Tag Archives: running

Jan 16 2020
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Fitness

Christmas Lights and Music Run

On Christmas Eve Eve (Does anyone else like to say that or is it just me?) I headed out early doors for a run around my local neighbourhood. I put on a Christmas playlist, and headed on out to look at the lights as I ran.

I love running early in the morning when everyone is still in bed and the smell of the bakery on the High Street fills the air. As I ran past it smelt of Cinnamon! The perfect Christmas scent. I headed past the big tree on the High Street and then snaked through the various loads in my neighbourhood. I did a similar run and loved it.

As I ran I saw inflatable snowmen, cute LED reindeers, brightly lit candy canes and the laser lights that are really popular now. It was such a lovely run, even the part where I got lost and couldn’t figure out how to get out of the estate I’d ventured in to and back on to the main road!

I was back in the house by 7:15 before most people had probably started thinking about their day. As I was running, I also clocked up my 200th mile of the year. Ideally I’d like to beat this total next year, but we’ll see how it goes. I rather run less and run injury free than run lots and be plagued by injury.

Christmas Lights Selfie

Do you do a Christmas lights run?

Do you like to run early or late?

 

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Jan 14 2020
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parkrun

parkrun 21st December – The Fancy Dress One!

I headed down to parkrun slightly early on 21st December as my Mum was volunteering as a marshall. She’d got on board with the Christmas Fancy Dress theme by wearing a reindeer antler headband.

I was wearing my new Tikiboo Christmas leggings, yeah I finally jumped on the Tikiboo bandwagon. As well as an Elf Christmas t-shirt I picked up in Tesco for £6.50! The t-shirt made up for the cost of the leggings at least!

Christmas Fancy Dress parkrun

Trying not to look freezing!

After saying goodbye to my Mum so she could go to her marshalling spot, I got chatting to Nigel and Angela. I asked them what pace they were running (both said quicker than me) but since it’s Christmas they both said they’d run with me, which I was grateful for.

We ran, all three of us for just under a mile before Nigel start to peel away. Despite having a pretty serious knee injury, he’s still quicker than me!!

Angela and I chatted loads, mostly about work. We do completely different jobs but that’s what made the conversation interesting. As we were almost at the 2nd turnaround point we saw Nigel coming back towards us. He was steaming ahead! He’d told us at the start his wife had said he wasn’t allowed to overtake her, but he was ahead of her when we saw him!

After we’d turned around and were heading back towards the finish funnel I started to get a stitch. I lost all ability to hold a conversation anymore and said to Angela she could go on if she wanted to as I’d slowed right down but she said no and kept me going with lots of encouragement right through until the end.

I finished in 38:03. Quite some way behind the man who was first past the line and set a new course record of 15:31! He was over 2 minutes ahead of 2nd place!

Fancy Dress Selfie

In the background of that picture you can see two people taking a dip in the sea! I got chatting to them afterwards at the café. They were both wearing the tourist cow beanies so I went over and had a chat with them. They’d done 69 different parkrun venues so we had a lovely chat about some of the courses they’d done (all in the UK) and I told them about some of the courses I’d done (aboard as well as the UK) it was so lovely just to chat to someone I’d never met before about something we both clearly loved! parkrun is so good at bringing like minded people together. I followed them on social media so I can keep up with their tourism adventures.

Do you ever chat to tourists at parkrun?

How many different parkrun courses have you attended?

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Jan 09 2020
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parkrun

parkrun 14th December

Seems a while since we had a horribly windy parkrun so nature decided the 14th December seemed as good a time as any!

I was partially dreading this run as I was running alone and it seems like such a long time since I ran on my own. I got down there and did the usual natter with my friends before finding the 40 minute pacer in the starting pen and positioning myself just ahead of them.

We set off and although it was windy it wasn’t too bad at the beginning, probably because my local parkrun is so crowded at the start so I had some protection from the crowd around me. Honestly, I timed the other week how long it took to get over the start line and it was 45 seconds!

As we hit the first turnaround point and the crowd thinned, the wind picked up. As we passed the finish funnel there’s then a really open bit and the wind was brutal there. It blew me sideways as I fought to keep moving forwards.

As we progressed onwards towards the 2nd turnaround point I thought the wind would be behind me then and give me a little push along. It didn’t! Granted it wasn’t as strong but it was still really windy.

I finished in 38:54 which was exactly a minute slower than last week, which considering the winds, actually wasn’t too bad.

After parkrun I dashed home to shower as we were going flat hunting with my Mum again. I’m pleased to say she put in, and had accepted, an offer on a lovely flat. It’s such a good location for her too.

parkrun 14th December

My hair shows just how windy it was

Do you run alone at parkrun?

 

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Jan 07 2020
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parkrun

parkrun 7th December

On 7th December, I went along to my local parkrun again. I actually almost overlaid! On a parkrun morning I set an alarm for 7.30 so I can have a coffee and ya know, let bathroom things happen. I leave the house about 8.40. On this particular day I turned the alarm off, and then, fell back asleep! This never happens to me. I woke up at 8.10 so necked a coffee and got ready. You know what, it wasn’t that bad! I still got there in time so it didn’t turn out bad.

I met up with Rachel there and we had our usual chatty run. We were chatting about the weather, work etc and enjoying the run. There was nothing really to report, but after the 2nd turnaround point I could feel myself starting to flag a bit. I apologised to Rachel and said I couldn’t talk anymore. She said it was fine and she’d do the talking, which she did!

When we finished I looked at my finish time and was amazed to see I’d cracked back in to the 37 minute mark. I finished in 37:54, no wonder I was flagging. I haven’t finished in the 37’s since May! I was so pleased. I don’t know how I did it though! Maybe it was getting up late that worked well for me! Who knows?!

After we finished I had a lovely catch up with Paula who is returning from a huge injury and absolutely smashing it.

parkrun 7th December

Have you ever overlaid on a parkrun morning?

Do you ever have a surprisingly quick run?

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Jan 02 2020
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Fitness

An Evening Run

I hope you all had a lovely New Year! Back to catching up on posts…

Usually I end work feeling absolutely exhausted. I do 11 hour days and it’s tiring. However, on 3rd December, I went on a course! The course was terrible. The slides we were given didn’t match her presentation and the course was supposed to be 6 hours and it finished after 3! When I went back to work early I was able to sit out and complete paperwork so at the end of the day I actually had some energy left, so went for a run after work!

I hadn’t eaten for hours and definitely hadn’t drank enough through the day, but I had energy and that’s all I needed. I found out my hi-viz gear. I have one of these:

It’s probably the most annoying piece of running gear I own. The black adjusters on the chest constantly slide so it ends up too long and then they fall down. Anyone know how to stop that? I begrudgingly put it on as safety comes first and headed out of the door. I was aiming for 2 miles and had a rough route in mind.

I live really close to the centre of the little town (village?) I live in so always end up running past takeaways and restaurants. It’s a complete tease taking in those smells whilst running. A gent came out of the chip shop just in front of me and I actually calculated how long I could sprint for after grabbing his chips off him. I came to the conclusion he’d probably out run me so let him get away with the chips 😉

After 1.5 miles I began to flag a bit. I could feel my form changing and I got the worst stitch. I tried all the tips I’ve read for stitch but none of them worked. Luckily I only had a half mile to go so I slowed right down and it subsided enough for me not to have to stop running.

Overall I did enjoy the run and it felt good to get out after work. It was really bitter cold too which is my favourite kind of running weather. I comfortably wore long sleeves and bottoms! That never happens!

Evening Run Selfie

Do you run after work?

What’s your favourite kind of weather to run in?

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Dec 31 2019
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Fitness

Highs and Lows of 2019 Fitness Edition

Happy New Year readers. Today is the day we say goodbye to 2019 and celebrate the arrival of 2020. I’m not making any New Years Resolutions this year. Of course I have a goal but it’s so simple it doesn’t need a whole post. I just want to “Live Well” That’s my mantra for 2020.

I did however want to reflect and look back at 2019 relating to fitness, that is after all, what this blog focuses on. Let’s start with the lows so we end on a high!

Lows of 2019:

The first low of 2019 was being ill at New Year for the 2nd year running and missing the founder of parkrun visiting my local parkrun! Seriously, I have the worst luck.

The main low, though, from 2019 was my calf injury in June. It came out of nowhere at a parkrun and so I had a bit of time off and when I was meant to restart it was in the heatwave. I don’t feel like I need to repeat how much I hate the heat, so since then my running has never really got back off the ground! I’ve mainly just been doing parkrun, and that’s it! To be honest though, to only have one injury in 2019 is pretty pleasing and it only stopped me running for around 3 weeks. My own lack of commitment is to blame for never getting going again properly.

Highs of 2019:

The first high has to be the parkrun tourism I’ve done! In 2019 I’ve visited Barry Island, Penrose (Cornwall), Bushy, Ipswich, Nose Hill (Canada) and Renton (Seattle, Washington) as well as some closer to home. My picture at Barry Island went on to all platforms of parkruns social media.

Barry Island parkrun

Second has to be setting a massive parkrun PB of 34:41. I have no idea how I did it, and I’ve certainly never been near it since but it felt really good at the time!

I also completed a 10K in 2019. It’s been a long time since I did a 10K and although it was boiling, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I also completed the Romsey 5 Mile Cake and Beer Race with a 17 minute PB!

Beer

Another high has to be building my friendship with Rachel and having her support through the last quarter of the year as well as joining Beachbody together. I’m still loving Beachbody and sticking to the workouts.

What were your highs of 2019?

Did you have any fitness/running lows in 2019?

 

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Nov 19 2019
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parkrun

parkrun 9th November

My local parkrun was cancelled on 2nd November due to the stormy weather that was battering parts of the UK. I was just about to leave the house that week but was a couple of minutes early so I thought I’d kill time by looking at Facebook. Lucky I did, otherwise I wouldn’t have seen it was cancelled! It was throwing it down with rain and winds of 55mph. I understand why it was cancelled but I’m pretty sure we’ve run in those conditions before!

So I didn’t run at all that week and headed back to parkrun on 9th November where the weather  was much calmer. It was a chilly morning but sunny and blue skies with just a slight breeze. I was pleased to be back with Maria who had returned from working away.

We ran and chatted the whole way. We had a couple of walk breaks but not for too long and then I ran the last little section on my own as Maria had to make a pitstop at the bathroom. I’ve really let my running slide recently and it’s definitely starting to feel harder again. I look back at my PB time and really can not even imagine how I did it!

I finished with a time of 39:21 which I was pleasantly surprised about because I was way behind the 40 minute pacer! I try not to look at my watch when I’m running instead using the pacers as a rough guide but sometimes the pacers seem to be quite far off!

Selfie

Do you ever use a pacer at parkrun?

Have you had to stop mid parkrun to use the bathroom?

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Nov 05 2019
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parkrun

Halloween parkrun

There’s something about parkrun days and the weather! parkrun on 26th October was a Halloween themed parkrun and was joined by 30mph winds! Thankfully the rain held off though.

I met up with Rachel and Penny who I was running with this week. Penny forgot to dress up but Rachel and I were wearing our Halloween outfits.

As we ran, Penny told us all about her half IronMan she’d completed in Weymouth. I can’t even imagine completing a half IronMan but Penny has decided she’ll now complete a full one! I love hearing others stories about races and this was no exception, although it was sometimes hard to hear with the wind howling around my ears!

I found the run really tough. I’ve been a bit lazy and haven’t exercised all week and the day before I’d pushed the new 6 seater pushchairs at work around a 3 mile walk. I’ve also been suffering with a spot of insomnia, added together along with the winds it made a pretty tough run. Rachel and Penny were great, checking if I was ok and encouraging me round.

My first two miles were pretty even at 12:18 and 12:11 but my 3rd mile was 13:22! I finished in 39:11. When I think now to my PB of 34:41 I can’t imagine how I did it! I seem so far off it now! Maybe over the Winter I can squeeze in more running as the weather will be much more to my liking.

Halloween parkrun

I’m actually wearing Halloween leggings in the picture that I picked up in America. I’d never have dared wear patterned leggings like that before losing weight!

Did you dress up for a Halloween parkrun?

 

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Oct 22 2019
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parkrun

I Did An American parkrun!

During our holiday to Canada, we spent some days in the USA. Obviously I planned that the days coincided with a parkrun so I could get another country ticked off! parkrun is going to become an expensive hobby if I tick off many more countries!

We decided on Renton parkrun in Renton, near Seattle. It was only 10 minutes from the hotel so was perfectly located. The parkrun was held in Riverview Park, along the Cedar River Trail. It was very similar to my home parkrun in that you run to one turn around point then come back on yourself, past the start and then out to another turn around point, and then head back on yourself again to go through the finish funnel.

When we got there, there weren’t many people at all. Soon a small crowd started to gather and we listened to the run brief. There were quite a few tourists there from England and Wales and the tail walker was touristing from Germany!

The weather was far better than it was when I did a Canadian parkrun! It was cool with a bit of sun on and off. We set off along the path. The whole course was on tarmac paths and the course was flat. Had I of been in PB shape, it would have been a really good course to try and get a new PB.

I ran the whole course and finished in 27th place! My highest finish position of all time. I was also 3rd in my age category! Something that will probably never happen again. I finished in a time of 37:41. A whole 5 minutes quicker than the parkrun in the snow in Calgary!

Afterwards we had a chat with the core team and a couple of regulars. They were really friendly and were telling us different things to go and see whilst we were in the area. We’d already got a lot of them down so at least we knew we were going to the right places. It was a lovely friendly course and if we were in the area again I’d definitely go back to visit them again.

Renton parkrun

Have you ever done an American parkrun?

Have you ever placed in the top 3 of your age category?

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Oct 03 2019
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parkrun

A 4 mile parkrun

On the Wednesday before parkrun, they sent out an email with a section from Vitality asking people to do an extra 20% at parkrun and use the hashtag #move20more. Rachel asked me if I was game and I told her I definitely was.

On Saturday morning I met up with both Maria and Rachel and we all ran together. To start with I was a bit grumpy because the temperature was so warm and it’s meant to be cooling off because we’re halfway through September! But as we ran along I soon got over it…although I did moan about being hot haha.

I managed to run the whole 5km again which really pleased me. There was very little breeze so I definitely felt like I struggled the more we progressed. Mile 3 was my slowest at 13:06 but I averaged a pace of 12:51 throughout.

Running Friends

As we passed through the finish funnel we took a token and then Rachel and I quickly said goodbye to Maria and ran on. We were going to do an extra 1km but as we ran I actually felt a bit stronger than I was expecting so we topped it up to 4 miles. I was really pleased, as it’s been a good while since I ran 4 miles. In fact, it was June that I last ran 4 miles! Wow! At the end, I actually didn’t feel like I’d run 4 miles. I expected to be fatigued, but seemed to have got a 2nd wind of energy after we passed through the finish funnel. Again, I wonder how much of this new found strength is down to the workouts I’ve been doing.

Rachel and I then walked back to the barcode scanners and had a chat with various friends. We then went and had a coffee at Leon’s on the seafront. Thankfully it was bug free today! We sat outside and the views over to the Isle of Wight were incredible. We’re so lucky to live here.

Did you take part in the #move20more?

 

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