10 km Training Walk

I wanted to get my walk in early today so that there would be some time to do work around the house later in the day. I decided to start measuring the 10 km right from our place even though this meant race walking up some reasonably challenging slopes as well as the steep downhill into town. I decided to complete the 10 km on the flat and not to measure the uphill walk home.

My speed was up and down but not as slow as my last walk. It was cooler today with a watery sun trying to poke through the clouds. My average speed was 6:54/km with average HR of 143 bpm.

10 km Training Walk

10 km Training Walk

I was dressed and ready to do this walk yesterday. We dropped Philip's mother at the airport around 1:00 pm but I didn't feel like training in the heat of the day so we did some shopping then went and had a late lunch. I really didn't feel like walking after that so we didn't bother.

This morning I got up and made some blueberry pancakes. The plan was to walk leisurely the first few km down the hill towards Wellington and to start measuring the 10 km once we got onto the flat. I left it about 300 m or so before I turned my watch on because I was struggling to get up any speed. It was hot with a moderate northerly wind that was behind us most of the way. I never really found any speed or rhythm today and managed to average only 7:40 per km even though I was trying to do much better. My left ankle is feeling quite sore so I may try to see the doctor this week to see if I can have it scanned.

We ended up walking (not race-walking) back to town again before getting a bus home so probably walked around 18 km in total.

10 km Training Walk

Saturday 24 December - 3 x 2 km with 3 min rest, 2 x 1 km with 2 min rest

We dropped our friends off at the airport at 10:30 am then headed to the track for this workout. Philip was set to film me whilst I did all the hard work. I was surprised to find the track quite busy but the other users were happy to share. I started with a few laps in lane 8 to warm up and wondered if I would have a worthwhile session given how stiff I was at the start.

I was pleasantly surprised to complete my first 2 km in 11:41 but I was slow to get started again after the rest period. My next 2 km was 12:06 and the final one 12:14. I was a hot day and I found this session pretty hard. The first 1 km was 6:06 and the second 1 km 6:01 for a total of 48:08 for 8 km. I was pleased to have that one under my belt. I am sure these sessions are very beneficial but they call for a big effort!

I will add some photos and video clips here shortly.

3 X 2 km with 3 min rest + 2 x 1 km with 2 min rest

15 km Training Walk

I was feeling pretty stiff and not very motivated about doing a long walk today. It was sunny but there was a strong southerly wind. I decided to relax and concentrate on pushing off my toe and not to worry too much about pace. I was also trying to keep my core strong and lifted. To my surprise I was managing to keep under 7 min/km. I expected this would slow down over the last few km so I tried to lift my effort a little in the return half with the tail wind. I was even more surprised to be able to increase my speed right to the end and to finish with an average pace of 6:55. I had told my colleague before I went out that I should do 15 km in 1:45 but would be likely to go closer to 2 hours. It was pleasing to be wrong on that count and to finish in 1:43:55.

15 km Training Walk

12 km Training Walk

I did try to include 2 x 5 min @ 10 km pace in this walk but I was pretty much unsuccessful. My legs and the strong wind just didn't allow it to happen. I did a pretty good race the night before so I shouldn't be too disappointed.

12 km Training Walk

Tuesday 20 December - 5 km Waterfront Race

I struggled to get to the race on time so did not get any warm up. It showed in a slow first lap, also contributed to by a strong head wind. I was pleasantly surprised at my second lap and my overall pace to finish the 5 km in 30:01.

5 km Waterfront Race

15 km Training Walk

Today was the Christmas lunch for the Scottish walkers. The arrangement was to meet at 9:00 am for a walk and to head to David Lonsdale's place for a barbeque after 11:00 am. I knew there would only be time for 15 km and my idea of arriving in time to do 5 km prior to meeting up with the others was not likely to happen. Sure enough, Philip and I only just managed to get to the starting point in Island Bay at 9:00 am. Five of us headed round to the back of the airport whilst a larger group headed in the opposite direction for a short walk followed by a long coffee stop at a cafe called 'The Bach'.

There was a strong cool southerly wind blowing which was largely helpful on the way out and slowed us down on the way back. I managed to catch my foot on some flax and trip over but fortunately only slightly grazed my hands. I managed an average pace of 7:23 which was not bad.

At David's some of the walking prizes were presented to those who missed the Scottish Athletics prize giving in November. I got the silver medal for the club walking championship for the third year - watch out Robyn - I'm aiming for the gold medal next season. I also got the trophy for the club 'All-rounder' competition in the winter. There were 12 races in this competition and the best 9 results were counted. Two other awards were a surprise - a gold medal for the club half marathon champs. I knew I won the Wellington Half Marathon but I didn't know the club awarded a medal for this event. I also got a trophy for contribution to walking for the past season, apparently because I entered all the races held over the season. I like to support the club as much as possible and it is nice to have this recognised.

15 km Training Walk

Saturday 17 December - Scottish Night of Miles

This is an annual event with the $10 per family entry fee going to the Mary Potter Hospice. Philip and I arrived just before 3:00 pm to help with registration and any other chores needed. The one mile walk was scheduled for 7:00 pm. It was cold and windy so I knew a good warm up was needed. It was great to see Quentin arrive to race and to see some young runners decide to give the walk a go. This race was a handicap on our club calendar. I usually do badly in such events - one previously good result can mean you get impossible handicaps forever more. I enjoy races with young Stuart and Andrew entered since they are faster than me but close enough for me to strive to catch them up. I came close to passing Andrew on the last lap but he narrowly held me out. I was please with my time of 9:11 for the mile. In the hurry to get to the track I forgot to take my Garmin.

I decided to also enter the handicap spiral race as a walker. Kevin and I started at the same time as 80+ runner Michael Browne. We completed one lap before the first runner started and were on about lap 5 when the last runner started. In this race competitors start in lane 8 and move over to the next lane each time they pass the start/finish lane. Most runners passed me in the last few laps but I did manage to finish ahead of a few people to finish the 3.4 km in 20:17. I felt good during that walk and not at all hampered by the previous race.

12 km Training Walk

I had planned to do this walk yesterday but the weather and a busy schedule deterred me. There were no speed bursts specified in my programme but I decided to try a put in some faster efforts to give me a better average rate. I was lucky with the traffic lights at the start but not on the way back. It was quite hot out despite a reasonably strong southerly wind and I felt pretty comfortable throughout the walk. I managed an average pace of 6:38 for the first 11 km but those intersections and the hill on the last 500 m lowered the overall rate to 6:43.

12 km Training Walk

Tuesday 13 December - 5 km Waterfront Race

I was a bit delayed getting away from work so my hurried walk to the waterfront was quite a good warm up. As there were no walkers in front for me to chase, I set myself the target of passing some of the slower runners. I did pass some and managed to keep close behind one runner until 1 km from the end. I felt comfortable throughout the race and was happy with my time of 30:20 considering this was my 6th consecutive day of walking.

5 km Waterfront Race

5 x 1 km (2 min rec)

I was glad to have a short session after the long walk yesterday, even if it was intense. Ideally I would have liked to do 5:45 per km but anything around the 6 min mark would be good. I forgot my heartrate monitor strap today but that was not a problem. The weather was calm and slightly drizzly - perfect for walking. My first 500m was 3:10 so I tried to increase my speed for the second 500m to finish the first km in 6:08. The next 4 km were 5:55, 5:48, 5:55 and 6:07 for an average pace 0f 5:58. I was sweaty and tired afterwards having put in a good effort.

5 x 1 km with 2 min recovery