My Running Diaries…
My old shoes have clocked up pretty close to 400 miles, so it’s definitely time to be replacing them.
I’ve been pretty much solidly an Asics man for shoes since I bought my first pair of GT-2100s. I guess I’m just a creature of habit, but I’ve never had any reason to change.
So, to replace my Asics Gel Kayano model 23 from last year, I’ve excitingly gone for Asics Gel Kayano 24s… Who says I’m not original?
Hopefully they will last me through the marathon and beyond.
Week four saw a new opponent trying to make training harder – the weather!
Monday was a rest day, and everything was fine. It was Tuesday when things went wrong.
Normally on Tuesday I run round Linlithgow Loch with an office colleague. However, the snow in the morning was pretty severe – so much so that I got a message from the doggy daycare service to tell me that they would be unable to look after my dog. Which meant I had to work from home, which meant I would be unable to go for my Loch run.
Oh well, such is life. I decided that I would wait until everyone was home, and go to the gym to do my three miles on the treadmill. I did have to run the gauntlet of “you really shouldn’t be going out in this weather”, and they were probably wise. The snow outside the gym was certainly quite heavy.
However, I got my miles in and made it home safely, so all was well
Wednesday was no better. I had to do six miles today, and I thought of running at lunchtime. I got myself togged out and ready to go for a run, but I feared that I would trip and break myself, so I grabbed a picture and then gave up
But I decided that that just wasn’t going to be, so once again I went to the gym in the evening and managed to stomach six miles on the treadmill.
By Thursday, I was back at work and I was sick of the treadmill. So I went out for a run round the loch, using my head torch to help me round. Conditions underfoot were pretty awful, and I had to pick my way carefully over the snow, especially on the “back” (north) side of the loch.
On the other hand, the Palace was looking rather pretty.
Friday was a rest day, and Saturday called for a further six miles. Conditions were still not great underfoot, so I reluctantly decided to have another shot on the treadmill. Fun, it really wasn’t.
It was Sunday when the weather really started laughing at me. here was the weather forecast. Guess when I was running? Yes, that’s right – just after noon!
Oh well, with nothing to be done for it I got out in the snow and started running. In all honesty, it may not have been the wisest idea
Even on the way back along the Hillfoots road it was still snowy
Eventually I got back to the Uni and I had a celebratory cheeseburger and chips, washed down with a hot cup of coffee. I was still soaking, but I was starting to feel human again.
As an indication of what conditions were like, have a look at this picture here. See that big white field behind me? It’s not a field. It’s Airthrey Loch, in the grounds of Stirling Uni. It had frozen over, and the snow was lying on it!
That’s a week I’m glad to have finished, I won’t lie!
So, the challenge for this week was to find a good balance between resting and getting back to training.
I decided that my best move was to let thing go until Thursday, and then I would see how I got on in Pilates. That actually went well, so I tried going out for a run
My initial plan was to do just a couple of miles, but when I was out on the canal towpath I decided to go as far as a specific bridge. By the time I got back to the car I was already well over two miles, and it would only be a little bit extra to get up to three miles… so I did so.
Running felt quite good – maybe I am in a good enough state to get back to training?
This time I was determined not to make the same mistakes as last week – I had my illuminated belt, a head torch and my reflective leggings. Nobody was going to miss me on this run!
Friday was a rest day, so my next run was Saturday. This was down as a five miler at marathon pace in the plan. I knew that I wasn’t recovered enough to do that, so I stuck to training pace and did a little over four. I’m just getting back into it, that’s okay
Sunday was the LSR day. I was dropping my daughter off in Stirling to do her job, and so I decided to go to Stiring Uni for the run. There is a stretch I wanted to know well before the marathon, that is the section from the Uni out to the A91 junction. I’ve driven this route many times, but that’s not the same as knowing what it’s like underfoot.
Setting off from the Uni was lovely. I was able to use the facilities at the student centre before starting, and then head out along the marathon route to the high point of the Uni, where I took photographs of runners last year. Then out to the car park, and downhill to the Airthrey Road (A9). Turning right there, I ran along to the A91 junction.
There’s a loop here in the marathon, where the official route goes north on the A91 to the Hillfoots. Well, I chose not to run that way because there is no pavement. Instead, I went straight on, and ran as far as the Gogar Loan road. There I headed north onto the Hillfoots road, then turned back towards the Uni. I went into the University’s back entrance, climbing the hill to finish the run.
The University is really a pretty place.
But not only that. It has a publicly accessible changing room with showers, and it has a cafeteria that does a first-rate cheeseburger and coffee for under a fiver. I think I might be doing more of my Sunday LSRs from Stirling Uni!
So, that’ me back on the horse. I’m not 100%; I still have a bit of a chesty cough. I hope I am not doing too much too soon. But I have a day off tomorrow, and a gentle three miler on Tuesday, so that should give me a decent interval for recovery. It ramps up on Wednesday with a six mile midweek run, then Saturday and Sunday are quite brutal – a six miler at marathon pace followed by a slow eleven mile run.
Things are starting to get real…
I might have thought I could manage more than a week without crashing, but sadly that hope was not realised
This week started really well. Monday – New Year’s Day – was a rest day, which I enjoyed to the full.
Tuesday was less cold than it had been, and the relative warmth beckoned. Having been indoors for ages, pleasantly imprisoned in a centrally-heated space, it was a delight to be able to get outside and get some chill and some rain on my skin.
The run itself was a pleasant 3.4 miles, I really enjoyed it.
Wednesday saw me back at work, and I had a five miler to do. So after work I went up onto the canal towpath, and very quickly learned that I need a headlamp.
I had an illuminated belt, which is great. But I had nothing to help me see where I was going, and that led to a close shave. Why do bollards have to be so hard?
Then Thursday came. I was in work all day, but a cold was building up in my chest. I read various sources, all of which recommended that you do not try to run when the cold is below the neck. So, I didn’t run.
Later on that evening, I was absolutely frozen. I went to bed early, and woke late on Friday morning. I could barely get out of bed. Saturday was hardly any better, and there was no way I could run on Sunday.
And so that’s it – two weeks in and I’ve already missed half a week. And this cold is showing no signs of shifting. I am not impressed…
I’ve made it to the end of week one of training. Continue reading “And That Was Week One”
And so, it starts.
First day of training today, I have run the three miles that Hal Higdon says I should have run and so far, so good.
I’m not going to be reporting every single training run here, that would be boring – but I shall try to keep my training schedule updated.
It may not look it from the above photo, but when I went out today there was snow falling and ice on the ground. Let’s hope the weather improves a little!
I’ve not been posting in here much recently, but I have been keeping up with some running. Normally only a couple of runs a week, but enough to keep my legs turning over.
The varying weather conditions have been making me think about what I will need for the winter, however, and I have built up a little bit of a shopping list. Specifically, I think I am going to be looking for:
Running is supposed to be a cheap hobby – but I seem to be able to find lots to spend my money on…
Strava has brought out a new heatmap based on where its users run, ride or swim. It’s pretty impressive – and I was able to see tracks that I am sure are me alone 🙂
Check it out at https://labs.strava.com/
Today I drove something that will be approximately the Stirling Marathon route. I know that the start point won’t be exact, and that the final mile or so inside the city won’t be exact, but it’s not going to be far off. It will be my last chance to drive the route for a while, as the A820 (from Doune to Dunblane) will be closed for the next three months.
So, here’s what I saw:
The route seems to start at approximately 25ft above sea level. The first ten and a half miles are a fearsome climb all the way to Dunblane, at about 280ft. That’s the same kind of height gain as nemesis, the Wallace Stone Brae – but it takes over ten miles to achieve it.
After that we have another two mile uphill stretch from Bridge of Allan to Innovation Park to contend with, where we will gain 100ft. And the final stretch will involve a bit of a hill too, as we come in to the city.
This is clearly going to have to have some kind of impact on my training. I need to learn to be able to cope with hills, and I need to re-think my pacing.
It’s going to be brutal!
I was thinking about the training plan for the marathon, and realised that it called for me to be out running on Wednesday evenings. I plan to take in a hill on that run, and the road back home from that hill is not illuminated.
So, I started looking around for reflective running clothing. I struggled to find what I want, but was inspired by an advert from the SportPursuit flash sale site. It was offering Craft Sportswear reflective running tights.
Sadly they didn’t have my size, but I was able to find them on Amazon. In normal use, they don’t look anything special, but when you shine a light on them…
