Training VI

I am a silly sod. I should be writing this out, though kids at school now probably have to type lines, about 250 times for my training tonight.

Firstly I forgot the golden rule which is work at your own pace. Secondly, I forgot that last time I tried showing off, I injured myself. Thirdly, having injured myself I cannot join in with the team exercises at the next session so I'll be working on my own. Finally, I have always hated broccoli and it being frozen/strapped to the back of my leg in an attempt to reduce any swelling following my most recent hamstring rupture (not a strain, CE says it's a small rupture) is not making me like it much more.

But back to the start ... we had another new playmate out with us tonight. Unfortunately we didn't really get a proper nickname in place so he's going to be Titfer for now. Titfer was the Referee's Appointments Secretary for last season in my Sunday League but needs to referee more this season as he prepares for a push at promotion to level 6, so he's dropped that responsibility. He wants/needs to get fitter so he can manage the pace of his games better and tonight was his first step towards that.

Zico turned up for her second session with us and was being wound up by Fat Lad who said I constantly referred to staring at her arse in my previous blog entry. Nothing could be further from the truth because even though I have had LASIK to correct shortsightedness, I was always about 200m behind her so there was no chance of me staring from that distance! During the warm-up lap tonight I worked very hard up the slight hill and down the other side and picked the pace up on the run home. Unfortunately for me CE got everyone else to lift their pace above mine and really run it in. I still felt pretty good at the end of the lap and breezed through the mobility stretches.

The session was a(nother) high intensity one designed to increase recovery and add in some speed work. A simple spin away before sprinting 5m, followed by some quick steps over some markers, then another 5-10m sprint before slowing to a jog to the halfway line. From there some gentle side to side steps, a nice little 10m jog followed by a fast pace for the full length of the field. A jog across to the opposite side of the penalty area, then a run at 25% for 20m, 50% for another 20m, 75% for another 20m and jog on through to the touchline finished off by another full length, fast pace run.

It was meant to be a set of 4 followed by a 4 minute rest and another set of 4. On the first set I was slow away and noticed that Titfer was keeping pace with me. As we did the first full length sprint I felt a twinge in my right hamstring and thought nothing of it but noted the pace I could manage and would be able to sustain through all 8 sets. By the 4th set I was just about edging ahead of Titfer and staying the same distance behind Chuckle Elder, Fat Lad and Zico.

So as we started the second set of 4 I was feeling pretty much ok about getting through the session and while I wasn't sprinting flat out I was getting a decent workout. In fact so decent that I increased my maximum heart rate from the previous best of 186bpm to 196bpm. That means I'm going to have to work harder to get into that optimum 84-88% range in future sessions. On the first full length run disaster struck I tried to get myself past Titfer, rather than running in at my own pace and I felt a tightening in my right hamstring, the one which had caused me to miss three weeks early in the season and three weeks near the end of the season. I pulled up and CE told me to keep moving, so I went through a full set of mobility stretches.

I kept stretching both hamstrings and as I was finishing off, I knew the group were on the last of their set of 4. I then heard a shout and turned to see the Fat Lad walking back. It seemed that he had also tweaked his hamstring but on the left leg - disaster ... we were both broken! I pulled CE's leg about him breaking us both and he seemed a little offended but he has since assured me that he knew I was jesting.

Titfer looked how I usually look at the end of a session ... out on his feet, so he obviously got a good workout. He says he'll try to get back on Friday when it's supposed to be another high intensity session. I've agreed with CE that I'll just do laps at a steady pace, just to elevate my heart rate and continue working. Poor Zico headed off before the warm down to go join her team for training but says she'll be back on Friday!

Fat Lad might be with me on the laps but CE thinks he's just got a slight tightening and maybe the muscles have trapped a nerve. So I might be working laps on my own, with certainly no speed work, for the next few weeks until it feels ok. A lowly 619 calories burned off, with an average heart rate of 70% and a new max of 100%. I'm really disappointed but I'll live.