The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

The Good

1. First and foremost, I am back to running regularly and consistently. A few weeks ago I was beginning to wonder if I might ever run again without pain. Since the start of March, I have now run 14 times (mainly) pain-free. When I was injured, that was all I wanted - to be able to run short distances a few times a week. Now of course, I want more, so I need to remember how lucky I am.

2. I am keeping up the cycling. As I've only been running twice a week since I started back, I've continued cycling on the non-running days. This means I am doing more exercise overall than before I got injured (although cycling is obviously a lot less intensive than running).

3. I've lost 2lbs! Over the Christmas holiday, I diligently stuffed my face at every opportunity, and hardly moved for two weeks. Somehow, I managed to gain about 8 lbs - must be my pesky slow metabolism again... Anyway, by the end of January I had lost about 4 lbs, but I just couldn't shake off the rest. I got so annoyed with it, I gave up standing on the scales. But last wekend I gave in to curiosity, and finally, another 2 lbs gone. 2 more to go...

The Bad

1. While I am ecstatic to be back running again, my last few runs have been total pants! The last 4 in a row, I have felt tired and run really slowly. This morning I started off feeling fine, but my speed was really slow, and then at the end I got a stitch and had to walk. I know everyone has bad runs, but 4 in a row? Only 3 miles each time? I really need a good one soon.

2. I cycled 15 miles yesterday, and felt like I'd run 15 miles. My legs were tired, and I had a hard time getting up hills into the wind. I was passed by several cyclists (but to be honest, this happens all the time).

3. I set off yesterday with a plan; cycle into town, visit a cafe, have a coffee and some cake, read my book, then cycle back. I got to town, locked up my bike, and realised I had left my wallet at home. Doh! I had no money at all, and no choice but to turn back home with an empty stomach. What an idiot.

The Ugly















5 days in; 12 more days of Easter holiday to go!!!

A wimpy week

After my great weekend away, I have spent most of this week trying to recover. On Monday - our last morning at Center Parcs - I had fitted in a little run, but I was so tired, it was pretty rubbish.

I got a few good nights' sleep, but by Thursday I was still feeling the effects of tiredness. On Wednesday morning, Robbie was at school and Emma was at playgroup, and I had a date with my bike. But I felt so exhausted. After a lot of contemplation, I decided to wimp out. I had a sore throat and felt the threat of a cold coming, and really I just couldn't be bothered. I felt a tiny bit guilty, but got over it, and spent the time catching up on cleaning, washing and tidying. Not exactly a treat, but it was nice to get things sorted out.

On Thursday morning, I managed to drag myself out to run 5k in the morning, but it was a little slower than my last run on the same route. On Friday night, my husband was a bad influence, and persuaded me to drink a few Baileys and stay up late. It really was all his fault, and I had absolutely no say in the matter. Consequently, I failed to get up and go for a cycle in the morning. However, it was not another missed workout, as I went at 5.30pm instead. It was a lovely day, so it was still sunny and a pleasant temperature then.





















Short sleeves!!!!

This morning I went out in sunny skies again for a run, but I felt really tired and sluggish again. I was awake in the night with a really annoying, persistent cough which stopped me sleeping, and I don't think I had had enough time to recover from the late bike ride yesterday. I felt really slow (although the garmin said different), and I stopped at 3 miles.

So, in total, I did only one cycle of 8.4 miles, one pilates class, but ran 8.8 miles in total - my furthest weekly distance since starting again - woo-hoo! This was the first week that I have run 3 times rather than 2. So far, so good - I am too suspicious to sound too positive, but the heel is holding up a lot better than I had expected.

Easter holidays start next week - help......

Weekend away!

I'm back! Had a fantastic long weekend with all the family, and as with any good holiday, we have all come home exhausted, a little bit unwell, and with a load of washing and tidying to be done.

As I mentioned in my last post, this was a trip to celebrate my parents' 40th wedding anniversary. They had organised for 15 of us, plus 3 children, to stay at Center Parcs for a long weekend. I'd never been to a Center Parcs before, but it turned out to be really good.
















Robbie wrote this on Mum and Dad's wall!

We arrived on Friday afternoon, and unpacked into a cabin in the pine woods. Pete, the kids and I were staying with my sister, her husband and their 6-month old baby. We spent the afternoon wandering round the site and in the evening, everybody gathered at our place, and there was a lot of consuming of beer and wine. I was actually pretty restrained, and it was mainly the older generation who got hammered - tut.















Our house in the woods

On Saturday morning my sister and I got up extra early (despite her baby's wakefulness in the night), because we had booked a session of aqua-aerobics. This was something I'd never tried before, although Hannah had done it a few times. When we arrived at the pool at 9am, we found that we were the only 2 in the class! Luckily the instructor decided to do it anyway. We went outside in an open-air pool. The air was quite chilly, but the water was really warm, and every so often the sun came out, which was lovely. It was good fun, and more demanding than I had thought. I even had some low level DOMs in my arms and abs the next day.

The session ended at 10am, as the pool opened for general swimming. Suddenly there was a huge number of people pouring out of the changing room into the pools. As the pool is one of the few free activities, it was extremely popular, especially with families. I'm not sure I'd want to stay there at the height of summer, as it must be so crowded. Anyway, we joined our kids and the rest of our family for some splashing about.

That afternoon some of us strolled round the shops, and others had a nap. It was all very relaxing. We then got ready for a celebration dinner, as Saturday was my parents' anniversay. The meal turned out to be really good. The food was delicious, and the kids behaved well, despite being very tired.































On Sunday the children yet again refused to have a lie-in. While they went swimming again, I went off on my own to fit in a spot of abseiling! I have always wanted to abseil, I don't really know why, so I thought I should take the chance. It was quite a short way down, but the first time I stood at the top and they told me to lean back, I was really nervous. I really enjoyed it though, and felt that I was getting the hang of it by my 4th (final) turn. I just wanted it to be a bit further, as the faster and more confident you got, the quicker it was over.



















Abseiling

Later, we all got together again for some ten-pin bowling. This is something I am hopeless at, but it was good fun.

On Monday morning I got up a bit early, and managed to fit in a short run. I was so tired that it was a feeble effort - I managed less than 3 miles, was slow, and walked up a steep hill - but I knew I'd regret not running through the woods and round the lake if I didn't. We had to leave early, then flew back up to Scotland in the afternoon. Unfortunately our flight was delayed and we had a lot of waiting around. By that point I was absolutely shattered, but it could have been worse. There were a couple of babies on the plane, and I felt sorry for their parents, trying to keep them quiet.

Since we got back we have all been a bit sniffly, the kids have bad coughs, and I still need to catch up on sleep. I've also got really bad aches in my arms - it must be from the abseiling, although it didn't seem hard work at the time. I suspect it was the climbing up the ladder to the top that did it. It was all worth it though. Thanks Mum and Dad - we had a great time!















The happy couple

Just the stats, man

I love a few stats. As soon as I get back from a run or a cycle, I can't wait to plug in the Garmin and check exactly how far I've gone, my time, my speed etc, and to compare it to the previous few runs or cycles. Did I cycle 0.1mph slower than last time? For heaven's sake why? Was that my fastest run so far this month? Will I be able to beat it next time?

No matter how much I try to convince myself that these details are pretty irrelevant, and the important thing is that I'm keeping fit and enjoying it, I can't help but place too much significance on these stats. I am the sort of idiot who will run a little way past my house to round up 2.95 miles to 3 miles. Since I was given my Garmin, 16 months ago, I have rarely run or cycled without it. Why would I? I always want to know the stats.

Looking back at the stats on my Garmin for the month of March, I feel pretty happy. I had a crappy January, as the foot was stopping me running and flu stopped me doing anything else. February was a lot better, as I did a fair bit of cycling and started going to the gym, although I still wasn't running. This month I've started running again, kept up the cycling, started Pilates, and made a few trips to the gym.

If you don't love stats, look away now:

January
2 bike rides = 17 miles

February
9 bike rides = 65 miles
8 gym visits

March
9 bike rides = 68 miles
9 runs = 22 miles
3 gym visits
3 Pilates classes

Oooh, I could pore over those numbers all night... So ideally of course I'd like to build on that next month, and obviously I'll be aiming to run more often (I'm still tentatively at twice a week), and further (just a little each time), while keeping up the cross training (a silver lining around the big black cloud of Plantar Fasciitis). Unfortunately this may be unlikely, as April is a month jam packed with school holidays, not leaving me much time to exercise.

This weekend though, we are off for a family celebration! It's my parents' Ruby Wedding Anniversary, and 18 of us are spending a few days at Centre Parcs in the west of England. I've never been to Centre Parcs before, but there are loads of activities to do, including fitness classes and a gym. Hopefully, I'll be busy eating, drinking and having fun, with maybe just a little working out on the side. I will of course, be packing my Garmin.















March on my Garmin

Weekly recap

The sun has really come out this week, and temperatures have been way above average. I'm so glad that I have been able to run when the weather has been good - I miss running most on sunny blue-sky days.

I have had a bit of juggling to do this week, mainly due to Pete being very busy with work. I had a good cycle on Monday morning, then on Tuesday I planned to run. I was particularly looking forward to it, as I had now run 6 times since starting again, and my goal had always been to build up to 5k without pain. Last week I did a 2.7 mile run, so this was to be my first 3.1 mile (5k) distance. Then Pete came home on Monday, and told me he had to go in to work early Tuesday morning.

Harrumph. That was the end of that plan. I could have got up at 5.30am to fit an early run in, but I knew I would feel too tired for the rest of the day, and week. As I work on Tuesdays, there was no other time for me to fit it in, and Pete was late home that evening too.

So I left it until Wednesday morning. I did it! I have a 5k loop from my house which I used to do a lot, and it was great to be able to run it again. I was a little concerned though, as I had a bit of discomfort in my ankle before and after the run, but not during. The heel itself has been ok, but it was the ankle pain that made me limp when I first got PF in September, so I know it's from the same cause.

Anyway, in a fit of madness, I also went for a 6-mile cycle on Wednesday, as I wanted to make up for doing nothing on Tuesday. This left my legs pretty tired. On Thursday Pete was off to London overnight for work, so I couldn't get out on Friday morning either. But I did have my Pilates class at least.

Then on Saturday, I did another 5k! Same route, but 35 seconds faster. Every time I go for a run I sternly remind myself that speed is irrelevant, and I just need to concentrate on increasing the distance steadily and sensibly. Then I start running, looking at my Garmin, and thinking 'I reckon I can run faster than last time...it would be terrible if I got slower...' etc. I just can't help myself. Anyway, I'm averaging about 9.05 min/miles, so I can't complain too much, and I haven't really had any ankle pain since then, so yay!

On Sunday I thought I'd have a go at cycling a loop. I usually do some sort of out and back ride, but for a change, I picked a 4-mile loop and did it twice. It was odd going past the same places twice and getting deja vu. When I went past my house I had a strong urge to cycle straight down the path and put the bike away in the shed. I definitely prefer to choose a longer route and do it once. So this week in total I've done this:

• Cycled x3 (20 miles)
• Run x2 (6.2 miles)
• Pilates x1
  

Considering time constraints then, not a bad week workout wise. I have cleverly balanced it up though by eating a load of total crap, so I'm sure I've cancelled out any weight loss benefit. Ho hum - must do better next week etc.




















Sunny Days in Scotland!

Ich bin ein Guestblogger!

I was invited to write a guest blog, so I did. Have a wander over here to read about my beginnings in running, and why I think that absolutely anyone can learn to run.

Back at this blog, here's a picture of the family in the woods last weekend to keep you sweet.














'Cheeeeeeese!'

The Power of Sport

Next year, the Olympic Games will be held in Britain, in London. I think this is really exciting and I will definitely be applying for tickets. I hope I'll be able to spectate at some of the free events too - particularly the marathon and cycling road races.














However, not everyone shares my enthusiasm. We Brits are Gold medal ranking moaners - we love to be cynical about this kind of event, and decry the waste of money and work going into the Olympics. There are plenty of journalists and commentators who can't wait for something to go wrong, so they can laugh at the idiot idealists who thought we could host an Olympic games. There are also many members of the public who complain that we can barely afford it, in the current economic climate.

It is hard to argue that spending millions on sporting arenas is a better use of government money than putting it into hospitals. But there is an argument that in difficult times, it is more important than ever for people to have a diversion, and something to celebrate. This is why we need the arts as well as sport.

I was thinking about all this while I was running this morning, having read an article in the Observer newspaper on Sunday. There was an interview with Martine Wright, a victim of the 7/7 bombings in London in 2005. She was severely injured and had both her legs amputated. Since then though, she has been skiing, learnt to fly, done a parachute jump, got married (and walked down the aisle), and had a son. She has also joined a volleyball team, and is now training for the Paralympics.

Her story is inspirational and incredible. She tells of how sport has changed her life, given her back her confidence, and given her goals to aim for. It's a testament to how important sport can be in our lives.

It's only in the last few years that I've started to participate in sport (in my own small way!), but it has given me so much. Running has made me fitter and healthier, but it's also made me feel more confident and happier. Us humans are built to be active! Sport can be good for us in so many ways, and I'll be keeping my fingers crossed that next year is a great Olympic games. (However, I have to admit that this logo is total pants...I am still a cynical Brit after all).