easier for me to train myself to feel my pace by running over the same route again and again. Glad to have complete it non stop with almost even pace of about 6min/km.

Summary
73km for this week, feeling glad as it was quite some time since I last hit the 70km mark. I think I did well for the interval, cutdown and LSD. Especially for interval and cutdown where I was still feeling strong on the last k, hope I can soon upgrade my intervals :) As for the LSD, I am glad to complete it. As due to the slight up and down hill per loop, I am now feeling strain on my glutes, and it was not easy to maintain even pace on such terrain. Overall it's mssion accomplished for this week :)

Week 1 of 12 to SCMS

Monday (rest)

Off. Core exercises

Tuesday (interval)

3k warm-up in 18:38 (avg Pace 6:11min/km)

Bidadari Cemetery 8 x 1k @ 4:55 pace

Splits/k (loop) 4:45 4:52 4:54 4:58 4:56 4:56 4:53 4:47

in 39:05 (w/o 90s JR)

Avg Pace 4:53min/km

3k cool down in 18:46 (avg Pace 6:14min/km)

Total session (w/u + c/d) 14k in 76:32 (av 5:28 min/km)

Wednesday (easy)

8k easy pace

47:45mins (av pace 6:01min/km)

Thursday (steady)

2k easy pace, 8k steady run (steady pace 5:30-5:40)

2k warm up in 13:09mins (av pace 6:33min/km)

Bidadari Cemetery 8k Splits/k (loop) 5:19 5:33 5:32 5:22 5:31 5:24 5:29 5:22

in 43:49mins (av pace 5:2min/km)

2k warm down in 12:11mins (av pace 6:05min/km)

Total session (w/u + w/d) 12k in 69:09 (av 5:45 min/km)

Friday (rest)

Off

Saturday (easy)

8k easy run

47:11mins (av pace 5:53min/km)

Running late @ 8:30am to feel the heat, glad that I was able to cope with easy running pace.

Sunday (easy)

2km warm up in 12:31 (av pace 6:15min/km)

18k long run w/5 x 1 min surges @ 4:40 pace w/5min easy pace btwn, starting at 6k

5 x 1 min splits/min 3:51 3:54 3:47 4:02 4:05 (av pace 3:45min/km)

18k 1:48:35hr (av pace 6:01min/km)

Total session (+w/u) 20k in 121:06 (av 6:03 min/km)

Woke up late and hesitated if I should run, but anyway I still go ahead as I cannot run tonight. I need to watch tonight's EPL Big Match (MU vs LFC) :p so instead of ECP I did a 2k warm up run to Bidadari Cemetery to start off my LSD, it's another day of "heat" training! Running @ 8:30am was hot but I was doing fine with my easy running pace. However my sudden change of pace in the 5 x 1 min surges were too fast, initially I didn't really feel tired as 5mins of recovery seems just nice for me. It was only after my last surge before I felt tired with my easy pace slowing down to almost 6:30min/km for the rest of my LSD, the weather was getting really hot and no more energy left for warm down run, so I decide skip that :P.

Summary

62km for this week with an interval, steady run and LSD, nice to have some change of pace in between the usual LSD. Something to note with my surge runs during LSD, I realized that I usually tends to start off too fast and will slow down later after gauging that I was running too fast, it may not be obvious or noticeable when I go for runs that are 1km or more as I will slow down to average out my per km pace. But as the surges only takes 1min so I somehow simply over paced myself, especially when there is "fear" that I will be running too slow to meet my 4:40min/km pace. I really need to learn to feel my paced. But anyway, really glad to complete my first LSD for December SCMS, 12 weeks to go......

Army Half Marathon 2010

For this year's AHM it seems like I was quite nervous and could not sleep well, in fact I think I did not even sleep at all. By now I should have been quite season but guess it is affecting me as I was really hoping to do well with a PB, as usual I ended up tossing and turning in bed and soon it was 3am and time to wake up to head for the race. As I managed to reach the starting line early, so for the first time I was standing very near the first few rows, this time round no more slow runners in front of me because I am the slow one :P.

The race started 5mins earlier at 5:10am, soon after the first km I managed to catch up with Solomon (Safra). I was running along side him and he suggest that he can helped paced me and I can then run on my own after 15km, he probably thought that I can last the 5min/km pace till 15km, which I myself doubt so. But since I was still feeling fresh, I thought of giving it a try.

For the first half of the race I was over-paced and it could have cost me even a 1:50hr finish. Soon as I reached the 5km mark it was too fast at 24:54mins and it was only at the 7km mark before I decide that I really need to slow down and was hoping that I can start to maintain at least a 5:15min/km pace throughout, which I did well from 8 to 10km. A glance at my Garmin watch at 10km mark shows 51:13min, hmm well... I thought still okay. But soon I started to feel really tired, paying the price of running too fast earlier, I struggled to maintain my pace and was running way too slow and sadly at full marathon pace.

It was only after 17km at 1hr 30mins that I realized I really need to up my pace and that I can only run for another 20mins. I tell myself no matter what I must not exceed 1hr 50min! But that will mean I need to maintain 5min/km pace all the way. At that moment, feeling tired and with pain on both my glutes I thought that is not quite possible but then I tell myself I will have to try, just run my hearts out. After stopping for a few seconds for dip heat, I started to up my pace, it will be 1km at a time.

As I reached the final 3km I tell myself it is just 3km and it will be like my usual 3k time trial. Strangely I grew stronger as I started to run faster and surprisingly I was at 4:36min/km pace for my last km follow by a 100m sprint to the finish as I tried hard to go below 1hr 51min gun time.

Thinking back it was foolish of me in trying to follow Solomon who was aiming for a 1:45hr finish while a sub 1:50 would have been good for me based on my current condition and fitness level. Sigh.... when will I ever learn!!! If not for my last 3km average of 5min/km pace I would have exceed 1hr 50mins.

Now I still have another half marathon in November and a marathon in December. Hopefully I can finally do well with a PB, and starting next week it will be a new training schedule for SCMS 2010. I now only have last quarter of the year for some decent results!!! :(

Split	Time	Distance	Avg Pace
Summary	01:50:56	21.11	05:15
1	00:05:15	1.00	05:15
2	00:04:47	1.00	04:47
3	00:05:00	1.00	05:00
4	00:05:07	1.00	05:07
5	00:04:45	1.00	04:45
6	00:05:09	1.00	05:09
7	00:05:25	1.00	05:25
8	00:05:06	1.00	05:06
9	00:05:16	1.00	05:16
10	00:05:13	1.00	05:13
11	00:05:14	1.00	05:14
12	00:05:26	1.00	05:26
13	00:05:36	1.00	05:36
14	00:05:36	1.00	05:36
15	00:05:39	1.00	05:39
16	00:05:36	1.00	05:36
17	00:05:38	1.00	05:38
18	00:05:38	1.00	05:38
19	00:05:15	1.00	05:15
20	00:05:05	1.00	05:05
21	00:04:36	1.00	04:36
22	00:00:22	0.11	03:3

http://connect.garmin.com/splits/48596861