Forest Fives and Tens

A double bling week, that's a success to me. And everything appeared to be fine after the Endure weekender.

Endure Recovery

I had wisely booked Monday off of work. My body seemed to think Endure was still happening as I woke up at around 11pm, then 4am, maybe this was due to the power of the luminous wristband that sat on the bookcase in my room.
With ruthless efficiency I woke up just before 6 & realised that my body clock has no understanding of annual leave. There was little point trying to fight it so I headed downstairs to play on the Xbox for a bit, determined that the day started as unproductively as possible. As I wandered downstairs I was instantly confused. I could walk just fine, DOMS was surprisingly absent. I had no aches or pains, a nasty cold brewing but that was it.
If it wasn't for all of the running paraphernalia that surrounded me I'd swear the weekend was just a dream. How was this even possible? I'd run further & for longer than anything I'd done previously & felt great.
Perplexing as it was, my physical vibrancy wasn't going to get turned into a day of activity. I switched the Xbox over & watched Money in the Bank, tuning in where the show was decent (Kevin Owens / main event) & out (everything else) where not. I think I liked every Endure photo on IG as my procrastination took on new levels.
Eventually I resolved to empty the car & take on one of many jobs I had been putting off for a while. The garage had become a sprawling mess of left overs from the building work, parkrun equipment, cricket gear, bbq, diy & gardening stuff & anything else that would fit in for good measure. After a couple of hours I felt it didn't look much better, it appears to be the gift that keeps on giving.
I broke up the time by making a start on an epic Endure 24 blog post, splitting my time between both activities. I had designs on heading across to Braintree to catch up with friends & my Mum, but this trip also included a visit to the gym & they were apparently closed due to water mains issues. It was as if it was being prescribed that I should be lazy!
So I let the rest of the day pass & didn't achieve a great deal. As the evening approached I was about to stick a pizza in the oven. I decided that I should at least get in some time on the exercise bike to get the legs moving a bit, before returning to the pizza, feeling like maybe a slice of it was earned.

Let's get physio, physio

Tuesday was a bizarre day. I had some awesome news that I'll talk about in future weeks, finally got round to filling in some paperwork that needed doing in order to move on & finished with some inevitable, saddening news.
Sandwiched amongst all of this was my regular visit to Dan the Physio. I explained that I was holding up well after Endure, but had some concerns about my shoulder, calves / achilles as usual & wanted him to check the shin splints. After the usual work on the neck & shoulders, he eased off the calves. He felt the shins were just fine & that by rolling & stretching I can managed any issue there, tight calves being the cause is hardly a surprise. He also couldn't find anything wrong with the shoulder after carrying out some movement tests, putting the likely cause down to a bit more tension as I've upped the miles.
My intention for the next fortnight or so it to scale it back a bit to the bare minimum amount of training to maintain the base I've built up, so this fits nicely, no major issues for now.
As I tackled some still remaining washing up, Topper returning from the vets. The prognosis was not good, there was now nothing else they could do for him. His kidneys started failing back in October & he's been on medication ever since, ballooning in size as he goes. As his weight has increased his legs have weakened so his ability to jump has diminished. Personality wise he is still the same, potentially he's even more affectionate now. It is unlikely he'll make it much further, now it is a case of monitoring how much quality of life he has. I suspect he'll be spoilt rotten over the coming weeks, allowed to eat whatever (his favourites are eggs, ice cream & fish), forgiven for the early morning jabs to the face & fussed like anything.

Forest Five

On Tuesday I also realised that I was signed up to a race. After my visit to Bracknell Forest Runners track night a few week's previously my colleague Kendra had given me a list of local races to sign up to that would work with my trips to our southern office. I'd wantonly signed up without thinking to check my running calendar, you know to see if there was perhaps an endurance event merely days beforehand.
It was even an event designed to mess with my head following Endure, 5 laps, undulating, around a forest! All I needed to do was deprive myself of sleep beforehand & force someone to do a lap after me & it would be like the weekend all over again.
Fearing traffic I'd left my hotel early & arrived with a mere hour to kill before the race. I wandered to the start line (nearly a km into the Forest), wandered back, found the toilets, chucked my valuables in the car, walked back, walked some more & probably covered 3-4km in walking before the start just to keep myself busy.
I was tempted to run with Kendra & her son Callum who was taking part in his first 5 miler. Instead I opted for the well versed plan of winging it on the day. BFR appear to be another club, like Bishop's Stortford that I appear to be an associate member of by osmosis as I recognised many faces & said hi to my Endure lap 1 partner in crime Cindy.
Anyone that had run over the weekend was comparing war stories, I still couldn't correlate my performance with a seemingly zero problems. I felt like I should be suffering, a bit fraudulent for appearing to have got away from Endure without issue.

Bit of a roller coaster, closing my eyes until it was all over

I had been fooled. Fooled, lulled, seduced into believing that everything was ok. Even after a near 2km downhill beginning it was clear that like say a 2003 Alfa bought in February, though everything appeared alright, there were some gremlins to be found when on closer inspection. Potentially due to being worked on the night previously, both achilles decided to voice their displeasure at the physical nature of the activity. A hamstring that until Lap 5 on Sunday had behaved itself impeccably in 5 years of running was also having a moan. On top of this my breathing was all over the place thanks to the lingering cold brought on from camping being illness inducing.
Other than those symptoms & a general lack of moral fibre, my pace was just weird. I wanted to see if a 44:00 @ 5:30/km was possible, although I hadn't researched the course, or sustained that pace since the HBO a few weeks prior.
This soon became a grin & bear it kind of run. I made an effort to thank every marshal around the course. There was a delightful rollercoaster of a down & up just after halfway, actually by the end of the uphill I'm not sure delightful was the right term for it. I found breaking the run into 2km sections helped & once I was through 6km the back of the run had been broken & I felt more inclined to push whatever I could out of my legs.
My pace was better for the 7th kilometre & a marshal advising us that it was all downhill from that point onward raised a cheer from the runners in & around me. A lady from Reading RC cashed in on the descend a bit more than me, though my pace was increasing I find it far too easy to lose form on a downhill. As the finish came into sight the course flatten out & I decided it was time to really test the legs. Impressively I was able to manage a full sprint finish, reeling in a few that had passed me on the downhill.
I collected my goody bag & liked the unique medal, popping it round my neck whilst waiting for Callum & Kendra to finish. As they approached the finish Callum dropped Kendra with an almighty sprint finish home, recording a 48:53. A great debut performance at the distance & a sprint finish I'd be proud of! I said my goodbyes & made my way back to the car to cool down a bit. A much appreciated Mars bar was found in the goody bag & I headed back to my hotel, trying to work out what to do for dinner. I was in a bit of a state post run & really couldn't be arsed with getting changed, or sitting in a restaurant. Knowing takeaway was my only option from this point I then decided I didn't even want to wait for a curry & chucked the hire car into a McD's drive through.
Dirty tainted food, but it was fine by me.

Funky medal, sweaty face

parkrun

I was back on rota for a fortnight of Run Directing down at Hatfield Forest. As James was staying at the house he'd been added to the roster for pre & post event work, although he didn't appear to be overly inspired by us leaving at 0645.
When on duty I try to avoid anything that might induce swearing, I'm already far too fluent at dropping the F bomb without further encouragement. I'd forgotten this golden rule as Nick Helm's Hot & Heavy was already in the CD player. We'd made it halfway towards the forest before I asked James to source something else.
The course was setup in decent time (with me on a bike no less) & with Amy taking on the Volunteer Coordinator role under Karl's supervision, I had time to remember what exactly I was meant to be doing. Thankfully all of our volunteers were in place & ready to go, it was just time to greet the runners, get through a briefing that had a second page & then relax for 15 minutes whilst they ran the course.

Lots of volunteers, no runners though

That is the theory at least. With 18 minutes already passed & no finisher in sight I ran back to our storage to borrow one of the NT's bikes. I could hear some clapping & to my relief the runners had started to file in. To confuse me further, Mark who was running in my 50 shirt as he ran his 50th run was approaching me & appeared to have maimed himself on the course. Not only this, he'd finished first & was apologetic for doing so. He did at least provide the reasoning for this happening. At a cross roads in the forest some runners had carried straight on rather than right. One mortified marshal returning to HQ confirmed that they'd been a bit of an issue. Having experienced this myself on my volunteering debut I was keen to stress that these things happen. I felt it was right to follow up further to reassure & we even caught up at the Hoohaah on Sunday. In hindsight we were missing a lanyard for this position, sending a volunteer out without sufficient information or guidance. That won't happen again, we'll have spares of everything should something go missing.

So we'd lost runners once, you'd have to be really unlucky for it to happen twice? It appears the NT's herds of cattle are a mischievous bunch. Always intrigued by our signage, they'd managed to nudge our penultimate turn from a left to a straight on arrow. This is how Mark found himself leading, thankfully he sounded on to the runners that had overshot & corrected the sign for those that followed.
A reluctant first finisher & definitely the only time my 50 shirt will ever cross the line first! Thankfully all of the runners I spoke to that had missed turns were in good spirits, understanding that these things happen. Some even commented on getting even more free kilometres in!
The rest of the event passed without incident & we chose to take the bikes out once more to assess the two turns where the issues had occurred & collect the remaining signage on the course. I found myself even enjoying the ride. I was such a useless cyclist at school that I even failed cycling proficiency! I think when I rode during our event a couple of weeks back that would have been the first time in 5 years. Sure the quads ache within a kilometre, but it was nice to ride, something I might do more of at the forest.

A very long weekend

James was down for the weekend, making a return to Hatfield Forest parkrun on the Saturday & taking on the summer course for the first time. That wasn't the only reason for his visit, he'd tried to catch Katherine Ryan's latest show a couple of times in Preston & Leeds but had no joy. She was due to play at Udderbelly over the weekend & after acquiring some tickets on Stubhub a plan for a weekend was formed.
So Friday night comprised of gin, comedy & (sadly) dirty McD's food for the train home after the queue for Duck & Waffle was simply too long.

All set for comedy

I'd like to suggest that Saturday evening had some variation. In reality all that changed was we stayed out for longer. Street Feast's latest venture Dinerama had recently opened in Shoreditch & it offered the chance of lots of food varieties & plenty of drinking options. The idea to visit only came about on Thursday so most folks had plans already. Vicky & Cali joined us as they were en route to comedy in Bethnal Green & we managed to grab a table under cover, handy as the rain started to come down soon after we got there.

Pints of cocktail in the late afternoon, this could only go wrong

We started with Busan BBQ sliders, fries & some nachos from Breddos. With the first pint of the day done & dusted James felt it should be cocktails time at 5pm! I remained in charge of the food, following up the first round with some Gyoza from Rainbo.
A second round of cocktails (served by the pint, though a lot of that was ice) & this time we were back to Breedo's to try the beef tacos. Vicky & Cali opted for duck burgers, donuts & mocking me, all of which they appeared to enjoy! They were soon on their way & we decided that open air eating in the rain was fine but it was time to wander ourselves.

All kinds of food at Dinerama

A trip to Brick Lane & we found 93 Feet East. I'd never been so we wandered in. It was like a time warp, back to a student union! Daylight outside & this was the only light we could see as the entire place was decorated in black! One drink & we were on our way, originally to the Big Chill bar but James was smiling too much in hipster East London & the bouncer did not take kindly to enjoyment. Half way through the obligatory feel up I decided to interrupt James' fun & we wandered off to find a more friendly bar.
A couple of more pubs later & it was 9pm, I was pretty much done by this point. It would be rude to head home before the light went so into The George at Liverpool St we went. James insisted on doubling up our Tanqueray Tens, his eyes popping out at the £22 cost! By half ten we were onto the train north, after yet another trip to the golden arches (yes really). No nightcap for me, time to sleep.

Hoohaah Hatfield Forest 10k

This was my second attempt to run the HF 10k. I'd not made the start line for 2014's inaugural event after a delightful weekend of toilet hugging & extreme weight loss. This time around I was looking forward to it. The event last year had sewn the seed for a potential parkrun at the venue as it was the first running event I was aware of at the forest (I was wrong, just wasn't aware of others).
For James, this would be his first 10k, though with another one due next weekend he was more than ready. My ever efficient but not overly friendly body clock performed the half five wake up trick as always. I managed to barter another couple of hours of sleep, but noticed that I wasn't overly with it, potentially due to the gin consumption the night previous. Three slices of heavily buttered Soreen really didn't feel sufficient so I threw myself under the shower to try & wake myself up.
Arriving at the forest but without anything to be in charge of felt quite liberating. I met Sue, Maldon's ED for the first time & it was good to share ED stories. I'm still yet to make it to Maldon on a Saturday morning & will be a long old commute if I don't get it visited soon!
We picked up our numbers & I said hello to Alison & Hannah the Hoohaah team. I cheekily asked if they could mention the parkrun, the response was very much in the affirmative, how about you take the stage & we give you the mic during the briefing?!
We had some time to kill & I spent some time preparing my race kit before chatting to some of the parkrunners present at the event. I bumped into Rich from Great Notley & as James wanted to run to a 55, Rich joined us.
So after a brief appearance on the stage with the mic, where I not only promoted us but all of our local parkruns across Essex it was time to start. James knew his target might be ambitious, but you might as well aim high to see what is possible. A nice flat target time made it easy for me to calculate the splits, 5:30/km, Rich works in miles so I had no idea what that worked out at, probably around the 9:00/mile mark.
Our pace wasn't amazing as per the watch, but I was noticing we were measuring short based on course signage, understandable in a dense forest. This meant I think we were good, but wouldn't be sure until the end. After 3km navigating the forest we were onto the Flitch Way & enjoying the flat & shaded conditions. I'd ditched my sunglasses before the start as it looked overcast, a decision I would soon be regretting.
The weakest kilometre was the 7th & I can only think this was due to the heat & then some boggy, technical trails that had to be navigated. Having been in the shade for a while we were unaware just how hot & sunny the day had become & it really did sap the energy. This was something that I need to take into account for Berlin, it can be terrifically hot there. After my not always perfect pacing record I was keen to check in on James frequently & he appeared to be just fine, with Rich using himself to then pace me, dragging us out a bit more.
As we reached the 8km marker James was on target but told us to run on, concerned he would struggle in the final part of the race. I double checked all was ok & kicked on, Rich was now pushing the pace a bit more to stretch me as the finish line beckoned, setting targets of runners ahead for us to pass. The pace to this point had been comfortable so I was able to go through the gears a bit & get down to a 5:00/km pace. A brief aeroplane to a photographer (sadly not captured) & we were into a nasty little wooded area that preceded the finish. This was a complete momentum killer as hazards both at head height & on the ground needed to be navigated. As we emerged into the field we could hear Vicky on the PA system & Rich encouraged me (like I normally need it) to sprint to the end. Perhaps the pace wasn't quite so easy as I'd previously felt, the resulting sprint finish was a rather weak effort, if the ground were covered in treacle it wouldn't have surprised me.

Medals & smiles (almost)

James followed shortly after breaking the 55 minute barrier at the first time of asking with an exceptional 10k debut. We grabbed medals, chatted to Hatfield Forest parkrunners & then missed out on heckling Vicky as it was prize giving time.
I'd really enjoyed the run & the chance to explore different parts of the forest that we don't see as part of the parkrun courses. No doubt I've now got some new course ideas for the drawing board, though whether the event really needs more routes would be debatable.
James was soon on his way back to the North after a chocolate milk & a shower. His 6 hour journey home wasn't great for his spirits, though I suspect the medal stayed around his neck throughout.
I spend the rest of the day on a bit of an emotional roller-coaster, the first time Father's Day has really hit me for a while. I headed across to Braintree to see my Mum & bring some beers to Step-Dad Steve but found myself having to chuck the Counting Crows CD out as it was reminding me too much of the many things I shared with the old man. It wasn't depressing, I just felt that my driving would be enhanced if I wasn't tearing up! Mum had a load of old photos I'd not seen before, including one from Dad's Japan visit in 1987, which left me wondering if I can recreate the photo when I visit in January.

Dad in Japan. Now just need to find out where this was. And why his shirt to trouser ratio was so bad. And what is going on with the jacket.,,,,

I ploughed my energy into the parkrun run report in the evening, a silly & rather dark sense of humour is something we also shared. Given the amount of fun we'd seen at parkrun it gave me lots to work with, all we needed was some slapstick to really make it something Dad would have properly laughed at. I don't mind these kind of reflective days, it tells me I'm in a good place mentally. Back in February I'd got through most of the anniversary of his death before remembering, my mind was all over the place at the time.
The day finished with a steak, once I realised it was darn late & I could do with eating, then a bath so that I could treat the muscles to a soak after a good 10k performance.

The Conclusion

A thoroughly enjoyable week. Two races, two relatively pleasing performances given my fatigue & lack of speed work of late. My 10k time was good, it achieved the goal set at the start & I was able to get some quicker clicks in at the end. I think I'm in a good place to start reintroducing speed work alongside the mileage & the target of breaking 48 for the first time at August's Pride 10k is something that should be possible. I've got another 10k that precedes it by 5 weeks & Sean is heading down to Yateley with the aim of pacing me to 50 minutes, his reward for hauling me around close to target will be a curry! There is also the small matter of a half marathon PB to aim for & the Dublin trip, also with Sean offers this potential.
The weekend itself was also a lot of fun, spending time out with friends & just letting off some steam was exactly what I needed. It might have hampered Sunday's performance, I suspect I was sweating neat gin by the end!
Looking forward to increasing the mileage again & Friday brings a track 5k, which should be a lot of fun.

Change is painful

Another week passed on the road to Berlin. There is no real narrative to the past week, let's run straight into the ramblings.

Time to reflect

After the highs of the bank holiday weekend (now known only as triple bling weekend) there was bound to be a bit of a low, or at least a brief malaise. On Tuesday I found myself working from home & following the buzz of the previous days work up feeling like there was a bit of a vacuum, a bit melancholic. At some point over the course of the morning I picked up the latest copy of Run Like The Wind & thumbed a few articles. One stood out to me. Kevin Betts (@52marathonman) had written about why he runs. Without spoiling the article the reasons were very similar to one of my reasons.
The article consumed me & by the end of it I was tearing up, part in awe of it's simple but effective message & part in an act of remembrance, the day before would have been Dad's birthday. And so began a weird morning & one that truth be told I was glad to be at home for. The tears weren't that of sorrow, I didn't feel remotely depressed, just reflective. It was nice to remember, have a quite moment. Sometimes life runs at such a speed that you forget, lose track of all manner of things. To have the opportunity for some reflection, even if it was randomly interrupted by Roo or Topper wanting to assist me as I walked. The sight of Topper struggling around with his almighty gut has an element of dark humour about it. Quite what benefit the drugs are having isn't obvious, but when he forces open a door with his gargantuan arse you can't help but smile. Personality wise he's chirpier than ever, he's just very physically limited.
Another interruption I had on the day was mid afternoon when a courier arrived to drop off my order from Nakd. My previous post had mentioned various changes I wanted to make, this was the next step, arm myself with the ability to fend off the temptation for a mid afternoon sugar rush. Emily had referred me & also told me that the cola raisins were really rather special. Fifty pounds later & I appear to have a three month supply of various things. Given my experiments with Haribo on longer runs, the raisins are a definite option, I can't get by a marathon solely on gels, it would shred my stomach.

Lot's of Nakd goodness

A debut

On Thursday morning I decided it was time for finally use my gym membership card in anger. This meant it was time to set the alarm for half five once more & get out the door at a decent time. As it was my first visit I chose to drive across to Dunmow rather than try the Stansted facility, so was stepping into the gym at around half six.
My hope was that it would be empty, alas no, surprisingly (for me) well attended at this hour! I clambered onto an elliptical trainer, everyone else seemed to be on one so it seemed like a good idea. Thankfully the other users were in their own bubbles or too polite to laugh as my first couple of minutes resembled bambi using one! I just couldn't figure out how it worked. I could see from others what I should be doing, but couldn't get my body's action to replicate. After a couple of minutes of fumbling around I realised that it took a cycling style motion rather than stepping & I was on my way.
10 minutes on the elliptical then it was onto some of the weight machines for some resistance training. The whole point of the gym work was to get some alternative cross training in & build up the rest of my legs to take the pressure off of my calves, keep that in mind for later. I did various leg lifts & then returned to cardio with 10 on the sit down bike, finishing off the session with some pull downs.
On the whole I was pretty pleased with the session. Sure I looked like a complete newbie by checking out the instructions on various machines, forgot a towel etc, but it wasn't as mind numbingly boring as it could have been. I got back home & straight onto the foam roller. I rewarded myself with some scrambled eggs on brioche toast (had lots left over from the BBQ).

Coach Topper taking me through post gym rolling

Chaperone Duties

On Thursday evening I found myself in Shoreditch with my brother & cousin. At my Grandma's 100th a few weeks previously we'd discussed meeting up for an evening. Quite how we settled on London's hipster district I'm not sure but the guys did well to accommodate an old man for the evening. It was good fun to catch up with them, they'd wanted to get me out in order to be my wingmen, although I was more concerned with enjoying a beer & grabbing some decent food!

Hipster petrol station pop up, complete with hipster beer

It was an evening to be thankful & appreciating the support of family & friends in trying to rebuild my life. It's crazy that we don't spend more time together & we shared plenty of stories. We found out that John had an interesting take on family history in his youth & I was happy to tell them more about our Grandpa who they were too young to know. When you're little brother wants to impart dating tips to you, you suddenly realise that, A - he's not the kid you used to take along to the cricket any more & B - he's definitely not the kid you used to take along to the cricket any more! We finished the evening in Patty & Bun, devouring some burgers & the rather awesome chicken fries before going our separate ways at Liverpool St.

Ouch

Friday morning was painful. Both calves felt like they'd been mangled. They felt horrendous, walking was an issue to begin with. I needed recovery time and that is precisely what I didn't have. I was working twice over the course of Friday & had all of my running gear packed as I'd be heading straight out of London on Saturday morning to make it back to Hatfield Forest for Sam's parkrun Run Director debut.
Throughout the day I kept disappearing into stairwells to stretch out my calves, taking every opportunity to get some life back into them. Thankfully no one ever interrupted me mid heel lift! I checked out of the first working day & into a hotel, straight into a bath, another tactic to try & ease the legs. Some Nick Helm on iPlayer raised the spirits, even if laughter didn't appear to have any painkilling properties.
I applied a liberal amount of Natural Hero rub to both calves (a good addition to my work wash bag) & tried to convince myself that half five in the afternoon was a normal time to attempt to sleep. Alas I'm out of practice at these overnighters at the moment & I managed all of 90 minutes, followed by another 45 of trying to get back to sleep. There was nothing for it, I got up, snacked on hotel biscuits & watched the cricket highlights instead.
Working day number two went reassuringly well. I'd set myself a target of finishing before 4am in order to make getting to Hatfield Forest in time for parkrun. I was only assisting in an insurance policy fashion, on hand to assist should my colleagues run into any issues. In the end I was out by 2 & setting the alarm a bit earlier than planned.

parkrunday

My wakeup preceded the 0605 alarm & I was surprisingly with it. I jumped out of bed, noticed the calves still weren't perfect & got myself showered, no one needs the scent of an IT person or my massive bed hair at a parkrun! I checked out & walked into glorious sunshine alongside the Thames. I was on my way, which was giving me an earworm from Scotland's finest twin duo. A quick Spotify search & The Proclaimers were accompanying me to the tube. I had a mere tube, train & taxi trifecta to overcome in order to get to parkrun. The first ran smoothly, the second was bang on time & a taxi was easily negotiated from Stansted Airport & the driver even offered to drive me into the estate, though the walk was perfectly fine with me in the warm sunshine.

Phase 3 of the journey begins!

I'd made it with plenty of time to spare & was in an awesome mood, enjoying the finer parts of the Guardians of the Galaxy soundtrack as the best view in parkrun, our winter finish alongside the lake came into view.
Sam appeared to be enjoying himself in his first go at Run Directing, readying himself for the technical volunteers as Paul walked our marshals through their roles. Our goal this week was to keep lost marshal numbers to zero! Although unbeknown to me there was a bit of a pre run panic & one of our volunteer co-ordinators ran out to a marshal point to ensure we had the cover required, sacrificing a run as a result. I was on megaphone holding duty as Sam briefed the masses, remembering that I should really get my Garmin ready & then realising he'd be saying 3, 2 & 1 quite quickly so skirted round the side of the start so that I didn't find myself at the back of the field.
I had no plan of note for the run. I had two conflicting factors to accommodate, a combined 4.5 hours of sleep & a buoyant performance at the HBO 10k the week previously that suggested my pace was returning. I decided that I'd try & hold a pace for as long as possible, expecting that the wheels would come off from 3km, leading to a painful & slow final kilometre or two. I fully expected this to be a crash & burn parkrun, despite this I had chosen to embrace it, going out at a moderate pace would teach me nothing.
Having snuck round to establish a decent starting position I found myself getting into a decent rhythm straight away, thanking one of our many awesome & smiling marshals as I headed off of the estate road. The track is deceiving, it feels solid, but has so much loose stone on top that it can be quite unpleasant to run on. I found myself trying to get onto the grass instead in order for a more comfortable run. Much like my first run of the winter route, this was a bizarre experience, I'm used to completing the route along a couple of other people, not hundreds.
We were soon into the first ride & through 1km in 5:05. It was around this time that one of our regulars, Bekah from Stortford Running sneezed herself into view. We shared HBO stories & seemed to hit a natural pace between us. She was also expecting to crash & burn a bit so having someone to run alongside with similar intentions made for an easier run. I got told off for adding my own ED adaptations to the route, adding distance as I varied my route through the ride.
Just before 2km my suspicions were confirmed as all of our runners cut a nice corner, more cricket flags needed there to emphasise the true course! I clocked a 5:03 for the second kilometre & noted that this pace was suicide pace, at least when I hit the wall at 3km it would be spectacular. After crossing a bridge I appeared to try my hardest to twist an ankle in our ever increasingly deep ditch & then negotiated our rabbit hole assault course before turning into Half Way Ride.
This is the toughest point of the run. Constant drainage ditches to cross & very lush underfoot conditions mean this is a calf killer. Thankfully the benefit of being the ED is that I know the course pretty well. As soon as the ditches approached I decided I would be better off for rhythm if I took the non ditch route to the right hand side of the ride. Even though this wound around trees I didn't feel I lost anything & after my attempt to mess with my own ankle earlier in the runner this certainly felt like a better option.

Thumbs up, haven't worked out why yet

Once the cattle gate had been negotiated it was time to enjoy over a kilometre of downhill or flat running. I don't know if by this stage I was talking to anyone but myself, telling myself to enjoy the downhill & cash in. That difficult third kilometre had cost me 5:18 & I still didn't feel like I was toast so it was time to carry on. The return to more even footing allowed me to get the pace back down & by this stage I felt it must have been a matter of time before the sleep deprivation kicked in. As we crossed Elgin's I was struggling to spot the 4km marker, it appears that despite setting the course up explicitly some of our participants had parked across the course! This was something I can address with good comms in coming weeks & throwing an extra volunteer onto parking, I'm soon realising that the only way to be properly off duty is to be at another event!
I crossed the estate road & started climbing up hill. It's not really a massive hill, but in the context of our flat course, it certainly bites a bit. I was cursing whoever added the uphill to the course! In reality you're climbing gently for all of 200 metres, it is just the placement, as you clock 4.5km that annoys.
Onto the flat & with the finish coming into view I still had Bekah alongside me. We were both expecting the wheels to have come off by now, instead it was time to go through the gears. I asked her how many ahead she felt we could overtake, my own guess was 5. Bekah didn't want to name a number & given my history of managing a groin strain I really should have just coasted in. Instead I carried on pushing, I felt good enough & with all of 200m remaining I could collapse on the grass if required!
I crossed the line with 24:58 & I think my prediction of overtaking 5 within the closing stages might have even been correct! I exchanged a high five with Bekah & thanked her for the pacing & within seconds found myself back in ED mode & it appeared our scanners were having issues. At first we moved them back as I thought it was a queuing issue. Then realising that the queue was due to the sunshine I urged the scanners to move into the shade, red lasers & direct sunlight are not a good combination. It didn't take long for the queues to subside & with another lesson learnt it was time to relax a bit & chat to fellow runners.
After close down & an awesome NT sausage roll we walked the proposed special event route that is due on the 6th. The course really is rather nice & there is a danger that it could prove to be very popular. For now though it was a one time only option & after making notes of the various sign locations & risks it was off to the pub for results processing.

It's hard not to find an appealing route around the forest

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

The rest of Saturday I tried to avoid falling asleep. I didn't feel a nap would benefit me, hoping to drag things out for an early night instead. I opted for two barrels of sugar to keep me awake, orange Lucozade straight after parkrun & a can of Mountain Dew that had been an option on the overnighter.
It was tempting to have a very lazy day in front of the test match on the TV, but remembered that my hair was starting to resemble Kim Jong Un on the sides & it was time to get it tamed. I'd gone into work the previous evening with a bed hair mohawk after all! After the excellent work done last time I headed into Stortford & let Chloe at CB's sort it all out.

Massive bed hair! I also appear to have one gargantuan sized hand.....

Once the hair issue was resolved the evening took care of itself & I got to sleep very early, no bad thing with my longest run to date planned for the morning.

Plan B

Sunday had plans a plenty. We'd offered the chance to run our special route to our regulars as an open event so I had to be at the forest for 0900. My intention was to then run home, clocking 16 miles in total. Once showered I'd be out to the cricket at Chelmsford.
Of course the first draft of a plan never makes it into reality & with no one else within our core team available, I drove to the forest, already formulating my new long run plan. I could just carry on running various different parkrun routes around the forest (G, summer, winter, summer reverse, winter reverse), that would meet my mileage requirements & present a nice challenge.
I was joined at the Forest by Chris, Jason & Mark, we set off in some rather grim drizzle. The feedback for the course was predictably positive, it is going to have to hurl down a monsoon or something for this route to not be popular with our runners! After a lap of Route G I ditched my jacket as the drizzle was stopping & the humidity was taking over. Mark joined me for my second lap, Route A (summer). We were also joined by an ever increasing amount of rain. As we started to close the course it was clear that the weather had set in.
I'm comfortable enough with my training plan & smart enough to know that there are going to be days like this. There was little to achieve in continuing to run further laps in increasingly crap conditions. With another 90 minutes of running still due all I was guaranteeing myself was a cold, soggy feet, nasty nipples from the rain, general grumpiness. I didn't see nay benefit so as we finished the second lap I decided to call it a day. 10km in trail conditions banked & I can find another long run on another day. One concern was that my socks appears to be soaked through, suggesting the seal skinz had failed me.

The rainfall was doing nothing for the mega quiff

My decision was immediately vindicated when the rain hammered it down the moment I started driving home. The abysmal weather was also snubbing out the idea of going to watch the cricket. Even if the rainfall were to lift, the viewing experience would be a cold & grim experience.
I found myself in a grumpy mood for the rest of the day. No long run, no day at the cricket. A replacement of the test match on TV, a pile of ironing & some xbox didn't really have the same appeal. Despite my rain affected deposition I at least didn't resort to snacking, instead occupying myself with ironing just about every shirt in the pile! In fact it was nearly 9pm by the time I realised that cooking a proper meal might be a good idea, rustling up a steak to at least end the day on a high.

Steaky steak time!

The Conclusion

A hit & miss week. I hadn't achieved the long run I wanted, but had managed to defy current form & lack of sleep to return my fastest parkrun since September. In truth I have no idea where my best pace is at the moment. I'm acutely aware that I shouldn't do too much speed work as my body doesn't react well to it. When I do there is a need to stretch out the groin, calves & achilles as they feel the load more than anything else.
I'd have liked to get the long run in, but there is one more weekend before Endure 24 & I should be able to get the miles clocked. I adapted a 22 week plan over 26 weeks so there is plenty of slack in there & with the past weekend being the last in May I know that there is nearly four months until Berlin.
I was also pleased to finally make it to the gym, even if I now have mangled calves as a result. I can't get through this marathon on running alone (well I could, but my chances of success would be reduced) & embracing some cross training feels like the right call. I'm almost looking forward to having a Monday evening free so that I can subject myself to a spinning class having been warned that it may well rob me of whatever dignity I have left.
I feel like I'm in a good place mentally at the moment. This update started on a bit of a down, this was merely due to be listing things in their natural chronological order. I was touched by the friends old & new that reached out to me to check in & make sure I was ok, almost to a point of being embarrassed by highlighting my melancholy in the first place. Not only was it a time to reflect on the past, but also on the present & the awesome people in my life. Taking stock occasionally is no bad thing.

Go long!

A very satisfactory week would be an apt description of the week that was May 11th. Only two runs, but a couple of changes that should improve things moving forward. The week ended with a massive confidence boost.

DOMS

I ended the prior week by doubling up a long run with an afternoon of cricket. My last entry stated how the run wasn't great, the post run itself painful as well.
Monday & Tuesday I was in pieces. I'd worked from home on Monday & struggled to function, knowing I should be moving regularly but with pain every time I did so I found myself not being proactive. Not only did I ache from running, I had the first cricket game overlay, pain along my sides, shoulders, all those extra bits my unnatural bowling action brings into play.
By Tuesday I was on the road with work, an evening of parkrun admin ahead of me and the need to do something on Wednesday to keep myself ticking over.
The week previously I'd used the Nike training club app, doing a short core strength workout, but finding it had lots of dead space and rest.
What a difference it makes when you actually turn the volume up, the dead time was for repetitions, not rest! Suddenly the short session was a bit more worthwhile!!!! My core (once likened by a physio as like a jellyfish) felt a bit more energised!!

Active Uttlesford

On Wednesday evening, after more motorway fun I made my way to my second Active Uttlesford meeting. The group is only recently established and I'm there to add input and feedback from a parkrun perspective. It was also the first meeting since the event launch so there was plenty of interest in how participation is going. Lot's of positivity was returned in my direction, something that I still find bizarre and very humbling. I just wanted to run locally and maybe have a lie in on a Saturday! I've achieved one of those goals, though the enjoyment and satisfaction from seeing others also enjoy it mean I'm not too concerned about the extra sleep!

One thing I impressed on the rest of the group is that if attendance continues on an upward curve then we'll need to look at further event actions both in ours and neighbouring districts. I'm looking forward to the day when someone approaches me and asks how they can setup a parkrun themselves. 

A Forest Preview

After another wrestle with the M25 I found myself at Hatfield Forest on Thursday for a summer route preview we had arranged for Bishop's Stortford Running Club. I'd also extended the invite to our tail runner as I wanted to ensure they knew the route in advance of Saturday's launch. Typically with it officially turning to summer for us the weather was atrocious! Our lead bike volunteer Adam nearly didn't make it to the start as he stacked it on the boardwalk, confirming my natural suspicion for bicycles!!
Around a dozen of us headed off in grim conditions, Karl leading, me firmly at the rear of the group. This was ideal as I was able to be a back seat driver, shouting if necessary (just once) if a turn was missed. It was nice to spend some time with our parkrunners away from the hustle and bustle of a Saturday morning, as the event matures we're starting to get to know our regulars. 

The feedback on the course was largely positive, it is certainly more challenging than the current winter route, although a mudbath in December might persuade a different view point. 

And now for something completely different

I stepped out of my comfort zone on Friday. Realising that my quality cross training sessions weren't really coming to fruition, I decided it was time to try something different. After giving it some consideration over the past few weeks, I called 1life in Dunmow to sign up to gym membership. The pool is far superior to Stortford & I can also make use of the Stansted facility. I've made a short term commitment as a trial to see how and if it will enhance my running. 

Friday evening involved commuting across London with my cricket kit for an evening of T20. LMS, under our unofficial nickname of The Martians were entering a friendly t20 league for the second year. We even had eleven, usually a requisite but for us an achievement. 

We batted first and I made my first run of the season before perishing soon after by being too timid and not hitting the ball hard enough. We scored 115 so had a chance to defend the total. In truth our opposition were always in charge, though we couldn't get frustrated as the friendly nature of our league meant points are awarded (and deducted) for gentlemanly behaviour. 

My bowling was standard medium slow filth. In my second over I started to get into it and was pleased when my even slower ball actually worked and nearly brought a wicket. I'm acutely aware of my limitations as a player, but I fell in love with the game as a kid and my final ball of the over was the kind of thing you savour. When I get things right, I have potential to sneak some wickets. A ball that pitches on middle and leg breaks away, bouncing more than expected with top spin (I genuinely have no idea how my action works or achieves the end product) top clip the bail and leave a batsman dumbfounded is the stuff you dream of as a bowler. Sometimes it becomes a reality and you get to be embraced by teammates who'd like to know how you did it. If only I knew!

We lost as our total was never enough to put pressure on the opposition, but even in defeat I had a wicket to be proud of. 

Finally, the summer route

Some numpty asked the course setup volunteers to arrive at the forest for 0630 due to the course being unfamiliar. As my second alarm went off at 0510 I realised that numpty was me and that I had to haul my arse out of bed. 

Thankfully Karl, Steve & Oliver realised I wasn't joking and we were soon trying to apply some logic to course setup. Our winter route allowed for a lap of the forest in a car, though we used a car for the north of the run, a lot more walking was required for the summer course. I was pleasantly surprised at how simple it was to setup, not too laborious once we'd split the course into two logical segments. One factor to content with now is cattle. The final stop on my route with Steve was soon engulfed by a group of cows & the clapping technique to disperse them didn't appear to do anything other than amuse them! Signs in place, they set about finding out what was going on, giving all of the flags a nudge & a lick.

First time we've had to contend with cattle during parkrun setup!

Having felt organised & on top of things, by 0815 the earlier alarm call was taking effect & I was feeling rather dishevelled. Perfect for when all of our volunteers & runners start to appear! I tried to wake up a bit & begun to brief my technical volunteers, relieved that we'd added a volunteer co-ordinator into the mix as explaining the positions to marshals would probably have been beyond me.
Soon it was 0900 & time to get the show on the road. Once the runners had departed I realised that I'd forgotten to mention the Henham 10k, despite having a big note on my clipboard & speaking to Monica from the event who I'd specifically invited down. I really wasn't with it & when Sam suggested we visit the newly refitted cafe I agreed that would be a great idea.
The NT brought the cafe in house just before the parkrun started & we purposefully don't suggest bringing cakes or snacks too much. After a major facelift the cafe was looking far better & it seemed rude not to try one of their sausage rolls, fresh out of the oven. I've now learnt that there is no point ordering one until RD duty has ended, it took three attempts & one reheat to get all the way through the huge & tasty pastry! I need to remember that I'm there to talk to people & scoffing pastry doesn't really work with that.
We had a slight panic, the lead runner finished 2 minutes ahead of the rest & our second scanner hadn't arrived back from their marshal point. Thankfully Adam our lead bike rode back out to retrieve the barcode reader & I got the opportunity to scan for a while. Despite volunteering at parkrun for a year, this was the first time I was doing the role & I started to get into it, remembering to say well done to all the runners & say their name if presented on the barcode to add a personal touch. When our marshal came back to relieve the position I realised that a cock up on my part by printing inaccurate information had led to the confusion over marshalling positions. Note to self, proof read before printing, don't print things at 11pm! By happy circumstance Karl had looked at marshal positions from v1 of the course so had ended up in the position intended for the other marshal!!!
Once all of the runners had passed through, an impressive 176 of them, the course packed up & the sausage roll finally consumed, Karl, Sam & I walked what is known as Route G. With another event at the forest on the 6th we were faced with the dilemma of cancel or find an alternative route. The NT were happy for us to run practically anywhere as it's the summer now & the forest is in good condition. With that in mind & 3 weeks to play with I'm determined not to cancel. We've negotiated that the other event will start a bit later & their route works nicely with our alternative.
The first version of G is just about 5km, though it involves a Cumberland sausage style whirl of the a finish that might not be popular with our runners. It is probably the flattest incarnation of a course we can create & after a quick play on Strava I think we've got ourselves a good alternative route without too many shenanigans at the end. Now to walk it, run it, risk assess it & produce the paperwork!

A preview of Route G. It's a wee bit pretty

With that it was off to the pub to process the parkrun results & as it was midday it seems fitting to take in a pint of Erdinger, especially as Karl was driving the parkrun super computer this week. So the results were being sent by carrier pigeon to the secret parkrun hq island and we were able to reflect on another enjoyable morning of parkrun.

This might be why results get a bit funky.....

Upping the distance

After an early start on Saturday and some reticence on my part to succumb to an afternoon nap, I found myself in bed pretty early after a well deserved soak. Although I wanted to get 15 miles in before surprising Emily & Paul to cheer their marathon exploits, I knew that I needed sleep and to not force the issue in the morning. Basic maths suggested 1200 at the marathon turnaround point, -20 to get there -30 to get ready -150 for the run, I could leave by half eight and get my run in. 

Despite my tiredness the body clock decided to opt for a 6am wake up, I did at least negotiate a top up & eventually rose at half seven, straight into my running kit. No bananas to be found in the house so a cocoa Nakd bar had to be sufficient. I loaded up with four gels and a box of Haribo gummy bears as I continue to experiment with various options to see what I get on with. 

I knew 15 miles was on the cards but I hadn't given routes any thought. I could go to Stortford, but the temptation to turn and shorten a run is always there. A quick scan of google maps and I noticed a road just to the west of the main road through Newport that headed back south to Rickling. It looked about 15ish so I looked at street view to give me an idea of the correct turning & headed out the door. 

This was just my second run of the week & expectations were low given the number of minor complaints I'd had the week prior. I certainly had a bit of foot pain to start with, but soon found this ironed itself out by the time I was through Quendon and half an hour into the run. I was probably confounding all running logic by using the run to break in the Mizuno Wave Rider's, only the second run in new shoes. The new experiences continued as I passed the turn towards Elsenham and continued north. South of Quendon the pavement is in horrendous condition, running in the road was a necessity as the local district, parish and highways departments continue to neglect and allow disrepair and overgrowth. 

I soon found myself in Newport and approaching 10km at just over the hour mark. My pace was in line with my intended marathon target of 4:30, which given I have weight to lose, pace to gain & miles to bank is a very pleasing sign. 

After turning west I appeared to be running quite a distance in search of this left turn. Finally Wicken Bonhunt (no really) appeared and I ran through the village to eventually find the turning after a few up and downs to get to that point. 

I was finally heading south, though I had a nice climb ahead of me. At this point I was one hour twenty in so found the gummy bears to see how I'd get on with them. They were a bit too solid, overly chewy and took 15 minutes to consume the box. Certainly an option, though I'm not sure they're the right one. 

As the road took an age to get to Rickling, I was considering other options for getting home should the distance be greater than expected, I didn't want to be taking the run into the realms of 16, 17, maybe 18 miles in what appeared to be increasing heat. My original plan was to head from Rickling Green to Maunden, a loop that was around 8km. The road kept winding & I couldn't work out if I was now running west or south. My form & pace still felt good & I even managed to finish the box of Haribo as I finally entered Rickling with 16km on the watch. Of course just because there was a sign it didn't mean I was actually anywhere nearer to making a decision on a route home. I started to recognise the northern part of Rickling from the Manuden 10k route & as I made it to the cricket field I'd clocked 17km so turned right towards Manuden rather than heading back to the main road.
I was now on one of my most familiar routes, though quite an exposed one in the sun. I knew the score, a bit of a climb for another km, then a gentle downhill, more of a downhill, a climb to match & then for once, the chance to run down Mount Manuden. The track is narrow & by running into late morning there were a few more cars around & at one point a group of cyclists who decided that giving way to anyone wasn't there thing, not ideal when trying to maintain form ahead of a hill to climb.
I decided to cash in on the descend, knowing that the next two km would be the last easy ones of the run. A gel before leaving Rickling had maintained my energy levels & my pace downhill was excellent. As I begun to climb out of Manuden towards Stansted I'd completed half marathon distance & had a mere 3km left in order to get home. Of course I was aware these final kilometres would be hard. Hard as the climb into Stansted is one that always feels unrelenting & doubly hard as I was into completely unknown territory in terms of distance & duration.

I had to talk myself through the penultimate climb into Bentfield Bower, my pace & energy were really starting to dip. I had to remind myself that this was the furthest I'd run & that it really wasn't that far to go, I'd tackled these hills plenty of times previously. I'd soon made it up & into Bentfield Green, not even my worst effort on the ascend with a sloth like 2:17 (I'm between 1:57 & 2:27 in 42 attempts). In theory it was now flat(ish) back to my front door & as if by some virtue of amazing route planning, 24km flashed up on the Garmin just as the house came into view.
I dragged myself inside & started rehydrating, the rising temperature had started to bite. In a complete contrast to the previous long run, everything felt in good shape no need to reach for the medical peas. I took sometime to recover, then remembered I had a prior appointment to cheer some marathoning friends so hauled myself from the sofa into the shower & out of the house. A quick stop into Tezzos to pick up some goodies for them & much needed replenishment for myself.

Post run refuel!

I dumped the Alfa somewhere in Takeley & made my way onto the Flitch at around midday. A friendly face was manning the aid station, Nicki from the Great Notley parkrun core team. We chatted all things parkrun (would you expect anything else) whilst waiting for Paul & Emily to arrive. Nicki had noted that Emily was the most nervous competitor beforehand & after I rattled through the list of ailments she was suffering from it was understandable.
Just after quarter past two human sized cartons of Um Bongo started to make their way towards us, turning out to be Team Adams. They were on good form & looking strong, I could tell that Emily was going to be just fine, especially with Paul at her side to support her to the end. They'd enjoyed the previous aid stations so didn't want the Jaffa Cakes I'd brought (I'm sure I could find a home for them). After a brief refuel it was time for them to turn back & head for home.
I also make my way home & found myself in a completely ravenous mood for the rest of the day. The long run had left me feeling like I had worms or something as I kept consuming anything I could lay my hands on food wise during the day! It was like a hunger I've not felt before. This wasn't standard snacking or binging, more a genuine hunger sensation. Weirdly my arms ached as well, the extra miles had add strain to me that I hadn't anticipated.

The Conclusion

The first step into unknown territory. The extra 2 miles at the end, when combined with an uphill finish back home really did feel like a slog. My focus was just on keeping myself moving & to get home without pausing or walking feels good. The gradual increases in distance will certainly be interesting, the confidence of getting through this helps win the mental battle.
This was the first week where it felt like marathon training, Berlin suddenly became a bit more of a reality.

The road to Berlin begins

One project ends and so another one begins. Perfect timing you could suggest as no sooner as the parkrun at Hatfield Forest launched my programme for the Berlin Marathon begins. A 25 week plan that will take me to the start line of a marathon for the first time. Will I get there? I'd like to think so, this isn't something I've just thrown myself into without much thought, this has been five years of building. When I first starting running, the goal was never to cross the line at a marathon, it was to try and break the cycle of weight gain and weight loss, to get fitter and in a reaction to my father's passing, try and avoid an early death. A bit of a morbid start, but a back story always helps paint the picture. Now, I run because I enjoy it, I love the competition, testing myself, exposing my weaknesses and for the chance to switch off (well as much as an overthinker can do). And yes, I still run to try and break the cycle of weight gain and loss.
The last point is perfect introduction to the marathon plan. I start this journey at the heaviest I've been since the summer of 2013. My extended break from running at the end of 2014, combined with injuries this year & some perfectly justifiable comfort eating, has seen my weight tip over the 14st barrier & back to the 200lbs mark once more. Sometimes a kick up the arse is what you need though. That used to be 15st on the scales for me, now it's 14. If I'm going to make it through a marathon programme then I need to look after myself better & that includes being more disciplined with my diet. I've let things slip of late, affording myself far too much slack, hedging my bets with the line that I'm carb loading for that marathon in September. From trying to go carb free last summer and having some success to slipping into an all too easy path of finding snacks very easy to locate and consume.
With my mind on the scales and needing to get healthier, I couldn't be happier on Good Friday to be meeting up with friends to make a return to running. Physio Dan was very happy with the improvement seen since he'd first diagnosed the groin strain. For once I'd been disciplined, icing and stretching as much as time would allow. It was still tender, but if I was sensible and held off tempo training to start with all would be fine. I look back now at some of the ludicrous sprint finishes at parkrun and other events and can see how the injury kept reoccurring, I'd be cleverer this time around (keep that in mind for the end of this post).

The Comeback

What I needed was a nice, simple route to get back into rhythm with. Instead I appeared to be at the Forest, giving the summer route a once over! In early March with a spell of good weather we were all hopeful that the parkrun would move to the summer course quite early. On Good Friday it was clear that it still needed time to heal and recover. Conditions weren't awful, halfway ride that leads you into 3km was the worst part of the course, still plenty of mud here. I spent the majority of the run at the back with Len, chatting all things parkrun as I moved with all the speed of sloth.
There is a minor downhill just after 2km, normally a nice section to enjoy, except for when your groin twinges to remind you to slow down. Just a minor tremor, it would be sore throughout the rest of the run, but more out of tenderness and being used rather than injury. Run completed I felt good, glad to be back in trainers and running again. As soon as I finished I was stretching & after laying on some breakfast for Paul & Emily I was icing throughout Good Friday. Minor pain is to be expected, the muscle won't be 100% for a while. I wasn't due to run again until the Bank Holiday Monday, Dan had asked me to get in two runs before my regular neck & back visit on Tuesday so that we could assess how I was recovering.

Saturday brought my third week of parkrun Run Directing & again numbers grew, 139 people deciding to spend their Saturday morning running around a Forest! We still weren't graced with sunshine, I'm starting to think I've offended whoever sorts the weather out. Instead we were greeted with what can be phrased "perfect running weather" - i.e. not good for anything else.

6 go mad in a forest....

Post Chocolatemas Run

The Chocolate Boxing Day was actually the official start of my Berlin program. Despite my previous protestations about my weight, I realised there was little point in fighting against the National Chocolate Egg weekend. I don't really know the history behind Chocolate Egg Weekend but much like the December holiday of Eating Alot & Present Days, I whole heartily approve. I'd presented myself a small Creme Egg, rather modest egg, though this barely made it through Pre Chocolate Friday. Thankfully my stocks were replenished over the weekend & it was hard to prepare for my Post Chocolate Monday run without naturally consuming more.

My plans were easily hatched as Harlow parkrun ED Vicky had mentioned she was looking to run 18 miles but in 4.5 mile sections. A 4.5 mile saunter would suit me nicely & the chance to run with a friend and see some new scenery made this an easy choice.

Our route was simple, take the tow path from Harlow Mill and run to Sawbridgeworth, then climb up through the town & take the pavement back to Harlow. As I'm looking for new routes to take in whilst marathon training, running the tow path was nice, I can see myself taking the train to Harlow and running back to change things up during the next 25 weeks.

Unfortunately the rest of the day was far less fun. I left Vicky to continue her run & subjected myself to DIY stores on a Bank Holiday. Suddenly the prospect of running 18 miles didn't seem to bad! Nothing of note to report on the injury though, it held up nicely throughout, the downhill sections back into Harlow stretched it out, but no major issues.

The Exercise Bike is Boring

The Hal Higdon plan that I'm following bases itself on 3 runs a week and cross fit activities. But these activities have to be meaningful and useful. With that in mind I've been clearing out the garage and trying to make it more appealing to work out of. A spare TV will be going in there & I'm dusting down the rowing machine & also bringing the exercise bike out of retirement. Each cross session has lengths between 30-90 minutes as the plan matures. Realistically I'm not sure I can do any one activity other than running for that long, everything else just bores me.
On top of the rowing & cycling I also have the much discussed DDP Yoga to try & crack, I always make a start but never progress past the first couple of workouts. Given the state of tension in my neck at the moment, a reaction to both bad posture & stress no doubt I could do with really getting into the Yoga. Sean has also recommended the Nike Training Club app, seeing that it is Chromecast compatible certainly makes it a possibility to use as well. I'm also planning to make a return to swimming. I had made decent progress with lessons, but after a horrendous end to the year they fell by the wayside. In truth, I might even join a gym & really look to mix up what I do, potentially doing some classes as well (getting dizzy just thinking about it).
The reason I need to consider all of this is because after all of two minutes on the exercise bike I was clock watching. I had some good old wrasslin on the iPad but was still bored with the sheer mundaneness of it all. 20 minutes of boredom is not what the plan intended! I can't get to Berlin alone on just running (well I could, but I'd be better with some cross training) so it is time to put the effort in on my days off.

parkrun goes Mexican

Sadly not an expansion into another territory for parkrun, more a meeting of the minds behind the Hatfield Forest event. On Thursday night I invited the guys over to mine as we ran through the IT side of parkrun & went through various ideas and analysed how the first few events had gone. Up to this day I've exclusively been on Run Director duty, my time off rota starts with this weekend, so that'll be the first true test to see what information I've managed to share properly & what remains wrapped up in my head, needing to be articulated on paper.
I offered to cook as ordering in food or heading to a pub to sit round a tiny laptop would be impractical & it was to my massive Mexican cookbook I went to. I'd recently served up Carnitas to Mum & Steve so returned to that recipe, adding refried beans (from a tin, haven't added that to my repertoire yet), Mac & Cheese, plus a side of homemade Coleslaw. The food seemed to be generally approved of, probably putting more pressure on me to serve up something equally good next time we all meet up.
Spending time with the guys away from parkrun itself is a good way to catch up & also share ideas without the pressure of an event going on. We can look at what did & didn't work from weeks previously, making sure that we shouldn't repeat the same mistake twice.

This book is awesome both in content & size (700 pages), an excellent addition to the book shelf

The Stansted Loop

Friday afforded me the opportunity to run before work and I decided to stay local. Last year I adjusted my wake up time form 0545 to 0535 in order to be able to run before catching the 0722 train from Stansted. Getting up ten minutes earlier usually meant I could get out of the door in time to get some kilometres in, shower & make the train, rather than waiting for the far busier later one. Given my current standing, I put the alarm back to 0520 to compensate for my lack of pace!
It was well before 0600 when I made my way out of the front door. The loop, either north or south is the route I've covered the most since moving to Stansted. Based solely on GPS stats (July 2012 onwards), this was the 18th time I've run from North to South. Surprisingly the last time I ran this way round was in September. I suspect this is because a long but shallower uphill along Pennington Lane is often more appealing than the reverse of the route.
It was also the slowest I've completed the course in. But I couldn't care for the time taken. Getting out & running locally was reward enough for the effort. Another recovery run completed, another tick for less pain being felt & another tick for gradual healing of the injury.

The final activity of week one was the Flitch 10k. First week of a programme & I'm chasing the run bling, when will I learn? More on that in the next update.