TRAINING RUN 3

Today was the second training run organised by Gade Valley Harriers. Claire, Charlotte and I were dreading it because 17 miles is a long way and the weather forecast was for heavy rain and gales.

The walk from Hemel Hempstead station to the club house confirmed that the weather forecast was 100% accurate. It was freezing and pouring with rain. We looked like we were heading to the arctic rather than to a running event. We huddled together in the club house for as long as we could before having to shed our coats and head to the start.

Despite the weather our spirits were high and the atmosphere very friendly. The route was the same as last time but with a slightly longer middle section. This meant that the first 3 miles were once again along the towpath. Last time the problem was ice. This time it was mud. It was literally like a mud bath. At first I tried to run around the muddy puddles but by mile 2 this seemed rather pointless as my feet were completely wet. It was actually safer to go straight through them. It felt like army boot camp!

Having done the route before was a huge advantage. The hills were not a surprise and seemed more manageable and it was also a morale boost to know when the downhill sections were coming. But the weather was something else. I have literally never been so wet. Even though I was wearing a waterproof jacket, I was soaked to the skin although curiously not cold. I couldn’t help but smile when the driving rain turned to snow at about mile 10. It’s nearly March for heaven’s sake!

What made a huge difference to me was that I seemed to get my nutrition right this time around. I had done a bit of research and the general consensus was that I should be taking between 30g and 60g of carbohydrate every hour. From mile 7 I started chewing on jelly babies (5g each) and then took a HIGH5 Energy Gel at miles 8 and 13. This seemed to work really well and I felt like I was running with a full tank of energy right to the end.

I was surprised to thoroughly enjoy the day. Charlotte had a great race and finished in about 2.20 hrs, I was next at 2.30 hrs and Claire was a bit behind us. Waiting for friends to finish is no problem as the club lay on steaming tea and huge slabs of cake that really hit the spot.

Once again the event was brilliantly organised and I cannot recommend it more highly. We’ll be back in 4 weeks for our final 20 mile training run. Bring it on!

Is this supposed to be fun?




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MEMORY LANE

Claire and I met today on the Southbank for a run around the river. We followed the route that we ran so many times when we trained for our first marathon in 1997. According to mapmyrun.com the route from Royal Festival Hall along the Southbank, across Tower Bridge, back along the north side of the river and across Westminster Bridge is just over 5 miles.

Neither of us really felt like running today so meeting up was the perfect way to get some miles under our belts. We ran slowly, chatted lots and then rewarded ourselves with a warming bowl of soup. We were surprised to spot David Cameron along the Embankment out for his lunchtime jog. He looked to be struggling a bit but good on him for finding the time.

We’re both really nervous about our second Hemel Hempstead run on Sunday. It’s 17 miles and is going to be hard work. Watch this space.

We managed to avoid the rain at lunchtime but I wasn’t so lucky later in the day when I took Bailey to the park. We got absolutely soaked. One of us enjoyed it a lot more than the other!

TRAINING RUN 2

I got together today with a few friends for my second training run. An early start was required to get to Winchester for the Hampshire Chronicle 10km and when the heavens opened half way down the M3 our commitment was tested. I’m afraid to say that we failed the test as we agreed running in the pouring rain wasn’t our idea of fun. Luckily the clouds lifted as we drove into Winchester and it stayed dry until about 5 minutes after the finish.

After a few cups of tea at a friend's house we walked down to the start. Actually we ran to the start because it was so cold and one too many cups of tea meant we were a little late! Our timing proved impeccable as we met the others and then we were off.

It was such a pleasure to be doing a shorter distance and despite not much training this week I felt really good. The course was quite hilly but the time flew past. We chatted for the first few kilometres and then spread out as we hit our natural strides. I was delighted to finish in 51 minutes which is an improvement on previous 10k times. The others also clocked great times and so it proved to be a big confidence boost to us all.

A big thanks to driver Lindsay and tea maker Anna, as well as to Claire, for fully supporting the brand. Ladies you looked great in your Thoosa gear!

Running to the start


Then we're off



The first hill


The finish


The ladies looking great in their gear!


If you happen to be interested in doing a 10k there's a good article in the Telegraph that you should read click here

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PANCAKE DAY

The good news is that I've just enjoyed some delicious pancakes to mark the beginning of Lent. The bad news is that I now have to give-up something for 40 days. I've been struggling to decide what is to be sacrificed, but deep down I know the answer - the crisps have got to go. I love crisps and eat more than my fair share of them on a weekly basis. My favourite at the moment are (1) Kettle sea salt & vinegar and (2) Burts sea salted. The combination of crisps, hummus, a cold glass of wine and the latest issue of Grazia is heaven but it's time for a change. As I'm writing I'm already wondering if pretzels count as crisps. Apparently they do I'm firmly told as I gingerly raise the question. So there you have it. As from tomorrow until Friday 26 March I will not be eating crisps of any shape, form or flavour.

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66 DAYS TO FORM A HABIT

The shock of the training run a week ago was the motivation I needed to get my act in gear. Since then I’ve run most days getting a few long runs under my belt. I’ve also done a bit of sprint work which, if the experts are right, is a must if you’re looking to improve your marathon time. It’s certainly starting to feel a bit easier which in turn makes it less of a hurdle to get out the door in the first place. I was thinking today about the research by University College London into forming healthy habits. They concluded that it takes on average 66 days to form a new habit. This means that in the week before the marathon I should be running out the door without a moment’s thought!

I tried out some new running socks today. They are made by FoxRiver and have slightly padded toes and heels. I was impressed at how comfortable they were and they kept my toes nice and warm. One of the Running Rules of Thumb in the March issue of Runner’s World is that running any given route in the rain makes you feel 50% more hardcore than covering the same route on a sunny day. I certainly felt hardcore today as I ran into horizontal snow. My litmus test of the cold is whether my little duck dog will go in for a swim. Today I threw a good looking stick into the Serpentine. After a tentative paw dipping she gave me the “fetch it yourself” look and we were on our way. Enough said.

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RUNNING WITH FRIENDS

After much talk Claire, Charlotte and I finally got together this morning for our first group run. If I’m honest I was a bit nervous about how it would go. I’ve got into the habit of running on my own and am able to be selfish about when, where and how fast I go. Running with a dog in tow also needs a bit of patience and I was concerned that the girls may think Bailey was a pain.

I needn’t have worried. Everything went very smoothly. We met at Hyde Park corner and ran for an hour. It was great for Charlotte and Claire finally to meet and they seemed to get on well; Bailey was also surprisingly well behaved (apart from the jumping up!) and loved being part of the team – she loves being in the middle of things so the 3 of us running together was pretty exciting and held her attention.

We ran around the perimeter of Hyde Park and then around the Serpentine. It’s a route I do often and I was amazed how the time flew as we chatted away. We were guessing how far we ran and so I took Charlotte’s advice and have logged on to www.mapmyrun.com . The site is easy to use and apart from the very annoying adverts that continuously pop up it’s a helpful tool to know how far you’ve been. So ladies, we ran 6 miles – a great training run for our 10km race in 2 weeks!

One of the things I love about running in the morning is that it really sets the tone for the rest of the day. I feel clear-headed, relaxed and virtuous. To top it off, Bailey is now in dog heaven on the rug!





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TRAINING RUN 1

I, along with two girlfriends, have places in the Paris Marathon on 11 April 2010. If I’m honest I can’t recall why we decided to enter. I’m laying the blame firmly at Claire’s door. I ran my first marathon with Claire in 1997 and we always look back fondly on our training (which to be fair we took seriously) and the event itself. Fast forward 12 years and our lives have changed considerably but the desire to run remains (although the time for training seems to have all but disappeared!).

Having researched which events we could do between now and April I found (via the very helpful race directory section of Runner’s World) a series of marathon training runs organised by Gade Valley Harriers in Hemel Hempstead. The first one (which was yesterday) was 12 miles and there are two further runs of 17 miles and 20 miles at the end of February and March respectively.

Early yesterday morning Claire and I made our way to the event. Sadly our third runner is currently injured and so couldn’t join us. The journey from Euston was easy and we were pleased to see a number of other women on the train who were clearly running too. Registration took all of 2 minutes and then we were off at 9.30.

Despite the cold (and it really was freezing) it was great to be out running in an organised event. The club do an amazing job marshalling the course which had mile markers and water stations (at miles 4 and 8). The first 3 miles were along the Grand Union canal towpath, the next 8 miles along quiet country roads and the last mile back along the towpath. What their website didn’t mention were the hills which came as a bit of a shock. Miles 4 to 5 and 7 to 8 were up-hill and were surprising steep in places. I just kept thinking that what goes up must come down and was very relieved to find mile 10 to 11 all down-hill.

The run was a huge wake-up call for both of us because although we’ve been training, our legs just weren’t prepared for that distance. From about mile 8 everything started to hurt particularly my hips and knees. The mental preparation is just as important and I was disappointed at the voice in my head telling me that it would be ok to walk for just a bit.

On a positive note, we both kept going and finished in respectable times. Our efforts were rewarded with a warming cup of tea and mammoth slice of cake!

In a nutshell:

Highlights
• The friendly atmosphere
• Spotting someone at the start looking great in her Chill hoody
• The famous Jelly Baby station at mile 9
• Finishing without stopping (because I really wanted to)
• The number of women running of all shapes, sizes and abilities
• Cake!

Lowlights
• The cold
• That voice in my head

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