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

Been meaning to get on all week but couldn't get on computer and iphone is not too easy for long posts!

Moshi, just wanted to say I hope you are feeling a little better after letting it all out to DH. You are under an immense amount of pressure coming from all sides and it is completely natural to feel overwhelmed. When my mum was diagnosed with cancer one thing I was very grateful for was having 4 siblings, and also having my dad still around. It was much easier having so many people to rely on. With it just being you and your sister, you are in a much harder position and in some ways are having to be the "parent" to your mum, when am sure inside sometimes you feel like a little girl again. You are still grieving for your dad and this brings it all to the fore again. Please be easy on yourself and dont feel you need to be the one holding everything together. Make sure you lean on DH at times like these, that's what he's there for. Really hope you mange to get a housekeeper sorted out as will be one less thing to worry about and hopefully you can get a little time to yourself. Is your mum's surgery sill scheduled for Tuesday?

Good luck to bonkers and lala for tomorrow!

Good luck for tomorrow's runners.

I was all set to go to my free military fitness this morning then read the info and saw that it started at
10 not 10.30 so I was already late. D'oh. Went for a long sloooooow hilly 9 miles instead. Where did the sun go - I had to go back in to put a long sleeve top on. I always find Saturday's quieter than Sunday's, and today was no different. My route is partly along a Coastal path - just a few dog walkers and ladies training for the moon walk, not the usual Sunday scrum of cyclists, hikers, runners and more dogs.

Off to DDs ballet show tonight (she's 4) - I am getting ready for proud mummy moments.

BMF sounds interesting, I'm going to have a look if it's on round here.

ibby I want to do another 10k before I do a HM, there's one 10/07 but that's 1 day after we come back from holiday so I don't think I should be doing this one, I probably won't have time to train on holiday at all and be jetlagged and tired and have lots to sort out at home. What would you guys do?
There's another one on 23/07 which a friend of mine wants to do.

Good luck for tomorrow's runs, the weather is lovely in London!

I have signed up to the half marathon at the end of september,
I'll get the details and add them to the list...

So Bonkers and Lala are up tomorrow? Good luck guys.

Much cooler here today. Did a BMF session, but ran there and back so all in all a good workout, plus only 2 instructors so we got lumped in with the top group, and it was manageable

Hope you all have a nice weekend.

OK, so I need a kick up the proverbial! I added my race (Tilty Hilly 5 mile) ages ago and the race is tomorrow! I don't think I have run for over a month (since the 10K race).

I'm undecided as to whether to do it or not. I'm not worried about actually running the race - it a road race which appeals to me, it's just a small matter of whether I can be bothered! It involves some juggling of children and makes the day busy when it's so tempting to have a day where we're not running about. But I know if I do it I'll be chuffed with myself.
I've not been able to do my run at work because I've had a run of 3 days weeks and I can really only fit it in when I'm working 4 days a week. As for the w/e's - I've just not bothered.

I know we all get ruts like this and I just need to get my butt out there again and get some endorphins...so go on then....give me a kick.

Oh man, I've just scrolled up and read my good luck messages. How lovely. Thank you. I feel bad that I've not been around and reciprocated.

Also, just listened to ultra runners on Woman's hour. Kewl!

big well-aimed kick coming your way bonkers; this happened to me once - did a 5k with no training and it really helped me back on track - my time wasn't actually that shameful and it reminded me that I wanted to do better. Just go out and do what you can...

See this is what happens when I go away for a few days ....... literally hundreds of posts!

Took the oldest two down to Brighton for a few days, youngest stayed with the in-laws. I did manage one run down by the front, cut short by the urgent need for a poo - don't you hate it when that happens? I had to improvise some "stretches" (for which read clenches) against a bench whilst scanning the horizon for the facilities! Luckily a public loo was open even at 6.45 am and I exited with a spring in my step!

We took the boys swimming today and I managed to do a few treadmill miles at the gym. I've just realised that my next marathon training plan starts next weekend so best get my butt into gear.

Happy running all and sorry I've not managed to be around for your races .... like you lot really needed my sage advice, but here it goes ...... don't try and go for a run at 6.30 am in unfamiliar territory having subjected your stomach to Wagamamas and two glasses of wine the night before. Don't say I never try to help you lot?!

paws advice duly noted...have realised that my half training plan needs to start this coming week (13 weeks away, but will be on hols and experience tells me that it's not really possible to do a full week's training while away).

I had one of those urgent loo needs the other day, and for literally weeks there have been 2 portaloos in the park; where were they when I needed them? Gone!

Mmm, what do you do when this happens on race day? (re: needing the loo)

Also, how long is a "long run"?

I'm in denial about training for a race at the moment as HM is in 15 weeks or so. Will fit in a 10k mid July hopefully.
Do I need to start thinking about gels and stuff? oh dear.

bonkers good luck for tomorrow, you know you want to do it deep down, I think you should do it, it'll be great fun and a good way to know what fitness levels are at. 5 miles is easy peezy ;)

june2009 get up early! and hope for the best!

I think a long run is anything over about 8 miles, but it's relative to your usual weekly runs - so my longest run in the week would be about 10k, and I think a long run is 15k+

Gels - for HM I don't think you need to. I take 500ml of water and a handful of jelly babies once I am running more than about 10 miles and that seems to do the trick.

15 weeks is loads of time

You should do it if you can bonkers. I agree that it might invigorate your enthusiasm and get you going!

Sympathies on the poo situ paws, it is very annoying indeed. How do all these naked runners cope. The clenching must be a sight!!

Bonkers, do go, sometimes my "best" races have been those that I have been tempted to miss - almost like I am not stressing about it so I do better..?

Did the parkrun today, and found it really hard going, felt very light-headed and not quite right. However my time was 2 seconds faster than 2 weeks ago, when I felt brilliant, and thought I had run a PB (it wasn't). Isn't that weird? At the moment I don't run with a watch of any kind, but am contemplating a Garmin - I guess if I had one I would be able to keep an eye on my pace and know for certain how I was doing.

Paws, needing to go is really not nice, but glad you found a loo, open, at that time of day. Was on a club run a few weeks ago, when I felt the need to "go", but we were doing circuits in some local woods, and not a hope of a loo anywhere. We were going up and downhill, which seemed to intensify the feeling (felt like it was shuffling down a bit). Fortunately for me, by the time we had finished our laps, the feeling had subsided, and I embarked on the "cool down" final mile with relief. Unfortunately was nattering so much that I tripped over a stone and really went flying - ended up with 2 grazes on my face, 3 on my hands, one on my wrist and huge one on my knee. Felt a right mess, blood everywhere. Anyway, think my body must have diverted it's resources to my wounds, as the urge to go went right away, and I was then constipated for the next 2 days. Mind you I am not in anyway suggesting that falling over is the key to the poo problem.

OK OK, I'm pulling the East Anglia A to Z off the shelf right now to find out how to get there!

Briefly popping in to say hello and thanks to wheely, peach and sciencebint for your really lovely posts. What you wrote really resonated with me and is very reassuring at the moment. So thank you. Checked put a couple of potential housekeepers but I am starting to think it is a bit of a leap of faith this business of hiring home help.

Happy running all in this lovely weather.

Good luck bonkers, you need to go and do it now!

I've just been out for a 'quick 3 miles' and was very pleased to find that it really was! Runkeeper on my phone said it was 3.1 miles in 27 mins which made it 9.02 min/miles (that's pretty good for me). But then I looked at the route on the computer and it had me cutting every corner and not even on the roads half the time. So I adjusted it and it's now saying 3.27 miles which makes it 8.3 min/miles which seems a bit fast!

Who was it who said the other day that you run in Richmond park? We went there today and I couldn't believe how huge it was, how lovely it was and how busy it was! There was a race (maybe 10k) on and also about a million cyclists. What an awesome place to run in though.
Every time a road bike zoomed past (sometimes even overtaking cars) I said to dh "look how fast that person is going on their road bike" Also this morning he asked it I could do a cycling race as that's what I like the best but I said I could only do that with a road bike. So I might be getting there with breaking him!

Right....I'm not running today. Woke in the wee hours (with DS) and didn't feel great. I thought I was brewing something yesterday, but brushed it off (as you do). I actually just need a day when I don't have to get in the car and juggle everything around. It all sounds a bit lame. I'm now looking foward to a more lazy day at home. Thanks for all the good luck wishes though. I WILL do the next one!

Morning guys.

I am antsy. Haven't run since Thurs night when I only did 3 miles. Missed my long run yesterday so badly.....SIL did 11 miles without me and I was jealous!

Only have 2 short runs this week and no running club and I feel like I might punch someone, namely dh who has done nothing wrong other than be in my presence

This is my first experience of tapering, and tbh, I am struggling to see any benefit in it......I know I am losing the plot slightly. Words of wisdom much appreciated!

Hope everyone is having a good weekend

DrNo I must say that I didn't see any benefit to it either for the half - I really think I would have run better if I'd done a little bit more mileage in the preceding week and maybe left 2 rest days rather than 3 before the race itself. I start to lose confidence in my ability to run if I don't run IYSWIM - I've not run for 2 days now (had bad sore throat yesterday) and am full of negativity about how slow I am, how little return I've got for the 900ks of running I've done, etc etc.

I'd do a few easy runs of medium length (5 miles, maybe) but run them really slowly and easily - so you get the benefit of being out there, but are not stressing your body or risking injury. Just my thoughts...

Horrid dull, grey, damp day here (despite promises of glorious sunshine for the bank hol), so will make myself go out and do 12k...later on

Just did an easy 4 miles with the dog. Felt surprisingly easy and effortless

Did two 6 mile cycles this morning. Tried really hard to get my average speed up to 16mph but it came out as 15.5 grrr. It's always annoying tho that a fast downhill doesn't put the average up much but then slowing down for junctions & traffic lights brings the average down loads. In fact I prob was averaging 16 until this stupid woman overtook me while I was overtaking another bike and then slammed on her brakes to turn left into her drive! I almost went into the back of her. Then she just sat there waiting till we'd gone past her on the inside before pulling into her drive.

June2009 I think gels etc are a personal thing. I know several people who do half marathons on just water with no problems. I struggle with anything over 6 miles without water and sugar of some description but then I am someone who tends to pass out if I haven't eaten/drunk enough when not running! (I also consider anything over 6 miles to be long )

No running for me today after 9 hilly miles yesterday. My knees were really achey afterwards but felt fine today. Anyone got any top tips for achey knees?

Yey, managed my 10k RFL!

Thought I'd check in so you didn't think I'd chickened out like I did in April. This thread moves sooooo much faster than I run and I'm such an amateur compared to all of you!

I did it in 56:47 which I'm really pleased with but I've also discovered my accelerelolelolometer (or whatever it's called!) is quite inaccurate. It said I'd only run 9.1km on a 10km courses so I've been doing alsomost 10% more than I thought I was on my training runs! Oh well!

Time to invest in a coveted Garmin or similar. Which do you recommend?

Well Done!

Re: your accellero....thingy - Not only 10% further but faster too!

I just use a nike+ - not esp accurate. I tend to calibrate it against Garmins worn by others in my running club.

Thank you!

Faster, yes! I had an argument with it; it said I had averaged 6mph, I said 'htf can I have averaged 6mph when I ran 6.2 miles in less than 57 minutes???'. I got some odd looks!

Will look into the nike+ gizmo, thanks!