Fun training in the sun

Straight after the Cranleigh 21 I headed out to Dubai and Abu Dhabi for a 10 day holiday and I knew that whilst there I wanted to do a bit of training. This was the first time I've ever done any exercise on holiday.

Luckily the Dubai hotel we were staying in had a great gym equipped with 5 treadmills, so I made use of that every morning. I was always the only one in the gym as well which was a bonus!

When we headed to Abu Dhabi though, it was time to run outdoors.

My sister (who we were staying with) lives opposite a mosque, and the first prayer call was at 04:50am each day! It was so loud that I decided it was probably worth just getting up and running then, as the sun hadn't yet come up and it would be cooler...

Well, it was still hot at that time, believe me! Around 15 degrees I think. As my training has been taking place in freezing Blighty, this heat on my shoulders was a shock to the system! I was surprised at how much more difficult the running was in those conditions - 4 miles seemed the equivalent to 8 or 9 at home.

An early morning run on the beach

Still, I'm pleased I managed to keep the training up and am sure the heat training will help me on marathon day. Let's hope it's a bit cooler than it is today (10 degrees would be perfect Mr Weatherman!)

Lovely having the gym to myself overlooking the pool

Cranleigh 21

Apologies for the delay in blogging but my recent holiday to Dubai got in the way somewhat :)

On Sunday 24th March I ran my longest race, the Cranleigh 21.

It was a bitterly cold day (zero degrees when we left home at 7am) so I made sure I had plenty of layers on, including gloves, which I'd learnt the lesson from after the Worthing 20. When we arrived in Cranleigh I headed for the band room to meet some of the other runners, and mostly keep warm before the 9am start!

It was a strange race in that there was no obvious start (it was literally on a side road, with no apparent signs), but that didn't matter - once the race started we headed out towards the countryside anyway.

The course included a few surprise hills, and was a 9 mile circuit with 2 additional 6 mile loops. Basically you could choose to run 15 or 21 miles on the day. I went through 9 miles fine, and as I was wearing my St Catherines marathon vest with my name printed on, lots of people were shouting support through the high street, which was much appreciated.

I then completed my first 6 mile loop, going past the 15 mile finish. I must admit, a teeny part of me said that I should just finish at 15 miles! It wasn't that I was exhausted...I was so cold! I literally thought my face was going to fall off, it was horrible. But I dug deep and saw it through. The last 2 miles were a killer though - my legs were a bit sore and then there was that awful hill climb to the finish.

At one point another runner told me that I shouldn't have my headphones in as I wouldn't be able to hear the traffic, and I snapped back at her that I couldn't run without music. I honestly don't know how people can do that - music is the only thing that keeps me going!

I was very glad to finish in 3hrs 22mins, and I knew then that I was definitely ready for Dubai and to start my taper!

Worthing 20

Yesterday saw me undertake my biggest running challenge to date – the Worthing 20 mile road race!

It was a bitterly cold and very windy day, and I have to admit that I didn’t wake up in the most positive running mood, but once I stood on the start line I decided to put all of that aside and just go for it.

 

The race consisted of 4 x laps of a 5 mile course, and was completely flat., which provided a great pacemaker for the marathon.

My race plan was to take it really slow on lap 1 and build up speed for the other 3 laps. The plan started off well as I came through lap one in 50 minutes, and as I came through lap 2 at 1hr 42mins I felt really good, and positive. I picked the pace up and at the end of lap 3, went through thinking “only one lap to go”. And then something changed. As I went through 17 miles I think I must have hit a ‘wall’ as my legs started to feel really heavy and there wasn’t much left in the tank – not good with 3 miles to go! I managed to compose myself, take on some gels and pick myself up to complete the race. But it wasn’t easy.

 

I’ve come away in 2 mind sets: positive that I’m able to run 20 miles (this was my longest run to date), but also nervous with the fact that I still have another 6.2 miles to go on marathon day! All I can do now is put in another few long runs and then start to taper off – I’m sure I’ll be fine!

I finished in 3hrs 14mins, I originally thought it was 3hrs 12mins, but my Garmin was slightly ahead of the chip time for some reason.

 Stats

Chip time: 3:14:38

Pace per mile: 09:44

Category position: 46/79

Gender position: 103/1077

Here’s the latest medal in my collection.

 

 

Next stop the Cranleigh 21!

28k - longest run yet

On Sunday I completed my longest run to date - 17.4 miles (28k).

I woke up bright and breezy at 7am and headed out in the bitter cold with the intention of running solidly for 3 hours and see how it went.

The pace remained slow and steady as I didn't want to over-do it, and the 3 hours flew by! I was in my own world, with Andy C and Nero keeping me company on my iPod.

As I headed home just over 3 hours later, I realised I'd just run 17.4 miles which is two thirds of the marathon distance :)

This has made me feel a lot more confident about the next few big races I have - the Worthing 20 and the Cranleigh 21.

I still can't quite believe how far I'm now able to run. 6 months ago I was struggling to run 10k!

The Brighton Half Marathon - 17 Feb 2013

Yesterday I completed my first ever half marathon in Brighton!

It really was a perfect day for running – the sun was out, it was around 4 degrees (probably felt a little colder), and there was no wind chill.

Having stayed the night before at some relatives in Hove, I woke up at 6.30am to have my porridge in plenty of time before the race and was slightly nervous – not because I didn’t think I could run the distance, but because I wasn’t sure what to expect I suppose.

So porridge eaten, stretching completed, I headed down to the sea front just after 8am where runners had already started to arrive. It was great atmosphere down there - Heart FM were broadcasting the event live, and there was just a general pre-race buzz of excitement.

I chatted to a few people I knew and then before we knew it, we were told to get into our start ‘pens’ – basically the time that you thought you’d finish in. I headed for the 2hour group, and in hindsight I should have gone in the quicker group as once the race started, I was held up for around 2.5 miles with slower runners. There was no room to overtake anyone either, but at the same time I didn’t want to push things too early on.

We headed over to the Pavillion and then East towards the Marina, where there was a slight hill increase, but other than that the course was predominantly flat, which was great, and allowed to take in some amazing seafront scenery.

 

 

At the 10 mile mark my legs started to feel quite heavy, but as we turned back towards the Pier with 3.1 miles to go I told myself it wasn’t far to go, grabbed some Lucozade and picked up the speed.

I did make one mistake though – with 800 metres to go decided it would be a good idea to go for a sprint finish, not realising that actually 800 metres is still quite a long way!!! By the time I crossed the line I was exhausted, but I’d managed to complete the race in less than 2 hours, which was always my ultimate aim. The final time was 1hr 57:25!!!

 

Here is my shiny medal!

 

 

My key learnings from the day were:

-          Don’t go in a start pen that is too slow - if anything go at the back of a faster one

-          Don’t go for a sprint finish with 800m to go - 800m is still a fair old way!

The next stop is my 15 or 21 mile race in Cranleigh – bring it J

 

A Plank a Day Keeps the Flabby Tummy Away!

I've been reading everywhere that you can't run your best without a strong core, so just before Christmas I started doing a daily 15 minute abs and core workout at home. It's great because I just do it while the TV is on!

The workout is always finished with the Plank, and I'm trying to work towards the 3 minute goal at the moment. I'm a way off but am pushing myself to hold longer every day.

I've even started doing the Captain's Chair at the gym - I had no idea what this piece of equipment was all about before!

The results have been pretty good! My abs are now getting defined and toned, and when I'm running I can feel the difference. Last night for example, we did hills at running club - usually I'd bend over more and fight the uphill struggle but instead I felt really upright and strong.

So...it's all about the core!

Longest run to date - my own half marathon

With it now only being 3 weeks until the Brighton Half Marathon, I woke up this morning ready for my early run and decided to see if I could run my own 13.2 miles at slow pace.

It's always much better to have a goal at the start of each run - something I never used to have - it was just a 5k here, 5 miler there. But now I ask myself before each run: "What do I want to achieve from this?" and it really works.

So I set off just before 8 and completed 21.55k (13.4 miles) in 2:13:04 which I didn't think was too bad. It was SO good to be back out on the roads after the nightmare snow week last week, and I actually felt like  had a bit more in the tank at the end which surprised me.

Pleased with today's run!

I'm still finding that it takes me around 1.5 miles to really settle into my rhythm though - I hope when it comes to London I'll be able to settle down and not get too wrapped up in the spectators and the excitement!

Next week I'm aiming for 15 and then push for 18 the week before Brighton. I do need to start planning some different routes though as am getting bored of my usual one.

Let's just hope we don't get any more snow!!!

A PB in arctic conditions? Snow problem!

On Saturday it was minus 2, the snow had settled and it was very icy underfoot. Imagine my surprise then to learn that the Riddlesdown Park Run was going ahead as normal.

My sensible part of my brain told me not to bother, that it would be dangerous, but then my more daring side told me to go for it - and I decided I needed to get outside for some fresh air as I was starting to get cabin fever at home! So I put the thermal base layers on and headed out...

55 of us braved the snow, and it was my most enjoyable race to date! I love the air when it snows - it's much fresher. The conditions underfoot were fine - actually pretty solid, and you were able to get much more speed than when it was muddy and bogged down.

To top it all off, I managed my fastest time around the course! I hadn't had a PB in a while, and I have to say it came as a bit of a shock - must have been that sprint finish as I overtook another runner in the final stages :) I'm now edging ever closer to that 25 minute target!

Here's me battling the snow - a great way to burn calories as the resistance is high!



Snow joke - the Park Run went ahead as planned!



The Chaldon Creakers!

I've been running with the Chaldon Creakers for about 4 months now and I'm really enjoying it.

They're a friendly running club based where I live in Caterham, and the nice thing about them is that there's no joining fee compared to other local clubs I looked at, and you can dip in and out of runs as you like.

We meet every Wednesday at a pub in the area, do our run and then have a drink afterwards sometimes. Each week there's a 3-4 or 5-6 mile route on offer, so again you can see how you feel on that night.

I take the opportunity to use the run as my tempo (or "comfortably hard") run. It's not race pace, but it's still much faster than my long run - put it this way, I'd be happier if I slowed down! That's because the group I usually run with are much faster paced than me and I stay at the back, trying to catch them up! We also run up some fairly steep hills, and this has all stood me in good stead with the recent races I've been doing.

After a nice hilly 5 mile run, our head Creaker Phil always provides donuts as a reward - they always go down well :)

Details about the Creakers can be found at http://www.creakers.co.uk/

Tadworth Ten

Yesterday I ran my first 10 mile race - the Tadworth Ten!

It wasn't the best day for a run along the downs, as it was really foggy and quite chilly, but I was still looking forward to the race.

The gun went at 11:30am and I made the mistake of starting quite close to the back of the field which meant it took a good 2 miles until we unbunched and I managed to get into my rhythm.

I'd heard from other runners that it's a hilly course, and they were definitely right! Straight from the word go it was hilly, with really steep climbs at miles 2-3 and 9-10 - right at the end!!!



Hilly challenging course to say the least!


It's a 2 lap course of 5 miles, so I thought I'd take the first lap easyish so I could leave something in the tank for the last lap. I went through the halfway point in 45 minutes which was encouraging, but then suffered quite a bad stitch for miles 6-7 which slowed me down.

I managed to dig deep though and finished in 1hr 32mins with a sprint finish - I even felt like I had a bit more in the tank to be honest, so feel well prepared for the Brighton Half next month. I'm also comforted that Brighton is a flat course in comparison to yesterday!

Here's me at the end of the race - there was no medal this time unfortunately but instead they gave us a cool bag. Strange.

Loving my cool bag!

New Year... New Shoes

I decided to treat myself to a new pair of trainers in the Jauary sales as my old faithful Asics are falling apart and badly needed replacing.

So the day before New Years Eve, I headed on over to Sweatshop in Maidstone where I had some motion analysis done. They basically get you to run on a treadmill in a pair of unsupported shoes to look at your running style and whether you need any additional support in the shoes.

Luckily for me everything was pretty normal in my style and the way I toe off, so I walked away with some new mild support Asics. Job done. It was even better that they were in the sale and I also received an additional 10% off as I'm a Park Runner :)




These are going to see me through the marathon

 Whilst I was there I also invested in some new earphones which I desperately needed - the Phillips ones I've been using have always fallen out and the sound isn't punchy at all. Again at Sweatshop they measure your inner ear size so you can choose the correct earphones.

I've bought some Yurbuds which have been developed by athletes for athletes - and are guaranteed not to fall out. I've run with them in twice this week and have to say, they haven't moved at all. Result! Visit http://yurbuds.com/ for more information.



Snazzy pink Yurbuds