LET THE MARATHON TRAINING START

With the easy week after the OTTER / RETTO a thing of the past, I started with my marathon training...

OK where does one start with marathon training, in fact where do you start with your training for anything? You run a TT to get some idea of where you on the fitness scale. I was in luck, there was a 10km race on the Saturday, so I found myself on the start-line...

I've run this race many times over the years and know the route pretty well, so I set off at a good pace from the gun 3;27  3:28  3:29, Ms 310 (my new Garmin, the old 205 didn't like the rainy winter we had here in the Mother City) was reading the km a little short as per the km boards. The 3km had a little climb and then the race climbs to the high point just after the 5km mark. My time at the 5km board was 17:50, so I knew a sub 36 was going to easy, just how much faster could I go?

I was flying down the hill, I Ms. 310 tells me I knocked off 3km in a row under 3:20!!! I didn't even know my legs could move that fast... At each km board I was doing big maths and working out my projected finishing time. Then I turned the last corner and saw the finishing clock, no more maths, the clock stopped at 34:50!!! My fastest 10 in over 4 years!

So I have a little speed left in the old legs and something to work with for my marathon:

After only and easy run on the Sunday and Monday, Tuesday saw the hard work start with the hard work, 3 x 10min hard with 2 min rest... The week was now well under way now and after a 15km run on the Wednesday it was time to raise the heart rate again! I had a nice little session planned for the Thursday: 5km, but we were running hills, up at marathon pace, and down fast. I was running just under 2:00 for the 500m up and down in 1;40ish. With the warm up we did and the cool down back to the club I logged 14km for the day.

After a 5km recovery run on Friday I was ready for the weekend... I saw Saturdays 15km race as a nice chance to get a little training in, so I planned a tempo run with a little warm up to the start of the race and a warm down back home... 32.5km later I was home and a little SHATTERED!Maybe the weeks training was catching up with me...

Now as any self respecting distance runner know, Sunday is long run day, so I meet a couple of the boys at the club and we headed out for a little run across the face of Table Mountain...

LOWER GRAVEL ROADS

The running was easy and with the sun at our backs we just jogged along...

JAYDE WITH THE SUN AT HIS BACK

It was warm and when we stopped to regroup we waited in the shade:

WAITING IN THE SHADE

After 11.5km of running we reached Tafleberg Road (the hairpin on the right) our route then took us up the road to the next hairpin before a short climb to the top of Kloof corner, 1.2km 190m climb!!!

THE STAIR WAY TO HEAVEN

But at the top we were on the contour and it would be flattish all the way back!!! But before we headed back, Sam (all the way from the USA wanted his picture taken)

Richard and Sam

 Ran run back was easy and we just jogged along the single track to Devils Peak before heading down to the club.

CABLE STATION AND RICHARD STOPPING FOR WATER

The run was only 22.5km (750m climb) and had taken us 2h13:08, but since the 2nd half was all single track and the 1st half had plenty of climb in it we had done OK.

Week one of Marathon Training done 115.5km and now let us see if I can put together another good week before the marathon...