A Race Against the Wind

Blackpool: 'Kiss Me Quick' hats, Pleasure Beach, Drunken Brits and the scene of the Great North West Half Marathon 2011. The windiest day on record - my records that is - and throroughly enjoyable!

The wind speed may have broken records, but I certainly didn't. However, that wasn't what I set out to do. Injuring myself 3 weeks ago has meant that I've run a lot less than I had intended to over the last few weeks and my training plan has had to undergo a number of small tweeks. So today wasn't about time; it was about finishing the race (in one piece!). Which I did. The fact that I had a whale of a time whilst doing is the icing, so to speak, on the cake... actually, I'm not a massive fan of icing, so it's probably more the buttercream!

The race starts at the Norbreck Castle. I had never seen this hotel before and therefore did not expect it to actually look like a castle; I don't know why as despite never having visited this particular hotel, I have been to Blackpool several times and am well aquianted with the tacky, vulgar, cheap, nasty, tawdry ostentatious nature of the town. However, at the cost of only 14 English pounds a night it is, perhaps, well worth checking out if you ever find yourself needing to stay a night in the Great British seaside resort of the North West... what? It could happen!


The picture doesn't do it justice... it's nowhere near as swish as this!

Chip acquired, Sara and I sneaked headed upstairs to see if we could find a toilet that didn't have another 100 women stood outside of it. We found a very lovely housekeeper who let us into one of the rooms - thank you lovely housekeeper (though why I think you may be reading this, I have no idea!). It was at this point that we realised we only had 10 minutes until the race started - so much for a warm-up! - so found our way very quickly back to the others and out to the start line. It's a good job the race is chip timed as I failed to start my Garmin when I crossed the start line and didn't realise until 2 miles into the race that I was not recording my times. Still, as I wasn't 'racing' I quickly put it out of my mind and concentrated on keeping good form and a steady pace.

Taking Chad along for the ride, I used the Audiofuel tracks to keep a steady rhythm, but also motivate me throughout the race; I find the music highly stimulating whilst I'm running and Chad's little pick-me-ups along the way are great for PRB too... 'You're doing well, keep a steady pace and move your feet to the rhythm' he told me, 'one two three four, one two three four...' brilliant! And particularly useful when I turned the corner at the 3 mile mark and found myself hitting a brick wall... of wind! Seriously, there is no overexaggeration here; I'm not employing hyperbole to add drama or excitement. The wind was ferocious. Pushing, knocking, whipping me as I battled with all my might against it. I was just beginning to wonder how much longer we'd have to run in that direction, when I started running towards people coming back the other way. 'Wow,' I thought to myself, 'I'm only 5 1/2 miles in, they must be running fast to be there... and then I saw Dom: 'DOM! DOM! WELL DONE!!!' I yelled across the cones, waving madly; I found out later my cheerleading skills had done their job and cheered him right up! I, however, had another 4 miles in my fight against the gale, until respite came as we turned the corner onto the promenade. With the sea, once again, on our right the wind subsided.

Feeling good, I picked up my pace and enjoyed the sights of the seaside as I ran to the beat for miles 7 to 10.5. A feeling of déjà vu hit as I turned the same corner onto the top promenade as I had at mile 3 earlier on, but someone had added a hill... How rude! I swear it hadn't been there before. It was at this point I realised I was now running alongside a group of women and a man with a bright pink 2.11 sign. Assuming that this wasn't some secret running cult called the 2.11's, and was rather a group of runners aiming to finish in 2 hours 11 minutes, I fell in beside them. Well, actually if I'm brutally honest, I ran past them on the down and they ran past me on the up... up, down, up, down, whip, push, whip, push... and then I saw Pete. 'Yay!' I thought as he fell into step beside me 'I must be near the end!'. A little more battling with the wind and I turned onto the lower promenade again. With the sea now back on my right, the wind behind me, and the finish line in sight, I thought it best to pick up the pace: 'Just 3 minutes left to go' I heard the Pacer tell his ladies. 'Not on your nelly' I thought 'I can run faster than that.' So I did. Making my final pace to the finish line a very respectable 7 minute miler (obviously that was for a fraction of a mile, not the whole thing, but very respectable all the same!).

Receiving my medal with pride, we headed back up to 'The Castle', where I diligently carried out my physio 'bum' exercises and attempted to run just about managed a mile cool down.

All in all, the Great North West Half Marathon is a great race. Granted, it doesn't offer the most inspiring scenery, and there is a fair bit of to-ing and fro-ing along the sea front, but it's very well managed and has a great atmosphere about it. The times were even posted on a wall in the hotel before we left; an added bonus due to my Garmin neglection at the start line. My time was 2:10:14; like I said, I didn't break any records, but I did run the whole way, my knee didn't hurt and I feel Grrrrreat!

Distance: 14 miles (including cool down)
Feeling: Grrrrrrreat!
Weather: sunny and ferociously windy!

Darkness, Dogs and Zombies...

With the Great North West Half Marathon, the first club race of 2011, looming on Sunday morning it was an easy run around the sights of Chadderton tonight. Pete had the novel idea of picking different people to choose where we went on each mile of our run, but then the people he picked didn't choose a novel route and we ended up stomping the same streets we always do... what I can I say, we're creatures of habit!

In Pete's attempt to take us somewhere different in mile 4, we ended up down a darkened road, that could have been the beginning of a horror movie, with a vicious barking dog on the other side (thankfully) of an adjoining fence; at which point Paula's off-hand comment from the start of the run was ringing in my ears...

Passing another group of runners coming in the opposite direction, we met just as the road narrowed; sidling past each other, nodding our 'hellos', Paula said 'Ooooh, it's like that scene in 'Shaun of the Dead, when they meet that other gang in the alley'...




Shaun's gang meet Jessica's gang... just like passing other runners!


Thankfully there were no Zombie encounters on the run. But I am well prepared in case some turn up in my garden tonight...

Distance: 5.26 miles
Feeling: good
Weather: quite warm.

My first bike ride... in Manchester!

I went out on my new toy today for the first time...

My new bike: Raleigh Folda

I've had it a little over a week but, other than in Centre Parcs, I haven't ridden a bike since I was about 14 years old and I've been a little apprehensive about taking it out in the 'Big City'. Funnily enough it was a little folding bike that I had back then. The difference is that when I was the difficult age of 14 I was fully embarassed by my shameful folding bike and the stupid helmet that my dad made me wear; 18 years on and I donned my incrediably cute white and pink helmet with pride, as I set off on my adorable, teeny, folding bike which fits neatly in the cupboard under the stairs so no nasty chavs can steal it!

So much so, that when I (obviously) ran into (metaphorically speaking!) the 3 biggest tearaways 3 young students, from my happy place of work, I responded to their raucous laughter and with an enormous cheesy grin and over exaggerated wave. Apparantly, this is highly embarassing for a teenager:

'Do you know her?' I heard one of their aquintances ask

'Eugh, no, ummmm, no... she's a teacher...' was the hasty reply.

Which made me glow greater with pride at my accomplishment - I am officially an embarassing adult and unlike my Dad, I didn't have to start Morris Dancing to achieve it!

The reason for my outing on the bike was two-fold:
1. To check out the route to work, as when the mornings become lighter I will be taking the opportunity to embarass even more teenagers en-route in the mornings;
2. To get in some cardiovascular exercise as my calves were bruised this morning, and the physio had said I shouldn't run if they were. I have to admit, I am a little proud of the bruising as it is proof that it really did hurt!!

Unfortunately, the heavens opened on my return jouney, which I was not adequately dressed for - lesson learned - and consequently soaked me through! However, all in all, it was a successfuly outing as it seems  that cycling is great relief for sore calf muscles - who'd have thought it - and I've spent the rest of the day pain free... wonderful.

Bike Distance: 6.76 miles
Feeling: helped relieve my aches and pains, particularly my bruised calves... yes! bruised!!!!
Weather: dry on the way out, bloody wet on the way back!

Ouwwwwch!

I'm in pain. Suffering. Barely able to walk. Why? 'Oh no, not another injury?' I hear you cry. No, thankfully I will not be out of action for another 2 weeks, but I will be cursing the word 'Physio' for another few days I'm sure; two words: sports massage.

Oh my! I have not felt pain like it. The last time she got her hands on my, she must have been holding back; maybe it's a cunning ploy to make sure you return again, after all if she'd inflicted a similar amount of pain on me the first time, I may have been less inclined to book an appointment for today! Although she gave all of my major muscle groups a torturous pummelling massage, it is my calves that have born the brunt of it: 'You've very tight calves, especially the left.' she observed.
'Yes, it does hurt a bit.' I attempted to reply through gritted teeth.
'I'm sorry' she faux apologised, 'I am spending quite a bit of time on them, as I'm concerned that they're overtight and could too easily sustain an injury so I really want to get into them.'
'It's okay' I gasped as my foot quivered from the pain inflicted above it, 'I know it's for the best.'

Which of course, is true. However, I am now unable to sit down as whenever I do I'm unable to start walking again. As a consequence I have been incrediably active this afternoon, walking everywhere I usually would have driven; which can only be a good thing. Saying that, I'm now clearly going to be stuck in the spare room for the rest of the night as I'm never going to be able to move from this computer!


Good news though... my bum mantra works! I've already started firing my glutes first after only 2 weeks of practise! I told Jo (evil physio) about my mantra and, after she'd finished laughing, she said that theoretically it makes perfect sense; technically the muscles should be firing subconsciously, but as mine weren't, consciously thinking about them should cause them to fire... which it does. So my bum mantra doesn't seem so silly after all now!

I also told her about my disintegrated shoe, the common overwear on all my left running shoes and the way my running coach has noticed that I run higher up on my right foot than my left even when I'm consciously trying to stay off my toes on both. She has suggested that I see a podiatrist as it could be that I have one leg slightly shorter than the other; it's unlikely to be much more than millimetres but with the increase in running activity, it would explain some of the musculoskeletal issues I am having. Unfortunately, a short research spell on the internet has revealed that podiatrists are a tad on the expensive side;  my friend has pointed me in the direction of University of Salford who run a clinic at a fraction of the cost so it's fingers crossed I can get an appointment with them, or I think I might be asking my friendly local doctor for a referral.

So, things I have learnt today are:
1. Sports massage is good for you... but oh my it is sooooooo painful.
2. I may have to cut a little bit off my left leg to make it the same length as my right.
3. My bum mantra totally works.
4. If a physio gives you exercises to do... do them... they work!
5. If I tell myself 'I'm not going to eat chocolate today', it's all I think about... Mmmmmmm chocolate...

New Shooooooes!

Well, new shoes have been purchased. I went to Road and Fell Running in Stockport, which is just a tiny shop, but stocks quite a few different brands of shoes and is run by a guy who has been running for years himself. My reasoning was that this would be the best place to get some knowledgable advice, rather than say JJB (other massive chain sports stores are available!). Despite thinking I didn't really know what I was looking for, when I started speaking to the guy about what I wanted from my trainer, it became clear that I actually had some very specific thoughts about what I wanted... very specific!

Thanks to the advice Gary left in his comment, I had turned over all of my old road running shoes and discovered that all of them were worn in exactly the same places. Contrary to previous belief, my shoes suggest that I am quite a neutral runner, although definitely a forefoot, and the wear on my left foot is slightly different to that on my right; the left wearing more prominently than the right and towards the outside of the sole, whereas the wear on the right is much more central. I relayed this information, to the nice running shop owner, and also my desire for a lightweight trainer, not too cushioned or too stable that would enable me greater propreoception with the ground (look at me with my big jargony words!). Paying heed to Gary's advice again, which I thought made perfect sense, I also noted that I didn't want anything too pricey as that was I'll be able to afford new ones more often. Finally, I told him I would need it to run a marathon, which prompted a very intersting conversations about marathons - he's run around 50... 50!! and consequently has moved onto the greater challenge of Ultras. It has yet to be seen whether I'll cope with this one marathon at the moment, so I am in great awe of people who can accomplish the Ultra distances! Anyway, moving back to the shoes, he suggested the lightest trainer he stocked: the Brooks Defyance 3.

Size 5...no... size 6... yes... laced up... feeling good... treadmill run... still feeling good... speed up a bit... like the feel... light...not too clunky... holds the foot well... am I running properly?... yes... do I like these trainers?... a lot actually!... slow treadmill... off.

Nice running shop owner showed me some Asics, the next lightweight ones, but not as lightweight as the others. Size 6 straight away this time - why are trainers different sizes to normal shoes? - and back to the treadmill; only this time, I didn't bother getting on because they felt uncomfortable to stand in, especially when compared to the Brooks I'd just been wearing. A little further discussion with the nice running shop owner, another wear of the Brooks and it was clear my decision was made; they felt good. Really good. And that's got to be one of the most important factors hasn't it?

So I am now the proud owner of a new pair of Brooks Defyance 3 - Oh, and I got a 10% discount as I'm a member of a running club... bonus! - and very much looking forward to our first outing together at running club; it's fingers crossed the new shoes and I are still loving each other by the end of tonight's first date!

My new shoes: Brooks Defyance 3

 Update:

So far, so good! My new shoes have caused me no bother whatsoever, in fact they're positively comfortable - something I've never experienced from a pair of brand new shoes before - so I don't think they're going to take much 'breaking in' which is great.

Another positive is I completed a full session at club - fast hill intervals, up and down - with no pain in my knee; a few niggles here and there in the muscles on my right leg, but when isn't there?!

And finally, I've adapted my mantra to account for the need to sit back off my toes a little more so now, whilst running, I say this: 'bum, bum engage my bum, heels, heels, softly, softly... bum, bum, engage my bum, heels, heels, softly, softly...'. Only this time it wasn't restricted to inside my own head as I shared with Paula, so now she has also adopted my 'bum, bum, engage my bum' mantra. We also had a good five minutes of marvelling over the pure genius of being able to think about your bum and ergo it's engaged... the human body is a wondrous thing!

Distance: 4.42 miles.
Feeling: like it's all a lot of hard work at the moment, but good all the same!
Weather: milder than before and wet in the air - but not raining!

I think I need new shoes...

I have been complaining of a 'squelching' sound coming from my left foot, when running in the rain, for some time now. For some reason, I had not connected this with a need to check the sole of my trainers. In fact, it was not even this that lead me to eventually lift my trainers up and check their undercarriage; rather it was reading around various forums on Real Buzz and Runner's World looking for general views as to whether I should change my trainers now, with only 8 weeks to go before the Marathon.

You see, I realised that I've been running in the same shoes since August, and although I alternate at times with my Asics, I tend to stick with my Newtons for most of my runs. Injury, as mentioned in a previous post, has caused me to think about my bum more when running: 'Where is your ass?' I now ask myself when running (obviously not out loud as that would be weird and would probably cause other members of the public to run very quickly in the opposite direction) with the aim of engaging my more efficient glutes instead of overusing my weedy hamstrings as I have been.

All of this then got me to thinking as to whether my trainers are even suitable for my running gait; which lead me to wonder what my running gait even is. I think I over-pronate, previous treadmill gait analysis would confirm this, however I also know it's possible to tell from looking at the wear of old trainers. Hence, this is what lead me to place my trusty trainers on the table in front of me where I 'analysed' the tread of six months' pavement pounding. It's not rocket science... I need new trainers:

Hmmm... are trainers supposed to have bits of rubber flapping around on the sole?!

The 'actuator lugs' on the underneath of the foot have actually worn away so much, all that is left is a little bit of flappy rubber! No wonder they're squelching! It's also obvious that I'm running too high up on my toes - which confirms why I've felt I'm sitting back more over my centre of gravity since I started thinking about my ass more - causing my hamstrings and calves to take on the task of propelling me forwards, rather than my glutes! All confirmation of what the physio had told me. It also confirms that I definitely do over-pronate, predominantly on my left foot.

The question is, what do I do about it? Should I buy another pair of Newton trainers? Has this proven that they're not right for my running gait or have they worn in this manner simply because I've run so far in them? If I don't buy Newtons, what do I go for? My Asics feel heavy and clumsy compared to these trainers, which is why I chose not to wear them so often. Also, I have a very narrow foot which places even greater difficultly on finding a pair that fits well.

Who knew that choosing trainers could be such a conundrum?

I'm going to have a further read of the internet to see if any solutions present themselves; but whatever the outcome, I'm afraid this particular pair of trainers have seen their day... fairwell old friends!

Can't stop long...

Well this is going to be the shortest post ever...

Ran today!

I'd tell you more, but my boyfriend and his brother are teasing me with their enjoyment of his new birthday present downstairs. All I can hear is uncontrollable laughter... and the word 'boosh'!? it's too intriguing!

 

Kinnect!...

I'm going to play!

Distance: 3.77 miles
Feeling: a few niggles in places but nothing painful.
Weather: cold, wet underfoot.