Wednesday

6.5km (4.04 miles) in 41 mins 12 secs for an average pace of 10:12 min/mile (06:20 min/km).

Friday

1.6km in 10 mins 48 secs for an average pace of 10:52 min/mile

4.8km in 25 mins 50 secs for an average pace of 08:40 min/mile (05:23 min/km)

1.6km in 10 mins 38 secs for an average pace of 10:42 min/mile (06:39 min/km)

Sunday

Long run of 16.23km (10.08 miles) at an average pace of 10:48 min/mile (06:41 min/km).

Details of today’s long run are below:-

My long run was made just a little bit more interesting because of the lovely purple toe I’m sporting at the moment. I took my son to a local indoor playgym which comes complete with a ball pool/pit. I was in the ball pool testing it out to make sure it was safe for my son (okay, I was playing in it) when I stubbed my big toe really hard on the floor mats under the balls. I fell into the balls in agony. Unfortunately my son and the other children there thought it was an invite to a pile-on and I was soon covered in children as well as brightly coloured balls.

So my toe started off as purple before the long run and it now a dark purple covering a larger area. Good thing was that it didn’t hurt at all during the whole run which means I’m just gonna keep at it.

Photos from today’s long run:-

This afternoon we went for a meal at a pub my wife always sees when she’s out and about. It claims to have the “best pub garden in Berkshire”. I beg to differ. Food was pretty good though, even with the 1 hour wait to eat. I won’t be in any hurry to head back to that place again.

I keep saying it, but I really must do it: I need to take part in more (some) cross-training on my non-running days! I mean, it’s just ridiculous. I keep telling myself I need to and I always fully intend to but it never ends up happening. So, tomorrow morning I must somehow make myself get off to the gym for some non-running exercise!

Also, I’m not sure if I’ve told you or not, but I’ve been raising money for a local (Berkshire) charity called DebRA. I’ve raised over £500 for them so far I think and I’ll try and push for a bit more.

As for future running plans, I have none in the short term. Most of the running events I would normally take part in are on a Sunday and the distances are like 10k which is too short for me to do because I really need to be doing my long runs on Sundays. I’ve entered the ballot for the 2011 London Marathon and I’ve also applied for a charity place. I’m telling you, if I get in to the London Marathon I’ll be SUPER excited and I’ll be hitting EVERYONE up for sponsor money! Hell yeah!

Well, I’m off to tweet on twitter and see what peeps are up to.

Related posts:

1. Week 2 Done, 10 to go!
2. Week 4 Done, 8 to go!
3. Week 1 Done, 11 to go!

Tuesday

Called for 3 mile easy run at a 12:29 min/mile pace.  I did 3.10 miles at a 10:14 min/mile pace.

Thursday

Called for a 3 mile tempo run with a 1 mile warm-up and 1 mile cool-down.  I managed 1 mile warm-up at 11:00 min/mile with 3 mile tempo run at 09:01 min/mile and the 1 mile cool-down at 10:33 min/mile.

Sunday

Called for long run of 8 miles at 12:29 min/mile pace.  I managed 8.01 miles at a 10:12 min/mile pace.

Overall, that’s a pretty good week, even though I didn’t get in the cross training I wanted/needed to on the days in between.  Well, I guess that means more of an effort is needed on that front this week!

As for non-running related matters… I’ve made the decision to get rid of my windows based laptop.  Since I’ve had my macbook pro I haven’t needed to use the other laptop for anything at all.  I can see any reason to keep it so I’ve sold it to a work colleague.

I’ve had a nice weekend and spent a few hours yesterday at the Crowthorne Carnival (http://www.crowthornecarnival.co.uk/) with my son and mother-in-law (mummy was at work).  It was a pretty good afternoon and the parade was… interesting.  The floats were what you would expect for a small village parade, however one of them was a bit odd.

Pole dancing?  In a parade?  On a moving flatbed?  With everyone dressed like they’re out of Grease!

I must admit, she was pretty agile though… lol.

So, there you have it.  Pole dancing!

Tomorrow I’ll be attempting to get up early, go to the gym and do some cross-training and weights.  Will it happen?  Who knows!  Place your bets…

Related posts:

1. Week 2 Done, 10 to go!
2. Week 3 Done, 9 to go!
3. Week 4 Done, 8 to go!

http://www.farnhampilgrim.org.uk/

The event’s route is described as “mixed and mainly off-road”… great.  However, I figure that if I put the training down then, so what?  I can’t wimp out just because it’s not perfectly flat.  Besides, do I really care how long it’s going to take me to finish?  My main goal is survival for my first marathon!

I haven’t actually booked it yet, and frankly if it fills up before I can register (like the New Forest Marathon!) then I’m sorry in advance, I will be delaying my 1st marathon attempt until April next year!  Yup, if I can’t get into this marathon then I’ve decided to push it back a full year until April 2011.  Bad-side:  I’ve had to put it back so far and people were expecting me to do one.  Good-side:  It will give me the opportunity to save more money.

Let’s be positive though!  I’m going to do the marathon on 19th September in Farnham!  I’ve even did a basic training plan for long runs as follows:-

• 20th Jun – 07 miles
• 27th Jun – 08 miles
• 04th Jul – 09 miles
• 11th Jul – 10 miles
• 18th Jul – 12 miles
• 25th Jul – 10 miles
• 01st Aug – 13 miles
• 08th Aug – 15 miles
• 15th Aug – 17 miles
• 22nd Aug – 18 miles
• 29th Aug – 20 miles
• 05th Sep – 15 miles (day before we go to Greece)
• 12th Sep – 10 miles (this one might be in Greece)
• 19th Sep – Marathon

I’ve also decided that running 3 days a week is not enough for me and I’m going to go back to running on Tue, Wed, Fri and Sun.  I will try and make Tue an easy 10km run and Wed/Fri will be some 40 – 50min interval and hill training each week.  Those two training sessions have to be the big thing and I want to focus on those as well as weight training on Mon and Thu.  This means Sat will be the only day I’m not actually doing some sort of exercise.  Too much?  Perhaps.  But I’m aiming high on purpose.

Wish me luck people!

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I haven’t really done any running this last week at all since the Bupa 10000 in London and I would’ve thought the great feeling from that run would’ve kept me going.  Nope.  I think it comes down to mind-over-matter and I just need to get on with it!  So, starting from today I’ll be putting in a big “push” and trying to get my running sorted out.

1)  I’ll need to update my running log with total mileage to date.  I’ll also need to keep a pad or something in the kitchen (easily accessible) where I can write down my mileage and duration each time I train.

2)  I’ll need to do more quality workouts.  They can’t all be easy or long runs!  I need some intervals and even hill-work thrown in there or nothing is going to happen and I won’t develop any further.

3)  I need to watch what I’m eating.  I don’t necessarily eat loads of “bad” foods but I tend to eat too much.  I love food!  mmmmm…. food.  So, calorie intake to decrease somewhat.  I’m not going to set myself any particular weight loss goals but I’d be overcome with joy if I was 20lbs lighter than I am now.  Ooops… just inadvertently set myself some sort of mental goal.  Great, pressure.  I’d like to get down to 199 lbs (90.26kg) and maintain that weight or less.  I’d be very happy if I could do that!

4)  Need to start doing some weight training a couple times a week.  I’m not sure when I’ll squeeze this in but I’ll do my best.  I think I’ll have to re-start the whole “100 push ups” challenge as part of this to make up for the days when I can’t get to the gym and use any weights. 

Sound like a plan?  I’m not sure how it is for others out there but for us average 103kg guys this whole running thing takes a lot of motivation at times.  Wish me luck!

As for non-running related matters, we’re getting chickens!  We’ve thought about it in the past and discussed it a bit and now we’ve decided to go for it.  We’re going to get 3 hens and a nice little coop for them to live in.  Hopefully, before you know it we’ll have our own eggs!  Chicken names have already been confirmed as Claudia (Schiffer), Elle (MacPherson) & Rachel (Hunter); all good chicken names.  We just haven’t decided what breed of chicken to get yet as there are so many.  My wife is inclined to get some ISA Browns as they would normally go to a battery, however this may all change when we go to the farm to choose some.  We’ll also take the advice of the lady who runs the place we are getting the hens because we want them to be docile.

It won’t be straight away, it’ll probably happen over the next month or so because we still need to discuss a few things and make sure the funds are available to do what we need to do.  Initial outlay is the biggest thing but I think it’ll be worth it.  It’s also good for our son (he’s 3 1/2 now) as we don’t currently have any pets at all and he will learn to take care of them too.

This means that the “non running” posts of my blog will now include information on keeping hens and what’s happening with them.  I apologise in advance if you find this boring or if there are too many “non running” posts.  I mean, I don’t just run do I?

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I’ve printed all my entry info to take with me on our trip to Canada (we have a house-sitter any would-be burglars) because the website doesn’t actually tell you to bring anything to prove you’ve entered.

I’m trying to remember everthing I need to take with me to Canada like running shoes!  I definitely want to take my Garmin even though I have no idea if it will work in North America if it was bought in UK.  I’m sure it will…

Won’t be long and we’ll be in the land of moose, maple syrup, pick-up trucks, “eh” and politeness (to name but a very few).   After 9th May my main focus will be enjoying myself and trying not to eat myself to death!

I will probably post a blog or two whilst I’m over there but it depends on which family member will allow me to borrow their internet access!

Wish me luck everyone!

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I think that I should’ve been running more each week but it’s too late now.  Some things that I’ve read said that running should be done on consecutive days and that’s what I’ve been avoiding.

The weekday runs have been okay and they’ve been about 10.5km each time and at a pretty good pace too.  I always feel good after having done one.

Today’s long run, different story.  I was walking within the first 2 kms due to shinsplints and it just set the mood for the whole run.  It really pissed me off and it’s a pretty big blow mentally when all other runs have felt pretty good.  I was also using my new pack to carry gels etc and it just didn’t feel right at first.  It took miles to get used to it.

I ended up walking loads and avg pace went through the roof compared to the last long run.  This long run clocked in at 06:45 min/km!  I know that’s an okay pace though and if I finished a whole marathon at that pace I’d be happy, however when you’re actually out there and end up walking all the time it’s really frustrating.  I wish I could get over that mental downer.

Here is the summary of the fun run/walk (that’s another thing, I’m tired of calling my “runs” a “run/walk”.  Before I started doing all of this marathon training I actually did “run” the whole time, just like my mid-week runs):-

So, if I was to finish the marathon at a pace of 06:45 min/km that would be a finish time of 4 hours and 44 minutes. Who would be dissapointed with that as their first marathon time? Not me! So, why the upset with these long runs and all the walking? I think because in my head: I’m supposed to be running.

Tapering begins now. That means the mid-week runs will remain the same but long runs will get gradually smaller up until the marathon. This next long run will be 15 miles (24km), so still pretty long but manageable. The following Sunday will be 10 miles (16km) and then the Sunday after that is the Fredericton Marathon in Canada.

And, most important for last, I’d like to thank my lovely wifey for being so suportive even when I’m a miserable bastard after having what I felt was a crap run. She’s good.

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What do you think? Frankly it’s a bit of a relief and a time saver!

As for the run this morning, it was okay on the “out” part and the coming “back” was a bit more difficult. Still ended up doing quite a bit of walking but average pace still came out at about 06:23 min/km. If I can finish a marathon at that pace I’d be very happy. That would put me at about 4 and 1/2 hours I think but I’ll problably end up doing the marathon at an average pace of about 07:00 min/km.

I know feel more tired and sore than I have ever felt in my whole life. It makes me wonder how a full marathon is even possible and it certainly makes me have more respect for the people that run them on a regular basis.

If you have never run a full marathon, you gotta be prepared for the mental and physical pain! I never would have imagined it was as bad as this!

However… the sense of achievement when I get back from these super-long runs is amazing. I mean, each one is just a little bit further and it makes me feel amazing knowing that I’ve managed to go that far! Me!

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http://thevirtualrunner.org/blog/100-push-ups/

This should be interesting!

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My third attempt of the Reading Half Marathon certainly wasn’t my best.  I had a good first half and at the 10k mark my time seemed pretty good and I was at about the 58min mark.  However, the whole second half was much harder and I was experiencing some major tiredness in my legs and feet whilst running.  I had to stop and walk many many times during the second half and my overall finish time was more than 2 hours 16 mins!  Even worse than when I ran it for the first time.

My split times were as follows:-

5K – 00:29:20

10K – 00:58:33

15K – 01:32:26

20K – 02:08:24

When the pain was really bad I just kept focusing on getting finished.  Even if I had to walk the rest of the damn thing, I was going to finish! That is the one big positive out of all this, I finished it even though my body and brain were telling me I’d had enough.  For me it was a serious mind over matter moment.

I must admit that when I finished the run I was quite upset/disappointed with myself.  My wife was very helpful though and reminded me that I had finished the run in the first place.  That’s why everyone in the audience cheers so much, not just because they have family/friends running, but because they’re proud of all of us for doing it in the first place.  So, even though it was a “personal worst”, I’m proud of me for doing it as well.

The one big lesson out of all of this is that I need to train more.  I’ve been a bit slack lately and with a full marathon coming up in 7 weeks I just can’t afford to do that anymore.

Of course, this finish time and the pain has made me wonder how many days (kidding) it’s going to take me to finish the marathon.  The good thing about the marathon is that I don’t actually have any previous finish times to compare against in my head.  I just want to finish it… and I will.

So the main focus over the next 7 weeks is training and dropping a few pounds.  I think it was a combination of lack of training and being too heavy this time.  I need to trim down a few kilos in order to be better prepared for the full marathon.

Today I’m hobbling around and having a very hard time going up and down stairs.  My calf muscles and quads are killing me.  My quads!  Why?  Usually it is my hamstrings that are sore after running or training.

My wife was kind enough to give me a leg massage today and although it was an extremely painful experience (which I’m sure she enjoyed) it does feel a bit better.

I wonder if it’s safe to go to the gym tomorrow and do a little bit on the cross trainer…

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I don’t know what make/brand the machine is but it’s pretty cool.  Obviously it simulates a cross-country skiing motion like all other cross trainers, but this one has got TV, radio, games and intructional videos.  On top of all that it has an iPod docking station as well.  Cross country skiing has come a long way…

I did 30 mins on that bad boy whilst watching the news and playing a game of solitaire. 

Tomorrow is interval training with 5 x 400m repeats and 400m recovery.   Thursday I’ll be back on the cross trainer and Friday will be a tempo run for about 3 or 4 miles.  Saturday will be a day of chillin out and Sunday will be the long run.

I thought I’d also make a specific mention of Sarah who asked to be added to my list of Best Running Blogs.  Sarah has been training for a 10k that takes place this coming weekend and I want everyone to wish her all the best and lets hope she continues running and blogging.

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