Training Before the Stirling 10k

As you will know from one of my earliest posts, I clocked a personal best for 10km of 31:12 at The City of Stirling 10k on 19th September. The purpose of this post is to give an insight to my training and general build up to the race.

I rounded off my summer on Tuesday 24th August with a 5000m track personal best of 15:06.9 at Shettleston Harriers' Open Meeting at Crownpoint Stadium, Glasgow. This ended a highly successful summer. My best 5000m at the beginning of 2010 was 15:59. I went through the motions for the rest of that week with nothing to really focus on, clocking up an uneventful 33 miles for the week. I then took the entire week off as a rest from Monday 30th August to Sunday 5th September inclusive, not running a single step until Monday 6th September. My build up then began.

Week Commencing Monday 6th September

Monday: 7-7.25 miles easy (46:08).

Tuesday: 8.5-9 miles easy (56:18).

Wednesday: 5 miles high tempo (28:08) with 2 miles easy warm down.

Thursday: Club, 2 x 10 minute efforts with 30 second recoveries, 7-7.5 miles total including warm up and warm down.

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Glasgow Endurance Session, Glasgow Green. 8 x 3 minutes, 3 minute recoveries, 7.5-8 miles including warm up and warm down.

Sunday: Race- Round Cumbrae 10 Mile Road Race, Millport- 2nd in 53:02, 7 minute easy warm down.

Mileage: 49

Monday's and Tuesday's runs were simply to get the legs moving again. It was Wednesday before I was confident enough to do a harder session and Thursday before I felt ready to go to the club again. I didn't ease down for the race. I was intent on getting into shape, hence the Saturday session and race back to back. I was soundly beaten at Millport by Corstorphine's David Simpson but it was an excellent workout and terrific day out (see my earlier blog post).

Week Commencing Monday 13th September

Monday: 6.75 miles very easy (57:59).

Tuesday: Club run, 7.5-8 miles fairly easy (50:29).

Wednesday: 5 miles high tempo (27:17) with 2 miles easy warm down.

Thursday: 10 minutes easy then 1 x 10 minute effort and 2 x 5 minute efforts, 2.5 minute jog recoveries between each effort, total = 6.5 miles (38:05).

Friday: Rest

Saturday: 3.5 miles easy (22:09).

Sunday: Race- City of Stirling 10k, 7th in 31:12, 4 miles easy warm down.

Mileage: 41

My legs were fragile after Millport, hence, an easy run on Monday with clubmate Kirsty Grant then a not over strenuous club run on Tuesday. I felt a good 10k time was on the cards with the improvement in my tempo run on Wednesday. Thursday's run was squeezed in at 8.10am because I was going to Bellahouston Park for the Pope's visit. This was a benefit because it gave me a long recovery until my jog on Saturday morning which was simply to keep my legs moving.

The night after Stirling, I had another easy run with Kirsty, who had clocked a personal best in the same race. We did the route I had run with the club on Tuesday. It was our third run and the first time it hadn't rained! Since then, I've been into proper winter training.