Recovery run

Not much to report for this run. Weather is still great, pleased to be able to get out early in the morning and to get the runs in. I was actually looking forward to this runa nd to just enjoy a run without any fixed objective.

Once I got out, it quickly became apparent that yesterday's intervals had taken their toll and my legs were still suffering despite 24 hours rest. I forgot about the watch and just ran as I felt.

10.3 km in 47:45 at an average pace of 4:36/km. Not as good as I'd hoped that I would feel but at least I knew why !

6 x 1000m

Another session skipped on Wednesday due to work commitments so I headed out on Thursday morning with dread for what I find to be one of the hardest interval sessions: 6 x 1000m off 300m recovery. I can really admit that I wasn't looking forward to this session at all but I also know how much good it does and I was eager to see what I could manage on my recent form.

Due to the lack of time before having to head off to work and the fact that the intervals need 7.5 km to be completed, I decided that I could only manage 1km of warm-up before setting off. Luckily, it has been really fantastic weather-wise here in Paris recently and we're only now enjoying the summer that we didn't have in July. So no excuses on the weather front with a perfect 12°C and cloudless skies. I ran down to the Seine and all too soon set off on the first interval.

With the interval training function on the garmin I'm not able to see what speed I'm running and I do all of my analysis back at the house when the session is over. I set off at what I felt was a fast pace by the river, concentrating on turning my legs over as quickly as possible and shortening my stride. Naturally, as I settle into the interval my stride lengthens and the leg turnover decreases, as my body adjusts to run as efficiently as possible saving energy for the next effort.

I finished the 6 intervals and told myself that even if I hadn't beaten my best times, I was unable to run any faster by myself. The lactic had hit hard in the last interval and when this ended I had to walk to recover, incapable even of jogging for 20 seconds.

Pleased when I got back to see the results:

3:43, 3:45, 3:38, 3:39, 3:40, 3:41

with every recovery under 2 minutes between intervals.

10.7 km all up in 48 minutes or an average of 4:30 for the session.

Doubling up

With a manic Monday and an early start with a first meeting at work scheduled for 6:30 am - yes, you did read that correctly - I put my recovery run back a day to Tuesday and ended up by doubling up with a session at the club in the evening.

The recovery run went well but I could definitely feel the impact of a hard Paris-Versailles race in my legs. The thighs were still aching slightly and I didn't have the same energy as of late. I set out on my usual course around Maisons Laffitte as it's the only route where I can see where I'm going now that the days are closing in again. I have added in a extra loop in the park which brings the total circuit to just under 13km. I set out slowly but as the body warmed up I gradually gained in speed.

By the end of the run I'd begun to feel better and the thighs had loosened. It was a pity that I hadn't been able to do this a day earlier. I finished the loop in just under 58 minutes at an average pace of 4:31 per km.

After a day in the office, I was able to sneak out from my myriad conference calls that I'm having to participate in at the moment and got to the club just in time to see everyone having the pre-rep speech and heading off while I changed into my kit. I chased off after them in the hope of convincing someone to return to the track with me and do the 2 x 3km that was indicated on the marathon training schedule. I caught them after a rather rapid warm-up but nobody was interested in my proposal so I settled on doing the 15 x 30/30 that were on offer with Miguel.

We set off on these intervals with Nico and Jean-Marc. I was able to stick to both of them for the first few intervals but after that their speed meant that I would lose 5 metres over the 30 seconds and then catch this back over the recovery. Jean-Marc is returning to form after some injury and he tired towards the end of the session but was otherwise looking very good. I was pleased with the quality of the session and the fact that the gap between Nico and myself is closing.

I ran around the track at the end after returning to the club to record 10km on the Garmin forgetting that I hadn't been able to start the watch until a kilometre into the training session at the start due to my catch-up exercise. 11km all up in just under the hour.

Paris-Versailles : the 25 second story!

It's been a tough week. In fact, it's been worse than a tough week: it's been a 'kick a man when he's down' week with marathon training at 6:00am all week, working on integration at work until all hours and then trying to decorate the flat and fit a parquet floor before the new tenant arrived yesterday. The pressure has been high and my sleep deprivation has risen to all time highs.

This wasn't the ideal warm-up to the race this morning but before I get onto that race report, I'll give you all a brief summary of what has been going on during the week.

Last Sunday was the Chasseurs du Temps race in Vincennes and we lined up a solid 3 man team in the shape of Nico, Benj (Nico's brother) and myself. We set Benj off first and then me and the final leg was run by Nico. We hit our objective almost spot on with Benj and myself running 26 minutes legs for the 7.1km and then Nico running a 25 minute final leg. Well, actually we only have Nico's word that he ran under 26 minutes since he forgot to stoop and register the timing chip over the mat in his excitement to finish. The poor lad was extremely embarassed and had to go and discuss with the race officials as to our team position. We finished in 4th position in a total time of 1:18 being beaten by some very competent teams on the day who were beyond our league. Still we enjoyed the run and the atmosphere was pretty good on a lovely sunny day.

Monday - a 13km recovery run around the park in Maisons Laffitte pre-dawn in just under the hour

Tuesday - 2x 2km long interval session pre-dawn which was supposed to be run at threshold - 5 seconds per km. I ran the intervals in 7:30 then 7:29 and was chuffed to bits. Feeling good and marathon training is going better than I've managed previously.

Wednesday - a 13km recovery run around the park in Maisons Laffitte pre-dawn in just under the hour

Thursday - 2x 12x200m. I managed this session a whole lot better than in Stockholm. Intervals went as follows:

40, 40, 48 (wtf !), 40, 43, 42, 38, 42, 41, 35, 41, 39
40, 39, 41, 39, 39, 41, 39, 40, 39, 41, 39, 40

So, a good week's training but I skipped the Saturday session as I had too much work on my plate sorting out the flat at the last moment. I woke up this morning refreshed physically but stressed mentally as on top of all of the other things going on, I managed to lose the single set of car keys I possess for my car and smashed the passenger side window to see if I hadn't left them in the boot - they weren't.

I rode in with Paul B. and we left his car in his office carpark before jogging a couple of kilometres across Paris to the start at the foot of the Eiffel tower. We met Hélène and Brigitte here and then I left them to head off to the start of the race as I'd managed to get a preferential bib for the first time ever and had the pleasant sensation of being able to warm up easily without worrying about shouldering my way through the crowds to get a decent starting position. I met Nico and Benj here and we headed off for an extended warm-up picking up Greg and a friend Jérôme on the way.

We lined up behind the elite and then we were off. I felt good from the start: fresh and relaxed and I took the lead from Nico and Benj just focusing on how I felt and not worrying what they were doing behind me. I ran the first 2 km in 3:36 for each and then slowed slightly in the 3rd km to 3:42 as there was a slight rise as we ran under one of the bridges over the Seine. Another couple of kilometres along the flat by the river which I ran in 3:43 then 3:50 and at the end of the 6th kilometre we began the climb up Cote des Gardes, the 2km long landmark hill of the race.

It was a long pull up and I suddenly began to feel the tiredness. I lost a few places as people I'd been running with pulled away from slightly up the hill. I wasn't unduly worried and just concentrated on using small regular paces, without stopping but it was a hell of a relief when I reached the feeding station at the top. I'd been expecting Nico to come past me up the hill but still no sign, so he must have been further back than I thought.The uphill I managed in 4:59 then 4:54 and I remembered my last blog account as I ran when I was slightly over 5 minutes / km on this section. I may be tired but I'm running faster than before.

We hit the forest section now and it was a relief as the air was decidedly cooler than through Meudon up the hill. I tried to pick up speed quickly and push on with the pace now that the hills were behind me. I looked at the garmin as I passed the 8km barrier and saw that it showed 32:57. I quickly calculated that I only need to run the rest of the course at 15km/h to beat my record and get under 1:05. This spurred me on. However, it wasn't as straightforward as it appeared. The 9th kilometre was managed in 4:07 and then the next in 3:53.

It was just after 10km when Nico caught me. It wasn't a total surprise as I'd been losing touch with the runners around me as fatigue set in. The hill had taken it out of me and now Nico ran up to me and I gave him the thumbs up sign, too tired to talk.He pulled ahead at 11km and I couldn't give any more. I was running 3:48/km now and I was beat. I began to count down the kilometres willing the legs to hold out. This was exacerbated at the end of the 14th kilometre when we had to run up the hill past the cemetary - pace slowed to 4:16 and I felt like walking. I resisted the temptation and forced my legs to turn over. I could feel the lactic now and any thoughts of catching Nico over the last couple of kilometres were disappearing fast. He looked behind to see where I was and this encouraged me as I thought he must be hurting too.

It just wasn't to be though. I held on but the last 1.5 km were just too much: the main avenue in Versailles rising steadily towards the finish line was the last straw. 4:01 to achieve this kilometre and Nico remained stubbornly 50 metres ahead. I tried to pick up the pace but even the sight of the finish line didn't help. I gave it all I had and finished in 1:04:20 some 43 seconds faster than my PB. Nico finished 25 seconds ahead of me in 1:03:55. 25 measly seconds and another victory to him. My determination is set though and I know I can beat him now over the longer distances. Next attempt in Marseille.

Easy Saturday

Nico agreed to an easy run for an hour this morning which suited me fine. We set off slowly which he didn't think I was capable of doing and ran up into Le Mesnil by the church before heading into the forest.

The first major incident of the run occurred by the church where we were almost run over by a learner driver passing through town. He noticed us at the latest minute and slammed on the brakes, forgetting to press the clutch in the process and stalling dramatically. We wondered afterwards if he was sitting his test which will count for another failure in the stats if true.

Nothing really to report about the run. We had a good chat and kept the pace very modest as I think we only went faster than 12km/h for 3 km out of the total distance. Very relaxing and enjoyable indeed.

12.3 km all up in 1:03. Perfect preparation for the relays tomorrow in Vincennes.

3 x 3000m

I rolled up at the club tonight relaxed and ready to go. I was back home early from Stockholm and for oce, was able to share the car with Laurence and turn up at the club together. The weather was good, there was a good turnout and I was happy to be running.

I didn't know what I was going to do at the session and Miguel was proposing some 30/30s which were not very appealing having done my 200m intervals earlier in the week. Laurence and the trailers were off to Joyenval golf club to run the circuit there and I was interested in this too which left Nico and his proposal to run some track. I was quite keen on running intervals at the track but I was looking for something over 1000m and he wanted to run 500m. I didn't have to choose immediately so I set off on the warm up with Nico, Gérald, Bruno, Fred, Momo, François, even Eric et al.

A small group of us headed back tot he track after a few kilometres in the forest and lined up at the track. Momo was running 1000m intervals and Nico was running with him for 500m on each one. Eric was running 2x4k then 2k whereas Fred was running 3x3000m for his marathon training. I chose to run with Fred who has a very similar pace to mine. His plan was to run 12:10 for the first interval and then just under 12:00 for the next 2. I agreed and said that I would tuck in behind him.

I felt good from the start and as soon as we'd sorted the pace out, I ran to the front and took the lead. In fact, I felt excellent all of the way round and the pace felt comfortable if not easy.

The first 2 intervals went by in 11:49 then 11:39 so we were well under target. We set off on the last interval and encouraged Nico to join us which he did after the first kilometre to run the last 2 with us around the track. The pace was steady and I still tought that I had some reserves so I pushed the final lap with a burst at 300m to go. Nico and I finished together on this one in 10:58. Suffice to say that I was chuffed to bits. Gérald announced at the end of the session that he was back in shape and that Nico and I should be worried. I'll believe it when I see it ;)

16.4 km all up in 1:19 or an average of 4:49 for the evening. A great session that's really boosted my confidence for the next few races.

Recovery run - Stockholm

I'd arranged to meet up with some fellow runners from work this morning at the hotel. It was the same group as in Paris last week, minus 1. So I met with Bruce (English chap) and Inger (Swedish lady) for an easy route around the lake. I was declared official route guide and I took them around the stand cicuit of Lake Malaren.

We set off easily enough but when the Garmin beeped for the first kilometre I saw 4:59 and knew that the pace was slightly too fast for Bruce so we slowed it down a little to let everyone enjoy their run.

Very pleasant around the lake at this speed chatting easily.

8km all up in 42:35 which was just as well as any longer would have made us late for the day's meetings.

2 x 12 x 200m - Stockholm

The marathon plan hasn't disappeared and I knew that I had to get some interval training in while I was away. The meetings were scheduled to start at 9:30 this morning which allowed for a little extra time in bed so I set the alarm for 7:00am. However, I managed to wake up just before 6:30 so Idecided I may as well make the most of it and go for my run.

I wasn't looking forward to this session. I don't think that anybody looks forward to interval training as it knocks the air out of you if you try hard. Furthermore, it was a VMA session with short intervals whereas, in general, I tend to prefer the longer threshold sessions in the marathon plan. It was too late to change my mind now and I'd programmed the Garmin so off I set.

I headed back to the park in front of the Marriot Courtyard and began the session, running a 1.1 km loop around the park with 200m of effort and then 100m recovery.

The first block went like this:

43, 41, 42, 41, 40, 44, 42, 41, 39, 42, 39, 39

and then the second like this :

41, 43, 40, 38, 40, 42, 39, 39, 36, 42, 40, 40

So there are huge differences between the splits from 36 seconds to 44 seconds. I can't believe that I was so inconsistent even if there were  patches in the park where the bends were tight and large puddles and mud made the surface slippery. I have to admit that I was disappointed with these times as I should be running every one under 40 seconds as my track times in January this year showed here.

A jog back to the hotel and 12 km all up in 57:37 or 4:41 per km average.

Early morning run - Stockholm

This was just a recovery run around the lake and I set off early so that I could get back to breakfast and the meeting on time. Alarm rang at 6:00 am and the surprise that I had was that it's still light at this time in Stockholm. I slipped on some running kit and ran out of the hotel towards the lake for the standard loop around.

I ran 10km in total by adding on an extra loop in the park at the west end of the lake. Plenty of other runners around despite the early start which is what I like most about this city.

10 km all up in 47:19 or 4:42 per km on average. Managed to get myself noticed by the other managers from work, further reinforcing my image as a complete lunatic and running fanatic.

Stockholm long run

A tuna sandwich. That's right, a 2 1/2 hour flight, a 2 hour delay and all I got to eat on the damn plane was a tuna sandwich accompanied by a can of Heineken. The best part of Sunday spent on a plane and all I ate was a tuna sandwich. This is not the sort of treatment that endears me to Air France.

I checked into the hotel and 5 minutes later I checked out in my running kit and hit the streets. I had imagined a nice scenic route around Stockholm and now it was time to try it out. I don't know whether it was the pent up frustration with the journey, with airplane companies in general, or with wasting Sunday for business, but I started out at marathon speed, completing the first few kilometres at 4:15 pace. I then told myself to slow down as I knew that with the few calories that I'd ingested, the distance after 20km would be difficult to manage at this pace.

The weather was humid but the rain that had been forecast held off leaving the temperature around 20°C. I headed to the east of the city to begin with along Lake Malaren and along to Djurgarden. This was the route that I'd run in June so I knew what to expect and it's very pleasant along by the canal and then back along the south of the island. When I came back off the island, I'd already run 13km and calculated that with the 3 km back into the centre of town and then the 7km around my circuit of Malaren, I was on for a 23km run. I was feeling a little more tired now and my pace settled down to 4:30 speed.

I pushed on back through town and then it was a relief to head to the south side of the city and beside the lake where the city is a lot quieter. I relaxed along here and maintained my pace at 4:20 - 4:30 pace except for the few hills where I dropped the pace dramatically. It's quite amazing the impact that hills have on me when I'm tired like this as een the slightest rise causes an immediate drop in pace. I headed up over west bridge and back to the north side of the lake and an extra loop of the park to increase the distance before heading back to the hotel.

24 km all up in 1:50 or 4:35 per km on average. I was pleased with this especially as the 1900 calories burnt more than eliminated that tuna sandwich.

Easy early morning Paris jog

I met up with the team from our future new owners on Wednesday night for a meal and introductions. During the course of the evening there was plenty of chat going on as to our pastimes and my running exploits were brought to the fore, probably as I'm the only marathoner in the team. Anyway, some of my Swedish colleagues wanted to impress the new proprietors and proposed an early morning run around Paris to which I was cordially invited. I couldn't resist the occasion to show off, so I duly accepted the 6:30 am start at République, in the heart of Paris.

When the alarm rang at 5:20 am, I regretted my rashness in accepting but it was too late. I pulled on my running kit, through my work clothes into a bag, jumped into the car and headed off to Paris centre. There were 4 off us in total, 2 swedes and 2 brits. We set off down to Bastille at an easy pace and had an excellent early morning run through the heart of Paris. Bastille, then along the Seine to Notre Dame, continuing on to the Louvre and running through the Tuilerie gardens before heading back past Madeleine and the Bourse.

The pace was very easy and it was actually the 2 older men who held us back as the swedish lady was very fit and finishing her preparations for the half-marathon in Stockholm next weekend. It was great to run through the centre of Paris in the early morning, watching the sun rise over the city.

10km all up in 54:00.

Mid-day run

Sorry about the delays in the postings but life has been hectic recently.

As opportunities to get a run in seem few and far between at the moment, I summoned up the courage to take my runningkit to work along with a towel and a face cloth. This seems fairly straight-forward but the plan was to go for a run and then clean myself down in the washroom as there are no showers at work.

I headed out of the office in the direction of Vanves and then followed the RER line up through Chatillon until I finally reached Fontenay les Roses after 5km and turning back. I was running at about 4:30 pace up the path to Fontenay and then let loose on the way back down running at marathon speed or under 4:15 per km.

It was a very warm day and when I got back to the office, I was able to clean myself down and put on my suit, only to sweat profusely during lunch. Charming!

10,1km all up in 45:20 or an average of 4:28 per km.

2 x 2000m

I'm a man with a plan: a marathon training plan. Officially, my 10 week training plan doesn't start for another couple of weeks but since I need a sense of purpose and some focus for my running training, I'm doing the first 2 weeks of the plan twice. So my 10 week plan has become a 12 week plan. Does this make sense to you ?

The first step in the plan and the new-found focus was to get the plan onto paper. Or rather, get the old plan off paper onto an excel file and then back onto paper. I was given my tried and trusted 3 hour marathon training plan over 2 years ago and having printed it onto a sheet of A4, I lost the file when my hard drive crashed on the PC. Since this plan actually managed to get me under 3 hours, I've held onto it as a sort of good luck charm, a guarantee of a good performance as long as the plan is respected and revered. Over the years it has been scribbled on, had tea splashed over it, faded in the sunlight and quite frankly it was looking a bit of a mess. I copied it up carefully and created a new excel file. I struggled on one day when you're supposed to do 6 x 1000m at threshold and couldn't read whether it said 6 or 8 intervals. I chose 6 as the session looked hard enough anyway.

So week 1 for the marathon training involves mostly speed work, which suits me fine with the relay in Vincennes approaching fast. The first interval session for this week is 2 x 2000m and then 2 blocks of 12 x 200m for Thursday. 18 months ago I was doing this very session over 2k in 8:05 then 7:52 around the Maisons Laffitte course so how would I manage today ?

As soon as I began to run this morning, I knew that I'd recovered from Sunday's session. The comparison to yesterday was huge. Whereas yesterday I could barely manage to stretch my legs due to the stiffness in the thighs, I was fully recovered today and had found some energy again. I ran down to the Seine and along to the roundabout in Maisons Laffitte before I began the intervals. I tried to push the pace from the start (basically because there's a slight downhill!) and then maintain this pace until the end of the second kilometre. As I ran alongside the racecourse, I began to wonder when the Garmin would beep to indicate the first kilometre as I was already feeling the pace. There's a slight relief when the Garmin beeps as I realise that there's only another kilometre to suffer before I can recover. This is harder as there's a slight uphill section and then I have to swerve onto the pavement to avoid 3 horses starting their morning walk from the stables in the park. The joys of early morning running. The Garmin beeps again and I slow to a walk and then an easy jog to recover. I notice that the watch is showing 3:50 for the last kilometre but I have no idea as to the result for the first.

I set off again and it's as hard as ever. I focus on keeping a regular pace and relaxing my arms and upper body, letting my legs do all the work. Again, I listen intently to make sure that I don't miss the watch splits but since I set off at the 5km mark on the usual course, I'm better prepared for the splits as I know where to expect them. I finish and look at the watch again 3:49 for the last one so I've been regular.

Final result was 3:50, 3:50 for the first interval (7:40 in total) and then 3:49, 3:49 for the second interval (7:38 in total) and far better than I ever managed last year. Pleased with the result as it gives me something to build on.

10.1km all up in 46:37 or 4:37 per km average.

Recovery - slow and sore

It was a short night and when the alarm rang, I had difficulty in getting out of bed. The temptation to lie-in was huge and it was sheer determination that got me out of bed and into my running kit. I slipped on my Saucony as although I had no intention of running fast, it's good to alternate shoes and this morning I wasn't going to leave the roads.

I felt the tiredness in my joints as soon as I began to run. My right knee threatened to collapse under me about 3 or 4 times in the first 200 metres. My thigh muscles were sore and even an easy pace was hard to maintain. I tried to relax and carried on in the hope that this weariness would ease off and that this really would be a recovery run for once.

The rain from the storm had flooded the path down to the Seine and I had to almost wade through these in the dark to reach the road by the river. Once this obstacle completed, I was able to keep a steady pace just under 5 minutes per kilometre. I cut short my usual morning route and headed left around the castle in Maisons Laffitte, running into the park directly rather than passing by the racecourse. A couple of joggers were out in the park but apart from these, I spotted nobody on the way around town.

No accelerations today and I kept the pace even though my legs began to feel slightly better after 5 kilometres. The shortened route meant that I got home in just over 41 minutes to cover the 8.5km or an average pace of 4:50 per kilometre. Hopefully, I'll have recovered my energy for tomorrow's session.

Sunday club session

I met with Nico as planned this morning in order to run over to the club through the forest. The good news was that the storm had passed and it had stopped raining. The bad news was that the level of humidity was very high and by the time we reached the club we were already dripping with sweat despite having maintained a moderate pace all of the way.

There were plenty of runners at the club which was a surpise considering the weather conditions. Miguel was coaching the session and still proning the "easing yourself back into it" style after the holidays. Luckily Thierry was on hand to offer a more ambitious session of 4 x 5' off 2' recovery. The 5' intervals were supposed to be run 'à train' - which apparently is French for as fast as you can manage. At least this is what I understood when we began the first interval and Nico and Anis shot off after Thierry, darting left and right along the forest tracks towards Maisons Laffitte.

It was actually a good session as after the first 4 km of warm-up with the others, we stopped for a brief explanation of what we were going to do. Fred turned up at this point and told me that he was knackered after Thursday evening's session and hadn't gone running either Friday or Saturday. Gérald preferred to run with the girls and chose to accompany Delphine and Aude rather than run a real session with the men. At least Bruno showed his determination by coming with us, even though he is still a long way off race fitness after over 6 months of injury. The other runners at the front included Wilfried and Robin while Laurence was the only woman who agreed to do the intervals and found herself some suitable chaperones in the shape of Frank and Gérard, both of whom are over 60 so that settled any concerns I may have had!

After the first interval at 16km/h and a lap time of 3:44 showing on the Garmin, I thought that the other intervals would be run at a more sedate pace. No way, Anis and Nico ensured that the pase was pushed at the front with them heading off at about 17km/h, I would then be tucked in 10 - 20 metres behind at 16km/h and then Robin, Thierry and Wilfried would finish behind me. Robin apparently must have been taking it easy for the first couple of intervals because he was only about 10 metres behind me on the third and then for the last he was up at the front with Nico and Anis, culminating the session with a sprint finish.

We jogged back to the clubhouse and waited for everyone to get back. The 'girly' group, including Gérald, had already packed up and gone home. When Laurence arrived, Nico was very brave and decided that he would accompany back home through the forest despite his advanced state of fatigue. I promised that we'd take it easy going back to Le Mesnil, but Nico has this habit of taking the lead and then I follow him and before we know it we're running at 4:15 pace again. Never mind, we're back in town now and home is in sight. A last little effort down the hill and were there.

26.5km all up in 2:15 or 5:05 pace on average. The run was good and the intervals hard. I think that I'm hitting peak form at the moment seeing where I was situated in relation to Thierry on the session. A little more speedwork and work on the mental attitude and I'll be in top shape for the half-marathon relay and then Paris-Versailles. For the rest, I'll just have to wait.

91km this week.

Corra and back

Having read Nico's blog today, I've seen that he has now adopted the spelling of Corra with 2r's and having just checked on google earth, I agree with him. Not that spelling the pond differently had any impact at all on my run this morning. Nico proposed to leave at 8:30am and it was just as well as today has been one of the hottest days of the summer so far here.

When we left, the temperature was already warm at about 20°C after just over an hour running, it would rise by another couple of degrees. We set off slowly and bumped into Didier, fresh from his ironman in Nice in June and preparing for the half-marathon in Boulogne in the autumn. After a quick chat with him, we carried on into the forest and enjoyed the relative cool compared to the temperautre in full sunlight in town. We took it fairly easily, running at around 4:30 pace and this suited me fine. I could see that Nico had plenty of energy and was ready to run faster but I told him that I wanted to save my energy if I was to run some hills tomorrow with him. Despite this, the next kilometre I found that we'd sped up to 4:12 pace and the next few kilometres were steady at 'marathon pace' including the climb up to Pavillon de la Muette. This building has been up for sale recently and I am not sure whether anybody has finally bought it despite the low purchase price requested. It was previously used by the forestry commission and it hasn't been occupied for years.

Anyone want to buy a house ?

I slowed from this point, tired from my session during the week and also from the heat and humidity. Nico slowed to stay with me and we eased off to 4:30 pace again and then dropped to 4:44 as we headed up the final slope on the sandy path. Back into town and another rise in the temperature and back onto tarmac for the final mile home. A little stretch towards the end and we finished in 1:05:38. Not a record, but a good effort and it shows the shape that both Nico and I are in at the moment.

15km all up in 1:05:38 or an average of 4:26 per km.

Club session - doubling up

Amazing - a conference call with the States that finishes bang on schedule, a quick good evening to my boss, I pack my bags and say good evening to the team before rushing to the car and heading off into the evening traffic and the club session. I arrive with 2 minutes to spare and Jean-Claude has kept the changing room open, used to my late arrivals.

There's a big turnout but by the time I get out of the clubhouse, they've all gone and I've not even had the chance to say hello to Laurence. Only a few unsavoury characters are still hanging around: Nico telling me that I've got a track session lined up for this evening. My stomach drops. I was hoping for an easy evening after a tough tempo run this morning. There are 2 others that are (eager?) to do the track session too: Fred and François. Laurence had told me about François a V2 (50-60 yo) cyclist turned runner. He started off with his first marathon in 4:40 began running with the club, discovered a talent and the fact that he could push himself harder and harder without collapsing and is now aiming for a 3:15 - 3:30 marathon in Florence. Fred and he were planning to run 8x1000m at marathon pace while Nico was planning on 10x400m. It was like choosing between a rock and a hard place.

The temperature decided it for me. It was around 24°C and I couldn't see myself sprinting around the track trying to keep up desperately with Nico. 8x1000m it would be and I'd drop out when the going got too tough. We warmed up around by the swimming pool and then headed back to the track.

Fred is aiming for a 3:00 marathon in New York and his training plan for this evening was every 1km in 4 minutes with a 2 minute or 200m recovery. We set off and left Nico to complete his warming up before he chased us around the track running a good 20 seconds per lap faster than us. We ran the first 1000m in 4:03 and it felt easy. Despite telling Fred that I'd follow him, I took the lead early on and kept the pace honest, listening to Fred as he called out the 200m splits. We ran the second interval faster in 3:58 and from then on each interval went faster and faster. François dropped off after the third as the pace was too quick for him and he settled down to 4:15 pace whereas we accelerated to 3:55 and then 3:54.

Nabil joined us from the 5th interval onwards and we continued to run 3:54 then 3:53 before getting excited when the PSG girls joined the track and we pushed the pace harder to 3:48 for the seventh interval. Only one to go now and despite feeling a little more tired at a pace under 3:50, I was still leading Fred who'd be on my right shoulder on each interval. He asked me if we were going to blast the last one to which I replied no and that we'd keep it steady. We did this but Fred came past me and was pushing so I followed before accelerating 200m from the line and ending with him and I in a sprint finish and the last interval in 3:32.

I was cooked but delighted to have been able to keep going until the end. Nico congratulated me before launching into a tirade about how he was going to beat me soundly in Paris-Versailles, Marseille-Cassis and the marathon in Florence. This was worry talking now and I can tell that he's beginning to have doubts while mine are dissipating rapidly. He ran 6 laps before stomach problems stopped him. He thinks it's due to the heat and the exertion, but although I'm no doctor, I could tell at a glance that this is just anxiety caused by my improved performance. 

Approx 15k all up (no Garmin as I left it at home) in 1:15. Good session and a recovery is in order now.

Thursday Tempo

Merger talks at work are on-going and increasing and workload is increasing exponentially as a result. Will try and get to the club tonight to take part in the session but since there are no guarantees that I'll make it, I decided to put in an early morning session just to keep the legs turning over.

When the alarm rang at 6:00am, I had been waiting for it. I'm full of energy at the moment and it was almost a relief to get out of bed and to go for a run. Hold on, I did say 'almost': there is still that lingering temptation to stay in bed and snuggle under the covers, blocking out the outside world for another hour or so. And it's dark. Positively night-time in fact.

I crept outside, leaving sleeping beauty still under the duvet, dreaming of ultra-trails, marathons and PBs, and was surprised to find the temperature relatively mild at around 15°C. Plan was to run the same route as Monday morning and put in another 12km. As I was sticking to the roads, I put on the new Saucony Kinvara (I hope I'll get a commission for all the praise and publicity I'm giving them here) and headed off up the road. These shoes are a real pleasure: light, dynamic and very comfortable. I loved my Brooks ST2 racers but these are even better.

I set off easily, taking care not to slip and break my leg running down the track to the Seine in the dark. Did I mention that it was so early that it was still night-time? Once past the first kilometre, I picked the pace up slightly (actually I was running 4:14 but I didn't discover this until looking at the Garmin analysis over breakfast - basically because it's too dark to see the watch at this time now. Did I tell you that it was dark?) and felt easy running along by the Seine. It was just after my fifth kilometre that I thought I was tiring and decided to ease off the pace slightly. I still had no idea of what pace I was running and it was purely by feeling. I took it easy for a kilometre (4:20 pace) before speeding up again as I hit my favourite patch in the park in Avenue Albine as I ran down to Maisons Laffitte castle.

I knew I was running well as I ran through 10k in under 43 minutes and this spurred me on to push the last 2 km aswell which I did finishing the last kilometre in 3:40. Totally knackered at the end but well pleased with the result.

12.1 km all up in 51:00 precisely or 4:13 per km. Good wake up call for this time in the morning. did I mention that it was dark?