General Running – Page 5 – Black and Tabby Runs

“You should only wear your running shoes for…”

All together now … ” RUNNING!”

They should not be taken on holiday and worn for the following activities:-

Sightseeing around Liverpool

Visiting Antony Gormley’s sculpture “Another Place”

Seeing red squirrels at National Trust Formby

We honestly saw real red squirrels but they were too quick to photograph

Walking in the Lake District

Driving a canal boat

And certainly not pushing open lock gates on the canal. (No photos of that one -sorry).

I think it was the last one that particularly broke the arch support in my running shoes (although along with opening and closing the lock gate paddles it was a great upper body workout). All I know is my plans of running up and down the tow path never materialised, and my first couple of runs back home left me with knee and shin twinges. Getting injured just seems so stupid and such a waste of time, so I immediately ordered myself a new pair of trainers and didn’t run until they arrived.

The good news is that two runs in my new shoes and I’ve had no more twinges or aches. Also the oh-so-pink shoes that I’ve always hated have now been replaced by a very stylish black and purple great-for-winter pair.

The bad news is that I missed getting one last long run in before Chippenham Half Marathon on Sunday 7th September. I struggle with long runs in the Summer holidays but this year I played it safe and I decided not to run. Yes I could have run and made it round I’m sure, but my shins were saying “at what cost to us, eh?!”

Risk averse? Probably. Cowardly? Don’t think so. Sensible? I guess so. Sigh.

I know how to cheer myself up – I’ll enter another race!

Summer Silliness. Running my Name

So it was a beautiful evening, I was trying out some new shorts (review to follow), I was running across a deserted football field and I was struck with the desire to run some silliness. So I did – I ran my name. *

‘Black And Tabby’ is way too long to run, so I used my real name instead. Well it amused me!

* With thanks to my friend and sometime racing partner Mel, who managed to ‘run’ his name recently as well.

“Walk up the hills and there’s plenty of food”

Sounds like a great combination, doesn’t it? As a running event I’d always vote for walking up hills and having lots of food. Oh and small events where you’ll always know someone. These were the best bits about ultra running, according to @abradypus (otherwise known as Louise). On Friday afternoon I was delighted to be sat in our local farm shop and cafe with the very lovely and chatty Louise and her husband. They were on their way to Wales and suggested we meet up for a coffee (which turned into a cream tea. Yum). She was telling me what she loves about ultra running, amongst many other random things we chatted about. It was all sounding great, apart from the actual distances you have to cover. For someone who only started running in 2011 she has come a long way!

This weekend Louise is competing in the 100Km ‘Race to the Stones’. I’d like to wish her a great race, with people she knows, lots of uphill walking and good food at the pitstops. I’m sure she’ll be blogging about the race over at abradypus.wordpress.com so do pay her blog a visit.

Juneathon Day 23. Not a Paddle, honestly

After a rubbish night’s sleep (did I mention earlier we have builders at the moment? And roofers due to start stripping the roof this morning? And a man to spray the loft for woodworm?) I was awake at 4am and wide awake at 5am. Can’t think why. Despite trying to get comfortable, trying to relax and get back to sleep, it was no good. I decided to get up (quietly) and have a cup of tea.

Never seen this sign before in this house

As I was tip-toeing around the house sipping my tea I realised I had the chance to go out for my first ever early morning run and still be back in time to shower before everyone else got up. Hmmm, I thought, I might wake Mr B&T by rummaging for running kit in the bedroom drawers. Then I realised my favorite set of kit was all clean and dry in the office waiting to be put away! I was out of the house at 6.30am. It was quiet. There was a little traffic going through the village but no dog walkers or cyclists – my usual running audience. I ran past my allotment to see how my well-watered onions were looking (all fine!), along another lane, down through a field. I was hoping to see some deer here but they were obviously all hiding. I was just taking it easy, not looking at my Garmin, just clearing my head before a busy, noisy day. As I turned onto the lane that goes up a slight hill back home I remembered it was a Strava segment and decided to push up the hill and see how it went. It felt hard but okay and I was keen to get home and upload my data to see how I did. I laughed at my Garmin track which seemed to think I’d run right through the village pond (I’m not Triathalon training thank you very much)…

I didn't paddle, honestly — I didn’t paddle, honestly

… and I practically cheered whan I saw I’d taken a new CR on the Strava Segment (That’s a “Course Record” which means I’m the fastest female on that particular stretch of run.)

Juneathon Day 16. Creating New Running Styles

A proper run was needed today, so I set off through the village, onto a busy lane, turned into a quiet lane and headed down to the main A4.

The verge alongside the A4 was very overgrown and to stop myself fallling into the path of a lorry I tiptoed along here looking for the start of the bridleway. I failed dismally, reached the roundabout and had to turn around and backtrack.

The start of the bridleway was also overgrown, so I didn’t run as much as battle my way through.

It was whilst fighting through the undergrowth whilst not being able to see your feet I realised I’d discovered a new running style -The Shuffle*. Not so much running, more shuffling your feet ahead of you to make sure you have a stable footing. Not speedy, but effective.

Advantages of battling through the undergrowth

A little further I reached a patch of eye level grasses I had to get through. It was here I developed my second new running style “The Rocky”. This one has you running along with your hands held in fists, alternately punching the plants out of the way before they swipe you on the face.

If you try either of these two methods on your runs, please do let me know!

* Whilst doing The Shuffle it is compulsory to hum the 70s hit “The Hustle” changing the words as appropriate.

Local support on my runs

Who wouldn’t love a run where you’re watched intently by these two?

I love living in this village – always something to surprise you.

On success and embarrassment

How can one run contain two such differing emotions – success, and embarrassment? Surely one would preclude the other?

Well the success is easy. When you’re running and a man walking the other way tells you the path ahead is closed but you keep on going, it’s a success. When you reach this sign on the path :-

and you decide to carry on to see where the problem is, it’s a success. Despite this, it can still look like your run is going to be a failure when you reach the bridge that is being rebuilt and orange safety netting is completely closing the footpath. However if you then ask the man fixing the bridge how you can get around and he pulls the safety netting to one side and says you can come through as long as you’re careful, then that’s a success!

Now for the embarrassment. It was very foggy today, and most people seemed to have decided to stay indoors. Running along the canal that’s in the process of being renovated and which is normally busy with dog walkers, tourists and cyclists, I was surprised to find it was practically empty.

On my way back up to town as I came to the one bridge on thepath, I ran under the bridge and couldn’t resist making loud “woo woo” noises to hear the echos. They were great echos, but as I came out from the bridge I came face to face with a man and his two dogs. Any hopes that maybe he hadn’t heard me were shattered when he sniggered and said
“Bet you didn’t think there was anyone here!”

I will leave you to imagine how red my face was as I slunk off. At least I gave him something to smile about.

This is how I feel today

After feeling gloomy in my last post, I’m very happy to report that I’m feeling Good again! A brief flash of sunshine has helped, along with running again, eating better and getting slightly more sleep. The sleep thing is in the process of being sorted, as it’s currently being sabotaged by this fellow:-

Yes, he looks very cute when he’s asleep, but unfortunately he’s been waking up earlier and earlier and being a Mummy’s boy comes straight to tell me all about it. Loudly. Yesterday it was at 6.20 am when my alarm is actually set for 7.00am. If yowling loudly doesn’t get me up, he jumps up onto my bedside table and knocks the cat-drinking-prevention-device from the top of my water (I put a coaster on top of my glass to stop him drinking from it). If that doesn’t work, his latest trick is to carefully pat at each object on my bedside table until it falls onto the floor. Cue me grumpily and myopically searching around for my glasses yesterday morning and eventually finding them under the bed.

Anyway, despite this feline-induced sleep deprivation, I still feel good. I ran 3 times last week with a long run that was meant to be 8 miles but ending up being 9.5 miles. I got out on my bike at the weekend, with both children (this is a major achievement!) To top it all, I set out to run 4 miles yesterday, along an out-and-back route I run at least once a week, determined to push it just a little, to run “comfortably hard”. When I got back and uploaded my data onto Strava I was delighted to spot that I’d run it the segment heading back home in my 2nd fastest time ever. I was even more pleased to see that the only time I’d run it faster was in a race, last year.

Right – pass the race directory – I’m ready to enter some races!

Finally ready for 2014

I realised the other day, that since the New Year I’ve not been feeling myself.

“Who have you been feeling then, eh?” << Thought I’d get the gag in before anyone else did.

I’ve been feeling like an inferior, older, tireder and sadder version of myself. And that’s not been good. Was it the not running? I certainly felt like a different person when I wasn’t a ‘runner’ for four weeks. Maybe it was the lack of daylight and fresh air because I wasn’t running. With the atroctious weather we’ve had, some days I didn’t set foot outside the house. Maybe it was my recent birthday? I’ve never been too bothered about getting older, but this birthday did feel like standing on the platform at the top of a big playground slide, wobbling slightly before sliding down to the next ‘big birthday’. Maybe it was a hormonal thing. Perhaps it was the couple of weeks of bad sleep I seem to have had. Possibly it was because I have no new goals on the horizon, nothing big and scary to motivate me. By contrast, my husband has some big sporting challenges this year and is sickeningly enthused (and scared, truth be told). Actually I haven’t got a single race to prepare for as I have just been feeling too old and slow. Possibly, just maybe, it’s been a combination of all of these factors. Going down with a cold last weekend seemed like the final straw.

Last week, I was fed up of feeling fed up. I felt bored, boring, tired, unfit and ready to give myself a good talking to (and a kick up the backside). After running too much too quickly a few weeks ago (which didn’t improve my mood) I decided to be sensible this time. I set off and ran just 3 times in the week, with plenty of rest in between and all at a slow easy pace. I bought some long overdue new trainers (which are scarily white, shiny and pink, Ugh!) I tried to get to bed at a better time, and resolved to make sure I was eating better with less sugary rubbish.

New trainers - scarily clean and PINK! — New trainers – scarily clean and PINK!

This week, after shaking off the cold, I feel better. I’ve run on two cold but clear mornings. I’ve had some better sleep. I’ve eaten more fruit and veg, tried to cut out the chocolate, and thought about how much protein I need. I’ve even spent several hours digging on my neglected allotment. It feels like a weight is being lifted from me, and I’m liking it.

Allotment after several sessions of digging

Right then – where’s the race calendar? 2014, I’m finally ready for you!

Janathon Day 31. Goodbye Janathon.

The last day of Janathon. Woo hoo! Should I end with a damp squib of a plank? Or do (yet) another session of my DVD (I swear Jillian Michael’s eyes follow me around the room from the DVD case). Maybe another bike ride (but cycle shorts are still damp on the radiator from yesterday, and I’m not hardcore enough to put them on on that state). I know – I’LL GO FOR A RUN!!!

In the interests of resting my niggle (yawn), I haven’t run since 3rd January! I have missed running, and I was anxious to see how four weeks of ‘just’ cross training would have affected it (and me).

So off I went this morning. I set off at full pelt for a quick blast around my 3 mile loop. It was cold, it was slippy, it was muddy under foot. It was glorious. I ran 3.11 miles in just under 30 minutes, which included re-tying a shoe lace TWICE and a little chat with a neighbour (the problem of running through the small village you live in).

So it’s goodbye Janathon, and welcome back running!