The Virtual Runner Running Blog

It seems I’m getting into themed runs lately as I’m registered for the Halloween 5 Nite Run (31/10/2009) and the THc Santa Dash (29/11/2009).  One is at 9pm and comes with a skeleton t-shirt and headlamp and the other comes with a red suit and beard (you figure it out).

I’ve never done a 5k event before and I’m looking forward to doing these ones for a bit of fun and for the medals (I love the medals).  I’ve also managed to rope a few work colleagues into doing the Santa Dash and we’re raising money for Thames Hospicecare as well.  If any of you are interested in sponsoring our little team you can do so at www.justgiving.com/grouprisk.

I had a query on my post yesterday regarding the Reading Roadrunners.  I Run Because I Love Food asked “I’ve wondered about joining Reading Road Runners, but worry it might be a bit serious – are they the bunch that meet at Palmer Park?”

Yes, that’s them.  I’ve been a member for a while now but me and my mate Tony have only just started going to the Wed night track sessions again.  They also do track sessions on Fridays I believe but I don’t go to those ones.

When I first joined the running club I was a bit nervous because I thought it was just going to be a lot of elite runners and they’ll all be whipping past me constantly.  And the truth is, there are a lot of elite-ish runners who go whipping past me constantly, however the running club also has load of normal runners like me and my friend Tony.  They are a nice sociable bunch of people and very welcoming to new people.  In fact, the first couple of sessions are free so you can see whether you like it or not.

On a normal Wed night they have a little meeting with all of us by the track at about 6:30pm and let everyone know what runs are happening etc and then everyone splits up and heads off with different running coaches for some training.  There are loads of coaches and you can join any session you want.  All really flexible and a great way to spend cold Autumn and Winter evenings.

I do find that the membership seems to dramatically increase after new years when all the new joiners suddenly appear.  But on a normal night like last night there were quite a few people at the track.

On top of all that, by joining a running club you get discounts at Sweatshop in Reading and you also usually get reduced entry fees for events/races because Reading Roadrunners is UK Athletics affiliated.

Loads more info at www.readingroadrunners.org

planned races, reading roadrunners

I made the decision to register for the inaugural Brighton Marathon on Sunday, 18 April 2010.

I decided that I needed some sort of focus for the future and for training.  Also, the Brighton Marathon promises to reimburse a portion of the entry fee for those runners who have registered for the London Marathon (ballot).  This way, if I don’t get a ballot place for London I’ll still have my first marathon to train for!

I thought it was a fitting 2nd choice because it is Brighton’s 1st marathon and it will be my 1st marathon too!

I even get a lovely t-shirt that tells everyone what I’m training for!

I probably won’t really start focusing on marathon training until around October because that is when I’ll know for sure whether I’ll be running in Brighton or London.

The running is going okay at the moment and I’m still plodding along.  For example, I did the following recently:-

Today – 5.42km at at 05:32 min/km pace (did some weights and cycling as well)

04  Aug 2009 – 10.37km at a 05:47 min/km pace

02 Aug 2009 – 14.00km at a 05:44 min/km pace

28 Jul 2009 – 10.69km at a 05:36 min/km pace

I’m going to update my spreadsheet tonight after I’m done writing this post.  You’ll be able to see my total mileage to date as well as my total mileage covered on my virtual run across Canada.

Take care and happy running, walking, crawling….

London Marathon, marathon training, planned races, training

The running continues and it’s feeling great!  Yesterday I did 10.86km (6.74 miles) at a total average pace of 05:30 min/km (08:52 min/mile).  I built some speedwork into that run and did a few kms of 250 metre repeats.  250 metres at faster than usual pace followed by 250 metres at slightly slower than usual pace.

This morning I ran 10.55 km (6.55 miles) at an average pace of 05:40 min/km (09:09 min/mile).  This morning’s run felt good, even though my right butt-cheek and lower back is a bit sore from the speedwork yesterday.  My sciatic nerve plays up a bit once in a while but with some constant stretching it usually goes away.

To cap it all off I did some push-ups and crunches this evening -

Push-ups:  3 sets of 20,22 & 22

Crunches:  3 sets of 60, 50 & 70

I think I might head out to Wargrave to take part in the Wargrave 10k on Sunday morning.  It’s something to do and it adds another medal to my collection.  After that we’re heading over to my friend Tony’s place for a bbq.

Tomorrow I might go for a short run of a couple kms around here on the cycle paths… I’m still undecided.

I’ve been reading everyone’s Juneathon blogs and most people are keeping it up which is very impressive (one person hasn’t posted anything in 10 days!).  I think we should all give ourselves a pat on the back for getting this far and remember that we are just about half way!  Keep it up Juneathoners!

juneathon, planned races, training

I woke up this morning hoping to feel well enough to attempt a slow easy run for a mile or two but unfortunately my lungs felt like they were on fire.  I also had a bit of a coughing fit and coughed up loads of things (phlegm, car keys, phlegm, kitchen sink and more phlegm) this morning; afterwards I felt much better and my lungs weren’t hurting anymore.  However, I don’t want to take any chances so I gave running a miss yet again.

If this keeps up I’ll be doing hundreds of push-ups for Juneathon instead of what I really want to do… running!

Anyway, this evening I used my trusty coffee table (it’s a big chunky wooden one) as my exercise point.  4 sets of dips (feet on sofa and hands on coffee table) and three sets of crunches (legs on coffee table) as follows:-

Dips:  20, 20, 20 & 20 (My arms were killing at the end)

Crunches:  50, 50 & 50

At the moment I’m hoping I’ll be able to go for an easy run tomorrow and help clear my head a bit.  I’ve also got the Dorney Dash on Saturday morning but because the weather is predicting heavy rain I might give it a miss.  I’m a bit of a wimp when it comes to events in the pouring cold rain and also I’m just getting over this cold and don’t want to push it.  So, I’ll see what the weather is like on Saturday morning and I’ll make my final decision then.

My mate Tony wants to go for a run with me at Dinton Pastures on Sunday, however the weather for Sunday is predicted as heavy rain again.  That means I might have to forego a run at Dinton and head to the gym and the trusty treadmill instead.  Again, it depends on what the weather is really like.

I’m not too bothered about missing the Dorney Dash as I’ve got some other runs planned over the coming months:-

14/06/2009 – Wargrave 10k
28/06/2009 – Sam Run
05/07/2009 – Tadley 10k
19/07/2009 – The Grant & Stone Wycombe 10K
23/08/2009 - Everton 10k
06/09/2009 – Peppard 10k
27/09/2009 – Mortimer 10k
11/10/2009 – Henley 10k

That’s 8 runs and because they are all 10kms it should be relatively simple to build them all into my weekly running schedule.  I generally run more than 10km on a Sunday anyway and this way I get more medals to add to my collection.  I love the medals (crazy eh?)!

I hope the illness subsides enough tomorrow for me to run!  Now I’m off to read some other Juneathon blogs….

cold & flu, juneathon, planned races