Can i make a quick point. If people wish to donate some moola click on the icon over there. Tnx ->
The training is done. Maybe it was done a long time ago and I was just toying with myself. It was hard to know. I’d like to think I’ve made the best of maintaining my fitness since Austria. It hasn’t been smooth from a running point of view. That’s now in the past. I’ve moved on. It’s Tapering time. I’ve been gagging to say that for a long while. Training had stopped being fun a few weeks ago. I’m absolutely jaded!
Sunday - The second leg of Tour Tailteann took us through 100km’s of Donegal’s fine landscape.
That capped off two days cycling up there.
Thursday – 1hour 30 mins of running in my favourite running circuit. If you are ever down in Wexford town check out Cullitan’s Gap (beside Curracloe Beach) – the run through the forest towards Raven Point that eventually takes you onto the beach. On a sunny day it can’t be equalled. Beautiful.
Saturday – 2hour 40 min cycle. That’s the session that told me the training is over. I limped home. I could do no more.
In summary it’s R+R time from training. So much organising still to do its not even close to being funny. Last minute dot com forward slash why can’t people be more helpful dot ie should be a website for charity workers! I feel your pain.
One more big swim and some short bikes and runs will see me to the start line. Time to get into the zone - I can’t wait.
Payback
On a completly seperate note and for a different charity i'd like to say a word of thanks to 3 Restaurents that got me (a complete stranger off the street) out of a hole one time when i needed prizes for a table quiz. This was 4 years ago and i haven't forgotton. Maybe people are reading this? so its payback time by way of mentioning them.... Eliza Blues, Salamanca & The Bank Pub. Keep them in mind if yor going out for a bite. They raised the bar on generosity!
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Friday, October 12, 2007
Short and sweet
I’m gonna be real brief this week. Time is not on my side to sit down and muse over training and blogs. Most of my time is taken up on the organisation side of things – Sponsors, Event Management, Celebrity Hunting and Dublin City Council. Painstaking but necessary for the success of the event.
Tuesday – 1.5 hour run
Thursday – Half hour swim
Friday – Filming for RTE. Bit of everything…..
Saturday – 140km cycle in Donegal. Tour Tailteann. Great views. Great group. Happy days
Tuesday – 1.5 hour run
Thursday – Half hour swim
Friday – Filming for RTE. Bit of everything…..
Saturday – 140km cycle in Donegal. Tour Tailteann. Great views. Great group. Happy days
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
‘May the Force be with me... ‘
Wouldn’t be nice to skip the run part of the IronMan? It would be all over in 7.5 hours. It’s still a good day’s effort for charity. That would save me 4 hours running. Super! Maybe nobody would notice….?! But to become an IronMan you have to finish the 3.8km swim, 180km cycle and 42km run. I wonder what class of earthly mineral would I be if I just swam and cycled? Would I be a ZincMan…. Maybe GraphiteMan… Or could I be SulphurMan. Well after a feed of Gels, Bars, Bananas, Ensure and Energy Drinks I (like many others I hasten to add) would be a strong candidates for that title regardless. The farts do be bad. So there I am cycling around the country to try and stay healthy and at the same token reduce my carbon footprint. Meanwhile I’m inadvertently adding to the hole in the ozone layer. You just can’t win! Environmental economics – the debate has only started!! (Sorry, but it was inevitable that I would eventually bring down the tone of this blog thing. I’m just surprised it took me so long! I’ll stop now. I’ve had my moment).
That piece of surmising about taking out the run was just a bit of blaggarding. I’ve no doubts that I will be able to complete the run. Things may not be going as smoothly as I’d like in terms of my injury but I know the mind is strong even if the body might be a bit ragged. There will be highs and there will be lows on the stage. Most people, in the know, have pointed out that the boredom factor will be difficult to deal with on the day. I thought I had this covered. People watching - that was going to be my vice. 12 hours of people watching. Extreme Facebook if you like. Or failing that, I could talk to the invited Celeb’s. Either way I was going to be entertained.
Please note I haven’t dismissed their point - in fact I’ve developed it. So how do I get physiqued up for something like this? (Remember IronMan is tough. It wasn’t originally intended to be put on a stage in a busy shopping street for people to gawk at perhaps nonchalantly). The answer is easy. Start visualising it. Know my limits and stick to my plan. I’ve already begun working it through in my head. I’m not going to be robotic or anal about this (it’s not in my nature). I’ll smile and chat when I can and I’ll be distant when I need to Shepard myself through any black periods. I also have to remind myself why I’m doing this. People in Need – the name says it all. The money raised on the day, perhaps with the help of my sideshow may make a difference in somebody else’s life. That’s good enough for me.
Sunday – My first run in two weeks. I was advised to do a 40min steady run on grass. I must say I was tired going to the Park. It had been a long week of training so today wasn’t going to be the best barometer as to how my calf muscle would cope. The main positive I took from the run was there was no adverse pain. The combination of the physio, the stretches and the time off running seemed to be paying dividends. Happy days!
Monday - Back into the resistance pool for a splash about. I did half an hour. That was plenty. I turned the dial up to near max power (I couldn’t help myself…) and swam for my life so I didn’t get washed over the side of the pool onto the floor. Something different.
Tuesday – A scheduled trip to the Physio to see how things were progressing. Calf is still tight (both are) but we are making progress.
Wednesday – Time for a one hour run. It’s easy to know there is a Marathon coming up. The volume of people running the Park has dramatically increased. I didn’t get there until 7.45pm. Daylight is not an issue for all these hardcore runners. Despite the fact that the Park is badly lit, the gas lamps act more like beacons than streetlights – runners are all around. I stuck to the grass running track between the trees which is set back from the road. It’s navigable in the dark except when facing cars have their full headlights on. Then you have to rely on your Jedi skills. It’s a leap of faith trying to avoid tree roots, the trees, other joggers, reindeer. May the force be with you…..
Thursday – Turned up for another dose of 100’s with my swim group. I was the slow guy in the back making it look hard. I think I had the Jacuzzi in my sights. Half an hour.
Friday - One hour straight front crawl in the pool. I had the lane to myself for virtually the whole hour. I was never so lonely in all my life!!! Bring back the boy racers, the learner drivers and the road workers all is forgiven….
Saturday - Needed to get on the bike. Did a 3 hour cycle. Dropped in to visit nephews and nieces along the way. Who says men can’t multitask?! Got home straight out for a 20 min run. This sequence is commonly known as a ‘brick’ session. Why? I’ve no idea. There’s one for Ray Darcy on Fix it Friday.
Total time spent training 7 hours - Slack!
That piece of surmising about taking out the run was just a bit of blaggarding. I’ve no doubts that I will be able to complete the run. Things may not be going as smoothly as I’d like in terms of my injury but I know the mind is strong even if the body might be a bit ragged. There will be highs and there will be lows on the stage. Most people, in the know, have pointed out that the boredom factor will be difficult to deal with on the day. I thought I had this covered. People watching - that was going to be my vice. 12 hours of people watching. Extreme Facebook if you like. Or failing that, I could talk to the invited Celeb’s. Either way I was going to be entertained.
Please note I haven’t dismissed their point - in fact I’ve developed it. So how do I get physiqued up for something like this? (Remember IronMan is tough. It wasn’t originally intended to be put on a stage in a busy shopping street for people to gawk at perhaps nonchalantly). The answer is easy. Start visualising it. Know my limits and stick to my plan. I’ve already begun working it through in my head. I’m not going to be robotic or anal about this (it’s not in my nature). I’ll smile and chat when I can and I’ll be distant when I need to Shepard myself through any black periods. I also have to remind myself why I’m doing this. People in Need – the name says it all. The money raised on the day, perhaps with the help of my sideshow may make a difference in somebody else’s life. That’s good enough for me.
Sunday – My first run in two weeks. I was advised to do a 40min steady run on grass. I must say I was tired going to the Park. It had been a long week of training so today wasn’t going to be the best barometer as to how my calf muscle would cope. The main positive I took from the run was there was no adverse pain. The combination of the physio, the stretches and the time off running seemed to be paying dividends. Happy days!
Monday - Back into the resistance pool for a splash about. I did half an hour. That was plenty. I turned the dial up to near max power (I couldn’t help myself…) and swam for my life so I didn’t get washed over the side of the pool onto the floor. Something different.
Tuesday – A scheduled trip to the Physio to see how things were progressing. Calf is still tight (both are) but we are making progress.
Wednesday – Time for a one hour run. It’s easy to know there is a Marathon coming up. The volume of people running the Park has dramatically increased. I didn’t get there until 7.45pm. Daylight is not an issue for all these hardcore runners. Despite the fact that the Park is badly lit, the gas lamps act more like beacons than streetlights – runners are all around. I stuck to the grass running track between the trees which is set back from the road. It’s navigable in the dark except when facing cars have their full headlights on. Then you have to rely on your Jedi skills. It’s a leap of faith trying to avoid tree roots, the trees, other joggers, reindeer. May the force be with you…..
Thursday – Turned up for another dose of 100’s with my swim group. I was the slow guy in the back making it look hard. I think I had the Jacuzzi in my sights. Half an hour.
Friday - One hour straight front crawl in the pool. I had the lane to myself for virtually the whole hour. I was never so lonely in all my life!!! Bring back the boy racers, the learner drivers and the road workers all is forgiven….
Saturday - Needed to get on the bike. Did a 3 hour cycle. Dropped in to visit nephews and nieces along the way. Who says men can’t multitask?! Got home straight out for a 20 min run. This sequence is commonly known as a ‘brick’ session. Why? I’ve no idea. There’s one for Ray Darcy on Fix it Friday.
Total time spent training 7 hours - Slack!
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