Running

Solid (aka ridiculous) numbers as always.

Finally feeling like I’m over this cold and I’ve shifted a few kgs with the return to running and strict diet. Hit my target of 81kgs today so I’d love to hit sub 80 for race day in 2 weeks.

Also worked out I need an average of 4 miles a day if I want to complete the strava distance challenge for the month (200km/124mi). It’s pretty arbitrary but the last time I managed it I was on good form, keen to see if I can resurrect that. Especially as the fitness trend graph suggests I’m rather out of shape.

Yes, and no. I enjoy looking at the dynamics, but I can't see any real use for them apart from.....

I did used to play top trumps with a clubmate after our races using various values

Good running this week at chez cookiemonster

Little monster managed to crack 12 minutes with an 11:50 something at the junior 2k parkrun this morning. Not at all bad for a 5 year old. He left one of his schoolmates dads behind. He’s gets the concept of pacing - takes it easy at the start then picks through the field in the first half lap, and really hunkers down for the last up hill bit when he’s tiring. #prouddad

And I feel I’ve got on top of training efforts with an 8x800 on Tuesday, two 6 mile easy runs Wednesday and Thursday; 6 miles Saturday with 2 x 2 miles at 20s over target 10k race pace, and 10 miles today at reasonable aerobic pace.

It’s taken me a while to gauge, firstly what repeatable paces are in a given session, and then to understand what repeatable sessions are in a given week or weeks. I’ve dialed back the mileage and brought down the interval pace and I feel like I’ve got to something that gives solid training efforts without grinding me down

Posted elsewhere but was discussed here too so an update:

First 2 days of CIRF done, known areas of weakness in understanding/experience/current practice highlighted, other areas of understanding confirmed, however some of the course content & discussion has left me completely bewildered. I'm struggling to find a support coach and have been left with the impression I need to commit alot more time (multi-nights per week at a venue) to coaching than I have available, e.g keep my monday session as run focus but run a separate drills/flexibility session too.

Not the best of starts, but I'll hang on in for day 3 do the bits required inbetween and see where that takes me.

Nothing remotely as impressive as anyone else, but I've kept on getting some miles in - moved from many 5k's to fewer 10k's, which has allowed me to keep the distance/week roughly the same but got a couple of days off when I was feeling a bit rubbish.

I had intended on trying a half marathon today, but was working until 5pm and didn't fancy running along the thames in the dark and increasing cold, so did the (now standard) Forest Hill loop:

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Hmm, that's what I feared. I'm trying to justify a 735 over a 235, but geeking over numbers doesn't really cut it. But the 735 supposedly has better navigation and no longer missing turns is a better justification for the €100 premium. So I think I'll go for it.

I have a 735, have had it for a few months and like it. I've not used a 235, but I never really considered that over the 735.

Mine was £253 or so from biketart.com with a discount code

I've just ordered it in a bundle with an HRM-Run from Bikester for €310 which should be about £270.

Happy to finally get rid of my TomTom Adventurer. I kept using it because I didn't want to look a gift horse in the mouth (got it as part of a sponsor thingy) but with cold weather the optical heartrate is worthless and I refuse to invest in their BLE bullshit.

Why is optical worthless in the cold?

This is an example from last week, I took off around 6pm when it was still reasonably warm, when the temperature dropped after sunset it starts missing beats and reporting nonsense values. The intensity didn't change, nor did my perceived heart rate. It might have been slightly lower, but nowhere near the reported ~85 bpm.

See my expertly drawn blue line for an estimate of what it should have been.

To be clear, I'm not saying this holds true for all optical sensors, but it did the exact same thing last year so I wanted to go back to chest-HR.

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Ah right. My wrist optical HRM - a 735 as it is - went a bit bonkers the other day but in the other direction. Started reporting 180+ while out doing some zone 2/3 training. My self check of my pulse on my neck was nowhere near the reported 3 beats a second. It seems like it's been really consistent apart from that though!

One minor thing - the plastic on the HRM on the back of the watch cracked quite a bit, to the point I had to pay for a repair/replacement (£90~). After a bit of research I discovered it was because of the suncream I was using (Riemann P20 or whatever it's called) degraded the plastic because it's thinned with alcohol. Admittedly not a massive problem in autumn/winter, but worth knowing all the same!

Garmin's Optical HR is pretty poor, only really useful for non-active monitoring (i.e. doing all-day HR).

I don't think I've ever had a run (or even a walk) where the HR hasn't had some significant wobble to make the min/max/avg useless.

On runs I sometimes I see big jumps (up to the correct HR) after an initial lower period. On long walks it often jumps down after a period.

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/3068205634

(Pretty much constant ~5.5kph throughout and my HR did not jump down from ~105bpm to ~60bpm whilst still moving.)

For anything I care about I wear the HR strap (HRM Tri).

(All of the above on a Garmin Forerunner 935 here)

Not much of a suncream user so I should be safe but that's good to know, cheers!

I usually wear a Garmin Vivosport with optical HR, but when running i'll put an electrical/traditional HR strap on which is paired with my (now old) Fenix.

I keep looking at the Fenix 5+, but can't justify the outlay.

Looks like I'm 3 for 6 on ballot attempts

Congratulations!
What are your tips for a successful ballot? I'm 0/2 and hoping that refreshing my inbox whilst really wanting it will help this time around.

no idea.

2014 - entered randomly after seeing someone had done the same on facebook and i was just home drunk from the pub, got in
2015 - was waiting poised to enter when ballot opened as this was when there were finite entries and not just a set no of days to enter, reference nos on email confirmation seemed to indicate I was in the first couple of thousand entries (maybe even hundreds), got in
2016 - entered as soon as possible, didn't get in
2017 - entered as soon as possible, didn't get in
2018 - entered on the first day it opened, didn't get in
2019 - entered a day or two after entries opened, got in.

edit: was 3/6 not 3/5 I can't do numbers good.

I was 0/6 or so but 1/7 after last year. Got my mag today (no great surprise as I'd deferred last year's entry due to foot injury so I knew I was in).

Is it that time already? Congratulations!

Pretty sure I'll want to be getting involved in London 2019, but not sure whether I fancy pacing again as opposed to racing. Will see what state the mojo is in after Frankfurt!

@HatBeard @Greenbank Thanks for the feed back, I was joking on the desire for tips as I'm certain the lottery functions as randomly as it should do. Although if you have employed any eldritch machinations for entry, such as chanting Sir Richard Branson's name backwards three times under a full moon, I'm willing to give it a go.

looks like im going to be a supporter for a friend doing the london marathon - she is going to be pretty slow, so i am going to move around at points along the route to wave etc.
are you left to your own devices with the London marathon or is there a shuttle bus service around the route?

Public transport all the way. Not surprisingly it gets busy on the DLR and relevant tube lines but it's very doable.

Suggested itinerary (I've done something like this a few times...)
Start: Creek Road, between Greenwich and Deptford (mile 7) NOT middle of Greenwich which gets really busy. South side of road so you can access Greenwich DLR station. Then DLR to Westferry. Here you can see runners at 15 miles, as they head from Narrow Street to the Isle of Dogs. Then cross the road at your leisure to East India Dock Road (just over 20 miles) before getting back on DLR to Tower Gateway, and either take your chances trying to get another view around 23 miles, or tube it to Embankment or Westminster for the final mile or two, where it's even busier, but then at least you're not far away from meeting at the end. (Walk down Whitehall and through Horse Guards where the meeting area is.)

All sorts of other options for multiple stop-offs using the DLR, as Docklands is much better for viewing than some other places, although Canary Wharf itself also gets very busy.

AWESOME - i love this forum- thanks @PhilPub !!!!

In theory it is possible to view at multiple points and I have had success at this, primarily watching people running sub 3 hours.

This year, though, my wife found it very very difficult to get away from Westferry and struggled to meet people around there due to the density of the crowds. I also ended up on the embankment around 4.5 hours in and it was uncomfortably busy. So maybe do a spot at the beginning and then a spot at the end.

Poplar High Street is my favourite spot now. It's around 21 miles in, so everyone looks very serious.

There's a Tesco on one side and a greasy spoon on the other. Greasy spoon side is easier to get away from, because you don't have to cross the road at all