Hitting the Tiles & Then the Pavement

I didn't manage to fit in quite as much running as hoped last week, my excuse being a new office job! After a failed attempt to run back from Joe's (It seems Sam + empty stomach + midday run = seeing spots and feeble limbs) I was more than determined to go for a long one around Sutton Park. This I did! For a total of 40mins, which generally was a pleasant experience until my right headphone blew ... darn it! I must have brought/ bought a lazy set of headphones not accustomed to the outdoor world.

Anyway, as Rach has already mentioned - On Saturday I headed to Cambridge to catch up with Uni friends and toast Lizzie's birthday. After a cultured day meandering around Cambridge, ethanol intake began ... and continued! I blame B and W (you know who you are!) for their bad influence that saw me stumbling happily into bed long past 5am.

Stubborn as ever I did however join Rach on an 11 o clock run, which was surprisingly refreshing! Much fun was had running around Trinity college; particularly pretending to be a student and running through the 'tourists do not pass this point signs'; though I did respect the law that you're not to traipse along the grass unless you are a fellow or in the company of a fellow. There is also the possibility that I was still a little bit drunk whilst running, as after I was back and showered I more than bore the brunt of a nights poisoning!

Feeling less intoxicated today, I managed an hour long run around Sutton, think I've earned a rest day tomorrow.

Training has begun!

I finally put on the running shoes and began training last week. I started with an early Sunday morning run along the banks of the Thames. All was rather good bar slipping on some black ice 5 minutes into the run...thinking why did I agree to this and then going well i guess i just have to keep going! The other excitement was chatting to some homeless guys who asked how it was going then wished my luck. You wouldn't get that everywhere!

I've also decided that if I run home from work it avoids the "I'm home and warm and hungry and don't want to go out again" plus I can get a decent run without taking up to much extra time. So two day last week after work I went a long way home and got a good couple of miles in.

The last run of the week was avec Sam in Cambridge. The girls were all down for Lizzie's Birthday and so Sam and I thought we would take the opportunity to get a wee run in. After a rather late night and a tad more to drink that we probably should have we headed up into the streets of Cambridge, fingers crossed we wouldn't get lost. From Liz's brief tour the day before we didn't know much but we had fun running through some colleges and round various patches of green. All things considered, I think we did remarkably well running for 30mins and it was good to run with someone else.

9.3 Divided By 10

After unexpectedly finishing work early today (that's right...work!), I headed to the gym and continued my training. This week I aim to up my mileage, so I did 7km on the treadmill which felt great, at my normal pace of 10km per hour. I hope this switching between metric and imperial isn't harassing your brain too much.

I'm growing quite fond of the gym after years of openly bashing such establishments, but there are a few things I dislike about these sweaty places. Firstly, I am at a loss as to why they insist on pumping out mediocre and repetitive dance music at full volume in all areas of the gym. I know it probably helps to keep your pace, but I'd rather run to a metronome than that pile of shit. Secondly (and lastly for today), I really dislike people who drive to the gym and then walk on the treadmill for 20 minutes. Just pop round to the shops once in a while, it's a similar workout and you get some of that fresh air everyone's always raving about. The only excuse for this is when it's torrential rain, but still, at least break a sweat with a light jog guys. Jeez.

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Now playing: Tapes 'n Tapes - Badaboom
via FoxyTunes

Blue Sky Running

I'm not sure how it got to be Sunday evening already, but ah well. Since Thursday I have done a bit of 'on the spot running' at Wyndley Leisure Centre, which has prompted me to buy a working set of headphones to drown out the club house hits that they seem to endlessly pump out (pretentious?).

I've also been loving this sunny weather and partaken in two outdoor runs. The first around New Hall Valley, which was very pretty but did entail running up two rather steep hills (and down again - hurrah!). The second was in fact today. Joe and I had planned a run around Sutton Park ... but ... after a late shift at the Glee Club that saw me climbing into bed at 3am and a bit of gaming that kept Joe up til 4am as I'm told (no red wine this time, just tea and ridiculously tasty shortbread) ... we decided to go for a more achievable 3 miler around Pype Hayes park.

So ... that brings my weeks running to a total of 14 miles or 22.5km!

Unsurprisingly however, after four successive days of running I am now in a 'world of pain' and creeping around the house like an 80 year old. I reckon tomorrow will be a few stretches - might even go for some Pilates like all the new age kids do,  followed by a welcomed rest day on Tuesday!


   

Going Back On My Word

It's been a jam packed training week this week, with three visits to the gym in total.  Each time I managed to do a 5km run followed by 2km on the rowing machine.  Surprisingly I'm not aching too much, which either means I'm fitter than I thought I was, or I'm in for a world of pain in the next couple of days.  This week has also seen me rethinking my healthy living strategy.  Basically I was going to give up drinking for January, but then realised this would be of no benefit, so I've decided my alcohol abstinence will kick in nearer the time.  So to celebrate this fact Sam and I polished off two bottles of wine last night.  Thankfully this was spread out over the course of the evening so no hangover today.  I've always been someone who disagrees with giving up anything you enjoy, so my new motto is everything in moderation.  Tomorrow we'll be embarking on a lengthy run around Sutton Park I believe, so that will be a proper test of current fitness levels.

They've changed the layout of Blogger so I can't seem to add what I'm currently listening to onto the end of this post.  As I know most of you will be holding your breath until you find out, I'll do a manual one.

Currently listening to: The Dreamer - The Tallest Man On Earth

Shoe Christening

After Christmas I eagerly headed to the shops to pick up a pair of new running shoes. Twenty minutes of wall gazing later and I was the proud owner of a pair of shiny new trainers! For those interested I will be completing my 50 000 steps in a pair of Nike Lunar Swifts. Not sure I'll be running on the moon anytime soon, but hopefully they'll make me swift! On Lottie's advice I picked up a size 5 (and not my normal 4) to permit foot swelling on marathon day and in her words ... prevent my nails from falling off! Nice! (Remind me to pick up a pack of plasters next time I head to the shops ...)

Anyway, yesterday after deciding walking round the house in my lunar swifts didn't actually constitute exercise, I  headed to the gym to christen said shoes and start training proper! Joe introduced me to the wonders of Erdington Leisure Centre complete with running room. I managed 6k on 'Hill' setting 6 in 45 minutes, before stumbling home for a stretch and a shower.

Run, Fatboy, Run Screenshot

To continue the marathon theme we then watched Run, Fatboy, Run - the 2007 film featuring Simon Pegg as misguided marathon hopeful Dennis. Oddly, I looked a lot like Dennis in this screen shot today (see above), following a 4 mile walk home I did a few stretches with my lovely pink (hmmm) dumbbells in preparation for another gym sesh tomorrow, 

Day One...

After putting it off for the first few days of January, my training officially began today. I started the day with a three mile walk back to mine from Sam's house, an adequate warm up I'm sure you'll agree. It is then a one mile walk to my local gym, so by the time I arrived I wasn't really in the mood for a huge run. I pulled myself together though, and did 5km on the treadmill (at a speed of 10km an hour if you're interested, no incline). I was alone in the running room for most of my session, although was briefly joined by an elderly woman running in jeans. It was obviously her first time there, and I imagine the chafing experienced will mean her next trip out of the house will be to buy some joggers.

I got off the treadmill after completing my 5km and floated into the main room, a little light headed. I really must remember to bring water along in future. I did a quick 5 minutes on the rowing machine then decided to leave. 40 press ups at home later I partook in my second shower of the day and then had an enormous lunch. It does feel good to exercise, I think I'd forgotten just how good.

NB. This isn't intended as a bragging entry (as you can see from my relatively short session), but more of a record for my own benefit to keep tabs on my training.

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Now playing: Tom Waits - 16 Shells From A Thirty-Ought-Six
via FoxyTunes