Bed Time!

Yesterday, Tuesday, I went to an early morning session at the gym warming up with 1.5km on the treadmill and following this with free weights concentrating on the upper body.

Wednesday is the busiest day of my week. At 6.15am my RPM class starts and lasts 45mins before I head for the abs class which is 15mins. She truly gives us killer abs exercises - ouch! Then after work I meet Ewen for our middle distance run from the office to the lake following Esst Basin past Molonglo Beach and over the bridge before we turn and follow the track back the way we came.

It was very beautiful out there on the lake with the lights reflecting in the water after darkness set in. However, a lot of the pathways we run are unlit which means that there is a risk of losing your footing and we therefore ran with caution on the return journey. We chose to run much more slowly than last week partly to do with the darkness and partly to do with Ewen wishing to keep his heart rate down. For this run speed is not priority. As usual the company was enjoyable and in spite of the cold we saw lots of little bunny rabbits - in fact one group looked like they were having a party!

Distance: 15:34

Time taken: 1:33:43

Average pace per km: 6:06

Calories burned: 910

And now, as the title says, it's bed time!

And the temperature drops down, down, down!

Gee, it was soooo cold in Canberra today. The sudden drop in temperature brought out all the winter woollies and skarves - brrr! I went to my RPM class to warm up which I definitely did but that was at least indoors. Going to training at Parliament House after work was another story. It was so damn cold and obviously it's only a taste of things to come. Everybody was wearing long pants and long sleeved tops. Two people even wore gloves! We ran a similar course to last week except the sprints were shorter (about 580m each) as it was very dark indeed and the slow jogs between were up hills and about 350m. I was so glad I wore my headlamp as it would be very difficult to know where I was going without it. Our numbers dropped this week probably due to the cold snap. It was barely 5degrees out there this evening and I understand it's gradually heading for minus 1 overnight - brrrrr, I repeat brrrr!

Distance: 8km
Calories burned: 478

Mt Majura on a brisk Canberra morning

On Friday night Mr B and I thoroughly enjoyed Matchbox 20 playing at the AIS stadium. It was truly awesome. The support band was Thirsty Merc and they too were fantastic - both groups were very entertaining and it was a wonderful night topped off by seeing lots of people we knew from different parts of our lives including Charlie who had an equally good evening.

Then last night we went to the movies to see The Painted Veil - wow, it was so fabulous - it made me cry. I love movies that make me cry - either from happiness or sadness. This was sad but we both really enjoyed it.

Now back to the running!

It was a little nippy this morning for the Vets' monthly handicap run at Mt Majura - not called Mount for nothing I might add! It started on a hill (I soon warmed up and was glad I just wore a singlet top) and there were several more undulations thrown in for good measure but I have to admit it was great to be off road running hills again and I enjoyed it in spite of myself. I actually felt quite comfortable and surprised myself with a reasonable result in a time that was 2 minutes faster than the same course last year. Yippee! Of course Mr B and CJ and lots of my running buddies were at least 7 minutes faster than me but I was happy although I know the handicapper will be tough on me as I came in 12th in a field of 98! :(

Distance: 10km (9.91km according to Gandalf 2)
Time taken: 56:34
Average pace per km: 5:39
Handicap Group: 22
Place: 12th
Calories burned: 582
Total distance for week: 66.34km

Later a large group of us enjoyed brunch at Carlo's in Watson - a great opportunity for a catch-up. On a cold blustery day it was a lovely way to finish the morning.

Yay for a Long Weekend!

It's so good having an extra day in the weekend. What's more, it's a stunner out there today. The sun is shining and it's the perfect day for a run. So why wait for Saturday - let's do it today instead. Just one little glitch - having run hard yesterday afternoon and consistently the day before it felt just a tad more difficult than I anticipated. However, I'm so glad I ran my long run today cos it means I have a rest day tomorrow before the Vets' Handicap on Sunday. Besides the forecast for the rest of the weekend is COLD! And so I ran from home round Lake G (where everyone and their dog and child and stroller and bike was out and about and at times it was a bit of an obstacle course!) Then on towards Gungahlin before turning and heading for home. This course is mainly on cycle tracks although I tend to head for grassy verges to prevent injury but as my long runs become longer I may head back off-road to some nice little undulating tracks - hmmm, we'll see.

Distance: 24.01km
Time taken: 2:21:30
Average pace per km: 5:53
Calories burned: 1412

Total distance for week: 56.34km

Sprinting towards Anzac Day.

Another sprint session today at Dickson Oval. This time Neil led us in speedygeoff's absence following his instructions. We ran a couple of warm-up loops of the oval then did a similar session to last week, only this time without the batons or relay. In other words we ran round the 400m track on the oval as follows:

200m fast/100m slow x 12

except that I lost count and apparently ran 13 repeats. Still it's better to run too many than not enough. We ran the cool-down loop of the oval to finish.

It was great to catch up with Caroline and Marg during the warm-up and cool-down parts - no ability to talk during the sprints!

Total distance: 8km

Calories burned: 460

A Run Full of Surprises

This morning I arrived at my spin class to find that my favourite row of bikes had been taken and I had to cycle in the front row - eek. I much prefer to hide! As a consequence I had to work even harder than usual as everyone could see me . Boy, I certainly did work hard so I was a bit worried about my run with Ewen later in the day. However as it turned out it was a lovely run and I felt quite strong. Maybe the morning spin class helped after all!

Distance: 16km
Time taken: 1:32:12
Average pace per km: 5:46
Fastest km: 5:17
Calories burned: 940

We started out at 4.45pm and the conditions were perfect. We ran from my office in London Circuit across the bridge to the lake and along the East Basin side of the lake past Molonglo Reach over the bridge and out towards Fyshwick for 45mins before turning and returning the way we came. Just past Molonglo we found Marg running towards us and when we turned she ran another ten minutes with us before turning back. It was great to see her. Then on our return journey round the lake we saw Christine from our training group. It was one of those days when everyone was out and about and we soon discovered why. As darkness approached we remembered that there were to be fireworks in three separate places on the hills to celebrate the Olympic Torch Relay tomorrow and we were in a prime spot to view them. We ran up the grassy hill near Stage 88 and had a great view of the fireworks - a real bonus. The carillon was all lit up in a gorgeous red/pink colour and there was a stunning sunset earlier in the evening with fabulous reflections in the lake. It truly was a lovely evening for a run, great company and ideal conditions.

Glad to have a headlamp!

This morning I went to the spin class at the gym for 45mins of highly aerobic cycling. Tonight it was speedygeoff's (in absentia) session at Parliament House. It was the same as last week in that we ran a warm-up loop of PH and another half a loop before starting the main session which consisted of:

3 x 950m with the same amount of distance run gently in between each set.

We finished off with a warm down loop back to the start.

Total distance: 8.25km

Calories burned: 825

Fortunately this time I remembered to use my headlamp. It certainly helped to see a little on those dark curling paths weaving in and out.

Let's Do the Time Warp Again!

I've just had a fantastic weekend. Six of us (three couples) drove to Sydney to see The Rocky Horror Show last night. It was absolutely fantastic. A couple of us dressed for the occasion!

Yesterday morning before departing for Sydney I fitted in a long run.

Distance: 24km

Time taken: 2:21:35

Average pace per km: 5:53

Fastest km: 5:16
Calories burned: 1415

Total distance for week : 56.3km

It was a good run from home out to Gungahlin to Horsepark Drive, round Yarrabi Pond and back home. There was a nasty head wind in some parts which made me struggle but on the whole I was happy with run and the music playing as I ran.

strewth as Magenta (that's me with the red hair) and Mr B as Brad!

Back to the Oval

Tonight was quite a fun session at Dickson Oval but it was very tough and definitely outside my comfort zone which was the requirement for my training session. Quite a few people who hadn't been at sessions since last year turned up tonight. It was great to catch up.

We ran a couple of loops of the oval to start and the main set was done as one big relay with four people passing batons after fast 200m sprints while some of us tried to keep up with them before they passed the batons and jogged for 100m. In other words it was similar to last week's session in that we sprinted for 200m, jogged for 100m and repeated this 12 times. However, I had to really run fast to try to keep my partner in sight let alone keep up with him - good fun though, at least I can say that afterwards! We finished with another loop of the oval.

Total distance: 7km

Calories burned: 410

Roger running at the half-way point of the marathon and CJ on the home straight

Some days we just need to run!

Distance: 15.33km

Time taken: 1:30:05

Average pace per km: 5:52

Calories burned: 901

Fastest km: 5:27

Locality: East basin of Lake BG - out past Molonglo and return to office in London Circuit

Ewen met me a little earlier today. We started off at 4.45pm and had an awesome run. It was cool but pleasant, no wind and just becoming dark towards the end of the run. I have just started training for the Gold Coast Marathon in July and today's schedule was for 1hour 30mins so we ran for 45mins and turned and ran back for the same time. It was a really pleasant and enjoyable run, much needed to relieve a very very stressful day in the office. Gee, running is a great release sometimes.

Roger and CJ before the marathon - eager smiles!

Happy little speedygeese!

Charlie in the last leg; Gary being cheered on by Rachelle





LL just after she finishes
CJ on the home straight; Caroline being de-numbered after her 50km after the hail storm

Roger,CJ, spody & Gary - all happy speedy geese finishers!

Tuesday - A trip to the gym this morning to lift some weights and do some much-needed stretches and abs work.

But wait there's more - photos galore!

Charlie running under blue sky - LL being relieved of her running chip after the marathon

the 'toasties', speedygeoff & ewen

CJ & Charlie - all smiles
Thea running in the rain - still not warm enough to remove her jacket

Some of the supporting speedygeese- strewth, Rachelle, PRB & Ewen make speedycoach look smug!

Monday morning - RPM/cycle - 45mins class at 6.15am

5.30pm - speedygeoff's training at PH

Distance: 10km

Calories burned: 594

Warm up loop of PH followed by shorter warm-up loop then main set consisting of 3 x 950m fast interspersed with 2 x 950m slow. This week I actually managed to fit in all three fast 950m so was pleased about that. Then we had a warm down loop weaving in and out the dark tracks. It was difficult to see and annoyingly, I remembered to take my headlight but left it in the car! It was mind boggling to note that after the marathon the day before speedygeoff still took our session and Gary even ran an extra km with me to collect my long sleeved top which I had left at the start of our main set. They have both recovered so impressively - obviously doing the right training!

Tomorrow I will publish some more marathon photos. I have a few!

Canberra Marathon Weekend!

Saturday - Marathon Eve

Today Rachelle and I decided to put in a late entry and run the 10km marathon eve run. At least this way we could feel part of this awesome weekend. It is rather a boring course, spectator friendly but mainly flat and on hard concrete and looped round and round and round - hmmm. This was a first for me, quite different from running the marathon but the cheering was fantastic and there was still a big buzz in seeing those familiar faces out there and hearing my name called out - thanks guys. It does help!

Distance: 10km
Time taken: 54:20
Average pace per km: 5:19

I was quite happy with that as I haven't run a 10km race for ages. I may run the Mothers Day one just to attempt to improve my time! Rachelle ran a PB of 47:20 so was very happy with that - awesome!

And today, Sunday, was marathon day. What a day. The race started in the rain - a gentle drizzle followed by a steady downfall for an hour or so before the sun decided to push its way through the clouds and slowly there was some warmth out there. I have now discovered that being a spectator can be very exhausting and very exciting all at once. A group of us ran to the 5km mark, cheering loudly at PH, then on to the 8km mark for more cheering, before running on to visit Katy and Mark in their stunning selection of cheer squad gear in a sheltered spot under the bridge. They are so amazing with their fantastic and original outfits which they changed regularly to brighten the runners' day and lift their spirits. Originally Mark was to be a pace marker but he became injured and unfortunately had to pull out of the run. That didn't stop these awesome Queenslanders from getting into the spirit of the event and making everyone else's day much more fun.

We ran on to the halfway point where we had a great view of our running buddies - so many familiar faces out there, so many smiles, so much pain. Then back to the finish so that we were in time to cheer in the winner and all our awesome running friends and speedygeese and stay cheering on our favourite W75 - Luckylegs, looking amazing and strong at 5:35 and Caroline after her 50km finishing in a hail storm! Well done CJ, Charlie, speedygeoff, Griffin (who is now officially a Griffin), LL, Caroline, Roger and Thea on her debut marathon. Woo hoo, the speedygeese rule - we are the champions! Long live the speedygeese!

The awsome Lucklegs looking fresh as a daisy at the finish and Thea happy to finish her debut marathon!

Griffin becomes a "Griffin" with big smiles from Mrs Griffin!

Dickson Oval speed session

I am sitting here nodding off so I had better wake up, write this quickly, pack my gym bag and go to bed for some sleep! After work today I went to speedygeoff's Thursday Dickson Oval session. There was a good turn-out of people and the weather was mild and perfect for training - marred only by the fact that it becomes dark quite early and then it's difficult to see the potholes!

Distance: 8km

Session: A long warm up loop of the oval followed by a short warm-up loop.

Main set: 12 x 200m sprints with 100m slower jogs between.

It was tough but a good work-out. It was great to catch up with Barb who has just returned from another trip to refresh her kiwi accent.

Best of luck to all those people running in the Canberra marathon on Sunday. I very much envy you and will really miss running it this year. However, I will be out there cheering you on in my CR gear!

Trying out the New Shoes!

Yesterday at lunchtime I replaced my shoes with Brookes Axiom which is what I was using before. The latest pair have purple bits and tone in quite well with the 'berry' pink running gear! I was unable to purchase a bigger size in the Mizuno and these feel comfortable although they're not quite as pretty!

After work today I met up with Ewen and we ran a middle distance run giving me a chance to run in my new shoes! We ran the East Basin and continued on through the Wetlands, past Kingston and back to the start. As we passed Molonglo we met up with Chris running in the opposite direction. He turned and ran with us back to Kings Ave at which point he returned to where his car was parked. It was lovely to run with two very tall gentlemen and I felt secure running through the unlit backblocks where I would never be brave enough to run alone.

Distance: 16km

Time taken: 1:39:13

Average pace per km: 6:12

Calories burned: 960

We were slower than last week but that could have been because we ran with extreme caution in the unlit parts as nobody wanted to turn an ankle or run in potholes. Next week we will take lights!

Parliament House becomes darker!

Rachelle and I arrived early enough to run about 2km warm-up before the rest of the group arrived. We both ran in our new shoes just for the warm-up but I am wondering if I should have selected half a size bigger as I can feel my toes touching the end when I run.Kathy suggested taking them back to the shop when she is working tomorrow and just checking the next size up for comparison. Better to be safe than sorry!

This evening's session after the warm-up loop and a half was the same as last week. 950m undulating repeats with slow recovery runs of the same distance between each one. Then another warm-down loop.

Distance: 10.5km (including extra warm-up at start)
Calories burned: 430
With daylight saving ended the sun sets much earlier and we were running our last warm down loop in darkness. Looks like I may have to hunt out my headlamp!

Women's and Girls' Fun Run in the Sun!

It was a stunner of a day for the W&G Funrun. I collected Rachelle in plenty of time to collect our numbers and catch up with just so many friends and acquaintances who seem to come out of the woodwork at awesome events like this. There were almost 1,300 entrants of all shapes, sizes and abilities and it really was a great atmosphere. Our speedyganders were cheering us on from the sidelines along with those speedygeese who had run longer distances beforehand and of course all those many other families and friends supporting so many people. It was a well-run enjoyable event. I did not run very well, possibly a lot to do with little sleep and a bad week but I was happy. It didn't matter, it was all about having fun and that was there in multitudes. I wore all pink today (except for the shoes which definitely looked a tad grotty) and thus it was that Rachelle and I trotted off to the Runners Shop after a pleasant lunch for a little retail therapy. R was in search of lovely track shoes and I was in seach of shoes with a touch of pink to complete my outfit. I bought some Mizuno shoes in the end after trying just so many others. They feel comfortable and lightweight. I'll try them out in the warm-up before tomorrow's session and will hopefully run in them at the 10km marathon eve run.

Distance: 5km

Time taken: 27:05
Average pace per km: 5.20
One of these days when I'm feeling bug-free and fit I will beat that elusive 5min km pace!

Daylight Saving Ends!

This week has been a bit of a disaster. I had a few days off work sick and as a consequence was unable to run between Monday's training and today. It's taking a long time to shake it off and energy is lacking. However, this morning I bit the bullet and organised to meet CJ for a coffee at Black Pepper at 9.30am. This would ensure that I ran to meet her there at that time. Besides Mr B is in Bathurst this weekend at a squash tournament so I am free as a bird. He's such a gadabout but by all accounts is winning his matches so that's good.

Anyway the run wasn't too bad. I felt very heavy and slow for the first half and then at about the 10km mark I met up with CJ (totally unplanned at that time) running in the opposite direction so I turned around and ran the rest of the way with her, back to our coffee spot! That probably made me speed up a bit!

Total distance: 15km
Time taken: 1:29:52
Average pace per km: 5:59
Calories burned: 890

It turned out to be a stunning sunny 21deg day in Canberra today with not a breath of wind, not many of these days left now I imagine, but oh boy it was pretty damn cold at 8am! Tomorrow is the Women's and Girls' Fun Run. Although I have entered I know it will be a slow run. After all the emphasis is on having fun in the sun. :) I must remember to put back my clock as daylight saving ends. How sad. Summer is truly over now.