Race Report - Stonehenge Stomp

Well I completed the event and, more to the point, survived!  I also have a lovely certificate and embroidered badge to show for all my effort.  Really didn't know what to expect from the day so I went with an open mind and with the sole aim of finishing.  It did not start well.  Other Half was on a work's night out, came home rather drunk at 1.30am and then proceeded to snore his head off for the rest of the night.  Ended up sleeping in the spare room but that didn't help matters much as I could still hear him!  I remember looking at my watch, it was 3.30am which was not good when I was getting up at 7am.  However, despite the major lack of sleep I felt surprisingly chipper.  A nice bowl of mini shredded wheat and two cups of coffee and I felt I was ready to face my biggest challenge yet.  Off I set at 8.15am and eventually found Amesbury leisure centre where I caught up with the rest of the gang.  The weather was being quite kind, no rain thankfully but there was a rather strong wind.  Why is it when it's windy no matter in which direction I run the wind is always blowing at me?  Anyway, into the main hall to register to find out that the 40k route had been altered slightly due to a bad flood in one of the fields; this meant the run would be just short of 25 miles which was somewhat disappointing.  Back outside, rounded up the gang and, in my naivety, asked where the start was.  Now, I was expecting some sort of official start line, even just a bit of tape across the road or something but apparently nothing - you literally could start running from anywhere within the car park.  In fact, you didn't even need to run as the event was organised by the Long Distance Walker's Association and therefore runners were actually in the minority.  So off we set and, much to my surprise, the first 3 miles were run through a large housing estate, all on tarmac - not at all what I was expecting.  Mile 3 saw us come to the first check point stocked with juice, gummy bears and biscuits (this was to be repeated for the other 5 check points).  At this point I took the opportunity to remove my coat and buff as I was starting to get a bit warm.  What I didn't realise was that I accidentally turned off my GPS so that it stopped recording my run beyond this point for the next half mile or so which was a real bummer and it has come back to bite me on the bum as I shall tell you about later.  After mile 3 we headed off onto a farm track which was much more pleasant than tarmac but an awful lot harder going.  The majority of the run (I would say 75%) was either on farm tracks or fields.  The going was pretty horrible; basically two types of mud a) thick, gloopy and sticky so that it clung to every part of my shoe and made them unbelievably heavy or b) ankle deep soup that was as slippery as an ice rink.  With the going underfoot, the head wind and the undulating profile it made for one tough first event.  However, I really enjoyed myself and I am proud that I managed to finish with the majority of the distance actually run.

Lessons learned:

1.  I need to do more hill training as they really do sap your energy so I must practice in order to get fitter and stronger on them

2.  I need to look up and look at where I am going rather than down at my feet (see photo above for proof, my friend is staring firmly ahead whereas I seem to be looking for the meaning of life in my shoe laces or something).  The only niggle I had following the run was the back of my neck and shoulders being a bit sore and I'm sure that was caused by looking down all the time

3.  I can drink from a cup as long as I am standing still and not planning on bounding along any time soon after.  On all my previous races if I have tried drinking while running I have a) ended up wearing quite a lot of the liquid and b) felt really sick for at least the following mile

4  Whilst I normally wouldn't entertain eating a shop's own biscuit (McVities all the way for this classy bird) they taste bloody fantastic when it's all you are offered during a 25 mile run

5.  I need to run my own race.  It's great running in a group for the moral support however, because I am new to all this and they are far more experienced / faster than me, they end up going just that bit too fast for my personal comfort zone

6.  If I am going to run my own race then I need to become far more observant (see point 2 above).  Apparently it is perfectly acceptable to mark a route using one strip of coloured electrical tape around a given object (lamp post, fence post etc).  Who knew?

7.  I need to double check that I haven't accidentally turned off my GPS when taking my coat off.  I have made this error several times now so you think it was a lesson I had already learned however it is clearly taking some time to sink in.  My friend's GPS showed the run as 24.1 miles (so shy of the 25.4 miles we were expecting because of the detour) however mine was on 23.45.  My longest run I have previously recorded was 23.8 (a night run to recce part of another ultra race) so that means that although the Stonehenge Stomp was a longer run, it doesn't count due to the GPS not recording for half a mile or so.  'Tis a right bummer I tell you

8.  I remembered to take a change of clothes for driving home in (although I got away with only changing shoes / socks) however I didn't prepare anything to eat and I forgot to take any money with me so I couldn't treat myself to a bacon butty.  I could cheerfully have stabbed someone for a bacon butty after four and half hours of running

All in all though it was a really great experience and one I am pleased I completed.  It certainly hasn't put me off ultra marathons so I now have a few months to gear up for my first proper 'ultra marathon' of 35 miles in April.

Next race is The Terminator which, at only 12 miles, should be a walk in the park but apparently they like to shock and surprise their competitors (I have heard tell of knee-high bogs, wading chest deep in water and having to climb hills on hands and knees they are so steep).  

Run 2013 in 2013 .... Update One

Well today's post was going to be a race report about Stonehenge Stomp.  However, I started writing the post in my lunch break but then forgot to forward it to my home email so I now can't access it.  Doh.  Therefore, slight change of plan, tomorrow's post will be about Stonehenge Stomp and tonight I thought I would update on how I am getting on with my plan to run 2013 miles in 2013.

I am going to monitor my progress every four weeks rather than monthly so I have worked it out as follows:

 

2013 miles divided by 52 weeks times 4 weeks which, rounded to two decimal points as that is what my Garmin calculates to, means I have to run 154.85 miles every four weeks to meet my target.

 

Right, let's see how I am doing:

 

Target 1 (1st Jan - 28th Jan): 154.85

Actual Mileage: 158.91

Balance: +4.06

 

Woohoo, I am four miles up, how happy am I?!  Right, just got to keep it up for another 48 weeks and I'll be laughing all the way to 2014.

Rain, Rain Go Away .... And Don't Bother Coming Back. Ever.

So it's my 25 mile Stonehenge Stomp tomorrow and it's hissing it down outside as I type.  Great.  I did a 10k power-walk this morning to get my legs limbered up.  Went on the canal towpath, the ice is still grimly hanging on in places so I am glad I haven't attempted to run it at any point this week.  Anyway, did a lovely walk down and then back up the Caen Hill Locks, 6.22 miles at an average speed of 4.4 mph so I'm pretty pleased with that.  Wish me luck for tomorrow please, I will write up my experience as soon as I am physically able!

What Is The Best Thing Since Sliced Bread?

I have recently lost my way with my eating habits and, as a consequence and despite running around 40 miles per week, I have put weight on. I am disappointed in myself that I have let things slip after all my hard work of losing it in the first place. I don’t know how much I have put on – I don’t own a pair of scales – but I would say probably around a stone. My clothes still fit however the fit is a bit tighter than it was.

So what has caused the weight gain? It is definitely my two big weaknesses: portion control and bread. My portions have grown from the more controlled size during the weight loss phase and, as before, whilst we always eat freshly prepared food (the bonus of having a stay-at-home partner) too much of a good thing is still too much. 
 
And what of bread? This is my single biggest weakness by far. I can thumb my nose at chocolate, blow a raspberry at crisps, cock a snook at sweets but show me a freshly baked loaf and I start to slaver like a rabid dog. To me there is nothing nicer than a fresh roll, the more ‘exotic’ the better (okay, exotic is overstating a bit when my bread comes from Morrisons but you know what I mean).  Show me an onion & herb, sundried tomato or honey & pumpkin seed ciabatta and I am one very happy bunny. Of course buying bread from Morrisons is not helped by the fact that it’s 35p per roll or any four for £1; I am right in thinking it would be rude not to buy four rolls am I not? After all, I need to sample as many of the different flavours they produce (just for comparison purposes you understand).  So an average working day can have me eating four large rolls throughout the day and then either a baguette or several slices of bread with dinner.  What the hell is going on?  I have absolutely no idea why I crave bread so much.  I do love spreading it thickly with lovely, lovely Lurpak but I'm also more than happy eating it dry.  I just have this compulsion to eat bread.  I suppose it could be worse, I could be stuffing my face with crisps, chocolate and biscuits but eating four rolls and x amount of bread a day whilst maintaining my weight is not sustainable and my tighter trousers prove it.

So, back to basics and today is the first day of my 'regain the waist' plan.  I was intending on having no bread at all but lack of lunch products meant that I had to take a sandwich however my intake has reduced to two slices of granary bread for today and I am planning on having no bread over the weekend.  In fact, I am going to reduce my overall carbohydrate consumption over the next couple of weeks as I find that I definitely have more energy when I concentrate on proteins.

The plan is to go to a Slimming World weigh-in at the end of February where I hope to be back to my target weight.  Wish me luck.            

It's Snow Joke

Managed to do a road run this morning which was really rather nice although a bit on the cold side; I did think about doing a short off-roader but the towpath still looked frozen so decided not to risk it.  Did a very leisurely 4.5 miles just to stretch the legs before Sunday.  It was my last run of the week, normally I would run on a Saturday too but this week I am just going to go for a brisk walk.  I think the weather is meant to be nice on Saturday so I shall take my camera and see if I can get some half decent photos for you of one of my running routes.  Rommel came out with me this morning, not sure he really appreciated having to run on the lead but he hasn't been out for a run since Saturday so he was just about to start climbing the walls bless him.

I now just need to remain injury free until Sunday (and on Sunday too I guess).  Wish the weather forecast was a bit kinder as at the minute they are forecasting rain and gale force winds but I guess it is what it is ... I shall prevail (with any luck).

Bugger'it

Another dreadmill run this morning, the pavements and roads are getting better but there is still the odd patch of ice around and I don't see the point of risking injury when I have access to the gym.

My plan today was to better my time from yesterday for the 10k.  I set off much quicker, keeping a higher average pace and increasing the speed more regularly than yesterday.  Time checks showed:

4k = 22:28
8k = 43:43

And then at 9.6k when running at 12.2 kph disaster struck; I accidently knocked the emergency stop button and the treadmill, understandably, ground to a halt.  My heart sank, what an extraordinarily stupid thing to do.  If I'm honest, I'm surprised it's not happened before, I do have a naughty habit of running too close to the front of the machine and I often brush against the stop button with my right hand but I have been lucky so far that I've not activated it.  Unfortunately my luck run out today.  I am really gutted, as I was definitely on for a better time than yesterday and my plan was to increase by .1 of a kilometre for every .10 of a kilometre that I had left so was aiming to finish at 12.5 kph.  At least I have my two time checks and on that basis I am going to estimate that I would have completed in 54:43.  It is a hollow feeling though and means that in the next couple of weeks I am going to have to try again so that I get a proper time check. 

Tomorrow I will be doing a slow run and then taking Friday and Saturday off ready for my 25 miler on Sunday. 

The Treadmill of Dread

Due to the going underfoot, today I decided to do my run on the dreaded treadmill (or dreadmill for short).  I am fortunate that I have access to a free gym at work, it's no David Lloyd Leisure Centre but it does have a pretty good selection of cardio machines, weight machines and free weights.  So, six o'clock this morning found me scraping fresh snow off the car and heading off to work smug in the knowledge that I had raised two fingers to the elements.  The plan was to run 10k; after the first 2k I remembered why I hated treadmill running.  I know treadmills are all some people train on, never going out and dirtying their trainers on the public paths but honestly, is there anything more soul destroying than running on the spot for hours minutes on end?  The gym is pretty basic, there is no bank of television screens to take your mind off the unrelenting boredom and I had forgotten to charge my ipod so basically I ran on my own, in silence, for 58 minutes.  The only distraction was the cleaner coming in to the hoover the carpet.  My plan was to run at a speed of between 10.5 and 11.5 kph so I cranked it up to 10.5 kph to begin with and soon had to notch it down to 10.2 as it just seemed too fast.  I did put a 1% incline on as I have read that this helps to better replicate running outside and it also minimises stress on the knees.  After about 3k I started to get into the swing of it and around 5k I started adding a bit of speed getting it back up to 10.5 kph.  Thinking back I was actually running quite easily by this point so I wish I had pushed myself a bit harder.  Around 8k I increased it to 11 kph and then, throwing all caution to the wind, for the last half kilometre I cranked it up to 12 kph.  Again, looking back, from about 7k onwards (hard to tell when precisely as I had the screen covered up) I started to feel really strong and I should have pushed myself a bit more.  Anyway, I ended up doing 10k in 58:08 so not dreadful but could definitely have done better.

I shall probably do another gym session tomorrow as the snow doesn't look to be clearing up any time soon and I resolve to work a bit harder and finish in around 55 minutes or less.

Things I Have Learnt This Weekend

1. Running on ice is not a good idea:  Determined to run despite the weather conditions, I set off at 7.15am Saturday morning for a planned 12 miles.  It took me 16 minutes to run (and I use that term very loosely) the first mile but figured that once I had got on to the canal towpath that the going would be better; indeed it was.  So why, after less than half a mile, did I decide to leave the towpath?  Mmmm, why indeed?  Actually my reasoning was sound; because I knew it would be a slow run, I thought I would throw a few hills into the bargain to increase the effort.  A great idea I thought but I didn't take into account the terrain.  The first off-road section was sheet ice.  I just had time to think to myself "Bugger, it must be slippery, Rommel has just gone arse over elbow" before I followed him by flying backwards, legs straight up in the air and cracking the back of my head on the track.  Now, any sensible person by this point would have called it a day but I decided to plough on as I felt sure the going would start to get better the further into the countryside I got.  What I didn't fully take into account was that I was running on a byway and clearly lots of 4x4s had decided to make use of their right to drive the tracks which had compacted the snow and turned into ice.  The track did not get any better; I got to just under three miles and decided to call it a day.  Unfortunately, I was now just under three miles away from home.  I retraced my steps and I swear to God the route was getting worse by the minute as it seemed so much harder to go back.  After one more fall on the pavement, I got home having covered the grand total of 5.5 miles in 1 hour 34!

2. One man's rubbish is another man's gold:  Or words to that effect.  We have discovered that rather than struggling to the tip with items we no longer require, if we leave them outside the front of our property we can pretty much guarantee that they will be gone within a matter of hours.  Although we have left a myriad of items out there since moving in, we have yet to see who actually takes the items away.  For all I know it could be magical pixies; whoever it is though, it's bloody handy.  Just this week alone we have got rid of a set of drawers, a matching filing cabinet, two light fittings and a partridge in a pair tree (I may have made one of those up).

3. When decorating with children and animals in the house, no matter how careful you are and how many threats of dire consequences you make, it is only a matter of time before wet paint transfers itself from the wall onto said children / dog.

4. A £30 vacuum cleaner, no matter what rave reviews it has been given, is never going match a Dyson.  Our 7 year old Dyson decided to quit last week.  We have another new Dyson lined up which we need to go and collect but it's currently over 100 miles away so we decided to buy a cheapy cleaner to tide us over for now.  Well, it's not quite worse than useless but it's a pretty much the next best thing.  I ended up hoovering on my hands and knees and then finishing off with a dustpan and brush.

5. Do not assume:  As they say, it makes an ‘ass’ out of ‘u’ and ‘me’.  Well, as you know, the plan was to replace the carpet in the dining room with lino and to then replace the current lino in the kitchen and hallway so that it all matches and makes the ground floor of the house look more harmonious.  Now, you would think the fact that the floor in the dining room is about one inch higher than in the kitchen and hallway would perhaps have provided some clue that all may not go according to plan?  Yes, you would think that wouldn’t you?  Well, no, not a clue did it provide until Sunday night when I thought that maybe I ought to check what the flooring was like underneath the carpet.  The reason for the raised floor soon became apparent – the previous owners have laid the carpet over an existing tiled floor!  Unfortunately though, what they have done is created a half inch channel around the door thresholds so that they could tuck the carpet under the said thresholds to hold it in place.  This means that because the tiles do not go from wall to wall, it rules out laying a lino unless we a) remove all the tiles or b) backfill the channels and grouted areas to create a flat floor.  Quite honestly neither option actually appeals so we have decided to put down a new carpet instead (yes, yes, we know it’s the cheat’s way out).  The plan is to still minimise the number of floor coverings so we will replace the dining room and front room carpets and put down new lino in the kitchen and hallway.  For now we have left the carpet as is until we get round to sorting the front room out.

And so endeth today's lesson(s).

Is There Anybody There?

Apologies for the radio silence, but  we have been busy decorating the dining room all weekend and consequently the computer has been unplugged.  However, normal service has just about resumed, I have learnt much from this weekend and tomorrow I would like to share my learning with you all.  TTFN.

Days Off Are Dangerous On The Wallet

In keeping with one of my aims for 2013, namely decorate the downstairs of the house, yesterday we decided that the next room we are going to tackle is the dining room. I have been umming and ahhing between that room and the kitchen but as the dining room links to the only downstairs room that we have done so far - the conservatory - the dining room won.  Typically though, it's actually the more complicated (and consequently more expensive) of the two rooms.  The kitchen basically needs a new back door as the existing UPVC door is actually a front door (complete with post box) and a handle that won't open the door from the inside without turning the key as the lock is buggered.  But, apart from that, it only really needs decorating as the units, stove (8-range burner) and fridge / freezer are in really good condition.

The dining room however needs decorating, new curtains, new lighting and new flooring (not to mention new furniture).  The last owner, before he retired, was a carpet / lino fitter.  This means that the house does have some nice flooring but I'm guessing he must have got it all as end of lines as not one room downstairs actually matches.  The hallway is red and off-white chequered tiles, the front room a greenish carpet, the dining room a horrible, industrial brown monstrosity of a carpet, the kitchen a terracotta tile effect lino and a laminate floor in the conservatory.  It's a right bloody mish mash of colours and styles and consequently I think it makes the rooms look smaller.  So, out is going to go the brown carpet to be replaced with a hard-wearing lino.  However, this means I then need to replace the linos in the kitchen and the hallway so that they all match.  We are on a bit of a budget so it's trying to work out the best time to do it all.  I am worried that if I change the flooring in the dining room now, will whoever I get the flooring from still have the same style in stock potentially 10 months or so down the line when we come to redecorate the kitchen and hallway?  Actually, with the way things are going (RIP Jessops and HMV) are they likely to still be trading at the end of the year?!  But if I change it all now then it's going to eat into our limited funds by a huge amount as the rooms are a pretty good size (the dining room alone is over 20 square metres so it's not going to be cheap).  Decisions, decisions.

Anyway, let me explain why days off are dangerous on the wallet.  In the dining room at present we have a beech table (6 seater but seats up to 10 when extended), a small folding dining table that we had in our old house and a homemade computer desk / filing cabinet arrangement (left by the previous owner).  The dining table is the only thing that is staying; the small table will be replaced by a solid oak cabinet and the computer desk by a matching solid oak desk.  Yesterday (a day off from work) we went shopping for aforementioned desk and cabinet.  We visited a clearance furniture warehouse that sells customer returns. They primarily sell oak furniture and, although some items may have some damage or been repaired, most of the stock is in first class condition.  I have been there before when we were contemplating an oak dining table and their furniture is lovely.  We were not disappointed yesterday either, we have managed to pick up a great desk for £320 and the cabinet for £180 which I think is pretty reasonable for solid oak furniture.  Yesterday we reserved the items so I could double check sizes at home so Other Half didn't actually go and pay for them until this morning and the items were delivered this evening!  Very excited but also rather alarmed as we have yet to do ANYTHING in the dining room by way of decorating.  Thankfully we can store both items in another room until the dining room is ready.  Guess what we (well, Other Half, he is the painter & decorator after all) will be doing this weekend?

Today's Run

Well today's 10 mile run thankfully passed uneventfully.  It was actually a very nice run, the weather was just about perfect.  Cold (but only two layers and a pair of gloves worth) and very bright and sunny.  The going was semi-frozen, not so soft that I was ploughing through ankle deep mud but not so hard that I had to watch my footing.  Yes, all in all a lovely run.  Next time I go out of a weekend I really must take my camera as there is some great scenery around here I would like to share with you all; the photo (not taken by me unfortunately) is of Roundway Down which is criss-crossed by lots of byways, bridleways and footpaths and is a favourite running area of mine being less than two miles from my front door.

The Ying and Yang of Running

Well, it certainly didn't turn out to be the run I had planned. About 7 miles into my 13 mile run, pretty much in the middle of nowhere saving a few farms dotted here and there I suddenly heard some ferociously loud growling.  At this point I hadn't seen Rommel for the last 60 yards so I realised that it must've been him up to something. Because most of my runs are miles away from roads, Rommel is always off lead and it doesn't bother me whether he is in front or behind me when I run as he generally follows the track I am on regardless. However, just lately he has taken to running off after pheasants or other birds he sees in the distance so I just assumed that is what had happened.  I immediately stopped running and started to call him but the growling was not stopping. Backtracking I realised that he had gone through the hedge between fields and I could just about see him wrestling with something on the ground. My first thought was that he was in a fight with a fox, I was pretty sure it wasn't another dog as we were more than half a mile from the nearest farm and no other people were in sight. The hedge was pretty thick at this point but I realised that it was not a fox as it was far too big. My heart then skipped a beat as my next thought was that he had hold of a sheep and I must admit my blood ran cold at this point, especially as I could hear a tractor in the distance; I had visions of an angry farmer taking pot-shots at him. Still trying to call him off from whatever it was, he wasn't listening to me mostly I think because he couldn't see me the hedge was so thick. I moved down another 10 yards or so where the hedge thinned out and then at this point I realised he had hold of a fully grown deer. The poor animal was flat out on the ground and still alive.  I finally managed to call him off when he saw me peering through the hedge at him and the deer was trying to scramble up but was getting nowhere. I was really hoping by this point that the thrashing around meant the deer was in its death throes but unfortunately not. So, now what to do? The weather was terrible, a howling wind and pissing down with rain. The deer was on its side just the other side of a hedge bordering a bridleway which itself was transecting two large fields. There was absolutely nobody in sight and I didn't think there was any way I was going to be able to humanely dispatch it with my bare hands. So, I did the only thing I could do and retraced my steps back to the farm I had passed nearly a mile before in the hopes that the fields I was running through belonged to him. I finally got to the farm yard and I could hear a tractor working but couldn't for the life of me see it. Then, having caught glimpse of the thing, I couldn't actually work out how to get to it. It was a bloody farce to be honest. Working my way round the farm yard I eventually managed to get to see the tractor driver where I was able to tell him about the deer and luckily the fields did belong to that farm. I explained the deer was down, still alive but very unlikely to get back up again. He promised to pass the message on to the farm owner so I left him to it. Of course, heading back off on the run again I had to pass the deer once more (Rommel now firmly on the lead) and I could see that it was still breathing. I felt so sorry for it but I didn't think there was any more I could do so I carried on with my run. About a mile or so down the road (about 10 minutes after I had passed the deer again) I heard a gun shot followed a few seconds later by another shot. No shots beforehand and no shots after it so I only hope that what I had heard was the farmer doing the decent thing and humanely ending the deer's life. I have been thinking about what happened all day and I honestly don't think Rommel brought the deer down himself. The deer was not in the field we were running through as I would've seen it and when I saw it it was only about 30 feet away from the hedge which meant that he would have had to startle it and bring it down within the space of a few seconds and I honestly don't think there is any way he would've managed that. To be fair he is 21 kilos of pretty much pure muscle from the amount of running he does, but it was obviously a fully grown deer which was probably twice as heavy and certainly three times (if not more) taller than him. I can only assume the poor thing was already dying and I wonder if we disturbed whatever had caught it as we were running towards it.  I guess I will never know although I feel guilty enough that he was bothering it while it was led dying but with hindsight, while the amount of growling sounded dreadful, he clearly was not attacking it with any force as he did not have any blood on him.  I do think he was more 'playing' with it and probably couldn't understand why it didn't get up and run away as for Rommel all the fun is in the chase.

On a more positive note, I have to say the run was fantastic.  It is a route I have done several times before but, without doubt, it was my best running of it to date.  Despite the weather and the going I felt strong and powerful and I finished my run feeling fresh.  If it hadn't been for that rather traumatic event as above, it would've been the perfect run. 

Mixing It Up

Now I am officially in training for my first ultra marathon, the majority of my running (at least 80%) is off-road so that I train on the surfaces that I will come across on race days.  My running is a mixture of canal towpath, fire roads, grass and woodland trails.  It's great having such a diverse range of surfaces to run on and I try and mix it up as much as possible on every run; certainly on my longer ones at the weekend if nothing else.  Running on different surfaces encourages the use of different muscle groups, grass being especially good as it's kind to joints but also technically difficult to run on as a lot of the energy you generate is absorbed by the grass and therefore you have to work twice as hard as you would on a faster surface, such as tarmac.  In addition, most of the trails I run on are by no means flat and the undulating surface encourages the development of strong ligaments and helps to strengthen core muscles.  All in all it's a win-win situation.

Up until just before Christmas, I had been using my road shoes for my off-road runs but these were proving very unsatisfactory.  Although Wiltshire seems to have missed the worst of the flooding, the fields are still very water logged and some of my regular tracks are used by dog walkers.  This means that quite of few of them have turned into what can only be described as a quagmire with ankle deep, squelchy oozy mud as the surface I am having to run on.  Although when I say 'run', some of them are so badly churned up that it's pretty much all I can do to traverse them at barely more than crawling pace.  However, where I can I do run them and there is something very satisfying about running through huge squelchy puddles, mud being thrown up in all directions.  Having taken several tumbles due to losing my footing on the slippery going, before Christmas I treated myself to a pair of trail shoes in the hopes they would provide more grip.  I received my lovely trainers on 21st December and here they are in all their shiny glory having just been taken out of their box:

 
I'm very pleased with them, they are super light, very comfortable and provide substantially more grip than my road shoes.  However, having completed 120 miles in them, this is what they look like now:

I also need to replace my road shoes very soon as they have done well over 800 miles and are now starting to show their age.  I must say they are still very comfortable so I will probably stick with the same make / model.

I have also treated myself to two new pairs of running tights and some proper running socks all for less than £10!  Oh how I do love a bargain.

Happy Anniversary To Me!

Tomorrow is the anniversary of my first day of running; I remember very well my first interval session of run 1 minute, walk 1 minute x 10.  Looking back over my blog from those early days, it's laughable how hard I found those first few sessions, even after three weeks I only reached the dizzy heights of running for 5 minutes at a time.  By contrast, yesterday I went for a 21 mile off-road run and was out for 4 hours.  However, thinking back at how hard it was, it's easy to see why so many people give up after a few weeks as some of my runs were very frustrating and improvement seemed to be non-existent.  Strangely enough since the 1st January I have seen quite a few more joggers out and about, I wonder what percentage will keep it up?

I have now got to the stage where I have to run.  As much as it's hard dragging myself out of bed in the rain and dark, I know that by the time the first mile is over I will be enjoying myself.  I run five times a week and sessions consist of the following:

Sunday: Easy Run of between 9 and 12 miles
Monday: Day Off
Tuesday: Tempo Run of 6 miles
Wednesday: Easy Run of 6 miles
Thursday: Interval Training
Friday: Day Off
Saturday: Long Run of between 15 and 20 miles

I generally average 35 to 45 miles a week and apart from the Tuesday tempo run Rommel, my Staffy, accompanies me on all my runs.  Bless him, he must be one of the fittest dogs in Wiltshire!  I still feel very blessed that I can run for 20+ miles on multiple circular routes without once having to do roadwork.  This means that it's easy to take Rommel with me and he is a great running companion in that he's more than happy to go at my speed and doesn't criticise if I have to walk the odd hill or two.  Terrain wise I'm also fortunate in that there are enough hills to provide a testing training run but I can also avoid the hills by running along the canal!  

Taking up running is probably one of the best things I have ever done; I still have the odd difficult run but I now appreciate that the difficult runs just help to make my other runs more enjoyable by comparison.  It has also introduced me to some great people who I am now fortunate enough to call friends.

By challenging myself this year with running ultra marathons I am confident that I will continue to find running both inspiring and rewarding. 

Relentess Forward Progress

What is an Ultra Marathon?
An ultra marathon (also called ultra distance) is any sporting event involving running longer than the traditional marathon length of 26.2 miles (42 km).  However,  most people would regard 50km as being the shortest standard distance to be considered an ultra.  There are two types of ultra marathon events: those that cover a specified distance, and events that take place during specified time (with the winner covering the most distance in that time). The most common distances are 50 kilometres (31 miles), 100 kilometres (62 miles), 50 miles (80 km) and 100 miles (161 km), although you can find races that cover pretty much every distance in-between.  Depending on the distances involved, some ultras are held on the one day, others can be multi-day events.  Most ultras are off-road with terrain ranging, in the UK alone, from flat to mountainous.  There are many foreign events of course, probably the most famous being the Marathon De Sables, a 6 day / 151 mile (243km) endurance race across the Sahara Desert in Morocco.  However, all races have one thing in common; they are designed to test the runner, both mentally and physically.
So why have I decided that my running future lies with ultra marathons?  Well, when I first joined Calne Running Club way back in February 2012, the first few people I met were in training for the Thames Path 100, a 100 mile trail race along the Thames Path from London to Oxford.  At the time my mind was completed boggled that anybody could run that far non-stop in less than 24 hours.  Remember at this point I had only been running a matter of a few weeks, the giddy heights of being able to run 3 miles in under 30 minutes was my short term goal. In fact I remember being asked what my ultimate goal was to which I proudly declared "run a 10k race".  In my first year of running I have run that 10k race and a 10 mile race and a half-marathon but none of them have given me as much pleasure as heading out on a weekend morning, just me and the dog, with 20 miles of off-road trails in front of me.  The sheer pleasure of running for running's sake is what I love.  I am never going to be a fast runner, regardless of how much training effort I put in, and as much as I get a great feeling from collecting my finisher's medal at the end of a race, the 'just taking part' is not providing the level of satisfaction I seek.  If speed is not my thing, then I am hoping my stamina is where it's at.  Again, I know that I will never be in contention for winning prizes, the bigger ultra events attract a high calibre of runner who can maintain amazing speed for hour upon hour.  However, I think once you get to 30+ miles, the competition almost becomes a personal one, can I actually keep running (although you are allowed to power walk uphills!) for hour after hour just for the satisfaction of having got to the finish line?  Huge reserves of mental as well as physical strength will be required, have I got what it takes?  We shall see.  I have my first few races booked and paid for and my racing calendar for the start of the year is:

27 January - Stonehenge Stomp - 25 miles
24 February - The Terminator - 12 miles
7 April - Pewsey Downsaround - 35 miles
4 May - Oxon 40/20 - 40 miles
2 June - Mercury Mendip Challenge - 30 miles

So my first true ultra will be in April around the Pewsey Downs.  Both this race and the Oxon 40/20 are organised by the Long Distance Walker's Association and are 'challenge' events hence why they allow runners.  They are more low key than your truly dedicated runner's ultra marathon (and an awful lot cheaper to enter - most ultra marathon entry fees average £1+ per mile of race distance) but I am hoping they will prove a good introduction to ultra running competitively.  I now need to learn how to fuel and hydrate during the longer runs especially once the warmer weather is here.  So far, for any distance up to 15 miles, I don't actually bother with any water / gels / food or the like and my body seems to cope quite happily but I'm sure as the miles rack up I am going to face 'the wall' if I don't do something about hydration.  On my longer 15+ mile training runs I do now use my Camelbak but only hydrate with water as I can't bear the thought of having to clean the bladder out if I were to use electrolytes or additives along those lines.  I have also experimented with a jelly baby or two and raw jelly, these did seem to help keep me going but I'm sure it was just a placebo effect!  So my plan for tomorrow is a 20 mile trail run in preparation for the Stonehenge Stomp at the end of the month. 

More on my training plans later.

Lies, Damned Lies and Statistics

Okay well as it's the start of the new year, I thought this would be as good a time as any to make a note of my running achievements for last year.  According to my Garmin, my stats for 2012 are:

Number of runs: 186
Distance: 1,177.56 miles
Total Time: 185:35:12 h:m:s
Elevation Gain: 13,695 metres
Average Speed: 6.3 mph
Average Heart Rate: 150 bpm
Calories Burnt: 128,233

My first run with the Garmin was on the 30th April however I actually started running on the 5th January.  Therefore, I've made a conservative estimate of 200 miles between January - March 2012 which brings the total distance up to just under 1400 miles for the year.  Pretty good going if I say so myself.

I also entered the following races:

Race for Life 5k
Heddington 5k
Bowood 10k
Corsham 10k
Kennet Kanter 10 miles
Devizes Half Marathon

My PBs are:

5k - 24:30
10k - 55:23
10 miles - 1:35:23
Half Marathon - 1:48:33

What is clear to see from the above PBs is how I have improved over the year.  My 10 mile race was run in May and was the first time I had tackled that distance.  In fairness it was also a boiling hot day and part of the run included the mile climb up the side of the Caen Locks.  However, 5 months later, in October, I ran the Half Marathon and in theory managed to complete the extra 3.1 miles in 13 minutes!  Looking at the stats for both races:

10 miles completed at an average pace of 9:30 min/miles
13.1 miles completed at an average pace of 8:17 min/miles

However, I have come to the realisation that at 41 years of age I only have so much speed left in me and, what little I have, is not going to get much faster however much effort I put into my training.  But, what I seem to have in abundance, is stamina and am happy to go for hours averaging around 9:30 min/miles so my focus for 2013 has shifted from 10k/10 miles/ half marathons to off-road ultra races!  But more on that to come.



And So I'm Back ... From Outer Space ...

Happy New Year to one and all.  So yes, I am back from the back of beyond and I resolve to keep this blog updated on a regular basis.  Recently I have been reading back over my old posts and a pang of nostalgia has set in.  I had really forgotten how much I used to enjoy updating the blog and having nearly completed my first year of running it's great to be able to look back and see how I progressed from literally nothing, to running for half an hour non-stop (which was a terrific milestone at the time) to now not even thinking about going out for a 20 mile run on a Saturday and a 15 mile on a Sunday.  My average weekly running mileage is now between 40-50 miles spead over five runs.  I love everything about running: I love setting off and exploring new routes; I love the feeling of wind and rain (which, given the recent weather, is probably just as well); I love the solitude of a long, easy run of a weekend; I love lusting over running gear; I love hunting for races; I love planning which races I will be doing.  It's pretty much all I now think about which is a bit sad I know, but it's better than hankering after crack cocaine or the like. I have some goals for 2013 which I would like to share with you all:

 

10 aims for 2013  

 

1) To run 2013 miles in 2013 - that's an average of just under 39 miles per week so a realistic target I feel
2) Compete in my first ultra marathon - currently scheduled for 7th April (35 miles) unless I can find a local event in March
3) Compete in at least one 50-mile ultra marathon - ideally I would like to aim for a longer distance but family commitments mean that training for longer ultras is not currently feasible
4) Compete in at least one organised running event per month - ideally ultra distance but happy to compete in all distances if I find the race excites me
5) To lose a stone to get down to a running weight of 9 stone which hopefully will help with the longer distances
6) To remain injury free - so far I have been incredibly fortunate and not suffered from any problems with my running and hopefully I will continue to be so lucky.  There is a saying in running circles that you are either "recovering from an injury, injured or about to get an injury"
7) To update my blog a minimum of twice a week (ideally more often, but I'm trying to be realistic here)
8) To achieve the 100-push ups challenge (started twice, never completed)
9) To go to the gym a minimum of twice a week to work on core and upper body strength - running is great for the legs but my middle bit is still a bit wobbly and I would like to reduce the bingo wings to cut down on wind resistance!
10) To finish decorating the downstairs of our new house (thought I ought to have one aim that didn't involve running or fitness) 

And there we have it for now, I have lots more to tell you all about but that will come in future posts.  I am now off to the Sports Direct website as they have a great sale on at the moment and today they are also offering free delivery so I feel the need to splash some Christmas cash.  TTFN.