Final "SOS" week

"SOS" means a run that is "something of substance" - long or higher pace, be it speed, strength or marathon pace. This week was the final week of that - Wednesday for strength intervals, and Friday for marathon pace. Long distance is done with already. 

Monday (19): still have a lingering sore throat from my recently banished cold. I slept an uninterrupted 8 hours thanks to a new firm pillow. Hoping for sleep like that every night until race day. 

13k recovery run through Fish Creek Park, into an unpleasant wind initially. Too fast, each time I looked at my watch. Hope that bodes well. Did the 13k, which includes the always trying Sikome Hill, in 1:05. Next!

Tuesday: 11.5k recovery. 17 degrees and felt a little tired at times, though on each occasion when I checked my watch I was going too fast. Core workout after I got home was good, though wobbly for the first set of lunges and single-leg deadlifts. I actually felt quite energized. I made sure of that by having the biggest bowl of tortellini you've ever seen.

Wednesday: last strength run - 6x 7 minutes at 4:15-4:20/ minute pace. 20 degrees for a run feels like the heat had come along all of a sudden. It's taken until May 21 to run in a singlet. The inevitable posers with no shirt on appeared too (If anyone is a "not a real runner", some if these men might count - only doing it for vanity). 

Once again, almost every time I checked my garmin, I was going too fast. I'm a world champion sweater, and despite that, what felt like a 4:15 effort was actually 4:10 and under. I did the whole 16k, which includes 5 sets of traffic lights at the start and finish, in 1:15:30. 

Thursday: just a nice core workout in a boiling hot gym that may have forgotten to turn on the air-con.

Friday: final SOS run - 17k at marathon pace. 23 degrees and partial cloud cover. Very sticky. Again I'd check my watch and have to slow myself down. 

What does all this mean, having to repeatedly slow myself down during training? I might be faster than I think, but I should also take care during the race to control my enthusiasm and speed. 

Saturday: like every Saturday, bus to the gym and run home after weights. As it's taper time, I did 2 sets of my 12 exercises rather than 3. 13 k run home with backpack on in 17 degrees, so got a little messy. 

Sunday: 13k, shortest Sunday run since early March. Felt much better at the end. Energy level seems to be rising. 

There you have it, my first training cycle using the Hanson method pretty much out of the way. All that's left now are easy runs, nothing more than 10k.