@MirandaWest thanks for the detailed response about improving your PB - my HM "PB" (admittedly the only road HM I've done) is about a minute slower than your time, so it's really encouraging to me personally how well you made progress as I feel like that means I can make progress too!
@brooksghost wow! That is so fast. I have aims to improve my PBs at all distances before 50 so that is also so motivating for me!
@Ponks brilliant, well done! Enjoy the post-HM high, you deserve it!
@BogRollBOGOF it is tricky getting trail miles in over winter. I've been able to seize a few days where the ground has been drier, but too slippy most of the time. Road hills will do well for the training too though.
@OhOneOhTwoOhThree oh I feel you about the cut-off times - I've been last and there abouts more than once and only enter stuff with long cut-offs (and not too steep downhill, as I lose so much time in the downhills). Hopefully you can enjoy the run and it won't be too stressful (I am stressing about making the three hour cut-off for my road half, so that is very much " do as I say, not as I do" advice ...)
Well, things got a bit hairy here, as one of the horses fractured a bone in her leg and had to be rushed to hospital, operated on and then of course came down with colic ...
So I went for a 10k tempo run on Friday, thinking I would just take it as I felt it, not push things, but actually it felt good to run and get rid of some stress. Same for yesterday's long run of 18k - kept it very easy and for once was actually in zone 2 most of the way. Hoping I can catch up a bit on sleep the next few days to avoid any injury worries.
In the ongoing shoe saga, I used my 860s for a 6.5k on Tuesday, thinking that I would have to run my HM in them - lots of thigh pain, outside of foot etc. the next day. I really think because of all the physio I've done on my hips, they're just overcorrecting the pronation now (I bought the shoes last July). So I think they're out definitively.
Having spent money I don't have on the Saucony Tempus, which I hated and made my legs very sore, I was going to run in my NB Prisms, which I love for speed and tempo. They are not very cushioned for longer runs, but at least don't make my legs hurt, but DH insisted that we go to another shoe shop as my anniversary present (I think partly so he doesn't have to put up with a grumpy me if I can't run ...).
So now have the NB Supercomp Trainer. Tried out for a whole 5k treadmill run in the shop (after the Tempus debacle, I think the shop people thought I was a bit mad), then used them for the 10k tempo.
They are very cushioned, high stack and have a carbon plate, but they're not super shoes in that they're not meant for racing, but more as a "daily trainer". But all the reviews say they're better at slower speeds and heavier runners, but as I AM slow and heavy, that seemed fine by me. Very odd sensation walking in them, felt high and squishy, but felt great running immediately and oddly, I felt like I was hitting my tempo pace very easily, much easier than usual. It was the first time I wasn't desperate for the tempo portion to be over and actually felt like I could have kept going! I felt like my legs were very well recovered the next day too. Only eek was that I was doing an out and back, so did an about-turn mid-run and definitely felt a big wobble then - will definitely be careful of that.
So going to do a few more runs in them the next few weeks to make sure they're definitely right, but otherwise will try to save them for the HM, so that I get all the benefit from them in the half.
Sorry all for writing a novel 😆