My “old favourite” trainers, and trying to find a replacement

I’ve been through many trainers in my running career so far. When I started out with my run/walk sessions, I just wore my normal leisure trainers (most probably skechers), and then I swapped over to Nikes as Andy got me a Nike+ wrist watch (you put a little sensor in the sole of the shoe and it tracked your distance).  It was a long time before I plucked up the courage to go to a shop (I don’t look like a runner, what am I doing in that sort of shop?) and have the gait analysis.

I started on some Mizunos, and I totally loved them, but after a year they were less springy. I went back to the shop and the salesperson said that as I had no problems with them, I should stick with them, but the same version was not available so I got the newer one. Alas, the newer ones just never felt right, I could not put my finger on it, so I took a chance and ordered some pretty looking shoes online. They were Asics Gel DS 19’s (and in fact I had to swap them as I originally ordered size 5.5 and needed a 6).

I still have them. I loved how comfy they were, and they saw me through many races including the Brighton marathon. After that they felt pretty flat so I went back to get gait analysis. I was between a pair of Brooks and a pair of Asics, but as I had loved these so much, I stuck with Asics, and the new pair (Gel Kayano 21’s) were fab, so when I got the parkrun monthly prize I got a second identical pair.  Since then I have mainly bought shoes online in the sales, and I have pretty much stuck to Asics (including for trail shoes). My current favourites are Asics GT2000’s, but they are reaching the end of their life (464 miles according to Strava- my Kayanos got to 590 and then 470 before I replaced them), so it was perfect timing when Millet Sports offered to send me a pair of Asics. Even better, the newest version of my favourite ever ones, Gel DS 22’s were on the list.

They are so pretty! More importantly, they are so comfy. As with all trainers I wore them around the house for a bit, mainly to sort out how tightly to tie the laces (and also to admire the colours before they start getting muddy), but I don’t think running shoes should need breaking in. The first outing ended up being a 9.5 mile run out to Panshanger park and back. It was a fairly slow run as my back had been sore (my fault for doing my work on the sofa the day before instead of sitting at my desk), so I ended up stopping in the middle to stretch out my back and admire the view. There’s a bench on a hillside so I enjoyed the view for a bit before heading home.

The Millet Sports website lists that these shoes have:

– Flytefoam midsole
– Propulsion Trusstic
– Impact Guidance System
– External Clutch counter
– PU Duosole
– Wet grip rubber forefoot
– Rearfoot GEL cushioning
– Ortholite sockliner

But I have no idea what most of those things mean. All I know is that they feel supportive but also very light and springy. I do overpronate a bit (I tend to flick one leg out to the side) but I don’t like the feel of the really chunky trainers. These seem a good middle ground to me, and so far they are going well.

I think these may be my new favourites! I shall need to keep an eye for the Gel DS in the sales next time I need to add another pair into rotation.

Onto some general bits:

Alpacas:

On my way home from the long run I tried to take a photo of the alpaca (or llama) but it was hiding behind some bushes- how inconsiderate!

Trees:

Since we moved we have not liked this huge tree, (it towers over the house and you can see it from the front of the house). We had to apply for permission to have it cut down as there are tree preservation orders in our town, but we were granted permission provided we replace it with a different tree (apple, cherry, basically nice trees that blossom).

This week it was finally taken down- hooray! It makes a huge difference to the amount of light upstairs and also means we have a much bigger garden now.

Funny Facebook stuff from April:

This was actually for the Easter weekend, and it made me laugh a lot. We didn’t quite have that for this past weekend, but I love the idea of it still.

Cake and National Trust visits:

I made a carrot cake (in fact, two, one to take to work) as it was my birthday this week. It’s fab having my birthday around the time of the May Bank holiday as it means I get a long weekend to celebrate- after going to Winchester and Southampton we visited a few National Trust places in Surrey on the Sunday, before coming home.

Polesdon Lacey National Trust house and gardens (complete with fluffy llama toys to spot in each room in commemoration of a trip that the owner made to South America).

Claremont gardens- loads of goslings about.

The ultimate marzipan combination!

On Monday after my long run, we walked into town for breakfast, and later Andy’s parents popped over for tea and cake, ending a long weekend in a very relaxing way.

Car annoyance:

I had not driven my car all weekend, and as I went to go to work on Tuesday morning, I had a completely flat tyre. What bad luck! Any other time I would have spotted it over the weekend.

The AA person changed it and found a screw in it (I’d already had the same tyre patched fairly recently, but it wasn’t in the same place)- luckily Kwik Fit had the right size tyres in stock but I was late for work which was a very stressful start!

I was running a meeting after work, but after that was finished I popped over to see my mum for a bit before coming home (and then, my mum had given me some eggs in a bowl, so after driving home carefully with the bowl on my passenger seat, when I was putting them away I dropped one and somehow it fell under the fridge and then smashed. As I was crouching down trying to see it, my hair got caught on the lace hooks of Andy’s walking shoes- it wasn’t my day!)- anyway, Andy had ordered this canvas for my birthday- photos from our trip to South Africa last year. I loved seeing the penguins so much, and of course the safari was amazing, so to have a reminder up on the wall is just fantastic.

Do you go for gait analysis or do you buy online? What did you get up to over the long weekend? Do you print many holiday photos? My dad always makes lovely photo books now, and they are lovely to look through. We have a couple and I think we should make some more but they do take a while to make.

*I was provided the shoes for free in exchange for a mention on my blog. All opinions are my own.

Winchester parkrun

On Friday night, after having dinner at home, we drove down to Winchester (this took longer because it was hard to find out online if the M3 was closed- it was)- we’d booked a Premier Inn in the sale a while back- handily it was about 0.8 miles to the start of the parkrun, so that was my plan for the morning.

After Harrogate-gate (can you have a double gate?) I had checked and re-checked the map several times. The start was easier to find, as it was by a leisure centre, which in turn was close to the town centre.

I got there in plenty of time- I came across a couple of people setting out the markers, and then I had to walk through the car park (I saw lots of runners heading that way) to the actual start in the middle of a cricket field.

I loved their sign too- I have seen these at a few places (we just have a sign on a clipboard, although lots of people notice it).

I had time to wander around and look at the long finish funnel- the cones they use remind me of PE lessons at school, and Sports Day. I also chatted briefly to a first-timer who had decided to join up, and the tail runner who was reassuring all the new runners that they wouldn’t be left behind.

It was fairly chilly first thing (you could see your breath) but I took my long sleeved top off as I knew I would heat up as I started to run, and I wanted something warm to put on after. Andy was going to meet me in town so I messaged him and asked him to bring my raincoat as I thought I might want another layer.

The first timer briefing was great- the guy tried to explain the course (I had thought it was three laps, but it was more like two and a little bit repeated, although I read later on that it was a trial so maybe they were changing it a bit)- it sounded so complicated though as there are four fields that we would run around, doing hairpin bends to join the adjacent field, as well as running along by the river for a bit. Basically, the rule is “follow the person in front” as per usual.

At the start we were reminded to watch out for the “cricket things” (I have no idea what they are called either)- they had marshal standing by them as they are these huge white board things with legs sticking out on either side- you would not want to run into one of those.

I really enjoyed it. Even though it was busy (they broke their attendance record with 373 runners) apart from the first few metres it didn’t feel busy. The course was super flat, going around the edges of grassy fields- at a few points you had to watch your footing as there were roots growing out of the ground, and then you had a little bit on tarmac by the river.

There were some brilliant marshals, including one lady with pom-poms! I shall be stealing that idea and borrowing some from work for next time I am a marshal- it takes it to the next level.

Both feet off the ground!

They had a photographer out on course (all put on flicker) – he was at a few different places so managed to capture people at the start, at the mid way point and going for the finish.

I felt like I had gone fairly fast- I was overtaking people most of the way, but as I had started my watch at the hotel I wasn’t sure of the speed. I had to stop just short of the finish line as the queue was backing out onto the course.

It was still like that after I had scanned my token in- there were marshals and the RD trying to get people to move on, and they have posted on their facebook page that they are going to make the funnel longer for next week- they clearly weren’t expecting such a huge amount of people. I saw lots of people in the Southampton 10k and half t-shirts- I am sure there was a marathon too but I didn’t see any of those. Anyway, someone else commented that maybe it was the “marathon effect”- eg people see London on TV and decide to sign up to parkrun. It’s all good, whatever the reasons.

One marshal saw my orange top and asked me how I had found it. I really liked it. I think as it wasn’t straight laps- they were complicated- it added more interest. I also didn’t get lapped- I thought I would, but I think because you did 2 big laps and then one smaller one (or something) it meant I was past the finish line before the speedy ones came in.

It felt very Southern-English, with the cricket stuff going on, and a sort of village green feel. It was nice and flat, but varied scenery added to the interest.

Time for a quick photo before heading into town.

That was my 18th UK parkrun, and I managed to finish in 27.14- pretty quick for me.

Then, not my finest hour. I had messaged Andy and he was already in the Starbucks waiting to get breakfast. I looked at my phone, saw where the town was (I had passed the turning on my way to the park) and headed that way. It was all going fine, but I got to the main high street and could not see Starbucks. I could see a Pret, a Nerro, even a Costa, and I had started mumbling to myself about why wasn’t he in Pret. I got up maps on my phone, and tried to follow the dot, but whichever way I went I seemed to be getting further away. I messaged Andy to say I was lost, and then noticed that on the map the Starbucks was opposite Whittards- I had been stood outside Whittards as I messaged him. So I walked back down, and yes, Starbucks was pretty much right where I was when I messaged to say I was lost. Ooops.  parkrun tourism is making me work harder at using maps, but I am still not great!

We had a little wander around Winchester- it seemed a really nice place- nice and small but with some good little shops.

Then it was a quick walk back to the hotel for me to shower as we were then off to Southampton.

What are those cricket things called? Did you do any racing this weekend or last? Do you know people taking up running or joining up to parkruns?

A lovely week in the north round 2

So after our few days in Alnwick we headed to North Yorkshire, via Hadrian’s Wall.

Oh my word it was totally freezing! The wind was whipping off the moors and was just biting. After walking up to the wall, looking around for a bit, we found a National Trust place on the way to our hotel so decided to stop there.

I cannot remember where this was, but there were lambs wandering around in the car park. I love seeing the lambs.

The grounds had a walk to an old water mill, through some woods, so we walked first (saw some pretty flowers too) and then went to the tearoom, sharing a piece of chocolate and beetroot cake- I’ve never had it before and it was lovely. As someone with a bit of a thing about beetroot (I love it in salads but don’t like the idea of it in a smoothie because of the blood colour- I don’t know why) I was surprised that I liked it so much- you could taste a hint of beetroot- it made the chocolate cake taste a little earthy, but in a good way.

We had two full days in Askrigg- here we drove out to places in the surrounding area. Our B&B was lovely- for those days I went for their American-style pancakes, plus a bit of the freshly made fruit salad. I was very tempted by a hot cross bun one day (there was always toast, yoghurt and cereals out too, but I didn’t feel like I needed any of those extras alongside pancakes), but I managed to resist.

On one day we followed a walk in one of the books we had borrowed from the library, basically finding areas that they filmed at on the first series of The Trip. We spent a lot of time on our walk doing impressions of them doing impressions.

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This was me doing the “Ah-haaa” in the same place that Steve Coogan does.

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And back down in the bottom of the valley again.

We were fairly near the Wenslydale Cheese factory, so we headed there one afternoon to look around the shop (I’ve seen cheesemaking once before and it’s not something I am keen to repeat!) and we ended up having grilled cheese sandwiches and some tiffin. The sandwich was good (roasted veggies and rocket pesto or something) but the tiffin was so good as it had caramel in there too. One thing I really didn’t like was the samples room- I went in there as it had a bigger selection of jams and things- I got some raspberry and elderflower jam, and some blackcurrant and lavender, plus some for my mum- but there were piles of cubes of different types of cheese and people could help themselves- I am sure some people ate their own weight in free cheese samples, and even though they asked you to use hand santiser as you entered the room (for some reason, for health and safety, you couldn’t use cocktail sticks), I saw a lot of people who didn’t. Bleurgh.

Anyway, our sandwiches were good which is the most important thing.

One day we went to Ingleton Waterfalls- you pay to park in the car park and then have entry to the 4 or 5 mile walk up past waterfalls, along the tops of hillsides and back down past yet more waterfalls.

Some of it was fairly steep, and the weather went from being very warm if you were out of the wind, to being quite cold- layers were very much needed.

It was so impressive seeing so many waterfalls.

We had driven past this huge viaduct as it was fairly close to where we were staying, so one afternoon we parked up and walked up to it.

We ended up being so lucky with the weather too- we had a few spells of rain in the car but no rain when we were out walking. It didn’t last- on Easter Sunday we drove to Buxton and it rained a lot of the way so we didn’t stop off anywhere.

I was very pleased to see I was wearing rabbit socks (Easter Bunny?)- I hadn’t planned it- they were just the next ones in the suitcase! We walked into Buxton, then it rained some more so we had a drink while we waited for our restaurant reservation. As we were walking back it poured with rain again, and I had only done something like 8,000 steps. I had managed to go well above my 11,000 target for every day of the holiday so I ended up walking around our hotel room for a bit to get up to the right number.

On the Monday we walked into Buxton for breakfast in Caffe Nero (no cooked breakfasts any more!) and then decided to head straight home, so we had the afternoon to get ready for going back to work.

It was a lovely trip- so relaxing, with lots of walking, lots of fresh air, lots of tea room visits, and not a bit of work in sight. A very refreshing break.

Running without my Garmin (sort of)

This week I have eased back into my routine- I did a club run on Tuesday- we had a lovely run down to Stanborough lakes and back. It’s so good being lighter later as we can go off road more.

Yoga wasn’t on, and I had a course on Wednesday which meant a later start (9.30!)- I walked into town first thing to get a few bits, and after staring at a screen all day (how do people with office jobs manage?) we had a walk in the evening as my eyes just felt so weird.

On Thursday I decided to do some hill reps- there is a short but fairly steep hill along the old railway line- so I ran the mile there, then spent time running up and down the same section. The sky was blue when I left but turned black and then rained- I ran my fastest Strava segment on the way home as the rain wasn’t heavy but it looked like it could bucket it down any minute!

I mean, it doesn’t look at all steep here, but it is.

On Saturday some of our new runners were “graduating” at parkrun. I had offered to do the new runners briefing, and there ended up being loads of first timers, plus a few tourists (including one I chatted to who was from Brighton Hove Prom- it’s not often you know of a course that someone else has run as there are so many out there now).

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No idea why but I had decided to start my Garmin in the car park- I think I was thinking that if I was doing the briefing at 8.55 it wouldn’t leave much time for it to find the satellite, and I didn’t want it to be beeping through the briefing. It was fairly cold but I knew I would warm up so left my jumper in my bag hanging on the fence by the finish area.

Anyway, after finding out where the tourists were from (Blackhill- they would enjoy our flat course/ Panshanger- very local but still good to try a new one), welcoming the new runners and explaining the course, I headed to the start and chatted to a few of our club runners. I’ve had a sore shoulder this week and when it has been bad, breathing hard has hurt as the pain is sort of in the back, so I wasn’t really expecting anything speedy.

I’d seen one of our club runners (Milena) a bit ahead of me, and we can usually run a similar speed, so I decided to try and catch up with her. She was on a total mission- arms pumping and long legs striding out and going for it, so it took me until the 3km point to catch her. A few of our club were marshals – one who had run Brighton a few weeks ago, and two running London on Sunday, so I’d called out to them on my way past (either have you recovered/ good luck tomorrow).

I’d noticed that as we had started it was exactly 9am on my watch, and as I was going down the runway towards the end the time was 9.24, so I did wonder if I was going fairly fast. I was also completely surrounded by men (apart from Milena who was just behind me at that point). But then I worked out that I had just gone past the 4km point, so that was around 6 min per km, which would equal a 30 min 5k, which to be honest felt wrong as I felt I was going faster. But I know I can’t trust my maths when I run anyway! I didn’t bother looking at my Garmin, even though with hindsight it shows the current average so I think it would have shown how fast I was going.

I was pushing hard for the final half km, and still managed to overtake a couple of people. With the finish line in sight (maybe 20 metres to go) I decided to go for it and went past another guy. I was place 51 but that is hard to work out if it’s good or bad- it seems high up the field (and it was still mainly men finishing) but who knows. (It turns out I was 6th lady which must be one of my highest placings, and 2nd in my age cat- all those speedy runners are probably running London and so having a rest today!).

I saw a few of the runners from the briefing at the end- the guy had come from Blackhill it turns out was down because he was running the London marathon on the Sunday. I think with regards to the course we are lucky- I’ve been to quite a few now and lots of them, while being perfectly nice, as still really city centre parks closely surrounded by roads and buildings. Both Ellenbrook and Panshanger are wilder and more like countryside running- really pretty scenery.

Back to my time- My Strava gave me a clue- the first mile was 10.40 but that included walking and doing the briefing, the others were 8.46, 8.34 and then 8.30 for the final 0.4. Strava also thought I did one mile in 8.15 which sounds ridiculously fast.

Anyway, after going to the post office, having a shower and having a breakfast of hot cross buns and tea, I got my text through- a new course pb! 26.33! It’s a good 30 seconds quicker than my previous Ellenbrook pb, and only 4 seconds behind my all time pb set at St Albans back in 2013 (26.29). This time of year must be good for my running- nice and cool, solid ground (no mud). I was so pleased!

I have recently realised I can sort my results by time, so I could see I have now managed three beginning with 26, but the other two were both at St Albans in 2013.  I’d been inching closer to a sub 27 minute 5k for a bit, but this totally smashed it!

In effect running without my Garmin was interesting because I think sometimes I can see a fast number and then worry that I can’t keep it up, whereas this one was honestly run on feel- I should trust myself. Or maybe it was luck as it has only happened once!

We had a lovely walk around Panshanger later on, admiring the bluebells. I just need two Saturdays in a week so I can parkrun at both places.

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Later in the afternoon I had some work to catch up on, and also went through my blog emails- I found out that I had been chosen as one of the Vuelio top ten running blogs here– how lovely. A few blogs that I enjoy are also on the list (A Healthier Moo, The PhD Runner) and there are a few that I haven’t read but I always like to find new blogs to read so I’ll be checking the other ones out.

On Sunday I had an 8 mile out and back run and then watched a bit of the London marathon- I happened to be watching it as they were following a guy who was massively struggling to get to the finish- his legs had totally seized up and I really felt like the camera should cut away as he didn’t look good. Amazingly another runner wearing a Swansea Harriers vest stopped to help him (they were under the 3 hour finish time and so were all rocketing past him)- it was pretty emotional to watch. At first you could see the runner talking to him, pointing to the finish line and clearly telling him that he could do it. A marshal then came out and they draped his arms over their backs and helped him for the last few hundred metres- it just encapsulates how fantastic the running community is- I don’t think I would notice anyone in the last bit of a marathon, being so focused on just keeping the legs going and getting to the end, so the fact that this guy not only noticed him but stopped when he was so close himself to help someone else out was just fantastic. (BBC story here)

Which running blogs do you like to read? I much prefer blogs that are more in a personal diary form- ones with magazine style articles don’t tend to interest me as much.

What is your favourite volunteer role and which one have you benefited most from doing? I was so nervous before I did the first new runners briefing that my knees were actually shaking- I really hate public speaking. But doing a few of them has really helped (and I think going to other parkruns helps as you listen to the same briefing and realise that people just want to know about the course, no-one is being critical)- and probably this has helped my confidence when I have to do that sort of speaking at work too. I still don’t relish public speaking, but I don’t worry about the briefings any more which must be a good thing.

Did you watch any of the London marathon? (Or watch the Southampton/any other) Or were you running a marathon?  I did think that the guy who finished third in the men’s race looked pretty trashed by the end, whereas often they run so smoothly it looks fairly effortless. I had to rewind as by the time I had started watching the women’s race had finished- some impressive times recorded, and some great performances by Aly Dixon and Charlotte Purdue, although it was a shame that Jo Pavey didn’t finish. I still don’t think I would like to run London personally- the huge crowds really put me off, but it is an inspiring event to see on the TV.

A lovely week in the north- part 1

It always makes me laugh when I drive anywhere north from here as the road sign just says

“Stevenage

The North”

as if “The North” was one place. We did a fair bit of travelling about and managed to see lots of sights.

After our trip to Harrogate and Fountains Abbey, we drove to Durham.

We had a lovely day there, wandering around the town centre and walking by the river. We went into the cathedral too which was so impressive.

The river is in a sort of a u-bend shape so you could enter from one side of the town, walk along it for a while and end up not far from where you started- or cross over and walk back along the other side.

After a quick breakfast on the Monday morning we drove further north to our next destination, stopping off at a National Trust place on the way.

Cragside was the first house to be lit by electric lights, and was powered by hydroelectric power. I usually much prefer the gardens to the house, but this one was very interesting (some of the inventions were a bit Wallace and Gromit).

As well as walking around the gardens there was a big estate drive where you could stop off and walk around lakes or along trails.

This put the Blur song “Trimm Trabb” in my head after seeing it. I think it was actually a walk with different types of fitness equipment to test balance, agility and so on.

We stayed in Alnwick for three nights- we had a lovely B&B right in the centre of the town. They did a lovely breakfast (I had their “eggy bread” each day as it was so delicious, but there were loads of other options too)- they even bought in almond/soya milk and yoghurt for another guest who could not have dairy.

Also, they had locally blended loose leaf teas in the rooms as well as being served at breakfast- this was a big thumbs up from me!

Some of the time we stayed close to Alnwick- we’d bought a book about walks in Northumberland and they had some close by including a 3 mile one in the countryside around the town.

Sometimes we drove out towards the coast- we saw a few different castles and drove on the causeway to Lindisfarne (this was not so good for someone who is a bit panicky about forgetting things- we double checked the times that we could get back by-1.50pm- and then I spent a while wondering if it was 12.50 instead..). This was not helped by the signs posted everywhere with a photo of a car surrounded by water- I did not want us to end up like that!

Once we’d driven back to the mainland (and with plenty of time) we drove up to Berwick-Upon-Tweed and it was so strange seeing signs for Edinburgh- it made me realise how far we had driven. It was also totally freezing cold- I had regretted not wearing a thermal top that day!

We went to the Bari tea room one day and it was so relaxed with delicious home-made cakes. We’d had a long walk in the morning so shared some lemon cake.

We had glorious weather although on this walk out to a castle it was super windy- I am sure at points my hair was going full troll (vertical).

On our last afternoon there we were back in the B&B fairly early (4pm ish I think) so I headed out on a run- previously we had walked in a loop around the town- it turned out to be about 2 miles so I repeated it twice (with a photo stop half way to take pictures of the old railway building that is now a large book shop)  before popping to the Costa for a drink (it was sunny but with a really cold and strong wind)- although I regretted it right away because the service in Costa is always never faster than a snail’s pace and usually worse than a sloth. (We have one at a local cinema and sometimes I get a drink, and then spend ages wondering if I am missing the film or just the adverts while they painstakingly make the drink in slow motion…).

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We went to this bookshop for dinner as it had a lovely cafe inside- it’s an old railway station and a very large second hand book shop so great for a wander too.

After our few days in Northumberland we drove to Yorkshire for our next B&B, but I’ll save that for another post.

What would your breakfast of choice be? Andy usually goes for scrambled eggs and bacon on toast, but he did have the eggy bread one day as mine was tempting him each morning.

Do you prefer visiting houses or gardens?

Are the Costa’s near you slow at serving people or is it just all the ones I have visited?