Last week during the week I had lunchtime runs with two of my mates who are running their first marathon this year (Jamie & Geoff).
Saturday, I didn't run Parkrun, but went along to Norman Park for the Bromley Parkrun to support Mich and was delighted to see her put in a burst at the end to knock a minute of her PB.
Then we travelled to Sunbury as it was my mate Badger little boy's first Birthday. This meant a cross training session for me as I crawled, climbed and threw myself round softplay for an hour. After this I made sure I recovered by sitting down and watching Millwall secure a 2-1 victory on the box :-)
Sunday was the Tunbridge Wells Half Marathon. I went through my usual routine, but having left home, within 5 mins, I was turning round to go back and pick up my Garmin. Mich will tell you that this is my usual routine, as I normally forget something!
As you are probably aware, it was a bit cold at the weekend. I was fortunate enough, that another mate of mine (FatPants) lives less than a 5 minute walk from the Start Line. So I was able to stay warm at his until 15 mins before the start. At the start I bumped into a few PWR's and also managed to catch up with a couple of other people that I knew.
At the start was the Bloco Fogo Samba band that had everybody jigging away, this was reminiscent of the Barcelona Half Marathon the week before, along with the distance of 13.1 miles that was where the similarities ended!
I am pretty sure the race started 3 minutes early, probably because the Mayor of Tunbridge Wells was freezing his proverbial off and had a mug of tea and a bacon sandwich with his name on it.
The course is undulating and in fact in the first 3 or 4 miles there is quite a bit of down hill, this meant that I put in a couple of miles around the 7:30 m/mile pace. I was going quite nicely.
Everybody knew about the 'Big Hill' around the 7.5/8 mile mark. Now when I started running with Petts Wood, our club coach Richard could vouch that if there was anything with more than a 1% incline, I would pipe up saying "Richard, I thought you said there wasn't any more hills" Over the last year and a half I have now embraced said hills and in fact, I quite relished the almost mile long hill. In fact I still managed to put in a sub 9m/mile despite the incline.
After the hill is when things started to go a bit Pete Tong. I had a few twinges in my right knee and then on a couple of strides, I can only explain that it felt as if by knee was buckling. I started to slow my pace as a preventative measure, but the situation began to deteriorate. So much so, that I had to walk the last 3 miles.
My mile time after the hill was 8:14, so even if I had a 9m/mile pace for the last 3 miles, I would have still got a sub 1:50, but in the end I managed to hobble over the finish line in 2:02.
Tunbridge Wells Half Stats
In the last 3 miles I got really cold having to walk, to the point of shivering, this wasn't helped by meeting FatPants after the event (having a communication breakdown with our wives - FatPants fault) and then walking back to his house to find out he didn't have any keys. Cue more violent shivering!
This next paragraph may sound a bit strange, but I want to explain honestly how I felt during the last 3 miles.
I actually felt a bit awkward and embarrassed by spectators and fellow runners who were encouraging me and telling me to keep going. It felt as if they were looking on me with pity, that I maybe hadn't trained enough or wasn't fit enough to be able to run 13.1 miles. I almost wanted to say to everybody, "I know I can finish, I did the Barca Half last week, I am just injured" But all I could do was smile and acknowledge the encouragement.
I hope that last paragraph doesn't sound nonchalant in anyway and I have the greatest admiration and respect for anybody that is running irrespective of how long they take to get round and whether they walk or not. Because at the end of the day, they are out there doing it!
Geoff, of lunchtime running fame, finished in 1:58 which was a cracking time, in fact he passed me not long before the finish and was going to stop to see if I was alright and said to him "Sod me, keep going and get that sub two"
All in all 32 PWR's completed the half marathon. Unfortunately, Eleanor a fellow PWR who I was chatting to before hand (bizarrely about the our training, injuries and the fact that we were both scheduled to run the Surrey Spitfire this coming weekend and the Brighton Marathon in April) also suffered a knee injury and was unable to finish.
It transpires that it seems (having both seen Physios) we have both have suffered Iliotibial Band Syndrome (ITBS). I personally think my downfall if you excuse the pun, was the downhill elements of the course. It is quite jarring on the knees and I was maybe running a bit faster than I should have done. Also having doing some research today, it seems that muscle imbalance and weak glutes (which I know I have) can magnify the issue.
So it seems that Brighton Marathon is very doubtful now :-( In some ways I am happy, in the fact that this situation has occurred for a marathon that I would just be running for myself and therefore not letting anybody else or a charity down. Plus, I can use this a valuable lesson regarding over exertion and also looking into additional strengthening and and stretching. And at least I can defer my entry until next year!
Incidentally to help me numb the pain of my sore knee, a pre planned Sunday Lunch with friends had been organised and then the 15 of us went back to FatPant's parents house and the recuperation was assisted with delightful hospitality with a couple more ales and a dip in the hottub with the kids :-)
Until next time
TJH
P.S Can you see what I have done with the title ;-)
Monday, 25 February 2013
Monday, 18 February 2013
Second time, Seconds Quicker
I started the week last week with a 5m lunchtime run with Jamie (mate from work training for his first London Marathon) and after the Matrix situation with my Garmin the previous week, I decided to run the mile circuit of Victoria Park again. I managed the mile in 6:42 which was 21 Seconds Quicker than my previous attempt 2 weeks prior.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/272353832
Tuesday I cycled to and from work again, so another 20 miles cross training
Thursday I did just over 4.5 miles with another mate Geoff who is also training for his first London Marathon. As I was fortunate enough to be involved in Project 26.2 last year and learnt a lot, it is nice to be able to run with others and pass on some tips and advice.
Friday morning was a very early start as Myself, Mich and Max were flying to Barcelona as I was running in the Barcelona Half Marathon for the 2nd year running. We were also being joined later in the day by friends Brian & Suzie and their boys.
We checked into our hotel and and had to immediately check out the roof terrace with swimming pool. We were quite pleased with the view :-)
Brian is a fellow member of Petts Wood Runners and like me he has gently persuaded his wife to get into running and she is currently taking part in the PWR beginners running course. So despite being away, Mich and Suzie went out Saturday morning to run along the sea front. Very commendable!
Last year when I ran the Barca Half, I was on the wagon, but this year I thought it would be rude not to have a drink a two. The plan was to have a couple of drinks Friday night with a meal, abstain on Saturday and then maybe a celebratory drink Sunday afternoon.
However, Millwall were on the box Saturday lunchtime playing in the FA Cup. So I did the traditional British thing, I went to an Irish pub in Spain, watched football and had a pint of Guinness. Embracing the Spanish culture I think you will agree :-) I did limit myself to just two pints though.
Sunday morning Brian and I met at 07:45 and had a 20min stroll to the start area. The vibe is very relaxed, despite their being 12,000+ runners. Music is being pumped out through the sound system and it just gives you a feel good factor.
Brian is a bit quicker than me (read as significantly). He was in the yellow area (predicted sub 1:20) whilst I was in the green area (predicted 1:40-1:55).
We had pre-arranged a spot at about a mile where we knew our wives and the boys would be. At 09:45 the gun went. However, there was a staggered start, with the green's being the next start. So we got our own gun and an explosion of ticker tape, but over 6mins were already on the clock before I crossed the start line. So I knew that Brian would have probably already passed the girls before I had even started!
If I am totally honest, I didn't have a race plan. I set off and clocked the first mile in sub-8. I thought it might be a bit fast, but I felt pretty good, so decided to keep at that rough pace and take stock after 4 or 5 miles. I was still feeling OK, so consciously made the effort to try and maintain the pace. I was trying Maxifuel gels for the first time (free samples kindly sent to me) I really liked the berry flavour, but am not too keen on the citrus.
Prior to the race, I had been mentioning to Brian that I think I prefer the race measurements in kms and once again, I found this to be the case. The distance markers appear quicker, plus you can break the race down into 5k segments which is a Parkrun. So when I saw the 16k marker, I knew all I had left was a Parkrun!
What I have to do now is try and get my head round min/km pace rather than min/mile pace.
I managed to finish in 1:43:56 which was 6mins 29secs or 389 Seconds Quicker than my 2012 time.
So I was pretty pleased with my time and I was in the correct time zone.
Barca Stats
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/275047780
I can also tell you that Brian was in the correct time zone and managed a sub 1:20 finishing in 1:19:13. A tremendous time, I think you will agree. We both agreed that we made the course a bit long? After meeting up with the wives and boys afterwards, we had a couple of beers before going back to our hotels to have a shower and freshen up before going for something to eat.
I took the opportunity to use the rooftop pool. It was bloody freezing, in fact it was like having an ice bath. I managed to stay in for 5 minutes, but then the cold was getting too painful. I then donned my compression tights as well (under my trousers) and today as I type this, no DOMS!
Another successful trip to Barcelona and I am pretty sure the Sievey's will be making the annual trip again next year.
Until next time
TJH
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/272353832
Tuesday I cycled to and from work again, so another 20 miles cross training
Thursday I did just over 4.5 miles with another mate Geoff who is also training for his first London Marathon. As I was fortunate enough to be involved in Project 26.2 last year and learnt a lot, it is nice to be able to run with others and pass on some tips and advice.
Friday morning was a very early start as Myself, Mich and Max were flying to Barcelona as I was running in the Barcelona Half Marathon for the 2nd year running. We were also being joined later in the day by friends Brian & Suzie and their boys.
We checked into our hotel and and had to immediately check out the roof terrace with swimming pool. We were quite pleased with the view :-)
 |
Last year when I ran the Barca Half, I was on the wagon, but this year I thought it would be rude not to have a drink a two. The plan was to have a couple of drinks Friday night with a meal, abstain on Saturday and then maybe a celebratory drink Sunday afternoon.
However, Millwall were on the box Saturday lunchtime playing in the FA Cup. So I did the traditional British thing, I went to an Irish pub in Spain, watched football and had a pint of Guinness. Embracing the Spanish culture I think you will agree :-) I did limit myself to just two pints though.
Sunday morning Brian and I met at 07:45 and had a 20min stroll to the start area. The vibe is very relaxed, despite their being 12,000+ runners. Music is being pumped out through the sound system and it just gives you a feel good factor.
Brian is a bit quicker than me (read as significantly). He was in the yellow area (predicted sub 1:20) whilst I was in the green area (predicted 1:40-1:55).
We had pre-arranged a spot at about a mile where we knew our wives and the boys would be. At 09:45 the gun went. However, there was a staggered start, with the green's being the next start. So we got our own gun and an explosion of ticker tape, but over 6mins were already on the clock before I crossed the start line. So I knew that Brian would have probably already passed the girls before I had even started!
If I am totally honest, I didn't have a race plan. I set off and clocked the first mile in sub-8. I thought it might be a bit fast, but I felt pretty good, so decided to keep at that rough pace and take stock after 4 or 5 miles. I was still feeling OK, so consciously made the effort to try and maintain the pace. I was trying Maxifuel gels for the first time (free samples kindly sent to me) I really liked the berry flavour, but am not too keen on the citrus.
Prior to the race, I had been mentioning to Brian that I think I prefer the race measurements in kms and once again, I found this to be the case. The distance markers appear quicker, plus you can break the race down into 5k segments which is a Parkrun. So when I saw the 16k marker, I knew all I had left was a Parkrun!
What I have to do now is try and get my head round min/km pace rather than min/mile pace.
I managed to finish in 1:43:56 which was 6mins 29secs or 389 Seconds Quicker than my 2012 time.
 |
| click to see bigger version |
So I was pretty pleased with my time and I was in the correct time zone.
Barca Stats
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/275047780
I can also tell you that Brian was in the correct time zone and managed a sub 1:20 finishing in 1:19:13. A tremendous time, I think you will agree. We both agreed that we made the course a bit long? After meeting up with the wives and boys afterwards, we had a couple of beers before going back to our hotels to have a shower and freshen up before going for something to eat.
 |
| The only chance I get to be close to Brian when wearing running gear |
I took the opportunity to use the rooftop pool. It was bloody freezing, in fact it was like having an ice bath. I managed to stay in for 5 minutes, but then the cold was getting too painful. I then donned my compression tights as well (under my trousers) and today as I type this, no DOMS!
 |
| Yes, it's lovely and warm, come on in! |
Another successful trip to Barcelona and I am pretty sure the Sievey's will be making the annual trip again next year.
Until next time
TJH
Monday, 11 February 2013
All headings end in ING
Running
Tuesday last week I did a 5 mile run
with mile 3 at (for me anyway) a fair old lick. I managed the mile in
7:03. It also transpired that one whole lap of Victoria Park is almost
exactly a mile, so I can repeat this session quite easily to try and improve my time.Lunchtime run
Thursday, I decided to throw in some
cross-training and cycled to and from work, just over 20 miles in total.
Friday, I decided to repeat my run from Tuesday to see if if I could get under 7 mins for the mile lap of Victoria Park. Usually it takes a few minutes for my Garmin to pick up the satellites, but I was surprised for my watch to tell me that a connection had been made almost as soon as I walked out of the office. I knew something wasn't quite right, when I arrived at Victoria Park which is usually just shy of 2 miles and my watch only showed 1.7miles?
I then started my fast mile and
despite going at 'a fair old lick' again, my Garmin showed I was only doing an
11:30m/mile. So I was either in the Matrix, or my Garmin was playing
silly buggers. As I had not been offered the choice of a blue or red pill
that morning, I suspected the latter. With the 1 mile lap complete and my
watch only showing 0.6 miles covered, I don't know if I was quicker or
not?
As you will see from the link below,
despite starting my run from Liverpool St, I apparently started my run from
Leyton, ran over the Hackney marshes and crossed rivers and railway lines
without the need of bridges! I managed a couple of 6 min miles, my fastest
pace was under a 3 min mile and the temperature was 37 degrees!! When I
run, I don't see what you see, I just see ones and zeroes ;-)
The Matrix
Buying
Wednesday night I popped into the
new Sweatshop store in London to have a look a few pairs of running shoes to
help me decide on my next purchase, I discovered that they have a running group
that goes out 3 times a day, 5 days a week, so I think I will pop along one day
in the near future and join them for a run. I was considering buying the
Adidas Boston, but I think they were a bit firm for me. So I have now
ordered a pair of Brooks Pureflow. I will blog about them once I have
received them and worn them a few times.
Disappointing
Twice this week I received the
Thanks but No Thanks message. First, I found out that I was unsuccessful
in the ballot for the Cycle London100 and then I found out I was unsuccessful
in the ballot for the Royal Parks Half Marathon. Ho Hum!
Redesigning
Now I am sure the eagle eyed amongst
you will have noticed that I have revamped the design of my blog and added a
few, what Google call 'Gadgets' You can now add a reaction to each blog (hint
hint). And there is now even an option on the right hand side to translate the
blog into a different language! I now know that the 'The Jogging Hippo's
Jog Blog' is 'Blog Jog El Jogging
Hipopótamo' in Spanish and 'Die Jogging Hippo das Jog Blog' in German. Very useful, I think you
will agree.
I have also now added my blogs from
when I cycled LEJOG in Sept 2010, as unbeknown to me the domain name for that
website has expired and now it is £165 to renew instead of the usual £5 per
year. Sneaky buggers! Anyway something different for you to read if
you are bored one evening/lunchtime.
Until the next time
TJH
P.S. (Apologies if you have not seen
the film The Matrix, as the pill and the ones & zeroes references will
mean nothing to you)
Sunday, 3 February 2013
Variety is the spice of life.....
and it is good when running!
RECOVERY
After the Canterbury 10 on Sunday, I was suffering with DOMS on Monday which to me shows I didn't do enough stretching afterwards. So Monday lunchtime I went out with Jamie (My mate from work who is training for his 1st Marathon). He had done a 9 miler on Sunday, so was also suffering a bit. We must have looked like a couple of 80 year olds as we hobbled the 1st half a mile as we loosened up. We did an easy recovery run, 3 miles at just under 11min mile pace
INTERVALS
On Wednesday I did 5.5 miles with some intervals thrown in. I found it tough going but it was a good session to get the heart pumping
THRESHOLD
Friday was one of those days! And I don't mean that in a negative way. I plotted a new run on Mapmyrun that would mean I could loop back rather than have to go down Regent's canal and then back again. The sun was shining, the wind was behind me and after easing into the first mile I picked up the pace and basically managed to maintain it? 6.5 miles with an average moving pace of 7:40m/mile. I was very happy with that. As I said, one of those days!
Threshold Stats
FLYING LESSON & A SANDWICH
Not quite what you think. Petts Wood Runners are part of KLAN which is the Kent & London Athletics Network. As a result of this a 'flying coach' visit had been arranged where a professional coach would provide a training session and a Q&A session afterwards geared towards Spring Marathon training.
I was looking forward to this as the coach was no other than Nick Anderson who had coached me last year for Project 26.2. After going to Norman Park to watch Mich run Bromley Parkrun, I made my way to Beckenham Runners HQ. There were 13 of us in total from PWR & BRC. After a 5 min jog warm up, Nick put us through our paces with a 'sandwich session' which was 3 x 2 min 5k pace intervals sandwiched between 2 x10 min threshold sessions. A good workout and a good hours chat afterwards with Nick providing his expert knowledge, all accompanied with tea and choccy biscuits.
Everybody said they found the session useful and all came away more positive about their Marathon training. The only downside, was I forgot to get my Garmin off Mich before I left so was having to keep asking others the time when trying to judge the runs.
MUDDY (K)NIGHTS
Saturday night, Petts Wood Runners resident 'fruitcake' er I mean Ultra Runner Jerry had offered to take anybody daft enough on a night run through the woods. 9 of us met up at 19:50 in a variety of Opal Fruit coloured jackets and an equally diverse range of head torches.
Once Jerry had given us our briefing on safety, etiquette and general rules he led his Knights into the woods. I was in stitches as there were constant squeals from some of the girls as they were trying to avoid the mud (a futile effort). We covered 6.4 miles and the run was tough, muddy (very) but thourougly enjoyable and as Jerry said it is more of a sensory exeperience.
The clouds had cleared which meant it was a very chilly evening, but this also meant once in the heart of the woods with no light pollution penetrating, we stopped to look up to see a diamond encrusted sky. This type of run was a first for me, but definately something I want to repeat, as I said, thouroughly enjoyable and 'variety is the spice of life'
Once again, in ensuring I had torch, keys, gloves etc, I forgot my Garmin, leaving it on charge in the kitchen. Twice in a day, what a numpty!
Until next time
TJH
RECOVERY
After the Canterbury 10 on Sunday, I was suffering with DOMS on Monday which to me shows I didn't do enough stretching afterwards. So Monday lunchtime I went out with Jamie (My mate from work who is training for his 1st Marathon). He had done a 9 miler on Sunday, so was also suffering a bit. We must have looked like a couple of 80 year olds as we hobbled the 1st half a mile as we loosened up. We did an easy recovery run, 3 miles at just under 11min mile pace
INTERVALS
On Wednesday I did 5.5 miles with some intervals thrown in. I found it tough going but it was a good session to get the heart pumping
THRESHOLD
Friday was one of those days! And I don't mean that in a negative way. I plotted a new run on Mapmyrun that would mean I could loop back rather than have to go down Regent's canal and then back again. The sun was shining, the wind was behind me and after easing into the first mile I picked up the pace and basically managed to maintain it? 6.5 miles with an average moving pace of 7:40m/mile. I was very happy with that. As I said, one of those days!
Threshold Stats
FLYING LESSON & A SANDWICH
Not quite what you think. Petts Wood Runners are part of KLAN which is the Kent & London Athletics Network. As a result of this a 'flying coach' visit had been arranged where a professional coach would provide a training session and a Q&A session afterwards geared towards Spring Marathon training.
I was looking forward to this as the coach was no other than Nick Anderson who had coached me last year for Project 26.2. After going to Norman Park to watch Mich run Bromley Parkrun, I made my way to Beckenham Runners HQ. There were 13 of us in total from PWR & BRC. After a 5 min jog warm up, Nick put us through our paces with a 'sandwich session' which was 3 x 2 min 5k pace intervals sandwiched between 2 x10 min threshold sessions. A good workout and a good hours chat afterwards with Nick providing his expert knowledge, all accompanied with tea and choccy biscuits.
Everybody said they found the session useful and all came away more positive about their Marathon training. The only downside, was I forgot to get my Garmin off Mich before I left so was having to keep asking others the time when trying to judge the runs.
MUDDY (K)NIGHTS
Saturday night, Petts Wood Runners resident 'fruitcake' er I mean Ultra Runner Jerry had offered to take anybody daft enough on a night run through the woods. 9 of us met up at 19:50 in a variety of Opal Fruit coloured jackets and an equally diverse range of head torches.
 |
| Bright at Night |
The clouds had cleared which meant it was a very chilly evening, but this also meant once in the heart of the woods with no light pollution penetrating, we stopped to look up to see a diamond encrusted sky. This type of run was a first for me, but definately something I want to repeat, as I said, thouroughly enjoyable and 'variety is the spice of life'
Once again, in ensuring I had torch, keys, gloves etc, I forgot my Garmin, leaving it on charge in the kitchen. Twice in a day, what a numpty!
Until next time
TJH
Sunday, 27 January 2013
Niggles & Cross Training
It has been a couple of weeks since my last blog and to be honest I haven't been doing much running. In some ways the recent snow has been a bit of a blessing as conditions were not ideal for running, but I have had a niggle with my left glute/hamstring so had taken an enforced 9 day rest until today when I took part in the Canterbury 10.
CANTERBURY 10
We (Me, Mich & Max) drove to Canterbury in monsoon like conditions, but as we got closer to the venue, things were looking up and in fact the sound of the claxon blew the last of the clouds away and the 750+ runners were treated to blue skies (although a bit windy)
I got round in 1hour 23 mins, although my mile splits were a bit erratic I am glad to report that I got round with no repercussions and to be honest felt pretty good which shows a rest can be just as good as run.
Canterbury 10 Stats
I had been tweeting with Mark, one of the current Project 26.2 runners, but we didn't manage to meet up. He was too fast for me finishing 10 minutes ahead of me. PWR had a good showing with 20+ members taking part.
My traditional post run session is to now Google the closest public swimming pool to wherever I am running. I can then get changed into my swimming gear, have a shower and then an hour messing around in the pool with Max. Max even noticed in the changing rooms today that somebody else had a similar idea as he said "Daddy that man has dirty legs like you"
OTHER RUNS
The only other two runs that I have managed on the last two weeks was a run with Petts Wood two Tuesday's ago and a Friday lunchtime session with Jamie, the chap from work who I am helping with his London Marathon training.
CROSS TRAINING
I did have a different workout on the Saturday that we had all the snow. I had made the decision not to run, but Mich said she would. So whilst Mich (in pink) was running Parkrun with fellow PWRs Rachelle (in yellow) & Jo (in black)...
Max and I were building a Parkrun Snowman (with a sports bottle lid for a nose)!
So now I really have to step up my training if I am going to get to the start line of the Brighton Marathon in April!
Until next time
TJH
CANTERBURY 10
We (Me, Mich & Max) drove to Canterbury in monsoon like conditions, but as we got closer to the venue, things were looking up and in fact the sound of the claxon blew the last of the clouds away and the 750+ runners were treated to blue skies (although a bit windy)
I got round in 1hour 23 mins, although my mile splits were a bit erratic I am glad to report that I got round with no repercussions and to be honest felt pretty good which shows a rest can be just as good as run.
Canterbury 10 Stats
I had been tweeting with Mark, one of the current Project 26.2 runners, but we didn't manage to meet up. He was too fast for me finishing 10 minutes ahead of me. PWR had a good showing with 20+ members taking part.
My traditional post run session is to now Google the closest public swimming pool to wherever I am running. I can then get changed into my swimming gear, have a shower and then an hour messing around in the pool with Max. Max even noticed in the changing rooms today that somebody else had a similar idea as he said "Daddy that man has dirty legs like you"
OTHER RUNS
The only other two runs that I have managed on the last two weeks was a run with Petts Wood two Tuesday's ago and a Friday lunchtime session with Jamie, the chap from work who I am helping with his London Marathon training.
CROSS TRAINING
I did have a different workout on the Saturday that we had all the snow. I had made the decision not to run, but Mich said she would. So whilst Mich (in pink) was running Parkrun with fellow PWRs Rachelle (in yellow) & Jo (in black)...
So now I really have to step up my training if I am going to get to the start line of the Brighton Marathon in April!
Until next time
TJH
Friday, 11 January 2013
It's good to share
As I mentioned in my last blog, I knew I had tweaked my left calf muscle during the first mile of the Knacker Cracker on New Year's Day. When I woke the next day I had the dreaded DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) and I suffered these for the next 2 or 3 days, in fact worse than I experienced after the London Marathon last year. Just goes to show how tough the Knacker Cracker 10k is!
But in addition to the DOMS, my calf just didn't feel right so I took the sensible option of complete rest for a week even though this meant me missing the first run of the year with my club Petts Wood Runners and missing a Thursday night track session (also with PWR).
So it was Wednesday this week when the sharing began.
Firstly at lunchtime, I went for a gentle 3.5 mile run at lunchtime. This run had a duel purpose. One to test the calf and two to partner and provide guidance to a mate from work who this year is running the London Marathon. His first marathon! The run was a success from both perspectives.
Wednesday evening saw me travelling to The Guardian newspaper offices in Kings Cross as I had the privilege of being asked by the Multiple Sclerosis Trust to present (as a former London Marathon runner for the charity) at their London Marathon reception evening for all the runners that will be raising money for the MS Trust this year.
I think the presentation went down well, people laughed in the right places and I saw people taking notes. Although they might have just been writing a message to the person next to them asking 'who is this clown' Either way, it was nice to pass on information and guidance based on my experiences.
Who would have thought 18 months ago that a 17st+ beer swilling bloke by the name of 'The Hippo' would be passing on Marathon running advice a year and half later?
Today, I introduced Jamie (my mate from work) to a HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) session. So we ran along Regent's Canal to Victoria Park and then did some speed work before a slow jog back.
Again, no issues with the calf muscle, so full training resumes next week.
Where possible I like to have a picture or two in my blogs. As you would have saw from my last blog, I was wearing orange attire in my last race. In fact I even got a mention in one of the Runner's World runner reviews! Anyway I will leave you with a few action shots. Enjoy! or maybe feel sick ;-)
Until next time
TJH
But in addition to the DOMS, my calf just didn't feel right so I took the sensible option of complete rest for a week even though this meant me missing the first run of the year with my club Petts Wood Runners and missing a Thursday night track session (also with PWR).
So it was Wednesday this week when the sharing began.
Firstly at lunchtime, I went for a gentle 3.5 mile run at lunchtime. This run had a duel purpose. One to test the calf and two to partner and provide guidance to a mate from work who this year is running the London Marathon. His first marathon! The run was a success from both perspectives.
Wednesday evening saw me travelling to The Guardian newspaper offices in Kings Cross as I had the privilege of being asked by the Multiple Sclerosis Trust to present (as a former London Marathon runner for the charity) at their London Marathon reception evening for all the runners that will be raising money for the MS Trust this year.
I think the presentation went down well, people laughed in the right places and I saw people taking notes. Although they might have just been writing a message to the person next to them asking 'who is this clown' Either way, it was nice to pass on information and guidance based on my experiences.
Who would have thought 18 months ago that a 17st+ beer swilling bloke by the name of 'The Hippo' would be passing on Marathon running advice a year and half later?
Today, I introduced Jamie (my mate from work) to a HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) session. So we ran along Regent's Canal to Victoria Park and then did some speed work before a slow jog back.
Again, no issues with the calf muscle, so full training resumes next week.
Where possible I like to have a picture or two in my blogs. As you would have saw from my last blog, I was wearing orange attire in my last race. In fact I even got a mention in one of the Runner's World runner reviews! Anyway I will leave you with a few action shots. Enjoy! or maybe feel sick ;-)
Until next time
TJH
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| Pre race Fancy Dress parade |
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| Slogging it up the first hill |
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| What goes up, must come down |
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| Final charge to the finish! |
Tuesday, 1 January 2013
Christmas (& New Year) Crackers
To start, Happy New Year to you.
I have a confession. Since achieving my sub4 marathon in November, I have taken the foot of the gas somewhat and have only been running once or twice a week and over the last 2 or 3 weeks food and booze consumption has definitely exceeded my calorific requirements.
But hey, every now and then you earn a break. I am dreading getting back on the scales, but serious training now restarts with the Brighton Marathon in April as my next big target.
So what have I been up to. Well on Christmas Day, I along with 96 others turned up at Norman Park for Parkrun. The conditions were frankly ridiculous, but in all honesty great fun. Wind, rain, mud lots of it, some parts submerged ankle deep in water and just to rub salt into the wound, the sun even made a fleeting glimpse between the clouds. Not conditions for a PB, but nevertheless a morning run to pre-empt the afternoon's gluttony. Alas I have no photos as I don't have underwater casing for my camera. I managed to splash round in 25:11
Christmas Day Bromley Parkrun Stats
On Saturday, Mich was keen to run Parkrun. She is not a fan of the mud and as I wanted to run as well, that meant Max would be coming along in the buggy. I knew that conditions at Norman Park would not be conducive for trying to push the little man round.
We are very fortunate where we live with probably a dozen or so Parkruns within a 10 mile radius. So we drove to Herne Hill and took part in the the Brockwell Park event. A small but friendly event in a lovely park (so lovely that we returned on the Sunday Morning, as Max had spied the extensive kiddies playground).
The highlight, was seeing Mich finish, she will be the first to admit that she is not the fastest, but I was surprised at her finishing speed. It transpires that there was a 1st time lady who had inadvertently taken a shortcut and Mich was determined not to be last to somebody who had not ran the full distance. I am pleased to say that Mich achieved her goal. It is amazing what a bit of motivation can do.
Brockwell Parkrun Stats
A few months ago when it seemed a good idea, I signed up for the Knacker Cracker on New Years Day. I had a great New Years Eve Party at a friends house which included me spending an hour on the decks dropping some TUUUNES! 'DJ CV IN DA HOUSE' sorry got a bit carried away there. But due to the run, this meant that I limited myself to just 2 beers all night. So for the second year running I have awoken on New Year's Day without a hangover, unlike my wife :-)
I got to bed just gone 1:30am and set my alarm for 8am. Alas Max's internal body clock alarm goes off at 06:30am. Who needs sleep!
I left home at 9am, arriving at Box Hill just gone 10am. For those of not familiar with Box Hill, this is an infamous hill in Surrey predominantly used by cyclists and was included in the Olympic Cycling Road Race.
The weather was absolutely perfect, sunny, fresh and no wind.
I donned my gear and then made my way to the start to collect my number along with another couple of hundred of (fool)hardy souls.
This is the point where I reveal that the Knacker Cracker encourages fancy dress and I would say that 95% made the effort, so here it is, the disturbing photo that you have been warned about.....
There was some tremendous outfits all round including the Village People, lots of Disney characters, Nuns, Hot Dogs, Xmas Puddings and many many more.
Before the start of the event, there was a fancy dress parade and then everybody sang the National Anthem before we started. The jogging start quickly turned into a walk as we climbed the first hill. I was getting quite a few wolf whistles and one cheeky chap even squeezed my boob. I felt violated I can tell you. Another lady who was running down a hill whilst I was running up said 'Nice boobs' I wanted to repay the compliment, but managed to bite my tongue.
The course is bloody tough, as you go down one hill, the 'faster' runners are already on their way back up, but are either walking or have pained expressions on their faces which basically worried you even more. Camaraderie amongst the runners is brilliant and the marshalls are also excellent. There are also a lot of the general public out for a New Year Day walk. I mostly got lots of laughs and smiles, but did also get a couple of disgusted looks! 'Face Bothered'!
In the first mile, I managed to strain my left calf, but there was no way I was going to bail out of this, so just did some gentle stretching and didn't go to mad. I managed to finish the 10k in 1:14:23
Knacker Cracker Stats
At the finish I was presented with a Medal, Cap, Technical T-shirt (with a list of all the runners names on the back), a bottle of water, soup & cheese and pickle rolls. I even won a mystery prize in the raffle which was a Leith Hill Half Marathon Paper Weight. So I am going to have to do that race at some point now!
I must admit that I was disappointed not to win the fancy dress prize, but the judge was a young girl and a) she has probably never seen BayWatch, b) was quite frankly probably disturbed at my outfit and c) chose the chap as the Mad Hatter. His outfit was good to be fair!
Well, day one of the New Year and this could quite well be my favourite event of 2013. Great organisation and excellent fun!
Info, more photos and a video of the event can be found here KNACKER CRACKER
Now all I have to do is rest the calf for a while and start some serious training.
Incidentally, now you have seen my ridiculous outfit, I can reveal the following.
1) Whilst getting ready at home, Max said "Dad, why have you got boobs" I couldn't really explain. I am just concerned that he may go to pre-school now, saying that he has 2 mummy's!?
2) I had to stop off at the services for a pee on the way to the event. I had tracksuit bottoms and a hoodie on and no wig, but had to walk with my arms crossed to try and disguise my cleavage. Luckily it wasn't that busy, but I still got a few strange looks :-)
Until next time
TJH a.k.a Pammy
I have a confession. Since achieving my sub4 marathon in November, I have taken the foot of the gas somewhat and have only been running once or twice a week and over the last 2 or 3 weeks food and booze consumption has definitely exceeded my calorific requirements.
But hey, every now and then you earn a break. I am dreading getting back on the scales, but serious training now restarts with the Brighton Marathon in April as my next big target.
So what have I been up to. Well on Christmas Day, I along with 96 others turned up at Norman Park for Parkrun. The conditions were frankly ridiculous, but in all honesty great fun. Wind, rain, mud lots of it, some parts submerged ankle deep in water and just to rub salt into the wound, the sun even made a fleeting glimpse between the clouds. Not conditions for a PB, but nevertheless a morning run to pre-empt the afternoon's gluttony. Alas I have no photos as I don't have underwater casing for my camera. I managed to splash round in 25:11
Christmas Day Bromley Parkrun Stats
On Saturday, Mich was keen to run Parkrun. She is not a fan of the mud and as I wanted to run as well, that meant Max would be coming along in the buggy. I knew that conditions at Norman Park would not be conducive for trying to push the little man round.
We are very fortunate where we live with probably a dozen or so Parkruns within a 10 mile radius. So we drove to Herne Hill and took part in the the Brockwell Park event. A small but friendly event in a lovely park (so lovely that we returned on the Sunday Morning, as Max had spied the extensive kiddies playground).
The highlight, was seeing Mich finish, she will be the first to admit that she is not the fastest, but I was surprised at her finishing speed. It transpires that there was a 1st time lady who had inadvertently taken a shortcut and Mich was determined not to be last to somebody who had not ran the full distance. I am pleased to say that Mich achieved her goal. It is amazing what a bit of motivation can do.
Brockwell Parkrun Stats
A few months ago when it seemed a good idea, I signed up for the Knacker Cracker on New Years Day. I had a great New Years Eve Party at a friends house which included me spending an hour on the decks dropping some TUUUNES! 'DJ CV IN DA HOUSE' sorry got a bit carried away there. But due to the run, this meant that I limited myself to just 2 beers all night. So for the second year running I have awoken on New Year's Day without a hangover, unlike my wife :-)
I got to bed just gone 1:30am and set my alarm for 8am. Alas Max's internal body clock alarm goes off at 06:30am. Who needs sleep!
I left home at 9am, arriving at Box Hill just gone 10am. For those of not familiar with Box Hill, this is an infamous hill in Surrey predominantly used by cyclists and was included in the Olympic Cycling Road Race.
The weather was absolutely perfect, sunny, fresh and no wind.
I donned my gear and then made my way to the start to collect my number along with another couple of hundred of (fool)hardy souls.
This is the point where I reveal that the Knacker Cracker encourages fancy dress and I would say that 95% made the effort, so here it is, the disturbing photo that you have been warned about.....
 |
| Didn't have time to wax, and as you can see, not a natural blonde! |
There was some tremendous outfits all round including the Village People, lots of Disney characters, Nuns, Hot Dogs, Xmas Puddings and many many more.
Before the start of the event, there was a fancy dress parade and then everybody sang the National Anthem before we started. The jogging start quickly turned into a walk as we climbed the first hill. I was getting quite a few wolf whistles and one cheeky chap even squeezed my boob. I felt violated I can tell you. Another lady who was running down a hill whilst I was running up said 'Nice boobs' I wanted to repay the compliment, but managed to bite my tongue.
The course is bloody tough, as you go down one hill, the 'faster' runners are already on their way back up, but are either walking or have pained expressions on their faces which basically worried you even more. Camaraderie amongst the runners is brilliant and the marshalls are also excellent. There are also a lot of the general public out for a New Year Day walk. I mostly got lots of laughs and smiles, but did also get a couple of disgusted looks! 'Face Bothered'!
In the first mile, I managed to strain my left calf, but there was no way I was going to bail out of this, so just did some gentle stretching and didn't go to mad. I managed to finish the 10k in 1:14:23
Knacker Cracker Stats
At the finish I was presented with a Medal, Cap, Technical T-shirt (with a list of all the runners names on the back), a bottle of water, soup & cheese and pickle rolls. I even won a mystery prize in the raffle which was a Leith Hill Half Marathon Paper Weight. So I am going to have to do that race at some point now!
I must admit that I was disappointed not to win the fancy dress prize, but the judge was a young girl and a) she has probably never seen BayWatch, b) was quite frankly probably disturbed at my outfit and c) chose the chap as the Mad Hatter. His outfit was good to be fair!
Well, day one of the New Year and this could quite well be my favourite event of 2013. Great organisation and excellent fun!
Info, more photos and a video of the event can be found here KNACKER CRACKER
Now all I have to do is rest the calf for a while and start some serious training.
Incidentally, now you have seen my ridiculous outfit, I can reveal the following.
1) Whilst getting ready at home, Max said "Dad, why have you got boobs" I couldn't really explain. I am just concerned that he may go to pre-school now, saying that he has 2 mummy's!?
2) I had to stop off at the services for a pee on the way to the event. I had tracksuit bottoms and a hoodie on and no wig, but had to walk with my arms crossed to try and disguise my cleavage. Luckily it wasn't that busy, but I still got a few strange looks :-)
Until next time
TJH a.k.a Pammy
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