Category: Running

OK, so for a while now my goals with regard to running have mainly been to go further. A few years ago I started with a 5K, the following year I did a couple of 10K’s, the year after a couple of half marathons, and this year the full marathon. During that time, I have got a little faster, but I have not really focused on it much- I am getting ever closer to the 1 hour 10k, but have not made it yet. I have been reading (and listening to marathon talk of course) about this subject, but the bottom line is, in order to run a faster race, I have to train faster.

So Friday after work I did another audiofuel interval workout. I did the middle one again, which tops out at 180 steps per min. Although the recovery parts are slower than I normally run, I have come to realise that I need to have them slower in order to be able to run faster in the other parts. The first intervals feel a little fast, but fine. The second ones feel comfortably hard, and the fastest ones feel very hard (like, I want to stop and have a little trouble breathing but in a good way). Without access to a track I have always found doing intervals hard- it would be a combination of looking at my Nike+, flipping between time and pace to make sure I kept it up, or running fast between lamp-posts etc, so really more fartlek style. I like the fact that these tell me how fast to go and I manage to maintain that pace consistently, as oppose to my fake interval training where in realilty I must vary my speed all the time.

Anyway, the run was good,but I was glad to get home!

Time for some refreshing coconut water! My face does not look at all red, or in fact that sweaty and I have no idea why, as I was baking and dripping yet again!

Anyway, I am going to keep this up as I can see that it forces me to run faster than my comfort zone, which can only be a good thing.

While I am on the topic of running faster, I have a little plug for my beloved marathon talk. At the end of every interview they ask the question “if you could have 6 months of guaranteed perfect training dedicated to this, how fast could you run one mile?” and they have a little magic mile leader board. They are having a little magic mile summer challenge– basically you register on the site, and then between 1st -14th August you have to run one mile flat out, and log your time. There is some kind of complicated age ranked scoring system, and it is basically UK vs the world,with participation ranking higher than speedy times. So go on, sign up! I am! They even have a training plan, if you want to take it super seriously. 🙂

On Thursday it was body pump, and I did like the music a little more this time (phew). I found a couple of tracks a little easier (squats being one, although that may be because I have cut back the running miles for the moment) so I went a little heavier (although the lunges track is a killer)- I also went crazy and did full push ups! Well, we only have 4 at the start of the shoulder track (I normally do half girly ones- you know, on your knees but with hips low but I did used to be able to do full ones ages ago so I knew I was capable)- no going back to girly ones now!

Friday night we went to friends’ house for dinner, and I provided dessert. So, if you do not want to see cheesecake, STEP AWAY FROM THE COMPUTER / scroll down a bit as healthy stuff resumes further on.

It was a chocolate, caramel and hazelnut baked cheesecake from the new Hummingbird book. You made the base, chilled it, made the cheesecake mixture and then mixed half with caramel sauce, and half with melted chocolate- you can kind of see the layers. Then it was baked.

After chilling overnight it was topped with caramel sauce and roasted hazelnuts. Yum. My friends actually discussed kidnapping me and keeping me tied up in their kitchen- to be honest I would love to be baking all day haha!

OK- healthy stuff resuming alert!

I have had some tasty dinners, including lovely pasta with roasted veggies and pesto (one of my fave meals).

I topped this with a little reduced fat cheddar (which was on offer and it actually pretty nice- I do not normally go for the reduced cal/fat stuff, but it tastes nice). Yum.

This was lovely banana-cocoa-pb pudding topped with raspberries. Delicious.

Today I went out on a run- I did the route from 2 weeks ago, and actually 2 mins slower, but my legs felt really heavy. I think the extra weight from body pump and also the harder run yesterday probably didn’t help that. I did though have water with me (well, water with a nuun tab) which did help a lot. It was lovely, but I was in a hurry after as I had to get to my school summer fayre. Anyway, before I left I could not resist trying a Clif bar from my bloggie swap!

Yummy! It was scrumptious. Andy had a bite and said “will we be living on Clif bars this summer?” (as we are going to America) and then “do they sell them in supermarkets over there?”- US blog friends- where do they sell them?? And thanks again to Britt- what a super tasty parcel 🙂

Anyway, as it was hot I took some water with me to the fayre and then spent a few lovely hours, first manning a bouncy castle, and then wandering aboutin the sunshine. Love it. 🙂

So, how do you runners out there get faster? And have you signed up for the magic mile challenge? Go on, you know you want to!

🙂

So after work today (and my, it was sticky at work- 27C in my classroom when I remembered to look, and this was after the kids left so it would have been hotter) I decided to change my running route. I was going to do the 7ish mile loop, but a lot of this is in the sun, and I did not feel like going quite that far. I ended up going up to the lake, around the big lake (saw loads of goslings, some stuff fluffy and some with their adult feathers on), up a bit more and then doubled back on myself. After 4 miles I stopped and walked for about a minute just to try and cool myself down a bit. I had put a bottle of water in the fridge in the morning, and added a nuun tab to it, but it warmed up so quickly. Anyway, the run ended up being 6 miles, taking me 65 minutes, which in that heat was not too bad. I was totally pouring when I got home though- it is so sticky today!

Once home it was time for some lovely cold coconut water- lovely 🙂

As promised, some pictures of less baking and more healthy foods!

So breakfast- I could not face porridge in this heat!

This was lovely Rude Health crispy muesli, with a chopped apple and milk- so refreshing in the morning.

Dinner was version 2.0 of Saturday’s dinner. I cooked the rest of the quinoa (red and white stuff) with a little tomato puree, water, spinach and beetroot, and put some falafels on top. Then once cooked I served it on the rest of the spinach, drizzled with raspberry basil dressing (which is amazing by the way). Super tasty. I also had some cherries- hooray! They have been out of stock fot ages so I was so pleased to get some this week. Yum.

Now, I am not complaining about this weather, as it is lovely to have some warmth and sunshine. But, I wonder how people manage to keep going with workouts and stuff like that in this heat? Our gym occasionally has real air-con, but mostly it consists of wedging the fire exit open with a heavy weight. I know there is the standard advice of going out early/ late, drinking more, easing off a bit and so on. I did go slower, and took water with me today (and I did think that I should have got up early and gone before work, but anyway)- but this warm weather has leapt up, whereas normally it is more gradual so you get used to it more.

So, hot weather training tips?

🙂

Hey guys.

First, glad you are all (mostly) enjoying Wimbledon.

Second of all, I got an email today from someone called Lee Gant who works on ITV’s The Biggest Loser (so by getting this email I am thinking it is bloggie big time). He wanted me to give a little shout out for potential contestants (I nearly wrote customers there) on my blog, so here is the information:

‘The Biggest Loser is back and we are on a nationwide search for duos of friends and relatives and couples that are desperate to lose weight. The programme aims to take these people through a structured plan of rigorous exercise, training and diets in order to help them attain their dream physique.

Last year’s winner Wil Graham lost a staggering eight and a half stone. As if that wasn’t enough he also went home with £25,000!

If you’re ready to transform your life, and have someone to share the journey with you, then apply to be on the new series of The Biggest Loser.

Go to www.biggestloseruk.com for further details and to fill out an application form.

Or if you prefer, you can e-mail us at biggest.loser@shine.tv, or simply call our voicemail box on 0844 6780 156 and leave your name, address and contact telephone number. We will send you an application form with a SAE.

(Calls cost 5ppm including VAT)’

So, the info is there in case anyone fancies acting on it (or knows someone who would- I always wondered how they got contestants for things like that).

And now normal service resumes.

Breakfast was lovely today- I had some frozen blackberries (still trying to empty the freezer so we can defrost it) and so I put them in my porridge. Yum I just love berries (and cinnamon) in porridge.

After work I had a cereal bar for some energy;

This gave me quite a sugar boost I think! Some nice seeds in there, and dried cranberries, but also the yoghurt coating, although it went quite well with this bar, whereas on some I find the yoghurt coating a bit too sweet. Maybe the seeds and other things kept the actual bar less sweet.

Anyway, then it was time for a run. My calves have been stiff all day (it was a different instructor at aerobics last night, and I do not think I stretched enough after), but I was keen to try the next Audiofuel one. It turned out to be the same, but each section was 5 steps per min faster (so we got up to 180, I say we, I mean me and Martin Yelling of course). The recovery pasts still felt slow (but not quite as bad) but the fast bit was hard- by the end of the final fast interval I was finding it hard to get my breath! But that is a good thing! Then I came home and did the yoga for runners podcast, which I think really helped stretch out my muscles.

Then I had another freezer meal- a lentil, kidney bean and veggie chilli with added spinach and frozen broccoli. Bonus points for me all round today!

I was thinking today- association vs disassociation. When I first started running I would do anything to take my mind off the run (eg listen to music, think about other things) but since listening to marathon talk I have been trying to think about the actual running a bit more. I have read articles before about this, and how people like Paula Radcliffe focus on their running and form and breathing etc as this helps them improve and perform. I was worried that the Audiofuel podcasts would seem too hard as I would not be able to think about something else, but I think it is really good for me to have the little reminders about keeping my shoulders relaxed and so on. During body pump I tend to try and focus on how strong I feel, as I think the positive mindset helps me achieve, and it is hard not to think about it while your muscles are burning!

So which kind of exerciser are you? Do you think about what you are doing, or try to take your mind off it?

🙂