take a seat; it's hard to believe!

i must apologise. this blog, and readers of this blog, have been subjected to a consistent drone of whinge regarding my inability to run faster than a eighty three year old on valium.

but - take a chair - we have finally, finally seen improvement on the running front! As I raise a proverbial glass, allow me to break down the enormity of this achievement.

2.5km has always taken me around 16 minutes to complete.

Last week, I made it to 15 minutes.

This week, I made it to 14.1 minutes.

Today, I hit 13.8 minutes!!

Really, honestly, not something i thought i would ever see in my lifetime (a little hyperbolic, but hey, when have i cowered from an opportunity to exaggerate?)

SO how have i done it? Well, to be honest, most of lies within the insistence of my PT Paul that i could actually run faster. not something i believed. at all. but he runs 10kms in 38 minutes and is paid to be enthusiastic, so he tapped into my competitive spirit and told me if i wanted to sub 15 minutes, i just had to do it. simple as that. so he watched me meander over to the treadmill and moved away to give me some distance, then came over half way through to check i was running fast enough (like YES), then headed off once again. there was no chance i wasn't going to make it, not with that kind of behavior.

and alas, when he returned 14.1 minutes later, i was so sweaty and red that i looked like i would quite seriously explode in a tomato like fashion, but i had done it. never would have thought!

this morning, i thought, hell with it, and ran a couple of notches faster - and subbed 14 minutes!!!! and was marginally less red/sweaty/tomato like.

so it's incredible, really, but perhaps about friggin' time too. i've been running for far too long at the snail pace - and while my times still aren't nearly competitive with those running types, they're good for my standard. and that, peoples, is good enough for me.

goal for triathlon number two!

seeing as i'll be doing the same course as last time, i've got a good chance of guessing my times - and even better, can set some (hopefully) realistic goals!

so here's the results again from last effort:

(400 m swim) 00:07:54
(23 km cycle) 00:54:16
(5 km run) 00:31:14
(total) 01:33:24

this time around i'd like to get into the top 20. to do this, i need to be faster than 01:17:24 total (based on last year's results.) SO - I'm going to aim for the following times:

(200m swim) 00:04:00
(23 km cycle) 00:52:00
(2.5 km run) 00:14:30
(total) 01:10:30

if i do manage to get these times, I'll actually be placed in the top 10. but that sounds a little bit too hardcore, even in the 'novice' category. So top 20 will be fine with me.

2.5 weeks until triathlon

the personal trainer dude (paul) has done the maths. something i couldn't ever be bothered to do. but he's done it.

for me to run quicker (than a grannie) - i need to have the treadmill set to 10. minimum.

now i know this doesn't mean a lot to anyone but me and the treadmill, but let's put it like this;

at the moment i'm running 2.5 kms in 15 minutes. this is sloooooow, and not helpful in my attempt to compete in the upcoming tri with any level of competitiveness. as such, i'm running on the treadmill at about 8.5, maybe 9.5 on a good day.

i now need to step this right up to at least 10 - which will see my time being reduced to 14 minutes. still not amazing, but a start!! i kind of wish i didn't know this. ignorance is comforting. and less sweaty.

so, what have i done this week?

> 30 minute cycle
> 30 minute gym routine (included 10 min treadmill run)
> 10 minute run outside
> 20 minute run outside
> 30 minute gym routine (included 10 min treadmill run)
> 1.5 hour cycle

i'm keeping the focus on running, and making my runs shorter, but harder. also concentrating on breathing as after each run my breathing would be very shallow - so am trying to breathe a lot deeper in the hope of better results. it's worked for the last two runs, so fingers crossed.

and in other news - i can now do 8 man pushups! sooooooo excited (too excited, really)

training steps up

i've decided to return to my ye olde blogging post system of shortlisting the week's workout. i think a few people assume that to participate in triathlons you need to dedicate a *whole* lot of time, but i don't believe that's necessarily true. like anything, what you put in, you get out.

so, over the last week, i've done;

> 15 min hilly run outside
> 20 min drill run outside
> 2 hour gym session (incl. 15 min run)
> 3.5 hour cycle
> 1.5 hour gym session (incl. 15 min run)
> 10 min drill swim session
> 2.5 hour cycle

i'm stepping up the training in light of next month's tri; and will do something 5 days a week (that's about as specific as my training plan gets!!)

the biggest change to the routine over the last week has been the results of my personal training session on the weekend. Paul, the PT man, was really fantastic, and has turned around my lacking enthusiasm for the gym with a killer routine filled with stuff i really can't do. love it. so the top aims are:

> man push ups (can currently do five, barely)
> unassisted pull ups (hot)
> improve core (hopefully will help with running)
> run faster (his new speed treadmill session is currently uncomplete-able. another thing to aim for)

i jumped in the pool with the stopwatch the other day, and did 100 metres in 1 min 53 secs. that's the first swim in a couple of months, so am thankful the super sprint is only 200 metres!! hopefully can get away with not too much swim practise, as i'd really like to focus on getting my running and cycle time down.

PT man was trying to convince me to buy a heartrate monitor, but this seems a bit hardcore for me. does anyone use these?? i'm not sure how useful it would be, other than being a new gadet to distract me from the usual pain...

first tri of 2009 here we come!

thanks partially to some encouraging words, and partially due to inherent insanity, i've now registered for the first triathlon of the season! hello 2009!

i've now got four weeks to shape up, but have opted for the super sprint to keep things marginally easier. that'll be a speedy 200m swim, 23 km cycle, 2.5 km run.

my biking has been feeling really strong lately, so no worries there. swimming isn't going to take long to get back into the swing of things, but... and there's always a but... my running is still hideously lacking resembling anything running (think more very slow jog, granny shuffle, small child with bad leg...)

i went out this morning. felt great on the down hill (ran fast past super fit woman in matchy matchy workout clothes). ten minutes later i'm going uphill and stop for a little breather (i know, shouldn't admit that) and who should fly past but the matchy matchy woman. my eyeballs were narrow, even without oxygen.

anyway, slight diversion, back to task at hand! running!

tri-experienced richard has given me some top tips (which worked for the first run, but struggling to maintain efficiency as always). he's also lent me a fabulous tri book which is top of the easter long weekend reading list. saturday is a session with the personal trainer, and a looong bike ride in the afternoon. really looking forward to that.

in other news, i'm twittering. am new to the game, but follow me if 'tweets' means anything to you:http://twitter.com/al_moore

getting back into the swing (run?) of things

it's time to get cracking! since i've returned from Kili, I've had a well deserved rest (six days) and then it was back to action.

strangely enough for me, i've been enjoying my runs a little more, and even managed to endure a spinning class without getting out of breath! so it seems Kili did a little more than just induce a distaste for men in board shorts.

i've decided it was time for focus, and have signed up for a smallish 10k run through Hyde Park next month, organised by the the British Heart Foundation, you can find out more here

I found the event using a great tool, courtesy of the Runners World website, where you can enter a few details and they'll suggest running events for you. you will need to register on the site prior to using the function, but it's free and quick to register. they also have a fnatastic forum, which is really helpful for answering questions about running generally, and also questions about events...

i find working towards an event gives me focus, which is often more of a mental focus than a physical one. running for me has always had a 'whats the point of this' side, because i don't tend to enjoy it half as much as other sports, so knowing i have an event in the pipeline satisfies that inevitable question.

so, my aim for this next 10k, is to sub 60 (which is fancy talk for running quicker than one hour!) i'll have to run 4 minutes faster than my previous 10k to achieve this, but i'm hoping my newfound Kili cardio strength might help me out...

Onwards and Upwards: Post Kilimanjaro

Kilimanjaro is over! and we made it to the summit! horray!

I've made a trip report: and have broken it into 5 days (there was a 6th day, but it was a non-eventful!)

Have a read, look at the pics, enjoy, and be glad you weren't there on the mountain too :)

In pressing news: we didn't see Cheryl Cole, unfortunately, but maybe next time *cough*