Saturday 8th to the Friday 14th March 2014

Saturday 8^th March

Up early this morning, I had my alarm set for 6.30am to do one of my long runs in preparation for the Connemarathon in April.  This morning I needed to do 20miles.  I got up grabbed my bottles of water, lucozade and was on the road around 7.30am.  I was doing a route close to home this morning.  I run back the road for 2 miles and this brings me to a 3 mile loop, which I would do a number of times before returning on the original 2 miles to get home.  Its a tough route where the highest hill is over 600 feet and I have to do that in the first 1.5 miles and then again on the last 1.5 miles.  I was debating whether to the 3 mile loop 5 or 6 times, if I did 5 times I would only have 19 miles completed but if I did it 6 times I would have 22 miles completed.  I decided to go for the 22 miles.  The weather was great, nice bright dry morning, perfect running conditions.  I was very comfortable all through but getting close to 18 miles I really started to get tired, but I powered through and I finished in around 4 hours.  Considering the route I was pleased enough with my time.

After the run I went to the gym for a quick session.  I did 35mins on the X-Trainer, 20mins on the Stepper and 25mins on the Bike.  

I went for a quick 10mins swim and then home in time to watch the rugby.

After the rugby I brought the dog for his 4 mile walk.

Sunday 9th March

I went to the gym this morning for around 10.30am.  I did 10mins on the rower to warm up. 50mins next on the X-Trainer, followed by 25mins on the Stepper and then 30mins on the Bike.  I finished with core and ab work.  I did 30 seconds plank, followed by 30 push ups (push ups with knees on the ground to start back with) 10 seconds rest and repeat 4 times.  I followed this with leg raises and ab crunches.  I did 20 leg raises followed by 1 leg raised ab crunch, 20 with each leg raised; 10 seconds rest and repeat 4 times. I then did a variety of ab crunches X 80 and again repeat 4 times.

Then a 30mins swim and home for dinner.

After dinner I went for a 7 mile walk with the dog.  It is the same route that I ran yesterday morning.

Finished for the day and time to relax.

Monday 10th March

I was in the gym for 7am.  I did 20mins X-Trainer, 20mins Stepper and then 20mins on the Bike.  Finished with a 30mins swim.

I got a walk done on each of my 3 breaks today.

In the evening, i went to the gym, I did 30mins on the X-Trainer, 20mins on the Stepper and 25mins on the Bike..

Then a 10min swim to finish the day.

Tuesday 11th March

I took today off to rest.  The only thing I did was a 30mins swim in the pool at 8am.

Wednesday 12th March

I had a lie in this morning.  I got up in time to go for a swim at 8am.

I got a walk done on 2 of my breaks today.

This evening I got my regular evening session done. I did 30mins on the X-Trainer, 20mins on the Stepper and then 25mins on the Bike.  

Finished with a 20mins swim.

Thursday 13^th March

I was in the gym a bit late this morning; I got there for 7.15am.  I got 20mins done on the X-Trainer and 20mins on the Bikes. Then time for my swim before heading to work.

I got my regular walk done on my breaks at work.

Friday 14th March

I took this morning off to get a bit of a lie in before the Pakie Ryan Memorial run on Saturday Morning.

After work I hit the gym.   I did 30mins X-Trainer, 20mins Stepper and then 25mins on the Bike.  Finished with a 30mins swim.

Headed home to get my gear ready for the race in the morning.

WeightWatchers Talks March 2014

Monday 3rd - Wednesday 5th March

Last week I joined my WeightWatchers leader Kathleen Shannon to give a talk to each of her classes.  On Monday two classes were in The West County Hotel Ennis, first class was at 5.30pm and then the men’s only class at 7pm.  The Kilrush class was next in the community centre on Tuesday evening. Then on Wednesday the classes were in The Temple Gate Hotel Ennis, at lunch time and St Caimins school Shannon in the evening.

It was really an enjoyable experience to talk about my weight loss journey with people who are on a similar path to me.  I was nervous about getting up in front of a room full of strangers and talking about myself, but the people in each class made me feel at ease straight away.  I was asked some very interesting questions, about what I eat, how I train and how I motivate myself.  These talks have got me refocused on my own goals. I hope my talks have encouraged some of you, who are on your own journey, to continue and reach your goal.  I know from my time with each class last week and hearing your individual stories it has encouraged me to keep going until I reach my goal.  If ever you feel a need for some advice or tips please do not hesitate to ask me.  

Thanks to everyone who came to listen.  I hope you took something from it.

A special thank you to Kathleen for inviting me to share my story.

Saturday 1st to the Friday 7th March 2014

Saturday 1^st March

RACE Day!!!

I had all my gear prepared the night before, so I could get a lie in this morning.  As the race was not starting until 12pm I didn’t have to get up out of bed until 9am.  It was great to wake up and it was bright outside.  I had my breakfast of porridge, yoghurt and a banana, to set me up for the race.

Left home and picked up John on the way to Kinvara. We arrived in Kinvara just before 11am, got parking and went to register.  It was a lovely bright dry morning, with a slight breeze, nearly ideal conditions for running. The race is very well organised, we went to the community centre to register, got our numbers, t-shirts and a bottle of Lucozade, all done within 5 minutes.  Once we had our numbers we went back to the car got into our race gear and went to warm up.  A quick jog for about 1km.  After what felt like about 10 trips to the toilet, it was time to go to the start line.  The 10km started at 12pm and the half marathon at 12.10pm. We saw the 10km participants take off so I took the final few sips of water and prepared to go. 

The race started all of a sudden, no count down, the horn just sounded and we were off.   My ankle was at me all week (I have plate and pins in my ankle since I dislocated it a few years ago), and the start of the race I was in a good bit of pain.  This happens every so often but normally it eases out once I hit my stride. This did not happen until I was about 3-4miles in. I found the going very tough. But after 5miles I finally felt myself hit a good rhythm and my ankle felt fine again.  Nearly all my running of late has been done in the early morning where the temperature had been close to zero.  As this morning was quite cold I decided to wear a few layers of tops as this is what I had been used to.  Nearing half way I regretted this decision.  The weather was lovely and I was really heating up.  I got over this and continued at a steady pace.  There was a hill at mile 11 which was quite tough but after that I knew I was nearly home.  Back into Kinvara for the last half mile I tried to push myself near the finish but I had nothing left in the legs and across the line in a time of 1:56:59, just under 1:57:00 so I can say I did it in 1:56.  Not a PB (my PB for ½ Marathon is 1:54) but I wasn’t expecting it to be.  I had been training hard all week and I knew starting off I was off the pace a bit, but I was still quite happy with my time.

Relieved to be finished and was greeted by my parents at the finish line with a cool bottle of water. 

Sunday 2^nd March

Woke up at 7am to go for a run.  I hit the road for 8am and did a 7 mile run to loosen out after yesterday’s race.  I had that completed just after 9am.  I had my porridge and headed for the gym. 

In the gym I did 10mins on the Rower to warm up.  Then onto the X-Trainer for 45mins, onto the Stepper for 20mins and on the Bike for 25mins. 

I finished with core and ab work. I did 30 seconds plank, followed by 30 push ups (push ups with knees on the ground) 10 seconds rest and repeat 4 times.  I followed this with leg raises and ab crunches.  I did 20 leg raises followed by 1 leg raised ab crunch, 20 with each leg raised; 10 seconds rest and repeat 4 times. I then did a variety of ab crunches X 80 and again repeat 4 times.

Then finished off in the pool with a 30mins Swim.

After dinner I went for a 7 mile walk with the dog. The route I take is a quite scenic one.  It’s the same route, where I would do my training runs.  It’s quite hilly.  You can see Ennis on one side and the Burren on the other. It  takes in Dysart Church, Dysart Graveyard and Dysart O’Dea Castle.  Here are a few pics.

The View of the Burren

The View of Ennis

The View of Dysart O'Dea Castle with the Burren in the Background 

Monday 3^rd March

I had the alarm set for 6am and I was up and in the gym by 7am.  I did 20mins X-Trainer, 20mins Stepper and then 20mins on the Bike.  Finished with a 30mins swim.

I got my regular walks done during my breaks at work today.  I do a lap around the block on my two 15mins break and twice on my half hour lunch, it’s a 0.75mile route.

As I was giving a talk to WeightWatchers class on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings this week my training in the evenings was curtailed this week.

Tuesday 4^th March

I stayed in bed this morning.  I got up at 7.30am and headed to the pool for a swim at 8am.  A quick swim and then time for work.

Wednesday 5^th March

I was in the gym for 7am this morning. I did 20mins X-Trainer, 20mins Stepper and then 20mins on the Bike.  Finished with a 30mins swim.

I got 2 walks done while on my breaks at work today.

After my talk to the WeightWatchers class in Shannon I got to the gym by 8pm I did 45 minutes.  25mins on X-Trainer and 20mins on the Stepper.  Then down to the pool for a quick swim and home before 9.30pm

Thursday 6^th March

I got my regular morning session done today.  I did 20mins X-Trainer, 20mins Stepper and then 20mins on the Bike.  Finished with a 30mins swim.

I also got a walk in on each of my breaks today.

I had an event to attend in the evening so I had the evening off!!

Friday 7^th March

I was in the gym just before 7am this morning.  I did 20mins X-Trainer, 20mins Stepper and then 20mins on the Bike, then a 30mins swim and I’m ready for work.

I went for a walk on 2 of my breaks today.

After work I got to the gym before 5.30pm.  As I had missed out on training each evening during the week I decided to do 5mins extra on each of the machines.  I did 10mins on the rower to warm up. 50mins next on the X-Trainer, followed by 25mins on the Stepper and then 30mins on the Bike.  I finished with core and ab work.  I did 30 seconds plank, followed by 30 push ups (push ups with knees on the ground to start back with) 10 seconds rest and repeat 4 times.  I followed this with leg raises and ab crunches.  I did 20 leg raises followed by 1 leg raised ab crunch, 20 with each leg raised; 10 seconds rest and repeat 4 times. I then did a variety of ab crunches X 80 and again repeat 4 times.

Finish off with a relaxing 30mins swim.

Saturday 22nd to the Friday 28th February 2014

Saturday 22^nd February

Today is a week out from my first competitive race of the year, The Rock and Road Half Marathon in Kinvara, on Saturday 1^st March.  So my training will be tailored to suit this.

This morning I met up with the Clare Crusaders running group for a 13mile run.  The route this morning is:

• DNG, Carmody St, past Cloughleigh School, left on Lehinch Rd.
• Go left onto bypass and continue until exit for Clarecastle.
• Continue through Clarecastle. 
• Take 1'st left after the bend at top of the hill on Limerick side of village. Continue ~1/2 mile, then take a right up a side road. 
• After a few hundred metres, take another right (following signs for Mid Clare way)
• Follow this access road parallel with motorway towards Limerick, then crossing under motorway, then back parallel towards Ennis. Continue up over a hill, through the right hand side of the gates.
• Follow this disused road until merging back onto Doora road beside the motorway roundabout. Go right here, as far as Doora church.
• Turn left here opposite Doora church; continue across Quin Rd, continuing as far as Knockanean road. Take left here, as return back home via Tulla Rd, Clon Rd, Flannan's, DNG

It was a good route. Most of these roads I have never been on and it was great to see a different part of the countryside.  I completed this route in just over 2 hours.  Not my best time but I did stop a number of times to double check I was on the correct route.

After the run I went to the gym for 25mins on the X-Trainer and 20mins on the Bike.  Then I finished as I was going to my friend Laura’s Wedding.

Sunday 23^rd February

I woke in my hotel room feeling a little worse for wear after a great night drinking and dancing at the wedding.  I headed down for the full Irish breakfast; it was just what the doctor ordered.  After breakfast Geraldine (work Colleague) and I went for a stroll.  It was a casual stroll just to clear the head.  We estimate we did about 5k.

Once I got home and changed my gear I headed to the gym to make up for the damage I did last night.  I did the X-Trainer for 40mins, the Bike for 25mins and the Stepper for 20mins.

I finished with core and ab work. I did the plank and push ups.  I followed this with ab crunches with my leg raised.  I then did a variety of ab crunches.

I then went home and had a relaxing 4 mile walk with the dog, he needs his exercise too.

Monday 24^th February

I woke up at 6am this morning and was in the gym for 7am.  I did 20mins on the X-Trainer, 20mins on the Stepper and 20mins on the Bike.  I finished off in the pool by swimming 30 lengths.

I got my regular walk done during my breaks at work today.  I do a lap around the block on my two 15mins break and twice on my half hour lunch, it’s a 0.75mile route.

In the evening I did my regular session of the X-Trainer for 30mins.  Next up it was the stepper for 20mins. Then on the bike for 25mins. I was in a hurry this evening so I went to the pool for a splash and dash; I did a very quick 10 length swim.

Tuesday 25^th February

I got to the gym a bit late this morning.  I got there at 7.15am.  I did 25mins on the X-Trainer and 20mins on Stepper.  Then down to the pool for 30mins swim.

I got my walks done on my two 15min breaks today.

After work I got to the gym around 5.30pm.  I started today with a quick 5min warm up on the rower.  Next was the X-Trainer for 40mins, then I jumped on the stepper for 20mins and the last bit of cardio on the bike for 25mins.

I finished with core and ab work. I did 30 seconds plank, followed by 30 push ups (push ups with knees on the ground) 10 seconds rest and repeat 4 times.  I followed this with leg raises and ab crunches.  I did 20 leg raises followed by 1 leg raised ab crunch, 20 with each leg raised; 10 seconds rest and repeat 4 times. I then did a variety of ab crunches X 80 and again repeat 4 times.

Then finished off in the pool with a 30mins Swim.

Wednesday 26^th February

I was in the gym for 7am this morning I did my normal session of 20mins on the X-Trainer, 20mins on the Stepper and 20mins on the Bike. Then 30 lengths in the pool.

I walked on my two 15min breaks today.

I went for a run outside this evening; it was a 6.5mile route. This was with an eye on the race in Kinvara on Saturday, to make sure my legs were familiar with the roads.  The weather was lovely starting off but after about 1 mile in the wind and rain arrived.  It did not stop.  When I got back to my car I was like a drowned rat.  It still felt good having completed it.

I completed my training with a swim in the pool.  Nice and warm.

Thursday 27th February

I went to the gym for 7am.  I got my regular work out of 20mins x-trainer, 20mins stepper and 20mins bike.  Then my 30mins swim and I’m all set to go to work.

I got a walk done today on my lunch break, about 1.5mile.

After work I arrived at the gym for 5.30pm.  It was my regular session of the X-Trainer for 45mins.  Next up it was the stepper for 20mins.  Then on the bike for 25mins.

Finished with a 30min swim.

Friday 28^th February

The day before the race!!

I went to the gym for 7am.  I did my normal session of 20mins on the X-Trainer, 20mins on the Stepper and 20mins on the Bike, at a handy pace. I didn’t push myself too much.

Went to the pool for a 30mins swim and was all set for work.

I walked on my two 15min breaks at work.

I took the evening off to relax before the race.