fairweatherrunner

running blog

Tag Archives: Juneathon


by 6 Comments

Inspiration

What is it about May that dampens my mojo? Is it the long anticipated arrival of spring and summer that never happens? Or is it that I wake up and find myself almost halfway through the accelerating year with all plans and deadlines squashed up against the long summer holidays. Panic!

So here we are in May again and I’ve lost my way with my running a little and have no enthusiasm for work, blogging or domestic organisation. This year I’m also a bit of a cat on a hot tin roof with elder son home on ‘study’ leave whose idea of revision is a little short of mine. I guess he’s no different from me at that age and my source of stress is seeing him make the same mistakes as me. I just need to take a chill pill and leave him to choose his own path, it’s his life.

It’s another May when my Bupa London 10,000m race pack lands on the door mat and I think ‘Oh hell, I’m sure I was going to do some focussed training and for that’. I’ve run this race since it started in 2008. The first 3 years I got progressively faster with my 10K PB in 2010. Since then it’s become a bit of a pyramid and I’m going back the other way! I really hope I don’t complete the pattern for the 6th race next week.

Fortunately I got lots of inspiration at Write This Run on Sunday. A super day with great speakers. I was inspired and moved hearing about their experiences of Ultra Running, overcoming debilitating illness to compete at triathlon and setbacks to run a marathon a week and raise awareness of mental health. I am inspired to ‘get on with it’, run further, smarter and get back to parkrun. I was inspired, informed and encouraged to write and blog more, follow my instincts and have picked up new ideas and confirmation of things I am already trying to do. We had an informative and entertaining day and then we went for a run with an Olympic marathon runner! Well done and thanks to Laura and Liz.

It’s a great morning here today, there is a beautiful blue sky and I think I’ve shaken off my cold. I even managed to drive all the way around Shepherds Bush without stopping (small pleasures from simple things) which must be a good sign! Time to dust myself down and act on my inspiration.

Thank goodness that Juneathon is around the corner.


by 2 Comments

End of Janathon.

Janathon is over for another year, or until Juneathon anyway. January hasn’t been one of my best running months with a few minor injuries and a cold. However I’m treating the end of Janathon as a beginning not an end.  I’m using it as a starting point for the serious part of my marathon training, getting stronger and more flexible and losing a few pounds.

I might have missed a weeks training and a long run this week but am staying chilled. I still have 3 months to go before my marathon and did run 100 miles in January so I’m far from lost.  However my first training race, a Half Marathon in 2 weeks won’t be at record-breaking pace.

I’m also putting my self challenge down on paper, (or screen). My goal is to be 9 stone, or less, by the end of April and improve on my speed mile pace of about 7.40 min/mile.  (ran a few weeks ago with Louise and probably near enough to my current best effort mile to be a good starting point).

As I’ve still got a bit of pain in my Glutes when running I decided not to run before my 10k with Alma this weekend. So no delayed long run to crank up my Janathon mileage on the last day for me.

Instead I took myself off for a swim. Its been at least a year since I last swam (apart from on holiday) so it’s just as well I checked my kit bag because the costume in there was a wee bit small! I eventually found a more appropriate size but I’m sure that one has been shrunk in the wash too! My favourite goggles were also missing having been used and lost by my one of my sons at school (Note to self… next pair need to be much more pink) but I managed with a foggy pair of theirs.

Janathon day 31. 50 lengths, 1km swum. All breast stroke (really should be more confident and practice my front crawl) feeling good to be back in the water after so long.


by 6 Comments

Whats next?

Juneathon is over for another year so whats next?

Well,  first for the sake of my poor old little legs I’m having a couple of easier weeks (although this week I’ve taken it to extremes as I’ve been very busy and have only managed one BMF class!).  I’m away on holiday next week so will definitely be making use of the hotel treadmill for a couple of runs and trying to do lots of swimming to keep up my fitness because it all starts when I get back!

My marathon training for Rutland Water Marathon starts on 16th July and I’m taking part in the Addidas Thunder Run 24 at the end of July and the Isle of Wight Half Marathon mid August.

For TR24 we, (Alma, Louise, Carla, Chris, Linda, Lorraine, Jon and me) are Team “Fools Rushing” and aim to run 3 laps each of the 10K trail in the 24 hour period.  Current plans are for a few of us (including me) to run 2 laps together during the night and then another lap the next day.  My Longest day run was therefore very good training having run 12 miles one day and 8 the following morning.  It was also good for me that the 8 miles was quite hilly and partly off-road because the TR24 course is through fields and woods and apparently has a killer hill (I’m not looking at the course details too closely yet!).

For my marathon training I’m broadly following this plan from Bupa Running which is easy to follow, has appropriate length runs for me and fits well with my Autumn Half Marathons as build up races.  I need to adjust / add to it a bit at the start to get in a couple of longer runs between now and TR24 but at least I have a good mileage base of about 30 miles a week during Juneathon to build on.


by 12 Comments

Juneathon done.

Juneathon day 30.

Yay! All done, 30 days run and 30 days blogged!

Big well done everyone who’s lasted the month, running and blogging everyday!

My legs (and the rest of me too) felt much more flexible today and my decision to run later in the day helped too, so when I dashed out at 5pm I had a good run. Ran a loop around the river Exe and Exeter Quay which I discovered last time I was here. Much of the fresh motivated feeling was because I was running a route I’ve not run for a while.

4.10 miles

Juneathon running total… 130 miles.

Rest day tomorrow!

I’m a little sad that I won’t be back in London in time to join Alma and Carla for the Regents Park 10K in the morning (Good Luck!) but my hamstrings, Achilles etc will love me for not racing! And it’s always nice to come home to Devon and spend time with my parents and has been important to see that my Dad is on the mend and now pining for a good pint of beer!

20120630-234458.jpg


by 6 Comments

Hot.

Juneathon day 28.

A busy day.  Much going on in my extended family so I have been generally distracted and my thoughts are with others.

But only 3 days left of Juneathon, so I still ran.  Unfortunately at the warmest part the day when it was really too hot and humid for running so I had some extended walk breaks around the serpentine and enjoyed the park in the sunshine.

6.11 miles of run-walk

Juneathon running total…  123.94 miles

2 days to go.


by 6 Comments

Not today thankyou

The 26th day of Juneathon…

Earlier today I was feeling quite up for a good run and was planning 6 miles.  I  got on with doing what I had to do and planned to run about 4pm.  By 4pm I was feeling less enthusiastic.  Even less at 4.30.

I dragged myself out about 5 and I was right about being less enthusiastic – I felt tired and weary and had no pace in my legs.

Must have been the day for bad runs in Kensington Gardens because even at dragging plod pace I managed to overtake a young male who looked like he was having an even worse day then me.  I went on to see at least 2 other runners who were definitely limping (or just had really bad gaits).

My hamstrings felt tight and my knee was pulling so 6 miles was cut to 3 and I headed home.  As typical good feeling and pace were restored after 3 miles so I rounded it up to 4.

4.07 miles

Juneathon running total…   114.83 miles


by 3 Comments

Lucky dip

Juneathon day 25.

My Lego assistant tells me my blogs are getting boring and I don’t do anything or see anything interesting on my runs anymore. I tend to agree after 25 days!  Also for no apparent reason I’ve been busier and more frantic this year and have found less time for Juneathon activities nor for amazing creative thourghts whilst running!  I also apologise that I have read and commented on less blogs than I’d like to.  (So do bear with me and understand if you end up with a random out of context comment in July or August!). I blame it all on the later half term for the Jubilee and the fact that I’ve playing catch up ever since!

Anyway, I wasn’t aching after my longest day runs today , but I didn’t go to BMF to give my legs a break and because I was busy getting youngest up, pack lunched and off to Kings Cross (Warning! he’s gone to Yorkshire for a week with school!) and elder son who is on a trip nearer to home. But basically I really couldn’t be bothered today.

So  this evening in the face of my son’s critisism of my boring Blogs I said, fine, challenge me for today’s Juneathon…. He wasn’t interested, but was moaning after a days windsurfing, kayaking and sailing that his arms and shoulders (unaccustomed to any effort) were agony.  Eventually a plot was hatched.  I would run to get him some neurophen for his aches and pains and at the same time get some new random Lego mini figures. Whatever I brought home he had to make an amusing scene with!

So I ran up the hill to the nearest Lego shop and chemist.  Actually there are both a lot closer in Westfield but I would have looked a proper idiot running round a shopping mall!  It wasn’t fast, I had a conversation with my brother on the mile out and OH rang me on my way home. (Maybe why I don’t normally take my phone!)  All the same it was 2.06 miles ‘running’  and 2.06 miles for Juneathon

Juneathon running total…  110.76 miles


by 4 Comments

Longestdayrun part 2

Juneathon day 24.

8.36 miles

Juneathon running total…  108.7 miles

Most sensible people would have done my two runs this weekend the other way round I thought to myself as I set out this morning on less than fresh legs and remembered that the first mile was uphill!  Yesterday might have been 12 miles but it was FLAT and on smooth traffic free surfaces so I rolled along to my 1980′s anthems.  Today I had hills, trails, roads and traffic, no music and more hills.  The only good part was that OH who accompanied me today on his bike found some of the uphill bits far harder than I did and had to walk! Ha hah ha ha!! Servers him right for telling me he was free wheeling for the previous 3 miles!

But I loved it!

It was a great mix of off-road, on road and ups and downs so never got boring.  I loved it mainly because I could do it, and run 20 miles in 24 hours. I even think I could have managed the 24 in 24 if I’d pushed myself and got a bit more organised.  I was late setting out this morning waiting for my blooming garmin, which had gone flat over night, to charge up .  So I finished today’s run with only 10 mins to go before the noon deadline. I even ran a 8.35 minute mile for mile 8, just shows how great smooth flat tarmac feels after ups and downs and uneven wet grass and mud!

It’s been a great weekend following everyone participating in Longestday run on twitter and dailymile with great achievements from people running from 1 mile to over 60 miles. Next year I know I can run marathon distance or better!

 


by 7 Comments

Longestdayrun part 1.

Juneathon day 23

We got to the Isle of Wight with no problems last night after the reported chaos of the day before, even with two cancelled evening ferries. Country to what the news would have us believe, the news the Isle of Wight is open for business and not flooded nor sunk by bad weather! It was water-logged fields which prevented festival goers from entering the mud logged car parks and caused grid lock on the island.. So business as usual and everyone is having a lovely, but muddy time at the festival. Although it was sad to read that some local pupils had missed their gcse exams because of the traffic problems on Friday morning and that the school (next to the festival site) has planned to close on monday.

Anyway, this weekends Juneathon efforts have required a little more planning than normal because of the longest day challenge. The challenge is to run as many miles as you can in 24 hours, between noon Saturday and noon Sunday, or another 24 hour period. I had previously toyed with the idea of trying to run 24 miles (12 and 12) but as my week went on I was rapidly down grading my plans to 10 and 10 then 8 and 8….

I knew that Sunday morning was going to be the hardest to get some miles in as I’m not a morning person and my running options directly outside my door involve busy roads and many hills that are best tackled early not to mention on fresh legs! So I had in the back of my mind to see how my planned 10 miles went today maybe extending it to 12.

I fuelled up after a lie in with a big bowl of cereal and toast and prepared myself for the 12pm kickoff, driving up to the Merstone car park on the Newport to Sandown cycle path.

A really good run. I used today to further experiment with using gels for long marathon runs taking one as I set off and then another at my first turn around point at 5 miles. I’ve definitely found some gels that work for me at last, not having to make any unplanned pit stops nor feeling sick! I only had to stop to cross roads plus twice to re-lace my shoe and adjust my sock which was bunching up under my toes. I was pleasantly surprised how good my legs felt, especially after feeling so pathetic at BMF yesterday and think that the gels certainly contributed to that.

Having a great 1980′s playlist that I’ve not listened to for a while helped and I got a few looks from passing cyclists at one point when I was drumming along to the start of Enola Gay! I got back to my car at 10 miles and still feeling good carried on in the other direction for an extra mile each way to round the run up to 12 and my Juneathon mileage to 100.

12.02 miles

Juneathon running total… 100.34 miles

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 1,013 other followers