2.5 miles easy, 5.3 miles steady

Went out before breakfast for the usual Queen Margaret Drive route - 2.48 miles in 19:02 for a 7:40/mile average, HR 131.

Pace splits (ave. HR): 8:15 (125), 7:18 (134), 7:14 (139)
HR zones: 4.5%, 85.2%, 10.3%, 0%, 0%

In the evening I ran the same route as two Mondays ago, taking it a bit easier, although the hills seemed to be less trouble than usual. Distance came out at 5.34 miles, time 38:25 for a 7:12/mile average, HR 140.

Pace splits (ave. HR): 7:50 (129), 7:26 (139), 7:11 (144), 6:49 (142), 6:49 (145), 6:58 (149)
HR zones: 2.2%, 36.0%, 61.8%, 0%, 0%

4.5 miles slow, 6.9 miles steady

Went out in the morning with Natasha for one of our usual routes through Kelvingrove Park and Yorkhill and along the river. Wore the Kalenji Eliofeet again. Finished the 4.5 miles in 36:48, average pace 8:11/mile, HR 128.

Pace splits (ave. HR): 8:10 (123), 8:14 (127), 7:37 (128), 8:39 (130), 8:17 (132)
HR zones: 4.3%, 95.0%, 0.7%, 0%, 0%

In the late afternoon I ran my usual loop of around 7 miles via Maryhill Road, Garscube Estate and Great Western Road. It had been raining heavily earlier on and I got soaked to the skin by a lorry speeding through a large puddle at the Botanic Gardens. Distance was 6.92 miles, time 47:30 for a 6:52/mile average, HR 151.

Pace splits (ave. HR): 7:16 (141), 6:52 (156), 6:46 (149), 6:59 (151), 6:48 (152), 6:44 (154), 6:35 (155)
HR zones: 1.1%, 3.6%, 89.9%, 5.4%, 0%
Weekly total: 51 miles

5.5 miles steady

Back in Glasgow. In the early evening I ran a loop up Maryhill Road, onto the canal at Shakespeare Street, along Dorchester Avenue and back along Great Western Road. Wore the HRM again, which was quite painful with bruised ribs. Felt very fatigued. Finished the 5.54 miles in 39:08, average pace 7:04/mile, HR 148.

Pace splits (ave. HR): 7:24 (133), 7:11 (146), 7:05 (153), 7:04 (154), 6:38 (152), 6:55 (151)
HR zones: 1.8%, 9.0%, 83.9%, 5.3%, 0.0%

4.2 miles slow

I was able to run OK after the previous day's accident, so I went out with Natasha in the morning to try the correct version of Wednesday's route. I was wearing an orange pair of Kalenji Eliofeet which I had bought in Monaco on Thursday after seeing a TV ad earlier in the week. They were a bit plasticky but very light (if not Mayfly-light) and supposedly only intended for one short run per week. I forgot I was wearing them after a while, just as the manufacturers claim. This time we turned left at the roundabout and headed down to Avenue de Cannes as I had originally intended, and along Boulevard Raymond Poincaré towards the hotel. Distance was 4.20 miles, time 37:36 for an 8:57/mile average.

6.5 miles steady

In the afternoon I headed along a busy seafront and up Chemin des Sables for a loop of Cap d'Antibes, wearing the Distance S instead of the Vomeros for a change. The boulevard along the coast seemed to go on for so long that I wondered if I had missed my turn, but I eventually found the road which took me up to Boulevard du Cap, which also went on for ages. On the way back down Chemin des Sables I stepped briefly off the pavement to dodge a couple of unyielding tourists. It turned out that there wasn't enough space between a car and a lamp post to do this safely at speed, and I clipped the car's wing mirror before crashing to the ground. Got straight back up and took a more direct route back to the hotel to inspect varying degrees of damage to my left shoulder, elbow, hand, hip and knee. Completed the 6.48 miles in 44:55, average pace 6:56/mile. I don't remember the last time I fell while running on the road. It may have been during a long rep session in Garscube Estate several years ago when I tripped on a speed bump.

Pace splits: 7:49, 7:00, 6:45, 6:55, 6:37, 6:44, 6:29

3.2 miles slow, 6.5 miles steady

Ran the seafront route with Natasha before breakfast, finishing the 3.18 miles in 26:48, average pace 8:25/mile.

Pace splits: 8:31, 8:16, 8:28, 8:29

In the afternoon I tried a longer version of the inland loop, continuing along Route de Saint-Jean to the roundabout at the end, which added another Clevedenesque hill, and heading towards town. When I got to the roundabout, there was an extra slip road which hadn't been on my map. After stopping for a minute to figure out where I was, I decided I must have reached the next roundabout down the road and went straight across instead of turning left. This actually took me onto the Chemin de Saint-Maymes which seemed to go on for ages and was taking me round in a large circle, so it could have been worse. It was also pretty flat. The sea was in the distance once the trees cleared so I still thought I was going the right way. I got back to a main road eventually, turning left as I had remembered, and I soon passed some sports pitches which made me suspicious as they seemed to be on the wrong side of the road. After a few hundred yards I ended up back at the original roundabout.

Rather than risk getting lost again I headed back up the Route de Saint-Jean, down Boulevard Pierre Delmas and all the way down the hill to cut the route as short as possible after some unplanned extra miles. There was still time to pick the wrong road from a choice of two and head up Route de la Badine, but I recognised a familiar hill in the distance and turned onto Rue Pierre Loti, which took me back down to a street I recognised as being near the hotel. The whole thing came out at 6.53 miles, time 45:36 for a 6:59/mile average.

Pace splits: 7:33, 7:05, 6:57, 6:33, 7:15, 6:45, 6:35

3.2 miles easy, 3.6 miles moderate

Ran along the seafront to Port Camille Rayon before breakfast. It was early enough that the streets were fairly deserted. 3.18 miles in 23:21, average pace 7:20/mile.

Pace splits: 8:06, 7:10, 6:54, 6:37

Later on I ran the same loop as yesterday afternoon. I made it through the first mile inside 7 minutes and still managed to pick it up a bit after that to set what would inevitably remain an unbeaten route PB for the rest of the holiday. This time the distance came out at 3.63 miles, finishing time 23:55, average pace 6:36/mile.

Pace splits: 6:56, 6:39, 6:28, 6:11

3.3 miles slow, 3.6 miles steady

In the morning I ran the same route as yesterday afternoon, with Natasha this time, although we only ran down part of Rue Emilie and back at the end, making 3.26 miles in 31:00 for a 9:31/mile average.

Later on I tried a longer version of the route, continuing along the Route de Saint-Jean and down Boulevard Pierre Delmas, then down Chemin de Lauvert which didn't have a pavement, before rejoining Route de la Badine. This took the distance up to 3.62 miles, finishing time 25:14 for a 6:59/mile average.

Pace splits: 7:32, 7:06, 6:48, 6:11

3.2 miles slow, 3.6 miles steady

Ran along the seafront with Natasha before breakfast although only as far as Port Camille Rayon this time. 3.19 miles in 26:59, average pace 8:27/mile.

Pace splits: 8:23, 8:29, 8:25, 8:44

In the afternoon I tried a loop in the opposite direction, heading up the steep hill of Chemin de la Colle, up some more hills on the Avenue du Châtaignier, down the Chemin des Autriches and along the Route de la Badine to Chemin de la Colle. When I got back to the hotel I was still a bit short of the required 3.5 miles so I added a smaller loop up the Rue Emilie, whose challenging gradient was dwarfed by a ridiculously steep hill just around the corner. This however took the total up to 3.62 miles, completed in 25:05, 6:56/mile average.

Pace splits: 7:35, 6:46, 6:35, 6:41
Weekly total: 50 miles

3.9 miles easy

Ran from the hotel in Juan-les-Pins along the seafront to Port de Golfe-Juan and back again. There were quite a few pedestrians to dodge near the public beach. Finished the 3.94 miles in 29:15, average pace 7:25/mile.

Pace splits: 7:41, 7:21, 7:17, 7:22

2.5 miles easy, 5.1 miles steady

Went out before breakfast again for the usual Queen Margaret Drive route which came out at 2.51 miles this time. Time was 19:23, average pace 7:43/mile, HR 133. Felt a bit easier than on previous mornings. Later on I had to wade through ankle-deep water at Cowcaddens and walked on a bit to see how far I could get with bare feet, and although it was OK to begin with, I had to give up when I reached Rose Street as there was too much grit on the pavement.

Pace splits (ave. HR): 8:01 (129), 7:33 (135), 7:28 (139)
HR zones: 4.1%, 83.4%, 12.5%, 0%, 0%

In the early evening I had time for about 5 miles so headed up Maryhill Road and onto the canal towpath at Shakespeare Street, then over Cleveden Road and back home along Great Western Road. Finished the 5.07 miles in 35:21, average page 6:58/mile, HR 141.

Pace splits (ave. HR): 7:38 (128), 7:04 (138), 7:02 (143), 6:32 (147), 6:34 (150)
HR zones: 2.4%, 44.7%, 52.9, 0%, 0%

7.4 miles tempo

Went to the Thursday club session for the first time in ages. There were a couple of other folk who were just coming back from injury, all planning a fairly easy run. We had a choice between 7 and 10 miles. Most went for the longer route but I thought it might be pushing my luck a bit, especially as I had worn the Newton Motus in case I needed to try to keep up with anybody. A combined fast pack of 6 set off at a fairly steady pace towards Bearsden. I nearly got squashed at Canniesburn Toll but was slightly more careful after that. Three of us had pushed ahead by the time the routes split, and I was left on my own to head up Stockiemuir Road. The rest of the route took me down Craigdhu Road, Park Road and back down Milngavie Road. There was supposed to be a 2-mile tempo stretch starting at Main Street but I was starting to flag a bit by this point, and the climb up Switchback Road was particularly hard work. Got back to the bridge in 48:50 for the 7.40 miles, average pace 6:36/mile, HR 158.

Pace splits (ave. HR): 7:30 (136), 7:12 (148), 6:29 (160), 6:10 (164), 6:11 (165), 6:21 (168), 6:34 (170), 5:57 (167)
HR zones: 0.8%, 7.0%, 30.3%, 61.9%, 0%

2.5 miles easy, 4.2 miles steady

Ran my Queen Margaret Drive route again before breakfast. Took me a while to warm up and I had to pick it up towards the end to get my average pace inside 7:45. Finished the 2.50 miles in 19:18, average pace 7:44/mile, HR 128.

Pace splits (ave. HR): 8:30 (120), 7:29 (131), 6:42 (139)
HR zones: 13.0%, 81.3%, 5.7%, 0%, 0%

In the evening I ran a loop via Cowcaddens, Great Western Road, Kirklee Road and Maryhill Road. The GPS trail looks slightly uneven along Great Western Road so the reported distance of 4.15 miles may be up to 100m long. Time was 28:43, average pace 6:55/mile, HR 144.

Pace splits (ave. HR): 7:19 (132), 6:55 (146), 6:52 (148), 6:41 (149), 6:22 (154)
HR zones: 2.3%, 16.5%, 81.3%, 0%, 0%

3.35 miles easy, 6.5 miles slow

Ran my usual West End route before breakfast, 3.35 miles in 24:52, average pace 7:26/mile, HR 135.

Pace splits (ave. HR): 7:56 (130), 7:18 (137), 7:09 (138), 7:09 (141)
HR zones: 3.2%, 67.0%, 29.8%, 0%, 0%

In the evening Natasha didn't fancy the club's track session so we went on a longer run along Great Western Road to Anniesland Cross, all the way down Crow Road, back along Dumbarton Road as far as Kelvin Way and home through Kelvingrove Park. This came out at 6.49 miles, finishing time 52:23, average pace 8:04/mile, HR 128. Had really heavy legs for the last couple of miles.

Pace splits (ave. HR): 8:12 (122), 7:55 (127), 7:45 (129), 7:57 (130), 7:54 (131), 8:23 (129), 8:43 (128)
HR zones: 4.3%, 95.7%, 0%, 0%, 0%