Productive weekends!

Well I've had a VERY productive weekend for once! Went and ordered my wedding dress yesterday after getting the seal of approval from my best friend and then we spent the rest of the day looking at other wedding related stuff whilst catching up and giggling about all the exciting things that are happening at the moment as well as getting a little bit hysterical about the daunting task of the marathon which is now only 17 weeks away!

So despite eating a huge curry and washing it down with a few glasses of wine last night, we dragged ourselves out of bed at a very reasonable time for a Sunday morning and headed off for a run. Fortunately the weather was kind to us and although it was cold, the wind wasn't cutting us in half and we soon got warmed through once we were on the move. We took it at a nice steady pace (probably our marathon pace) and managed to quite easily complete 10 miles. It feels strange to be writing that as having only ever trained for half marathons in the past, running 10 miles has always been a huge effort in training and felt insurmountable at times, yet bizarrely it was relatively comfortable and not too strenuous to do the 10 miles and I didn't need to collapse in a heap on the floor when we got back. Perhaps there's something psychological about knowing that it's only a fraction of the distance we're going to need to cover on race day but it was definitely comforting to be able to do the 10 miles without feeling like my legs were going to fall off or my lungs were going to burst! I love being able to chat to people when I run and it was a rare but lovely chance to do this with my bezzie as she lives so far away now we don't get to run together much anymore.

We finished the last couple of miles by returning to Saltburn along the beach. I'm always struck by how lovely and picturesque it can be running along there on a clear day and it makes me feel lucky to live so near the sea. Here's the view we had as we ran along the beach.....

The downside of running along the beach (apart from getting sand in your socks and increasing the chance of getting chased by an excitable dog) is that you have to somehow get from the beach back to the road, which in Saltburn leaves you with three choices: Walk up the (very steep) bank (to illustrate in a car you need to be in 2nd gear maximum to get up, usually 1st gear as you go around the bends!); run through the valley gardens and then go up an almost vertical path to the playground at the top; or run up 100 or so steps up the cliff edge. In summer you have the option of going up in the Victorian cliff lift but the shame of having to do this has always prevented me from queueing up and parting with my 20p! Having tried all of the aforementioned options and found all of them equally as impossible, I'm currently favouring the steps option and so we dragged ourselves up them without too much trouble I'm pleased to report and were able to enjoy the view from the top!.....

So productive weekends are the way forward I feel. Now I just need to keep this going for the next 4 months and keep adding on the miles - easy! Well, I hope so!

Feeling like a celeb!

Well I've had some rather exciting and new experiences this week and feel a little bit like some sort of minor celeb! Firstly, I've been luck that a gym in my local town, Heathwise Fitness, heard about me doing the marathon and that I was raising money for the MAIN Project and so they have very kindly offered to give me free membership over the next few months whilst I'm training so that I can use their treadmill when the weather is too bad / too off putting to get out and get the miles in I need to! They have also offered to put in the first £50 sponsor money and to ask their members to sponsor me too - absolutely brilliant! Healthwise is a local gym, not a multi-million pound mega-gym and I can imagine in the current economic climate they're struggling to survive and keep their heads above water like a lot of other businesses so it's even more lovely and exciting that they have offered to support me and the charity in this way! Thank you!

My second pseudo-celeb experience is that I've just been interviewed by the local paper who have heard about my fundraising as they are currently running a series of articles about fundraising for the MAIN project and so would like to do one on me too. I don't think I've ever been interviewed by a newspaper before and it's a strange experience thinking that you have to choose every word carefully so as not to say anything silly. Thankfully it wasn't too scary and the lady who I spoke to, Emma, was lovely. They want to come out and take a photo of me in my running gear though so I think I'll have to check a few outfits out in the mirror as I'm pretty sure that I've never looked particularly good when I'm going out for a run (especially with the knee high bright pink compression socks on) so I'll have to find the least ridiculous combination!

Feeling surprisingly healthy and lively this morning despite a hard 10k run around Gateshead last night with my friend around a route we like to call the "bum blaster" due to the ridiculous hills the first few miles offer up! Nice views of the Angel of the North to try and compensate for the pain but last night it was shrouded in mist which made it all feel abit eerie as though I was in a bad dream or something! We also engaged in another of the daft running games I get drawn into - trying to get to your target distance when you miscalculate it! This involved us running round and round the block when we got back to her house to get up to 10k - stopping short of this is just not an option! I'm pretty sure I splashed in the same puddle about four times - doh! We're hoping to beat our time (and calculate the distance better) next week so watch this space......!

Mind Games

Running away in the gym today (bit too dark, icy and windy outside!) it came to my attention that I play a lot of mind games when I run to detract from the boredom and to keep me going. This got me thinking about whether I'm alone in this, or whether other people do their own games and if so what are they?!? I once read that Paula Radcliffe likes to count during each mile so that she knows how far through the mile she is at any point, but I guess she probably doesn't have to count as high as I would given that she will have finished a marathon, had a shower, eaten a three course meal and been to the supermarket for her shopping before I'll be hitting the 20 mile point! Also, I don't have the discipline for such a game, my mind would wander (ouch my knee hurts!.... hmm what shall I have for tea?.... is that dog wearing a hat?!?!) and I would quickly lose count, obviously defeating the object! So what games do I play? Well as I go along and spot these weird mid games I like to play I'll try to give you an insight to some of my current favourites.......

The first game is one for outdoor running and what I have entitled "Recycling Intrigue": This is a game to be played on bin day, and it needs to be an early morning run before the bin men have been. Basically I enjoy running around the various estates noticing the types of things people have in their recycling bags / boxes - sounds dull? Believe me it's actually fascinating! For example, the people who live in the massive dream house who you presume are millionaires but have a huge number of 'no frills' type baked beans in their recycling. Then there's the types of cereal people eat (can be determined on cardboard recycling day).... I have a theory that the type of cereal people have reflects something about them, in terms of their age, their lifestyle and their outlook on life etc. Try it - and see what you find out about people! The recycling day between Christmas and New Year was nothing short of entertaining and possibly one of the highlights of the bin-day schedule, all the bottles and tins people had out on display on the kerb was captivating, looking at the trends as you go from street to street, estate to estate - it kept me going through a 11 mile run without too much boredom so it must have been good! I realise that this probably makes me look slightly mad, but I bet next time you see someones green box or bag of cardboard outside their house that you have a sneaky look as you pass :)

In the gym, however, it's obviously considerably more difficult to look at people's rubbish so I have to occupy myself in other ways. If there are other people around, perhaps running on treadmills alongside me, I like to try and run slightly faster than them. This has an added layer of danger however as it involves a degree of sideways spying on their display which can lead to problems if you don't keep your balance very well - there have been times when I've nearly tripped over or been thrown off the treadmill by not paying enough attention to what I'm doing! If I'm running solo, however, I like to try and set myself little challenges like sprinting for 30 seconds then recovering for a couple of minutes, then trying to go faster the next time round etc etc, or trying to run up hills but keeping the same speed going. I find that messing about with the buttons in this way stops you from being overwhelmingly bored (and thinking about all the aches and pains etc!) and makes the time go much faster. Playing this sort of game has made me realise just how competitive I can be, particularly with myself, I don't like to do less than I did last time, or run slower, but almost end up daring myself to go faster and faster each time. Sad I know but hey ho it passes the time and makes it feel like a proper workout!

I'm pretty sure there are loads of other strange things I'm already doing to pass the time but I just don't realise it! Hoping I can find one that will keep me occupied for 26 miles so that ideally I don't realise how tired I am, how long it's taking how much my feet/knees/back hurt etc etc - I'll let you know if I find one!

Blown away (nearly!)

Just got back from a rather tough 10k morning run with my new running buddy - the lovely Sam :) We spent the first two miles running straight into the (very strong) wind which resulted in us feeling like we were running on the spot at times! It's really hard to get your breath and feeling like you're being pushed back the whole time makes it all the more difficult, but when you turn the corner and get out of the wind you feel like a champion, as though running is suddenly effortless and you're just gliding along! Well that is until you come to a nice big hill or something! Anyway, despite the wind trying to sabotage our efforts we battled through and still made it around in decent time. Time for a nice cup of tea now I think! Seems like a strange thing to have when you come back in boiling hot but I do look forward to a lovely brew when all the hard work is over!

Piling on the pressure

Just back from a lovely morning run - a surprisingly enjoyable 6 miler, returning along the beach. It was a perfect morning for running - not too cold or windy, the sun shining and clear skies, and the run itself was actually quite enjoyable! I have to confess, I don't often find running enjoyable. I usually find it really hard work, sometimes quite boring - especially if I'm running on my own, and I just don't really like it that much. You're probably wondering why the hell I do it then - I often ask myself the same thing! I suppose it's partly because it's free (apart from my addiction to buying new kit!), and it keeps me fit, stopping me getting too fat, but then there's days like today, days when I love being outside and making the most of the beautiful area we live in, days when I don't feel like every single step is a huge effort, days when it's actually nice, possibly even fun, to be running. Days like today keep me going and renew my enthusiasm for running - and I wasn't expecting one of those mid-January! 


I did wimp out of trying my new trainers again though and reverted back to my old faithfuls for fear of more blisters, but also partly because I didn't want to get my pretty new ones covered in sand :D 


Anyway, more importantly, I've decided to run the marathon to raise money for the Main Project - so definitely no going back now (as if I could even if I wanted to!) as I have a charity to support and sponsors to motivate me! If you haven't heard of the MAIN Project before, it's a local charity in the Teesside area supporting children and families of young people with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). As a psychologist working with lots of children and young people with ASD, I know that the families I work with find the support offered by the MAIN Project invaluable but without continued financial support, the charity is in danger of having to cut some of the brilliant services they offer to young people and their families. So..... any sponsors would be greatly received by both me and the young people and families who access the Main Project - if you would like to sponsor me you can do so at my just giving page (click this link!) 


Thank you :)

New trainers :)

So, I've finally got over the doom and gloom of going back to work, and am able to walk again after getting over my first 'boot camp' session last week (ouch!) and so I can no longer justify not going running, especially as I've got new trainers - woohoo! These babies are going to be my vehicles for getting round the marathon course come May so I stuck with Nike as my last three pairs have been fab, plus these ones are all geared up for keeping my feet dry during the inevitable running in the rain I will have to put myself through over the next few months! I love buying new running kit - I could spend endless hours in my fave running shop, Start Fitness, looking at all the lovely tops and tights and shorts and jackets and socks and accessories and..... well you get the idea! Plus having new stuff makes me want to get out there and try it out! ;)

It looked like quite a nice day for going running - not too windy and not too cold so off I headed in my lovely lovely new trainers for a nice little 5.5 mile jaunt to Marske and back. Sadly this wasn't very good planning as by the second mile I my trainers were starting to rub and by the third it was raining and I was too far from home to stop / turn back so on I went. Back home now and my feet are not very happy about the new trainers - huge blister alert! Doh! Was abit stupid to not try and wear them in abit first so I will have to persist! Just not tomorrow as I think anything other than slippers is going to be painful! Grrrrrr!  Not the best start to my running year but hopefully it can only get better!?!?!?

Goodbye 2011.... HELLOOOOO 2012

Happy New Year!

I'm very excited with all that 2012 has to hold... as well as taking on the marathon challenge I'm also getting married this year (eek exciting to say that for the first time!) and doing a PGDip at Uni, as well as working full time... so it's going to be busy busy busy :O YIKES! 

Last year I set myself the challenge of running 625 miles (1000km) in a year, but as usual I left things to the last minute and had to run 18 miles over the past two days to get to my target before midnight! This resulted in me running in the rain yesterday and having to limp the last 2.5miles due to my knee protesting at my stupidity! So my new years resolution needs to be to stop leaving things to the last minute!!! 

I'd better get cracking with this marathon training then.... but not today... one too many glasses of wine last night and my knee still isn't friends with me.... maybe tomorrow then ;)