Training Week Commencing 1st October 2012

Monday: rest

Tuesday: rest - still ill

Wednesday: 30 easy w. 6 x short strides AM; PM 70 steady

Thursday: 30 easy AM, PM 87 minutes including 3 laps BP (10:49, 10:49, 10:11 - AVG: 10:36 / 6:03mm)

Friday: 44 easy AM; 53 easy PM

Saturday: 58 wu, SEAA XC Relays (16:05), wd

Sunday: 2 hours to and around Wimbledon Common split - 30 easy, 5, 1, 2, 4, 1, 2, 4 minutes hard with 5 minutes easy between, 35 easy

Despite being substantially better after Tuesday I remained semi-ill all week. Wasn't too worried about running through as the only symptoms were producing prodigious amounts of phlegm.

Not sure if it affected the race on Saturday but I was generally pleased. I thought it was a marginal improvement from my run at the 6 stage. At the 6 stage I was healthy, on my favorite surface and conditions (rain!) and raced really well. Here I was mildly ill, on my least favourite surface and conditions (sun!) and didn't race particularly well. A slightly better performance in overall terms is therefore quite encouraging.

The xc relays were a great day out on the whole and a real pleasure so full credit to Thames Valley Harriers who both organized it and won and especially my friend and former Tortoise teammate Sean Renfer. I know they aren't the best attended fixture in the calendar but they're a great start to the xc season on a mild non-challenging course with a fab atmosphere.

I really enjoyed Sunday's long run/ session which is a much milder version of a Charlie Spedding workout he details in 'From Last to First' (which is excellent). I really struggle to get a decent pace going on my long runs so this is a great alternative. Many runners refer to the long run as a session in itself and this just takes it one step further! The long recoveries mean that by the time you're starting the next rep you've already knocked 5 minutes off your long run. The combination of the recoveries and the relatively short duration and limited number of reps mean you can get some really good quality work done. By doing it on a xc course you're strengthening your legs, not worrying about pace and concentrating on getting the right effort.

Next up are 2 more weeks which should be in the mid 70s finishing with the first Surrey League D2 XC. Bring it on!