Day 5 .........Whatever...

....no set program.


........Pilates Class at the gym followed by 25 minutes on the elliptical trainer. Glorious day in the Highlands...last day of Winter!

Day 4 - Track Intervals

.....all the white lines are back on the track at Chev. No one else there which is always comforting because I'd hate for anyone to see how I struggled today...the mind is willing but the body is getting on a bit!

Program : warm-up, stretches, some drills & 4 x 100m strides.

6 x 800m @ 90% of MHR. 2 Sets of 3.

Warm-down & some stretches.

Well, I tried, but it was a struggle the whole time & I'd forgotten just how hard a Hard Day can be! To make matters worse, I completely messed up Mr G-armin & as a result I have no lap times, which Ewen said would have been helpful! I'm pleased I don't know them...they would not have been good. I'll use the Polar next track session. The only light moment that came out of this session was much later, watching the red dot on the MotionBased Player (after the download of the other rubbish), showing the 2 trots I made to the toilet block & back onto the track...I had forgotten it was tracking my every movement!

Day 3 - An Easy Day.

Program : 30 minutes at a comfortable pace. 4 x 100m strides thrown in somewhere!

I went cross to Ironmines Oval just so that I could do this short run on grass. The gates are locked on week days, so no cars means no one goes there & the oval, which has 2 soccer fields, is all mine!

Before starting, some drills & stretches.
Followed the white outline of one of the soccer fields for 30 minutes, (why did I do that?) doing 4 strides along the long sides & jog the short sides between each. Did some more stretching after & then sat on the 'grassy knoll' for about 20 minutes just enjoying the sun & quiet. Easy session. Wore Frees. Successfully downloaded the session to "MotionBased"...the red dot on the Player looks so funny going - I can't say round & round - up, across, down & across the soccer field over & over..I think about 12 times!

Up close of the plaque... ..it says:

"In the year 1848 John Thomas Neale, Thomas Holmes, Thomas & William Tipple Smith established the first iron smelting works in Australia near this site and fabricated products from iron ore mined here."

Interesting how many had 'Thomas" in their names. "Tipple Smith" an unusual last name!

Monument erected in 1948..100 years later.

Day 2 - "Whatever Day"

No Training At All!

Day 1- Long Run

The plan for today was to return to Range Road for a run 75-95 minutes at 75-85% of MHR.

I hadn't been back there since doing long training runs before the Canberra 50km Ultra & a change of scenery is always a good thing...so I thought!

After a cup of coffee, I made an early start (for me!) around 11:00a.m, drove the car to where I wanted to start the run, and with Mr. G-armin for company, set off at a slow jog. About 1.5km later, I took a look at Mr G-armin to check progress, etc, only to find a blank face staring back at me.....battery out!

Now, the real reason I'd chosen Range Road was so that, when I returned, I'd be able to have lots of fun playing with a new toy provided by Motion Based, of watching myself dressed as a red dot, running up & down all the hills...I find this endlessly fascinating! Also, I hoped to find a way of putting the Google Earth satellite image onto my blog.

The thought of having to do the run & have no toys to play with when I got home was too much to even contemplate, so I ran back to the car, drove home, plugged Mr G-armin in, all the time swearing & cursing like a fishwife! After all, I'd got up early specifically to get back & start the red ball rolling.

I waited....waited, waited....until Ewen sent an email telling me I needn't wait till the horrible thing was fully charged. By now, it was another cup of coffee & 2 hours later & off I went again

to the same spot on Range Road, with Mr G-armin & myself fully charged & ready to go! I don't think I was quite fully charged by this time!




I found the course a challenge; it was quite a while since running a hilly course; we both ran out for 48 minutes, but returned in 41 minutes...good! It was now 4:00p.m. & nothing other than 2 cups of coffee all day! I drove triumphantly home, fell into the shower, had a bowl of soup & a bread roll & then tackled the task of finding why the satellite transferred to the computer all in black!

Several emails to & from Ewen, & with nothing else to try, I decided on uninstalling & then installing Google Earth again. Success!! The satellite image transferred successfully to my blog.
(A feint red line in the centre shows the course.)

If nothing else....it proves perseverence wins the day...and I am mighty pleased!

Day 14 - Whatever/Rest

Pilates DVD and take the dogs for their run in the paddock.






This flowering plum is humming with bees....
...they make melodious music.

Day 13 - Easy Day & Spring Is Here!

A few photos of the garden with some of the daffodils & trees in bloom.



Program : 30 to 45 minutes at a comfortable pace (75 -85% of MHR).

Started the run on Bong Bong Road, onto Old South Road & part of Diamond Fields Road & back to the soccer field for a few more stretches.

I must hve taken it very easy....49 minutes; 5.1km. Wore 'Frees' again today, being only a short run; they give more feel to where feet are landing.

Today was a day of great achievement! After 24 hours of driving Ewen mad trying to get me started with "MotionBased" software, I succeeded with the help of a lovely lady, called Kathryn, from MotionBased in California, the US of A! I had made the unforgivable (but apparently not unusual mistake) of opening, not 1, but 2 accounts & thoroughly mixing together 2 different Email addresses, User Names & Passwords! Now it's all sorted out & I have all these pretty pictures & lines & charts & I can even use the 'Player' & see myself running out, turning around & coming back to the start. I think it's the most exciting toy I've had in a long while!

Thank you, Ewen, for being so patient with such a goofy CB!

Day 12 ......

Pilates Class 8:30a.m. at the gym + 30 minutes very easy run on the treadmill.

Day 11 - A Hard Day.

...Renwick Soccer Field for a Short Speed Session.....called 'Diagonals'.

Warm-up, Stretches, Drills (getting good at these I think)!

4 'Diagonals' running corner to corner hard, but with goof form. Jog across short sides.

Did 3 Sets of 4 with 3 minutes recovery between sets....12 diagonals. Avg. HR 70%; Max HR 90%

Warm-down : jog once around the soccer field & some more stretches.

Weather perfect: warm, sunny, no wind, slight breeze. Wore Frees. I liked this session & can't see any problems with it.....very possibly Ewen could though!

Day 10 - The Grassy Knoll

A Moderate Day......
....Looking across the incline used for hill repeats today at Ironmines Oval. Very windy, but sunny, wore Frees.

Program : warm-up, stretches, 4 strides.

20 x 40m hill. Slow walk down recovery & rest for 4 minutes between sets.

5 Sets of 4....an increase of 1 set.

As far as I can tell, this went well. I did all repeats with concentration on form. The extra set of 4 didn't bother me at all. I like this kind of hill training.

OK...this pic. shows the steepness a litle better!

John's Funeral.

Today I went to my brother's final farewell...... red roses were his favourite flower .


Rest in Peace, John.

Day 8 - Tempo Run

A Hard Day!

Program : 4km Time Trial at 'solid' pace.

Ran 2km out & 2km back on Old South Road on a flattish stretch of sealed road alongside Mittagong Airstrip.

Splits : 7:05; 7:00; 6:57; 7:02

Mr G-armin measured 4km which turned out to be at least 200m longer than what I'd been using when measured previously by car!

Ewen approved of the even splits which I told him were all done with 'goof' form!

Day 7 .....

........sat in the sun reading a book, did a Pilates DVD and walked the doggies.

Day 6 - A Medium Long Run.

Program: 50 -65 minutes at an easy pace...'talk to the cows' pace.........

The cows pretended to listen......

A bit windy, but sunny along Diamond Fields Road; felt good to be out in the sunlight, fresh air & open spaces. Jogged very slowly for 66 minutes according to Mr G-armin, and covered a measly 7.1km....but I enjoyed it!

Day 5. "Whatever Day"

I took myself off to the gym for a Pilates Class; I enjoyed it, but am still a little ambivalent as to whether it's going to actually do anything for me. I could see it working better in a one-on-one situation......perhaps I need to learn patience as well! After all, it's only the second lesson.

After Pilates, I suppose to satisfy the feeling of actively accomplishing something, I did 5 minutes cycling, 5 minutes treadmill, 5 minutes cycling, 5 minutes treadmill, 5 minutes cycling.
I felt more satisfied after that little effort!

Thank You!

Thank you, everyone; it has been immensely consoling for me to read your kind thoughts and prayers at the sad passing of my loved brother.

R.I.P. My Brother.

I sat with my brother, John, through his last three days & two nights, tending to little things like giving him sips of water, making sure he was comfortable, stroking his arms and head, moistening his mouth with a sponge dipped in water and letting the nurses know when he was in pain, then morphine would be increased till he had no pain at all.

I had always promised John, when he was first diagnosed with prostate cancer 6 years ago, that I would be with him at any stage of his illness - and there were a couple during the last 12 months - when help was needed and especially when the final time came and he would have a loved one with him for support. I am very happy to have been able to keep that promise.

In the very early hours of Monday morning as I held a glass of water to his lips, he said: "I wish death would hurry up; he's knocking at my door". I knew he was ready to let go and he did so, very quietly, at 2:00p.m. this afternoon.

I knew & loved my brother for my 76 of his 78 years...almost a century, not quite, but still a very long time.

Rest in Peace, John.

Day 12 - A Whatever Day.

Amongst the list of "things to do" on 'Whatever Days' is Pilates, so this morning I began the first class of an 8 week course for beginners. The class began at 8:30a.m & I'm never out of bed (in winter anyway!) at that early hour, so time for a coffee & off to the gym.

I realize the lass in green definitely does not look like she's a Pilates expert, but it'll do for a Whatever Day!

I have to say I enjoyed it a lot; about 10 in the class & an excellent instructor who, after demonstrating breathing & simple movements, went round checking individually that each person was doing exactly what she wanted in each exercise. Time = 1 hour.

After that : 30 minutes on the elliptical trainer; then shopping, then home for brunch at mid-day.

Tomorrow, Sydney again; rest Saturday and.......with what's left....run(?) C2S Sunday!

.......................................................................... we did this!

Day 11 - A Hard Day.

..... .......Just "Me and My Shadow".....at the soccer field.

Program : Short Speed.

Warm-up, Stretches, Drills.

DIAGONALS : Run corner to corner (hard), slow jog across the field & run other
diagonal, jog across & continue.....4 diagonals.
Rest 3-5 minutes & repeat twice....12 diagonals in total.
Warm-down = 2 laps of the soccer field.

This was a HARD session, but I liked it as I do all the sessions that Ewen gives me to do; felt good & ran it "Hard" with goof form~!

Sunny but very windy in Mittagong today.

As for Mr G-armin...enough said! He went off his brain this morning & then started to tell me to slow down! Of course, it could be my settings I suppose!!

Day 10 - A Moderate Day.

On the grassy knoll for Hill Repeats.

Brilliant day : sunny, warm, not even a breeze & Ironmines Oval all to myself.

The program : warm-up, stretches, strides & some drills.

16 x 40m hill. Four Sets of 4, with walk down & 4 minutes between Sets.

This session took me 1 hour 15 minutes to complete; I think I did it well, & even if I didn't, I still liked it!

Did the warm-up, etc

Hill reps. increased from 3 Sets to 4....remembering goof form... as instructed to tuck my bum in towards the top!

Recovery between sets shortened from 7 minutes to 4....this was sufficient time.

At the top of some of the inclines, Mr G-armin kept telling me to "Speed Up"!! As if already having one pedantic bastard (sorry, W!) telling me what to do isn't enough!

Short walk cool-down & stretching.

A very satisfactory session!

Day 9 - A Whatever Day.

...Taking advantage of a non-training day to get the train to Sydney & see John (my brother) in Concord Hospital; back this evening.

Day 8 - A Hard Day.

It wasn't all that hard really! More like a consistent effort for the entire run.

Program: TIME TRIAL 4km.
10 minutes warm-up; stretches.
4km @ a 'solid' pace, around 7/km pace.

Results of the 4km TT = Avg. pace 6.49; Max. pace 5:45
HR Avg. 86%; HR Max. 93%

Time = 26:18.12

Day 7 - Whatever Day

.....another wet & cold day; good for 'Whatever"....which will be a Pilates DVD & some stationary form drills.

Hard day tomorrow.....regardless of rain or whatever else falls from the sky!

Day 6 - Medium Long Run

At this minute (4:00p.m) , every kind of weather is happening : it's freezing cold, the sun is out & it's raining! Temperature hovering around 7.5 degrees....brrrrrr!

To the gym this morning for the treadmill & the Program : 50 - 65 minutes 'easy' running.

Did some stretches first; 60 minutes ('talking to the cows' pace) and finished with a few more stretches.

Day 5 - A "Whatever Day".

..... a bit of #6 & a bit of #7 = gardening & reading blogs! I must apologise though for not commenting recently on others blogs.......time to do so has been scarce lately. Thought for a "Whatever Day".......................>

Day 4 - A Hard Day.

Track Intervals at Chev.

Program : 10 minutes warm-up.
Stretches.
3x100m strides.
Form Drills.

6 x 800m @ 90% of MHR. Do 2 Sets of 3.
2 -3 minutes walk recovery.
6 minutes rest between sets.

6 minutes warm-down.

To avoid the school "kiddies", I left it till 12:30 p.m. (lunch time) to go to Chev track in Bowral. Worked well, no one using my track! Max. temp. today 11 degrees.

I did all the pre-workout stuff; drills with very goof form!

But, Golly Moses! This was a hard, hard session & I tried very hard to run with 'goof' form, but it did drop a little in the last repeat...I was struggling to keep moving! Anyhow, the results were a slight improvement on last Day 4 times:

Set 1. 5:07.6; 5:12.1; 5:07.8
Set 2. 5:10.8; 5:09.5; 5:06.6

Walked round Lane 8 for a warm-down.

Ewen said I did this session 'magnificently'! That makes me feel a whole lot better, because I was thinking I wouldn't do it again...too hard! Now I'll try to improve on those times next Day 4. Amazing what a compliment does for a girl!!

Day 3 - An Easy Day.

I woke up feeling quite crotchety this morning....and couldn't work out why!

The brilliant sunshine soon chased that away though and I headed off to Ironmines Oval for today's 'easy' session :

30 minutes of comfortable running + 4 x 100m strides.

....and that's what I did! Avg. 74% of MHR; 3.7km.
I took Mr G-armin with me & he behaved very nicely, but there's a lot to him that I have yet to discover.

Track tomorrow!!