Rob's Running Blog

2 miles and a Happy New Year!

So 2010 will go down as the year I got my sub 50 10k, and didn’t really do a hell of a lot else runningwise! First it was the shinsplints, and a slow comeback, followed by the PB – then the massive injury at Bolton 10k, a long layoff, physiotherapy, frustration, and then a nice gentle comeback, just getting really back into it, upping the distance – then snow and flu hits and suddenly 2010 is done and gone!

Decided to do my comeback run on the first day of 2011 and hope it sets a trend! Was worried I would have lost all fitness again after a layoff of over a month, and of course losing some fitness is inevitable – but I kept to a gentle pace and completed two miles without feeling under significant duress, which bodes well. Two 10.5 minute miles is not bad to start with considering the time off my feet, and since I usually find the first few runs back really hard, I am quite pleased that I wasn’t feeling half dead! Looking forward to getting back out regularly, and building back up to some nice long runs. As spring approaches, am thinking of entering some more races – will just have to be careful with my frayed finances!

Happy New Year to all readers of this running blog!

Easy 2.5k Run

Just an easy short run!

My first run as a 40 year old – 5k in 31:15 – slow, but a veteran PB!

I apparently became a veteran of some kind yesterday – in more ways than one. I turned 40. They say life begins at 40, but I wonder how that applies to runners? Certainly, my category positions may go up a little now, but there are plenty of people 10, 20, probably even 30 years older running a heck of a lot faster than me! Still, I had to get out there and prove I can still run, now that I am middle aged officially!

I don’t know if it was the general busyness of the last few days, and a birthday of mixed feelings yesterday (no alcohol, btw) and just generally being in a transition period, together with the fact I hadn’t run since last week, but this run was tough, and that is reflected in my time – very slow, really, but I felt if I’d upped the pace, I wouldn’t have managed the distance. I was teaching my new writing course later in the afternoon so there was no space for heroics.

Still, I got my first PB (in training) as a 40 year old – is a running milestone I will easily surpass! The run also helped me focus on my group work later and helped settle my jitters over starting something new – which helped me get back in touch with the reasons why I started running in the first place

2 Miles Easy Run In The Sun

Yesterday I thought I wasn’t going to be be running again for a while… I had a bit of an altercation with a car, it wasn’t going very fast, but it kind of blind sided me while I was fiddling for my phone and it blasted its horn at me, wasn’t even going very fast. Unfortunately this made me wobble the wrong way (for my knee) and my cartilage thing (or kneecap thing, depending on who you listen to) wobbled out of place and my knee locked. Rather than go into contortions on the street I wobbled home and then proceeded to spend the most frustrating hour trying to pop my knee back into place. Usually bending it right back with foot touching arse seems to do the job in a few goes – not this time! Eventually, I lay on my back and gripping my ankle and raised my knee to almost above my ahead, and finally, finally straightened it and it straightened up normally with no pain (trying to straighten it when it’s locked can be agony, and it will buckle under me). My last physio said there wasn’t much wrong with it though and it was probably my kneecap and couldn’t possibly be cartilage. His assistant said it was most likely my cartilage (is it any wonder I stopped the physiotherapy!). Anyway, such is the joy of running and other sports injuries. The odd thing is, my knee never ever seems to go when I am doing something like running, running around, or doing some kind of sport. The recent occasions have been – getting up off my office chair, turning around to look at something in town, in the middle of sex, and now crossing the road

Anyway, after all this messing about my hamstring felt tender, which it has been for a few weeks, and I must have aggravated it with all the knee-popping contortions. So I set off for a run and was very aware of a niggle there. The knee hurt briefly then settled down, I was almost going to stop, but decided to just plod and see how I went, and managed to plod around 2 rather slow miles.

Still, it was a run, and I had only planned an easy run anyway. Hopefully reach the 5k mark this week, hamstring permitting, as long as my dratted knee stays in one piece

A leisurely 4k run – or approx 2.5 miles!

Not a very warm day to say the least so I donned my light tracksuit bottoms and hooded top. Was quite breezy. Planned to run 4k, adding 800m on to my furthest distance so far. Not sure how that works out in terms of the 10% running rule, but I’m not great at arithmetic so I just approximate

Anyway, off I went and felt good, just keep the pace slightly slower than Sunday’s run as didn’t want to burn out and the idea was to increase the distance and endurance just a little, not go out all guns blazing. So I ran a pretty random route. It was nice to get a bit more into a run – the ones lately have been pretty short, so no sooner have I got myself geared up and going, than it’s time to halt again, and that can play some pretty odd tricks with the old running psychology! But this time, at 2k, I was able to settle into a steady rhythm and keep going for the remainder of the run, and it felt pretty good to do so. Was breathing hard but steady and not wincing with the effort as I was on Sunday, and clocked 24:41 for the 4k, so at least am now running for around 25 minutes at a time and will keep upping the pace and distance very gradually.

No speed work, intervals, or madness like that for me just yet! No races planned, so I can progress at my leisure now, though this is the first season where I have pretty much missed all my favourite races And to think I got that PB sub 50 10k right at the beginning. Ah well, let’s see how I come out of the blocks after, fingers crossed, a gentle winter’s build up to great things

Gasping and Wheezing Like A Dead Man walking on a green mile

Title aside, felt good.

First run since Bolton 10k on April 25th. Ran 400m, back felt a bit odd so walked for a bit, then ran the next 1200m. Actually ran further than I thought, could have gone further I expect, but didn’t want to push the legs in any way. That I’ve run a mile is a miracle. Ten minute mile seems to be my absolute slowest possible pace without walking!

Will try another in a few days.

No knee pain, so far. Fingers crossed, eh?

A Memorial Post – My Dog Finally Ran with me Today – 5 Miles

It’s been a weird few weeks for me – the anniversary of my Mum’s death was April 6th, and it would just so happen that the long drawn out sale of the house my sister and I inherited, was drawing to a close that week. I was on a bit of a high on Good Friday after my 10k PB at Salford and finally getting the sub 50 – over the bank holiday weekend that turned into misery as the trapped nerve in my back became more and more agonising and I could only get the briefest snatches of sleep, unable to lie in my bed and having to sleep on the couch.

At some point over the weekend I noticed the dog was leaving food in her bowl. I thought she was a bit off colour, especially when she refused treats. However, she finally shared some ice cream with me and then went off with one of her chewy bones and had a bit of that. Then she stopped eating again and eventually wouldn’t even touch ice cream, and also I was getting her lead and she just whined and piddled in front of me (normally I would have a crescendo of crazy barking and jumping about, for some reason she went wild if i said “2 bags today?” or the name “George” Anyway, at that point, with the Bank hols out of the way, I booked her in at the vets, and had to carry her there, he did some tests and gave her some injections and some antibiotics, and asked me to get a urine sample. She trotted back home with me and seemed Ok, but still didn’t eat. The next day I took her out about 4 times and she wouldn’t wee at all (up till then she had been weeing as soon as we got outside, if not before). Eventually I got some in an empty Vitalite tub and it was this weird bright yellow colour. I dropped it off at the vets.

Becky then started being sick – I was trying to get the antibiotics down her but she kept puking them up. I thought she might be perking up a bit when she went to her water bowl and drank thirstily, but then sooner or later it all came up. She was just lying in her bed looking miserable. I put her outside and she felt stiff and whined, and just stood there, so on Saturday I called the vets again, and they said her urine sample showed bile pigmentation so something could be wrong with her liver. They said she needed to be seen again but they were shut till Monday at that branch. I made an appointment. Then I sat with the dog for a bit and she looked so pathetic. Anyone who owns a dog knows they have “looks”. Sometimes it’s “let’s play”, sometimes it’s “Feed me”, sometimes it’s “Walkies?” – this look she gave me was more like, “Please, please, help me, do something…” So I phoned the vet branch in the next town and asked to go in that afternoon. I had an idea what was going to happen, just a feeling, and a grim acceptance of it. I gathered Becky up and held her on my knee in the taxi, she was just quiet and still. We got to the vets and were told to wait, Becky didn’t even stir at the sight of other dogs, normally she would be hackles up and growling before launching into a ful scale tactical assault, but not now. I looked into her eyes and just saw what I can only describe as peace and gratitude (I know, I know). She licked my hand once, then we were called in…

The vet looked at her and read her notes, and said it didn’t really look very good at all. He said they could start doing tests, and all that – but if I thought she had had a good life and I was ready, they could… I knew what he meant, and agreed, so I took her little collar off and whispered reassurances to her, and stroked and fussed her. As he shaved her foreleg, I said to her “Just like when you go the hairdressers” – and she had only been clipped a few weeks ago. And then I held her while he put the needle in her leg, she didn’t even whine or protest, just fell asleep in seconds and we laid her gently on her side. The vet gave me a few moments alone with her and I kissed one floppy ear and rubbed her skin one final time, then went out to sort out the bill. She was going to be sent to a pet cemetary in Rossendale and cremated…

There were so many memories wrapped up that dog, and she was one of the last major connections with my mum and dad. The house sale had also completed the day before, so it was like all the last ties had suddenly been severed all at once, and exactly a year since my mum died and I was contemplating her funeral etc. Timing felt very, very weird.

So what has this got to do with running? Well, with the nerve, and the dog, and all the other stuff, I hadn’t been running since the Salford 10k, so on Sunday I decided to do a gentle comeback run – minimum of 3 miles, but 5 would be better. I set off, and at 3 miles I was suffering, feeling rusty, but determined to carry on. I had a lot of pent up emotions. I suddenly imagined Becky becks running at the side of me. She was always too old and lazy and small really to come running with me, but now she could – bounding along and matching my speed. It was of comfort to me, and now I figure she can always be there, can even help me along in races, even if she does bugger off to the side of the road and start sniffing like she always would.

Rip my little Becky becks. Looks like Mum wanted you back. Lots of fusses and treats for you, I expect

A picture from her heydays at Etherow Country Park:

Easy 3 miler – 28 mins with a stop at the pharmacy

Not only did the clocks go forward on Saturday night/Sunday morning, I also seemed to sleep in a funny position and my back was killing me when I got up, very difficult to move head as if I had compressed a nerve or something. So good job I was having a couple of rest days! Today I wanted to do an easy run to stretch legs and see how back would affect running, it seemed really bad timing with a race coming up – fortunately it always seems to be the upper back so running didn’t seem to bother it, though doing to touches or turning head does, so better be careful about looking behind me in the race. Stopped at the pharmacy after 1k to grab some nurofen, and just took it easy, but ran at race pace for half a minute in the last k.

Felt a bit tired but easy runs always seem to do that to me.

Later on sorted out transport arrangements for Salford 10k. Might do another easy 3 miles tomorrow just to keep legs ticking over.

5K Easy Run – 32mins – little niggle in right calf

This wouldn’t be a running blog without a catalogue of injuries – or it sometimes feels that way. Late last evening, I started to get a bit of intermittent pain in my right calf – sometimes when I was walking, sometimes at rest, and that persisted this morning. It was kind of weird as it just kept cropping up without warning.

So I opted for a 5k easy run, and ran at slower than 6mins/k all the way, finding that the running didn’t really make the calf twinge, except maybe when I tried to speed up and forefoot strike… Could well be something to do with running faster with the interval training session yesterday, so I will take it easy for now, with a few rest days and some jogs, rather than do any out and out speedwork – think I will leave that until next week, but hope to fit in a long slow run on Saturday – possibly keep it to 6 or 7 miles if the calf is still playing up.

Tough, tough run, and slow – 5k in over 31 mins

This was a bit of a tough run. This time my lower leg held up with no twinges, but it was very cold. Felt a bit of a groin niggle. Plodded round 5k in over 31 minutes and didn’t feel all that comfortable. Just not such a good run, but felt pleased to have run without the leg playing up! But it was a bit of a struggle!