This time last year I was out in Derry for the 4 marathons event. How time flies. This means technically I've done not one but two quite cool events in the space of a year. The company running the 4 marathons event moved the dates a little this year, so the 2nd batch of runners already completed the beautiful routes finishing the other weekend; I think the hills of day 1 were a bit of a shock to the system last year, so in 2013 the runners were eased in a bit more gently, the courses were the same but run not necessarily in the right order. Every time I think of the event, the scenery, the people (both who were at the event and helped me train back in blighty) I have a little smile. It was brilliant. I know this is a shameless plug, no one has asked me to do it but if you are in to the marathon sort of thing:
http://www.extremenorthevents.com/Race/Quadrathon/Quadrathon-B/prod_18.html
(they also have a facebook page that has loads of photos from this year that show the beautiful scenery is = hilly!)
It's been 3 weeks or so since the 100K. In some respects it seems like a lifetime ago, in other respects it seems like only yesterday. I'm recovering fairly well I think. I had an enforced rest for almost 2 weeks before I was allowed to run, my first jog-ette being the parkrun at Wimpole (whilst visiting my parents) a couple of Saturdays ago. At the risk of sounding like I'm on happy drugs, this is a fabulous, lovely, brilliant parkrun, I think it shares joint first place with Leamington and Plym Valley for course beauty. I mean when you get a finish like this:
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| Free milk at the finish - if you can catch the cow |
For the first week after the 100K I wasn't bothered about runs, but that first weekend when my legs felt less tired and my foot bruise had cleared up I got the urge again so the 2nd week was spent drumming my fingers and waiting to be allowed off the leash. I was told to jog the parkrun; I intended to jog it, but after 13 days of no running I was champing at the bit and despite holding back was running at 9.15s which I was quite surprised about having simply used the force I thought I'd been doing 10mm +
So last week I was back at circuits and the first "proper" week back running. Combine this with giving blood and taking an exam it was fairly tiring. I'm so pleased to be back on it though. This week I've been running and doing circuits but I've been struck my the dreaded lurgi (fairly standard 3 weeks post Ultra apparently) and I'd say my hair was falling out :-( no surprise as when I took my elastic hairband off after 12 hours of running and my scalp hurt along that band line for 3 days, so good job I had a mop top to start off with. I passed another exam yesterday, I like working in Bristol but it's been nice to have a rest from commuting even if it means having to justify my existence by upgrading my MCSE qualification.
I ran Wolverhampton Parkrun this Saturday and put some proper effort in as a line in the sand to build from, clocking 25:50. Not great, my best there is 24:50 (and that was the day after a 20 miler!) but it could have been worse. It's been a while since I've done a proper parkrun effort or any speed work, this first one back you know is going to be horrible but you just have to get it done and keep sticking at it. First mile on Saturday I was "waaaay-heeey this is great"; mile 2 "*puff* getting tricky now"; the start of mile 3 I felt like I had nothing in my legs but hung on, by the end I perked up and I managed to out sprint a bloke to the line who thought I was easy pickings. Ha!
I'm not doing anything "big" for the rest of the year, but I have some goals leading up to Xmas and in to 2014:
- Make it to my 50th Parkrun ASAP - Saturday was #34. Planning this out it will be some time in March 2014
- Run all the XC races (we run in 2 leagues and numerous championships/relays - I only missed 2 last year!) parkrun total will suffer but I can still volunteer :)
- Drop some more weight (lost a stone but it is not going up but I've hit a plateau, so back on that too)
I've considered what to do next year and I'm going for the Rotterdam Marathon. I've decided combining these events with a mini break is the way forward as I had *the* BEST time in Stockholm. The timing also means I can do my favourite training runs like Stamford, Ashby, Rhayader etc as Rotterdam is on 12th April. Not going to obsess about a sub 4, but I will try and hopefully if I drop a few more lbs it will just happen naturally.
In other news, I've been going out and catching up with friends a lot since I got back from Stockholm. Spent some time seeing my god-family, little Edith and the boys get more adorable every time I see them (their parents aren't bad either) and I find it so sweet the way little Edith greets me with a big smile and "ITS NAAATT!!!!" when I arrive (and for the next 3 hours in between doses of Peppa pig ;) )
In an unusual move, I went to a psychic night at a cupcake shop - to admire and sample the cupcakes. I most definitely don't believe in all that stuff, but it was interesting. Basically there were 3 types of people there last Thurs:
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| Cross my palm with a snicker-licious... |
- Old ladies wanting to talk to dead relatives
- Single 40-50 something women asking "when will I find a man"
- Cake fanciers (me and Jane) "oooh the cherry bakewell one looks nice"
He gave everyone a reading, and when it came to me he seemed to think he was speaking to one of my male relatives who passed away quite a few years ago: "the first thing he wants to say is a big WELL DONE!!" at this point Jane was nudging me. I volunteered to him that I'd just run 100K, which he acknowledged, but he said "no, I think you've been studying". Well I'd taken and passed my first exam that Monday. There were some other things, but also an equal number of things where I was saying "no I can't see how that applies to me". With regards to the studying stuff, I was in scruffy jeans, Doc Martens, had my Cambridge Satchel over my shoulder and a Dexters Laboratory t-shirt with the word "Genius" scrawled across it - I think I could have possibly looked a bit studenty. Apparently "life has been a bit ploddy recently" but this is going to change. Well I look forward to that?!?! Some of it was a bit spooky and it's a neat trick but it didn't really rock my world.
That's it really - next broadcast when there is something to tell!
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