And a happy new year to everyone

Well, yesterday I went for a run - hurrah, etc!
It started off OK but I was struggling to remember how to run the 'art of running' method. But I got it and it really does make it easier to run, if you don't go very fast.

I headed off round the normal 6 and a bit mile route but cut some corners - and it felt fine. Until about 4 miles or so and my left hip began aching. then it began hurting. And then aching and hurting at the same time. Not very pleasant. And I ran out of puff, taking minute steps (which is part of the running style but they were getting ridiculously short as the pain increased) I did have to walk for a short while but I got home ok.

And once I'd stopped it felt absoloutely fine

It's the IT band, I am convinced - the pain goes from my hip down the outside of my leg and ends up in my knee. So once it's had a day's rest I'm going to get on with stretching it. I seem to spend most of my days at work sat at a desk, so it's no wonder I'm seizing up. Perhaps this is the kick I need to sort myself out. After all the thought of getting old does worry me and keeping flexible (and fit, strong, slim) are important ways of fighting it. But running is also a classic way of injuring yourself so you can't do any exercise...

The Shame...

I just can't seem to get myself out there any more. Something to do no doubt with this perishingly cold, dark time of year, but surely I would feel better for having a dawdle round the downs???

wishful thinking...

I so wish I could be blogging about my latest run, about how I've missed sharing my running experiences for the last few weeks.
But the truth is, I haven't been running since the last blog which is over 2 weeks ago. And it's turning chilly now and I can't seem to find the wherewithall to haul myself out there. (if wherewithall's what I need, perhaps I'm more in need of  'gumption' . Or 'a backbone')
Anyway- Christmas is coming which means all exercise goes out the window (rather than the front door ha ha ha ha ha ha ha) and I will survive on promises of 'getting into shape' in the new year. Which lets me off the hook as far as eating like a gutbucket for the next month is concerned. And early next year I will berate myself for having to go through the hell of dieting to lose the pounds I've put on between now and then rather than upping the exercise NOW and heading into Christmas/new year feeling good and not dreading the jan/feb starvation/denial...
Or is that just me.

pooped

I know it's been ages since I last ran - and I did have a couple of gin and tonics last night - but my god I suffered this morning. I amazed myself by going for the full run but by the last couple of miles I was knackered. This new running style is OK but I think I'm still getting used to it. And my calves/calfs were aching again. But I have to hold onto the fact that running is better for me than not running. So I should do more of it!

Killer calves. Calfs?

My lower legs are still killing me to the extent that it's hard to stand up without looking like an ancient.
I know the cure for this is to do more of it and keep doing it until it stops hurting - but that kind of goes against the grain for someone only interested in fast results.

Lost runs

I have run since the last post - the one about the art of running - and I thought I'd blogged them, but apparantly not.

So, the week after, I did a run with my new-found skills and it's true - you can run with less effort which is nice. But it's a bit slower. And the nike+ will have to be re-calibrated as I think my stride length is a lot less.
So, it makes my feet ache and my calves tired cos this is where all the bounce is coming from. It make sense though. And my left hip didn't hurt anything like as much. Result...

And today's run - which was in lovely sunshine over the downs and across the bridge - was fine. I thought I might have forgotten how to do this technique - and there were times I felt I was losing it, but remembering to keep all the action under your body (rather than striding out ahead) seems to work. And I think I was using my glutes a bit better as well.
So I shall just wait for the aching lower legs to begin, tomorrow morning I imagine - just as I get on my bike to cycle to the gym...

So at least I've broken my duck of not running for 3 weeks which is the longest I've left it for quite a white. Whether I will go for evening runs this week or not remains to be seen. Frankly going out into the cold of a November evening is not my idea of fun. But think of all the mince pies which I can snaffle with no regret...

hmm

*thinks about mince pies*

tippy toes

Not a blog about a run as such - more about running.
I did the 'art of running' workshop with Malcolm Balk

http://www.theartofrunning.com/

and it's really good.
I'm hoping that by following this technique I'll stop getting the aches and pains and will be happier to run more often.
You feel very light doing this - the idea is to put in far less effort than you normally would. Having my running style videoed and analysed is a little disconcerting but it was amazing how much of a difference it made just after a couple of hours of practice. 

So all I have to do now is to put it into practice - which might involve running without the ipod for a bit to concentrate. not to very happy about that!

Hottest 30th Sept since 1908

It was baking hot today - and tomorrow might be the hottest October day on record. It's very weird - being very warm, windows open and in the pitch dark at 8 o clock.
So I had a choice - to go for a run tonight and have a couple of ice-cold beers - or have a couple of ice-cold beers this evening and then have to get up about 7am and run in the morning. Very glad this one is over
And I've used the nike+ again - I will have to check if it's calibrated properly...
stats - just in case they're accurate -
67mins 15 secs
7.37 miles
9 mins 7secs per mile
695 calories

am very pleased if it is accurate cos it's a lot faster than I've been running recently.

(Perhaps I will be disappointed if I do check it out and it's all calibrated wrong... )

later
have checked the distance on map my run and it turns out I ran....
.
.
.
.
..
7.36 miles
Result!!! In both senses - 1. that I calibrated the thing correctly and 2. I am running faster than I ever dreamed possible.
Well, it's nice to think I'm not as decrepit as I think...

Phew

Just got in from my Sunday morning run-fest and it's pouring down. For once I missed it - hooray.
And I actually felt OK on the run (the usual 11km thingy) except for:
1. left hip, well, back of hip and a bit higher up than hip - it took a nasty turn at one point.
2. Left outside of knee where I think there is a tendon or something
3. Left calf - very tight. I think it's cos I'm trying to run on my toes a bit more to save my knees. Unforseen consequences...
4. right outside of knee pretty much the same as no. 2

but all in all satisfactory.

There is still an outside chance of doing the stroud 1/2 marathon - I know I will have to run twice as far as today pretty much but I think I'm fit enough.Whether the joints and tendons etc would hold out for another 6 miles is another matter. I will have to up the mileage during the week - but there are 5 weeks I think until it starts.

hmm

not sure about this

Grunt

Don't like this evening running - I seem to have no energy to begin with. And my knees ache.
Weirdly towards the end if I pushed myself a bit harder, it seemed I did have the energy after all. Odd.

Cobblers

The nike + thing - I had to get a new one and I guess it was wishful thinking that I wouldn't have to calibrate it. How wrong I was. According to the thing I'm running just over 7 minute miles. It's cobblers. What's really irritating though is that the blurb says that it's pretty accurate for most people. So I'm obviously some kind of freak.
Annoying.
I even splurged and a really good neoprene sock thingy for it.
But at least I went on another midweek run. And what a struggle it was... Until about 3 miles in I had no energy at all and had to walk for 30 seconds and it was very hard to get going again. But I did. Hurrah for me

weekday running

OK this is it - I went for a run on a Monday evening after work and it wasn't too bad. OK it wasn't brilliant but it was OK.
And there is a chance, I think, that I could possiby think about maybe going for the Stroud 1/2 marathon.
Just a thought

Stroud

There's a 1/2 marathon in Stroud next month. I could do it - do a lot more running between now and then and lose a load of weight to boot.
It's tempting.
Dropping people off for the Bristol half this morning I did feel a bit left out. I know I did a fairly long run yesterday - could I manage another 5 miles on top of that? I have 6 weeks to get up to speed.
It's doable...
Is there any reason why I shouldn't?
I can think of 100s frankly, but if I am serious about keeping up with the running and also with trying to shift a bit of flab before another birthday drags around, then it seems (at the moment, full of cake) like a good idea...

13... km

Well that was a long run.
Also it's nearly 2 weeks since I last ran it seems like it was a big deal.
Boyf dropped me off near the water tower and I did a lap of the downs, up to the camera obscura which always puts a bit of energy my way and then over the suspension brudge (very sorry the Brunel gorilla has gone...) and then back the usual way.
At times I thought I was going to die through lack of energy and then at others I was whizzing along thinking I would have been happy to do the 1/2 marathon again.
But it's tomorrow and now I'm back home in a puddle of sweat and achyness I think I'm wise not to do and do it. Not that I was planning to or anything.

an ok run

Do you ever get those dreams where you're running as fast as you can, but in fact you're barely moving? It's like the 'running through treacle' idea where no matter how much effort you put in there, you still can't move.
I felt a bit like that this morning - I think it's cos I have the strength from going to the gym, but no energy. And I see my legs moving like they should do, but I'm still hardly moving.
Hey ho.

My biggest concern is tinnitus. After a run it's usually louder and sometimes feel like there is pressure inside my head. Today it was the wort it's ever been. I'm wearing in-ear buds to listen to the radio as I run, so I wonder if there is a connection there. Should I get some phones that sit outside the ear?  Will there ever be a cure for it? It's depressing and frustrating and it's diving me nuts.

New shoes

They are good.
Not in the sense that I can now run like a gazelle and never go red in the face.

But they don't rub and my knees didn't explode.

And they have dark grey laces which look quite cool :)

oo get me!

I have new running shoes.
Mizuno nirvanas
I'm wearing them in the house.
I will wear them outside, and possibly run in them soon.
Hope they're OK - there is always that feeling with new (really rather pricey) running shoes that you're going to get a mile down the road and you'll be blistered and have exploding shin splints (or whatever shin splints do, I'm not sure on that one)
Will keep you posted.

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger

I nearly died this morning - I know part of the problem was a little too much dry white the night before, I accept that, but it really hurt... Left hip aching, right foot just being, well, flat I guess. Plus bruised toes.
I think I might need new trainers as I felt extremely un-bouncy in those. Not sure if that's the problem though. Although at the back of my mind I think I got an email from moti to tell me it was so long since I bought the things I should think about changing them. Well they would say that wouldn't they. But it might have been about a year ago so perhaps they were onto something. Hey - shopping for shoes - ugly, practical shoes....

stats: well, bit of a problem there...
0.34 miles, 4 min 53 seconds
Thing is, the thing fell off my shoe and I didn't notice it, so now I don't have a nike+ thing any more. I feel quite sad about that...

The other amazing thing about today's run (I lead a very dull life...) is I went The Wrong Way Round - as in going up Ashley Hill first, then Glos Rd, then down past Tescoe and along to the water tower and back through Henleaze and Bishopston. It made it a fraction more interesting, but it felt a lot harder - perhaps there's more uphill going that way round - I know it has to be the same amount but the severity of the hills might just mean it feels worse this way round.
Anyway, it's done and I need to keep going at least 3 times a week for it to do me any lasting good, don't I....

running in the rain

Torrential at times - and then the sun came out and it all went gin-clear and sparkly again. British summer for you...

Here are some stats which I find interesting but doubt if they're very riveting for anyone else
1h 1m 42s
6.28 miles
9m 49s /mile
592 calories

It was hard work - despite not having any wine last night and having a breakfast an hour before setting off - but still it took a couple of miles to get going properly. Perhaps that's not unusual, perhaps it's evidence of getting old. Having said that, there was less pain than usual: feet and knees were OK, the only twinge was coming from my left lower back, but I know that works better when I've stretched properly (if only my yoga teacher wasn't on holiday for the next few weeks...)
Again when I'd gone up to the observatory and done that intense hill, it seemed to unlock some energy reserves - is this how bodies work?
I did a different route - driving up to the downs then doing a circuit taking in the camera obscura and then across the bridge which was really nice - I had ambitious plans to go into Ashton Court but I think I did the right thing not to go that far. I'm sure I would have made it though - perhaps if I was in proper training, for a 1/2 marathon say, then I would have pushed myself, but just going to lose a few lbs then meh, it's probably better to do more shorter runs during the week rather than concentrate on the marathon at the weekend. Sort of...

tuesday morning

I missed running on Sunday cos I was working in Weymouth and despite the lure of running along a lovely sandy beach first thing in the morning, I really couldn't be arsed. Well, I did have to start work at 9am so blah excuses

So I took today off and went for a run at about 11am which is an odd time for me but it was ok. Felt lacking in energy but I guess there's nothing new there, being not very fit. But it was good to run a different route - I dropped the car off in Clifton and ran up Pembroke rd and across the downs from there. Don't know about a change being as good as a rest though..
stats
oh - forgot major running news - orange ipod 'it's alive' has died - the centre button stopped working.
So I went down to the apple store and they told me it'd be £70 to mend (as in get another one exactly the same and they didn't have any in stock) so I said I'd treat myself to one of the new nanos, with the touchscreen. I think I made a mistake getting the £50 cheaper 8GB one, rather than the 16GB but hey ho, it just means I shall have to manage it a bit better.
But as a thing, it's great - it runs the nike+ thing and I can listen to the radio at the same time - good times.

anyway, stats:
6.4 miles,  1hour 2mins 43s, 9m 46/mile (very slow) 604 calories
(this assumes I don't have to recalibrate the thing for the new ipod, but I would guess not)

So that's it. I was a very sweaty betty when I got back cos it's quite warm and I am a sweaty betty these days. Not a good look.