Maudlin March into ACTIVE APRIL!

I've been miserable for most of March, from sulking on Twitter, to just slumping about the house, moaning, in general. I've ran 5 times in the whole of March, which I'm sure you agree, is a bit pants.
The saddest thing being that if I had ran more, I'd probably been much happier, or a least not got on the nerves of those around me as much, as it's harder to Twitter or sulk at others when you're out the house, running by yourself.

Unfortunately I'm not 12 any more & no one is going to force me to do any exercise, or run the Great Manchester Run or the Run Liverpool Marathon for me. So I'm using the change of the months to force myself to change my head & get out more.

So that's where Active April comes in. I loved liked completed #Janathon this year & so I'm going to make April something, not quite as hardcore, but similar for myself.

I'm not 100% certain on how I'm going to judge myself or the requirements, I think my partner would have a nervous breakdown if I told him I'm going to run every day again, but I have 2 days to work them out ( and I'm open for suggestions)

I've declared to my family I'm running this evening, so he won't get lost in ASDA and arrive home late, so I should have time to work it all out.

Probably.

4.25mi 1hr 3 min

This was a great run. Not because I left a grumpy baby, whiney toddler & a just as grumpy dad at home, that just made the quiet a little sweeter.
No, this was a great run because of many other reasons, I'll list them for you;

1) I ran faster for longer, I didn't maintain the pace all the way, but it was the furthest I've pushed it, EVER EVER EVER!
2) I ran further than I have since May 2010!
3) I ran up a hill & didn't slow or stop at the top!
4) I made up the route & it was the perfect length!
5) I felt great 90% of the way around!
6) I had a banana instead of Milky Way, when I got home!

Oh I could go on & on, and then on a bit more.
It was a day later than scheduled, but I'm glad I waited. I've been suffering from some nasty kind of cold, that's knocked me sideways. The fact that I can't have any drugs, because I'm breastfeeding, didn't improve my Get Well Soon mood. So there's been four days this week where I haven't been able to talk, and a few more where I feel like I've had some small creature burrowing in through my skull.

I'm concerned that I don't feel any kind of sore legs today, in fact I'm felling pretty damn good. (mostly owing to the fact I can put my pants on without undoing buttons, this means I need new pants & am not as fat as I was last time I wore them.) Perhaps this means I could have ran even more? Or am I just being all YEHAA! now I'm starting to feel like a real runner, not some flabby girl joggling about her neighbourhood?

The beginning is a very delicate time...

Yesterday I completed my 1st run on my training calendar, and then came home and ate a share bag of Revels to myself, whilst watching The Biggest Looser, & The Biggest Looser USA. Inspirational I know.


Whilst I was getting ready to run I was searching Spotify for running music, something different to the miss match I normally listen to, I found an AudioFuel mix. Given that I was too disorganized & lazy to use the freebie link kindly sent out to Janathon Participants, and I have never heard a bad AudioFuel review, this seemed stupid not to take out for a run.



The mix set up into 13 intervals all around 3 minutes, although the 1st interval is longer as a warm up, (I think.)  The recovery intervals are at 155bpm, and the working intervals are at 160, 170 & 180bpm.
I found the 160bpm really hard to jog along to, it felt neither one thing nor the other. 170bpm was a good pace and, shock horror, I really enjoyed these intervals, and 180 bpm felt like it was just a little too fast, but something that I could work for.
The coaching is great! From the "Feet to the beat..." saying every now & again, to all the tips, reminders & inspirational shouts that you get, I won't spoil it for you, because you need to listen to them. They are top! Just what you want to hear as you're thinking "Will this 3 minutes end?!? are you sure it's only 180bpm?"
I will admit to walking at least for 50% of the recovery sections, but I did run 100% of the working intervals, and as I didn't quite cover the 3 miles I had planned I walked the rest (about 1/3 of a mile) home.
But I enjoyed this run a heckuva lot more than when I forced myself out on Sunday.

As for the post title, I just wanted to get a Dune quote on my blog, but I could blag it & say that it was hit & miss if I'd have managed to get out & run yesterday, the rain, and the agony I woke up in all pushed me towards the No end of the running spectrum.

There we go, next run Thursday, another 3 miles. See you there?

100km YTD

I think that's pretty sweet, don't you?!

I did only do the 2.3km required to push me over the distance, but at least I went out & ran, and I did run, surprising even myself with the minimum amount of slacking during my run.

I've just switched on a training schedule on the Nike+ site, it ends on my wedding day! So I'm guessing it's a good job the ceremony isn't until the afternoon?! hmm yes, ask me that in 13 weeks!

GULP!

Feels like a Wednsday

It's not quite at the begining of #Janathon & it's not quite the end.

Todays "Run" had more walk than run, was a bit of a let down, but then today has been a bit naff too. I'm not going to mope on the interwebs, I'm just going to swear I'll get up & run in daylight....

but as I type this I get a nosie from my iPhone, & it's a #Janathoner, cheering me on for my run...
it was @carlatutte THANKYOU!

just when you're down, #Janathon pickus you up.

I'm off to make chillie for 4 ppl.

Smile! All time is Relative...

Phew! I have just punished myself, and enjoyed it, what does that make me?
A sadist?
A lunatic?
An Opus Dei Member?
A runner?  (In mind if not, quite yet, the body?)

The punishment wasn't quite beating myself with willow branches or that spiky thing Paul Bethany wears around his leg in The Da Vinci Code. No I did my 1st ever night of Speed Drills...
2 sets; 10 minutes of 1min running as fast as I could, & 1 minute slow to recover.
As crazy as it sounds the 15 minutes gentle jog in between the 2 sets was the hardest part of the whole night.
Seriously, the time flew by when doing the drills, and the voice through my headphones seemed to say "GOFAST... ok slow" but when it came to the "endurance jog" it's like he switched his stop watch off, went for a brew & had his evening meal + a short nap or something! It couldn't have been only 3 minutes since he last spoke, I'd been jogging for a week already...  An so I have proved all time is relative & Mr Einstein wasn't just a mental librarian.

There were 2 high points during my run (well 3 if you count twittering the run)
1) passing another runner going the other way, who was clearly out on one of her 1st few jogs. Like me she's overweight & was sweaty red, she was running with a bloke (quite a nice looking one) who seemed to be there for moral support & as we passed we smiled at each other. Not in a nudge nudge kind of way. But in a "I feel your PAIN" kind of way, and it only made me smile more, a full on kiddie grin that lasted a good few minutes. (In fact it brings a smile to my face as I type now)
2) the bit at the end where the voice goes, "that was a great work out well done!" I nearly cried tears of joy! I made it, and I didn't cheat, or slack off, stop or any naughty stuff! I FUCKING KICKED ASS! I ROCKED! I was indeed on fiya!

And then when I found I'd acually covered just a little over 5km during the run, well I was just a little bit chuffed as you can see from my twitter post...

Thanks to everyone who Shouted for me there and then!
@carlautte 
@lottabottle2
@rosa_rocks_uk
@sheri3004

And my time for the 5k was 49min 54 sec, ok we're not talking rocket speed, yet, it's not a PB (37:20), but I'm FUCKING stoked about doing it without realising! I accidently ran 5k. 10 days ago ask me to run 5k & you could watch me have some sort of breakdown in the living room, amongst my fizzy pop & M&S chocolate biscuits!

And I know I normaly post my total distance in Miles, but this just rounds my run off nicely.

30km in 9 days, EXACTLY! couldn't have done that on purpose if I'd tried!

 VIVA LA #JANATHON!

"All this has happened before - All this will happen again"

There we go broke the 2 mile mark on Day 3 of Janathon! W00T!

Todays run was brought to me via the NHS Choices C25K podcast!

I didn't want to listen to the same podcast 3 days in a row, and a quick search in iTunes threw up this as one of my alternative options for Week One.

During the run you're prompted by the lively sounding Laura, who encourages & counts you up to each change of pace, and tells you that she'll have you running 5k, or for 30 min, with the next 9 weeks (3 weeks quicker that Robert Ullrey.) The music is quite generic, but they've obviously choosen the tracks to match a BPM for the pace of the walk/run.

No shout out from Paula Radcliffe in the Nike+ app today, she must be having a day off, just some random american guy telling me "You're on FIYA" (well that's my attempt at how to write the way he shouts "fire" down my head phones)

Oh & this Nike add, accuratly sums up how I feel abour running at the moment...

Janathon 2011

Yup, I've just signed up to run everyday throughout January 2011!

I'm not 100% certain that I can manage it, but 100% up for the challenge.

 Interested? head over to the Janathon website & get more info & join in!

There's also a Facebook Group for it & a prize for the person who manages the most days/miles!

Motivation or Madness? Ask me 1st Feb!

 

Great Manchester Run Round 2

So at 8:30am the web page for the 2011 Great Manchester 10k opened!
and by 8:46am I had a place! Yippee!

This year I have decided to run for Refuge, the women & children's charity against Domestic Violence.
Yes, it does deserve the capital letters, it's a serious issue & it's one that strikes quite close to home for me...
But 1st some facts;
· One in four women is abused during her lifetime.
· One in nine is severely physically abused each year.
· Two are killed each week
·On average, a woman is assaulted 35 times before her first call to the police. 

 I'll give you a moment to lift your chin off the keyboard while the numbers sink in.


Refuge are committed to a world where domestic violence is not tolerated or ignored and where women and children can live in safety. Money raised and donated to Refuge goes towards many things;

• £10 could allow a woman to buy her child essential materials for school – many women arrive at Refuge with nothing but the clothes they are wearing and do not have the means to buy the things they need.
• £50 could fund a session of play therapy for a group of four children, helping them to overcome the trauma of witnessing or experiencing violence.
  
• £72 could pay for two days of fun activities for a group of children in our refuges.
  
• £75 could fund a local support group session for women who have experienced domestic violence.
• £96 could pay for a training workshop for 5 women, helping them to enter the employment market and regain their independence.

Why Refuge?
This year (2011) I turn 30. Yikes, and it's also 15 years since my mother was killed, by her abusive partner. Half my life has been without my Mum, and I wouldn't wish it on anyone.

The Great Manchester Run isn't until May, 180 days away! I did the last one in 1hr 40min, I was pregnant, but I aim to get this one under an hour!

Wish me luck ( and Sponsor me) Cheers!

It's a BOY!

My son was born on 27th September @ 10;36am.

I'm happy to say he's perfect in every way, however the speed of the delivery caused some complications that meant & quick dash to surgery for me.
The up shot of this is a whole heap of stitches & the physio has told me there will be no running for at least 6 months, and I should take up some low impact sport until then.

March to May hopefully gives me enough time to get back into the swing of running. In the meantime I'm going to have a look through the local pages to find out what low impact exercise classes there are in my area & a think about what I'm going to do with my lardy bottom for the next 6 months!

I've said at least 12, how many have you?

This is a Nike Ad, from about 2 years ago...
Too cold is in there, so I got my bottom off the couch, stepped away from the hummous, and went for a quickie

DAY FIVE - 1KM (probably) (10min)
This run sucked...
I went to the Gym, and nearly killed myself slipping on the ice, lost my Nike+ gizmo on the way, and hated every second of running on the treadmill, and then sulked all the way back home.

Thankfully tomorrow is a rest day.

oh, and;
I've got shin splints
I'm exerting myself too much
I've got a case of the Mondays, the Tuesdays, the Wednesdays.
I wanna do something else
After New Years
I might make a mistake
I fell bloated
I have gas
My blister hurts
My tummy hurts
Its not in my genes
Im not the athletic type
I dont wanna slow you down
I think ill sit this one out
I´m too weak / too slow / too big
I ate too much for breakfast
I´ve got a headache
It´s raining
My dog is sick
I can´t right now
Not inspired
It makes me smell bad
I´m allergic to this stuff
I´m fat 
I´m thin
It´s too hot
It's too cold

what's the excuse for my next run?