Seven weeks out from attempting to run under two hours and fifty minutes at Amsterdam Marathon. Everything is going as it should. Sessions are getting longer, mileage is creeping up and I have no injuries to speak of. But running 15 miles at a 5:18km pace this morning with an avg HR of 138bpm is still hard to wrap my head around. Back home this kind of pace would be closer to 120bpm, but (as I keep reminding myself) this is altitude and this is summer. Ignore paces, train according to HR.
It’s still weird though.
We decided to park up in the van on Monday night at Lake Matemale, so that we could jump out of the van and onto to our easy run trails in the morning, rather than having to drive 15 minutes from the Chalet. Undoubedtly the worst nights sleep of the trip. Lemmy is such a bloody fidget. I told Holly that I was going to run alone the next morning. Her easy pace is not my easy pace. Today I just wanted to plod along at 6 min k’s. 7 miles went by but I finished the run in a grump. Holly told me I wasn’t to do a second run and this made me even more grumpy. I knew she was right. I did, however, go to the gym. Lower body push/hold isometrics and heavy upper body lifting. 100kg for reps on the bench felt about as hard as 150kg for reps used to. We’re just tired. Home for sausages, couscous and a white chocolate almond Magnum. And a square of chocolate… it is session day tomorrow after all.
Wednesday Session: Absolutely pissing it down this morning. And freezing. At altitude, the seasons change overnight. We had our toasted baguettes and headed for the track (after walking Lemmy of course).
The workout: 20 minutes at marathon pulse. Jog 3 minutes. 5x3 minutes off 90 sec recovery. Jog 3 minutes. 20 minutes at marathon pulse. Using the altitude conversion feature for 1800m on Jack Daniels Vdot, the 20 minutes came out at 3:59 per k. Reps were between 3:34 per k to 3:39 per k. The last 20 minutes saw splits of 4:09 dropping each k all the way down to 3:51 on the final k) Average HR for the whole workout was 154bpm. 99% of my runs, according to Coros have been poor to fair since being here. Today I was rewarded with an ‘excellent’ effort. Thanks Coros, you’ve made my day.
Thursday consisted of an easy 7 miler around Little Canada, which isn’t easy because it’s all undulating trails, however, the afternoon gym session was good and a further 3 miles easy on the treadmill. I like this phase of a marathon block when I can start incorporating more isometric lifting into training. I enjoy the change of stimulus and the fatigue reduction it brings.
We knew we had another session the following day so we hit the evening meal hard. I can’t quite remember what we ate, but I do know I had a magnum and a chocolate pot for desert. And then some more chocolate. I’m telling you, fuelling is the key to surviving marathon training- altitude or not. I see some quasi-celeb runners on SM who actually cut weight during a marathon block. How? IMO this is the single best way to get ill or injured.
Friday: Session 2: 5 miles at 5-10bpm lower than marathon pulse followed by 5 miles at marathon pulse. We found an excellent 3.5km loop around the lake and, whilst not flat, was all tarmac. Average pace was 4:09 and avg HR was 157. Good session.
Saturday: Rest Day. We lay in bed until 07:20. The mornings are much darker and colder now. Three weeks ago I’d be up and wandering around in shorts and a tee. This morning it’s walking trousers, a down jacket and a hat as I take Lemmy out whilst Holly runs. I feel as though I could run, but with a 16 miler lined up tomorrow, I’m already headed for a 71 mile week - my longest ever!
Sunday: 16 miles around the lake. HR still very high for the pace I’m running but I kept it in the upper end of my aerobic threshold and finished with an avg pace of 5:05. I guess I have to remember that I’ve never had a training week with this much volume and it’s coming after consecutive weeks north of 60 miles, again, something I’ve never done before. Honestly, I feel surprisingly good.
Tomorrow we head to Chamonix for our final week. Finally a chance to drink good coffee again and eat Ribs at the Micro Brasserie. We’ll drive 8 hours in one stretch tomorrow after our run, park up near the sports centre and do a session on the famous 300m track the following morning, before wandering into town.
70.712 miles logged for the week. Goodbye Font, you’ve been a 3 out of 5 on TripAdvisor.