4.7 miles easy

I considered having a day off but changed my mind at the last possible minute and went out for a few miles wearing an older pair of shoes. The route took me along West Chapelton Avenue where I noticed that my legs didn't feel as heavy as I would have expected, so I continued down Station Road, over Pendicle Road and down Maxwell Avenue. I felt not too bad at all at a slow pace which was still a bit faster than the planned 8:00/mile, and going through Garscube Estate I followed the warm-up trail to add on an extra half-mile. Got back to Bearsden Asda in 36:33 for a 7:46/mile average for the 4.71 miles. This casts a bit of suspicion on the Asics Nimbus which might just be too heavy for me.

14 miles steady

By late afternoon I felt well enough to rack up a few more miles, so I headed through Kelvingrove Park and down towards Yorkhill, only to trip on the distorted pavement on Kelvin Way and suffer some hamstring pain as a consequence. I limped on for a bit and decided I would probably be able to run it off, so I continued down to Glasgow Harbour and along the cyclepath to Clydebank. After about 7 miles, as I headed back along the canal, the hamstring started to play up and my average pace began to slip outside 7:30/mile. I was quite dehydrated despite the rain and had to stop for a drink at Blairdardie. On reaching the bridge over Lochburn Road, I was just inside a 7:45 average, but I managed to pick it up fairly well for the last mile and a half, finishing the 14.02 miles in 1:47:58, 7:42/mile overall. Weekly total: 51 miles.

4.2 miles steady

Didn't have much time in the morning, with a wedding to attend in the afternoon, so I ran a route from about a month ago, a loop of Garscube Road, Great Western Road and Kirklee Road. This time it came out at 4.23 miles, finishing time was 28:57 for a 6:51/mile average.

5.3 miles steady

Went out in the evening for my usual Dorchester Avenue route, extended slightly via Napiershall Street instead of North Woodside Road to make it 5.34 miles, completed in 37:38 for a 7:03/mile average.

6.9 miles moderate

I had some lower back and hamstring tightness and thought of taking a day to recover, but in the end I went along to the club training session, prepared to drop out after half a mile if necessary. The route was the same as I run on a Tuesday when I'm not doing the club session. It was supposed to be run at an easy pace, but by the time we got to the 3-mile mark at St George's Cross, the average pace was 6:30 and dropping. I fell off the back at this point, although I did very briefly catch up with Ben and Mark when they got stuck for over 30 seconds trying to cross Queen Margaret Drive. I finished at the bridge in Garscube Estate in 46:10, which gave me a respectable 6:40/mile average for the 6.92 miles, although I was the last to arrive.

3.4 miles recovery

After playing football, which went slightly better than the previous week, I ran my usual 3.36 miles around the West End in a pace just outside 8:00/mile.

10 miles slow

Went out in the evening for 10 miles with Natasha, all the way up Maryhill Road and Milngavie Road to the pedestrian crossing before the roundabout, and back home again. Time was around 87 minutes.

7 miles moderate

While the evenings are still light enough, I had another go at the Hogmanay Handicap route, starting and finishing at Bearsden Asda. The first mile was slow and difficult but I loosened up a lot after that and just about got my average pace down to 6:45/mile by the time I got into the hills. I lost a few seconds on the climbs but it was going pretty well otherwise and I felt perfectly fit and able to speed up once I got back to Milngavie, although my left hip was hurting a bit towards the end. Finished the 6.97 miles in 46:55 for a 6:44/mile average.

3.4 miles slow, 10.3 miles steady

Went out before breakfast with Natasha for our usual 3.36 miles around the West End. In the afternoon I thought I should get in about 10 miles as I had a day trip scheduled for Sunday, so I ran one of my usual routes via the footbridge over Garscube Road and the canal as far as Lock 27, then all the way down Great Western Road to St George's Cross, followed by the long climb up Maryhill Road to Queen Margaret Drive, and home via Great Western Road and North Woodside Road. This came out at 10.26 miles, finishing time was 1:13:50 for a 7:12/mile average. Felt relatively OK afterwards. Weekly total: 42 miles.

6.1 miles steady

I had recovered a bit by the evening so ran my usual Dorchester Avenue route at what should have been a fairly easy pace, although it was a bit of a struggle and I felt quite ill after about 2 miles. Between 3 and 4 miles I suddenly felt a whole lot better and continued all the way down Great Western Road. Coming back up Garscube Road, it looked like I had an outside chance of getting my average pace down to 7:00/mile, but I got stuck for ages at the junction with St George's Road and finished the 6.07 miles in 43:02 for a 7:05/mile average. I was outside 15 minutes at the 2 mile mark so I had definitely managed to pick it up for the last 4 miles.

6.7 miles steady

This week's club training session was advertised as an 8-mile run, which sounded OK. The route was a new one on otherwise familiar roads - up Milngavie Road, over Mosshead Road, down Drymen Road as far as Bearsden Cross, then up Thorn Road and down Chesters Road. Suffering from stiff and tired legs, I stayed with the fast pack for the first couple of miles before blowing up. I almost resorted to walking but after pressing on at a much slower pace I decided I would manage to complete the whole route after all. By the time I got to Bearsden Cross I couldn't see anyone in the distance and I ended up taking a wrong turn which eventually took me to a dead end in a small housing estate, with no obvious way to get down to Chesters Road, so I followed the road back down to Bearsden Station and ended up cutting the route short by 0.9 miles, missing out Station Road, Pendicle Road and Canniesburn Road. Finished 6.7 miles in 49:24 giving me a 7:22/mile average which was OK considering how much time I had wasted looking for a short cut out of the dead end.

3.4 miles recovery

I sprained my right ankle playing football again, but it didn't swell up as badly as in April, and I was able to get in a few miles afterwards without too much trouble. Route was the usual 3.36 miles in 25:55.

7.2 miles steady

I avoided the club's 1K rep session and ran the same loop as two Tuesdays ago, via St George's Cross and Anniesland Cross. I started off outside 8:00/mile but picked it up a bit later on without too much difficulty. Finishing time was 52:07 which gave me an average pace of 7:17/mile for 7.16 miles.

5.3 miles slow

In the evening I felt just about able to get in some slow miles of doubtful value, so I ran a comparatively hill-free route from Bearsden Asda, via Milngavie Road, Clober Road, Craigton Road and back down South Mains Road. I started off outside 8:00/mile but had brought it down to 7:54/mile by the end of the 5.34-mile route.

Achilles Heel Bella 5K, 3.4 miles slow

After a couple of days' rest to try to ward off any injury problems, I attempted the Bellahouston 5K. Conditions were windy but dry. Within the first 200m my left hamstring tightened up and the rest of the race was a bit of a struggle. I still managed about 3:15 for the first kilometre but the second was outside 3:30. Between 3 and 4K I loosened up slightly and made up a few places, although I ended up having to sprint at the end to maintain 17th place, 2nd for Garscube, finishing in a fairly poor 17:35. On the positive side I am now unable to win the club's Summer League so I don't need to take part in any races for the foreseeable future and can concentrate on building up my weekly mileage. In the afternoon I limped round a 3.35-mile loop via Maryhill Road, Queen Margaret Drive, Great Western Road and Garscube Road. My hamstring is definitely slightly strained but didn't get any worse during the run and was decidedly better later on. Weekly total: 19 miles.

9.5 miles hard

The club training session was a 9-mile run, but the fast pack consisted of just me and Mark. The route took us along Canniesburn Road and onto the canal at Blairdardie. After about 3 miles, as we headed back towards Maryhill, I dropped off the pace and thought about taking a shortcut at Dawsholm Road, but by the time I got to the bridge I wasn't struggling so much. Approaching the Kelvin Walkway, my average pace had dropped to about 6:33/mile, but I didn't think it would fall much further. By this point I knew the route was going to be on the long side, and we had already been late in setting out, but after some quick calculations I pressed on, down the Walkway and over the bridge and up the steps to the Botanic Gardens. Heading back along Great Western Road, I suddenly felt quite fit as I reached the crest of the first hill. I completed the route at a slightly faster pace, even taking into account the hill up to the top gate, and finished in 1:01:40 for a 6:30/mile average over the 9.49 miles.

2.8 miles steady

The scheduled club session was "out and back", which I thought would be fine as a recovery run. However, it had been changed at the last minute to a 5K time trial. I knew I couldn't run fast enough after Sunday to post a meaningful time, so I hung around until I thought everybody was long gone and ran round the same course, although missing out the first loop inside Garscube Estate. It turned out the others had spent a long time warming up and had only started a few minutes earlier, so I overtook a few people although never had sight of the leaders. Finished 2.75 miles in 19:06, 6:57/mile. Half-mile warm-down afterwards.

Helensburgh Half Marathon

It was only on Friday that I decided to enter this race, although online entries had already closed so I had to get there fairly early to register. Not having completed a single run of 10 miles or more since the Balloch to Clydebank Half Marathon in March, I still thought I might have enough miles in the bank to attempt a 6:00/mile pace, but was prepared to slow to a jog if it was going badly.

The sun came out right before the start which made it a bit warmer than I would have preferred. I reached the first mile marker in 5:50 and eased off very slightly as I didn't think I could maintain that pace comfortably. My left hamstring tightened up after about 10 minutes but I stopped noticing it after a while. By about 4 miles I was running with a small group, but I managed to break away on the hill at the 5-mile marker and open up a gap going back down the hill towards Helensburgh, although my average pace had dropped to about 6:04/mile by that point. Between 7 and 9 miles I gained a place and then lost one, and the lack of endurance training started to take its toll as my pace dropped towards 6:30 per mile. I was outside 1:01 at the 10-mile marker, but as I reached the turn at the end of the last climb, I had a quick look back and didn't see anyone within striking distance, so I reckoned I would be comfortably third for Garscube (possibly our last counter for the team prize) and would manage to avoid a potentially damaging sprint finish. This gave me a boost and I picked up the pace slightly, gaining an extra place in the last mile to finish in 13th position in 1:20:55 - nearly 3 minutes down on last year and over 5 down on my previous half marathon, but an OK performance under the circumstances, and we did win the team prize after all. Average pace works out at 6:11/mile.

Also ran a half-mile warm-up and warm-down. Weekly total: 41 miles.

8 miles steady

Met up with Ben for a few miles as the club training session was cancelled due to the Tour of Clydeside series. We headed up Maryhill Road and onto the canal at Ruchill Street, spotting a few other Garscube refugees on route, then over the first bridge at Westerton, up the road under the railway line, through Garscube Estate and onto the new path down to Dawsholm Road, following the Kelvin Walkway as far as Belmont Street, then along Garriochmill Road and Raeberry Street. I had some GPS difficulties due to tree cover but by the time I got home, the reported distance was 7.99 miles which couldn't have been too far out. Time was 57:02 for a 7:08/mile average.

4.7 miles slow

Went out in the evening with Natasha for a run down to Yorkhill via Kelvingrove Park, then along the river and over the bridge to the Science Centre, back over the new road bridge, through Anderston and up St George's Road - 4.73 miles.

7.2 miles moderate

I dodged the club's medium rep session and instead ran a simple loop from Garscube Estate down to St George's Cross, back along Great Western Road to Anniesland Cross, up Crow Road and in the top gate to finish on the speed bump where I'd started. This came out at 7.15 miles. I lost the GPS signal completely near Kelvinbridge but it soon returned and the measurement still seemed fairly accurate. Legs felt tired but otherwise it went not too badly and I finished in 47:23 for a 6:38/mile average.

7 miles steady

In the evening I had a go at the Hogmanay Handicap route, starting and finishing at Bearsden Asda. For a while after I got into the hills it looked like I might be able to sustain a 6:45/mile average but the longer hills slowed me down a lot. Finished in 48:04, distance came out at 6.97 miles (which might even be slightly short). Average mile pace for the reported distance was 6:54.

6.5 miles slow, 3.8 miles steady

Went out with Natasha before breakfast for 6.53 miles down North Woodside Road, along Great Western Road and up to Lock 27, back along the canal, along Dorchester Avenue and back down Great Western Road. In the afternoon I felt OK for another run and repeated the previous afternoon's route although as far as Shakespeare Street, then back down Maryhill Road for 3.81 miles in 26:17, 6:54/mile. Weekly total: 34 miles.

Gym, 8.7 miles steady

In the afternoon I paid another visit to the gym to work on the hamstring curl machine for a while, and afterwards I still felt OK to get in a few more miles. I headed down Garscube Road, down the path behind Abercorn School, over the footbridge and back along the canal as far as Lock 27, then down Crow Road and home via Great Western Road and Garscube Road. The distance came out at 8.66 miles, time was 58:42 for a reasonable 6:47/mile average. I even tried to pick it up over the last half-mile or so to get my average down to 6:45, but getting stuck at traffic lights earlier on made it too difficult.