Rest day today - well a rest from running. I had a session with Rich this morning. I mentioned that I'd been watching the weightlifting so we decided to give the Clean & Jerk a go. I was pretty pleased with my 30kg effort:
Then I looked at the Olympic results for my weight category. They lift up to 165kg. Oh well - 4 years to go to Rio, I'm sure I can build it up a bit in 4 years?
We also did more plyometrics, jumping over small hurdles, using the TRX and finished off with some more powerful jumps over a step box. I noticed that my jumps have improved over the past few weeks which made me happy. They used to hurt and seem to take all my effort but today I managed to spring over the step box as well as the hurdles.
I've felt good this week, being on holiday has meant I've had plenty of sleep and have relaxed. Watching the Olympics has motivated me to try harder plus I've had a few afternoon naps!! I hope I can keep it up when I go back to work - the determination I mean, I can't imagine the afternoon naps would go down well in any office.
Interval session tomorrow with the Derwent Runners:
8 x 400m @ 8 minute mile pace with 1 minute recovery.
After the session I'm going for a drink with the lovely Sooz & Charlotte from the club. I've heard that it's important to have something to aim for when training, so I'll be focusing on a large glass of wine during every one of those 400m.
I don't work on a Friday (or a Monday - more on that another time) so I usually have a PT session at 9am. Most Fridays I walk there, do my session and stumble back home cursing Rich for making me do burpees or bear crawls or other ridiculous tasks.
Today we were planning to do some sprints outside. There was an actual monsoon. We still did the sprints. 4x800m (ish). Bear in mind a 'sprint' for me is something I've only ever done if I'm late for the bus. Half way through the session I felt like a rung out dishcloth but when we finished I felt like a warrior.
When I'm running fast (for me) I struggle to breathe, I sound like I'm about to pass out. My shoulders tense up and I start panicking that I'm never going to get to the end. Then I start to slow down as a result which makes it all worse. In general I'm a worrier, I worry about unnecessary things and it makes me stressed so then I worry more. It drives me insane; I know I'm doing it and I can't stop it. Today when I was running, for a couple of seconds I thought about my breathing, I made myself breathe in and out properly and then I relaxed and I managed to run just a little bit faster at the end. It felt like I was almost in control.
I ran after work, it was hot, I was tired, my legs felt like they didn't want to move but I had my new kit on (orange Nike since you asked) and I kept going even though I wanted to walk.
My brother had emailed me a training schedule to follow today. I had a quick look but couldn't bring myself to study it in great detail in case it put me off. For the full 30 minutes of my run tonight I was thinking about it, wondering how I'd feel if I actually did every session on there, if it would get easier, if I'd start to actually enjoy it. Well maybe not the full 30 minutes, I also thought about my dinner. I think about eating all the time, what I've eaten, what I'm going to eat, what I shouldn't eat, what I should eat more of.... it makes no difference, I love eating!
There's so much information on what 'runners' should & shouldn't eat. Carbs are good, more protein is better, don't eat salt, make sure you eat some salt or you get cramp, drink loads of water, don't drink caffeine, drink a coffee before you train - I wonder what Seb Coe ate when he won his Olympic title? Do you really need to know all this 'stuff', can't you just put your trainers on and start running?
I ate nachos, chili and rice followed by a chocolate eclair at my friends house & it was great. (Didn't have the Pimms though!)
I've got a PT Session tomorrow at 9am. Rich has been my PT for about 3 years. He's a great motivator and the sessions are never the same. Some people think having a PT means you're lazy and need to be told what to do in order to exercise. In my case they're probably right!
