Author: Maria Runs

A week of heat

Monday:

31 in my car. And yes I know that is not an official temperature measurement but it gives a general indication of how hot it has been

It was obviously hot on Saturday (when I marshaled at parkrun) and on Sunday (when, after a very hot run we ended up wandering a lavender field in the middle of the day in no shade..) but I didn’t realise it was going to be hot all week.  On Monday I had a massage booked- I did consider cancelling it but thankfully the room had a fan going so it wasn’t too bad. I met Andy in town afterwards

Tuesday:

32 degrees. Our club run was originally going to be our 8 mile hilly route, but thankfully that was changed to 5 miles in the shade, and fairly flat. It was actually OK in the shade, but of course a very sweaty run. I really enjoyed it despite being totally baking.

I had braved shorts (I don’t tend to find shorts that comfy as they ride up- these ones are better as they are fitted but I don’t wear them very often)- everyone was finding my tan lines rather funny- I think my capris are all the same length which is why the line is fairly pronounced.

Wednesday:

33 degrees- getting ridiculous!

I caved and got an iced tea on my way home!

As it was the summer solstice our yoga teacher had mentioned about doing something special. When I got there she had set the mats up outside (we are normally inside a little community centre room looking out onto trees and fairy lights)- she had set out candles and some joss sticks to try and keep the mozzies away. Apparently some people were doing 108 sun salutations as 108 is a special number (and one is one on the left side and one on the right) but we weren’t going to do that many. We had some lovely poses to open our shoulders, and then we had a go, doing a set of 9 (9 on each side), having a rest and then doing another 9. Even though it is fairly gentle I worked up quite a sweat. At times we came off the mats and held the poses on the grass which added another dimension to them.

At the end laying on the mat looking up at the trees swaying in the breeze, and the swallows flitting about in the sky was the most relaxing cool down, and a perfect way to celebrate the solstice.

Thursday:

Thankfully it was cooler.

I went out on a 4 mile run after work, trying out some new socks. I was sent some Storm Bloc trainer sport socks. Although black and purple is not the most summery of choices, I am very glad because my white socks just get stained with mud and never seem to go back to being white. I don’t think these have left or right socks (couldn’t see marks on them anyway) but they were comfy enough, and because they are more of an anklet design they look better with capris than my usual socks.

Friday:

Again, a bit cooler. After work I went to see my mum, and my sister and niece turned out to be there too, so we had a lovely catch up. I couldn’t stay too long as we were heading to Kent on Friday night, but it was a great start to the weekend. I do like the sunny weather but I would rather it was not so hot that sleeping isn’t such a struggle.

How did you manage in the heat? Did you do anything to mark the solstice? 

*I was sent the socks in exchange for a mention on my blog. All opinions are my own.

Music concerts in the summer time and a trip to a lavender farm

Last Sunday we drove up to Peterborough with Andy’s family. After a dinner at Bill’s we were off to see Elton John.

It was the perfect evening- the sun was shining and it reminded me of the perfect festival slot as the sun is going down.

He played for a couple of hours solidly- very impressive. I’m not the biggest fan but there are some I love (Rocket Man being my fave). I was hoping of course for one of The Lion King songs, but alas, that was not to be.

This Saturday we headed to Wembley for The Stone Roses. Last year we went up to Manchester to see them as they hadn’t toured for years (I’d seen The Seahorses at T in the Park many years ago, but never all of them) and then this year they come to London!

It was a total scorcher! We got there about an hour before they were due to come on stage so we went to get an iced tea from Starbucks before heading in.

Warning- a little moan coming along. Security was of course very high (even at the Elton John concert last week every person was scanned with a metal detector, all bags were searched and no food or drink apart from small bottles of water was allowed in).  I had to be tapped down before I could go in, searched with a metal detector and had my bag searched, and then tagged to show it had been searched.

So how come all these flares managed to get in? There was a huge problem with flares at the one last summer, and in fact Ian Brown had a go at the people saying it stopped other people seeing the stage, and stopped him from seeing the crowd. All through the concert people kept letting them off. If you can smuggle a flare in, surely a knife can also be brought in? The smoke totally blocked the view of the stage- selfish idiots.

Thankfully for some of the concert the view was clear- I know I can just listen to the music (or watch the big screens, but to be fair they were often blocked too) but I like to see them on stage and not on a screen- it feels more “live” to me that way. It was brilliant anyway- they don’t have a big back catalogue so they pretty much played every song you could have wanted.  She Bangs the Drums always used to be on my running music playlist and of course everyone in the stadium was singing along at the tops of their lungs- fantastic.

We also found out the answer to a question from last year. When we arrived in Manchester it seemed everyone was wearing bucket hats. We wondered if it was a Stone Roses thing or a Manchester thing. Well, at Wembley, despite there being a few people selling them outside, it seemed hardly anyone was wearing them.

On Sunday morning I headed out for a run along the old railway line. The first mile is fairly exposed, but it was shady after that thankfully. I decided to do 6 miles, and just before my turn around point a fox was wandering about on the path ahead. (Fear not, I told him I was off to tea with a gruffalo).

I was melting by the end- bleurgh!

After a shower and breakfast (including some freshly picked strawberries) we drove up to Hitchin Lavender farm.

For £5 you were given a paper bag and some scissors and could pick your own.

I was trying to put all of mine in the same way, whereas Andy was just piling his in any which way.

It was really pretty- it’s early in the season so I can imagine that in mid-July it will be amazing.

It was so hot though (it was 30)- after a good hour outside we headed in to the cafe for cold drinks and home-baked goods (we shared a piece of lavender shortbread and a piece of courgette and avocado cake).

I put some in jars when I got home. (Andy’s parents made this for us at Christmas- the jars are for tea lights but I thought it would look good with the lavender too).

I’m gonna need more jars….

Have you ever been to a lavender farm or a pick your own farm? We always used to go to pick your own fruit farms when we were younger but there don’t seem to be that many around any more. Do you like live music?

Braving the cow fields and other weekend stories

The summer has well and truly arrived! (I have been very glad of the air-con in my car this week!)

On Tuesday I was planning on going to our club run- I have to drive there and as it starts at 6.30 I usually leave at around 6.15. I have a meeting on Tuesdays but this week it finished earlier so it wasn’t too much of a rush- I got home, finished some work, started making some iced tea and then got a message from Andy- he was going to be back late and we had shopping coming between 6.30 and 7.30 so I couldn’t go out.

In the end he got home around 6.45, so I headed out for a run on my own- I decided to head along the old railway line, and the little hill was in shade so I did some repeats up and down it. There were rabbits in the grass by the side so I got my breath back a few times and tried to take some photos as they didn’t seem bothered by me being there.

On Wednesday yoga was fantastic as always. The room we use is part of a small community centre with a garden that joins to all the houses. There are fairy lights in the trees, and so we have our mats facing the garden. It’s so peaceful. I struggled with my vest though- I wore a running one and tucked it in but it was not really long enough so kept coming out of my waistband. We did loads of twists which just feel so good- I think after sitting in my car for an hour each day anything like that is so beneficial.

On Thursday after work I wanted to pop into town- I keep seeing these cool giraffe trousers in Fat Face, but then I wondered if they look too much like pyjamas. But then it is so hot at work and pretty much everyone else wears that sort of style, so I went to get them. The centre has a main road with a wide grass section in the middle, and it was full of lavender plants and some other purple ones too- so pretty. Fat Face didn’t have them in (but they did have a giraffe vest, dress and shorts) so I looked in John Lewis and found them.

I did buy them but I am not sure I will keep them as I don’t know  what tops will go- I don’t know about these things!

I was sent a big bottle from The Big Bottle Company last week. It is huge! It’s 2.2 litres and is BPA free, it’s dishwasher safe and can be put in the freezer (for a short amount of time to keep the water cold, and of course if you have enough freezer space- we don’t). The idea is you can monitor your water intake during the day. I love the aqua colour, but I have used it to store water in the fridge, as if I took it to work it would become tepid very quickly- our classrooms are hot. Having some really cold water in this heat is great though, and means I save water as I don’t need to run the tap for ages for cold water to come through.

I had a short run on Friday after work, and I am trying to not run on consecutive days at the moment as my heel is still not healed, so I emailed and said I would marshal at parkrun this Saturday. (Also, a weekend story from last weekend- after taking my car to the garage, I was waiting for my dad in the car park at St Albans- it gets very busy and time was ticking on and spaces were filling up- I found a space in the top corner of the car park and stood by it, hoping that Dad would turn up and see me. A lady drove past and asked me if I was saving the space- when I first got there, there were other spaces but by this time there were none. I told her I was waiting for my dad but he hadn’t come, and at first she offered to drive away. I told her to park there as I said I have no right to “bagsy” the space, so she said “If he turns up, tell him to block me in- I’m in no hurry to leave after the run”- in fact Dad had parked elsewhere as he left too late and thought the car park would be full, but I loved her attitude. Aren’t parkrunners lovely?).

Anyway, back to this weekend:

I always prefer to marshal when it is this hot, and luckily I was put at a shady point of the course.

I’d walked there with another marshal who was just around the corner, and she suggested we take a short cut through the cow field. On the way there, it was OK as the cows were far from the path in the shade.

I enjoyed cheering the other runners on, but they all looked so hot (I got fairly hot in the high viz) so I knew I had made the right decision. One runner asked for some water to be sprayed on them- next time I’ll bring a bottle as we do have a mist attachment on a bottle.

However, when we finished and walked back, the cows were everywhere.

That was the path we had to walk along! They were so close, and they have huge horns (they are longhorn cattle). I had no idea there were so many of them.

I was not a fan of this! I am not too keen on cows- they make me nervous and I know these ones are used to people walking about, but there were a few little calves (one was born on Ellenbrook parkrun’s first birthday last month!) so the mothers would be more protective at this time of year.

When I got back the final few runners were just finishing, and we were all asked to have a team photo for Mark, who has been on a capital adventure, touring the London parkruns for charity. I had forgotten to wear my cow cowl this week- whoops! His blog is here if you are interested.

How have you been coping in the hot weather? What on earth should I wear with the giraffe trousers? 

My cow cowl, garden centre visits, unhelpful sales people and local parkruns

The timeline for my blog is all over the place at the moment so I shall just get it all out in one go. First up, in Edinburgh we had a bit of time for a mooch around the shops. Lululemon and Sweaty Betty are close to each other, and I wanted to have a look for a summer yoga top. I have a winter one which I got from SB- it has a band around the waist so when you are doing inversions it doesn’t ride up- I do not want to flash my stomach to everyone in the class. Anyway, it has elbow-length sleeves so it is too warm for now. I have tried a few vests and t-shirts- trying to tuck them in bit they always some un-tucked and I leaves me feeling uncomfortable and not focused on the pose as much.

I had looked online and seen a few in SB but I also wanted to look in Lululemon because I just love their clothes. With help from the salesperson I found a vest and a hoodie but remembered I had a voucher to use online (and not much space in my rucksack) so I left it. In SB straight away one of the salespeople wandered over, and when I explained what I was looking for they told me they didn’t have any. I found one, but couldn’t be bothered to try it on. Back in St Albans a few days later, I headed into the SB there, and the salesperson pretty much told me the same thing. I then found two different styles of tops that had the waistband (despite being told they had none…)- I tried them on but they were way too long so it was no good.  I really like the top I have from there but the people in the stores just put me off.

While I was in St Albans I popped into a cook shop and added to my baking collection. I have a great brownie tin and I sometimes double recipes but then I have to use different sized or shaped pans which makes it harder to judge timings. I found one but it was too long, so the lady went off to check, saying she might be able to order it in, but then ended up finding one in the back. I also got a square pan (and then wondered after if I should have bought two of those too). At least I have a photo now so I can refer to that if I need to.

Running and yoga for the last couple of weeks has not been going that well. While in Scotland we did a lot of walking and I seem to have bruised my heel- it’s fine all day but then by the evening it gets a bit sore, so I have missed a few runs to try and give it time to heal.

I did a short run on the Thursday after we got back, did parkrun on Saturday (but felt really sick at the finish line even though I hadn’t gone fast). I did the London 10 miles on Sunday, then rested on the Monday. I missed the club run on Tuesday, going out on my own for a few miles instead, and got caught in a massive rain shower close to the finish- I tried to take a photo to show how soaked I was but I didn’t come out that well!

Wednesday was lovely yoga- I am starting to see a little more progress which is great (I can get my forehead onto the floor in child’s pose now which is probably the norm for most people but for a person as stiff as a board it is great).

On Thursday and Friday we had a couple of long walks in the evening instead of having a run.

On Wednesday this week I was on a course which finished early, so on my way home I stopped off at a garden centre. It was lovely weather and I took my time wandering around- it’s always such a calm place to be.

Our garden had no lavender (which surprised me- I thought everyone would have it) and I have wanted to get some for ages so I bought a couple of them plus a hollyhock and a poppy.

I then had a good hour outside pottering in the garden, planting them up and doing a bit of weeding.

St Albans parkrun at the start

This week on Saturday my car was having a service in St Albans, so I dropped it off on Saturday morning, ran the mile to parkrun, and met my dad there. My cow cowl had arrived earlier in the week (you can buy one when you are on the 20 UK events table) and at first I thought it was for when you are being a parkrun tourist, but on the facebook group I was told it could be worn at local parkruns too, as then tourists will know to come and chat to you.

It was a hot morning and so busy (400+, which is now small for St Albans)- it’s on narrow paths so it did feel very busy. We finished in just over 28 minutes after picking up the pace- it’s three laps and on the third we had had enough of looking at the lake, even though we did see goslings and coot chicks. It was nice to go back (St Albans was where I started parkrunning) but once a year is good enough. The trouble is more and more keep coming so balancing time with local and far away ones gets harder.

It was very hot and even though I wore the cowl on my wrist it wasn’t ideal summer attire- maybe I need to tie it to my top or something. The lady who was bar code scanning spotted it and we briefly chatted about touristing, so it does work!

Dad took me back to theirs so I could have a shower (I’d taken a rucksack with me)- Mum cooked pancakes filled with raspberries, mango and creme fraiche, before Dad took me into town to collect my car. (I was about to get in the shower when the phone rang- I very much hoped that the lady calling from the garage could not tell that I had no clothes on!)

On my way home I drove past Bunnings (which used to be Homebase and has caused much excitement among the people of St Albans)- we tried to go once before but it was queued out onto the road. This time it wasn’t so busy so I popped in and bought a few more plants- a couple of tiny lavender plants to go into the ground, and a poppy.

After ploughing through my work on Saturday afternoon, I had a bit of time to do a bit of planting before I had to walk into town for a hair cut.

Also, look at who visited one evening! This was only about 8.30pm but it’s so light now, so I could see two of the fox cubs so clearly. They were watching a pigeon on the fence and it was very funny to see them jump when the pigeon flapped about.

On Sunday morning I wanted to make a cake as Andy’s parents were coming over later, so we walked around to Morrison’s to get a few ingredients, and you may have guessed it, bought yet more plants. They actually water their plants (unlike a lot of supermarkets) and so they had a lot of shoots on them. We also had a voucher so we got about 3 plants free. We then spent more time in the garden lifting out some huge lumps of granite that were in one of the flower beds, and then filling in the holes with the new plants.

Huge rocks!

It may not look like much but we added two poppy plants, two lavender plants, a clump of agapanthus, and two fox gloves (they had seeded themselves into pots). Hopefully there will be a lot more colour here soon.

Do you tend to always go to one parkrun or do you have a few local ones now? Do you like sales people who come up to you or ones who hang back? I don’t want to be pounced on as soon as I come into a shop, but I do like a bit of help without feeling the pressure to always buy something. Do you like buying plants? I find garden centres very calming and I get tempted very easily (as you can see!).

London 10 miles- deer spotting in Richmond park

As I have mentioned on here before, I was kindly offered a place in the inaugural London 10 mile race, in Richmond park. I have been to once race before (a women only 15k race) and I had a bit of trouble getting home- I couldn’t find a bus stop, my phone was running out of battery, I ended up spending £20 on a taxi to the nearest train station, then the trains were delayed. Anyway, the London 10 mile offered some parking spaces, so I decided to avoid the public transport hassle and drive myself in.

I had to get there a bit earlier as my pack hadn’t arrived- the email helpdesk was very helpful and told me they would have spares on the day, but it meant that when I got stuck in traffic for a bit (and I had checked before I left and it was clear then) I got a bit frazzled- I am not the biggest M25 fan.  One small thing I would say is that the postcode of the car park wasn’t quite correct- it wanted me to turn left at the end of the road, but I could see a queue of cars heading into the park so after dilly dallying for a bit, I joined the queue. It turned out to be right, but I think they could benefit from some big signs saying “Sheen Gate car park” and some arrows, as probably if you are driving you are not going to be local to the area.

Anyway, after parking I walked the short distance through the park to the race village. It was a lovely sunny day and I was glad I had put on a lot of sun-cream.

The event village was great- it had a real buzz about it and had loads of food stalls (coffee and cake, churros, even things like a champagne van) and a kids play area. Lots of hay bales were strewn about for the picnic in the park after. I quickly was given my new pack, and after putting my number on I enjoyed the scenery in the park and took my time heading to the start pen (which was right by the edge of the event village).

There was a map of the route but it meant nothing to me- I was just glad we finished in the same place (the last one I did ended in a different part which just added to the complications).

In the starter pens they spoke about the awful events from London that happened the night before, and held a minute of silence for the victims and then applause for the first responders and emergency services. It felt very emotional and of course was observed by every person there.

There was a bit of a delay (not sure why) so I didn’t start running until about 10.50 (it was meant to start at 10.30)- as I didn’t have all day that was a little frustrating, but these things can’t be helped.

Then we were off! I missed the squirrel high fives as I was busy looking for deer (although as they were by the start/finish I did get a high five on my return!) and all along were signs with different facts on them- how many deer were in the park, how old the trees were etc. The mile signs had little sayings on them- they reminded me of the quirky signs at the Brighton Bright10.

I had no aims for time- I wanted to enjoy it, and I had told myself if I saw some deer I would stop. I stopped a lot!

Some were further away but these were right by the path- as they were in the shade they were well camouflaged and I think a lot of runners didn’t notice them.

It was a very warm day and so I stopped at most water stations ( I missed the first one, only noticing it as I saw other people with cups)- I had eaten my breakfast at around 7.30 before driving in, and hadn’t had anything since then, so I knew I should have a few sips each time. I particularly liked the station that was encouraging people to throw their cups into the digger instead of all over the floor. I had bought a headband with me (like a sweatband) but as I was wearing my visor I ended up wrapping it on my wrist. When I stopped for water I dipped the band in the water and this helped to keep me cool as I could then rub the band on both my wrists while I was running- I didn’t want to splash my face in case I washed my sun-cream off.

At one point someone next to me said “hi Maria”- he was a St Albans Strider (a local running club) and recognised me from parkrun. I am pretty sure he has volunteered at the same time as me but I couldn’t quite work out when. It was nice to see a friendly face and we had a little chat before running our own paces.

One of the signs told you to look up and wave to the tree surgeons-they were hanging in the tree above one of the steepest hills!

I think a lot of people felt they needed to keep running but I was happy to stop and take a photo!

There were a few photographers out on the course too- some by the 5 mile marker and some at the end. I actually tried a jump but that one didn’t come out!

Near the end there was also a truck hooked up to a water mister thing- that was lovely and cool to run through.

More deer- of course I took more photos.

The course was more hilly than I expected, and in the warm weather this made it tougher. At around 4.5 miles they had a water and clif block station, so I had one of the blackcurrant ones (they got me through my first marathon)- it perked me up for a bit. I saw more deer but again I think so many runners didn’t notice them as they were too focused on the road.

Fairly hilly and you can see each water station I stopped at- the smaller stops are the deer spotting points

As this event was in partnership with parkun (some of the entry fees went to supporting it) I was totally surprised when the 7 mile sign did not have a “just a parkrun to go” on it. I mean, doesn’t everyone think that at races now? I did comment this on their facebook page so perhaps they will add it in for next year!

Running towards the finish there were lots of people out spectating, with some funny signs (“You are amazing (your name here)”- stuff like that), and as there had been kids races there were lots of children with their medals watching too. I was glad to reach the finish line.

My splits were all over the place due to the hills, stopping for photos and walking through the water stations. I really enjoyed the scenery though, and the whole event had a good atmosphere- friendly and encouraging.

The medal was rather nice too- a good chunky one, and the colours on it went with my parkrun apricot vest.

I was handed a goodie bag, picked up a bottle of water and then wandered around the events village. I got a text through right away with my time (1.47.00)- very impressive seeing as my pack hadn’t arrived, so while I had been running someone had manually changed my registration to match my new number.

I knew I needed something to eat before driving home, but I didn’t fancy much (and after parkrun on the Saturday I had felt a bit queasy and I didn’t want to feel like that driving home)- the goodie bag had some pop chips and a clif bar but I didn’t really want either at the time. I saw the most hipster thing- a smoothie stand where you got on a bike to power the blender.

They did a raspberry one with lime and something- it sounded zingy and refreshing so I went for that one.

I then wandered back to the car (I even saw more deer), wiped my face and put a nuun tab in the remains of my water before heading home.

The traffic wasn’t too bad and I got home at 3- I had to have a quick shower and then had a bit of late lunch as we were heading out again at 4- a busy day!

So, what did I think of the race?

Pros:

Lovely scenic and traffic-free route through lovely park lands

Lots of deer to spot

Signs to keep you entertained en route

The event supports parkrun

10 miles is a great distance

Lots of water stations and marshals out (and they use cups which I know a lot of people don’t like but I much prefer it as it is less waste and more environmentally friendly)

The race village- well organised, well set out, lots of choice of food and drink stalls plus activities for children

The event photos are free (they are based on chip time and not your number which means you get a few without you in them)- they were ready to download on Tuesday

Did I mention the deer?

To improve:

Better signs for the car park, and improved directions in the race pack for using public transport

Send the race packs out a little earlier- it seemed that lots hadn’t arrived (and it’s a small gripe but it means I have to use safety pins instead of event clips so then I get little holes in my top)

You could buy a technical t-shirt (I saw a few people wearing them) but I do think that it could be included in the finisher’s pack- I know they have other costs but a lot of the local races I do are less than £15 and you get a technical t-shirt, so it can’t add much to the cost.

They also started a little late, and I would prefer an earlier start anyway rather than the 10.30 official start time as it means I am finished before the hottest part of the day, but that is just down to personal preference

Would I do it again?

I might, if other people I knew had signed up. I love the distance, the route was pretty, it was well organised and not too expensive for a London race. For me, Richmond park isn’t the easiest place to get to, and it did mean I spent a lot of the day in my car. I also find running in the summer more challenging, so I was happy to run it at a more relaxed pace (which would be good with a group of friends).  I often do a local 10 mile race in July but this year signed up for the 10k instead and as I was running I was very glad that I didn’t have another 10 miles to run in the summer. I don’t think it would be a course to push for a pb but it was really enjoyable. I also love the ethos that they support parkrun.

Do you like the 10 mile distance? Have you run in London? Do you like to visit things like food stalls after a race or do you tend to head straight home? Do you wear your parkrun top to races? I usually wear my club vest but it is black so I thought apricot would keep me cooler. I saw a few others but thought I would see more.

*I was given a place in the race in exchange for a mention on my blog. I bought the car park ticket and also donated some money to my local parkrun in lieu of the entry fee. All opinions are my own.