"2 hours" of "easy" running in the hills

 That is what I asked for. "2 hours" of "easy" running in the hills.

What JFW delivered was two and a half hours (25% error) of not that easy running (for me anyway).

Definitely not the best run organiser out there. 

Especially if you consider that it was me who told him that we were one hour and a half into the run, time to start thinking of heading to the finish. And now, when I look at the route, I see we were the farthest we got in all day from our finish point. 

And I’m not surprised at all. I suspected it as we were stopping at every crossroads for him to decide our way home. That, inevitably, means running longer and more climbs.

Great training on how to deal with uncertainty. You are running tired, you don’t know which way you are going, you don’t know how many climbs are left, you don’t know for how long you will have to run.

I finally recognised the last climb (“Love lace bridge ascent” in Strava). I knew then there were no more climbs left, I knew exactly how long I’ll have to run for. A shame I was still tired and, somehow, I went for the sprint a bit too hard and a bit too early.

I, obviously, ran out of steam miles away from the top. JFW took the sprint, put country music in the car all the way home and made me pay for the coffee at Cobham.

Proper torture I went through today.

The run in Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/16674082133/

Take care of yourself

Javier Arias González

KW - Elstead - Normandy

I thought I was doing well riding with GC Denis.

Taking some turns on the front, managing to stay on his wheel on each of the “climbs”. If I am around GC Denis in the climbs I’m doing well.

I noticed, though, that he rode each “climb” on the big chainring while I was on the small one and almost running out of gears. 

But I didn’t think much of it. When I mentioned it to him he admitted he was becoming a bit like JFW. Not exactly the role model I’d have chosen, but, hey, each to its own.

At the coffee stop Bidders showed up.

I welcomed him with a smile, like a friend you are happy to see. The chat over coffee was very nice and relaxed. Nothing indicated to me what was coming.

But it didn’t take long.

Bidders and GC Denis started to ride. I lost a few seconds doing something I can’t remember and when I looked up there was already a gap. Nothing big. Easy to close.

In theory.

In practice it took me a lot longer than I was expecting and by the time I got to GC Denis’ wheel I was already out of breath.

Tough luck because just there a “climb” started.

“Wow! Bidders is pushing it”, I thought. I was finding it hard to stay with them.

Almost immediately came another “climb”. Hogs. Short and sharp. I hate it.

On this one Bidders opened a gap but in my mind I played the “too much traffic” excuse to justify it.

The penny dropped in that section that leads to Fox corner where we normally cycle chaingang. Not today. 

Today Bidders was at the front, followed by GC Denis and I was at the back. No chaingang. I was all tucked in aero position, struggling to stay with them and when I looked up I saw Bidders was completely upright, pedaling very easy. He wasn’t even trying. I knew then I wasn’t doing that well. My form is, for lack of a better word, rubbish.

That emptied my legs. 90km into the ride and my legs were empty!!!

Complete rubbish.

But I’m a lucky man. By pure chance the route passed in front of Bidders house so he abandoned the ride the precise moment I was about to start crying.

I said goodbye with a smile bigger than when I saw him at Elstead and focused on my next problem.

Beating GC Denis in the final sprint having empty legs.

A huge challenge because at some point we turned right, GC Denis said we were heading towards Esher and I was completely lost.

I was “preparing” for a sprint in Hampton Court and suddenly we were heading towards Esher, which, for me, was like at the other corner of the country.

Of course I was second at Esher. GC Denis didn’t even need to sprint. When I finally recognised where we were he was already at the front and stopping at a traffic light.

I thought I was doing well riding with GC Denis but struggling on Bidders wheel when he was just cruising and then losing a sprint to GC Denis is a hard shock of reality. It is going to take me a while to recover from this.

The ride in Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/16665576388

Take care of yourself

Javier Arias González

Twyford - Windsor

I haven’t been in a club run for so long that I had lost all the morning routines. Wheels needed to be pumped, breakfast took a bit too long, and I had to go back into the house twice for things I had forgotten. I was lucky I still remembered where my bicycle was stored. 

Everything felt like something that you used to do a long time ago but not anymore. Even my riding mates, Andy, GC Denis, Luca, and Seb. It’s been ages since I’ve ridden with them. Although, some of them (I won’t give names), have been absent longer than me.

The first moment of feeling at the right place, doing the right thing, was sitting on GC Denis’ wheel between Kingston bridge and Hampton Court. Suddenly I felt at home. I knew what I was doing.

Well, that was just what I thought. 

How would you explain that I found myself at the front of the group? If I knew what I was doing, the real Javier cyclist would never have hit the front. Especially if there was not a sprinting line involved.

I blame running. It has screwed my RPE, I now tell myself. It makes me feel I’m going easier than I’m really going. 

A coffee at the stop made things even worse. My optimism went to the roof, I was back to the front.

Luckily for me my riding mates didn’t contest any of the sprints. So despite my terrible tactics in the first one and almost crashing sprinting alone in the second, I took both.

I don’t feel like a winner though. Even after a one hour siesta my legs are fried after a ride that was supposed to be short and easy. 

I clearly have no idea of what I am doing when riding anymore. 

The ride in Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/16609934970 

Take care of yourself

Javier Arias González 

 

To Hampton Court bridge and back

Last week I had a slight discomfort in my left leg. That week Saturday’s run (https://www.strava.com/activities/16532167404) exacerbated it a little so I decided to take this week off running. It helped that it was a busy week at work. 

My cyclists friends decided today’s weather was not suitable for riding bicycles so I decided to go for an easy run to test my leg.

Run slowly to Kingston bridge (5km) and I felt fine so I decided to keep running towards Hampton Court. 

Got to Hampton Court (10km), I crossed the bridge heading home and I was feeling fine so I decided to turn around and head back to Kingston.

That is a much nicer way of going back home but it adds 5 more kilometres to the route.

Back again to Kingston bridge (15km) and I started to think that, maybe, I was a bit too optimistic. I was still running slow but my legs, especially the left one, were feeling the effort.

Finally got home (20km) and I now have the slight discomfort back in my left leg.

Follow me if you want great advice on how to deal with running niggles. I know what not to do.

The run in Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/16599061825

Take care of yourself

Javier Arias González

I'll never run alone

I'll never run alone.

Like a one man Liverpool trail running team, I'll never run alone.

I’ll always run the trails with JFW.

That is my sentence.

Whenever I run in the hills all I see is JFW's back. Even when he is not there with me. 

Looking back to see if I'm still there. Half smile in his face like the child that is torturing his new toy.

8 ramps I had today, JFW was there with me in all of them. Making me hold my pace, getting ready to sprint in the last 30 metres.

But because he was only there in my mind I never launched the sprint and managed to run steady through the ramps.

And now I know I'll never run alone.

When I run through a storm

I hold head up high

And I’m not afraid of the dark

At the end of the storm

Is a golden sky

And the sweet silver song of a lark

Run on through the wind

Run on through the rain

Tho' my dreams be tossed and blown

Run on, run on

With hope in your heart

And I'll never run alone

I'll never run alone

I’ll always run the trails with JFW. 

That is my sentence.

The run in Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/16532167404

Take care of yourself

Javier Arias González

 

Cyclist’s, runner wannabe, training plan

Had breakfast and a coffee. Sat for a while to answer a few work emails. When I finished I was undecided between going back to bed and having a morning nap or going for an intervals session.

Went for the intervals session, but when I started to run I felt something wasn’t quite right on my left leg. My English vocabulary doesn’t allow me to describe without using questionable words so let’s leave it at me deciding to quit the intervals session and going for an easy run instead. 

I guess by the time I got to Kingston bridge the caffeine started to make its effect because I was feeling just fine. Without me thinking about it I started to run faster and faster. At a certain point I noticed I was running faster than usual because I stopped paying attention to the podcast I was listening to. So I stopped the podcast and kept the pace until Hampton Court bridge. Where I fell back to an easy pace and ran back home happy with myself.

And this, my friends, is how this cyclist’s, runner wannabe, training plan is executed. Pure improvisation.

The run in Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/16381798817

Take care of yourself

Javier Arias González

Intervals + Kingston Bridge - Hampton Court loop

Yeah, those intervals didn’t really go as planned. 

Did two “long” ones and I thought I was rubbish. I look now at the numbers and I see I wasn’t that bad, but the seed was planted in my brain.

I died half way through the third one. That is when the swearing and self deprecating started. All in my head because I was so out of breath that I was unable to say a word.

Managed to complete the fourth one. I still thought it was terrible. The numbers tell me now it was a fine effort for a fourth one. In my brain I was starting to pile excuses. Lots of them. I was looking for a reason to quit.

Tried the fifth one anyway, but, again, I died half way through it. Oh my, I was in a bad mood. I had given up again. I was hating myself. What a loser! 

Without interruption, after the five “long” intervals, it was time for the “short” ones.

First one felt fine. I attributed it to being such a mentally weak runner and having had the extra recovering of having given up half way through the previous interval. 

Second one brought me to reality. I finished it. But it felt hard. 

I finished the third one too. It was very hard, but third ones are always very hard. 

I was hesitant on the fourth one. I was so terrified of not finishing it that I think I started a bit conservative. And, of course, that was exactly what I needed to finish it.

That was it. Whenever I have a set of five intervals I know I’ll finish it if I finish the fourth one. In fact I believe my fifth one was my fastest. 

I say “I believe” because the “short” intervals are only 250m long, Strava doesn’t allow for segments that short, and I don’t bother marking the segments on my watch. Who cares anyway?

All I cared about was that I was happy again. Yes, my performance felt a bit shit on the long intervals but I had finished the short ones. Add to it that I wasn’t feeling that tired, it was sunny and warm. I was so happy that the only reason I didn’t put my arms up in the air is because the park was full of dog walkers and I was pretty sure some of them were neighbours and suddenly I worried about what they would think of me. 

I felt so well that I decided to go for a Kingston Bridge - Hampton Court loop. 

That is 15 extra kilometres, but I figured that if I run easy it would be fine.

And it was fine.

So much so that as I was running by the river I was thinking that I was close to believing that 15km at 5:30min/km was a recovery run.

That belief didn’t hold. By the time I got to Hampton Court, 20km into the run, I started to feel tired, the silly optimism took a step back and I was just looking to end the run as dignifiedly as possible.

And I did.

I can’t claim that I attacked the hill, but going up Ditton hill I felt just fine. Kept the pace, heart rate went up, passed the hill without slowing down. What a way of finishing the run.

I was happy again. In love with myself again. Optimistic again.

Still fearing next intervals session though.

The run in Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/16320102743/

Take care of yourself

Javier Arias González