Filed under: British Military Fitness, cycling, Reading Half Marathon, running
It’s been a while, dear readers (in the unlikely event that there are any still around).
I left you in March, woefully underprepared for the Reading Half Marathon. Yet I made it round the familiar course though – in an almost respectable time of 2:06, a minute under my first half marathon time ten years ago, aged 24.
So I didn’t collapse or anything (but thank you to those who were concerned for my welfare). No, life has just been a bit busy of late. Phil and I looked at the calendar earlier this week and realised we’d been away from home for eight consecutive weekends – not all of them planned. Nor have we done a full week’s work in all that time, what with bank holidays, long weekends and various other things. Which has meant when we have been at work, we’ve been trying to squeeze five days’ work into four, three or even two days.
I’ve been doing a bit of Audiofuelled running, been back to British Military Fitness for the first couple of times since moving, and been out on the bike a lot – but just haven’t found the time to blog about it all. Perhaps you have to take a break from blogging sometimes in order to remember why you enjoy doing it in the first place. Bit like running really.
Filed under: food, half marathon training, Reading Half Marathon, running, skiing | Tags: half marathon training, how to train for a half marathon, Reading Half Marathon
- Get yourself a new job a few months before your scheduled half marathon.
- Start commuting on busy trains with Other People instead of driving yourself to work with no one else in the vicinity.
- Pick up several colds that hamper training, just as you should be ramping up the mileage.
- Attempt Janathon, but don’t worry about too much running, nooo nooo – try kickboxing, aerobics, spinning and weights.
- Go to Russia about five weeks before the race, and contract a stomach bug that wipes you out for nearly a week.
- Attempt a mid-length run on a good day (just under eight miles should do it) and convince yourself you’re going to cruise another five.
- Two weeks before the big event, embark on a ski trip to Austria. It’s only 357 days since you last strapped your feet into those instruments of torture they call ski boots, attached yourself to two planks and threw yourself down a mountain with gay abandon. Your knees, previously injured in skiing and running incidents, will be absolutely fine.
- While away, ensure you partake of all the regional specialities and carbo-loading opportunities – and I do mean massive breakfasts featuring bread, cheese and salami, sausage sandwiches for lunch (or sometimes just cake for lunch actually) the odd pint at the end of a hard day’s skiing, a five-course meal every night and half a bottle of wine.
- Upon your return from the ski trip (one week to go!!!) head out for a long run (actually 7.5 miles will be fine) and don’t worry a bit if your legs feel like leaden weights and your knees appear to have been replaced by those of an 85-year-old. You’re just worrying over nothing….
Such has been my training programme for the Reading half marathon this Sunday. Oh dear. Oh very dear.
Those sausage sandwiches (the Austrian "bosna") were good though...
Filed under: 5k, gym, half marathon training, Reading Half Marathon, running | Tags: 5k challenge, half marathon training, Reading Half Marathon, run, running
After a two-week period of very little exercise – I managed only a couple of gym sessions featuring the 5k challenge (I’m down to 26:47, which isn’t brilliant but is ok after being unwell) – it’s approaching decision-time on the Reading half marathon. I so desperately want to break two hours but with various bugs, cold weather and a holiday coming up, this might not be my year! Do I run it and accept it won’t be a PB and just try to enjoy it, or do I defer my place to next year and hope I’m better prepared?
Sean (Mr Audiofuel) and Angela reckoned I should give it a go anyway. Good to meet them both in the flesh for the first time on Tuesday evening, though the less said about the 8k run up and down the canal near Sean’s, the better, quite honestly. After one of those days at work that featured “lunch” at 4.30pm, I wasn’t in the best frame of mind for it! But Sean’s post-run pimped up pizza and a glass or two of wine more than made up for it. Thanks guys.
I followed up with a couple more gym sessions this week – one light one with my Mum on Friday encouraging how to use some new machines to help her recover after a knee op, and one heavier session featuring a good sweaty spin and some leg weights yesterday.
This morning, Phil and I tackled a longer run – 7.8 miles incorporating a little bit of off-road near where we live. Apart from puffing up the horrible hill which kicked in at about the six-mile point and a little twinge in my left knee which is becoming a regular thing, I felt reasonably good. Time was 1:15:31 which, if I could sustain it for 13 miles, would bring me in at around 2:04 or 2:05.
I’d feel happier with more than three more weeks to train, but I feel slightly more positive about it than I did a couple of weeks ago. Sooooo, I’m in…as long as I don’t fall over/get run over/keel over before then.
Filed under: gym, half marathon training, Reading Half Marathon, running | Tags: Reading Half Marathon, running
So after complete failure on day 28, day 29 wasn’t much better. I booked a gym induction, but felt rubbish – a little warm-up on the cross-trainer and treadmill, followed by a few pathetic weights. One quite nifty feature of the machines in the gym is a TDS key that you can pop into the machines, which records your distance, timings, weights, etc. You can download your workout to a kiosk point, and view your progress over time. It can also be linked to a fitness programme – no cheating!
The following day, Sunday, I felt a bit better and agreed to a run with Phil and my brother. We planned a seven-mile route that I could duck out of if I felt bad. But I didn’t – felt surprisingly good, and enjoyed the run with my brother. He’s offered to help me crack two hours at the Reading Half – and I’m inclined to listen to him, with a 1:36 PB under his belt. I laboured a bit on a couple of hills, and let the boys run off for a sprint finish to the house, but on the whole felt pretty good. Not a record-breaking time, but not too bad considering I still wasn’t feeling brilliant.
Distance: 7.15 miles
Time: 1:07
Roughly a 2:02 half marathon then – need to knock about 20-odd seconds off each mile. to break two hours. Doesn’t sound so bad when you put it like that.
And so, to the last day of Janathon. Day 31 was a busy one at work, so just did my normal walking commute and didn’t make it to the gym.
I think I’m pleased with my performance over the course of the month: I definitely did more exercise that I would normally do, tried out a few new classes, and it’s helped me kick-start the new year with some enthusiasm. I’m not sure if was humanly possible to read all of the Janathon blogs, but I’ve discovered a few new good ones that I’ll add to my blogroll and regular reading list. And very well done to the winners - who are the lucky recipients of various goodies from Audiofuel and TalkTalk.
Filed under: Great Manchester 10k, Reading Half Marathon, running | Tags: Forrest Gump, Great Manchester 10k, races, Reading Half Marathon, running, training
Decision time: I’ve made up my mind to do the Reading half marathon next March with my little brother, who has in turn promised to help me crack two hours. Watch this space.
I’ve also signed up for the Great Manchester Run – a 10k in May – and an excuse to meet up with mates from ‘oop North. At £36, it’s an expensive one, so it had better be good. My experience at other Great Run events suggests it will be.
So…some races to start training for. Week-day training could prove problematic in the winter, what with a new job and a longer commute. But that doesn’t apply at the weekends, of course. And I’m pleased to report that I did do a six- or seven-miler last Saturday. I set off without a route in mind, but knew I needed to clear my head after a mind-blowing first week at my new workplace. After the usual three or four miles, my head still felt foggy, so I kept running – Forrest Gump-stylee.
My head felt better by the end of it, but my knees didn’t.
As a result, Sunday’s three-miler was short, slow and painful. A reminder that I need to carefully build up my mileage again before attempting to rattle off 13.1 miles.
Filed under: half marathon training, hastings half marathon, Reading Half Marathon, running | Tags: events, hastings half marathon, races, Reading Half Marathon, running
My race tally this year has been nothing short of pathetic. After that terrible Riotrunner race (click for the race photo of the year), I tried to gear up for the Reading half marathon, only to sprain my ankle a couple of weeks before the day. That injury also ruled me out of the Hambledon Horseplay.
The rest of the year has been a write-off as far as events are concerned. It’s not the injury, but a lack of time and various other weekend commitments that have stopped me entering any other races. It’s a far cry from the days of Septathlon when I was capable of squeezing in at least seven events of differing distances per year.
But next year, I will try harder. First action for this early New Year’s Resolution: enter a springtime half marathon. But which one? Phil’s already put his name down for the Hastings half marathon, one that he’s always wanted to do in his home town. I’m sure it’s very scenic, but the route involves going up and down the coastal cliffs around the town. A PB course, it is not – despite the best efforts of the organising committee to persuade you otherwise.
And part of me is still determined to crack that flipping two-hour barrier. If I trained hard enough, I think I could maybe, possibly, if the wind was blowing in the right direction, do it once and for all on the Reading half marathon course. It’s fast, flat and familiar.
I’ve got to make up my mind sooner rather than later, otherwise Reading will sell out. On the other hand, I reckon you could rock up on the day and still get into Hastings…especially given they’re looking for backward runners…
Filed under: British Military Fitness, Reading Half Marathon, running | Tags: British Military Fitness, juneathon, Paula Radcliffe, running
This month, Runner’s World ran a piece on Paula Radcliffe’s career highs and lows, and plotted them on a sort-of happiness graph. High points included her London Marathon world record, winning the NYC marathon and having her first child. Lows were her various injury setbacks and dropping out of the Athens Olympic marathon.
If I tried to plot my own highs and lows over the past few months, I would struggle to find the happy points. Hellrunner last November was brilliant, but it’s gone more or less downhill from there. I struggled to enjoy GRIM and Riotrunner, and really felt the cold through January and into February. I had to have some treatment for a tight hip flexor and glutes, had a bit of a coldy/cough thing and that was followed by the sprained ankle at the end of February. It was six weeks before I did anything interesting. Just when I thought it wasn’t possible to feel any worse about my lack of progress, the day of the Reading half marathon dawned. While I watched from the sidelines, Phil – coached by my brother – decisively cracked the elusive two-hour barrier. I was gutted.
May and June perked me up a bit - the weather warmed up and I started enjoying myself again and built up my fitness with some short but reasonably swift runs and regular British Military Fitness sessions. I even did half of a Juneathon, but then collapsed under the weight of work. Tried to get back into the swing of things again in July, but really can’t say I enjoyed it much. August brought with it another sodding infection – nothing serious but enough to stop me exercising for a couple of weeks. Now I find myself battling through every (short) run and British Military Fitness session, just wishing it was over. I’m struggling to keep up with Phil on the runs, and with the slowest of the red BMFers.
Somehow I’ve got to find some enthusiasm from somewhere to rebuild my fitness and remember why I enjoy running in the first place. Perhaps some lovely new shoes, courtesy of the lovely Adam at fitnessfootwear.com, will help. Review to follow…
Filed under: Reading Half Marathon, running, walking | Tags: how to be a good race supporter, Reading Half Marathon
I should be writing my race review after yesterday’s Reading Half, but it wasn’t meant to be this year. Instead, I am congratulating my brother and Phil on an excellent race. With a little help from my brother (whose PB is 1:36 over the half marathon distance), Phil managed to run his own PB of 1:55.
I have very mixed feelings about this. Of course, I’m proud that he managed to put in such a great performance. But, if I’m being honest, I’m also absolutely gutted that we didn’t do it together: I’ve never managed to break the two-hour barrier in a decade of running, incorporating at least ten half marathons!
However, I must not be churlish. Instead of a race report, this post is dedicated to being a good race supporter.
- Study the course. Race packs always come with a course map, so study it and work out where you’re going to stand to look out for your family member/mates. Unless it’s a point-to-point race like the Great North Run, the chances are you’ll have a few chances to spot your loved ones.
- Watch the time. Ask your runner what time they expect to finish, write down the time they are anticipated to pass each mile marker and plan your own route accordingly. Remember to factor in enough time to get to each spot and allow a good ten minutes either side in case they are a bit faster or slower than they think they’ll be. Also, remember you might not be able to move as fast as you think you will if there are lots of crowds. I managed to see my boys at four points yesterday: around 5.5 miles into the race, just before the 7-mile marker, just before the 11-mile marker and just before the finish. But I was on the move for the whole two hours myself – half walking, half running at least five miles in total. My bike might have been a useful accessory.
- Get your runners to look out for you too. It’s actually quite hard work at a big race to spot the people you’re looking for! A moment’s distraction can mean you miss them completely. That nearly happened yesterday when I was jibber-jabbering to another spectator – but luckily Dan and Phil saw me because they knew I was going to be there.
- Take a camera. Runners love seeing pictures of themselves in a race environment, even if they pretend not to. They will moan later about looking all sweaty and tired, and more often than not wonder why they don’t appear to be moving. But they love it really.
- Make some noise! I’m always surprised at how many people line race routes to “support” the runners, but don’t make a sound; just attempt a half-hearted clap every few minutes. I suppose it might feel a bit weird to stand on the side of the road yelling at thousands of strangers, but it really does help to motivate the tired runner. I tend to make a beeline for someone else who is making a bit of a racket, stand next to them and join in. And so it was that I stood on the side of the A33 in Reading at 11 miles, screaming like a lunatic, next to a Scottish man doing the same. Dozens of runners raised their weary heads to acknowledge our efforts. Never underestimate the power of a few kind words.
- Apply TLC. Your runner deserves a bit of a fuss afterwards. Admire their medal, run them a bath, show sympathy for their bleeding nipples, aches and pains, and make them a nice meal. My roast chicken and herby green risotto went down a treat!
Filed under: British Military Fitness, injuries, Reading Half Marathon, running
Thank you for the kind messages following the ankle incident before I went on holiday. It’s an awful lot better than it was, though it ruled me out of today’s Reading Half-Marathon and probably next week’s Hambledon Horseplay event in Henley. Shame really, as I was quite looking forward to the fancy dress element of the latter. Though I was thinking more tweed-lady-with-headscarf than the clobber that Phil seems to have in mind…
I haven’t sought any professional advice: I didn’t want someone to tell me I shouldn’t ski before I went to La Thuile, and haven’t got around to it since I got back. The other BMFer who sprained her ankle the same evening has suggested a few exercises to help with the rehab – one-legged squats, standing on a wobble board – but I have to accept that it’s going to take a few weeks before I’m back at British Military Fitness or running any sort of distance. Pretty annoying really, now it’s finally starting to warm up and get lighter after the longest winter in living memory.
So it’s back to the gym for cross-training, spinning and maybe a few weights. I miss the fresh air and my mates at BMF. I hate the smell of sweat combined with cleaning products and the bitching in the changing room. But it’s still better than sitting around doing nothing and getting fat!
Filed under: half marathon training, Reading Half Marathon, running | Tags: Reading Half Marathon, running
Yesterday, I ran the Reading Half Marathon in two hours and seven minutes. Some way off the 2:01 achieved at Reading two years ago, but not nearly as bad as some of my worst half marathon performances. I said prior to the race that I’d be happy with 2:10, so I was pretty chuffed with 2:07.
I’ve been running half marathons on and off for around eight years, and still take pleasure in learning something about every race. Yesterday I learned that the cross-training I’ve been doing over the past few weeks (in order to run the half marathon, cycle across the middle of the UK and complete a week’s skiing) wasn’t the disaster that I anticipated it would be. I was staggered to feel pretty comfortable as Phil and I ticked off the first seven miles together, well inside the 10-minute mile pace that we had set ourselves, and worried that I would hit some kind of a wall later on in the race. But miles eight, nine, ten and eleven passed by and – although my legs started to feel heavier – we were still averaging 9:45-minute miles. Mile 12 was a bit painful – having slogged up the A33 towards the finish at the Madjeski Stadium, we then started running away and dropped a minute to complete that one in 10:42. We sped up for the final mile, by which time I was breathing like a 70-year-old that had smoked 20-a-day for her entire life, and crossed the line with half of the population of Reading cheering us on.
The high points were:
- The general level of support around most of the course, especially in town.
- The bands – especially the one outside the Town Hall playing “Is This The Way To Amarillo” and the chaps playing the drums underneath the IDR at The Oracle.
- Friends cheering us on – thanks Kasia, Emma, Hannah and James!
- The lovely firemen standing to attention on Kendrick Road.
- Phil staying half a step behind me for the run, so I could control the pace. Right up until the last mile, which he got me through with a few words of encouragement.
- The stadium finish – third best in the UK, just behind the London Marathon and the Great North Run.
- Finding out my little brother ran the race in 1:36. How good is that?
- Meeting up with JogBlog, Iliketocount, Moretolifethanweight and Tracey afterwards for pizza and pasta, and a jolly nice pint.
I can’t think of any low points, actually. It’s flat, fast course; weather was near-perfect; water and Lucozade was plentiful; and there was a real sense of occasion among the other runners. Reading’s a big event now (at 17,000 or so runners, one of the largest in the country), and the organisation is a far cry from the old race that started at the Rivermead, usually half an hour late. I’ll be putting my application in for next year.
Update: Forgot to mention the goody bag. Which was very good. Contents included: Walkers crisps, Nature Valley granola bar, Mars bar, Dorset Cereals fruit and nut slice, Lucozade bar, Ricola sweets, Adidas deodorant. Oooh, and a lovely weighty medal.
