Running - Maria Runs

12 months of running

I love looking back over the past year, and so I thought I would choose a photo or two for each month to sum it all up.

Not all of the races had medals- some had t-shirts, or a chocolate santa, but this is I think the 2015 collection!

Last year the big race for me was the Brighton marathon, but the “10 miles before Christmas” prep didn’t go well, as I had an awful cough and chest infection, and so hardly ran at all in December. But probably the rest did me good as the training went very well (with a little extra motivation from Jantastic).

January

2015-01-18 12.19.00

Marathon training kicked off after about a month of rest, with the freezing cold Fred Hughes 10 mile race.

February

Brighton half! Pb! I didn’t want to push myself as I needed fresh enough legs for my longer midweek runs, so I was amazed that I managed a pb and felt pretty strong throughout. If I had been training for just that race, I feel confident that I could have managed a sub 2 hour half. I will keep dreaming!

March

My highest mileage of 132 miles in March as marathon training ramped up.

April

Brighton marathon!!!! I loved it! I was so nervous, but I kept an eye on my pacing, didn’t start off too quickly, enjoyed seeing Andy and my parents in the crowd, and was so proud to get that sub 5 hour goal.

May

(We can’t have a post without any cake)

Birthday course pb at panshanger parkrun!

June

Whipsnade 10K- hot!

St Albans half- fairly hilly!

July

This photo is from tail running at Panshanger parkrun. I marshalled, tail ran and did the new runner briefing that month, and won the Sweatshop monthly prize of new trainers too! Awesome!

These are identical to my current trainers, so are still in the box for when my old ones die.

Me very excited before the Ware 10 miles! There were other runners from the club doing the 10K, and it was so lovely to have some company pre and post race.

August

Many runs in Hawaii, including a 5K race.

parkrun tourism at the Crissy Fields parkrun in San Francisco! 4th women! 1st in my age category!!! Yes there were only 31 runners (all very friendly) but you have to be in it to win it! Or come 4th!

September

One early morning run, sunrise looking like a fire.

October

Bournemouth 10k. The afternoon time wasn’t the best but I managed a pretty speedy run, giving me confidence to aim for a pb in Brighton later in the autumn.

Brighton 10 mile- another pb in Brighton!

November

My 50th parkrun, and Panshanger’s first birthday!

10K in Sherwood Pines (I was drenched in those picture, before it even started!)

10K pb in Brighton! I love Brighton! My 4th Brighton pb of the year! Is that a pb full house?

December

Running club run to brunch (why don’t we do this every Sunday?)

Christmas day parkrun with my brother (and jingly antlers- I found out that if I wedged them into my buff they stay put during running).

December 5K series for Virtual Runner UK.

There have been more races this year (the full list I keep on my Race Calendar page), but that’s plenty to be getting on with.

To sum up:

Brighton pb’s for 10K, 10 mile, half marathon and full marathon (full house?).

parkrun = awesome

Being in a running club= brilliant

I still love running.

December 5k Virtual Run series

Went like this!

Week 1- parkrun.

I can’t edit the image to flip it- no idea why as it normally works but it keeps freezing.

28.25. 4th in my age category. 20th female out of 78. 113th place/201 overall.

Love the tree medal!

Week 2:

Out and back on my own (no parkrun that week due to being in Bath).

31.33

I had a headache and I had to wait at the one set of traffic lights for ages! But anyway, medal still earned. No fun stats like you get from parkrun though.

Week 3:

A Santa medal! The medals were all labelled, but I feel like it should be for week 4, as the weeks run from Tuesday, so Christmas day will be in week 4. Anyway. Another parkrun.

28.50 (which I felt was further off week 1 than it actually was-25 seconds slower isn’t too bad). Felt fine but had been ill in the week so the end felt tough.

3rd in my age category! 23rd female/ 80, and 137/226 overall.

Week 4:

Christmas day parkrun!

Ran with my brother, and he managed to get himself a Christmas day pb!

My time- 29.10. 165/270 runners, 4th in my age category again! 37/98 women.

I ran with my antlers held in place with a buff, jingling all the way.

Here are all the medals. The reindeer is my favourite.

So all in all, fairly consistent. I was tempted by the other parkrun on boxing day, as it had a 9.30 start ( I woke up too late for my one) but its laps and I don’t like some of the really fast runners, so just went out on my own for fun. I will try that one in the new year at some point to see if I have sped up, as strava tells me I am trending faster with my course but I don’t believe it, but it will be good to test myself on a flat and mud-free course. I’m glad I joined the challenge, even if I didn’t finish with amazing times.

A year of running club

On my facebook feed the other day a photo from my memories from a year popped up (because, you know, they care about my memories). Anyway, it was my UKA card arriving as I had finally joined a running club!

It’s funny looking back. When I started running, I really enjoyed the “me time” and the chance to clear my head. I also loved the flexibility- whatever time I woke up on Sunday, I could head out after getting dressed. If I was stuck in traffic on the way home, it wouldn’t matter because I could go on my own once I got home. But when I started running with the Sweatshop gang I realised that I also enjoyed running with other people.

Through Sweatshop I got to know one girl, and she stopped coming as had recently joined a running club that had just started up. She persuaded me to go along to a group session as a taster, and I am so glad that I did.

I get quite nervous when meeting new people, but the club is still fairly small (I think they have around 60 members?) and as I have tended to stick to the Tuesday evening run, it’s been the same bunch of people for a lot of the year so I have got to know them fairly well.

They also do a Sunday morning run, but when I was marathon training I went out on my own as I wanted to do certain distances and they never matched what the club would be doing. But in the autumn I started to go along to those some weeks, and really enjoyed those. We ran new routes, and I met a few more people from the club.

Our Tuesday evening runs vary a lot, and they are tailored to upcoming races which is always good. We sometimes do interval training (walk/jog/sprint between lamp posts), sometimes we do a fast 5K, other times we do a hilly route, or run up to 7 miles. We stop at certain points and re-group, which is especially good when it’s so dark. We are also made to stretch at the end, which is something I don’t always do when I run on my own. I know I should, but I don’t! It works well with my timetable too, as I usually have a late meeting on a Tuesday- I tend to get home just before 6 so by the time I have changed it is time for me to leave. I have stopped going to Sweatshop, which is a shame, but I tend to have a gentler run on a Wednesday now, to recover from the Tuesday session, plus because I get home a bit earlier, and it starts later, it would just be another evening of having a late shower and dinner.

The Sunday morning runs have been good too. They use their facebook page a lot to decide on routes, so if you want to run 5 miles and others are doing 8, people will comment and usually there are a few groups heading off in different directions. There is one hilly route we do and I think I would get lost on my own, but it’s great as it is down country roads and through fields. Sometimes I have given it a miss as I want to not set the alarm, and have ended up going out on my own soon after 8am, but of course there is no expectation to go every week.

I love the support at races- now when I am doing a race I will get all sorts of “good luck” messages via the club page, and one of the club secretaries keeps a spreadsheet of race times, parkrun times and pb’s, so racers even get a mention in the weekly newsletters! I love seeing photos from races pop up as well- a few weekends ago was a local 5 mile race- we were away but loads of the club were there, either marshalling or running, and it was great to see how everyone got on.

I love bumping into people at parkrun too- yesterday I was overtaken by an OH lady who said “hi”- we had a quick chat before she sped off. At the finish line I met another one, and although I am perfectly happy to head to parkrun on my own, it is nice to see people you know.

The social side is one aspect that has surprised me, as I am not the most sociable person. This morning we had a brilliant Christmas party.

Photo from our facebook page!

We met in Hatfield at 8am for the Sunday run- this was the 10K group. We ran to various points around town, picking up runners along the way- some people did 4 miles, some 3 miles. We were meant to be wearing Santa hats, and I wore my reindeer headband and flashing nose (on my forehead as it was hard to breath with it on my nose!), but the adult Santa hats were too small so I was nearly the only one! We did try to play a game where if we got beeped, the person at the back of the group would run to the front, but surprisingly there were not many cars about. We did wave like lunatics to the lorries, but only managed one beep! Slim pickings!

Just after 9am a huge group of us arrived in Bill’s (in Welwyn- the next town along), where we had booked to have breakfast. It was brilliant!

Another one from the facebook page.

We had pass the parcel with running goodies, a raffle with some running related prizes, and it was great to relax after the run. I had the pancakes, and of course a big pot of tea. Perfect.

And I realised at the end, I had kept my antlers on the whole time, despite most people not wearing hats of any sort!

The idea was to get the train back (not run after eating!) but another runner offered me a lift which was fab. I loved how much high-viz was on display!

Our running club leader had recently come second place in an award for services to sport, which is amazing, and I just think it’s fantastic that so many women are out running together and setting a great example to their kids, and to other people. The club was started by a small group of ladies, and in a short space of time it has really grown. They are getting involved in a new parkrun, and hold running sessions for the university too. It’s the community spirit that makes it so great I think. This is partly why I love parkrun so much. Yes, I could just go out on my own and run a 5K and be home before parkrun even starts, but that is not what it is about for me.

So, my first year of being in a running club has been great- so much encouragement and support, finding new routes, meeting new people, hearing about new races. (And of course, you save money off each race entry too!) Onwards and upwards!

More Christmas markets and a last minute race entry

Hey peeps!

This weekend I was totally in the festive mood. On Friday after dinner we drove to Bath (well, Frome) ready for heading to the park and ride on Saturday morning.

After a wander around the shops (or, more accurately, a battle to get in and out…) and some lunch in the park, we headed to the spa to escape the crowds. We stayed there for a couple of hours, before heading back out to enjoy the markets in the dark.

It was still pretty busy, but we managed to look at a few stalls and buy a few gifts.

It was so pretty. We had booked dinner in Las Iguanas (they have a complete veggie and vegan menu- so much choice) so we headed there before a final wander. Then we headed back to the car and drove home (the traffic is much better on Saturday night than on a Sunday).

Earlier in the week I had seen someone mention a local race, the Festive Five. I remembered looking at it a few years ago, but either we were away, or last year I had an awful cough so didn’t run much in December. The entry was only £5, so I signed up.

When I saw the drizzle on Sunday morning, I was not so enthusiastic. I had decided to park at the Tescos which was just over a mile from the start, because I wasn’t sure about road closures, and also I needed to get petrol and a few bits. So after eating a Pulsin’ bar (could not decide on breakfast for ages) I drove there, got petrol, parked up and then delayed getting out of the car! Once I started running down there it wasn’t so bad, and when I got to the start and saw people in Santa outfits and pudding glasses, I felt more in the spirit.

The 5 mile race was just over 2 laps, but I didn’t really know the roads (apart from the first section). It turned out to be fairly flat- gently uphill on the out section, a nice long downhill section, a shortish uphill and then a very steep downhill to the start/finish area. I didn’t think I would manage a pb (44.44 is my 5 mile pb from last year) but I thought if I aimed for as close to 9 minute miles as possible I would be pleased with that.

I managed to keep it going, although the mile to the start had messed up the average pace a bit, so I wasn’t 100% sure of my pace. I felt OK, and for the first lap kept up with a couple of ladies from another club, although in the second lap they steamed ahead and I lost them. By then the rain was harder, and I kept having to take my glasses off to wipe them on my sleeve. I did try running holding them in my hand, but it makes me feel dizzy sometimes so I decided to cope with peering through them instead.

As I came around the bend to the finish, I could see 45-something on the clock, and as I ran into the finish area a lady shouted to me “you’ve won a spot prize” and handed me a bottle of wine. I was then given a chocolate Santa (everyone was given some sort of chocolate gift as they finished) and a very kind lady took the chip off my trainers as I had my hands full! My text came through almost instantly- 45.12 was my chip time so I was really pleased with that. After chatting to a running friend, I began the gentle jog back to the car, hoping I would not fall, drop the bottle, smash it and then cut myself on the broken glass. I had worn a long sleeved top, which I tied around my waist for the run, so I put that back on, but it was wet from being out in the rain (and it turned out there was a little baggage drop tent) so it didn’t help much, and my hands got so cold from holding the wine and chocolate, so by the time I got back to my car I was so cold. I had put a hoodie and coat in my car, so I put those on before going into Tescos for a quick shop.

My prize!

It felt like ages before I was finally home- the race started at 9.30 and I think I got out of the shower at 11.30!

Then I was off for a festive afternoon tea (yes, that was all mine- apparently that was two people’s cakes but because I was the only veggie it would look silly without the right number. And no, I didn’t manage them all!) which was lovely- a very long catch up with friends (and Wittertainment fans take note of the Battenberg slice!).

We had planned on putting up our Christmas tree, but then we booked cinema tickets to see Sisters (I do love Tina Fey and Amy Poehler) so that will be for another day.

I am so glad I signed up for the race in the end- even though it was a bit of a miserable day, I enjoyed it, and it was more enjoyable than just going out on my own.

Are you a last minute person or a planner? I normally plan things out way in advance (I think our festive afternoon tea was booked in September!) because I don’t want things to clash.

Reindeer running! And Garmin fails!

Last weekend was another lovely weekend of running. We had a work night out on Friday night, including a trip to The Pudding Stop, so a parkrun was just what I fancied the next morning. I was doing the new runners briefing but it was so windy I had to shout and I am not sure everyone could hear me!

When getting my chip scanned I realised I hadn’t stopped my watch, but although I pressed it, I didn’t press it hard enough, as I walked back to the car, started driving home and it then beeped to tell me 4 miles. So although Strava tells me I did my fastest 500m, I think that was probably when I was in my car!

My Virtual runner 5k (week 1) medal was waiting for me when I got home!

After a shower I had to pop into town, so gave my Kermit hat an outing! I was complimented by three different people while I was out! I love it!

While I was out I was tempted by some festive food items- Wensleydale with cranberries, and some gorgeous medjool dates.

I then did a spot of baking as for the first time in ages we were going to Andy’s parents for Sunday dinner. This was an oaty biscuity base, topped with a mixture of mincemeat, homegrown apples and cranberries, and then topped with a marzipan lattice. It was so good even if I do say so myself!

On the Sunday I went out on my own fairly early. I ended up doing 2 laps of a lovely route- the first half along roads (boring) and the second half across fields. It was gorgeous, so I stopped for some photos.

I was impressed that my nails matched my top and trainers!

After a shower and some crumpets, I was off out as I was doing a Reindeer run (1.5k) with a friend’s husband and 3 year old. It turned into more of a Reindeer-carry, and it drizzled at the end, but it was good to do, and we got to keep the flashing nose and antlers. Plus who doesn’t want a Rudolph medal?

I took my Garmin with me as we were curious about the distance (the map didn’t seem like it would be that far) but for some reason even though I stopped it after my morning run, and re-started it later, it seemed to think I ran from home to the next town. You can see my morning run and then the Reindeer run!

Then we went out for brunch and instead of pancakes (well, it was really lunch as I had breakfast after the first run) I had a Bill’s bread basket which had mini croissants and toasted sourdough. Then we had a wander around the Christmas market before heading around to Andy’s family.

I tried to split the run up, but with Strava I can delete either the beginning or the end or the run, but I can’t delete a middle part of it, so if anyone technical knows, then I would appreciate the help! It’s messing up my yearly mileage!

Are you doing any festive runs? I found out about a 5 mile run near me this Sunday so I have signed up (it’s only £5 too), although we are off to Bath and get back late Saturday night so I hope I still fancy it then! Plus I have the rest of my Virtual Run 5k series to go.