Manchester Marathon 2022

TL;DR - 3hr13'39" - 1:37:55 half split 1:35:44 second half

Headed out just before 7am to catch the first tram of the day. Met another runner at the stop who was not familiar with the ticketing system so lent some knowledge to aid him. We ended up chatting most of the ride into the city centre and onto our connection station at Cornbrook. Inevitably the chat turned to shoes - he was premiering in a pair of Nike Next%. I think he ran well looking at the results afterwards. 

Straightforward arrival into the start zone at Old Trafford and took the opportunity to have a final pee using the cricket stand toilets. No problems. Had a quick meander around the start but decided to grab a seat at one of the many picnic tables and chill. I gradually started to take off layers in prep for the bag drop which was easy at that early start time. 

Started off super cautious, but in truth I was inside 3hr20' pace from the off. I felt super comfortable and controlled throughout the early km's so kept the ~4'30" / km rolling nicely. Crowds were great at the start but thinned out a little nr Whalley Range/Withington Rd which are residential and it was an early Sunday morning afterall. One guy seemed to be up for annoying his neighbours and might have been in a dispute with one of them as he has his hi-fi speakers pumping out tunes from his flat. Brave lad round those parts. 

As we approached the city centre section the crowds picked up and running out and back along Deansgate was superb. Lots of people cheering loudly and making it feel like the big event it is renowned for. I heard a good few shouts for the Sale vest along here and also as I head back out of the city along the A56 towards the start area once more. 

The little loop out towards Trafford Wharf was again fairly quiet but passed by easily. Still feeling great at this point and confidence was building I had settled into a good rhythm. Of course a marathon is a long way and I was very mindful the lack of training would surely show later in the race. 

Passing through Stretford I knew I was approaching home territory and felt really good to be running once again after the injury layoff . Lots more positivity from the 'home crowd' as I approached Sale. Under the M60 and onto Cross St passing Crossford Bridge the crowds were brilliant and lots of familiar faces cheering and shouting encouragement. It really is great running through Sale wearing a Sale Harriers vest. You feel like a bit of a star for those few minutes. An extra spring in the step is unavoidable and riding the crest of the wave very intoxicating. I did remember to ease back down once I had passed by anyone I knew so not to get carried away. Very important. It's still a bloody long way to the finish and at this point the half marathon is still a good few km's away. 

Turning left onto Park Rd nr West Timperley takes you towards Timperley itself. Lots of vocal support once again and passing the halfway point in around 1hr37' I felt good and well under my initial conservative estimated time of sub 3hr20'. I realise I haven't mentioned my nutrition yet; I drank a couple of mouthfuls of water at each station and took my energy gels at 8km intervals as I have done in the past. It was quite a cool morning so no need to pay too close attention to taking on lots of water. 

We turn right onto Stockport Rd just before Timperley and head down to the A560 which is the other out and back section of the course where you pass other runners either up ahead or behind you depending where you are in the race at that time. Lots of the faster runners were going well at this point and I saw a club mate going very well as we exchanged motivational shouts to one another and I realised he was going very well to already be through Altrincham and heading for the finish. 

I'm still going well and nothing is feeling bad, breathing fine, ankle fine and legs in general fine as we approached Altrincham. I realised as I approached Alty that we were running it in the opposite direction to which I had run the route in the past. There is a small hill to deal with in either direction so it made no difference. I did get a minor stomach stitch around this point which felt uncomfortable but soon passed after some initial pressure applied to the area.

Out of Alty and heading towards Brooklands Rd. A road I know very well from training sessions in and around the Sale area over the years. Another chance to bask in the glory of wearing the red, white and green vest! Superb support once more and familiar faces returning from other vantage points to continue their excellent support. I also clocked some faces I hadn't see in years also calling out my name. Awesome.

I was passed by a club mate who started a wave back from me who was targeting sub 3hr at around 30k. He was slightly off his target pace but I encouraged him to stick at it and save some energy for a push towards the end if he still had anything left. 

Turning onto Marsland Rd and then Derbyshire Rd we eventually get back onto the A56/Cross St and the final 7km to the finish back at Old Trafford. As we exited Sale once again the support I received was brilliant and the confidence was really growing now.

By now of course I was working hard but the pace remained consistent and even. I saw my clubmate who passed me at 30k up ahead who seemed to be coming back to me. Realising he was going through a bad patch I picked my pace up to try and join him and potentially help him though this period of the race. I did notice one or two minor twinges of my right calf but proceeded to catch him quite quickly. 

After joining him at 36k I immediately moved in front of him and told him to follow me. I hoped he would latch on to me and we could get him moving as we neared the finish line. He breathlessly called out to say he was struggling and for me to keep the pace steady for the next couple of km's. I had been working hard to bridge the gap so sitting in was also in my best interests. 

We continued along the A56 passing under the M60 once more with the blaring techno house from an impressively large sound system echoing beneath the motorway underpass. My clubmate would regain some strength and move past me once more around 39k. He would miss his target by a couple of minutes but lives to fight another day. 

The route heads briefly towards Chorlton before turning onto Manchester Rd and then Seymour Grove once again where I was surprised to see another clunmate running alongside the road cheering on her parnter who was just ahead of me. She also cheered loudly as I passed by and I knew the end was close by now. My pace had slowed a touch after the exertions to bridge the gap to my clubmate. It was also inevitable I would slow at some point because of the lack of training. 

My calf muscles were both now twitcy and threatening to spasm so I kept trying to relax and be smooth. As I turned the final turn onto Talbot Rd with the finish line in sight I was forced to briefly stop for ~10 seconds at 42k to stretch out my right calf. A quick stretch was all that was required and I slowly got back into my stride for the final few hundred metres. 

I crossed the line feeling pretty good and not too badly beaten up at all which is fair considering this result was quite a lot slower than my best. Overall I was very happy as my ankle behaved and I proved that my aerobic engine isn't too diminished from the 5 month layoff. Great to be back out there. 

Week 26

M. 10k am, 6k pm 

T. 16k Session 7x 2'30" + 60secs off 90secs 

Felt pretty strong in humid conditions.

W. 24k MLR ran along the canal to keep it simple. Felt pretty tired but got it done. 

T. 6k super easy. Running late as had physio.

F. 21k steady. Ran in Saucony Speeds to test them over longer distance. Felt good when up on toes. 

S. 13k easy

S. 29k long run. Easy 10k then 16k @mararhon effort. 4:10/km avg so 2.56 pace. No HR data as forgot strap.

77.6k for week. Tough week with tough session in the long run. Got it done and ankle holding up. Need to do some active work to strengthen things on left side. 

Round The Resers 2021

Annual Round The Reser local 8km race (300 runners). A good turn out from our club as the organiser is a club stalwart. It's a two lap course but slightly altered this year to ensure maximum covid safety, this meant twice up that stinker of a climb. It's short but sharp, especially second time round. 

We set off in small waves based on 5k times. Having not run a 5k for years I didn't know where to position myself. As it turned out there was maybe only 20 people ahead of me so we all started in the first wave. The small numbers basically meant we were running in small groups (6 max). 

I was with the front of our B group guys who are all younger than me. We got up the first climb easily enough on lap 1 and pushed on through 3km. The group began to split apart after that and another club runner came along with me. We ran strongly through 4-5km until the second lap and the hill again. We trudged up this but it took me at least 30 seconds to slowly recover. Unsurprisingly everyone said they died on the hill second time around during the post race chatter.

Me and my 'companion' got going again and he took a couple of meters out of me up to 6.5k. However the switch-back path decent allowed me to catch up, pull alongside and then pull away from him decisively. 

As my watch lapped 7km I focussed on speed and leg turnover. I also used another runner ahead who was slowing before a sharp left then right kink onto the bridge towards the finish line.

30.13 and 16th overall. 

On a flat course that's sub 30mins I reckon. Very pleased with that. My first race since York marathon 2019. 

I also tagged on an extended warm-up/warm-down which included another big hill back to the car for approx 21km for the day.

Fartlek sessions

Interesting blog post about Kenyan fartlek sessions: fartlek session examples

Some ideas which I will look to incorporate into some sessions specifically for marathon training. 

Progression Long Run

24.3km progression run with Matt S. Conditions good. Cloud cover, nice breeze but warmed up towards the end. 

Started out easy at 5:00min/km and picked it up to finish strong at 4:02min/km. Ankle was a little uncomfortable at times but no pain. 

Aches a little this afternoon. 

Ran the wrong week too. Should have been running week 2 of schedule. Idiot. 

Sleep last night: 11:30pm - 7am

10k easy run this afternoon listening to the latest batting collapse. Activations worked again as ankle was free at the start of the run but got a little sore towards the end which is the opposite of what has bee  happening. I dont think I'm past this one just yet. Easy miles tomorrow with company. 

0130 - 0830 7 hrs sleep. Slept well, woke up once or twice.

0915 - 75.5kg

16k after work. 

Strong breeze. Out and back on canal tow path so shielded from wind. Warm day. 

Did some activations before setting off as ankle still achy. Rotations clockwise and counterclockwise. Some calf raises. Some stretching, lunges. 

Run fine. Easy 8k at <130 bpm. Turned back and did 8k at 140 bpm. 

Felt good. Ankle fine. Eased earlier than last few days. 

Yorkshire Marathon 2019

We got to York for 7:30am and got a shuttle bus to the University as soon as we had parked up at the adjacent NCP. First thing I noticed after getting out of the car was the wind. Upon arriving at the race HQ used the toilets as there was no queue and dropped my bag off. Had to quickly return as I had forgotten my gels.

Zone 1 was almost empty when I got in there so did a couple of jogs down the hill to the roundabout which doubles up as the finishing straight. Then positioned myself just behind the fast looking guys wearing the Nike’s and sporting bony features (i.e. proper runners).

The race started at dead-on 9:30am and I got going straight away with hardly any weaving or start/stopping as we dropped down the hill. I was into my stride immediately and with minimal effort as the fast downhill section evened out the field very quickly. There were a few people accelerating from positions further back but on the whole this was a more than decent start.

I had changed to kilometres only a few weeks previously in training which meant some mental maths had been taking place in the build-up whilst I adjusted to the new unit and paces. The first couple of km ticked by quickly but since I was running to HR (based on the last 3 recent marathons) I knew that avg 158-162 was my range to keep things within.

The first 5km sailed by very quickly with splits ranging from 3:56-4:02 to average 19:57 and 158 HR. I felt I had started well and get into a decent rhythm. The next few km also passed uneventfully as I settled and found myself trying to figure out who was running what pace. Around this point I was joined by a Kendle AC  runner who stuck around and a group of sorts began to form although quickly disintegrated. The next 5km continued smoothly with pace ranging 3:59-4:02 to average 19:59 and 159 HR.

The hill at 8.5 miles cost me 10 beats as my HR rose to 170 momentarily but settled quickly as we continued along the rural roads. I didn’t lose anytime on this hill as I caught in all back on the descent. I didn't notice the wind at all in the first half of the race but I bizarrely do recall a small congregation led by the vicar blessing us as we ran past a small church :)

10-15km in 20:04 160 HR with pace ranging 3:59-4:01 and still running strong. The field had spread out now and I remember commenting that we needed to get into a group for the next 15km so help us a little. It never happened as we all ‘maintained’ and when we did catch someone we moved passed fairly quickly as they were slowing or presumably managing pace.

15km-20km confirmed I was still going along nicely as that passed in 19:59 with 159 HR with pace ranging 3:59-4:01. I reached the halfway point in 85:15, which I thought was a touch fast but not by much. I was still confident the course would not get any tougher than the hill at 8.5 miles.

I think the course got a touch twisty between 20km-25km as we reached the out and back section along the A166 and the first turnaround point where crowd support was excellent. I’ve decided I don’t like turnround points as they mess with my rhythm. This 5km was completed in 20:16 and 160 HR as we worked hard into a now very obvious cross wind which at times became a headwind. At 25km my Kendle AC partner began to fall off, at first to take on a gel, but then a 0.5 km later for good. Psychologically this may have messed me up a little as the grind along that road seemed to take forever and became that little bit more tougher now solo as my legs began to ache and the thought of what was still ahead of me first entered my thoughts.

25km-30km included saying hello to CW at 28km (for me) and the second turn around which again had some great support. This split was a bad patch as the grind on that road took its toll and was completed in 20:19 and 160 HR. However, the signs that I had got through the bad patch were evident despite a couple of splits of 4:10 and 4:08. I was reassured since the other splits were 4:03, 4:00 and 3:58.

30km-35km includes the left turn off the A166 at 32km which was a much needed mental boost to now be heading back to the University and the finish line. My right quad was becoming sore at this point and I began to feel my legs hurting and becoming even heavier. This split came in at 20:46 but HR had dropped to 158 as I now began to maintain pace.

35-40km I remember trying to not look at my watch anymore which lasted about 2km. My form began to deteriorate a little as I began catching the walk/runners from the 10 mile race. As I slowed I focused on passing anyone in sight. My right quad twitched a few times but I controlled it and it didn’t spasm. One foot in front of the other but the desire to stop was huge. I completed this split in 21:50 but HR was dropping all the time and was 156 HR now as I struggled to maintain the effort or the pace.

The final 2 km were 4:35, 4:41 as I desperately wanted that last hill to appear back up to the finish. It duly did and I managed to get up and over it for the very welcome downhill section to the finish line in 2:54:45 for a 37 second PB. No wild celebration or fist pump as that was a tough last 10km.

Whilst initially disappointed I took great encouragement from feedback received and after reviewing the splits it wasn’t too bad actually despite the big positive split. It was more of a gradual decline rather than a big blow up. I think fueling was good with a gel every 8km. I think the legs began to lose strength first which was exacerbated later on by running out of stamina. What I am most proud of is the mental strength I showed in toughing out that last 10km. I never quit and although it got tough I have to be very, very happy with an improvement, no matter how small. 

Vale Of York Half Marathon

We set off nice and early as last year it was a rush getting into the car park. Arrived with an hour to go this year which was far better. That being said I had just completed my 2 mile warm up when the announcer back at the start/finish announced a 10 minute delay. Good event but getting people in and out is an ongoing problem it seems.

After dithering over whether to wear my cap or not (the sun was intermittently shinning) I made my way to the front of the field and was picked out by RW Sub3 contributor Wardi. Not long after I spotted another contributor LMH who was running with a heavy heart due to her unwell pet dog Grace.

We both noted an 80 minute pacer near us at the start which is rare we thought. Also overheard a guy next to me comment this wasn't his A race so a free hit. Interesting I also thought.

I had decided beforehand to run on feel and not look at my watch. This worked reasonably well in the end as I felt strong through 9 miles working well with a group which had formed at mile 7. We took turns at the front and shielded from the cross winds. Good stuff.

We were approx 35 secs behind the 80 min pacer at 8 miles. My eyes began to widen :) However, a horrible 180 turn in the road knocked me off my rhythm which I never really got back. Worked hard to the line but last three miles were 6:19, 6:13, 6:23.

Mustered remaining strength to push in through the line in 81:22. Possibly my 4th fastest half ever (need to check back over results) and considering I have barely done any HM specific sessions bodes well for York. Speed is there at least.

Need to recover well as that was a tough little blow out for sure. 69.5 for the week but I ain't going out for that .5