• 6th-12th April

A really good week with two sessions. Keep those easy runs “Aerobic”. Happy to discuss HR, pace etc. I think what I’ve learned recently is too many of the team have been doing their easy runs too quickly and with a HR too high. I plan to post an article on this next week. As for the 10k, it should be a race you go into completely relaxed with no pressure. It’s just week 2 of this plan so you can’t expect to be at peak shape right now. Work hard and see what happens, as long as you do that you cannot be disappointed. Any problems with the schedule just shout.

110 Points Achieved

MONDAY

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2pts | Stretches

2 POINTS

A stretching routine you can do daily to help with your flexibility. 30 seconds for each stretch is plenty.

3 Points
Feeling so much less stiff and sore than expected after yesterday’s race, noticed some flexibility improvements tonight as well. Hopefully my body is doing its normal thing of feeling pretty battered for the first week of a training block but adapting quickly after the first week is done, actually doing mobility work should help this as well.
Yeah it’s often the small habits that make a difference like these stretches and you’ll start to see with simple exercises like touching your toes that you mobility will improve. Just glad you are feeling pretty good after that first week. One of my long term runners Lou C said she followed you last night and was impressed with your running.

TUESDAY

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22pts | 5 x 4 Mins

22 POINTS

10 Mins WU @ Easy Pace (RPE: 2)

4 Mins @ 5K Pace (RPE: 8)
2 Mins Recovery
x 5

10 Mins CD @ Easy Pace (RPE: 3)

Ideally you’re looking to match or beat your current 5k pace. This is a really simple but effective session. Working to time rather than distance allows you to do these sessions with runners of different ability. Very best of luck,

22 Points
Not my best work got 2 reps about the right pace the rest a bit over what I wanted, it was super windy tonight and somehow it seemed to always be a headwind so this made it a lot harder than expected. I worked at the right intensity levels even if the numbers look at bit slow on some reps. Probably went out a bit hard on all reps and then died in the last minute as I was working so hard with conditions.
This is great feedback and generally what I would do is I would reset my pace target before the session begins. So into the wind you’re probably looking at 10 seconds extra at this pace, if not more. It just helps avoid going off too quickly. Having been forced to do most of my speed work solo due to Covid and then coaching commitments something I find a real game changer is using a metronome. Once I know my 5k,10k cadence, I just stick on the metronome and use that to pace me. Your cadence is really good looking at your data but during the reps here it does fluctuate between 184-196 which is a big difference. If you to run it all at say 190 or 192, you find a really nice rhythm and it most likely improve your form and economy too. I wrote this the other day which may help (https://pbrunner.co.uk/tips/work-on-cadence-using-a-metronome/). Worth a try, some runners hate it. I love it. Even ran an entire HM during covid with the metronome on. After saying all that, really well done on putting in another big effort here so soon after Sunday.

WEDNESDAY

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2pts | Stretches

2 POINTS

A stretching routine you can do daily to help with your flexibility. 30 seconds for each stretch is plenty.

10pts | Gym Legs/Core L1

10 POINTS

A good all round session to work the legs and core. You should have built up to this fairly gradually, so don’t dive in head first as you want to take your time building your strength. Be sensible with the weights to begin with.

If short on time combine 2 exercises together (superset) them to save on the recoveries. Ideally one leg exercises and one core exercise where possible. Eg squats and planks.

15pts | 50 Mins Run

15 POINTS

It’s important to keep the easy runs easy. Focus on good running form and low heart rate.

28 Points
Swapped today’s run and Thursdays round as tomorrow’s club run will take an hour. Ran today without seeing pace on my watch and tried to keep heart rate in low 140s instead, definitely harder in the heat but pretty much achieved this and it meant a much slower pace as last week these runs probably where too quick. I moved the strength to tonight as well, Friday is looking busy and the strength on weds and racing Sunday worked well last week. Also did the stretching, can really feel mobility changes when doing this and the strength work.
Great day’s work. Well done Laura. I like that drop in pace. It might look slow, but on the trails, that is right. Now you are doing more speed sessions you need to keep these easier, for sure, otherwise you won’t have it in the legs to hit those paces. There should be too extremes really in the training at the moment, easy and hard, we don’t want much steady, that’s more for HM and marathon training. You may have heard the “grey zone” mentioned, that’s would be your HR somewhere in the 140-160 BPM where you’re going too fast for those aerobic benefits and too slow to make any speed gains.

thursday

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18pts | 60 Mins Run

18 POINTS

Keep that RPE down. You want to be able to run and chat, speaking of which, joining a group can add to the enjoyment here.

Had to cut short due to stomach issues so did 38 mins instead of the planned 60. Not sure what the cause of the issues were as I have a famous ability to eat a huge meal and run on it, maybe pie and roast potatoes are a limit I shouldn’t go over. Ended up running a little quicker than I should have to get back quicker.
Just one of those things that can’t be helped. I’ve had similar experiences in the past and it’s incredibly uncomfortable. Just glad you made it back. If you can make up those missing mins later in the week, that would be great.

FRIDAY

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2pts | Stretches

2 POINTS

A stretching routine you can do daily to help with your flexibility. 30 seconds for each stretch is plenty.

10 Points
Got an easy 22 mins run in to make up the lost time from yesterday, feeling much better today and ran this without looking at pace again. Stretches are complete they seem to be helping with recovery between runs legs are feeling fresher than I would expect
Thank you. This makes me happy. And I like that ignoring pace approach and just keeping it easy. Glad to hear the stretches are helping too. If we get it right, in terms of the easy pace and recovery you should find you feel ok between the key sessions.

SATURDAY

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Rest Day

0 POINTS

“Rest days are key. Our body adapts and gets stronger when we rest & recovery. Have a good one!”

SUNDAY

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45pts | 10K Race

45 POINTS

2km WU @ Easy Pace (RPE: 2)
8 x 100 metres Strides (RPE: 9)

10km @ 10km Pace (RPE: 6-8)

2km CD @ Easy Pace (RPE: 3)

Control what you can. The warm up, strides, getting the early pace right and staying positive when it gets tough. You got this!! If it’s a hilly route do your research.

45 Points
Really happy with how this race went, the route was different to last year so my strategy went out the window opted to try and run as even splits as I could. Course was on trails not road, a reasonable amount of undulations and some really sharp bends. Came 6th woman and 2nd in age category so although it’s my slowest 10k race on time it’s probably the best I have run a 10k. Body felt much better today than the race in March after a proper taper. I did 7 of the strides not the full 8 as the toilet queue was ridiculous.
Really pleased this went well and you felt strong. I think incorporating these into your training will make a big difference and it proves you can run good times off the back of a busy week of training. Keep doing what you are doing and you’ll see some strong gains. Well done Laura.