Gotta Go Fast - Poet's Running Journal.

[Joseph41]

Really, really fantastic work. Well done - very happy for you!

[K888]

Huge congrats!! You make running look so effortless and breezy in that pic <3

[Poet]

Really, really fantastic work. Well done - very happy for you!

Thank you!! I hope your feet are holding up <3

Huge congrats!! You make running look so effortless and breezy in that pic <3

Hahaha ty, I was actually feeling pretty good in that race - I'm always a little disappointed that my pictures all make it look like I'm not working hard, they always catch me mid-stride so it kind of looks like I'm just walking on air!
It has been another week, and so here I am again - how are we all?

I managed a total of 21.4kms this week. Would have liked a bit more, but I fell sick Thursday night and so took my long run today as an easy walk/jog recovery sesh. Don't worry, I tested negative to COVID! A cold can really mess with your overall sporting ability though so my 45 minutes were frustrating. But hey, I got it done. And I'm okay.

Tuesday's session I accidentally extended by an extra 400m rep and so totalled 7.3kms (with a w/u and c/d of 1.5kms each). Thursday I had my tough session for the week - the Halftime Fartlek. If you don't know what that is, it's a session where you run for a certain amount of minutes, and your rest is half that time, going down minute by minute. E.g. 5 minute effort, 2:30 rest. Then 4 minute effort, 2 rest. 3 minute effort, 1:30 rest. And so on till you reach 0.
My Halftime Fartlek was a count down from 5. It wasn't the fastest as I was just becoming symptomatic with my cold and my legs were HEAVYYYYY, but overall I ran 7.7kms in the session. I did manage to float (a slow jog recovery) every rest though and that worked in my favour distance-wise.

So how about this week? Well, my coach just sent through my plan so let's check it out!

Monday: Workout
Tuesday: 4x800m w/60s R, then 2x400m w/60s R
Wednesday: Rest
Thursday: 35-45 min easy run with 1 min walk every 5 min
Friday: Rest
Saturday: REST (WITH EMPHASIS ON REST)
Sunday: 7km race day!!

I'm a bit unsure of how my body will deal with the 7km and whether or not my heavy '_{oh noo pls I sick no run}' legs will get back to their normal working order but I sure hope everything goes well. I don't think I'll update beforehand, so please wish me luck! It's gonna be my longest race so far.

Love y'all, please be kind to yourselves. <3

[Poet]

Hello again, my loves!
WARNING: Long update time -_-

Sorry for not updating yesterday - I found it hard to piece together coherent sentences lol

So - I deferred from my plan last week a) because I was sick on Tuesday and b) had an irritated ITB on Thursday. Friday and Saturday were then dedicated to rest, so I actually only ended up running 9kms for the entire week. Resting for so long turned in my favour though - as my longest race ever was on Sunday!
It's been a hot minute since I ran 7kms or more continuously (as opposed to a session where it's stop/start) so I was pretty certain I would have to walk at some point. Leading up to the day I was really nervous about my performance, so used my best coping strategy: denial. It was only when waking up at 4AM on Sunday, and leaving the house in complete darkness, that I allowed myself to think about actually racing. And you know what? It kind of worked!

I had to get up and leave super early in order to get some heavier food into myself (a banana) and leave in time to meet with Erutepa, who was running the half marathon. We left his house at 5:15AM and arrived at the site at around 6:10. It was bitterly cold and still extremely dark out. We saw him and another runner in the squad off at 7:15, before I "warmed up" (IT WAS TOO COLD TO WARM UP) for the 8AM 7km start. For the first 1.5kms I was very comfortable (but very cold) running at around 5:30 pace behind some other runners who started off at 5:20. They slowed down, however, so I overtook them and went into the 2nd km at 5:14 pace (which is the average pace for my 5km PB). I settled into a rhythm at 5:36 pace for kms 3 and 4, before starting to pick it up a little at 5kms. It was around here that I started really feeling the effects of every little incline, but I wasn't cold anymore and it was just a matter of holding it till the finish. A lot of other runners in my race had started off quick and were dropping away - it was a weird sort of reward to pass them. For my 6th km, I got a nice shallow downhill slope which helped tremendously with just getting back a little bit of breath and upping the pace to 5:16/km. The 7th and final km was along the river flat - and I could see the finish line marquee taunting me the whole way! In the last 200m or so I forced my heavy legs into a sprint and ended at 3:46/km pace.
I DID IT! I ran the whole way without stopping and not only ran 37:45 for the 7km, but within that ran a 27:47 5km which is my second best 5km time!!!

Erutepa finished just a couple of minutes before me, covering 21.1kms in 78 minutes. An amazing effort and one we celebrated with bubble tea, a Radox bath and cuddles!
In all honesty it probably isn't particularly impressive to run 37:45, especially considering the calibre of people I train with. But it's a personal achievement, and despite the deep ache in my legs and the rasp in my throat and the pain of actually doing it, it makes me happy.

Overall I was the 11th female to finish the 7km. 5th in my age group. And oh boy, am I keen to try this again next year and look back on how I progress!

This week I'm in recovery, so all of my runs are gentle efforts to not overwork my tired muscles. I'll check back in later.
Keep being cool, fellow beans <3

[sweetiepi]

37:45 is an impressive achievement by all means!
So proud of you, Poet 💙

[Poet]

Hey, you goobers. Been a while!

You know the drill - I forget to write, and then when I remember it feels awkward, and so it gets put off for over a month. But heck it I'm here with some time to kill so let's reflect:

I got the flu. 

That's about it. Not much running involved honestly. Just a week of vomiting up mucus at all hours. Then the recovery from that. It's been about 2-ish weeks(?) and I'm still feeling the after effects. But on Saturday I was asked to run for open women so I did an 8km cross country race. Not the smartest idea (I ran it in 48 minutes which is good for me but basically last in my age group) but it was fun and a beautiful day. Erutepa wasn't running but went the 4 hour round trip there and back to support me. And I achieved something I never thought I would, which is run one of the hardest XC courses. So there's a few positives!

This week (...and next week... it's already Thursday  w h a t ) I am hoping to get back into consistent weeks of 20+ kms. A bit hard to think about with another snap lockdown on its way, but I can do plenty in an hour time slot for exercise. Maybe I'll be able to hit my goal of a 10km long run soon!!

The weather for the most part hasn't been particularly encouraging either. The combination of FREEZING COLD and WIND isn't my favourite. So along with not feeling well it's been a huge challenge to just get outside at all.

For the month of May I've run just over 32.5kms. Pretty pathetic, and certainly not living up to my extremely ambitious goal of 1000kms in a year. But hey. We learn, we grow, and we'll get there eventually. It just takes some time and dedication. And better health!
I need to remember that I'm doing this for me. No-one else. My body is doing what it can. My sickness can be frustrating but just because I can't quite reach one big goal doesn't mean I can't reach smaller ones.

Now, time to psych myself up for a rainy, cold session.

Thanks for following along, loves. See you for the next update. <3

[Poet]

GUESS WHO'S BACK

BACK AGAIN

It me ʕ￫ᴥ￩ʔ

Happy Pride Month and International Running Day, my loves!! We gonna be fast AND gay with zero apologies, lesgoooo 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍🌈

I just had 2 coffees so I'm shaking but also feeling pretty productive despite having a sick night so thought I'd write.

The past 7 days I've run 17.3km, just picking it up and pulling myself to the 20km/week average I want. My body is still pretty out-of-whack so unfortunately my faster sessions have been pretty slow and left unfinished. Yesterday I was meant to run 5x4min on 1min off and managed 4 out of 5 reps but only a 1km warmup and no cooldown (besides walking home and stretching because I felt like crap). Really disappointed with my average pace and am hoping that my medical tests actually come back with something I can definitively follow up this time.
However, my aerobic fitness is fine! My legs are stronger than ever and could carry me a long way if it wasn't for the rest of my body giving out. On Sunday, I ran 9kms which is my longest run ever. Slow, of course, but steady at an average pace of 6:13/km. And I'm happy with that!!

That's all for now.
With another week of lockdown looming, let's all get the sun we can. Enjoy the little victories, and reach out if you're struggling. We got this.

Time for a workout!

[Poet]

Just a quick update:

The antibiotics I'm taking are absolutely ruining my ability to exercise haha. Before that I became quite unwell again so only did a few kms of running and a couple workouts.

I'm on this course for another 10 days or so, and as the symptoms improve I'll likely pick up running again. But for now, I'm just working on the recovery. Thanks for staying with me bebes! See you when I get back to normal.

[Poet]

Hello there!! I hope we're doing well <3

I'm back to it, it seems! The past week has been consistent for me in all the ways I've been hoping for.

My first try back was June 21st - I did a small 2.6km run/walk and it didn't feel very nice. So I gave myself a break till I was done with my treatment before continuing.

After that, I was still very tired and my body was recovering so on the 28th, I managed a 3km. On the 29th, I managed my first session back of 10 x 200m with walk breaks, totalling about 4.7km with warmup. The 1st of July was my first full session back including a warmup and cooldown - so I did 8 x 300m and totalled 5.75km. I skipped Saturday but ran a 5km on Sunday in the freezing cold rain, totalling 13.5kms for the first week back which is not bad at all!

This week I've run 6.7kms and hope to get close to/reach my 20km for the week goal! (After tomorrow night at track, then Saturday and Sunday runs!) I know at this point that me still aiming for 1000kms for the year is pretty unreachable so I'm just going to focus on doing what I can so I can compete in the summer season in a higher bracket.

Some things I've really noticed since treatment:
My stride length has increased pretty significantly - I'm spending a lot less energy subconsciously protecting myself.
My heart rate is significantly lower - I used to reach the high 190s and peak a lot in sessions, but over my last few runs my average high HR is closer to 175, which is a LOT healthier.
My average speed is the highest this year, which echoes the previous points.

And, above all, I feel healthy. I can eat, drink, and exercise without feeling ill. Woohoo!!

Anyways, there's a nice pot of word vomit for you to sift through.
I hope you guys are having a good week. And if not, try taking some time to do something nice for yourself. Love ya. <3

[Bri MT]

Fantastic to hear!!

Really happy for you

[The Cat In The Hat]

Hello there!! I hope we're doing well <3

I'm back to it, it seems! The past week has been consistent for me in all the ways I've been hoping for.

My first try back was June 21st - I did a small 2.6km run/walk and it didn't feel very nice. So I gave myself a break till I was done with my treatment before continuing.

After that, I was still very tired and my body was recovering so on the 28th, I managed a 3km. On the 29th, I managed my first session back of 10 x 200m with walk breaks, totalling about 4.7km with warmup. The 1st of July was my first full session back including a warmup and cooldown - so I did 8 x 300m and totalled 5.75km. I skipped Saturday but ran a 5km on Sunday in the freezing cold rain, totalling 13.5kms for the first week back which is not bad at all!

This week I've run 6.7kms and hope to get close to/reach my 20km for the week goal! (After tomorrow night at track, then Saturday and Sunday runs!) I know at this point that me still aiming for 1000kms for the year is pretty unreachable so I'm just going to focus on doing what I can so I can compete in the summer season in a higher bracket.

Some things I've really noticed since treatment:
My stride length has increased pretty significantly - I'm spending a lot less energy subconsciously protecting myself.
My heart rate is significantly lower - I used to reach the high 190s and peak a lot in sessions, but over my last few runs my average high HR is closer to 175, which is a LOT healthier.
My average speed is the highest this year, which echoes the previous points.

And, above all, I feel healthy. I can eat, drink, and exercise without feeling ill. Woohoo!!

Anyways, there's a nice pot of word vomit for you to sift through.
I hope you guys are having a good week. And if not, try taking some time to do something nice for yourself. Love ya. <3

This is great!