Training Log Archive: blairtrewin

1 min walk, 2 min run. My instructions are to do this on flat ground which makes it a bit of a challenge from home - as those of you who have been there will know, flat ground is in short supply in the immediate vicinity. Found a flat stretch just long enough for 2 minutes and went up and down it the requisite number of times.

A bit tight again but nowhere near as bad as Friday. Also a hint of right Achilles soreness early on but that quickly disappeared. Encouraged by the way the central injury is holding up (so far).

Not included in my log was walking against warming yesterday afternoon. This had a decent turnout (not quite as decent as the organisers claimed, but there's nothing unusual about that for a demo - the shooters are particularly good at telling porkies on this subject). Some of the drivers waiting to cross the throng were somewhat less than impressed; I did think it was nicely symbolic that at Flinders Lane stuck vehicle number 1 was a Porsche and stuck vehicle number 2 was a Range Rover (it would have been more symbolic still had stuck vehicle number 3 been a Hummer).

While on matters environmental, there has been a rare coincidence between a government decision and a branch resolution lately with the State Government's decision not to pursue the export of brown coal, following a recent resolution by the Ivanhoe Branch calling on them not to do so. Any thoughts that this might have been influence rather than coincidence is dispelled by the fact that I haven't actually got around to sending the resolution to the responsible minister yet.

The longest ride I've done so far in this sequence, doing the loop Heidelberg-Hurstbridge-Arthurs Creek-Yan Yean and home. No really big hills but a reasonable number of smaller ones, most notably climbing out of Arthurs Creek. Some really nice country towards the far end of the loop, although it would have been nicer going in the reverse direction. (Quite a lot of other cyclists were doing this, although going in the reverse direction would have meant doing the narrow and busy section south of Diamond Creek uphill rather than downhill, and I think I'd rather be doing such a section at 40 than 15). I thought this route might take me into the fire area but it didn't, quite; the Arthurs Creek CFA (who must have seen an awful lot on that day ten months ago) were busy training.

Riding well through the first 30k, then hit a bit of a bad patch, especially around 45k, which suggests that my muscular endurance isn't up to taking on any really big climbs yet. Got a bit of a second wind later on but still pretty tired at the end. Nice to get a session like this under my belt though.

C • Food 4

Forgot to mention anything in yesterday's log about Thursday night's Zatopek races - a couple of excellent 10k races. It's already well known what happened in front so I won't discuss that at length here. Hanny ran 34.25, a decent run without being spectacular. I imagine she'll be wanting to take a minute off this - you don't run 2.32 marathons off a mid-34s 10k (unless your name is Lauren Shelley) - but a top-10 result in a national championship is still not to be sneezed at. Kathryn broke 35 for the first time, doing 34.50 after a long battle with the aforementioned Lauren. She's come a long way in a short time; is it really only a bit over six months ago that her aim was a sub-37? (and that I was thinking that trying to stay with her was a potential strategy in pursuit of a 37 of my own).

The usual Saturday loop. Didn't feel especially smooth but faster than previous outings here. The various bits of storm debris on the bike path at Box Hill North have been cleaned up since I was last here. Christmas shopping traffic already starting to make its presence felt in the vicinity of the Doncaster mall.

From the current Canberra forecast (at http://www.bom.gov.au/products/IDN10035.shtml, but will be replaced by 11.30):

"A weak cold front has moved the ACT overnight, bringing isolated light showers and gusty westerly winds".

Doesn't sound like a terribly weak front to me. Can any of our Canberra readers advise as to where the ACT has been moved to?

C • So, no tsunami warnings 1

C • well i suppose 1

C • Moving sentiments 1

Pool running at Fitzroy - definitely nice to be out in the open air on a sunny morning, and Fitzroy has a decently long deep end too. Working a bit harder than in previous sessions, which may have had flow-on effects later in the day.

Once again 2 minutes on, 2 minutes off, heading out in the early evening from work along the river again. Lots of Christmas parties in evidence (I'd come myself from one at lunchtime, although not an especially indulgent one), which may make for an interesting evening on the roads when I finally hit them at 10 or thereabouts. Hopefully the much-advertised police blitz scares drunks away from their cars.

The main feature of this session was that both groins were extremely tight, probably a reaction to the pool running session as nothing like it happened on Wednesday. Loosened up a little later on but never comfortable. No sign of trouble in the Achilles but that may have been because I had other parts of my body to worry about.

C • Ladies? 1

To work via the northern route. Felt a bit flat, possibly because of lack of sleep (although last night was better). Got a pretty good run with the traffic. I'd done an interview before starting which didn't go quite so well - I'd been led to believe that it was with ABC Radio National about Australia but it was actually with Radio Australia about the Pacific, so I was rather under-prepared. Hope I managed to bluff successfully.

I'm also feeling a bit left out because I haven't received any threats yet.

Inspiration for the title of this session comes courtesy of Bridget. You'll be seeing it a bit in the next two or three weeks because my comeback is not going to be as rapid as I thought it might have been, which is frustrating, although I understand the merits of a conservative approach at this point in time. In its current form it's 2 minutes on, 2 minutes off, which is just like an intervals session except that you're doing your 400s at 120-second pace.

Headed out at lunchtime after a rather full-on morning even by my recent standards, up before 5, did my first interview from the waiting room of the Olympic Park Sports Medicine Centre at 5.50, later made a visit to the ABC studio, and fitted a trip to the dentist in amongst all of that too. Part of the object of the exercise was to try to stave off early-afternoon sleepiness, a mission which was more or less accomplished as it wasn't until I left that I hit the wall. Normally this would be a recipe for a dismal run but it was good to be out there again, even if it was doing intermittent jogs up and down the pavement outside the new convention centre and Jeff's Shed. A little bit of a twinge on the (slight) climb over the bridge but otherwise stable.

Saw Bruce coming back from his run. Also saw a certain amount of street theatre associated with something called the Parliament of the World's Religions which is currently happening at Jeff's Shed. (While on the subject of religion, it didn't go unnoticed that the nine Fred Nile candidates combined were narrowly beaten in Bradfield by the Australian Sex Party - which I suspect might fulfill a future role diverting 1-2% of couldn't-give-a-stuff Senate votes to the Greens via preferences).

On my current timetable it doesn't look like I'll make the 5-days, but with a bit of luck might be starting again properly in time for the new year at Falls.

The recession must be easing because property investment spruikers are starting to appear on radio ads again.

C • :D 1

C • You are my media world! 1

Another pool running session, the longest yet. Was originally planning to go to Fitzroy which has a long deep end, but thought this morning's conditions wouldn't be a lot of fun in an outdoor pool so went to Ivanhoe instead. Had the same company as I did last Friday (a recovering footballer as I suspected). Not unpleasant but didn't feel as if I was working that hard, which may or may not indicate something.

The World Meteorological Organisation's statement on the global climate for 2009 is coming out at 11 tonight (our time). I already have an impressively long list of bookings for the morning, starting out at 5.35 on 3AW and then moving onto AM and ABC2 at 8.30. I'm also on call until midnight tonight, which probably won't work wonders for my productivity tomorrow afternoon. (Unfortunately I won't be in a useless meeting between 2 and 3.30 tomorrow afternoon like I was today, so I won't be able to fall asleep in it without missing anything).

(I've already recorded the AM interview, and got asked a couple of times why Australia got mentioned so often in the statement. I didn't give what I suspect is the real reason - that we were more efficient in getting information to the WMO when they asked for it than anyone else was; all those late nights have achieved something).

C • hottest decade 1

A pretty solid morning's effort, once again taking in the Yarra Boulevard, at a slightly faster pace than previously. To some extent this was the ride I'd meant to do yesterday, although I overestimated the distance so ended up coming in somewhat under the 90-100 minutes I was planning on. If I hear what I want to hear on Wednesday there may not be too many more long rides to come...

Put in my first Monday night appearance for a while this evening, although only to eat (something I'm usually pretty good at).