Gutted!

If you have been following my blogs you will be aware that I have been having an issue with my right knee and you are might be aware that just over 5 years ago I had keyhole surgery on my knee on my meniscus (football injury).  I then took up cycling which then led me back into running.

My recent issues started in March this year when taking part in the Tunbridge Wells Half Marathon which is quite hilly.  It was the downhill elements that seemed to cause the issues and I ended up having to walk the last 3 miles or so.

Since then, I have pulled out of the Brighton Marathon but then trundled round the Kent RoadRunner Marathon.  Last night I took part in the JP Morgan Chase Corporate run and again was still having issues with my knee.  

Over the last 4 months, I have had a multitude of physio sessions, seen a Sports and Musculoskeletal Physician, been for MRI scans and this morning I had a consultation with an Orthopaedic Surgeon who specialises in knee disorders. 

He had a simple instruction for me; "Give Up Running"  Now I was already prepared for this and was ready to come back with, 'well do whatever surgery that is required to get me back running'. 

However, he then took me through my MRI scans showed me where the issues were with my meniscus and cartilage, highlighted the signs that arthritis was beginning (arthritis is heredity in my family)  He frankly explained the following;

• I could have a first operation which would be to 'tidy up' my cartilage and I could be back and running within 3 months
• If need be I could have a 2^nd operation where they could drill holes into my bone in which the seeping bone marrow would create a kind of polyfilla in my knee.  This would result in 6 weeks+ on crutches and probably another 6 months of rehabilitation before I could even start to consider running again

But irrespective of what operation I have if I was to continue with long distance running there is a significant probability that I would have to have a replacement knee operation by the time I am 45 (less than 7 years)

Now I wasn't prepared for that damning diagnosis!

I must admit I am a bit gutted.  As you might have gathered I do actually enjoy my running, but it would be foolish of me to continue in the long run (pun well and truly intended).  I did explain to the consultant that I had the Olympic Run and the Adidas Thunder Run coming up in the next three weeks.  He said, "well if you can get through those without too much discomfort, all well and good, but then that has to be it!"  I even asked what he considered as long distance running and could I still do half marathons?  His honest opinion was no more than 5k! At least maybe I can still run Parkrun, albeit not as frequently as I would like?

Looking at my Garmin stats (which I have worn for probably 99% of my runs) in the last two years I have run over 1300 miles.  So for a bloke that has always carried a few extra pounds in weight, that is quite a bit of wear and tear on the old joints.

The good news is that from a fitness perspective and from a knee perspective is that I can continue cycling (also swimming or rowing).  The bad news (particularly for Mich my wife) is that when we have weekends away, instead of me disappearing typically for 2-3 hours to run a half marathon, I will probably be gone for 7-9 hours cycling 100k events. On the flip side, hopefully Mich will keep up with her running and I can repay her by supporting her at events as she as done so many times for me.

I rang Mich when I came out of the hospital and told her the news.  Max my 3yo boy obviously heard some of the conversation, so Mich had explained to him the situation.  I then received a phone call at work in this afternoon from Mich's mobile, when I answered it, Max was on the phone and the conversation went roughly as follows

Me         "Hello"

Max       "Hello Daddy"

Me         "Hello Buddy"

Max       "Are you still sad"

Me         (now smiling) "No I am OK buddy"

Max       "Are we going running"

Me         "Not really mate, I can't"

Max       "Oh, isn't your leg getting better"

Me         "It will do mate, maybe we can go cycling"

Max       "Can I go cycling with you"

Me         "Yes mate"

Max then shouted to Mich "Daddy said we can go cycling together"

There is nothing more uplifting than a conversation like this from (in my own biased opinion) a very perceptive 3yo boy.

This now means that I won't get to achieve my hatrick of Barcelona Half Marathons. I have already entered next year's RoadRunner Marathon, so there is a place going if anybody wants it? And knowing my luck, I will now get accepted via the ballot for next year's London Marathon!

So the JoggingHippo Jog Blog is now on borrowed time.  I will still blog about the Olympic Run and the Adidas Thunder Run, but then I will need to get my creative thinking cap on and change the name of my blog to something cycling related? Ideas on a postcard.

At least I achieved my sub-4 Marathon!

Until next time

TJH

Time Flies

Blimey, it has been a month since I wrote my last blog.  I have been busy, but not busy enough running!

I have have been on a cracking family holiday for 11 days in Majorca. I did manage to get out running twice, once on my own running just over 4 miles and also out with Mich my wife (whilst pushing Max in his buggy) when we did a couple of miles.

Holiday Run

When you have a 3yo old boy though, it meant that I spent 90% of my time in the pool, jumping, splashing, swimming and Max's favourite 'pushing Daddy in'

I have also been busy creating a new website for Petts Wood Runners.  It is now live, so have a look

www.pettswoodrunners.org

I have managed to get out twice with PWR for the Tuesday night runs.  Last week was our traditional annual Midsummers Night Run.  Instead of being in our usual 7 groups, we merge into 3 groups, have two stops where drinks (including beer and wine) are available and then finish up at our Men's Captain Garden, we we have Pimms on the lawn and have our annual presentation.

Midsummers Night Run

Did somebody say there is Pimms tonight?

Unbeknown to me I picked up a trophy for 3rd place in the group that I competed in our club Grand Prix.  (I had missed a few events due to injury, so wasn't expecting it).

On Saturday, I took part in my annual pilgrimage to my favourite Brewery; The Hogs Back Brewery.  This involves meeting at my boss's house for Bacon Butties, before embarking on an 8 mile walk to the Brewery across the North Down's followed by the tour and vast quantity of real ale and then a BBQ back at my boss's to finish!  The walk was an extra challenge for me as for 6 of the miles I had to carry Max on my back in the carry rucksack!

Brewery Walk

Not content with an 8 mile Saturday Walk, Mich and I also ran the Guildford Parkrun in the morning.  This is quite a tough undulating course and once again, I was Max's chauffeur as I pushed him round in the buggy

Guildford Parkrun

So whilst this all sound quite busy, it actually means that in a month, I have only managed to run 5 times! As well as being busy, the other reason is that I am still having issues with my knee.  So another visit to the specialist is required to try and discover the route of the problem!

I should now be back into regular blog mode.

Until next time
TJH

Not Ordinary or Standard

Saturday 1st June, the date of the Kent RoadRunner Marathon which would be my fifth Marathon.  Today would certainly be a case of mind over matter and this will probably be quite a long blog, so you might need to mental resolution to read through this?

If you have been reading my blogs, you will know that preparation for this Marathon has been far from ordinary or standard.  In fact I only entered this Marathon, when I realised I was going to be unable to run the Brighton Marathon in April after picking up a knee injury during the Tunbridge Wells Half Marathon in March.

Lo and behold, I then won a competition via the Southern Running Guide, which gave me entry into the Marathon, 2 nights in the Dartford Hilton Hotel and an exclusive polo shirt.  So I was determined to run (and hopefully complete) this Marathon.

I was only given the all clear that I could at least attempt the Marathon last week after having the results of my MRI scans back.  No further damage to my meniscus in my knee, but some damage to my cartilage and bruising.

Anyway after getting home from work and sorting the final bits out, Mich, Max and I drove to the Hilton.  Just to top the poor preparation, Max had a nasty cough all night that meant all 3 of us had a rubbish nights sleep.

At 06:15 the alarm that I set sounded.  Looking out of the window, I was pleased to see cloudy conditions.  Friday afternoon had been quite hot and there was talk that the weekend would be more of the same.  So I sorted myself out and had my brekkie.

Getting to the venue, The Cyclosport complex was simplicity itself and we arrived at 07:30, within 5 minutes, I had my number, timing chip and 16 wrist bands, not an ordinary or normal item you would receive normally at a Marathon, but then this isn't a ordinary or normal (despite the distance) Marathon.

16 bands and a camera strap in the shot for good measure

As the Marathon is round the Cyclosport tarmac track, you have to run 17 laps.  At the end of each lap you remove a band and chuck it into a large plastic container.  Sounds a bit strange, but it is a simple and effective method

Once I had got myself sorted, I went in search for Ian the race organiser and introduced myself, he asked me to be near the front at the start, so he could make a quick presentation.

My final warm up before the run was to play football with Max, probably not the most conventional of warm ups, but Max was happy. I bumped into and had a chat with a few people I knew, Kris from work and Rupert from Orpington Runners.

So at 08:55 the 350 odd runners assembled at the start line.  There were a selection of international flags and this we were told represented the nationalities of the people that had or were taking part in this Marathon (2013 being only the 2nd year of this event)  The Japan and Nigeria flags were the ones that stood out.

In addition to my presentation, 3 people were celebrating their birthdays by running a Marathon and there was a far more impressive presentation to a lady called Rachel who was running her 100th Marathon.  In fact there were quite a few running vests from 100 Marathon Club, obviously these centurions were keen to add this Marathon to their collection.

Ian (Race Director) presenting me with my polo shirt (c) Stuart March Photography



Shortly after 9am, we were off.  I had heard on the grapevine that this was a relatively flat course and good for a PB.  The word 'relative' is the key part of this sentence.  I will admit there are no lung busting hills, but there are 3 notable inclines, now if you multiply that by 17, I think you get the picture.

So a bit about the race in general. 

How many Marathon's do you know that only have 1 water station? Well when you have a 17 lap course, that is all you need and this was no ordinary or normal water station.  Water, juice, energy cubes, biscuits, jelly babies, donuts.  It was near on a picnic!  Plus, there is a section where runners could set up their own table where people could have their own provisions to hand. So no need really for running belts or having to carry any gels etc. 

One chap was commissioned to run around the course the wrong way just keep an eye on everybody.  This chap was fantastic, firstly he was wearing a Help for Heroes running vest (Top Man) but he also was encouraging everybody as he ran against the tide.  Now considering he was passing 330+ runners 17 times, that in itself requires a lot of energy, let alone having to run a Marathon also.

The two photographers were very friendly and also very encouraging and the race day photos are free! Again how many Marathon's do you know that provide free photos?  The prices these days of obtaining even just a digital image are quite frankly obscene.

The Marshalls, one word, Fantastic, every single one of them.  Special mention must go to Linda who was standing on the hill over the bridge.  She had an assortment of musical items (bells, castanets, whistle etc) and the energy she showed to stand there for probably 6+ hours and encourage everybody deserves a medal.  I had a bit of banter with her on every lap.

Those previous 3 paragraphs might seem that I am writing this because I won the competition, but i can assure you this is an unbiased honest appraisal

Now about my race.

My longest training run for this event was a 13 mile run, one month prior and my average weekly mileage was under 20 miles.  Ask anybody who has run a Marathon and 99% will tell you that is not enough.  I now have conclusive proof of that.

I started off at a 9 min/mile pace and managed to maintain that for 9 miles.  Yes I did have some discomfort in my knee, but the brutal truth is that of lack of training (albeit knee related) you will be found out in a Marathon, there is no hiding place.  I managed the Half Marathon in sub2 but I knew I was looking at at least 4:30 finish time.  During the second part of the race I adopted a run-walk strategy, but my walking also included the couple of sharpish decline, purely because it was less painful on my knee.

The one thing that all but the fastest runners know is that you are going to be lapped.  My mate Kris, who actually finished in under 3 hours!! I think lapped me 5 times :-)  But what is also strange is that somebody can overtake you but they can actually be a lap or two behind you.  Also as you get near the end you are trying to work out if you only have 2 or 3 laps left.  But you have to get rid of your last band and then you are your final lap.

I can tell you those bands become a bit of an obsession.

Mich and Max had been there to see me run my first couple of laps and then Mich took Max back to Bromley for his Munckin Athletics, but being only a 30 minute drive away I knew they would be back before I finished.  When I did see them again, I had 5 laps left, Max was waiting there ready to give me a High-Five.  I was glad I saw them as I needed some Vaseline, as for some reason, my under arms were rubbing and getting red raw.  A bloke running behind me said "Mate can I have some as well please", " No problems I replied"  He however, had rubbing issues in a slightly more tender area"!

As I came up the finishing straight for the final time, instead of high-fiving him I grabbed his hand and we ran (shuffled) the last 100 metres together, a very proud father & son moment.

Wave to Mummy

 

Father and Son completing a Marathon

 

My final time was 4:47:50.  Garmin stats via the link below.  Please note the elevation! Not flat ;-)

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/321884760

Oh so that now means that PWR doesn't stand for Petts Wood Runners, but Personal Worst (for) Ray.  But I really am not bothered, I finished.

Once I had collect my medal, I can assure you this is no ordinary or standard medal either, it is a whopper! we made our way back to the hotel and once I had stretched and showered, I had the perfect post run nutritional refuel of Fish & Chips and a couple of pints of real ale. Bliss!

Max had to help hold the medal up as I was knackered

I whole heartedly recommend this Marathon.  It is certainly a challenge, not only physically, but psychologically as well.  But it is not standard or ordinary and that is what makes it great!  I will be doing this again, hopefully with some ordinary and standard prep?

Until next time
TJH

Injury Update

Seeing the specialist on my Birthday yesterday, meant that I was possibly going to receive an unwelcome present.

Well I received a mixture of good and not so good news.

My foot doesn't have a stress fracture, but does have some bone bruising and inflammation.  It does seem though that I did have a stress fracture previously.

With respect to me knee.  I do not have any additional issues with my meniscus, but I due have some damage to my cartilage behind the knee and again some bruising to the bone.

Not a clean bill of health, but at least I don't have a stress fracture and my meniscus which had been operated on hasn't deteriorated.

So it does mean that I will be going to the ball and with caution I can run the Kent Road Runner Marathon next week. :-)  The main objective being completion rather than worrying too much about the time.

Then subsequently more cross training to strengthen the knee and also reduce the high impact exercise.  I was planning on running an Autumn Marathon, but having run (Kent Road Runner Marathon pending) 3 Marathons in 18 months, I think I am going to take a bit of a break from the longer stuff. Except of course the Adidas 24 hour Thunder Run in July, but that is only 10k, albeit probably 5 times in 24 hours. Then I will stick to 10k's and the odd Half Marathon for the rest of the year.

I am also going to ensure I take a combined MSM, Glucosamine & Chondroitin and a Omega 3 oil supplement to try and help with my joints.

Until next time
TJH

What does MRI stand for?

I thought that it could be 'Mr Ray's Injuries' or maybe 'Marathon Running Implications' but the Internet tells me that it actually means 'Magnetic Resonance Imaging' and I think that is what the medical profession will be sticking with.

Anyway, on Wednesday evening I was booked in for two MRI scans one on my right knee and one on my left foot.

I am fortunate enough to have private health care through my work.  After registering, I was taken to the MRI area and was shown to a room where I could get changed and put my belongings into a locker.  I was also informed to have a look at the list on the wall and choose which music I would like to listen to whilst having my scans! :-)

 

 

When I got back to the waiting area, there were two other women waiting, so I asked what music they had chosen, but they were both waiting for x-rays and apparently didn't have the option of music. I decided to go for Moby to start with (but I must admit the Play album is much better) and then when my foot was scanned, I was asked if I wanted to change the music, I then went for David Gray (but I must admit that the White Ladder album is much better also).  I did consider going for Queen Greatest Hits, but if Don't Stop Me Now came on, I am not sure I could have kept still for the scan!

 

So why am I having these scans?

Five years ago I had a knee arthroscopy (better known as keyhole surgery) this was as a result of a football injury.  The surgery was to repair a torn meniscus.  At the time, my surgeon explained that I had to give up football and running.  I therefore took up cycling, which 2 years later resulted in me cycling from Lands End to John O'Groats.

Having an effective 3 year break from running/football my knee slowly got stronger and stronger and then having seen a mate running the London Marathon in 2011, I decided that I wanted to start running again.  Since August 2011 I have now been running pretty much every week.

I have tried playing a couple of games of 5-a-side football, but the constant change of direction and twisting and turning means I experience discomfort in the knee.  So the football boots are well and truly hung-up.

But since suffering my knee injury earlier this year in the Tunbridge Wells Half (resulting in me having to walk the last 3.5 miles) something has definitely been amiss.  I am concerned that maybe the constant running has weakened my knee?

Also as a result of this, I have been experiencing pain in my left foot, which maybe a result of sub conscious change of running style to compensate for my right knee?

So scans have now been done and I see the specialist tomorrow to see what the diagnosis is? and whether I can run the Kent Road Runner Marathon next week?

The other advantage of going private is that you get your own CD with your images, so here are images of my foot and knee. Not sure if they are good or bad news?

 

I will post a blog update to disclose the conclusion. 
TJH

L

If parkrun existed during the Roman era, some people would be running around parks on a Saturday morning with a red t-shirt with the title of this blog on their back.  However, our numbering system seems to be a bit simpler so a nice 50 will do!

In case you haven't gathered I ran my 50th parkrun this weekend.

If you don't know what parkrun is, in a nutshell it is a FREE timed 5k run run completely by volunteers.  These happen in parks all over the country at 9am every Saturday morning (oh and for some parkruns on Christmas & New Year's Day as well)  The initiative has also taken off in Australia, America, Poland, Scandinavia.  There is even a parkrun at for the squaddies at Camp Bastion in Afghanistan!

You get issued with a bar code and once you complete the run, you get a placing token.  These are then both scanned and by the afternoon you receive an e-mail and/or a text telling you your time and position and the website is updated with the results.

All the info you could want to find, including how to register and obtain you bar code go to the website parkrun.

Now I am far from unique achieving 50 parkruns, there are literally hundreds of people that have done it.  There are also hundreds that are in the 100 club and a select few that have notched up 250 parkruns! For youngsters, the first milestone is 10 runs.

When you reach one of these milestones you are awarded with a technical t-shirt. 

It is very pleasing to have reached the 50 milestone. That means I have run 250k mainly on Saturday mornings, but with a couple of Christmas Days and & New Year's Day thrown in.

I ran my first parkrun at Bromley on 27th August 2011 finishing in 26:03 and I ran my 50th yesterday at Bromley in 22:59.  Although it was only my 41st parkrun at Bromley.  I have also managed to take in local parkruns at Orpington, Herne Hill, Ladywell, Bexley, Crystal Palace & Dulwich and also a couple further afield in Poole & Oxford. My current PB is 21:53.

I have not always run parkrun alone.  My wife Mich has now run 13 parkruns and Max has been pushed around in the running buggy over a dozen times and at half a dozen venues.

As I mentioned at the beginning, parkrun is all down to volunteers, without volunteers parkrun wouldn't exist. I have volunteered four times now. I have been a pacer, a timer, handed out the finishing tokens and scanned the tokens. It is very rewarding to help out, enabling others to run.

It was due to running at Bromley parkrun that I got chatting to some Petts Wood Runners and ultimately joined the club.  Bromley parkrun is also an extremely friendly event with tea coffee, water, cakes and biscuits provided either home baked by the runners or purchased from donations. (To be honest every single parkrun I have been to is friendly)

The last couple of paragraphs may seem that an advert for parkrun and maybe they are, but I have not been asked to do this, and I haven't come across anybody who has a bad word to say about parkrun and I am sure 99.9% of parkrunners would agree that it is a great, fun initiative.

And to top it all, Bromley parkrun is not all about running with social events sometimes organised which usually involved beer and curry (the staple diet of any budding athlete)

So next objective is the C club, well it would be if I was Roman ;-)

Until the next time
TJH

Club Running

It's been a three weeks since I last blogged. I have been a bit busy and just haven't got round to it.  I could type a mammoth blog covering all sorts of topics, but thought I would focus on club running.

For anybody who has read any of my blogs before, you will be fully aware that I am a member of Petts Wood Runners.  I have only been a member for a couple of years, but I can honestly say it has transformed my running.

Prior to training for the 2012 London Marathon, I had never even considered joining a running club.  More content with reading the running magazines or looking for information and advice on the Internet.  Through one of the free running magazines, I discovered Parkrun.  A lot of the regular volunteers at Bromley Parkrun are PWR's and that is how I found out about the club.

So I just want to highlight some of the benefits of being part of a running club. I can obviously only vouch for PWR, but I am pretty sure that all running clubs have the same ethos. 

We meet on a Tuesday night for the regular weekly run.  Numbers can vary from 40 to over 100 people turning up and there are 7 groups catering for all paces.  PWR also run a regular beginners group, where people who are completely new to running embark on an 8 week course culminating in a 5k Parkrun.

We have additional 'track sessions' on a Thursday night, using the Norman's Park Athletics Track going through various drills for different targets eg 5k or maybe 10k.  In addition, now we have the light evenings another Thursday session is run concentrating on a core workout!

On Sunday's we have informal runs especially during the training period for the Spring Marathons.

Add to this that as a club we can turn up en-mass to 10k events & Half Marathons, we also compete in other events such as the Assembly league (a series of 5k races), cross country events, the list goes on.

So as you can see, there is pretty much something for everyone.  Add to this the social side, friendships, sharing advice, comparing war wounds.  If you are a regular runner, I honestly cannot see a downside to not joining a club! 

We also host an annual 10k which is regularly voted one of the top 10k's in the country and a lot of that is down to the PWR members who give up a considerable amount of time to organise, officiate and marshall the event.

Best of all is having other people (in addition to your family) cheering you on at events, it's amazing how a bit of encouragement can help you squeeze out an extra 2% effort in a finish!

I am just going to highlight a couple of recent events I have been involved as part of PWR.


TRUSTWORTHY
A couple of weeks ago Petts Wood Runners organised a 'Mob Match' against three other clubs; Orpington Road Runners (our local rivals) along with New Eltham Runners & Bexley Runners. I think this is the 3rd Mob Match that I have been involved in and as always the camaraderie between all the runners was superb.  The basis of a mob match if you don't know, is your finishing position determines your points and the club with the least number of points is declared the winner (scoring adjusted according to the club with the least number of runners at the event)

A local Sports Shop, Cook & Matthews who provide PWR with our club kit, had organised for some suppliers to be present, including Mizuno.

Mizuno had about 100 pairs of their shoes in different models and sizes and we were invited to wear a new pair of trainer for the event, if we liked them, we had the opportunity to purchase them at 50% discount, if not, just give them back!  I think that proves just what a trustworthy bunch us runner are.

However, I can trump that.  As it was a pleasant evening, Mich and Max came to watch and 10 mins before the start of the event, a woman approached us and asked if Mich would look after her 5yo boy.  Mich was a bit taken aback and said, "er sorry who are you", she gave her name and then Mich said "are you Petts Wood", the woman replied, "no I am with Bexley".

Mich 'baby sat' whilst this woman ran and Max had a little friend to play with.  But it epitomises the camaraderie of runners.  Although to be honest, not sure if I would approach a complete stranger and ask them to look after Max?

But it was a really good event, with free food, a raffle and the icing on the cake was the clubhouse had T.E.A (Traditional English Ale) from the HogsBack Brewery on handpump.  Like a pig in $hit ;-)

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/308579367

Oh, Orpington won the Mob Match.  Booooooo

RELAY
Tonight as I type this, I have just got back from a Relay event hosted by Beckenham Runners.  Again a first for me.  In fact the last time I did a relay was probably 25 years ago at school?  But this isn't a 100 metre relay passing a baton.  This is a 2.6mile relay with teams of 3.  Once again a great event catering for all speeds.  PWR entered 8 teams.  I was running the 2nd leg for my team.  We were playing catch up from the start as when the horn sounded, Chris running the 1st leg was in the bushes having a pee, so ended up doing a 200+ metre sprint to play catch up from the outset!  Must have been the nerves!  I managed to run my leg in 19:25 which is an average 7:25 min/mile, so was quite pleased with that.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/313270617

Haven't yet got the formal results, but another good evening and the majority of the runners stayed to the end to cheer the last couple of people home!

So another event done that I wouldn't have done if I was not part of a running club and a good way of using an event as part of a training plan eg, a threshold run.

Blimey, this was meant to be a short blog based around one topic.

To conclude, if you do not belong to a running club, join one! Even Mich my wife is now a member :-)

Until Next Time
TJH