Unexpected encounter!

Pancakes were on my mind during my run- made with the last of my Orgran Buckwheat pancake mix, with a cooked apple, flaked almonds and some chocolate pb.

So on Sunday morning we were up and out running by 9am. It was windy. It was really windy. So windy in fact that when the wind was behind us it was blowing us along- normally I don’t notice the wind behind me.

We chatted a bit at first, and then as it got tougher this changed to Andy talking to me, and me replying with one or two word answers. I managed the first 6 miles fine, although I had only taken two tissues with me and my nose was running a lot- not so good. The next few miles were tough with combinations of hills and running into the wind, so I slowed quite a lot. Then, our encounter. We were about 2 miles from home and a man walking along the pavement stopped us (I thought for directions or something- wrong)- the conversation went like this:

Him- Do you run often?

Me- Yes.

Him- Have you heard of Parkrun UK?

Me- Yes.

Him- Have you heard of Danny Norman?

Me- Yes, I listen to the podcast (for those of you who don’t know, Danny co-presents The Parkrun show, which is available on the marathon talk website).

Him- I’m his Dad (he then got out his wallet to show us some kind of ID as if people would usually challenge this).

He then proceeded to tell us about the history of Bushy Parkrun, about how Danny went to school in Hatfield, and a few other bits, asking me which Parkrun I go to, before saying “You’d better get on with your run then”.

I love that his Dad is out promoting Parkrun to runners- I do hope that he stops lots of people to share the Parkrun love!

Although starting up running again was so tough- my legs felt like lumps of rock (we were stopped for 3 mins according to my Garmin)- at least I was smiling for the last two miles. I was very impressed with my estimating of distance too- last week I did a little over 10 miles, so I thought adding an extra little loop at the start would make it up- the loop was .88 miles, and literally as we got to our front door my Garmin beeped for 11 miles on the dot. Even with that stop we did the route in 1 hr 47, with an average moving pace of 9.55. I did stretch when I got home, but for the rest of the day I felt pretty wiped out. Luckily I had done most of my work on Saturday so only had a small bit to do. We popped to see Andy’s parents, then watched an episode of Elementary for some chill out time.

Later on I decided to make a clementine cake using this recipe as we had a batch that were very hard to peel.

You had to boil them first for 2 hours, so my plan of having tea and cake in the afternoon went out the window. Later on I read in the comments that someone just microwaved them for 10 minutes instead- I think I would try that next time.

Then you whizzed them up, and then added the other ingredients (sugar, ground almonds, eggs, baking powder) and whizzed again. (I then realised I had no baking powder so improvised with silver foil- think it worked OK)

It smelled so good when it was baking.

We both enjoyed a big slice in the evening- replenishing those carbs after our long run. It was lovely- not too sweet with that almost bitter tang from the clementines as well as the lovely texture from the ground almonds.

Tempted by Parkrun

Hey peeps! How are we all doing? Hooray for the weekend etc.

These were well and truly urgent to help me get on with my marking on Friday afternoon/evening!

So at the moment my running is going well. I have been gradually increasing distance and making sure I stretch after each run for a long time, and doing yoga each week. Only once a week but I have to start somewhere.

I was planning on doing my long run of 11 miles this morning, but yesterday we were watching the weather and it promised strong winds and heavy rain. Hmm, not so tempting. I have a bit of a cold (a child sneezed in my face the other day, the joys of the job!) so spending nearly 2 hours in the rain was not very appealing for that reason either. Plus Andy was off to the football and due to all the flooding had to leave earlier – he is running tomorrow morning and it is nice when we run together.

So then I started thinking, should I go to Parkrun in the morning? It is the off road course so I would not be going for a pb, just trying out my trail shoes in the mud. Then on Sunday morning I could go for my long run with Andy instead of on my own…

So this morning I pottered about before heading off. It was sunny when I left, so I was thinking that perhaps I had got the weather wrong and it was meant to rain on Sunday. My drive there was diverted twice due to roads closed due to flooding so my final route took me much longer- I got there at about 8 minutes to as it started to rain heavily- just enough time to get my parking ticket and try to listen to the race announcer (but it was windy, and also people near me were talking over here how rude). I heard the countdown and then jogged over to her to ask her what the route was (as they only put the normal route on the website)- I am fine following others but I wanted to know how many laps it was (3).

The normal course is super flat with only a small incline near the end, but this one was uphill on the way out, through a lot of squelchy mud, and then down hill on the way back. I feel I need to develop a technique for running on the mud- I felt much more stable in those shoes as they do grip better but still the mud is so slippery.

My shoes at the end with a good inch of mud all up the sides- I took trainers to wear on the way home so I would not be slipping all over the pedals

Anyway, I heard someone at the start saying they think the off road route adds about 2 minutes to your normal time. I didn’t look at my watch at all during it, I was concentrating on not slipping over! The rain stopped for the second lap but then started again with a vengeance in the third lap. You had to run past the finish chute which was a bit strange- and a little disheartening when people have finished ages ago and you are starting out on your final lap. But still, I enjoyed it- I think the great thing about Parkrun is that it is over in about half an hour, so even though the weather was horrible I got my fresh air fix. My final time was 30.36 (I was 124th/169 but only the 24th female out of 47- crazy that it is still so dominated by men)- a personal worst (well not officially as there was a time the results went wrong and we all got 59.59), but probably around the time I should have been aiming for.

I did a few stretches in the car park but it was cold so I headed home for some tea and muesli in front of the snowboarding on TV.

Now I have a little ache at the front of one of my legs, near my hip, so I have been feeling a bit paranoid, but hopefully it is just a normal post running ache and nothing worse.

I do like the fact that Parkrun is not too far either- I have enough energy left to get on with all the housework (I even cleaned the fridge but that was more to do with putting off my work than anything else), then got on with most of my work before having a break and walking into town for a Starbucks. Now I have a bit more work to do but hopefully I can power through.

Hooray for Parkrun! How I have missed it. Although I think to be sensible next weekend I won’t be going, will have to wait until March for my next fix.

How was your Saturday? How is the flooding by you? There are roads near me that always flood in the winter, so they of course are underwater, but there are so many roads between fields that are closed- driving back from town today even the roads that were open probably shouldn’t have been as the water was so deep and still just pouring off the fields. I am very lucky that our house is relatively high so even our garage has been fine.

Jantastic week 4!

My how time has flown! I can’t believe that 4 weeks of the Jantastic challenge have already been completed.

The first month is all about being consistent, and I am so pleased to have managed 100% of my runs for the entire month.

This week on Monday I headed out after work. I have been keeping those after work runs pretty short, but I have wanted to increase them a bit- I just need to get home a bit earlier! I managed 4.1 miles on Monday, so creeping up slightly. I tried out my new trail shoes by running on the verges a bit- they are weird as the soles are so chunky so my feet feel very high off the ground. Anyway the grip seemed good which is the main thing- hopefully once the evenings get lighter I can use them on the fields a bit.

Tuesday was an evening of work, plus a little bit of baking for some respite:

Mince pie and marzipan slices and peanut butter brownies as alternative birthday cakes

On Wednesday we were going around to see Andy’s family so as soon as I got home I went on a run as I would not have had time for a shower and dinner if I had waited for Sweatshop. This was where Jantastic helped- it was tipping it down with rain and I didn’t really fancy it, but knew that I had to log 3 runs and would fancy it far less on Friday after work. Once I got out there I really enjoyed the majority of it. The first mile was hard as the rain was so cold it was stinging my face, but it then eased off, and I started to warm up and ended up going further than I had planned- 3.7 miles (was going to do 3 miles tops).

Thursday was Pump day- the instructor told us she had to be out on time, whereas usually we finish maybe 5 minutes late (takes a while to pack all the equipment back away) and she had voted to miss out the lunges track. I can’t pretend to be disappointed, but it did then mean we had the shoulder track (which I find the toughest) right after the biceps with no rest for the arms in between, so I really struggled with that this week.

On Friday I went to visit my Nan so was home quite late, and again it was torrential rain so I was very glad of my decision on Wednesday to get the run done.

Then on Saturday I headed out with Andy. I wanted to do 10 miles but he only wanted to do 8, so we did the loop together (eg me running a few metres behind him!) and then he headed home while I added a bit on to the end. My final couple of miles were much slower as by then my legs were getting stiff and I kept getting a stitch, which is unlike me. I used to get them sometimes if I had eaten too close to a run, but that morning all I had were a few dates before I got ready, so not sure what that was about.

Anyway, 10.2 miles done in 1hr 40 (100 mins)- even with the slower 2 miles at the end I was very pleased with my average pace- running with Andy really helps.

I had no eggs so made these pumpkin pancakes with Orgran egg replacer and the lovely buckwheat pancake mix- I think I only have a few servings left so might experiment with plain buckwheat flour as I really like them.

I got quite stiff yesterday but I think that is partly because I had a lot of work to do so spent 3 hours after my run sat at the computer, then I popped to town (had a Starbucks as a treat) and then spent another few hours at the computer.

Today we went out for breakfast.

This was a waffle with a poached pear, chocolate sauce and toasted pecans- delicious. Plus a pot of Earl Grey tea.

Then we walked around the lakes and gazed at all the flooding, and popped to see our families. Then we walked to the allotment (our shed had blown over, no idea how) and looked at yet more flooding- half the beds are underwater- one was about 6 inches deep as I stood in it (with my wellies on) and was amazed at how high the water came up! I think the walks have helped, and later on I shall do the yoga DVD again too.

So, Jantastic has been a success, onto Febulous. I have again decided to go for 3 runs per week, and then my long runs will be 11 miles next week, then 12, then 5, then 13 as that will be the Bath half- it is getting close now!

Also, Thoosa are having a flash sale. They are my favourite ever workout gear brand – I love their tights, their “Swift vests” are the most flattering and also cool (temperature wise as they are not tight) tops I have ever tried, plus they have some fab slogan t’s- I am just trying to decide which one to buy. So take a look!

Jantastic weeks 2 and 3

So I am not sure how it happened, but somehow 3 weeks have gone by already. I realised at some point this week that I had not reviewed Jantastic week 2, so decided to combine it with week 3.

So, let’s see if I can remember.

Week 2 went like this:

Monday it was pouring with rain, I left work late with a pile of marking, so I opted for my yoga DVD to de-stress and stretch before tackling my work.

Also got to wear my new yoga socks- they have grips on the bottom so when you are holding certain poses you don’t slide down the mat. 

That meant my first run was on Tuesday- 3.5 miles. I think we went to the cinema on the Wednesday, and then I definitely went to Pump on the Thursday.

So after work Friday I had my second run of the week- 3.65 miles, so slightly longer than the other run but my legs were heavy after pump and the air was  cold.

Saturday I had a sports massage on my back and shoulder which felt so good. Then on Sunday I went out with Andy for a 6.8 mile run- as always it felt too fast but I managed to keep up.

So week 2 was successful with 3 runs out of 3 done.

Week 3 started with a run after work on Monday. I prefer to start the week that way, but took it easy due to running the day before. Normally I am fine to run 2 days in a row but that seemed to be what aggravated my hip over Christmas so I want to be cautious. I think I did 3 miles.

Tuesday was a rest day- we went to see Anchorman 2 at the cinema- so much more lighthearted than all the other films we have seen recently!

Then on Wednesday I braved Sweatshop for the first time in months! It was lovely to see everyone again, but there was no way I was keeping up with the main group. One of the girls came back and ran with me for a bit, then ran back to the person behind me, but most of it was on my own. It was dark when we set off and when my Garmin beeped (hold reset to save activity) I pressed the wrong button so ended up adding to my previous run. I never start it at home, but this time I let it carry on for my run home (which is about .75 of a mile) so in total over those 2 runs I did 6.9 miles, plus the run up there (still adding it up…). It was my fastest run to date so that is good.

Thursday was pump again- I had promised my friend last week that I would go a bit heavier on the weights this week- so tough!

Friday was just a rest day- I was going to do yoga but I had so much work I got on with that and then forgot basically.

Yesterday I went out for a long run on my own but decided I would see if I could keep up a similar pace to last weekend. Each time I noticed that my mile time was creeping over 10 I tried to speed up, and I managed to finish the 8.3 miles with an average pace of 9.54 min miles- I will take it!

Today has been a rest day- I woke up and sat on the sofa underneath the blanket and watched the tennis- totally unlike me to sit about like that but I really felt like I needed it. I was going to have a walk this afternoon but the rain stopped and then we had to pop to the hospital so I didn’t- I shall be doing my yoga DVD again later though, I promise.

So, week 3 done, onto week 4 and soon I have to choose the length of my long runs as Febulous will be here! Love it!

Jantastic runners- how is it going so far?

Everyone  what are you looking forward to in February?

And relax!

This post may not turn out to be that coherent (compared to normal)- we shall see.

I have just had a really busy week and feel like I will need the entire weekend to catch up. Today I got home at 6, had to take Andy to the station and then came home and did a couple more hours of work. Then I did some tidying (our house gets very messy when I run out of time) and have now put on some scented candles to help me relax.

Including this candle, which Airwick have sent to me to for my blog as they have a big range of air freshener products. I can’t take photos of candles burning, it just does not work. There is something calming and cosy about the flame on a candle, and I love scented candles, especially spicy or citrus ones.

Normally if we are both home on a Friday night we listen to the film podcast, Andy cooks dinner (sausage and bean bake for him, and plain bean bake for me with some sourdough) and we watch a film. I had grand plans for dinner- first it was going to be polenta, then I downgraded it to avocado pasta, but then the time came and I was hungry and busy so I went for the easiest option- toast with sundried tomato pesto, avocado and a little basil oil. Oh, and a splodge of hummus. Andy would tell me off for having toast for dinner- shh!

I realised earlier in the week I didn;t even do a Jantastic review of week 2, and now week 3 is nearly over, so I will combine them over the weekend I think.

Last week I raved about my new compression socks (from Running skirts UK if you are interested)- the pink ones are fab- the feet parts are sort of padded and patterned (hopefully you can see that in the photo). The green ones are more like normal socks- they still have the markings on them but not as much detail. So go for pink if you get some.

Check out the grip on these babies!

I have been on the hunt for trail shoes for a while now- I love running across the fields near me but recently they have been a nightmare due to all the mud. Plus when I did the Ware 10 mile race it was great but some of it was so slippery I needed ski poles- my road shoes are not cutting it! I have looked for ages- I had John Lewis vouchers so wanted to use them, but the shoes in the sale were not the right size, and they didn’t have any other trail shoes, so in the end I ordered from Wiggle. I love Wiggle- free postage and good prices, but they always include a packet of haribo in with whatever you order, which annoys me, as for one, they are not vegetarian, but also why not something more sporty? Anyway, this time as well as the obligatory sweetie packet, there was also a High5 energy bar- it looked a bit “fake” but the ingredients are dates, sultanas, cashew nuts, chocolate chips, sunflower seeds and a few other bits- not too shabby. I look forward to sampling it.

Finally I have a question. I have signed up to Daily Mile, and now when I plug my Garmin in to my computer it will synch and find new workouts. But even if I have previously uploaded a run to my Garmin dashboard, Dailymile won’t seem to be able to find it (eg if I forget to log it right away). Am I doing it wrong? I don’t normally plug in my Garmin after each time I use it as it is a bit of a faff. Or, can I log something on there that is not from my Garmin?

Plans for the weekend?

I am not going to Parkrun this weekend as I need to run around 8 miles, and should not be running 2 days in a row, plus the weather for Sunday looks pretty bad so I am going to go out tomorrow morning. Other than that I have some work to do but also some relaxing to catch up on. Have a good one!