2014 Running Goals

As the year comes to an end, I have found that I am starting to plan out my running goals for 2014. There are a number of events I want to participate in and given I have a little thing on known as my wedding and honeymoon, I am trying to plan now so I can achieve the best times possible. Some of my more general goals are:

- 5km in 23 minutes
- 10km in 48 minutes
- Sub 2 hours for half marathon
- Sub 4 hours for marathon
- Place in my age group in a Sri Chinmoy race
- Be under 70kg (about 6kg to go, these are the toughest kg's ever!)
- Continue to incorporate more weight training in my gym routine.
- Do 'The Bird' in Body Balance

 

This is a running event schedule that I have put together in order to help achieve some of these goals. There is a lot in there but consistency will help me to hopefully reach some of these goals. As I am getting married in February and having a month long honeymoon, my events are not going to start until April.

 

April:

13th - Run for the Kids - 15km

27th - Princes Park - 15km (Sri Chinmoy)

 

May:

4th - Puffing Billy Race (13.2km) (Must beat the train - most likely the second one!)

11th - Mother's Day Classic (8km)

25th - Como Landing Half Marathon (Sri Chinmoy)

 

June:

22nd - Albert Park Half Marathon (Sri Chinmoy)

 

July:

6th - Gold Coast Marathon (will make a bit of a holiday out of this one!)

20th - Princes Park (either Half Marathon or 30km)

27th - Run Melbourne Half Marathon

 

August:

10th - City to Surf (Sydney) (14km) - most likely a fly in, fly out type thing

 

September:

21st - Yarra Blvd Half Marathon (Sri Chinmoy)

 

October:

12th - Melbourne Marathon

26th - Maribyrnong Rive Run -12km (Sri Chinmoy)

 

November:

9th - Yarra Bend Trail Run - 10km (Sri Chinmoy)

Point to Pinnacle Half Marathon (Tassie - toughest half marathon!) - Date not yet set

City to Sea - 14km (Date not yet set)

 

December:

7th - Cherry Lake, Altona - 10.5km (Sri Chinmoy)

 

Lots there to keep me busy and hopefully a few opportunities to achieve my goals!

 

 



Maribynong River Run - 12km

Last Sunday I participated in another Sri Chinmoy event. The one thing I love about these events is that it is cheap to enter ($25) and you get pancakes at the end of the run! Since I done the Melbourne Marathon a couple of weeks ago, I have continued to run 2-3 times a week, although I haven't run more than 12km in a session yet.

Whilst I am still deciding whether I am going to go for another marathon next year, I have decided I want to concentrate on shorter distances (when I say shorter I mean 10-15km) and aim to reduce my times for these shorter distances, which will then contribute to reducing my overall marathon time.

I decided going into this 12km event I would aim for a sub 65 minute time. I was basing this on the fact that in my last half-marathon I had run 10km in 54 minutes. I felt I would be able to achieve this goal but also challenge myself.

I don't think we could have asked for better weather for the Maribynong River Run. It was a clear day but not too hot, ideal for running. I had a feeling I could actually go sub 65 minutes.

I was aim to set into my pace quite quickly. The 4km loop was quite flat and given it was along the river, it was a lovely view to have whilst running. I only took drinks from every second station however, because my pace was faster than my training runs, I did find it difficult to take on liquids. On the final lap with about 2km to go, I noticed the time on my phone and thought I actually had a chance to go sub 65. A girl did overtake me and whilst I did try to keep pace with her, I was not able to.

I ended up crossing the finish line in 65:41. Just slightly over the time I wanted but I was happy to take that. At the medal ceremony, the girl that overtook me, ended up coming third in our age category. I was a bit upset because that could have been me! Oh well, if anything it has lit a fire because I really want to be able to place in the top three, so I will be aiming to do that at the next Sri Chinmoy meet in December in Altona. I ended up finishing 4th in my age category (18-39) and 5th overall.

The one great thing I got out of the run is that I was granted priority entry to City to Sea on the 17th November. This is a 14km race and in order to start in the front half of the field (and avoid the joggers and non-serious runners), you had to provide the organisers with official times from your run.
The event is just over two weeks away, so I don't think I will be able to improve my time too much, however I am going to aim for 76 minutes for this distance.

A couple of things I have noted from this run:
-My first pair of Lorna Janes which are a size Large (the rest I have are medium) are still good for the gym, not so good for running. Must stick to my mediums from now on.
-I don't usually run in singlets because I am scared of chaffing but I fund that wearing a singlet for this distance did not bother me.

Fitness Friay - On a Saturday

link

 

So I missed my Fitness Friday post yesterday, due to the fact it was my birthday! It's actually been a good week for me post Melbourne Marathon. I managed to recover quite well and managed a reasonably active week at the gym. Although I did not do 100% of what I would normally do, I was about 80% there which I was happy with post marathon. I think doing cycle on both Monday & Tuesday after the marathon helped to keep my legs moving with minimal impact.

 

Today I gave myself a rest day. The Boy & I had a wonderful lunch at Melba at the Langham. The food was delicious but I have not ate that much in one sitting for so long. Great to do once in a while but wouldn't want to make it a habit. The peking duck pancakes and Indian food station were highlights.

 

This week, my focus is going to be to get my diet back on track from Monday. No unhealthy snacks and preparing meals to ensure correct portion size. I also want to start incorporating some endurance into my running. By including hills and sprints, I can start to develop my endurance and hoping reduce my times. This is my plan for the upcoming week:

 

Sunday: 12km run (easy pace) Just trying to get back into things

Monday: 30 min Spin & 45 min Boot Camp

Tuesday: 13km run in morning (2 laps of the Tan)

Wednesday: 1 hour Body Pump Class & 45 min Boot Camp

Thursday: 8km run at lunchtime. Incorporate Anderson Street Hill. I am aiming for 6 hill sprints but will see how I go as this is my first time doing multiple hill sprints.

Friday: 30 min Personal Training (focus on building endurance)

Saturday: Rest Day!

Sunday: Sri Chinmoy Maribyrnong River Run - 12km - I have done 10km in 54:23 (PB) so I am aiming to do 12km in less than 65 minutes.

 

So quite a busy week for me but hoping the weather will be on my side for the runs and boot camps!