runner united (we talk almost as fast as we run)

[drivingmisscrazy]

a thread for runners to chat, debate, share tips, triumphs (and the occasional disaster!) - new runners particularly welcome, the only thing that's required is enthusiasm (and a pair of running shoes)

29/05/11 - Stirling R4L: squix
29/05/11 - Plymouth Half Marathon: sungirltan
30/05/11 - BUPA 10K: MoshiMoshi
01/06/11 - BHF Canary Wharf 10K jog: june2009
05/06/11 - Tilty Hilly 5(mile): bonkers20
05/06/11 - RFL 10k: LaLa
08/06/11 - Claver Peak 5 miles: hatwoman
11/06/11 - Clumber Park R4L 10k Hamster
12/06/11 - Bath R4L 5k Dillinger
12/06/11 - Redcar half marathon - DrNortherner
12/06/11 - The Heroes half marathon - Futurity
19/06/11 - Dash for Dads - Pawsnclaws
19/06/11 - Half Ironman UK 70.3 - Twink, MoshiMoshi
25/06/11 - Lewa half marathon Kenya - Masterandmargaritas
26/06/11 - Stortford 10 miles - thecoo
26/06/11 - Colworth half marathon - cestlavie
06/07/11- Yately 10k (not actually booked yet): DebiTheScot
10/07/11 - RFL 5K, Kingston & Kempton Park: Wheelybug
10/07/11 - Felsted 10K: bonkers20
16/07/11 - Phoenix park 5 miler - drivingmisscrazy
17/07/11 - RFL St Albans - Pawsnclaws
17/07/11 - Dundee Half marathon - TheChewyToffeeMum
17/07/11- Chichester (Sprint) Triathlon: DebiTheScot
20/08/11 - Frank Duffy 10 mile, Dublin - drivingmisscrazy
03/09/11 - Dingle Half-Marathon - drivingmisscrazy
11/09/11 - Bristol Half- Marathon - thetasigmamum
18/09/11 - GNR: Hamster, Run for fun, popsycal, LaLa
23/09/11 - Notting Half Marathon: cestlavie
25/09/11 - Edinburgh Urbanathlon: backwardpossom
25/09/11 - Windsor Half Marathon: Doyouthinktheysaurus
02/10/11 - Standalone 10K: Futurity
02/10/11 - Bradford Half Marathon - MrsWednesday
02/10/11 - Baxter's River Ness 10k - backwardpossom
16/10/11 - Abingdon Marathon: MoshiMoshi
30/10/11 - Great South Run: Wheely, squix
19/02/12 - Brighton Half marathon - Wheely

DrNo feeling fine thanks...played netball last night and it was good to run around and burn off some energy. Last run is at running club on Thursday but that will be very short apparently. I just feel very lardy...must stop eating so much rubbish!

drivingmisscrazy we will hold hands at the back of the pack :) I have got faster since starting running 5 years ago but I still find it hard picking up the pace. Last week at running club we were encouraged to speed up for the last half mile (after having run 4.5 miles at 9.40 pace which is fast for me). I just couldn't do it..couldn't go faster at all and thought I was going to throw up! The lady I was running with (who is much taller than me) just ramped it up and sped off. I felt rubbish! I just get stuck in one gear and have no reserves.

Anyway...not going to stress about speed...(honest!)...will get Sunday out the way and then think about it :)

hello quick dip from behind books and notes

moshi glad it all went according to plan, here is hoping for a good recovery
LOL at Italians random smuttiness

good to read about the fantastic achievements

and thanks for the excuses accepted for lardiness

Hi everyone, hope all are well. Some great running going on. Moshi hope your mum is doing OK.

Just wanted to share the following with you, fact fans.

Starbucks cinammon swirl (gorgeously tasty gooey icing): 333 calories
Starbucks granola bar (nice enough but small and virtuous tasting): 425 calories.

I can't believe I chose the granola this morning! Obviously it would have been better to have nothing, but I have no willpower when in company. Thank goodness I only ever drink my coffee black, some of the calorie values for their drinks are shocking.

Am now having a nice grilled aubergine salad to make up for it - virtually no calories!!

Paws - how frustrating. But probably,on balance, the granola bar was better... does that make you feel any better ? No, thought not . FWIW, I drink my coffee black and its one of my great pleasures in life especially when I am being good. So imagine my amusement this morning when, after sitting through a maths workshop at school, dd2 and I popped in to costa where she promptly dunked her chocolate muffin into it making it undrinkable and them eat my wholemeal toast. Grrrr.

moshi - glad to hear it went well. I hope she makes a swift recovery.

Great running DrNo. So looking forward to reading yours and futurity's race reports.

Have a very twingy ankle area. Hmm. Hoping its the need for new shoes rather than an effect of upping mileage. Or it might be wearing birkies. Or running more offroad last week. Or any number of things. I had new trainers arrive this morning so fingers crossed. They are all shiny and nice anyway. Back to running around the puddles for me for a couple of weeks .

Good news about your mum moshi, what's next for her after she's recovered from this op?

Well done on the run Badger. I find that no matter how fast i run in a race and how much I think I'm about to keel over I can always manage a good sprint finish but I don't think I could go any faster.

My legs really ache today. Does anyone else get this after a drinking session? I went next door with the boys yest aft as it was neighbour's daughter's birthday. Had wine in hand by 5pm, went home at 7.30 to put boys to bed and then straight back for more wine. The killer was the sambuca shots that her husband made us drink! I cannot do this on a work night anymore! I was suffereing this morning. It was a nice way to end a long halfterm though.
The husband was telling me about a marathon relay in Maidenhead he's doing on Sunday with his work. It's meant to be up to 10 people doing 2.6 miles each (or more if less people) but a couple have dropped out. So I said I'd do it which he was delighted about as he has a misguided idea that I'm fast. But then it came out that they didn't have 10 people to start with and so I might have to do 5.2 miles. I haven't run more than 4.5 in a while but it should be ok. I need to have a sober conversation about it with him 1st though!

just went out for a pace run - 'fast', if you get my drift...about a 9min/mi which didn't feel too bad until the km where I really belted it (this is what a Garmin does for you!); but got rained on from a great height...

only 5k, but this weds run is a new one for me, usually it's been a rest day.

debi at least you did not commit yourself to doing and Ultra Marathon or something crazy like that

Have decided to take this week off training. Knees generally achey, left ankle now sore in sympathy too. Bah humbug. Still plenty training time for half marathon - I know I have the endurance to complete it now if I needed to - the training is mainly for speed.

ChewyToffee - I think there is some thing in this month's Runners World about knee pain - I think it's some exercises to do to strengthen knees or something

Moshi - good news, I hope her recovery goes well too.

Badger well done.

Futurity and DrNorthener - am getting very excited for you - hope you manage to get some rest in the run up and avoid sliding down the stairs on your backside after a glass of wine like I did injury over the next few days.

5 miles at lunch time for me today - just coming to the end of a cold (an enforced 3 rest days) so felt a wee bit laboured, but managed a decent enough pace for me.

Driving is that an extra day you are adding in to your training or have you swapped some other days round?

squix an extra day (sort of); I usually try to run 5 days, but more often than not it turns out to be 4. But out of term time now, so a bit easier. So it looks like this

mon:off
tues: 10k easy (will add a km as I go on)
weds: speed (intervals or tempo)
thurs: 8k easy (as above)
fri: 7k pace run (but easy if I'm tired)
sat: off
sun: long run - 15k but increasing each week - aiming to get up to about 24k before Sept

squix I am being very careful in everything I do! Last time I trained for a half marathon I got ill the week before and couldn't do it..I was gutted. It was the Royal Parks Half and I had trained for ages. Am being very careful this time and haven't even drunk any alcohol since started training although may treat myself to a glass if I get through the run on Sunday!

Squix - yeah, I saw that article but my knees are too sore to do the exercises! I think I will try and start doing them once I get back to normal though.

my workmate who ran a full marathon on Monday appears to have gone out and run a half marathon distance today! is that even possible?

phew - thank god, she says she can barely walk and got her dates wrong on the log...I was seriously worried for a minute there (I am slow, but intensely competitive - this is a very bad combo)

driving how do you get to read someone elses log?

Lol at you 'thanking God' as she can barely walk

I know, I know - I just needed evidence that she was human after all :o I'm sure she is exaggerating somewhat - she is a good runner and there's no way I'll be able to keep up with her in the half in September - I think she has designs on being placed in the W40 category.

we both use Running Ahead and it gives a feed to facebook - just day, time, distance and pace, but it keeps us on our toes!

Great news on your mum's operation Moshi, must be a relief to get this first stage over successfully.

paws, it is a tricky dilemma but your granola bar at least will have had nutritional value. Am frankly amazed at your restraint in not having the swirl, they are delish!!

Not long now DrNo and Futurity, very exciting!

sfx, I feel your pain. Studying requires large amounts of lard and sugar, scientific fact!!! I remember studying for my highrs, oooh many moons ago, and getting my way through one of those giant iced cookies, such as you get for your birthday from Millies Cookies and which is bigger than a dinner plate

Am [shocked] at the cinnamon swirl/granola comparison! I generally think I am reasonably knowledgeable about food and I realise that granola bars are not always the healthy option- but still!!

Very hard circuits session today courtesy of Ms Jillian Michaels. Weight training tomorrow and ghen a long run on Friday. HM distance I think.

Oh my word I think I need my head reading but I have just signed up for the Bristol half marathon. Really need to work hard the next 14 weeks or so.

good on you, N4NNY.

I love my granola - I eat a big bowl of Quaker oat granola every morning. When I was breastfeeding I used to average three bowls a day! I can well believe it's calorific, it's basically flapjack isn't it.

Dragged my hungover backside out for 4.2 miles this evening. It was hard going but still averaged 9.25 mins/mile which I was more than happy with.
DH says he'll do one of the legs on Sunday too if needed, he thinks he could run 2.6 miles no problem. I'll not be happy if he can!

Paws- was so amazed I scared myself by checking the Starbucks website. They reckon the granola is 348 and the swirl 432 so you were better with the granola. The calories per 100g and per unit are quite easy to mix up. The cakes and muffin calorie count is particularly scary.

Can you tell i am in the house alone but for a sleeping dd? Too much time leads to Starbucks introspection.

Well I have made a promise never to set foot in Starbucks ever again. But, I used to have the skinny peach and raspberry muffin which is 238 calories.

I was in Starbucks yesterday, and had a caramel frappacino with whipped cream - my first and last. It was sort of nice and disgusting at the same time - sickly sweet (I don't know what I expected, to be honest), but I drained it all anyway, right to the bottom. I'd hate to know how many calories were in it, I'd have been better off with a slab of cake.

4 miles and change this morning. Did about a mile of fartlek after I'd warmed up. Blow me, that was horrible! But it must be effective, as all horrible things are, fitness wise. I'll try to do one session a week from now on.

Emma - I agree, if something really makes you suffer, then it is probably doing you good (unless it is really a searing pain - in which case you best get to A and E )

Has anyone tried tabata? Really quick and easy way of getting an intense workout in. You can do it with sprints, but also sit-ups/squats/lifts with weights. It only lasts 4 minutes, so how bad can it be?

Warm up and then: 20 seconds MAXIMUM effort, then 10 seconds recovery. Repeat 8 times. Not for the faint hearted. Useful article articles.muscletalk.co.uk/article-tabata-training.aspx. Don't be put off by the 'muscle talk' heading - it does mention how tabata sprints impact on strength and speed in running.

My observation would be - when doing it using sprints, it may not be a good thing to do when you are too far from home, as you really wont feel like running far afterwards. I ran for about a mile, then did the tabata and then had about 1 1/2 miles to go to get home - and thought I might have to thumb a lift . DH, who manages 40/41 minute 10Ks, was sick the first time he did it.......