Running goals, motivation and chat 2026 - Part 3!

[BogRollBOGOF]

Hello runners!

Continuing on with our general running chit chat...

That’s fantastic @tinks3110Well done! The hard work is over (except for the actual marathon obviously but you’ve done the training so just enjoy the ride!).

That’s rubbish about the Parkrun ending @Whataninterestinglookingpotato! I saw something pop up on my socials about it and thought what a shame it was, so sorry to hear it’s your local one! Hopefully they can find another route somewhere. The zoo 10k sounds great! Did you get to see the animals on the way round? That would distract me and I would have an awful time 😂 (well awful chip time, great time generally!). Amazing results for you and your daughter 👏

@JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOffThat sounds very promising, fingers crossed you’ll be back to full volume soon. Injuries are so frustrating, I was having issues a couple of months ago and had to really wind volume down and I was a nightmare to live with, my mood was awful!

I started a new training block today for a 10-mile trail run in December. Was meant to be 9k easy but got to 7.5 and got cramp in both quads simultaneously, which I’ve never had before! So cut my losses and did the walk of shame back home. I know what caused it I think, hadn’t eaten (I don’t usually run in mornings), hadn’t had much to drink, new shoes, and I’d had four days off as I’d been away, so a perfect storm of stuff. But I’m still achy now!

Well done @tinks3110 you'll honestly be fine.

sorry to hear about your aborted run @runnerducky but your analysis of it is probably correct. I’ve found out that there is no point being underfuelled. It just makes everything so much harder.
I also have a 10 mile trail race in December. It’s a local one and an absolute mud bath! I did it last year but was injured so couldn’t really do it justice and I want redemption 😂😂.

I have 4 other parkruns with in a 30 min drive but that one was the nearest and it was just a bit different as on a working farm rather than a park.

Hi @tinks3110 amazing! 20mi is a great achievement, whatever else you go on to do!

@runnerducky I always train in the mornings but did it fasted for years and have only just copped on to fuelling pre-run <slow learner, me> I now have a half slice of sourdough toast with honey before I go, like a half hour before or if I don't have bread in, 2 jelly babies.

@Whataninterestinglookingpotato Marwell Zoo eh! I live..... not very far away from there.

I’d recommend it @JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOff especially if you’re close. It was a fab race and great to walk around the zoo after. I also won a £15 voucher for winning my category which I may, or may not have already put towards some shoes 😂😂.

I did my jeffing 6.5km today, sigh, but I can definitely feel how my stride has remodelled. Shockwave with physio this morning. Rest day tomorrow and then, strength circuits and gymming on Thurs!

Has anyone else broken out their headlight/ chest light this year? I've worn mine for first time this week, feels like first sign of autumn!

I've done my first week 4 of C25k run. More general niggles, so again, I'll keep at that level until it's more comfortable. My primary injury (proximal hamstring tendonitis) is easing, it's the surrounding zone whinging after 4 months of relative rest that's flagging up now.

I'm having to run on flat ground, so running from home is out, but I've now sussed a few suitable places about 15 mins from work so I can fit it in then without eating too much time. Hopefully I can make more progress to cope with my neighbourhood by November when daylight is too limited as I don't mind running in the dark here, and there's a lack of well-lit, flat places where I'm comfortable in the dark.

I've got a moulded butt cushion now and that's helping a lot too. I should have got one sooner and annoyingly this took a few weeks to arrive.

Glad you’re both. Making progress @JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOff ans @BogRollBOGOF

I did about 12.5 miles tonight. 4.5 running the long way round to club and then club run. A lot of people had their head torches and chest lights tonight and we definitely needed them by the end. I didn’t yet. I have a chest light but tbh, it’s a bit annoying. I ordered new head torch today so waiting for that to arrive. It should be here ready for next week. This will probably be our last week of country lanes though. Routes get a bit more boring once the nights draw in. There’s only so many ways you can run around town! 😂.

i’ll probably just take the dog for a little recovery plod tomorrow and then hills Thursday, track Friday and probably a long run Saturday morning as won’t be able to fit one in Sunday.

I’ve just ordered a chest light as my headtorch has been irritating me. I like to wear a cap but then the headtorch has to sit on top and I can’t get the angle right because of the peak so end up running like the Hunchback of Notre Dame. I’m in the north of Scotland so it’s starting to get dark here pretty early!

Won’t have time to run until Thursday, meant to be a 9k easy run. Hopefully my quads hold up this time! I won’t manage to get out till lunchtime so should at least be decently fuelled this time…

Well done on your 12.5 miles @Whataninterestinglookingpotato! I’m missing running club this week as I have a meeting in the evening, so I’m annoyed about that as I really enjoy it. Mine is very informal, just a group of ladies who go out together, but it’s especially nice now the nights are drawing in. Safety in numbers and all that!

@BogRollBOGOFGood going on the C25k run. Sounds a very sensible approach, I admire your restraint! I love the idea of a moulded butt cushion. Do you have to be injured to have one?! Asking for a friend…

@runnerducky did you get the Proviz chest light?

If so, learn from an idiot (me) and don't look directly at it when you turn it on. It is BRIGHT. I was hunched over in the dark at like 5am thinking, huh hope this thing works... press the "on" button... retinas instantly vaporised!! I genuinely had to go back inside and delay my run for 5 mins as I couldn't see for the spots.

I used it all last winter and really like it though. It's very lightweight. Also bright....

No I ended up with one off Amazon as a friend recommended, but I will heed your warning. Ouch! It’s arriving today but don’t think I will get a chance to wear it for a few days.

Hi all! I thought I'd joined in on this thread before but can't find anything I've poste, so hello!

I'm still recovering today form Sunday's Loch Ness marathon, yesterday was definitely my achiest day but I'm still not 100% today. No running for me until at least the weekend, and then stepping back into my plan because I have a 50k in 5 weeks.

I'm weirdly excited about head torch/chest light mornings and evenings arriving!

Welcome to the thread @WorstPaceScenario. We’ll own on Loch Ness marathon! That one’s in my list of marathons I would like to do one day! Bet it was amazing!!

I took my dog for a recovery plod around the fields tonight. Making the most of the light evenings while they last. It was lovely. No bulls in the fields this evening, so that was a win 😂😂.

good for age entries for London open tomorrow. They haven’t changed the times since last year so I’ve got quite a good buffer. Fingers crossed. They’ve also announced that good for age women will be on the Sunday, so if I get a place I’ll be running on the same day as dd1 meaning we can go to the expo early on the Saturday when hopefully it won’t be as bad as the Friday. Maybe 🤔😂

Morning everyone! Was back in the gym today doing my physio, so shedloads of crab walking, box steps ups, and lunges....

I'm keeping myself motivated with weighted press ups atm. Even if I can't run more than 8km, I can still do proper press ups. I feel like I need to be doing something that feels "real", and not just remedial!

Today I upped the weights plate on my back to 15kg (was previously 10kg) and I was able to execute several sets of 5 press ups with clean form - I didn't push further today but I definitely had more in the tank, so feel like there's clear room for progression.

Being able to do weighted press ups is pretty impressive @JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOff i can probably do about 10 unweighted! 😂.

I should probably use strength training as more than just injury prevention for running! 😂

@JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOff i am in awe of your press up ability, I can do about 6 proper ones 😂

A quiet week for me recovering after my 20 miles on Sunday, have done 2 x easy 5ks. My lower back and knees have been hurting so instead of a workout this morning I had an ice bath and sauna session and they feel so much better now.

Got a slow half marathon planned for Sunday and then properly into the taper and 2 weeks of what I like to call Phantom Injury Fortnight, where I convince myself everyday that a different part of my body hurts and I'm going to DNF my race 😱

I am fundraising as well for the Polycystic kidney disease charity and this is going well, no pressure to raise a certain amount as I paid for my own place.

Have a good weekend of running everyone whatever you've got planned

I did my jeffing 8km this morning and actually had a real breakthrough, which was finally engaging the whole left posterior chain - which has been the root source, I think, of my longstanding injury.

I've been focusing on glute engagement but I watched a video by Barefoot Strength (running/ fitness influencer) who said that if you're engaging the upper glutes, you need to do that by "shortening" the foot - i.e. pressing through the big toe on impact, thus bracing up the arch of the foot. Today, that really clicked for me and I could suddenly feel that my left leg was doing a proper powerful stride.

I know I'll now need to bake that into my everyday running, but it was like, for the first time I could "feel what good looked like" if that makes sense.

I am weirdly exhausted now! I feel like neuromuscular reprogramming stuff really takes it out of you

That’s fantastic @JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOff im impressed with how much thought you’re putting into this. Hopefully it’ll help prevent future injuries.

I went out yesterday and did a solo 18.3 mile long run as we had friends over yesterday afternoon and they were staying the night so wouldn’t have made any of the Sunday group long runs.

I actually really enjoyed running around the countryside by myself and it meant I was able to run it how I wanted. I have a marathon fairly early in November and haven’t actually done a long continuous road run for quite a while so thought I better put myself though my paces a bit. I did 3 miles easy, then 2 miles at target marathon pace (London target not this next marathon), 2 miles easyish alternating. I was pleased I could hold the pace despite the route being hilly. As I say, I’m not planning to run Novembers marathon as fast as that but it felt good.

today was a slightly hungover recovery few miles plod with the dog after friends had left.

hope everyone else has had a good weekend of running.

half marathon for me this morning, so close to a PB which I’m really pleased with in what was a marathon training run. 5 lap course, absolutely disgusting with a massive hill up to the finish 🙈 into the taper now 2 weeks to
go

That is such a great effort @tinks3110 ! Good for you!

Hope everyone doing well!

I did a heavy- ish gym session plus short treadmill run and 6km jeffing this morning. I am definitely baking the improved posterior chain engagement into my stride, and when I run, I now don't feel like I'm nursing an injury in my L leg, or like it's distinctly weaker. I feel much more like I'm " running with both legs", and less like I have a good side and a problem child side.

Course, problem with that is, that's just during short run/walk sessions. I now need to keep that going throughout a proper run - and that really does feel like a mountain to climb :/ going from confidently running 21km in late August to being happy with a 8km jeffing session still feels like a big fall- off.

I'm amazed at anyone who can actually isolate a muscle and know they're doing it @JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOff - I'm hypermobile and there's a bit of a flurry of stuff on my insta feed (I know, I know) about proprioception being minimal or absent, it's not just being bendy. I have always always struggled with PT directions like "engage your core" - no idea what that feels like!!! A bit like the utterly useless direction from a midwife to "bear down" - wtf does that mean, like a poo?

I've had a mini taper this week as I'm doing a local trail half tomorrow, and adding some on to make it 30k - in the lead up to my trail marathon in 2 weeks. But I've also had an immensely stressful and long hours week at work, missed my strength session on Wednesday and my intervals swim yesterday.

I’m the same as you, @TyneFilth! I think I have quite poor proprioception generally, I was useless at Pilates! I couldn’t get the directions at all. The instructor was always over helping me! And I’ve no idea about running form, I just run! I’d love to be able to troubleshoot to that extent but I think for me it’s a case of I’m just going to run like I run and hopefully my body accepts it!

Quite a casual week, did a 13k and a 12k earlier in the week and planning a 14k tomorrow but all just easy runs. I skipped any temp stuff this week, we are doing home renovations so I just wanted to vibe and chill!

Not got anything in calendar race wise till the end of Nov.

Good luck with the trail race!

@TyneFilth that's super interesting, I never knew that about hypermobility!

I had a strength session on Thurs and probably pushed it a bit hard, feeling impatient to be doing proper stuff. 8km jeffing this morning. The old injured left side is definitely firing differently now and I am often, not always, feeling that "windlass mechanism" which I think is the sign of a good running stride. But that side definitely gets tired easier than the right, too.

I have got 8yo twins on my own this weekend so baking chocolate cupcakes and lots of Pokemon, inevitably!

Well I've done my trail half - omg that was A Lot. Must have forgotten to look at the expected elevation, but I've ended up doing 844m between the 4k warm up plus the 21"ish" km of the race (not marketed as a half, much more as a "you might get lost and do extra" sort of thing - oh what japes!). I made a friend on the course and we chatted most of the way round. She was going to do the extra with me to make it up to 30k but in the end I decided I don't need it. I'll do a dog walk later.

Post shower, I am currently pretending to have a nap while avoiding the very messy kitchen. Hopefully one of my dear non-runner children will bring me a coffee soon...

840m of elevation is epic! I live in Hampshire and my avg elevation for a half near me is generally about 100m 😆