Or, boring statto stuff
2009: it's a wrap. Did the last short run this afternoon - a somewhat convoluted route to record spot on 1000km for the year (621.51 miles). Knew I was going to cover about 1000, but after I ran on Wednesday I thought "ah, why not have a bit of fun and do it spot on". Of course I've run nowhere near "exactly" the 1000.00 my records say, because the tools only measure the road (or track) distance of a route, not what I actually covered. But as a bit of fun, it worked for me, so there. To round off the dull stuff, the 1000 came from 98 recorded runs, the longest of which was 14.5 miles (23.3k for those watching in metric).
There were 3 "official" races - a 10k (44:12) and two half marathons (1:38 and 1:34) plus the fun and lunacy that was The Mighty Deerstalker at Innerleithen in the Scottish Borders. Supposedly 10k (yeah, right, try 10 miles!) of offroad fun that benefited from mud, rivers, screes, forests, raves, sumps and head torches. Will have to miss it this year because it's only a month before the VLM, but 2011 awaits...
It's probably time to reflect on what caused this year to have such a huge take-off. I only really started regular running in the last quarter of 2008, having spent more time using the gym to get to a reasonable level of fitness. Although 2008 only amounted to a 100 or so miles of shortish runs, the habit was formed. I read somewhere that if you can persevere and do something 20 times, it will become a habit, and I think this was true for me. As 2009 started, the 4 milers became predominantly 5 or 6, with longer runs thrown in. I was now running because I loved it and wanted to.
After watching the London Marathon in April, I decided that I "needed" to do one (I'm that sort of age...). So I lobbed in a ballot entry (despite everyone telling me a first-time applicant wouldn't get in) and started to do more runs and more miles. I still had my half-marathons to train for and got through those with a couple of PBs. Then, at the end of September, the envelope arrived with "you're in". After a couple of Ravanelli-like celebratory laps of the house, shirt over head, the realisation of 6 months hard work to come sank in, and I upped my miles again. 40% of the year's miles have come in the last 3 months.
I have come to love running. I live in one of the most beautiful parts of the country and even though work is on the edge of a spectacularly grey new-town, it has easy access to countryside and views. If I can remember to look up, I get a heck of a reward. I don't think too much about the mechanics - although I'm sure I probably should. All I really think about is keeping everything that's not a leg as still as possible so I don't waste energy. I run with music and try not to think too much - there's a lot of time to dwell when you're on a long run, and that's not always healthy. Especially this year.
Some thank you's. The family for putting up with me being out and about at odd times; my wife for never forgetting to pick me up from odd finish-points for longer runs and my son for his welcome derision. My work (and banger running) colleagues for their support and mockery in appropriately balanced measures. My social networking circle on Facebook and especially Twitter, where there is a good and lively group of runners - I always enjoy the support and banter of @philrunslondon @nuddypants @kusasi and @IanM1963. Special thanks, of course, to the Grande Dame of Twitter fitness, the indomitable @Sall_y; dispenser of advice, support, admonishment and Yorkshire Tea in equal measures. Well, perhaps slightly biased in favour of admonishment. Her advice moved me on from just running to training.
The formal 16-week marathon training programme starts on January 4th. That's Monday. Happy New Year...
Thursday 31 December 2009
Saturday 26 December 2009
17 weeks and counting
Or, let it snow
My, it's been chilly. After some light winter-conditioning with rain & gales a few weeks ago, this week I had my first experience of running in (or should that be on) the snow. And you know what, I bloody loved it!
I also planned to do 3 days back-to-back for the first time, as I build towards the real training programme in the new year. Monday was a 4 mile loosener in fresh snow falling on what we'd had over the weekend. Much gnashing and wailing from colleagues about dangerous underfoot conditions and incipient lunacy was ignored, and the run was fine.
Snow on Monday afternoon and a serious frost overnight meant Tuesday dawned sunny and freezing. Unfortunately it had clouded over by the time I hit the 7 miler above East Kilbride, but the cloud colouring was sublime, running through black, purple, 3 shades of grey and pink. One patch of sunlight played over the landscape towards Eaglesham, forcing me to stop and take the view in - it's too easy to forget about the beauty you're running through.
More heavy snow on Tuesday afternoon left the underfoot conditions very different on Wednesday. Took the same route, but more coverage on the roads added several minutes to the time and several levels of effort to the legs. But this time the conditions were clear and sunny and it was just stunning. Again, I took a few minutes to stop, enjoy the view and have a wee think. Stuff...
The "long run" was a different matter. Wasn't sure what would work in these conditions, or how the extra effort on the legs would play. When I got home early on Christmas Eve and saw the stunning temperature inversion over the Clyde, I got my camera out and went for a walk across the golf course, where we get the clearest views. Snow conditions were perfect - almost continental as I crunched and squeaked through crisp, frozen powder.
As I mooched, a plan formed. I'd enjoyed the on-road snowy runs, so what about a cross-country. Around the golf course, in strict playing order, from medal tee to green. Plotted it on MapMyRun at just under 4 miles, so 2 laps would be a good compromise - and probably as hard as 10-11 road miles. So that's what I did.
What an experience! When you walk up the hills at Helensburgh, you think they're steep. When you run up them in snow, you know it! I found it hard to spot subtle gradient changes under the uniform white, so I spent rather too much time worrying about where I was putting my feet and not enough looking around. Even though I was taking it relatively easy, by the time I got to the high point on the second lap I was pretty knackered - but enjoying it so much. Got a few odd looks from the sledgers and dog-walkers, and the final sprint up the hill to the 18th green was ignored by a disinterested clubhouse. Probably some breach of etiquette.
This week's musical offering is a special playlist addition to honour the conditions. Snow by JJ72.
Hope it'll be hanging around for a while. Running in snow - the best...
Week's summary: 4 runs, 26 miles: "Long run" 8 miles
Miles since acceptance 236
My, it's been chilly. After some light winter-conditioning with rain & gales a few weeks ago, this week I had my first experience of running in (or should that be on) the snow. And you know what, I bloody loved it!
I also planned to do 3 days back-to-back for the first time, as I build towards the real training programme in the new year. Monday was a 4 mile loosener in fresh snow falling on what we'd had over the weekend. Much gnashing and wailing from colleagues about dangerous underfoot conditions and incipient lunacy was ignored, and the run was fine.
Snow on Monday afternoon and a serious frost overnight meant Tuesday dawned sunny and freezing. Unfortunately it had clouded over by the time I hit the 7 miler above East Kilbride, but the cloud colouring was sublime, running through black, purple, 3 shades of grey and pink. One patch of sunlight played over the landscape towards Eaglesham, forcing me to stop and take the view in - it's too easy to forget about the beauty you're running through.
More heavy snow on Tuesday afternoon left the underfoot conditions very different on Wednesday. Took the same route, but more coverage on the roads added several minutes to the time and several levels of effort to the legs. But this time the conditions were clear and sunny and it was just stunning. Again, I took a few minutes to stop, enjoy the view and have a wee think. Stuff...
The "long run" was a different matter. Wasn't sure what would work in these conditions, or how the extra effort on the legs would play. When I got home early on Christmas Eve and saw the stunning temperature inversion over the Clyde, I got my camera out and went for a walk across the golf course, where we get the clearest views. Snow conditions were perfect - almost continental as I crunched and squeaked through crisp, frozen powder.
As I mooched, a plan formed. I'd enjoyed the on-road snowy runs, so what about a cross-country. Around the golf course, in strict playing order, from medal tee to green. Plotted it on MapMyRun at just under 4 miles, so 2 laps would be a good compromise - and probably as hard as 10-11 road miles. So that's what I did.
What an experience! When you walk up the hills at Helensburgh, you think they're steep. When you run up them in snow, you know it! I found it hard to spot subtle gradient changes under the uniform white, so I spent rather too much time worrying about where I was putting my feet and not enough looking around. Even though I was taking it relatively easy, by the time I got to the high point on the second lap I was pretty knackered - but enjoying it so much. Got a few odd looks from the sledgers and dog-walkers, and the final sprint up the hill to the 18th green was ignored by a disinterested clubhouse. Probably some breach of etiquette.
This week's musical offering is a special playlist addition to honour the conditions. Snow by JJ72.
Hope it'll be hanging around for a while. Running in snow - the best...
Week's summary: 4 runs, 26 miles: "Long run" 8 miles
Miles since acceptance 236
Saturday 19 December 2009
18 weeks and counting
Or, the week it went to sh*t
Quite difficult to know what to write this week, so I'll just ramble on and see where we get to. After a good night out on Friday catching up with former colleagues (thanks to Bryony, by the way, who became the inaugural JustGiving donor), Saturday was the work Christmas Party and more good fun enjoyed - although waking at 0745 after only going to bed at 0315 was unwelcome.
Monday morning was the usual post-event fun, with everyone's half-remembered snippets being compared and constructed into a vaguely accurate timeline. Pleasant day, so off I went for a run in the frosty brightness, 6.85 miles at 7:15 pace.
Then came the bad news; management team called onto a telecon and told we weren't the preferred bidder in the recompete of the contract that 90% of our office works on - over 400 people. 20 minutes later it was announced to everyone, and a lot of Christmases went flat. Obviously there's legal protection for staff, but also 3 months of uncertainty. On a personal level, I've spent a lot of time over the last 3 years working on two attempts to extend the contract, plus helping with the recompete, so there was a bit of personal capital involved too.
The remainder of the week, unsurprisingly, has been a bit of a challenge - although the cathartic benefits of mindless exercise have helped. Got a couple of long-ish runs in during which I concentrated solely on the run and the iPod, but got a big wake-up call in the "snap out of it" stakes as a result of my chosen charity.
My wife works for Marie Curie, doing overnight care visits for terminal patients. While the above was going on, she had back-to-back nights with a new patient: just a few years older than me, very fit (gym-in-the-spare-room fit) and active. Two months ago a vague soreness in the head led to a biopsy, a diagnosis of inoperable brain cancer and a period in intensive care. Now he's returned home with a life-expectancy measured in days, and a poor family struggling to come to terms with what's happened to their lives. Hearing about this tragic situation quickly helped me get a sense of perspective and also draw a couple of conclusions:
1) Yes, it's a cliché, but no-one knows what's round the corner
2) Yes, it's a cliché, but there is always someone in a much worse position than you think you are
3) That's what the big blue button over on the left is for. So Marie Curie can help devastated families spend their last days together in familiar surroundings
Anyway, moving on. While the rest of the country (including the office) has been enjoying the #uksnow phenomenon, we've only seen frost. The forecast for the long run today suggested snow half way round, so I broke my personal rule of "no more than 2 layers" with a compression base (Under Armour, naturally), t-shirt and jacket. The first signs of precipitation flecking the train window as I headed to Dumbarton suggested this was a wise move. Naturally, the clouds vanished, the sun came out and I overheated.
Another new route, and quite pleasant - escaping Dumbarton by the path up the Leven, passing Renton (as quickly as possible) and the Vale of Leven Football Club, reminding me just how little I miss refereeing and being shouted at by arseholes (on and off the pitch) of a Saturday afternoon. Continuing up to Balloch and through the Loch Lomond Shores outlet - which was amazingly quiet for the Saturday before Christmas - along the Loch at Duck Bay and turn left for Helensburgh at Arden.
At this point I looked at my watch for the first time and realised I'd done 9 miles in under 70 minutes, because I had not been concentrating on running slow (which I guess may be counter-intuitive to many). This was particularly relevant because 2.5 of the last 3 miles are almost entirely uphill, and my legs were naturally getting a bit tired. Just for fun, a sleety rain kicked in just as a got to the top of the first hill, so the last couple of miles were slightly tedious, but I kept plodding along and enjoyed the last half mile downhill from the skating pond and through the woods to the house.
Music is tricky this week. All-round good chap Scott has been adding to my collaborative Spotify playlist (it's over there on the left somewhere) and one of the songs he put on was Hoppipolla by Sigur Ros. I'd love to share the unbelievable (and actually quite moving) video with you, but EMI are one of those dumb record companies who don't let their official videos be embedded from YouTube. Quite why, I never understand, but instead I'll just provide the link Hoppipolla - Sigur Ros and encourage you to enjoy it for yourself.
The other thing is, and don't tell Scott, the song didn't actually make it to the iPod playlist becasue the tempo's not quite right. In the midst of another discussion on the song, the Chicane version (Poppiholla) got mentioned and investigations revealed the tempo was much more run-friendly, so it DID make it - and here it is
Anyhow, I feel like I've rabbited on for hours, so I will depart with only the observation that in the midst of everything, this was a personal best week for miles with 34, and I have now done over 200 since I got accepted at the start of October.
Week's summary: 4 runs, 34 miles; Long run 13 miles
Miles since acceptance: 211
Quite difficult to know what to write this week, so I'll just ramble on and see where we get to. After a good night out on Friday catching up with former colleagues (thanks to Bryony, by the way, who became the inaugural JustGiving donor), Saturday was the work Christmas Party and more good fun enjoyed - although waking at 0745 after only going to bed at 0315 was unwelcome.
Monday morning was the usual post-event fun, with everyone's half-remembered snippets being compared and constructed into a vaguely accurate timeline. Pleasant day, so off I went for a run in the frosty brightness, 6.85 miles at 7:15 pace.
Then came the bad news; management team called onto a telecon and told we weren't the preferred bidder in the recompete of the contract that 90% of our office works on - over 400 people. 20 minutes later it was announced to everyone, and a lot of Christmases went flat. Obviously there's legal protection for staff, but also 3 months of uncertainty. On a personal level, I've spent a lot of time over the last 3 years working on two attempts to extend the contract, plus helping with the recompete, so there was a bit of personal capital involved too.
The remainder of the week, unsurprisingly, has been a bit of a challenge - although the cathartic benefits of mindless exercise have helped. Got a couple of long-ish runs in during which I concentrated solely on the run and the iPod, but got a big wake-up call in the "snap out of it" stakes as a result of my chosen charity.
My wife works for Marie Curie, doing overnight care visits for terminal patients. While the above was going on, she had back-to-back nights with a new patient: just a few years older than me, very fit (gym-in-the-spare-room fit) and active. Two months ago a vague soreness in the head led to a biopsy, a diagnosis of inoperable brain cancer and a period in intensive care. Now he's returned home with a life-expectancy measured in days, and a poor family struggling to come to terms with what's happened to their lives. Hearing about this tragic situation quickly helped me get a sense of perspective and also draw a couple of conclusions:
1) Yes, it's a cliché, but no-one knows what's round the corner
2) Yes, it's a cliché, but there is always someone in a much worse position than you think you are
3) That's what the big blue button over on the left is for. So Marie Curie can help devastated families spend their last days together in familiar surroundings
Anyway, moving on. While the rest of the country (including the office) has been enjoying the #uksnow phenomenon, we've only seen frost. The forecast for the long run today suggested snow half way round, so I broke my personal rule of "no more than 2 layers" with a compression base (Under Armour, naturally), t-shirt and jacket. The first signs of precipitation flecking the train window as I headed to Dumbarton suggested this was a wise move. Naturally, the clouds vanished, the sun came out and I overheated.
Another new route, and quite pleasant - escaping Dumbarton by the path up the Leven, passing Renton (as quickly as possible) and the Vale of Leven Football Club, reminding me just how little I miss refereeing and being shouted at by arseholes (on and off the pitch) of a Saturday afternoon. Continuing up to Balloch and through the Loch Lomond Shores outlet - which was amazingly quiet for the Saturday before Christmas - along the Loch at Duck Bay and turn left for Helensburgh at Arden.
At this point I looked at my watch for the first time and realised I'd done 9 miles in under 70 minutes, because I had not been concentrating on running slow (which I guess may be counter-intuitive to many). This was particularly relevant because 2.5 of the last 3 miles are almost entirely uphill, and my legs were naturally getting a bit tired. Just for fun, a sleety rain kicked in just as a got to the top of the first hill, so the last couple of miles were slightly tedious, but I kept plodding along and enjoyed the last half mile downhill from the skating pond and through the woods to the house.
Music is tricky this week. All-round good chap Scott has been adding to my collaborative Spotify playlist (it's over there on the left somewhere) and one of the songs he put on was Hoppipolla by Sigur Ros. I'd love to share the unbelievable (and actually quite moving) video with you, but EMI are one of those dumb record companies who don't let their official videos be embedded from YouTube. Quite why, I never understand, but instead I'll just provide the link Hoppipolla - Sigur Ros and encourage you to enjoy it for yourself.
The other thing is, and don't tell Scott, the song didn't actually make it to the iPod playlist becasue the tempo's not quite right. In the midst of another discussion on the song, the Chicane version (Poppiholla) got mentioned and investigations revealed the tempo was much more run-friendly, so it DID make it - and here it is
Anyhow, I feel like I've rabbited on for hours, so I will depart with only the observation that in the midst of everything, this was a personal best week for miles with 34, and I have now done over 200 since I got accepted at the start of October.
Week's summary: 4 runs, 34 miles; Long run 13 miles
Miles since acceptance: 211
Wednesday 9 December 2009
19 weeks and counting
Or, you lazy bastard...
Almost nothing to report this week. After last week's efforts - especially Saturday - everything was a bit creaky, so a very gentle 5.5 on Monday to loosen off was followed by a steady push round my longest lunchtime route (7.25) today. Both runs started in rain and ended just as the sun was coming out. Pah.
The early finish to the week is the result of a lunchtime meeting tomorrow, before Friday benefits from the now traditional Alternative Murray Curry (plus an early start for drinkies) in East Kilbride; a good chance to catch up with former colleagues now departed. By which I mean moved on to other employers, not that the evening is some form of low-budget Most Haunted. Nae chance of a run on Saturday; shuffle might just about be possible.
Saturday brings the annual works shindig. Time to dust off the dress suit, fart about trying to tie a bow-tie (none of that clip-on / elasticated shite for me), remember I'm the wrong nationality for Ceilidh-dancing (natural aversion to dances with namesand instructions) and desperately try to retain some form of dignity as the night wears on. Unsuccessfully, usually.
Need some appropriate music, so let's pick something that usually supports the end-of-night mayhem at any Christmas do in these parts.
Week's summary: 2 runs, 13 miles, Long run ho-ho-ho
Miles since acceptance: 177
Almost nothing to report this week. After last week's efforts - especially Saturday - everything was a bit creaky, so a very gentle 5.5 on Monday to loosen off was followed by a steady push round my longest lunchtime route (7.25) today. Both runs started in rain and ended just as the sun was coming out. Pah.
The early finish to the week is the result of a lunchtime meeting tomorrow, before Friday benefits from the now traditional Alternative Murray Curry (plus an early start for drinkies) in East Kilbride; a good chance to catch up with former colleagues now departed. By which I mean moved on to other employers, not that the evening is some form of low-budget Most Haunted. Nae chance of a run on Saturday; shuffle might just about be possible.
Saturday brings the annual works shindig. Time to dust off the dress suit, fart about trying to tie a bow-tie (none of that clip-on / elasticated shite for me), remember I'm the wrong nationality for Ceilidh-dancing (natural aversion to dances with namesand instructions) and desperately try to retain some form of dignity as the night wears on. Unsuccessfully, usually.
Need some appropriate music, so let's pick something that usually supports the end-of-night mayhem at any Christmas do in these parts.
Week's summary: 2 runs, 13 miles, Long run ho-ho-ho
Miles since acceptance: 177
Saturday 5 December 2009
20 weeks and counting
Or, the week of personal achievement.
November ended this week, with a total of 93 miles covered - a best. The week itself had 32 - another best, and the long run was my longest ever. The raw stats notwithstanding, this was a really good week of running.
Having had a quiet week last time out (parties, shit-hot concerts and so on), this was a "pick up the miles" week. Would have loved to do more than 5.5 on a stunningly sunny, crisp Monday, but meetings meant I had limited time - pushed hard, though, at 7.04 / mile. Out again on Tuesday for 6.7, with a nice hour snowboarding for R&R that night, and a steady re-run of Monday's route on Thursday - 3 minutes slower.
The biggie was Saturday, though. Had decided to splice two other routes together, thinking they made about 13 miles. The mapmyrun measure, though, was 14.5. The route also featured the "bastard mile" into Glen Fruin - 650 feet of ascent in a mile. I'd done this before as mile 2 of a 10 mile effort, but this was 6.5 miles into a much longer effort,
The plan was to try and make myself adhere to the S bit of the LSR (Long Slow Run) idea, so I set off at 8 minute mile pace and enjoyed it until the bottom of the big hill. Then, it was "just plod up" and, above all, NO WALKING. 11 minutes later I was over the top, and feeling surprisingly good.
The rest of the run was a steady plod along the Glen, legs gradually tying up, but very comfortable aerobically. Many interested species of wildlife, including Pheasant, Buzzard, bovinely-insolent Highland Cattle and (as I believe ornithologists call it) a big, fuck-off heron that swooped across 10 feet in front of me in startling fashion. Kept it steady and got round in just over 2 hours. As I said, the furthest I've ever run, so pretty pleased with it - and especially that nothing was seriously hurting.
The songs of the week are two of the three that got me up the bastard mile. Death (see below) was one, the other two being..
Headway - Finish What We Started
Manic Street Preachers - Can't Take My Eyes Off You
I LOVED running this week.
Week's summary: 4 runs, 32 miles, Long Run 14.5 miles
Miles since acceptance: 164
November ended this week, with a total of 93 miles covered - a best. The week itself had 32 - another best, and the long run was my longest ever. The raw stats notwithstanding, this was a really good week of running.
Having had a quiet week last time out (parties, shit-hot concerts and so on), this was a "pick up the miles" week. Would have loved to do more than 5.5 on a stunningly sunny, crisp Monday, but meetings meant I had limited time - pushed hard, though, at 7.04 / mile. Out again on Tuesday for 6.7, with a nice hour snowboarding for R&R that night, and a steady re-run of Monday's route on Thursday - 3 minutes slower.
The biggie was Saturday, though. Had decided to splice two other routes together, thinking they made about 13 miles. The mapmyrun measure, though, was 14.5. The route also featured the "bastard mile" into Glen Fruin - 650 feet of ascent in a mile. I'd done this before as mile 2 of a 10 mile effort, but this was 6.5 miles into a much longer effort,
The plan was to try and make myself adhere to the S bit of the LSR (Long Slow Run) idea, so I set off at 8 minute mile pace and enjoyed it until the bottom of the big hill. Then, it was "just plod up" and, above all, NO WALKING. 11 minutes later I was over the top, and feeling surprisingly good.
The rest of the run was a steady plod along the Glen, legs gradually tying up, but very comfortable aerobically. Many interested species of wildlife, including Pheasant, Buzzard, bovinely-insolent Highland Cattle and (as I believe ornithologists call it) a big, fuck-off heron that swooped across 10 feet in front of me in startling fashion. Kept it steady and got round in just over 2 hours. As I said, the furthest I've ever run, so pretty pleased with it - and especially that nothing was seriously hurting.
The songs of the week are two of the three that got me up the bastard mile. Death (see below) was one, the other two being..
Headway - Finish What We Started
Manic Street Preachers - Can't Take My Eyes Off You
I LOVED running this week.
Week's summary: 4 runs, 32 miles, Long Run 14.5 miles
Miles since acceptance: 164
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