Kiss of the Spider Woman.....!

.....there she was waiting for me again............................black dot, just off centre top!

Down she came on her web as I turned on the tap for a drink, posed stunned for a minute for a photo shoot & then quickly

scrambled up the web & on her way back into the spout. I don't know what sort of spider she is, but in case she sprang at me I didn't go in for a real close up!

I'll have to use the other tap - I feel really mean giving the poor thing an unexpected waterslide each morning. I know how I'd feel if I was asleep in my bed & someone came in & hosed me down & out!

Program : 5 - 6km 'easy' run keeping a low heart rate.

And that's exactly what I did : 6km with Avg. HR = 68% of Max. Up to 90% on hills.

A cooler morning after yesterday's 32 degrees; 23 today...just reverse the numbers!

Get On With It.....

.....and I was able to get on with it at Chev track, now that there are 6 lanes marked & that's 6 more than when I was there last.

Program: Usual warm-up, drills, strides.

3 Sets of 4 x 150m in 43-44 seconds with 2:00 minutes recovery between repeats; more between sets.

I had to pace out a distance of 150m, but difficult to do with Mr G-armin who doesn't seem to like going round in circles! I got a slightly different distance several times going backwards & forwards over the same section - so, completely accurate it is NOT! Hot it was - 32 degrees; strong breeze for a headwind.

Set 1. 43.9; 42.0; 41.7; 41.5

Set 2. 42.7; 42.9; 43.5; 42.6

Set 3. 43.6; 43.0; 43.8; 43.4

......all within the specified range, but slower than the previous same session. Oh well, I'll catch up some other time. Except I was forgetting : "time flies"!

Back From the Dead.........!

......awake and back on the road!

Program : 5-6km 'easy' run @ low heart rate.

I ran easily for 6km along Diamond Fields Road this morning : first run in just over a week. HR = 70-80% of MHR.

All the little niggles have gone & I enjoyed the run - and that was something I was forgetting to do & the reason I took time out.

Nothing to Lose........

..... taking a week or two doing some easy low heart rate "run as I feel days".

Blogging 'out' till there's something to write about!

Incey Wincey Spider......

...........there he was coming down the water spout just as I cupped my hands for a drink!

There was a heavy mist over the area this morning when I started out, late as usual, & then became very hot as the sun broke through. On the way back I stopped to drink from a tap in the "Old Historic Cemetery" in Diamond Fields Road. Lo & behold, another Incey Wincey was waiting to exit the spout, but this spider unlike the one who lives in another tap, clung onto the waterfall. I didn't want to drown him so I turned the tap off , Incey Wincey ran back up the water spout & I left as dry mouthed as I'd arrived. So, don't drink from taps before testing for spiders!

Program: Medium Long Run. Start with 60 minutes & increase by 10 minutes each week until 1 hour 30 minutes is reached. Low Heart Rate.

Easy run for exactly 60 minutes & then walked about 1km back to the car.
Distance = 7km. Avg. HR = 70% of Max. 109-130bpm.......higher on hills:

No problems with hamstring niggle; had it taped; icing & gentle stretching during the day.

Tomorrow - NOTHING!

Planet of the Apes.....

....All that was missing were the apes & I'd have thought I was on another planet!

I decided to take Mr G-armin on a course he'd never experienced before : a trail bike course that some of the local youngsters & their dads have cleared & dug out in an area of bushland about 1km from home. Great job they've made of it too!

http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/1916300

http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/analyzer/view.mb?episodePk.pkValue=1916300

I walked to the start of the trail & followed it as it wove its tortuous way through the bush. I did NOT pretend I was on a bike & fly up, down & over those huge craters! What fun it must be though...on a trail bike!

Having jogged comfortably there, I left by taking a rolling dive - just like the commandos do in the movies! - under a barbed wire fence & into the paddock where I walk the dogs.. Here, I followed the narrow cattle track to the top of the paddock & to the water trough where the cattle come to drink. I did NOT pretend I was a cow & drink though my tongue, like theirs, was hanging out for water!

Around the corner into Bong Bong Road, there's a tap on the nature strip - big drink & lots of face splashing. Here it's always a good idea to let the tap run for a while before drinking - on some earlier run I remember turning it on, cupping my hands & down the spout came a dirty big spider!

Program : 5 to 6 km max., easy run - low heart rate.

I stopped jogging at 6km & walked the last 1km home. Before starting, I taped the top of my left hamstring & didn't have any pain during the run, but now I haven't the courage to rip the sports tape off - I'm sure I would get no thrill at all from having it torn from the top of my leg & half of my butt...etc....etc....!! It's a case now of which falls of first : the strapping or my leg!

My Left Foot...........

........My left LEG really! I couldn't finish today's session : a sore hamstring right at the very top of my left leg. I suppose that's where hamstrings are : right on the edge of the butt. Whatever it's called, it was painful & I stopped the session & iced it when I got home. Feels OK now, but has been a bit niggly for the past 2 weeks.

Program : Chev Track ...after the usual warm-up etc..

3 Sets of 4 x 150m in 40 -41 seconds. walk back recovery between 150s; full recovery between sets.

I did 2 Sets of 4 x 150m (each one with a limping start - seconds lost!), so the times were bad:

49.7; 46.1; 44.9; 44.3
45.7; 45.2; 47.0; 47.0

I'll need to monitor my sore left leg....one session at a time!

Stiff Upper Lips.....

.......stiff lips? They were about the only part that wasn't stiff when I set off on today's very easy run. Surprising after 2 days rest; however we do what we have to do no matter what!

Program : 5 to 6 km very easy run....low heart rate.

I jogged easily for 6km along Diamond Fields Road & felt as stiff as a board all the way!

Stopped to have a short chat with one of the property owners who had recently been on a climb to Mt Everest base camp. His next venture is a walk in Mongolia & later this year, 20 days walk in Germany following the Rhine & wine routes...... The latter sounds good to me!

Tomorrow - back to the track. Here we go again, happy as can be......

In My Next Life......

...In another life I want to be a bug!

I'm sure some of them are impervious to heat, but this old chickybabe isn't!

The Program: 800m race, AIS Track, ACTVAC, Canberra, 11th January.

This was an attempt at the 800m National Record, W75-79. I missed the record, but managed to come up with a PB of 15 seconds for that distance. I'm more than thrilled with that result!

Conditions on the night were pretty awful : 38 degrees at 7:00 p.m....that's why I want to come back as a bug, have another crack at the record & just fly around the track & not be affected by the weather!

I felt like I was about to die when I finished : legs lactic, lungs bursting, throat on fire & coughing like a consumptive! I've had that coughing/about to throw up feeling after 800m before. It's not very nice & what's worse, it lasts for several hours. ....unable to stop coughing! Strange or natural?

It'll take all of this weekend for my body to cool down & freshen up to begin some training next week, so I'll continue to watch tennis & just enjoy the break.

A great 2 days in Canberra : thanks to Flash Duck, AKI, Strewth, PRB & Ewen in particular & all whom I met at the track who as usual always make me feel so welcome.

A very special "thank you" to all my Blogging friends here, who left comments of support - when I read them I got quite a big lump in my throat! Now I wonder what that could be caused by!!

Track 29.......?

......I couldn't find any lanes at all on Chev's track this morning. The grass had been cut & all the lanes had disappeared!

Lurching around like the Hunchback of Notre Dame, I found traces of white & set about measuring (how accurately?) a start & a finish for :

Program: 4 x 150m @ 800m pace from a running start.

5 x 50m @ 800m pace from a standing start.

I marked a start & a finish but with no lane to run in there were a few inconsistencies both in times & distances.

150m repeats in 45 seconds; 50m repeats in 15 seconds.

This session may have been a waste of time......time will tell!

Drive to Canberra tomorrow, Wednesday; ACTVAC Thursday night & return to Mittagong on Friday.

A Day Off......

Pilates DVD & watched the tennis!

One Sunday Afternoon.......

.....after a friendly 'chat' with this young fellow, I was at nearby Renwick soccer field to do some 100m pace practice.

Program : Changed from the usual long run to running some 100m (30 seconds) & 50m (15 seconds) at a smooth, even pace; some to start from stationary & others from a running (10-15m) start.

This session was my idea. Ewen's response when I suggested it was : "You are smarter than you look!"
I could hardly argue against that!

I did LOTS of these in the given times; took rest breaks after each 4 & during the rain showers; stopped when my legs began to feel very tired, but probably only ran 2 or 3 km all together. This session was in preparation for ACTVAC 800m, next Thursday night, AIS track.

Said good-bye to the little calf & went home for a nana nap!

I Meant to Slay the Tyrant......

......but this time he won & I lost by just a few seconds!

Program: 800m Time Trial...on the 1500m road course in Bowral.

Usual warm-up, drills & strides.

I had Virtual Partner set to run the 800m in 4:10 but secretly intending to outrun him & finish in 4:05. These tactics will have to change as V.P is now fully aware of this strategy.

My Time = 4:12. I started out just a bit too fast & wobbled the last 100m!

http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/1846546

Still......there's always another day! Virtual Partner.....

It Seemed Like A Good Idea At The Time.........

.......but not so sure when I saw 'the grass was as high as an elephant's eye' at Chev Track this morning....and wet. I'll have to write to the School Board to get my oval mowed!

Program: Medium Speed.

Warm-up 2km. Few drills. 3xStrides.

2 Sets of 5 x 150m 'hard' : 38-40 seconds.

2:20 between repeats & 5-7 mins. between Sets. 800m Warm-down.

Set 1. 41.8; 39.9; 38.7; 39.0; 38.8

Set 2. 40.0; 38.7; 38.7; 38.9; 38.6

Conditions considered, these times were OK ...... for someone being chased by "Father Time"!

The Leap Into 2007.......

..........began today! It was to have been a track session at Chev but torrential rains put an end to that one. Instead, I "stole" a training session from Ewen's blog, but had to use the gym treadmill. I think it worked quite well...we'll see/hear later!

Program: 5km Time Trial.

Warm-up : 2km; no drills or strides.......Oooops! Here comes trouble with a capital "T"!

Warm-down : 1km jog/walk

Time = 31:02

Max. HR = 94%/145bpm; Avg. HR = 85%/ 132bpm; Lowest HR = 47%/73bpm (according to Mr G-armin).

I'd forgotten to look at the handboodk to see if Mr G-armin needed anything special in order to work indoors & on a treadmill. As a result, for whatever reasons, he didn't give me the splits for each km; a bit annoying because I wanted to compare mine with Ewen's! I think I would have been faster, but suppose I should check it out to make sure!!

Edit: Courtesy of Ewen : On the treadmill I wasn't moving.... I was running on the spot. I just didn't think of that! No wonder Mr G-armin didn't perform as expected & Ewen was subtle enough to suggest that the my new streaky hairdo might be getting to me!

To All Who Stopped By To Read Or Comment during 2006...

........and