Yey..... running 13.2 miles....what was I thinking. Like c'mon? You're a busty girl, keeping running like this you're going to be using those as a scarf for the winter of 2013, no need to worry about the rising cost of heating bills!
Torn (Que song in your head by Natalie Imbroglio)
Some of my future goals include running a half marathon (jeez!), setting up my hypnotherapy practice, writing a book on self esteem, getting back to my artistic roots and becoming a super heroine and saving the world, of course (doesn't everyone?).
Sometimes though, I am dogged by the rebel in me, who is hellbent of undoing all the good work I have done this last year. I am ashamed to admit that I have been partaking of the odd cigarette, especially when there is a glass of Prosecco to accompany it, the lascivious part of my nature taking full control, which is in complete opposition to the goals I really want. After all my study, there is a certain feeling of freedom and a willingness to go wild but I have to remind myself that I am no whippersnapper any more.
So enough now of the self indulgence and my wild side, a bit of self hypnosis to get myself right back on the righteous track I have less than three months to get half marathon fit. Expletive. Ooookaaaay. So goodbye to the bad old ways and hello new invigorated healthy me.
It is common to lapse on whatever course we take in life but it is just as important to admit to yourself that you are infallible, that you can fall down but what's most important is being able to pick yourself back up, and get right back on that proverbial horse.
So now I have a training plan, I have had many, but this was devised with my running partner, this very evening, helping each other along. Giving up boozy nights before a big run and getting ourselves into a good running form. So the half marathon running plan looks like this:
13/07 - 7 miles
16/07 - 6 miles
20/07 - 8 miles
25/07 - 6 miles
28/07 - 8 miles
31/07 - 6 miles
02/08 - 9 miles
07/08 - 6 miles
10/08 - 9 miles
14/08 - 6 miles
17/08 - 10 miles
21/08 - 6 miles
25/08 - 10 miles
28/08 - 6 miles
31/08 - 11 miles
04/09 - 6 miles
07/09 - 11 miles
11/09 - 5 miles
14/09 - 12 miles
15/09 - 5 miles
21/09 - 12 miles
28/09 - 6 miles
Two reasonable runs a week. I'm considering hiring a personal trainer for more exercise to work on building core strength, glutes and anything else that could do with some work (most of it I'm sure). And I may even learn how to use that blasted Garmin watch. Time to quit talking about it and bloody well get on with it.
And for those of you that don't know Torn, here it is, but a more entertaining version.
Torn - Mimed
Monday, 8 July 2013
Thursday, 13 June 2013
Horror Film extra and an Impromptu Shower
The Great British Weather
As anyone who lives in, or has visited the UK, one thing they will know for sure is the changeability of the weather. It can change on a sixpence: flip flops, linen trousers and vest tops for the am, sou'wester, Wellingtons and jumpers for the afternoon. Wednesday wasn't quite so changeable, it was generally dull, overcast and wet....all day. Which after the glorious sunshine we'd had over the weekend didn't do much to lighten ones mood.
And so, after agreeing the previous week to run the Copythorne 10k Fun Run (now there's an oxymoron if ever I heard one) after work the thought of doing it did not fill me with any joy at all. Traffic was horrendous, everyone was in their car to avoid the rain and was crawling the 20 miles to the venue. Team that with torrential rain and my first 10k since Marwell. My cup was overflowing with joy. Think Grumpy Cat and you have a good depiction of my anticipation. Thoughts of a cancelled run were running rife through my mind (no pun intended) but alas it wasn't to be.
The Copythorne 10k Start
So there I was on a damp June evening, hanging about in a field with my running chum, whom I have to say has longer legs than me and is much faster than me, contemplating whether we could actually duck out at 5k? Hmmm, now there's an idea.
It was a fun run, the atmosphere was excited, the field was muddy, the rain was still going for it and we discussed what time we wanted to make. I'm always slightly apprehensive that I'll hold someone back and slow them down and stop them getting their own PB. I wanted to knock 1 minute 30 seconds of my best 10k, and then we discussed it a bit more and decided that why not go for it and knock off 6 and half minutes of my PB? Yeah, why not, piece of cake....surely. I laughed at myself and my foolhardiness at such an extravagant aim. But in for a penny, in for a pound as they say.
And Then We Were Off
After some poor lad had been publicly humiliated for wearing some kind of Mankini affair to run in (there were more shorts to this version) the air horn blasted and we were off, I would say like a bullet from a gun but that would be a blatant lie. Round the field, avoiding the big mud hole and out onto the road, with 10k before us. My running buddy keeping track of our time against our laps all the way round.
She encouraged and pushed (not literally), and cajoled me all the way round. I pushed myself harder than I've done before, and I panted, and ran and never stopped. My breathing was laboured, fitting for a part in a horror film extra either as pursuer or pursued.
The race was two laps of 5k, so once you'd done one lap, you knew exactly what was coming and on our first lap I'd already smashed my parkrun PB. Holy cow. And I still had to do it all again <add expletives here>. That mental internal battle was raging,' it doesn't matter if you don't make it', 'it doesn't matter if you walk some of it', against, 'just relax', 'lengthen your stride and consider this the most relaxing exercise in the world', 'striding along without a care in the world#.
The Copythorne residents were amazing. In the rubbish weather they were in their drives cheering us on and handing out water, a wonderful sense of community. When I'm running and trying to drink water from a cup, it's basically like throwing it my face and hoping some lands in my mouth. Luckily with all the rain it didn't show my poor aim.
The Last Stretch
Up the last hill and round the corner and we would be there. My running bud still encouraging me, telling me a woman behind was gaining on us and we weren't going to be overtaken by her. I was pulling everything out of the bag that I had. My lungs felt like they were going to turn inside out, my legs felt like they'd gained two stone in weight each and then the finish line was in site. My running chum, grabbed my hand and we ran as fast as we could to the finish line. And we got our time.
I had smashed my PB by 7 minutes and 29 seconds. I'm sorry, by how much. I was ever so slightly gobsmacked, and ecstatic, amazed, surprised, proud, happy...
And in my exhaustion and happiness and surprise put my arms up to hold on to the roof of the small gazebo. Enter... the even wetter T-Shirt competition. An evenings water cascaded down giving me an even bigger impromptu shower than I had been expecting!
My running antics still surprise me, I still don't really feel like a 'runner' and yet my body and mind still surprise me with their amazing capabilities to overcome some limiting beliefs.
A huge thanks to Emma O'Brien who, without her I wouldn't have achieved such a huge PB. There were no medals or T-Shirts for this 10k but my smile is medal enough.
As anyone who lives in, or has visited the UK, one thing they will know for sure is the changeability of the weather. It can change on a sixpence: flip flops, linen trousers and vest tops for the am, sou'wester, Wellingtons and jumpers for the afternoon. Wednesday wasn't quite so changeable, it was generally dull, overcast and wet....all day. Which after the glorious sunshine we'd had over the weekend didn't do much to lighten ones mood.
And so, after agreeing the previous week to run the Copythorne 10k Fun Run (now there's an oxymoron if ever I heard one) after work the thought of doing it did not fill me with any joy at all. Traffic was horrendous, everyone was in their car to avoid the rain and was crawling the 20 miles to the venue. Team that with torrential rain and my first 10k since Marwell. My cup was overflowing with joy. Think Grumpy Cat and you have a good depiction of my anticipation. Thoughts of a cancelled run were running rife through my mind (no pun intended) but alas it wasn't to be.
The Copythorne 10k Start
So there I was on a damp June evening, hanging about in a field with my running chum, whom I have to say has longer legs than me and is much faster than me, contemplating whether we could actually duck out at 5k? Hmmm, now there's an idea.
It was a fun run, the atmosphere was excited, the field was muddy, the rain was still going for it and we discussed what time we wanted to make. I'm always slightly apprehensive that I'll hold someone back and slow them down and stop them getting their own PB. I wanted to knock 1 minute 30 seconds of my best 10k, and then we discussed it a bit more and decided that why not go for it and knock off 6 and half minutes of my PB? Yeah, why not, piece of cake....surely. I laughed at myself and my foolhardiness at such an extravagant aim. But in for a penny, in for a pound as they say.
And Then We Were Off
After some poor lad had been publicly humiliated for wearing some kind of Mankini affair to run in (there were more shorts to this version) the air horn blasted and we were off, I would say like a bullet from a gun but that would be a blatant lie. Round the field, avoiding the big mud hole and out onto the road, with 10k before us. My running buddy keeping track of our time against our laps all the way round.
She encouraged and pushed (not literally), and cajoled me all the way round. I pushed myself harder than I've done before, and I panted, and ran and never stopped. My breathing was laboured, fitting for a part in a horror film extra either as pursuer or pursued.
The race was two laps of 5k, so once you'd done one lap, you knew exactly what was coming and on our first lap I'd already smashed my parkrun PB. Holy cow. And I still had to do it all again <add expletives here>. That mental internal battle was raging,' it doesn't matter if you don't make it', 'it doesn't matter if you walk some of it', against, 'just relax', 'lengthen your stride and consider this the most relaxing exercise in the world', 'striding along without a care in the world#.
The Copythorne residents were amazing. In the rubbish weather they were in their drives cheering us on and handing out water, a wonderful sense of community. When I'm running and trying to drink water from a cup, it's basically like throwing it my face and hoping some lands in my mouth. Luckily with all the rain it didn't show my poor aim.
The Last Stretch
Up the last hill and round the corner and we would be there. My running bud still encouraging me, telling me a woman behind was gaining on us and we weren't going to be overtaken by her. I was pulling everything out of the bag that I had. My lungs felt like they were going to turn inside out, my legs felt like they'd gained two stone in weight each and then the finish line was in site. My running chum, grabbed my hand and we ran as fast as we could to the finish line. And we got our time.
I had smashed my PB by 7 minutes and 29 seconds. I'm sorry, by how much. I was ever so slightly gobsmacked, and ecstatic, amazed, surprised, proud, happy...
And in my exhaustion and happiness and surprise put my arms up to hold on to the roof of the small gazebo. Enter... the even wetter T-Shirt competition. An evenings water cascaded down giving me an even bigger impromptu shower than I had been expecting!
My running antics still surprise me, I still don't really feel like a 'runner' and yet my body and mind still surprise me with their amazing capabilities to overcome some limiting beliefs.
A huge thanks to Emma O'Brien who, without her I wouldn't have achieved such a huge PB. There were no medals or T-Shirts for this 10k but my smile is medal enough.
Sunday, 9 June 2013
My Running Mojo was like a Shadow
It's been well over a month since my last post. Naughty me.
I have been running.... although, not as much. The running took a bit of a back seat as studying became my priority to achieve a qualification as a Clinical Hypnotherapist. And here I am in a rather cheesey shot, holding my certificate with Adam Eason (the chap who runs the school!).
So now, there's no excuse not to ramp up my running in preparation for the13.2 miles hurtling toward me on October 6th. But I haven't been completely ensconced in my study with the lamp light burning until the early hours studying, there have been a few notably races.
Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My
My running mojo made a vigorous reappearance with the sunshine. And so a little jaunt with the ladies on a hot Thursday evening saw what was going to be a 9k meander around the countryside turn into an 11k trek. Through the countryside, round lakes, past horses being broken in, cute dogs being walked, being overtaken by faster runners, being bitten to buggery, getting lost in the woods was all part of that evenings entertainment.
Soon after this was the Marwell 10k. The infamous Marwell 10k. You start in the zoo and you finish in the zoo and in-between are lots of hills for about the first 5k. It was warm, the hills were long and hard but before you know it you can here the announcers as runners make it through the finish line. When you can hear that sound it's a pretty good incentive to pick up your pace and get a shufty on. Unfortunately the lions, tigers and bears were all safe in their enclosures otherwise I would surely have got a PB by quite some margin. I'd have to make do with another medal instead.
10k and some New Forest Ponies
This was shortly followed by 10k run with a friend in the New Forest. This was a beautiful run, through some beautiful scenery and even a baby Shetland pony. Baby Shetland ponies are cute as! This was a tough run for me as a migraine hit half way round, which means that my vision goes somewhat, lots of flashing lights like running through a disco. Luckily for me though I was able to run through it, and avoided the nausea and skull crushing headaches that usually accompany the disco effect.
And Then the Trainers Got Dusty
My running mojo had basically done one. Skulked off, was hiding, my running mojo felt like a shadow. Very close to me, never quite connecting and just whispering quietly in my ear, 'just go for a little run', 'set the alarm early, go before work', 'I miss you, you know you'll feel better if you run'. And so the voice went on, quietly, not berating, just there.
Studying had to come first and as I got more and more desk bound, running became less and less attractive, even though I knew it would lift my mood and improve my day. The thought of running then became a feeling of guilt, filled with lots of 'shoulds', 'coulds' and 'musts', but no action.
Two weeks and no foot pounding action to be seen. Until today. Today I just had to run. Not running, leaves me feeling down, and then I find myself in a cycle of feeling bad, not wanting to go running, and knowing that it will make me feel better. So this morning I just ran. I had no route planned I just had to get out and run and run. Running first thing (well 9 ish) is wonderful, it's quiet, it's cool and there's hardly any traffic on the roads. The common is beautiful, dappled sun through the trees, a few people walking their dogs, a few runners and a sense of inordinate calm.
I ran just over four miles this morning and it feels good to be back out there, still not fully connected to my running shadow, but hopefully soon it will be reattached permanently just like Peter Pan and his.
So now, there's no excuse not to ramp up my running in preparation for the13.2 miles hurtling toward me on October 6th. But I haven't been completely ensconced in my study with the lamp light burning until the early hours studying, there have been a few notably races.
Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My
My running mojo made a vigorous reappearance with the sunshine. And so a little jaunt with the ladies on a hot Thursday evening saw what was going to be a 9k meander around the countryside turn into an 11k trek. Through the countryside, round lakes, past horses being broken in, cute dogs being walked, being overtaken by faster runners, being bitten to buggery, getting lost in the woods was all part of that evenings entertainment.
Soon after this was the Marwell 10k. The infamous Marwell 10k. You start in the zoo and you finish in the zoo and in-between are lots of hills for about the first 5k. It was warm, the hills were long and hard but before you know it you can here the announcers as runners make it through the finish line. When you can hear that sound it's a pretty good incentive to pick up your pace and get a shufty on. Unfortunately the lions, tigers and bears were all safe in their enclosures otherwise I would surely have got a PB by quite some margin. I'd have to make do with another medal instead.
10k and some New Forest Ponies
This was shortly followed by 10k run with a friend in the New Forest. This was a beautiful run, through some beautiful scenery and even a baby Shetland pony. Baby Shetland ponies are cute as! This was a tough run for me as a migraine hit half way round, which means that my vision goes somewhat, lots of flashing lights like running through a disco. Luckily for me though I was able to run through it, and avoided the nausea and skull crushing headaches that usually accompany the disco effect.
And Then the Trainers Got Dusty
My running mojo had basically done one. Skulked off, was hiding, my running mojo felt like a shadow. Very close to me, never quite connecting and just whispering quietly in my ear, 'just go for a little run', 'set the alarm early, go before work', 'I miss you, you know you'll feel better if you run'. And so the voice went on, quietly, not berating, just there.
Studying had to come first and as I got more and more desk bound, running became less and less attractive, even though I knew it would lift my mood and improve my day. The thought of running then became a feeling of guilt, filled with lots of 'shoulds', 'coulds' and 'musts', but no action.
Two weeks and no foot pounding action to be seen. Until today. Today I just had to run. Not running, leaves me feeling down, and then I find myself in a cycle of feeling bad, not wanting to go running, and knowing that it will make me feel better. So this morning I just ran. I had no route planned I just had to get out and run and run. Running first thing (well 9 ish) is wonderful, it's quiet, it's cool and there's hardly any traffic on the roads. The common is beautiful, dappled sun through the trees, a few people walking their dogs, a few runners and a sense of inordinate calm.
I ran just over four miles this morning and it feels good to be back out there, still not fully connected to my running shadow, but hopefully soon it will be reattached permanently just like Peter Pan and his.
Thursday, 25 April 2013
Has anyone seen my running mojo
The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
Well my version anyway, wind, rain, dark and cold. Oh my God (or should I just say OMG?) I was getting sick and tired of the cold, the wind, or the driving rain, or just feeling constantly in the dark, almost to the point where I just didn't want to run anymore. Was this a nuclear Winter? Its felt endless, it had gone on for far, far too long in my book. I wanted to feel the sun on my face, feel a warm glow before I'd run 3k.
I was fed up of getting in from running, sitting in the bath for an hour to warm my body from ice sculpture back to human. Dressing in as many layers as possible to keep warm and going to bed early with the electric blanket on temperature setting 'Lava'.
My first Wednesday night training session with the Lordshill Road Runners Club was in the driving rain and cold, doing hill training. I can tell you for a fact there is no need to pay for expensive micro dermabrasion, some good old British driving rain will do the job for you just fine.
The Unidentified Object in the Sky
And there it was. It shyly started to poke it's head through the clouds and bless us with it's warmth. The sun was finally making an appearance, and boy did it feel good. The flouro yellow running gloves, the orange beany hat all now relegated the cupboard under the stairs Harry Potter style. At last running would become a more pleasurable experience and not a battle of wills against hypothermia.
A Social Life
So with the wind, rain, cold and dark taking its toll on my running prowess so too has my social life. The last few months have been hectic. And I no longer have a large capacity for alcohol it seems. With my studies, running and various other projects on the go herbal tea has taken preference as my drink of choice. So much so that a couple of large glasses of red can render me sofa bound for a morning trying to recover. And so the social life has taken it's toll on the Saturday morning 'parkrun', as the slightly jaded, unwell feeling made the bed seem decidedly more inviting than a pair of trainers and fresh air for 5k round the common.
But the crazy social life is starting to calm down and I'll be finalising my studies, starting new projects and upping the running to get half marathon fit, and who knows maybe the London Marathon next year?
So goodbye to the horsemen, hello Summertime, hello mojo.
The Boston Marathon
I feel saddened that any human being wants to maim and kill others. I hope that this act of violence will not deter any runners from running in large races. I'm sure it won't, I'm not a professional but if anything I want to run more, raise more money for charity and take part in these wonderful team events. My condolences to all those who were affected, I do hope this never happens again. x
Well my version anyway, wind, rain, dark and cold. Oh my God (or should I just say OMG?) I was getting sick and tired of the cold, the wind, or the driving rain, or just feeling constantly in the dark, almost to the point where I just didn't want to run anymore. Was this a nuclear Winter? Its felt endless, it had gone on for far, far too long in my book. I wanted to feel the sun on my face, feel a warm glow before I'd run 3k.
I was fed up of getting in from running, sitting in the bath for an hour to warm my body from ice sculpture back to human. Dressing in as many layers as possible to keep warm and going to bed early with the electric blanket on temperature setting 'Lava'.
My first Wednesday night training session with the Lordshill Road Runners Club was in the driving rain and cold, doing hill training. I can tell you for a fact there is no need to pay for expensive micro dermabrasion, some good old British driving rain will do the job for you just fine.
The Unidentified Object in the Sky
And there it was. It shyly started to poke it's head through the clouds and bless us with it's warmth. The sun was finally making an appearance, and boy did it feel good. The flouro yellow running gloves, the orange beany hat all now relegated the cupboard under the stairs Harry Potter style. At last running would become a more pleasurable experience and not a battle of wills against hypothermia.
A Social Life
So with the wind, rain, cold and dark taking its toll on my running prowess so too has my social life. The last few months have been hectic. And I no longer have a large capacity for alcohol it seems. With my studies, running and various other projects on the go herbal tea has taken preference as my drink of choice. So much so that a couple of large glasses of red can render me sofa bound for a morning trying to recover. And so the social life has taken it's toll on the Saturday morning 'parkrun', as the slightly jaded, unwell feeling made the bed seem decidedly more inviting than a pair of trainers and fresh air for 5k round the common.
But the crazy social life is starting to calm down and I'll be finalising my studies, starting new projects and upping the running to get half marathon fit, and who knows maybe the London Marathon next year?
So goodbye to the horsemen, hello Summertime, hello mojo.
The Boston Marathon
I feel saddened that any human being wants to maim and kill others. I hope that this act of violence will not deter any runners from running in large races. I'm sure it won't, I'm not a professional but if anything I want to run more, raise more money for charity and take part in these wonderful team events. My condolences to all those who were affected, I do hope this never happens again. x
Sunday, 24 March 2013
Eastleigh 10K
Roger's Profanisauras
Now that's something I might have swallowed and regurgitated this morning at about 9.30, only manners kept my mouth closed. It's Spring right? It should be all chicks, bunnies and daffodils, shouldn't it? For goodness sake, what's with all the white stuff, what's with the minus temperatures. Where's this Global Warming I keep hearing about (I do know that the Gulf Stream could make it colder for us in old Blighty). And so, donned in Lycra leggings, trainers that have seen far too many miles, an orange beany, fluorescent gloves and a rather fetching fluorescent T-Shirt (thank you B&Q) and the 'now' obligatory bright red lipstick (the red lipstick seemed like a fun thing to do for the Santa Run, and now I think it's fun for any race I do and will drag as many of my chums along to do the same with all other races) I was outside. And that ensemble is not enough clothes to wear on a morning like this morning. And so I managed to refrain from spouting from Roger's Profanisauras as the excitement at the beginning of the race took over and I jumped excitedly in an effort to keep warm and warm up some muscles that were shortly going to get a beating.
In a strange way, just in my mind, 6.4 miles sounds longer than 10k. I'm not sure why, it may because breaking the race down into little chunks of 1k at a time make it easier to get round, and also to see how far you're going tots up quickly (well, I say quickly!).
And soon the gun went off, the elite runners shot off (in case you were unsure, I wasn't at the front with the elite runners) and eventually I crossed the line where the first chip reading was taken and off the crowd went. I was running on my own, which I'm perfectly comfortable with and was able to give myself some positive chat as I went round. Remind myself to relax, go with the flow like the sound of train meandering across the country side, lengthen my stride and enjoy myself.
There was The HILL which, after training with the Lordshill Road Runners last Monday was fine, I worked my arms and tried to push myself up a little faster and after the hill it was downhill and flat all the way. All the way around the route each k was marked and in no time at all I was over half way round and then mentally I'd already won.
My legs thought differently however. Their desire was to curl up with a good Sunday afternoon movie at about 5k was quite strong. The only difficulty being that there's no going back at this point, the sofa, a movie and a hot cup of tea were just mere pipe dreams at this point.
But round I continued, and then before I knew it the end was in sight and it was like a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. And I completed it, my legs didn't fall off, I didn't throw my toys out of the pram, I didn't cry, I just ran and ran and ran, until I reached the finish. I did it in 1:15:44 and now I have something to beat for the next race and I can't wait.
For this afternoon though, I will engage with my sofa, a nice glass of red, a good movie and enjoy the endorphins that feel like a giant warm hug.
A big thank you to my running buddies who are always an inspiration and motivator. And a massive thanks to the Marshall's who must have been colder than liquid nitrogen.
Now that's something I might have swallowed and regurgitated this morning at about 9.30, only manners kept my mouth closed. It's Spring right? It should be all chicks, bunnies and daffodils, shouldn't it? For goodness sake, what's with all the white stuff, what's with the minus temperatures. Where's this Global Warming I keep hearing about (I do know that the Gulf Stream could make it colder for us in old Blighty). And so, donned in Lycra leggings, trainers that have seen far too many miles, an orange beany, fluorescent gloves and a rather fetching fluorescent T-Shirt (thank you B&Q) and the 'now' obligatory bright red lipstick (the red lipstick seemed like a fun thing to do for the Santa Run, and now I think it's fun for any race I do and will drag as many of my chums along to do the same with all other races) I was outside. And that ensemble is not enough clothes to wear on a morning like this morning. And so I managed to refrain from spouting from Roger's Profanisauras as the excitement at the beginning of the race took over and I jumped excitedly in an effort to keep warm and warm up some muscles that were shortly going to get a beating.In a strange way, just in my mind, 6.4 miles sounds longer than 10k. I'm not sure why, it may because breaking the race down into little chunks of 1k at a time make it easier to get round, and also to see how far you're going tots up quickly (well, I say quickly!).
And soon the gun went off, the elite runners shot off (in case you were unsure, I wasn't at the front with the elite runners) and eventually I crossed the line where the first chip reading was taken and off the crowd went. I was running on my own, which I'm perfectly comfortable with and was able to give myself some positive chat as I went round. Remind myself to relax, go with the flow like the sound of train meandering across the country side, lengthen my stride and enjoy myself.
There was The HILL which, after training with the Lordshill Road Runners last Monday was fine, I worked my arms and tried to push myself up a little faster and after the hill it was downhill and flat all the way. All the way around the route each k was marked and in no time at all I was over half way round and then mentally I'd already won.
My legs thought differently however. Their desire was to curl up with a good Sunday afternoon movie at about 5k was quite strong. The only difficulty being that there's no going back at this point, the sofa, a movie and a hot cup of tea were just mere pipe dreams at this point.
But round I continued, and then before I knew it the end was in sight and it was like a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. And I completed it, my legs didn't fall off, I didn't throw my toys out of the pram, I didn't cry, I just ran and ran and ran, until I reached the finish. I did it in 1:15:44 and now I have something to beat for the next race and I can't wait.
For this afternoon though, I will engage with my sofa, a nice glass of red, a good movie and enjoy the endorphins that feel like a giant warm hug.
A big thank you to my running buddies who are always an inspiration and motivator. And a massive thanks to the Marshall's who must have been colder than liquid nitrogen.
Wednesday, 20 March 2013
They say, every second counts . . . really?
Who are 'they'? Mystical people who lurk quietly in the background and invent stuff that is universally accepted by many. So every second counts. Does it? Counts towards what? Does every second asleep count towards less wrinkles? You'd never get a woman out of bed if that was the case. Do seconds actually count?
Hell yeah!
If you're a runner, every second definitely counts, do doubt about it, no forgotten seconds when you're a runner.
My first Southampton parkrun since the beginning of December 2012 on was 9th March. Ouch, that's a fair amount of lie- ins on a Saturday when my pj's should have been swapped for my running gear. And the joy of 'Route B' for my first parkrun in ages (large groan and look of trepidation). Any parkrunners of Southampton common will know that Route B consists of the killer hill, twice, with a mini hill at the beginning. Oh my lordy how on earth was I going to manage this. Well, it appears bullying, and sheer determination work quite well.
My goal is to run 5k in 30 mins, well to start with, I may amend that time and make it shorter the faster I get, but at the moment my goal is 30 minutes with my fastest time coming in at 36 something so metaphorically speaking I have some ground to cover.
My neighbour is another crazy fool who runs, and is considerably faster than me and we were going to parkrun together on this particular Saturday (yippee?). And luckily for me, she is also very good at bullying friends, crazies, other runners and now it was my turn. Gulp, there was no escaping now and it's not as though I could outrun her. The whistle went and off we set, hill no. 1, completed, only another 2 to go. And around the route we went, encouraging words all the way round. My conversation limited now as I panted at an increased pace round the 5k route, sounding like an extra for a horror movie. I'm sure I was responsible for others getting a PB as those ahead of me were running for their lives rather than planning a new PB!
On the last leg, my faster neighbour jetted off to the finish. She was the good cop, then I was left with bad cop. And she pushed me (not literally of course), and pushed, 'stretch those legs', 'just a bit faster', 'nearly there', 'keep on going, one last push', 'you can swear at me when you finish'. If I could have, I would have sworn at her there and then all the way to the finish.
The end is surely nigh
As I crossed the finish line egged on by parkrunners, I thought my lungs were going to turn inside out, but there was a knowing grin stopping 'The Fly' moment from happening. I knew I'd a new personal best, I just didn't know by how much. And in the words of the Money Supermarket advert I felt 'Epic'.
I waited with excitement and trepidation for my results and when they came through, my smile could have split my face. I had a new personal best, not just 2 or 3 seconds, not even 10. I smashed my PB by 33 seconds, and every one of those 33 seconds made my weekend.
A light bulb moment
It was an eye opening day for me, that demonstrated how easy it is to get complacent about my ability to achieve more than I thought I could. I'd labelled myself as a slow runner and to a lot of runners I'm sure that my times are slow but it's a huge mental block that I've overcome. And now I'm a faster runner and there's no turning back and no stopping me. Bring on my 2hr half marathon in October.
Losing lbs
Incorporating a new healthy eating plan is also contributing to my belief and ability to reach my desired goal, and as the lbs fall away, the speed increases, and so my life continues on a positive merry go round. I would not have believed a year ago how much running would enhance my life, so much more than I ever believed possible.
This Saturday I'll see if I can knock a few more seconds from my time.
And if I could only work out how to use my Garmin watch I may be able to be my own bully, to push myself a little harder and make some more of those little seconds count.
Hell yeah!
If you're a runner, every second definitely counts, do doubt about it, no forgotten seconds when you're a runner.
My first Southampton parkrun since the beginning of December 2012 on was 9th March. Ouch, that's a fair amount of lie- ins on a Saturday when my pj's should have been swapped for my running gear. And the joy of 'Route B' for my first parkrun in ages (large groan and look of trepidation). Any parkrunners of Southampton common will know that Route B consists of the killer hill, twice, with a mini hill at the beginning. Oh my lordy how on earth was I going to manage this. Well, it appears bullying, and sheer determination work quite well.
My goal is to run 5k in 30 mins, well to start with, I may amend that time and make it shorter the faster I get, but at the moment my goal is 30 minutes with my fastest time coming in at 36 something so metaphorically speaking I have some ground to cover.
My neighbour is another crazy fool who runs, and is considerably faster than me and we were going to parkrun together on this particular Saturday (yippee?). And luckily for me, she is also very good at bullying friends, crazies, other runners and now it was my turn. Gulp, there was no escaping now and it's not as though I could outrun her. The whistle went and off we set, hill no. 1, completed, only another 2 to go. And around the route we went, encouraging words all the way round. My conversation limited now as I panted at an increased pace round the 5k route, sounding like an extra for a horror movie. I'm sure I was responsible for others getting a PB as those ahead of me were running for their lives rather than planning a new PB!
On the last leg, my faster neighbour jetted off to the finish. She was the good cop, then I was left with bad cop. And she pushed me (not literally of course), and pushed, 'stretch those legs', 'just a bit faster', 'nearly there', 'keep on going, one last push', 'you can swear at me when you finish'. If I could have, I would have sworn at her there and then all the way to the finish.
The end is surely nigh
As I crossed the finish line egged on by parkrunners, I thought my lungs were going to turn inside out, but there was a knowing grin stopping 'The Fly' moment from happening. I knew I'd a new personal best, I just didn't know by how much. And in the words of the Money Supermarket advert I felt 'Epic'.
I waited with excitement and trepidation for my results and when they came through, my smile could have split my face. I had a new personal best, not just 2 or 3 seconds, not even 10. I smashed my PB by 33 seconds, and every one of those 33 seconds made my weekend.
A light bulb moment
It was an eye opening day for me, that demonstrated how easy it is to get complacent about my ability to achieve more than I thought I could. I'd labelled myself as a slow runner and to a lot of runners I'm sure that my times are slow but it's a huge mental block that I've overcome. And now I'm a faster runner and there's no turning back and no stopping me. Bring on my 2hr half marathon in October.
Losing lbs
Incorporating a new healthy eating plan is also contributing to my belief and ability to reach my desired goal, and as the lbs fall away, the speed increases, and so my life continues on a positive merry go round. I would not have believed a year ago how much running would enhance my life, so much more than I ever believed possible.
This Saturday I'll see if I can knock a few more seconds from my time.
And if I could only work out how to use my Garmin watch I may be able to be my own bully, to push myself a little harder and make some more of those little seconds count.
Thursday, 7 March 2013
Give me a cocktail of drugs . . . NOW!
Following my first long ish run a weekend or so ago, I followed it with a trip to the Lordshill Road Runners Club the very next day. My drive to keep on running even stronger now that I managed a 5.2k route, I just wanted to do more, to get back to where I was in October when I was doing practise runs of 8 miles.
Of course I didn't expect to sprint off like Jessica Ennes but, to be out in the brass monkeys weather with a still slightly twingy knee is kinda liberating. Inside my head I'm strutting like the Fonz, well chuffed with myself, out in the freezing cold, ard as nails. Imagination is a wonderful thing, but then delusion can be as well. It was tough, it was cold, my knee complained a couple of times, but I had a word with it, was a little more gentle and finished the evening without a limp. So I was pleased, at last, pounding my stress out through my feet.
A crazily manic week ensued and my next run didn't happen until the Sunday by which time I was feeling a little stir crazy, a little twitchy, eager to don my glamorous running outfit. Sunday morning arrived, outfit donned and I planned my route, all 7.19k of it, around the houses and common and off I set. I ran all the way, no stopping, no walking, all the way home. And I felt amazing when I got back, that cocktail of drugs: epinephrine, serotonin and dopamine (so Wikipedia will have me believe) and it's a wonderful feeling. Like you're having the best day you could ever have but just a little knackered, knowing that I could still do it and I wasn't going back to my pre-running self, knowing that I wouldn't give into the sofa and allow it to meld around me and suck me down. And I have to wonder, why on earth didn't I get this years ago? Why didn't I twig in my 20's how great exercise can be, why is partying hard, so much more attractive in your 20's . I bet natural drugs are far better than any processed drugs?
But the drugs are paying off
It seems that this healthy 'ish' lifestyle is paying off. A quick visit to the GP for those female checks that you have to have from time to time include a blood pressure check, your weight as well as the god awful lolly pop stick test. Yeuch. Anyway back to the blood pressure. It appears I have the blood pressure of a teenager. Picture smug Fonz strut. Yep, the blood pressure of a teenager, I've no idea what that actually means, but I'm presuming it's good and it's the closest I'm going to get to feeling like a teenager! The other part of the check-up is the dreaded scales and the scales declared that I had the weight of someone who likes to eat cake, cook good food and go out to dinner. Bugger, I knew there was a reason that I didn't replace the battery in my scales. Unfortunately I cannot un-know what I know and now I have to do something about that too. Add expletive of your choice.
Mothering Sunday
This weekend will see a visit back to Southampton parkrun, somewhere I haven't ventured this year. I will be laying out my running garments on the floor next to my bed, ready to slide into first thing, to ensure that I get my arse running 5.2k. With my drug cocktail flowing round my bloodstream I will then get myself up to my lovely Mothers and Step Dads for some family get together time this weekend. And this is where I'll enlist the help of Mum to take some crucial measurements so that I can no longer hide from the truth.
Hypnosis for Running by Adam Eason
While reading this book I realised that I was lacking in goals. Yes I was running, yes I was eating healthy food the majority of the time, yes my wine consumption had dwindled to a glass or two a week and yes I was still off the fags. But I didn't have any goals. And so I've got a couple of good SMART goals now. To reduce my weight by 18lbs and to run 5k in 30mins. As yet I haven't planned the end date or how exactly I'm going to do it or over how long. But I will post on here how I'm doing, and what my plan is. I may not put my weight or measurements but I will post my losses.
There, I've done it now. Committed myself to blog, and it's a little scary but as the teenagers say YOLO!
Now where's that Justin Beiber CD . . . .
Of course I didn't expect to sprint off like Jessica Ennes but, to be out in the brass monkeys weather with a still slightly twingy knee is kinda liberating. Inside my head I'm strutting like the Fonz, well chuffed with myself, out in the freezing cold, ard as nails. Imagination is a wonderful thing, but then delusion can be as well. It was tough, it was cold, my knee complained a couple of times, but I had a word with it, was a little more gentle and finished the evening without a limp. So I was pleased, at last, pounding my stress out through my feet.
A crazily manic week ensued and my next run didn't happen until the Sunday by which time I was feeling a little stir crazy, a little twitchy, eager to don my glamorous running outfit. Sunday morning arrived, outfit donned and I planned my route, all 7.19k of it, around the houses and common and off I set. I ran all the way, no stopping, no walking, all the way home. And I felt amazing when I got back, that cocktail of drugs: epinephrine, serotonin and dopamine (so Wikipedia will have me believe) and it's a wonderful feeling. Like you're having the best day you could ever have but just a little knackered, knowing that I could still do it and I wasn't going back to my pre-running self, knowing that I wouldn't give into the sofa and allow it to meld around me and suck me down. And I have to wonder, why on earth didn't I get this years ago? Why didn't I twig in my 20's how great exercise can be, why is partying hard, so much more attractive in your 20's . I bet natural drugs are far better than any processed drugs?
But the drugs are paying off
It seems that this healthy 'ish' lifestyle is paying off. A quick visit to the GP for those female checks that you have to have from time to time include a blood pressure check, your weight as well as the god awful lolly pop stick test. Yeuch. Anyway back to the blood pressure. It appears I have the blood pressure of a teenager. Picture smug Fonz strut. Yep, the blood pressure of a teenager, I've no idea what that actually means, but I'm presuming it's good and it's the closest I'm going to get to feeling like a teenager! The other part of the check-up is the dreaded scales and the scales declared that I had the weight of someone who likes to eat cake, cook good food and go out to dinner. Bugger, I knew there was a reason that I didn't replace the battery in my scales. Unfortunately I cannot un-know what I know and now I have to do something about that too. Add expletive of your choice.
Mothering Sunday
This weekend will see a visit back to Southampton parkrun, somewhere I haven't ventured this year. I will be laying out my running garments on the floor next to my bed, ready to slide into first thing, to ensure that I get my arse running 5.2k. With my drug cocktail flowing round my bloodstream I will then get myself up to my lovely Mothers and Step Dads for some family get together time this weekend. And this is where I'll enlist the help of Mum to take some crucial measurements so that I can no longer hide from the truth.
Hypnosis for Running by Adam Eason
While reading this book I realised that I was lacking in goals. Yes I was running, yes I was eating healthy food the majority of the time, yes my wine consumption had dwindled to a glass or two a week and yes I was still off the fags. But I didn't have any goals. And so I've got a couple of good SMART goals now. To reduce my weight by 18lbs and to run 5k in 30mins. As yet I haven't planned the end date or how exactly I'm going to do it or over how long. But I will post on here how I'm doing, and what my plan is. I may not put my weight or measurements but I will post my losses.
There, I've done it now. Committed myself to blog, and it's a little scary but as the teenagers say YOLO!
Now where's that Justin Beiber CD . . . .
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