Nearly there

As I write this it's starting to dawn on me that my first half-marathon is only 2 weeks away. This may not seem like a challenge to some more seasoned runners, but considering this time last year i could barely run across the road without looking for an oxygen tank I'm very happy with the progress I've made. However the more i think about it now, the more my nerves are starting to come into play. I start to question whether i've trained enough? Have I done everything I can to make a decent go of it? I guess these are the sort of questions that creep into the mind of a first timer, so hopefully they will disappear closer to the time.

5.7 miles through Carraroe

Anyways, I got a few miles in this week, not as many as I'd like due to other commitments (plus a head cold that i finally seemed to have shaken) but went out last night to get a run in. I settled on doing two loops of Carraroe last night just to get some miles in. The one thing I like about Carraroe as opposed to running in Salthill would be the slight inclines that are on the main road, these can be deceptively tough but at least force me to work a little harder in my runs, especially when the second loop comes around.

The other thing I've noticed lately is that I seemed to have abandoned the water bottle on these runs now, it seems that as long as I take on board plenty of water during the day I don't need it for these runs. So am considering that progress in my book:)

Location: Carraroe Loop x2
Distance: 5.72 miles (9.2 km)
Pace: 9:27 p/mile
Time: 54:06

4 miles and a breeze

Despite the fact I'm nursing a head cold, I just had to get out and have a run. It was the start of the Fit4Life season again last night in Galway so I figured a group run would be the ideal thing to keep me going and try and open up the lungs and get rid of this head cold.

As it was the new season, plenty of new faces were to be seen last night, our group consisted of about 30-40 runners starting at 10:30 p/mile pace and down to about 10 minutes per mile. So a nice and steady start to the season. Although i would imagine that the headwind we had to compete with slowed a lot of us down significantly. But the one upside was when we arrived on the Dangan campus which belongs to the local university, the wind died down significantly due to the cover from the trees. All in all a nice first run back with the group, just need to pick up the pace over the Winter and we'll be sorted :)

Location: Westside to Dangan loop
Distance: 4.0 miles
Pace: 9:50 p/mile
Time: 39:23

Early Run (For a change)

Anyone that knows me will definitely vouch for the fact I'm not a morning person, so was pleasantly surprised to see myself get out of bed at 7:40 (not early for some I know) to sneak a quick run in before work. I have taken a break since Tuesday's run as I've been feeling a bit under the weather and figured it'd be easier to get a run in this morning as I won't be home in the evening.

Short Run this morning

Out the door I went at 8 am, figuring a short run this morning would do me the world of good to get back into it. Looking out i figured a t-shirt, hoody and shorts would be the order of the day, as it was a bit breezy,overcast and pretty much crappy all round weather. Out i went and started on my way, still a bit of soreness in my legs for some reason - i really need to start stretching on the off days just to make sure i'll be okay for my longer runs. Any suggestions for good stretches would be much appreciated.

I made it to the main road and i'm always surprised how quiet Carraroe is at 8 in the morning, i would expect plenty of activity but all I met on my first two miles was a council truck resurfacing the road  and that was about it really, but that said i love it when its like that, makes the run all the better when the place feels like it deserted. Only when i got into my third mile at about 8:20 that things started to get busy and I was heading back towards home that time. It was a nice way to start to morning, but i regretted the hoody in the end, was cooked by the time i finished the run. Ah well live and learn.

Location: Carraroe
Distance: 3.11 miles (5.01 km)
Pace: 9:01 p/mile
Time: 28:05

10 Miles and an Ironman(Not Me!!)

As I only had one run done last week I was a bit worried about hitting the 10 mile mark in my training and probably couldn't have picked a harder route to have done it in (although difficulty is relative to the person doing it I imagine :) )

Anyways I arrive in Galway early on Saturday morning, fully conscious of the fact that the half-Ironman competitors were arriving and was greeted by a form of chaos and cheery individuals all rolled into one. I was even mistaken for one of the athletes doing this incredible feat - which did my confidence the world of good as well as my ego.

That long long route

So I got down to the Prom in Salthill, had a quick stretch and off I went. I have to say I was fairly distracted by the activity in Salthill but loved the buzz, plus you could only imagine my envy at the bikes on display as I jogged by thinking "I want one of those". I eventually negotiated my way out of Salthill and off I went, into town and out towards Renmore which is a nice change of scenery for me, even if the inclines killed me a little, but i know thats going to be my weakness when it comes to running, but something to work on in the next year or so. I reached Renmore and turned back towards the roundabout which lead back towards the Headford Road and out towards the Quincentenary Bridge. Out past the hospital i went and out towards Taylors Hill (God I'm really beginning to hate that hill), which is about 10km into my run i slowed to a walk for 90 seconds as the hill finally beat me. That hill is now my challenge to beat in the future, i was not happy having to slow down to a crawl to beat it.

As i finally reached the top of Taylor's Hill I proceeded across to the Knocknacarra road, and plodded along, grateful to finally see the road back into Salthill :) It never ceases to amaze me when you know the end is near that you can find an extra gear in your legs to finish the run. As i landed back at where i started I felt a great degree of satisfaction, even if the walk up Taylor's Hill felt like a bit of cheat in my head, hopefully that was a once off and won't happen again :)

Location: 10 mile loop - Galway City
Distance: 10.14 miles (16.32 km)
Pace: 9:24 p/mile
Time: 1:35:20

Ironman(Not me!!!)
I was lucky enough on Sunday to catch the tail end of the Ironman in Galway on the Sunday, have to say it would inspire you to watch people give it their all for 70.3 miles and the joy on their faces when they complete it.

One of the many finishers on the day

Just have to say congratulations to all the finishers and competitors, it was an amazing achievement and would inspire anyone to get out and run, cycle or swim. Well done!!

Another 5 miles down

After the weekend of running and walking (did a sponsored 6 mile walk on Sunday), it was back to the training last night. Was not sure where to go but stuck to the old reliable of the Inverin Bogs where the roads are long and very quiet (bar the odd car that flew by me).

My start point last night

One thing about that road is you simply can't beat it for scenery, plus the mix of modern life and countryside side by side. I parked up at the local wind farm, quick stretch and off I went. The evening was ideal for a run, not cold or warm -  just a pleasant evening to hit the road and knock out a few miles.

The long lonely road in front of me

I'm starting to enjoy these 5 mile training runs, i don't really feel the discomfort anymore running them -  even the inclines on the bog roads are getting easier and hopefully will keep me in good stead for the long miles ahead of me. Its a great feeling of peace running in a place like this, and sometimes think I'm blessed to have this kind of quiet when training.

Next up is a 6 mile training run on Thursday in Baile an tSagairt, a serious hill challenge for a novice like myself. So here's hoping that my training is starting to pay off.

Location: Inverin Bogs
Distance: 5.2 miles (8.37 km)
Pace: 8:46 p/mile
Time: 45:38

Bogs of Spiddal

Never realised there was bogs up in Spiddal until last night, and some big potholes to boot, which the rain didn't help matters with, so plenty of bog hopping last night :)

Anyways I met up with the local athletics club Tríspórt last night at 7:30 to join them for a group run. Running on your own can be a bit tiring at times and enjoy heading out with them whenever i get the chance. Even the threat of a torrential downpour last night that thankfully didn't materialize didn't deter me.

The course itself was a 7KM run. We ran on the main Spiddal to Inverin road and turned right at the pier road and went up Bohoona for 2KM. At the top of Bohoona we turned left and continued across a bog trail for 1.5KM and then turned left again and went down Salathúna for 1.5KM. This took us out on the main Galway road and headed back to Spiddal for 2KM.

This was a new route for me and thought it was great, always love a change of variety in my routes and the lads and ladies of Tríspórt are great for finding these routes. I can't even find them on mapmyrun.com so that says it all really :) Think it may be time soon to invest in a GPS watch.

Location: Spiddal Loop
Distance: 4.35 miles (7 km)
Pace: 8:28 p/mile
Time: 36:51

Night Run

I hadn't originally planned to stick a run in last night but for some strange reason after getting home at 10 o'clock I just fancied stretching the legs and sneaking in a couple of miles, some would probably call it an affliction, I would call it an addiction :)

Anyways when I got home i settled on retreading an old route which I used to do when I started running last winter, plenty of street lamps so that i didn't have to wander too far off the beaten track. So i parked up and off i went, first time in a long time i wore a hat and hoody for a run which was strange in itself. It's a nice feeling to just  hit the road and get a few miles in, even the wind and cold don't bother me anymore. Going through Carraroe it was so quiet, but just made the run more pleasant for me.

Location: Short Run - Carraroe
Distance: 3.5 miles (5.62 km)
Pace: 10:26 p/mile
Time: 36:34

Back out again tonight for a group run around Spiddal, has just pelted down rain here -  so here's hoping for some dry spells even for 45 minutes tonight :)