30 min easy

Date: Fri, Nov 25 (5:45am)
Conditions: Mild and very humid
Location: Bedlam Bay Oval, Gladesville
Session: 30 mins
Sleep: 6 1/2 hours, okay but a bit disrupted.
Feeling: Bit stiff - otherwise, far too early to tell

Just the usual drone around in circles (one way for 15 mins, then the other) for half an hour. Carrying a bit of stiffness from last night but improved through the session. Very sticky, with the weather trying to decide whether to rain or just drizzle.

4 x 500m

Date: Thu, Nov 24 (6:30pm)
Conditions: Cool and slight breeze
Location: McKay Oval
Session: 4 x 500m (2) 89, 87, 90, 91
Sleep: 7 hours, a little scratchy.
Feeling: Tired, with a little stiffness in the legs that was much improved after a lunch time session at the gym

Running a bit late thanks to a jammed solid Oxford St, and got through an abbreviated warm up.

Was hoping to slip under 90 seconds for all four reps. Got through the first in 89 seconds pretty comfortably. Pushed a little harder through the second for an 87, stung a bit but thought I'd be okay. On the third rep, legs started to sting at about 150 to go and I couldn't really raise a finishing sprint for 90, and same again on the last for 91.

Still, at least had a go, but it would have been nice to be at or under last week's times. I was right in the ballpark, though, so I guess it's a consolidation.

Was thinking of doing the CR 5k challenge on Saturday morning, but the prospect of bashing myself up in flats on concrete isn't overly appealing. Might do the hard 6k hitout with the squad instead.

60 minutes

Date: Wed, Nov 23 (5:15pm)
Conditions: Mild and breezy
Location: St Leonards to Gladesville via Batten Creek Reserve, Lane Cove
Session: 60 minutes - ended up about 65 minutes for around 11.5 to 12k
Sleep: 7 hours, reasonable quality.
Feeling: Pretty tight after last night's session. A little tired initially but seemed to pick up through the day

Had to fit in an hour after work, and didn't feel overly enthused. Had a quick flick on the net for a slightly different route home, and discovered a trail that runs from Longueville Road (near that apartment building) through to Centennial Avenue, and through Batten Creek Reserve to Epping Road.

Felt okay along the Pacific Highway. The start of the trail was a little hard to pick up, since the area around the apartments still has access restricted, but I worked my way through the back streets and eventually hooked into it. The section from here to Centennial Avenue is quite fun, with soft dirt and a track that gently bobs and weaves.

Once into Batten Creek Reserve, the going gets a bit tougher. Anyone who's done the Great North Walk section between Epping Road and Delhi Road will be familiar with the sort of terrain we're talking about here - except this had the bonus of mossy rock surfaces to slip over, overgrown branches and an indistinct trail.

I got to Epping Road and was pretty stuffed. Battled home from there - much of the enthusiasm had gone out of me and it was a bit of a shuffle home, although I made a point of forcing out some pace over the last kilometre, more to get home quickly than anything.

2 x 1km (5), 4 x 300 (1/3), 4 x 300 (1)

Date: Tue, Nov 22 (6:30pm)
Conditions: Warm and breezy
Location: McKay Oval. Centennial Park
Session: 2 x 1km (5) 3:08, 3:14, 4 x 300 (1/3) 51,52,52,52, 4 x 300 (1) 53,52,53,54
Sleep: 7 1/2 hours, seemed to take a while to get settled.
Feeling: Bit tired, including a 15 minute nap on the train on the way to training.

Got there right on the bell of 6pm and did a quick lap of the inside fence to warm up. Didn't feel fantastic. Got through drills and regretted doing abdominal work at the gym at lunch.

Session was again somewhat different to what had been previously advised, and I got through the first 1k not really knowing what the rest of the session was going to be. Paid for it on the second rep. Oh well.

Seemed to go okay through the 300s, which were about the ball park of the session last week. Sting seemed to go out of the legs in the last two reps and I couldn't drag a decent sprint out for them.

Another lap of the inside fence with Easy Tiger to round out the session capped off a pretty long work out.

45 minutes

Date: Mon, Nov 21 (5:10pm)
Conditions: Mild
Location: St Leonards to Gladesville via Lane Cove
Session: 45 minutes for probably 9.5 - 9.7km
Sleep: 7 hours, okay quality.
Feeling: Not too bad, but it's not like I covered a lot of miles on the weekend.

Just a cruise home from work for this evening's session. Pleasing thing was I managed the run home in just under 44 minutes, which is a PB, not that you can read a lot into these point-to-point training runs, what with cars, traffic lights and errant pedestrians. Wasn't pushing that hard, just had a good comfortable flow going.

4 x 1500 metre Relay

Sorry about the lack of posting - I wrote up a fairly big review of Sunday's race that disappeared into the internet somewhere. Haven't cracked it or anything, just been busy at work and at home and simply not got around to posting.

Date: Sun, Nov 20(3:45pm)
Conditions: Mild to warm, slight breeze
Location: Athletics Centre, Homebush
Session: Second leg of 4 x 1500m relay in 120+ age group
Sleep: 8 1/2 hours, pretty decent quality.
Feeling: Pretty good, actually.

Good race, aiming for sub 5 minutes, ran 4:50 to 4:52 for my split, which was pleasing. Other two teams pulled out, leaving us the sole entry in the age group, but facing a fleet of under 16 teams. We finished second outright to the Randwick Botany Harriers who ran a state record.

I probably took the first lap too hard, but you've just got to grin and bear it. Good fun - if the All Comers events fall in the days I might do some more over the next couple of months.

30 mins

Date: Sat, Nov 19 (4:50pm)
Conditions: Very warm and humid
Location: Gladesville Hospital
Session: 30 mins for somewhere around 6km
Sleep: 8 hours, reasonable quality (although somewhat alcohol fuelled).
Feeling: A little discomfort in the stomach courtesy of a dinner party on Friday night (self inflicted), but otherwise pretty good. Legs came up fine.

Just a 30 minute wobble around the grounds of the Gladesville Hospital late in the afternoon. Legs felt fine, and improved through the session.

2 hours

Date: Fri, Nov 18 (6:30am)
Conditions: Mild, bright and clear
Location: Gladesville, Huntley's Point, Drummoyne, Bay Run (inc. Dog Run), Rozelle, Anzac Bridge, Pyrmont, CBD, Harbour Bridge, Milsons Point along Pacific Highway to St Leonards
Session: 2 hours - 2:09:54 for 24.93km
Sleep: 7 hours, good quality.
Feeling: Given that I ran right after getting up, not much chance to make an assessment, but found it hard to get up (ended up getting up half an hour later than I planned) and was pretty stiff through the run.

Not much to report - as mentioned, really treated it as a recovery run rather than planning any big tilts at pace. Was pretty stiff through the run, although felt a bit more free after about 10k or so. Nice morning to be out, though, and it's done. Saw a few fellow CRs out there, which is always good.

It was pretty slow in the end, but seemed to take some of the stiffness out of the legs. An easy half hour tomorrow and lots of stretching and we should up for a good one on Sunday.

1k (8), 4 x 500m (2)

Date: Thu, Nov 17 (6:10pm)
Conditions: Cool and clear, mild breeze
Location: McKay Oval, Centennial Park
Session: 1k (8) 3:15, 4 x 500m (2), 1:31, 1:29, 1:27, 1:29
Sleep: 8 hours, pretty decent.
Feeling: On reflection, last night's 'run' was probably at recovery pace, so felt a lot better in the hips. A little tired, but not bad. Bit dead legged in the quads.

After a horrendous run with traffic (over an hour from St Leonards to Centennial Park!), got there a bit later and pushed through a 2k warm up. Changed from my 2100s to spikes.

SW was running late with traffic, so his wife took the first half of the session. After drills, ran the first kilometre, was 3:15 - a little slower than I was hoping for - seemed to have real struggle through the middle 200-300 metres.

Long recovery between that and the 500s, which were done with a 2 minute recovery. Probably took the first one a bit easily at the start for 1:31, so was more aggressive at the start of reps 2 and 3, and saw the benefit in the times, netting a 1:29 and 1:27. Was pushing hard on the fourth, but my legs just went from under me with about 130 metres to go and I flailed home in 1:29.

Completely nuked aerobically at the end, so I know I'm starting to push really hard again. It's feeling pretty good.

Nice to see pace under 3:00 per km in the shorter reps. I'm certainly noticing the difference in traction and transfer of power to the ground, plus the lightness of the shoes. I'm sure that's helping with learning the 'sensation' of running faster.

Finished off with a solid lap of the inside rail with Mohammed to round out a good, solid session.

Sub 5 minutes is the target on Sunday - well, assuming I don't drop the bloody baton.

70 minutes

Date: Wed, Nov 16 (5:10am)
Conditions: Cool and breezy, rain later
Location:St Leonards to Gladesville via the city
Session: 70 minutes. No idea of the distance, guessing around 15k,
Sleep: 7 1/2 hours, good quality.
Feeling: Sore in the hips, improved after lunch gym core and stretch session. When the alarm went, I lay there, feeling as if gravity had been increased by 50%, but not too bad energy-wise.

Rolled out of work just after 5 to run to town via the Pacific Highway, then to Gladesville via Victoria Road. Deliberately kept the pace easy down into North Sydney - been smashed up down the hill here before. Got on to the Harbour Bridge and didn't feel fantastic, hips still pretty jammed up and feeling tired. Ground along, and rain from Drummoyne onwards didn't help. The 70 minutes elapsed just under the Tarban Creek Bridge, and walked/jogged it from there.

Oh well, life goes on.

Had to shuffle the schedule for the next couple of days. SW told me to do my long run on Friday instead, so that'll be a 2 hour run to get to work, with a 30 minute jog on Saturday ahead of Sunday afternoon's relays. Gah.

1 x 1k (8), 2 x 600 (1/3), 4 x 300 (1/3), 4 x 300 (1)

Date: Tue, Nov 15 (6:00pm)
Conditions: Cool and windy
Location: McKay Oval, Centennial Park
Session: 1 x 1k 3:08! (8), 2 x 600 1:47, 1:51 (1/3), 4 x 300 50s,51s,52s,53s (1/3), 4 x 300 52s,52s,52s,52s (1)
Sleep: 7 1/2 hours, slept pretty well.
Feeling: Similar pattern to yesterday, just with a little more stiffness. Actually grabbed a 10 minute nap in the car before the session.

Arrived at the session to find I had neglected to bring my regular trainers, only my spikes, so I had to warm up in those as well. They were fine.

After drills (which didn't feel too promising) we were told the session would kick off with a 1km, then a long break for 600s and 300s, which I remembered the session being in the book as well. Oh well, same for everyone, I guess.

Bolted through the 1km in 3:08, which is easily a PB. Spikes felt brilliant, really good value for each foot strike. Got through the break, and ran the two 600s in 1:47 and 1:51 (after missing the start), then the first four 300s in 50s,51s,52s and 53s. Felt like I was battling through the last couple as the wind came up, but managed to grit the teeth and get through the final four 300s in 52s,52s,52s and 52s. Was getting closer to some faster guys which was pleasing.

Good session. Really felt I worked hard through it, and the spikes felt pretty good - although I'm looking forward to a day in the Frees tomorrow to stretch the feet!

45 mins + sprints

Date: Mon, Nov 14 (5:10pm)
Conditions: Mild, bright and breezy
Location:St Leonards to Gladesville via Lane Cove, Bedlam Bay oval
Session: 45 minutes plus half a dozen sprints
Sleep: 7 hours, but really battled to settle and get to sleep. Stupid caffeine.
Feeling: Pretty reasonable during the day with the usual mid-afternoon post-lunch slump. Legs felt a touch stiff, but after some core work at the gym at lunch seemed okay.

Just a cruise home along the Pacific Highway and through Lane Cove home. Managed to complete the run home in 45:12 via the short route, and was moving along okay, although the steep downhill seemed to take some of the sting out of my legs.

Whipped inside and grabbed my new spikes for some sprints at Bedlam Bay oval. Just had a token course set up, probably 110 - 120 metres or so, and started out at high 17s and whittled my way down to a 16 flat as I felt more confident. Spikes felt interesting - they're a lot lighter than my Asics Magic Racers, and feel similar to them, just with a stiffer sole which seems to want to encourage you on to your toes. Nice to wear, though, the inside of the shoe is nice and soft, suggestive that they're intended to be worn barefoot. I'll try them in training on Tuesday - if I feel confident I might even do the relay on the weekend in them.

2 hours

Date: Sun, Nov 13 (3:45pm)
Conditions: Warm, bright and breezy
Location:Gladesville to CBD via Victoria Road and Pyrmont, return via Harbour Bridge, Pacific Highway, Lane Cove and Hunters Hill
Session: 2 hours, 2:02:01 for 24.55km.
Sleep: 8 1/2 hours. Slept like the dead. In fact, probably a little too well.
Feeling: Felt like death warmed up until I finally caved in and got a cup of coffee around 11:30, and picked up after that.

Awoke at 5:50am with the alarm set for 6:15 am for me to get up and do my long run with the squad at Centennial Park, and it wasn't going to happen. Simple as that. Back to bed, and woke again around 8 - 8:15am and caught the last 30 minutes of the soccer whilst lying in bed. It was worth it. Groggy for most of the morning until aforementioned coffee.

Finally got out the door at 3:45pm after catching up on some painting, and found the legs actually felt pretty good, and that it wasn't as warm as I thought it might have been, with the easterly breeze being fairly cool. Settled into a 4:50 - 4:55 pace, which suited me fine - the whole objective was to stay on my feet for two hours. Pace, whilst not irrelevant, was not the main objective. I need to build my endurance base back up, and blowing up 90 minutes into a 4:35 per km pace run isn't going to acheive that.

Route was basically the shortest loop of the Gladesville - City via Inner West - Return via North Shore that I figured would take around two hours. Out by two minutes!

Not a lot to report - felt pretty decent pretty well the whole run, even after the long drag uphill through North Sydney up to Crows Nest. Saw Boof at the Lane Cove shopping strip.

Feel okay now - not too drained, and a bit more confident. Looking ahead to the Central Coast half, I'm a little doubtul of doing a spectacular time there. Last night's time is suggestive of an 85 minute half marathon, although stranger things have happened with a couple of weeks of speed work.

I think the simple fact of the matter is the bug from August and last month is still having an effect on me, and my training intensity levels. Recovery from sessions is proving a little difficult.

That said, it feels a lot better to be training in the warmth. I just need a clear three months.

NSW 3000 metre championships

Date: Sat, Nov 12 (8:10pm - later, actually)
Conditions: Mild with a bit of a breeze
Location: Athletics Centre, Homebush
Session: 3000 metres
Sleep: 9 hours, reasonably decent (although a touch alcohol fuelled, which I don't rate as good).
Feeling: Okay, although a touch troubled in the stomach during the day

Had a few drinks with work colleagues on Friday night which concluded with a few cocktails at Bungalow 8 - I was in bed by 11, but probably had two more than I should. So, Saturday saw me a bit scratchy throughout the day, although by the time I started a warm-up jog I was pretty well fine.

Couple of things to note for next week - leave a bit earlier, and remember my numbers. I just scraped into the entries, which ended up being well over 80, with the field split into three races. I also owe Superflake $5 - there's an additional charge if you forget your numbers (I'd whinge, but it is a Stupidity Tax, and I'm generally in favour of those). They were running half an hour late as it was, and we were the last race (specifically the 'fat, old and slow' race).

Got through a bit of a warm up and bumped into Lefty and Luke Skyrunner. Cruised around and came back, and it was only then we realised just how late they were running. Took the opportunity to chat to Action and a few others - amazing how many people I know at these events now.

Had another cruise around, did some stretches and strides, and we were right to go. Mohammed was in the same field, along with Gary from SMC. Mohammed and I engaged in some 'bluff talk', but I had a feeling I might be battling the way he'd been rolling along in training. As mentioned, 10:30 would have been a nice number, and was about where I think I am at the moment. I deliberately ran without a watch, preferring to go on feel. I had a rough idea on splits, figuring around 1:20-1:25 a lap or so.

Gun went, and it was on. Any thoughts of splits went out the window as I just endeavoured to get through the opening 200 metres without hitting anyone. The field had been split in half, with my lot on the outside. I have no idea of splits, caught a couple of numbers being yelled out which suggested I was on target for around 10:30. Mohammed and Gary were having a good battle about 20-30 metres up the road, and I worked on holding on.

The track was nice to run on, somewhat akin to running on a fairly short pile carpet, much better than ES Marks. I wasn't conscious of running on the track during the race, focussed instead on keeping as far to the left as I could, and on the runner in front.

Felt like I was starting to battle when I went past the finish line with four laps to go. Just thought to myself I needed to just hang on. Then, with at about 80 metres from the finish line of the following lap, the sprinklers went off! Actually, it was a nice mental diversion. I saw I was drawing closer to Mohammed and Gary. Then, with two to go, they just took off (or I died, but I managed to pick up a guy between us, so I suspect they kicked). Ran it out for 10:31.76.

Had a bit of a cool down with Mohammed.

Must say, it was good fun, I'm really looking forward to the relays next week.

Oh yeah, popped down to Running Science on Saturday afternoon and bought some spikes - specificall some Nike Rival D Plus - basically the ones with the most support I could find. Felt pretty good on, like slippers. Might try them out tomorrow, I have some sprints after a 45 minute run. Pretty cheap too.

30 mins

Date: Friday, Nov 11 (5:45am)
Conditions: Cool and breezy
Location:Bedlam Bay oval
Session: 30 mins easy. Probably a touch short of 6km
Sleep: 7 hours, reasonable quality.
Feeling: Bit stiff and sore, improved through the session.

Just down to Bedlam Bay oval to wobble around in circles for half an hour. Seemed to be unusually mentally active for this time of the morning, used the time to think through some issues which helped the session fly by.

(NOTE: This is a replacement entry - the original seems to have vanished into the great Blog Hereafter...)

4 x 500

Date: Thu, Nov 10 (6:00pm)
Conditions: Warm, bright with slight breeze
Location: Mackay Oval, Centennial Park
Session: 2 x 500m (2 min break between), 1:32, 1:34, (6 min break), 2 x 500m (2 min break between) 1:36, 1:35
Sleep: 8 hours, took a little while to get settled but then slept like the dead.
Feeling: Again a little dopey first thing, with stiffness in the left hip and lower right leg, after doing my best pin cushion impersonation, thanks to Martin Horne's acupuncture.

Got to Mackay Oval a touch before and got changed, and did an anti-clockwise lap of the inside rail (about 3.6k, or whatever it is) as a warm up. Much better than pounding around an oval.

Targetted Mohammed again, and dead heated him in reps 1 and 3. Got him in rep 2, and he got away in rep 4 after the girls showed they take no prisoners in the middle of turn 1, with a clip and an elbow for my trouble (bloody spikes!).

Still, a bit quicker than last week, although we didn't have the 2k to follow (like that sort of stuff ever worried me). Not quite where I was in mid-October but I think I'm not far away.

Finished off with another lap of the inside of rail with Mohammed for company, which in fading light was actually a pretty pleasant way to round out the session.

40 minutes

Date: Wed, Nov 9 (6:05pm)
Conditions: Warm, bright with slight breeze
Location: Gladesville, Huntley's Point, Hunter's Hill
Session: 40 minutes, 9.07km
Sleep: 8 hours, again fairly scratchy.
Feeling: Actually sharpened up through the morning (and I'm off caffeine at the moment!), stiffness in hips and lower right leg.

Schedule called for 9k in 40 minutes, so it wasn't to be an easy one. Set out pretty firmly, and was soon at about 4:20 - 4:25 pace. Wasn't as hot as I'd feared - it was warm, but not to the point of being horrid. Freed up reasonably well after a couple of km, but there's a left hip and lower right leg that will get some attention from the Horned one tomorrow. Pleased to push through and beat the target distance - hopefully there won't be too much lingering from it tomorrow.

3 x 1km, 2 x 300, 2 x 300

Date: Tue, Nov 8 (6:30pm)
Conditions: Mild and breezy
Location: Mackay Oval, Centennial Park
Session: 3 x 1km (4 min break) 3:25, 3:25, 3:24, then 2 x 300m with 1 min between (55,56) then 3 min, then 2 x 300 with 1 min between (54,55)
Sleep: 7 hours, fairly scratchy.
Feeling: Tired with some stiffness.

New venue for Tuesday nights with daylight saving, with the squad combining into one for Tuesday's session. Got through a fairly grindy and unenthusiastic warm up and drills.

Session was originally 10 x 300 in sets of 2, but SW obviously thought better of it and went for the above session.

Worked hard through the 1ks and despte being comfortably beaten by Mohammed in the first two 1k reps was reasonably pleased with the speed over the three reps - I got him in the last one. 300s were tought, but again was happy to get through them with consistent speed.

Leg strength still isn't quite there - the cardio's actually reasonably strong, I wasn't able to really run myself stupidly out of breath as I can usually at these sessions. They've come back okay from the break, but I just need to build fast twitch fibres again. It's coming along - Saturday night at Homebush at the 3000 metres will be interesting. I'd love to run 10:30 there.

30 mins + sprints (relaxed)

Date: Mon, Nov 7 (5:35pm)
Conditions: Warm and breezy
Location: Gladesville ferry stop to Bedlam Bay oval
Session: 30 mins + 5 100 metre (or so) sprints (relaxed) for 7.22km
Sleep: 7 1/2 hours, pretty scratchy.
Feeling: Tired and fairly beaten up.

Dropped the car at the Gladesville ferry stop and jogged over to Bedlam Bay oval, where I cruised around for half an hour, and then got through five relaxed 100 metre sprints.

Still carrying a bit from the weekend's activities (including a fairly sharp sunburn from Sunday) although it improved to a degree through the run - glad I opted for a soft surface for the run, through.

Sprints were pretty ordinary, although improved as I went along

2 hours

Date: Sun, Nov 6 (12:35pm)
Conditions: Warm, bright and breezy
Location: Gladesville to the Bay Run
Session: 2 hours. Ground to a halt at 1:34:16, 19.18km,
Sleep: 6 hours good quality, plus an hour or so of dozing.
Feeling: A little residual soreness, but okay.

Due to a late night run to the airport, didn't hit the sack until after midnight, and when the alarm went at 6, I knew there was no chance of getting up to join the squad for my long run.

Got through the morning and ended up heading out at around 12:35. Hadn't eaten a lot during the morning, and felt like I could have potentially been hungry so took a gel just in case.

Felt a little stiff through the first half hour or so. The sun was quite sharp and the wind made running on the Bay quite difficult. Gradually ground to a halt over the last twenty minutes or so, eventually finishing at the Shell on the Birkenhead side of Victoria Road, where I grabbed something to eat, and walked home from there.

Bit disappointing not to get all the way throught, but I guess I haven't gone long for quite some time, and with recent illness and disrupted training it's probably to be expected. Going out in the warmth probably didn't help, but hey, you've got to toughen up for summer somehow!

Striders 10k - Lane Cove

Date: Sat, Nov 5 (7:00am)
Conditions: Warm and humid with drizzle
Location: Lane Cove National Park
Session: 10k race.
Sleep: 6 hours good quality.
Feeling: A little residual soreness, but okay.

Warm, sticky and drizzly morning at Lane Cove. Got through a 10-15 min warm up with Spud, would have been nice to be a little longer.

Had been predicting 38-39 minutes for the 10k, and genuinely had no idea what to expect. I deliberately ran without a watch, deciding to just go on feel. Headed out sensibly, caught Mohammed at Scribblys after watching John Dawlings just cruise past. Kept a watching brief on silver fox out of Scribblys but couldn't make an impression on the gap he'd put into me, and was aware of Blue Dog hanging around as well.

Thought I was solid to Lane Cove Road, and had a reasonable run down from there until Porters Bridge where a lot of the sting seemed to go out of the legs. Had a couple go past me, and was just in the process of winding it up a bit when Mohammed and Blue Dog arrived. We had a pretty solid three way duel over the last two km, with Blue Dog seemingly dry-retching over the last 1.5. I was certainly trying to push on a bit, and Mohammed came through with me. Finished just behind Highway Man, with Mohammed and Blue Dog behind.

I think the time was around 38:40 - would have been nice to be a bit lower, but there didn't feel to be a lot of top end this morning, and I imagine a run up a solid hill in 100% humidity doesn't constitute ideal conditions to be coming back from a respiratory infection.

Oh well, solid hitout, and probably exactly what I needed at this point. Just got to get a solid 12 weeks training in and we'll be scaling new heights...

30m

Date: Fri, Nov 4 (5:50m)
Conditions: Warm, still and humid
Location: Bedlam Bay Oval, Gladesville
Session: 30m, probably somewhat less than 6km.
Sleep: 6 1/2 hours, but good quality.
Feeling: Stiff and sore around the hips.

Actually woken by the alarm this morning, but managed to force myself up to run my 30 minute recovery jog. Quite stiff and sore in the hips, which made the 100m uphill run from home quite 'amusing'.

Shuffled around Bedlam Bay oval for 30 minutes, swapping direction halfway through. Stiffness seemed to ease as the session wore on.

Pleased I got up and did it - I have found that if I do this session on a Friday evening I can be a bit stiff in the legs for a Saturday morning race - plus it's nice to get home on a Friday afternoon and get straight on to the couch.

4 x 500, 2km

Date: Thu, Nov 3 (6:00pm)
Conditions: Warm and breezy
Location: Mackay Oval, Centennial Park
Session: 4 x 500 (1:36, 1:38, 1:39, 1:40 with 2-3s missed start), 7:39.
Sleep: Disrupted 8 hours.
Feeling: Disrupted night's sleep saw me a bit groggy during the day, with stiffness apparent in the legs.

Ran a 3k warmup with Mohammed plus drills which helped relief stiffness, particularly in the quads, but did highlight that higher end breathing was to a degree compromised.

Felt fine through the 500 metre reps, but probably pushed a little hard, compromising my 2k at the end, where I felt dead-legged.

Through another 3k or so cool down to round off what was a fairly long session. Pleased to get through it, although it suggest a PB was unlikely on Saturday.

10k or so

Date: Wed, Nov 2 (6:10pm)
Conditions: Warm and humid (less so than Tue), sunny
Location: Gladesville to Drummoyne (Bay Run) return
Session: Around 10k, about 50 minutes including a chat. Another run without a watch.
Sleep: Fine, just under eight hours.
Feeling: A little residual 'feeling' from yesterday, but not what I'd call stiffness. Legs felt 'soft' but strong.

Thought 90 minutes might have been pushing my luck at this point of my return, so decided to cut it back to 50-60 minutes. Traffic was a disaster on the way home, during which I thought about what route to take.

Felt pretty good - must admit, I do prefer training in warmer conditions. It's easier to get out, and I feel okay rolling along. Got over the Gladesville Bridge fine, with a decent rolling pace, saw Kanangra heading west, did part of the Bay Run before cutting back to Lyons Road, up Lyons Road to Victoria Road where Mister G yelled out - since I had no watch and wasn't under huge time pressure, was only too happy to stop for a chat.

Pushed hard back over the Gladesville Bridge, including totally hosing a guy on a bike (he had a cool GPS unit though) and finished feeling pretty strong.

Really enjoyed these last two runs. Been great, must do more sessions with no watch.

6km

Date: Tue, Nov 1(4:15pm)
Conditions: Warm and humid, sunny
Location: Gladesville, Huntleys Point
Session: 6km, probably a bit under 30 minutes
Sleep: Fine, around eight hours.
Feeling: First hitout in over a week, so the legs felt a little odd, but fine. Breathing seems to be okay, still some gunk coming through.

Apologies for the lack of updates - I had a six day weekend lined up (took some leave), and given the bug (which was very similar to the one at the end of August) I decided to take a complete break from the whole running thing (bit paranoid about running when crook now) in addition to some time off work - call it taking a break from my life for a few days. Bug has basically run its course although the voice is still strained - anyone who's seen American Splendor will know what I mean.

So, I finally forced myself out of the door this afternoon and pushed through a half decent 6km. No idea how long it took, I ran without a watch. Felt good to be out again and I thought I had pretty decent form - certainly didn't feel like I was shuffling.

I will indeed be at the Striders 10k on Saturday. No idea what time to expect, it's the last Striders 10k for the year, up and down Lane Cove - might forget the watch and just run on how I feel. We'll see - depends how Thursday night's session goes.