9th Frankfurter Lufthansa Halbmarathon - the second coming

13 March 2011

1:46:32

So this didnt exactly go as planned... Went there sick like a horse, wasnt even sure i should run but i did anyway. Somehow i convinced myself this caughing and cold wouldnt have to effect my running if i didnt want it. Boy i was in for a surprise.  Started with the 1:39 pacer and for the first few km-s was alright but soon had to realize my performance wasnt going to be as expected. As the km-s piled on every single one of them took a little longer than the last one. At some point it felt like a HUuuuuge challenge to even keep running. I just couldnt believe it: my slow training runs where i always had to hold back were faster and appr. 100 times easier than this! But the best is, i got such SOOORE legs afterwards like i had run really fast. I just dont get it. I kept adjusting my time goal as i advanced and for the longest time i told myself id bring it under1:45 and that'd be alright for a sick man but i even had to disappoint myself with that. I was devastated.

But then Sandra and Michael came altho they both couldnt run and they cheered me up totally! We hung around for a while, i stood in for the group photos with Walter the oberste Kommunikationschef and Sprecher who was sporting the fancy Munchen Olympics 2018 propaganda shirt and bag (id like me some of those)

 and then Juergen shot a few pix of me with Martin Oser (the fastest Lufthanseat and the crazy guy who just did the Empire State Building run).

I picked up a pretty shirt and wore it immediately - even managed to get one for Kasia. I ate a cake and coffee too for charity, unfortunately made  the same mistake as last year (!) when choosing the darkest cake that looked like chocolate thru and thru but was in truth just a dry plain kakao mass. Of course i only remembered it after i payed :( But the coffee was good.

Got on the 16:40 to PRG and got home still on a human time. I was so exhausted i fell asleep on the plane, a and the bus, of course.

Marathon training - WEEK 3

This week i wont be able to do the long run because i am trying to save my strength for sunday the 13th of March when i run the halfmarathon in FRA! But this is alright as i got my period (after 5 months) for real and i am a complete wreck. But i really dont even mind. I will just run as much as i can without losing energy and next week i get back on track. I have outdone myself last week anyway.

6.3 - 12.3    38 km planned - 14.2 completed

06 SUN Pause /Alternativ training
Pause
07 MON langer Lauf Dist: 22.4 km in 5:40 min/km
5 km in 05:06 min/km (morning run to work, halfway)
08 TUE Pause / Alternativ training
Pause
09 WED leichter Lauf Dist: 8 km in 5:40 min/km
9.2 in 4:56 min/km
speedwork on the treadmill: 2km warmup at 11.6 km/h, 5.5 km race pace at 12.6-7-8 km/h, 2 km cooldown at 11.6. I was extremely weak (1st day of the period) so i did fine for that. 25 min workout afterwards.
10 THU Pause / Alternativ training
Pause
11 FRI Tempo- dauerlauf Dist: 8 km, inkl.Aufwärmen; 4.8 km in 4:45 min/km; Auslaufen
Pause. I really wanted to go out for one more session but sickness and weakness put me off of my feet against all my best intentions.
12 SAT Pause / Alternativ training
Pause

Marathon training - WEEK 2

Again, got off to the wrong foot as i couldnt resist one more run with T in the hills. It was def. worth a lot more tho than 10.6 would be on a treadmill.  I guess we could call this one the casual run.

Anyway, altho not the right days, i did all the units with the right distances that were planned plus one more causal run, just all mixed up.

27.2 - 05.3 ttl 37 km planned - 46.7 km actual

27 SUN Pause /Alternativ training
Instead 10.6 in 6:10 min/km, on T's extreme muddy hilly round. 15 min workout with B afterw
28 MON Langer Lauf Dist: 19.2 km in 5:40 min/km
Pause instead
01 TUE Pause / Alternativ training
Instead 8 km speedwork in 5:19 min/km1.6km warmup - 1km sprint at 14 km/h. It killed me! Had to slow down afterwards and couldnt really keep a good speed long tho i tried. Suffered thru the rest of the 8 with pure heart. Then i worked out 15 min
02 WED leichter Lauf Dist: 9.6 kmin 5:40 min/km
Pause instead
03 THU Pause /Alternativ training
19.1 km in ave. 5:05 min/km on the treadmill, last 5 km at racespeed
04 FRI Tempo-läufe Dist: 8 km, inkl. Aufwärmen; 2 x 1600 m in 7:13 min mit 800 m Trabpause; Auslaufen
Pause instead
05 SAT Pause / Alternativtraining
9km in 05:05 min/km (home from work, casual)

Marathon Training - WEEK 1

So it finally officially started! This week i got off on the wrong foot on account of my b-day trip and because i absolutely had to run on my birthday but had little time for it. But then it got worse because i went home for the end of the week and just couldn't get the long run in. I dont think i did too bad tho, i substituted it with two VERY demanding hillruns with T. Especially the first one, altho only 12 km sth felt more difficult than some of the long runs on the treadmill lately.  So lets see:

20.2 - 26.2
34 km planned - 35.3 km actual


20. SUN Pause /Alternativ training
Pause
21. MON langer Lauf Dist: 16 km in 5:40 min/km
8 km in 5:25 min/km in Karlovy Vary early in the morning
22. TUE Pause /Alternativ training
Pause
23. WED leichter Lauf Dist: 9.6 km in 5:40 min/km
instead i did 10 km speedwork on the treadmill in 4:49 min/km(10 min warmup 5:15 min/km - 5 interval units 3min-1min 3x15km/h-2x14.5 km/h - 10min cooldown  5:15 min/km - 18 min at race speed 12.5 - 6 min cooldown.)
24. THU Pause /Alternativ training
instead i ran 5.1 km in 04:51 min/km to work (nightshift) in extreme cold conditions.
25. FRI Tempo-dauerlauf Dist: 8 km, inkl. Aufwärmen; 4.8 km in 4:45 min/km; Auslaufen
Pause instead
26. SAT Pause /Alternativtraining
Instead i did a longer hilly run, very challenging, 12.2 km in 5:55 min/km

The perfect B-day run : Karlovy Vary :)

20-21 FEB
8km in 43 min.
D decided to take us to Karlovy Vary for my b-day, it was something we had been planning for ages and i loved the idea! It turned out to be the perfect trip too, save for the freezing temperatures. We took the bus (over 4 hours ttl), had breakfast in PRG and we arrived in K.V. around midday. We checked into Villa Basileia, a very nice and budget place that exceeded all expectations but those for a nice breakfast. Did some sightseeing after arrival, went to swim in a thermal pool, drank different thermal curing waters and ate fresh oplatkis. We fell asleep relatively early, deadly tired after a long but really nice day.
The next morning i woke at 6 and went out running. I mapped a scenic wandering route the evening before but i got lost and of course never made it. I came up to the pretty orthodox church:

 but that was the last point i could identify on my route so after some futile searching for non-existent streets i took the incentive and just ran around the town basically. Aside from the church i came up on a pretty column from which i had an impressive view on the sleepy town

 and then ran back on the fancy paved streets of the old town. Made a loop on the right side of the canal, starting from the grand hotel Pupp, along the canal i ran and soon joined a red trail for a km or 2. Then i turned back and took the bridge to the right side and soon was home.

Then we had breakfast and spent the better part of the day doing more bathing, sightseeing, oplatky eating and water tasting until it was time to take the bus home. The way home was pretty adventurous but we made it :) A wonderful trip with the perfect birthday run is how it shall be remembered :)