Go Hard

The last few days I have managed to fit in the last few sessions of my Specific training. The weekly mix included: a long run of about 2 hours a steady-state threshold run of 60 min threshold intervals of 2x20min VO2max interval session at 10-5km race pace plus some weights and easy aerobic runs. Over the last week my legs have been accumulating fatigue and pain. Each day the warm ups have taken longer, and my last interval session I wasn't quite able to maintain my paces. The timing is right, it looks like I have trained right up to my ability to absorb the training. Now it is time to head into my Peaking phase. Where the focus is on tapering volume, ensuring recovery but also enhancing my feel for racing and putting the finishing touches on my faster speeds. Three cycles of training should see me ready for the Police Games. I'll give myself an easy day, and then get into the details.

I was actually taking in my surrounding during a hard run. I was part way into my second 20 minute, threshold interval. My heart rate was sitting on about 88% HRmax, my breathing was up, and there was the deep discomfort in my legs that told me I was really working. Funny thing was I had already had a couple of short conversations with some cyclists. One had commented that it was good to see there were still people who trained hard, but were friendly at the same time. This got me thinking about what has changed in my world of endurance sports. A lot has changed. Not the least bit since so much in the rest of my life has changed too. No longer coaching, not being at university and doing rotating shift work means that I can't commit weekly to any group training sessions. Maybe it's because I am now more removed from the scene, but I now believe the culture is no longer what attracted me to triathlon and kept me there. This is a bit of a lament on what I used to enjoy that now see...

A few days of training has seen me get in most of my key sessions. Some threshold work, a long run, weights, a MAF test and VO2 intervals. All in all I'm running well and apart from being just a few seconds per kilometre off my top end paces you wouldn't know I've missed some training. Importantly my MAF pace is now at 4:36/km, which is the fastest I have recorded over the last year. It is also 58 seconds per kilometre than my first effort back in August last year. My body seems to be absorbing the training well. Yes, I am waking up stiff and sore the day after the harder efforts, but this dissapears soon enough. I have definitely struggled a lot more in the past. As long as my body keeps responding as it is now, for the next few weeks I should be race ready for the Police games at the end of March.

Looking outside this morning, I knew there was no way I was going to be running. The smoke was way too thick. Over the last few days I have got in just a handful of runs, which have really just served as a stress release. Training hasn't exactly been a priority. The view from home. The CFA (Country Fire Authority) issued the following Awareness Message this morning: The fires around Melbourne are generating a large amount of smoke. Residents in Metropolitan Melbourne are advised that due to the extent of bushfires around Victoria in the past week, they may be experiencing increased smoke from both going fires and fire suppression activities being undertaken by DSE and CFA fire crews. Winds from the north or north east have carried smoke into Melbourne. The smoke may be more noticeable at night or early morning when overnight inversions trap the smoke near ground level.

The Victorian bushfires are still burning. This morning's official count was 181 people confirmed dead and it is known this number will climb significantly. Well over 200,000ha have been decimated by the fires and this is still increasing. I have never known anything so devastating. The stories of friends and colleagues has been beyond comprehension.

Calling my last post "Constant Burning" probably wasn't the best choice of words in light of what has happened since. Yesterday Melbourne recorded it hottest ever temperature. Of greater importance were the bushfires that have, and are still burning throughout the state. An extra night shift, followed by some fire safety stuff for home has meant running has been set aside for a couple of days. My home and family are well and truly safe, but there are a number of people I know that we have concern for.

Part into my second week of specific training. The overall load is manageable, but is hard. With a long run, two anaerobic threshold session, a VO2max run plus some speed work and strength training per cycle there is obviously limited opportunity to fully recover between sessions. As a result I am now carrying around some low grade, but persistent fatigue. After my threshold intervals I find that my legs feel like they are burning for the rest of the day. This is always the training phase of biggest conflict. Where I want to be able to run fast, but due to the workload, that extra spring in the legs has been lost. It feels so good knowing you are putting in a big effort, but at the same time kicking back on the couch has a big appeal to it. Luckily my love of running wins out, and I keep pushing myself to complete the sessions despite my brain throwing up plenty of excuses to pull the plug early. As a result I seem to be experiencing the runner's high on more runs. It isn't al...