happer camper

Went over the 6k mark tonight in approx 46 minutes. I really felt I could have kept going but kinda ran out of road in that I didn't think I'd feel like I would be able to go much further so my route wasn't long enough.

Have to say, I'm really pleased I made that distance and even more pleased that I felt strong afterwards. My confidence is building and that is really encouraging given there are about 10 days left to the race.

Beyond the race though, the fact that I'm getting 3/4 runs a week in and the distances are beginning to creep up is very satisfying. If I want to make a go of a few triathlons next year I feel this winter work will really stand to me.

I never believed I would get to this point. That it is less than two months since I did the London Triathlon and all the running drama I endured that day to be in the situation I am today is just fantastic. Am really dead chuffed with myself.

is running making me fitter?

For a change of pace this evening I ventured back into the pool. My swimming has been sorely neglected 'cos all I've been doing is running in circles to get ready for the bloody 10k so it was lovely to be able to stretch out and let fly.

As it turns out it felt a very different experience from before. I went straight into an 800m set and not once did I feel like I needed a break. At each end change there was no big gasp for breath or pause ... it was incredibly smooth and I have to say I loved that sensation.

The bad news is I was much slower than I would have been before the triathlon but given it's a few weeks since I was last in the pool I didn't expect it to be the same.

I wonder if the running is actually making me fitter. Like proper fit.

getting there .. I think

Did 5k again this evening .. woo hoo !

Met a friend last night who I've not seen in ages .... conversation was all about how much weight I've lost ... how fab I look ... again woo hoo

Less than two weeks to go to the race ... right .. less woo hoo.

tenacity strikes a blow

Today is a landmark day. I ran 5.5k in 40 minutes and then walked the remainder to reach 10k. Overall it took just under 90 minutes.

I've earned a nice Sunday lunch out.

The bad news is although I wanted to keep running my right knee wouldn't let me. It's probably no bad thing in the end, I would be totally screwed if I had kept going and damaged it rather than annoyed it slightly.

The reason todays run pleases me more than many of the other landmarks I've reached is that now I know I can do it and that's really important to me. I feel that on the day, if I need to walk I can walk and still come in under the 100 minutes I registered as needing to complete the race.

I know now that I can do it and that's a big comfort to the likes of me who need every shred of comfort and confidence to draw from. I've also broken my now 4k duck and 5.5 is definitely alot closer to the pre race 8k threshold I have set myself.

A friend called me tenacious in my attempt to do this. The dictionary definition of tenacious is "continuing to exist for longer than might be expected" and it truly is exactly how I feel. Not long to go now but today brought me closer to feeling like I can do it.

very tired - edging towards crunch time

This morning for the first time I contemplated not participating in the 10k. I really struggle trying to get beyond 4k and with only two weeks left that's a significant step up still to make.

I went for a now regular Saturday morning run. I felt good beforehand and really wanted to push myself to at least 5k, more if I could.

I was wrong. I had to really push myself to keep going to get to 4. Not in a "oh have a little talk with myself and I'll get there" kinda way. I was all out war. I was completely struggling. And not having any fun. At all.

This evening my legs are very tired. That in your bones kind of tired. Weary almost.

I'm going to put the thought of not participating out of my head but I fear the month I missed due to groin and shoulder / neck injury may prove decisive.

RNLI treats and thanks

This morning I had a lovely job I needed to do. I had gotten one of those notices from the Post Office saying they had a packet too big to fit through my letter box so I needed to come down to collect it.

I wasn't expecting anything from anyone so it was a mystery .. a nice one though I have to admit.

Arriving at the Sorting Office I handed over the note and ID to receive a parcel in return. And what was in it? A lovely (albeit probably standard) letter of thanks from the RNLI (Lifeboat folks) for the ~£650 I raised for them by completing the London Triathlon. There was also a t-shirt.

I was really dead chuffed because it was so unexpected. What a way to start the day eh.

[there was also a calendar of events for 2007, once I got beyond all the marathons I did notice one or two events that caught my eye ... God help me]

new route, new challenge

Was very good tonight on two fronts

(a) I avoided temptation in the pub by not having alcohol but sticking to the sparkling water (only so much you can take though)
(b) left said waterfest to do another 4k run

I'm now at home having showered and feeling fresh which is a world apart from how I felt about 30 minutes ago. That run was tough. I decided it was time to get away from the park I normally run in - mainly because it was dark and not a safe place for a girl like me to be - but also because I should get used to different environments and the lack of comfort in knowing that passing x point means I've done y distance.

So off I toddled around the streets of west London, passing the pubs and restaurants as people were laughing and eating.

[all I could so was smell food everywhere ... and it was good]

I stuck with the same run for five minutes, walk fro one minute routine until as with Monday night my bits started to get sore so I had to stop. It was a shame 'cos I think physically I could definitely have gone another 5 minutes to push me passed the 5k mark. Oh well, not tonight.

[making mental note to try to figure out what exactly I need to be doing to fix my little problem .. vaseline? plaster?]

I will rest again tomorrow and then come Friday do anoother run, this time definitely pushing beyond the 5k mark. I would love to say get to 6 but I'm also conscious of injuries and not wanting to push too hard.

For tonight tho I am pleased in that I didn't feel great earlier but managed to get out there anyway and tick another 4.5k session off the list. Two and a half weeks to go, maybe I can do this afterall.

breaking records

Tonight I went for a run determined to break past the 3k barrier I seemed to have found for myself. The good news is I did, the bad news is I thought I had gone further.

I changed my plan slightly in that I stayed on the five minutes running one minute walking routine and did that for 30 minutes. I believe I had at least another set in me but I developed a little something that pulled me up with an ouch and an ooh. I must now officially be a runner because my nipples started to get chaffing. I should be pleased, and I guess part of me is, but my God it's sore!

Once I got home I rushed straight to the computer to log on and check my distance via gmap-pedometer (see link) thinking in my own mind I must have been about the 5k mark to discover I was "only" just over 4k.

I really shouldn't be disappointed, my aim was met and that's a really positive step. I've also learned that there's another thing I need to attach to myself before the main run in three weeks time and that's good to know in advance.

I just can't seem to shake the feeling that I am nowhere near as prepared as I should be. The concept of 0 to 10k in six weeks is essentially flawed in that you would pick up so many injuries if you followed it from a totally sitting start - at least I had been in training for 4 months to do the triathlon.

Oh well, for today I have earned the right to tick off the next milestone and another training session goes into the bank. I'm almost half way there, perhaps being 4k in at this point isn't such a bad thing .. maybe ... perhaps ... ugh.

what price food

It's about thirteen hours since my last post and I still feel awful. It started as post run awfulness but appears to have graduated to indigestion and general ughness.

One of the things I've noticed since trying to get fit is how much more susceptible I am to food. I find if I eat something that has more fat or is more processed than it "should" be I really struggle afterwards, physically.

This is most unexpected and I'm torn between feeling good that I at least have discovered an awareness of how food can affect me but also I feel bad because I don't want to feel this way. If I want a bacon sandwich, I'm going to have one. I feel having run 3k I have earned whatever I want to eat. Is that so wrong?

Getting fit or trying to look after your body definitely comes with a price - one they don't tell you about in the get fit books.

all the threes

Just back in from a run and I feel like I've been an extra on ER. Christ I feel awful.

10k feels very far away this morning, I really wonder if I've done the right thing by signing up for it. I also wonder if continuing to push myself to do it is such a wise thing given the short length of time to go (this day three weeks and I'm still stuck on 3k).

[actually, it's not stuck per se, more like collapsed]

Anyway, no time to wonder about it, am already late for the fun stuff I've got planned for the rest of the day. It's a camera weekend and I'm going conscience free !

repeating the sequence

This afternoon I decided I needed to go back for another run. There were two reasons:

a) I had a reasonably big lunch that just wasn't going anywhere and I felt very stodgy and uncomfortable as a result
b) I didn't quite believe I had managed the full twenty minutes last night, I felt I needed to do it again

So I cycled home (still 2.5k) and donning the same sweaty, smelly clothes I headed out to pound the streets of London. And I did. I managed the twenty minutes for the second night in a row (albeit with a self imposed two minute walking break at the ten minute mark in an effort to stave off any possible injuries).

My face was the colour of a beetroot by the time I got home and the clothes I wore went into the wash so quickly they may well have whiplash but I don't care. I have done it again, twenty minutes, 3k and I'm feeling good. So much so I had a beer or two more than I should have at the party I toddled off to afterwards.

Now all I need to figure out is how to get to the next marker of thirty minutes (am assuming it's around the 5k mark). The fact that that only reflects half of the ultimate 10k aim is baby stuff.

[as with the triathlon, I am reminded how denial is a powerful thing!]

happy, nay delighted with myself

Tonight I managed a new milestone with my running and I'm really pleased. Not only are my knees, groin, shoulders and neck intact but they managed to remain intact for a full twenty minutes of pounding which translates as 3k - thanks to the wonderful powers of gmaps-pedometer (see links).

[yes, I know for the serious ath-lete it's all still baby stuff but I care not - picture swing of ponytail to slap said ath-lete not unlike Ms Piggy]

I had set myself a target of 100 minutes for the Nike 10k and given that to date I've been pretty much crap I figured it was about time I started to push myself to see how much of this 10k I was going to be able to manage before requiring hospitalisation.

Enter tonight. I cycled home (2.5k) and using that as a warm up went straight on out from there. Tonight I took some music with me to see how that felt, normally I just plough on to the chorus of my heavy breathing (very attractive).

Anyway, I ran and ran, followed by some more running rounded off by a desert of running-de-luxe. Just before I reached the 15 minute mark I realised I was going to manage the 20 minutes and that felt great, really great.

For some reason, I had always felt inferior when it came to running. I knew I was out there doing my bit and was always conscious of my knees etc so never wanted to push too far too quickly. As a result, the 10 minutes of running I would do always left me with a slightly hollow taste in my mouth. I mean it's ten minutes, right. How many normal things take ten minutes to do? While I may aspire to the thirty minutes of a physio session it's alot more than the 10 minutes of a doctor's appointment (waiting, waiting, waiting, waiting, doctor, nurse, out the door).

I guess you could say I have progressed from doctor to dentist and on a one time only basis I'm very pleased with that.

September 11th - Five Years On

In the same way as my senses were overloaded on this day before, I find five years later I'm still tuned to the sounds and captivated by footage of the Twin Towers in NYC getting ploughed into by two airplanes. The day TV silenced us.

It remains an overwhelming image. A terrible blight. A quiet, desperate hand that seems to reach out and make me feel as numb now as I did that day.

I saw Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon give a performance of Ann Nelson's 9/11 based play "The Guys" in The Peacock Theatre, Dublin. It was 2002 and everyone was still quite raw. The actors and playwright stayed on stage after the performance to take questions from the 90 or so people in the audience.

From the distance of Dublin I remember thinking how such an event had become the second media defined event of my young life after the death of Princess Diana in 1997. I found it difficult, even after so many months to grasp the scale of what had happened in New York and how I really felt about it. Growing up in IRA Ireland I naively believed I understood the sickening nuances of terrorism.

Tough questions started to rise from the many journalists in the audience and though the actors and writer answered passionately, knowledgably and with a wrenching respect for the subject matter I found I couldn't think beyond the people caught up in that day to decypher the political fall out or recriminations.

I was lucky enough in 1994 to get to the top floor of the World Trade Centre and remember being blown away by how wonderful it felt being that high up in the air but still with my feet firmly planted on the ground. There were fantastic old prints of the city on the walls and with my camera I tried to capture them - couldn't quite get rid of the glare though but they did come out. I fell in love with NYC from that perch.

It's now five years later and the recriminations and political fallout continue. Every now and then I think of the question I wanted to ask that night in Dublin - as long time residents of New York when they pictured the Manhattan skyline was it with or without the towers - sadly, the Q&A ended before I got the chance to interupt the journalists flow.

It remains the day we all stopped doing what we were doing and caught our breaths in disbelief. Tonight, listening to the endless repeats and posturing on TV I'm not sure how much things have changed.

spiked and niked to distraction

I realised tonight I must be the marketeers and branding babies new poster girl.

They clearly have a Being John Malkovich thing going on because as I sat here updating my new, cheaply acquired iPod Nano with Nike Sport Plug In's, it shamefully occurred to me I had been sucked in by the seductive Apple / Nike hype double whammy.

Is there a support group I can join?

crisps, calories and running away

This running lark is hard work. I went for a run tonight, as per my runlondon beginner to 10k in 6 weeks training schedule and nearly died before I could cross it off my list of things to do today. I did manage it, eventually, but it was far from fun and far from comfortable.

I don't remember feeling like this when I started training for the triathlon but maybe there's an element of rose tinted glasses going on here ... hard to know.

So I ran my four minutes on, one minute off for 20 minutes. According to my watch I lost 202 calories which strikes me as highly unfair given the bag of crisps I had when leaving the office contained 181 calories. I'm not a calorie counter by nature (generally couldn't give a flying toss) but I was curious this time.

Will try to fight the urge next time.

groin, shoulder, neck and physio ... average week

So I've been having fun while away from the triathlon keyboard ... NOT! Last time I blogged I was having problems with my groin (now fixed) and neck / shoulders. Turns out the neck / shoulder issue was as a result of some very unhappy discs so I've spent the last two weeks ranging between agony and physio and back to agony again.

The funny thing is I was beginning to get quite frustrated at not being able to do any physical exercise and equally getting depressed that all my hard work over the last five months was slipping away in front of my eyes. The bingo wings were beginning to say hello and all that muscle tone was tuning into fat slack. Suffice to say, I wasn't a happy camper !

Tonight however I went for my first run in ages. I just did a small one to make sure I didn't do too much too soon but I feel good physically and definitely feel better mentally as a result of getting out there. It will never cease to amaze me how such a simple thing can have such an effect. I had no idea when I signed up for the triathlon that I would find myself missing getting out and about looking like a red faced idiot.

So, on the practical front I am theoretically in training for the Nike 10K on Oct 8th. That means I have 5 weeks to get to at least an 8k stretch and pray I can manage the remaining 2 with the help of the crowd. Clearly I am a long way away from 8k today but hopefully with a physio in tow I can do it.

I want to and that's a huge step for me.