My Final MHFS Training Session 2008

Having done a 2 mile easy run on Tuesday and not being able to resist, another 2 mile easy run on Wednesday it was all been building up nicely to my final training run. I completed my MHFS program yesterday with a bit of a flurry. I was meant to run:

• Tempo Run
  Dist: 5mi, inc
  Warm; 3mi@8:26; Cool

I’ve just noticed that this is the exact same run as I started on day 1 of this program, 11 weeks ago. An interesting point.

So how’d I get on? I started off the run and immediately decided I’d increase the distance to 6 miles. I was panicking about not being able to do the 10k at average pace of 8:03 min/miles to get me under my 50min target which is something I’ve been aiming for since I started running.

Instead of sticking to the plan I started running faster, without warmup I covered the first mile in 7:53 (it has an uphill and long downhill section), onto the 2nd mile and I’ve warmed up by this point and continue running at what I thought was a comortable pace, albeit quite fast. Not long into it and a quick check of my watch shows I’m on for a 7:15 min/mi 2nd mile, so I panic and start to slow a little, but not enough and end up completing mile 2 in 7:24 min/mi pace (fasted outdoor mile - daft I know). This worries me quite a lot as I have another 4 miles to go. I wanted to get to 8:00 min/mi pace too see if I can sustain it. The 3rd mile I again manage to do this slightly fast in 7:51 min/mi but I could feel it starting to bite, a lot of this mile was on a gradual uphill. My heart was pumping but I was determined to keep going. Onto mile 4 and I was feeling better by this point, I posted a respectable 8:05 min/mi and had slowed sufficiently that I thought I’d complete the last couple of miles at 8:05 min/mi pace. I was comfortable but knackered at the same time.

Mile 5 was where it came unstuck, 4.46 miles to be exact, I’m coming round and can almost see the home straight and feel a stitch starting in my stomach. Within seconds it’s too sore to carry on running, I tried to slow but it wasn’t happening, I had to stop then walk for a bit. It was a good couple of minutes before I could get back into a recovery/easy run pace. I decided to shorten the distance and go back to the gym at an easy pace. I covered another mile to give me a total distance of 5:57 miles. Total time: 50:54

I was very disappointed with having to stop as I would have been able to do my 10k training in under 50 mins. I had covered 4.46 miles in 34 mins. Looking at the data, I covered the first 3.68 miles in 28:34, which knocked 1:30 off my time for the same distance around strathclyde park, and that is mostly flat.

Hopefully the stitch was to do with diet more than fitness, I had a few beers the night before (I know, I know) and that morning I’d decided to have two weetabix instead of my usual apple/banana combo. I’d also drank a couple of cups of coffee instead of one cup of coffee and a litre of water.

If I can avoid the stitch and take it easy over the next two days I think I should have done enough to post a sub-50 min 10k for my first ever 10k race.

On the plus side, I kicked the smoking into touch on Sunday 7th June, so have been feeling the benefits of that.