Runners United: Where we support each other through the good runs, the bad runs and everything in between.

Oh Alex F is a legend in this house - love the "hairdryer" stories!

Getting to the end of this thread, people ... just sayin', like ....

Hi all, busy day today so not much time to catch up. Hope you're all well apart from the inevitable ShitFest. Just waiting for my turn - you know it's coming, just a question of when ......

Did a short run this morning, just a hilly 5k but managed to do it quite a bit faster than usual, so I is well pleased with myself . Not going to tell you the time as some of you lot could walk it faster, but it's progress for me, and these tiny victories are important! Tried a few of the "moves" from the circuit class last week to tide me over till Thursday's class - believe it or not there are bits of me still aching .....

Who was asking about HM? I follow Hal Higdon. I love that man.

DrNo about a minute per mile slower than your 10k pace; it should be easy peasy. If you cant stick that then do it as a progression run, so easy pace until the last 3 miles.

I am turning into the Alex Ferguson of the running thread (i.e. not very talented, but good at telling other people what to do!)...

I've been caught ... just watched [sings] it's the Goody Bag for the Stockport 10. I might have to enter.

OOOh Gawd the Northern Lights have struck our house again . Dh and ds have a real dose, not good when your house has only one loo.........so, as I am needed on nursing duties I am not doing my strength session tonight. In my kit so going to do 30 day shred instead.

cest you have inspired me to do the same. My 10k is in 2 weeks and I have a great chance to get a PB as my current PB of 55 mins was off road and undulating, and this a road race and flat. I am running with dh, BIL, SIL, and a friend plus 6 folk from work are running it. Previous results tell me I get so stressed stressing about where everyone else is so I will take the cest approach this time and see if it makes a difference.

Talking of HM plans, if anyone has a good one I am looking for one for Blackpool next year.

Plus, any idea on pace for my longer runs? I do hills, speedwork in the week, plus a 10k at between 8.5/9 mm depending on how I feel. When I do an 8/10 miler what should this be at? Thanks.

Oops sorry Debi - it's funny though! I mean, who on earth would go to the trouble of recording a song, getting all the club runners to pose with crap, edit it and put it on YouTube but its genius!

sticky ah bless you, me - an inspiration!? I'm very flattered, thank you. Do I inspire your 11.5 mile run then....?!

rhet I've replied. Thank you.

cest I agree, I just said to my friend that if we both do the 10 miler then best doing our own thing. Problem is she has no Garmin so I was her pacer. She's getting her own though. It's funny, she has always been a runner but she was just training on her treadmill until I started upping my miles for GNR then she was inspired and got back into road running and racing - so sticky I suppose I am an inspiration!

I plan to open bottle of wine tonight and have nice evening with DH as he's off tomorrow and I've not really had a drink for 2 months. Then I can get back into training next week.

wheely I heartily recommend chocolate bribes; DD mucked about for 2 days and then got on with it. Not happy about nursery I don't think - 2 accidents, but it's early days for her there. Came straight home and used her potty. She's a bit of a home bird, my girl :)

DrNo, charming and sociable individual that I am when I'm racing, I just tell them beforehand that I'm not going to be running with them and then when the race bell/ horn sounds I just stick my headphones in, wish them good luck, say goodbye and then completely ignore them!

To be honest, I can't even run with someone who runs a very similar time cos I need to run to my own race plan and splits. One of the friends I did my last HM with finished in 1.48.20 and I finished in 1.47.40... but he ran the first 5 - 6 miles at about 7.45 m/m which would have absolutely killed me over the full distance.

Absolutely know what you mean fanny about the sense of fulfilment... 'tis great and you do learn something about what you're capable of achieving if you set your mind to it.

That sounds like a gorgeous run sticky - frosty wood running in autumn sunshine is just the best!

SfX - great book, I might have to get it for dd2 ! BTW there's a Princess Alice Hospice santa run on 4th Dec (Bushey Park, 10K) or 11th (Richmond old deer park, 5K) . You have to wear a santa suit though, antlers or a hat I'm fine with but a whole santa suit ? I am 5 foot nothing, the suit would be 10 inches too long and i'd trip over...

I somehow managed to sneak in an almost 4.5 miles this morning (in between sorting out decorators, seeing my parents who were en route from Thailand to their home and before picking dd2 up). Had to pick up the pace a bit when I realised I might be late...

THink I'm going to give up on finding a HM plan - a closer look at the Paula one didn't work.. can't remember why though. So, I think I'll just increase my long run, do 1 interval run (or hills if not in gym), a tempo run and an easy run. That should do the job shouldn't it ? Starting properly next week which gives me 14 weeks.

Hope today went ok at nursery Rhet. I am potty training this weekend. DD2 doesn't go to nursery on Fridays so I have 3 days... gulp.... She's talking a good game at the moment and her nursery seem to think she's ready. Not sure I am though.

Evening all. Just marking my place

cest I am like you in that I hate setting off ina race with a friend as I feel I need to get ahead of them and if they are faster than me it screws up my pacing. How do you avoid it?

Debi
Im the same ibby when I am caught mning, daft is'nt it.

ibby actually she's been really good - it's me that's all stressy about for some deep-seated reason that I really would rather not think about . It's not a big deal - she's making good progress - I just don't want her to feel at all bad about it.

Best go and get her!

Forgot to say last night, am v pleased that you 3 weekend races had good weather, has been v v grot here in Norfolk all weekend. Just turned very..Novemberish.

Daren't look at Fanny's goody bag video in case get song on brain like Debi

Anyone else get embarrassed when caught MNetting? DH working at home today, and in hysterics as I quickly flip away from the MN screen. Even though I know he knows what I am doing.

Rhet worth remembering that nursery staff will have dealt with many more children and potties and toilets than any of us will ever deal with. Bonkers is right, they know a lot of tricks to encourage and motivate. Think I may have siad in a previous thread that I got myself v stressed with DS1 and toilet training. Made myself so miserable with it. That's over 10 years ago and seems so trivial now but at the time was a really BIG DEAL. Feel for you and DP.

Rhet and Peachy what I loved when DS2 was born was how helpful it was having DS1 around. For fetching and carrying things, and for entertaining DS2.

bonkers of course; no hurry at all. Hope you are right about nursery. I'll be able to tell as soon as I see her, depending on what clothes she's wearing!

Hey Rhet, can you give me another day before deciding about the Garmin? I'm hoping someone at work will have one I can have a look at. I don't work on Monday.

Hopefully the nursery staff will know just how to encourage and motivate your DD with the toilet training. In my experience they often do much better at nursery than at home. Good luck.

hello all; anyone want my Garmin 205? my new one is sitting in my bike bag and I am dying to go home and fiddle with it...even though I have way too much work to do to be contemplating such frippery.

fanny have PM'ed you - I need an email address to send pdf scan to...

Feeling anxious about DD's capacity to manage toilet training in nursery environment - she will want to get it right, but took one look at the toilet there and seemed very anxious. I'm sure she'll work it out - I just felt bad leaving her there to handle it without me. she's been doing so brilliantly at home, too

sticky that sounds like a gorgeous run. I'm jealous. But I've just come past Olympic Stadium on the train and am about to indulge in daydream about running there in March!

deb loved that video!

"it's the goody bag, for the Stockport 10, it's the goody bag for the Stockport 10"

several hours later

"it's the goody bag, for the Stockport 10, it's the goody bag for the Stockport 10"

several hours later

"it's the goody bag, for the Stockport 10, it's the goody bag for the Stockport 10"

FANNY I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!!!

Fanny that's wonderful! It sounds like you've really turned a corner, psychologically. You're an inspiration, my dear.

runnerstipple hope you get time to go out again soon. Definitely know what you mean about getting antsy: I was going slightly nuts by the end of half term!!

sfx I didn't get to do the park run, because poor old DP had to go to some silly research seminar (on a Saturday!), so I just went out for an hour by myself. Next week...:)

Had a lovely run this morning while the sun was still out and everything was frosty. 11.5 miles at 10.25m/m average, so very comfortable. Beautiful out, especially in the woods where all the fallen leaves were all sparkly with the frost. The fret's in now tho and it's got all dark. I want to hibernate!

Huge congratulations to all this weekends runners. Sounds like everyone exceeded their personal targets. I'm so inspired by the race reports and training talk. Have a mad week this week so not sure when I'll get out. I'm feeling angsty at not being able to get out there...

cest YES! Exactly like that, i just zoned into a place in my mind where I've never been before (well, probably went to a similar place when giving birth) but I have no idea how I got back from mile 12, I was chunnering away in my head, I must have looked crazy. At the GNR when I felt uncomfortable, I stepped back (understandable for first ever race) whereas at this race, I "raced" it. I bloody loved it, I think I'm made for racing as it has totally turned my running around. it has given me a huge sense of purpose and fulfilment. I was too frightened as a child to fail so didn't do anything. It's funny how you learn so much about yourself from one half marathon. Yesterday feels like I finally completed a task that I set out to do and I shocked myself!

Sorry for going on about my race everyone. I'll shut up now.

fanny I know, you did so well mate! I just can't run with other people in a race. Love having a friend there at the start to chat with whilst you're waiting for it all to kick off but I've absolutely got to run at my own pace every step of the way.

Well done on both properly planning your race and pushing yourself. On my fastest HM this year it was soooo tempting to go that bit too fast at the start when it was feeling easy and to not use the downhills to recover from the uphills but it helped massively on the last few miles.

Last couple of miles was just all in the head for me. By that point your body's just screaming at you "slow down a bit, you'll only lose few seconds, you'll feel so much better" and you just have to separate your mind from your body. I remember just focusing on holding pace, counting down each 500m through the pace and concentrating on technique and trying ignore everything your body's saying. It's kind of a weird feeling actually - your body just becomes this 'thing' carrying 'you' along. Hmmmm, slightly metaphysical thought there actually! Does anyone else ever get that?

Thanks sonic!

cest I DID IT!!!! . I truly didn't think i would you know. It was very hard, last 2 miles mentally and physically pushed me to my limits and I couldn't have shaves 0.001 of a second off that time. There are places on the course (few downhill bits) where I could have speeded up (my friend did) but I took those places to recover and it bode me well. Beauty of it was it was a flat course in comparison to where I train. That race taught me a hell of a lot re how I mentally can push myself past my comfort zone. I don't have a killer instinct to compete against other people and actually didn't enjoy running against my friend much. I felt like she was wanting to be a step ahead and I kept losing my concentration. That's competitiveness for you but I don't tend to have it with other people, only myself. Looking forward to next race, I'm going to enter Stockport 10, good training race for my next HM in Jan. how's things with you?

Well done all the weekend racers! All did great times and got what you were looking for... something in the autumn air perhaps? Actually, maybe it it is - apart from everything looking stunning whilst you're out there, the weather's perfect for running.

Great race rhet. Sounds like you enjoyed it and found it comfortable (which is quite staggering given the inclines involved!) Everyone worries endlessly about what happens to your family when the next one arrives, but it always seems to work itself out. Good you've had the opportunity to spend lots of time with DD in the meantime as well.

Futurity well done on getting under an hour - you must be well chuffed

And fanny, fantastic, well done you! That is such a result and bloody fantastic progress knocking that much time off your last run. Absolutely amazing improvement, you are flying! You were properly under 1.50 as well. Hate it to say it, but well done as well on running hard enough to make you throw up - you just know you've pushed yourself as hard as you can when you get to that point! Lots of mental determination there.

sfx sounds gorgeous and I'm very jealous - wished I lived near enough there to run. Thanks for best wishes for the move.

sonic, hate to say but agree with other people. You could definitely do it but if you're competitive (like, um, me) you'll just end up pushing yourself too hard and putting yourself out of action for a while...

How're you doing peaches? Under 2 weeks now and counting....!