Isn't it funny how times change in what feels like a blink of an eye? A few years ago, my inbox was awash with incredibly stylish emails from aspirational lifestyle brands like Lombok, The White Company and Graham and Green and my regular magazine preference was Elle Decor and Living Etc. Yes I was a new home owner and keen to give my home the ultimate, stylish makeover.
Roll on a few years and these solicited emails had been unsubscribed and replaced with colourful, cute, yummy mummy inspiring emails from brands such as Jojo Maman Bebe, Mamas and Papas, Blooming Marvellous and The Little White Company. Yes my bump had taken over my world and my inbox, taking me into a whole new exciting phase of my life.
Add another year and the grey times loomed. Cute baby emails were deleted and the new inbox interest contained hard lines and grown up brands like Laithwaites Wine Club, Dating Direct, Hotel Chocolat and my magazine subscription also grew up and became serious. Late night, drunken analysis of Psychologies magazine was the norm and these desperate times found me trying to identify me within each article whilst surviving on a diet of chocolate, coffee, red wine and cigarettes. Yes the dark clouds of the divorce era loomed large across my world.
Who could have guessed that a few years later my inbox would be awash with spritely emails from Running Bug, Sports Direct, Adidas and Virgin London Marathon. My magazine subscription would have progressed to Women's Running (and, shhhhh, the occasional secret Closer purchase) and the colour would have found its way not only into my life by my cheeks also. It seems I have caught the "bug" and my world is, for now, all about running not away from but towards something; a massive 26.2 mile sized goal. And a goal that I had, until tonight, considered my biggest challenge ever.
But really on reflection and having re-read the first three paragraphs I realise that this really isn't that big a challenge. It is no more challenging than becoming a parent, no harder than the mental anguish of divorce, and certainly no more time consuming than renovating a home. And it actually pales into insignificance when compared to what my dear sis-in-law (and many others fighting the Big C) are dealing with. And so with that clarity I realise that I absolutely have it in me to cover the distance, somehow!
And if only I had signed off my blog there. But I HAD to question what might be the next phase of my life. And it is now that I realise, with a heavy heart, that my next phase is emails from Saga, Gray and Osbourn and Polygrip dental glue and my reading matter is Peoples Friend and the Daily Mail. Maybe its time to ask coach for another baby and all the colour and youthful exuberance it brings? If only my thighs didn't hurt so much!
Monday, 25 February 2013
Saturday, 23 February 2013
Cool running
It has just occurred to me that my biggest public performance to date is to take place next Sunday in stylish Bath and I have not yet given any thought as to what I am going to wear! How did that pass me by? I am obviously sick and need medication.
The Bath Half is my first official race ever and is a welcome "short run" after yesterday's 17 miler. Now for those of you who are less than avid readers of my ramblings, my running kit is less sportswear and more fancy dress. I have a, now oversized, pair of Sainsbury's running leggings, my mum's old Nike running top (circa 1998), 80s fancy dress leg warmers, orange tennis shorts over the leggings on particularly cold days and my son's high vis vest. Let's face it I don't look fit whilst I get fit!
So at this late date I am having to accept it is sadly too late to get new gear bought and tested before next Sunday. So I shall rely on every woman's secret weapon; backcombing for extra hair volume combined with hot red lips. This will have one of two outcomes; either my fashion faux pas will be outshone by hair/lip combo or, more likely, my increased "up-do" will increase air resistance requiring greater exertion with the resulting "glow" causing hot red lipstick crevasses to form in the wrinkles around my mouth and down my chin leaving me the spitting image of Stephen Kings Pennywise. Yep the latter seems most likely!
However fear not... I still have time to perfect my London Marathon outfit to ensure that the millions of viewers sat avidly at home watching and waiting for me to come bobbing along, all smiles and waves, will be stunned into silence at my on trend yet supportive running kit. The presenters will run alongside me asking how I manage such a chic yet oh so natural glow and my kit will be revered in years to come as the epitome of style on the tarmac.
OK reality bites and I think the best I can realistically hope for is a hair band which holds firm, socks that are white (ish) and, assuming the end of April will be warmer my ole supermarket faithfuls will be replaced with spangling new, "high performance wicking" shorts which WILL match my charity vest. I can only hope!
The Bath Half is my first official race ever and is a welcome "short run" after yesterday's 17 miler. Now for those of you who are less than avid readers of my ramblings, my running kit is less sportswear and more fancy dress. I have a, now oversized, pair of Sainsbury's running leggings, my mum's old Nike running top (circa 1998), 80s fancy dress leg warmers, orange tennis shorts over the leggings on particularly cold days and my son's high vis vest. Let's face it I don't look fit whilst I get fit!
So at this late date I am having to accept it is sadly too late to get new gear bought and tested before next Sunday. So I shall rely on every woman's secret weapon; backcombing for extra hair volume combined with hot red lips. This will have one of two outcomes; either my fashion faux pas will be outshone by hair/lip combo or, more likely, my increased "up-do" will increase air resistance requiring greater exertion with the resulting "glow" causing hot red lipstick crevasses to form in the wrinkles around my mouth and down my chin leaving me the spitting image of Stephen Kings Pennywise. Yep the latter seems most likely!
However fear not... I still have time to perfect my London Marathon outfit to ensure that the millions of viewers sat avidly at home watching and waiting for me to come bobbing along, all smiles and waves, will be stunned into silence at my on trend yet supportive running kit. The presenters will run alongside me asking how I manage such a chic yet oh so natural glow and my kit will be revered in years to come as the epitome of style on the tarmac.
OK reality bites and I think the best I can realistically hope for is a hair band which holds firm, socks that are white (ish) and, assuming the end of April will be warmer my ole supermarket faithfuls will be replaced with spangling new, "high performance wicking" shorts which WILL match my charity vest. I can only hope!
Wednesday, 20 February 2013
Sight for sore eyes
Running injuries ahoy! But be assured that this blog makes no mention of any of the usual running afflictions... my Achilles are fine, I have no blisters, my lost toe nail has grown back, no chaffing has been inflicted. Oh no my running injuries are far more exotic!
- Bloodshot eye - obviously caused by the super sonic speeds I have been running at; Blink and you'll miss me! Seriously my left eye is red, oozing and uncomfortable and I really think that running anything further than for the bus with one eye closed would knock my balance and have me arrested for drunk running (if there is such a thing). On reflection, and based on my recent run ins with the older generation of Oxfordshire, running with a "wink" might also get me a hot date with an OAP, a schooner of sherry and a Thursday lunchtime special! On second thoughts....
- Runners insomnia - you'd think a blissful night of zzzs would follow a 15 mile run but not chez moi! Oh no. My brain likes to ponder every mile. Calculate average pace. Think about the marathon and what time that pace would deliver. Hydration strategies. Energy gels and so much more. Counting sheep... more like pot holes!
- Heartbreak - my lovely shiny (and sweat splattered) treadmill has had to go to the treadmill doctor! The heart (rate monitor) is broken and is with the surgeons undergoing a donor transplant, leaving me treadmill-less for a week. This means evening runs are a mere memory for now, but hopefully in a week my heart (rate monitor) will be pulsing away fit as a fiddle once more.
- Loose Leg(gings) - not one to brag but one upside of this running is my bottom IS SMALLer (sadly not my thighs or calves which just seem to be on a growth spurt). However this causes a rather embarrassing running predicament; my gusset height slips down to between my knees every mile! At this point I need to avert a full legging slip incidient; running with leggings around my ankles does nothing for my pace, although it might be an interesting way to increase donations come marathon day. So, with little dignity remaining, I have perfected "The Hoist"; grabbing the material from beneath my knees and swiftly yanking it skywards jumping my wiggling rear into the space made. All this whilst continuing to run and map my pace! Who said I couldn't multitask!
So there you have it. My own unique insight into the real running injuries marathonites experience! Feeling the shame - then please support my efforts and sponsor me here!
- Bloodshot eye - obviously caused by the super sonic speeds I have been running at; Blink and you'll miss me! Seriously my left eye is red, oozing and uncomfortable and I really think that running anything further than for the bus with one eye closed would knock my balance and have me arrested for drunk running (if there is such a thing). On reflection, and based on my recent run ins with the older generation of Oxfordshire, running with a "wink" might also get me a hot date with an OAP, a schooner of sherry and a Thursday lunchtime special! On second thoughts....
- Runners insomnia - you'd think a blissful night of zzzs would follow a 15 mile run but not chez moi! Oh no. My brain likes to ponder every mile. Calculate average pace. Think about the marathon and what time that pace would deliver. Hydration strategies. Energy gels and so much more. Counting sheep... more like pot holes!
- Heartbreak - my lovely shiny (and sweat splattered) treadmill has had to go to the treadmill doctor! The heart (rate monitor) is broken and is with the surgeons undergoing a donor transplant, leaving me treadmill-less for a week. This means evening runs are a mere memory for now, but hopefully in a week my heart (rate monitor) will be pulsing away fit as a fiddle once more.
- Loose Leg(gings) - not one to brag but one upside of this running is my bottom IS SMALLer (sadly not my thighs or calves which just seem to be on a growth spurt). However this causes a rather embarrassing running predicament; my gusset height slips down to between my knees every mile! At this point I need to avert a full legging slip incidient; running with leggings around my ankles does nothing for my pace, although it might be an interesting way to increase donations come marathon day. So, with little dignity remaining, I have perfected "The Hoist"; grabbing the material from beneath my knees and swiftly yanking it skywards jumping my wiggling rear into the space made. All this whilst continuing to run and map my pace! Who said I couldn't multitask!
So there you have it. My own unique insight into the real running injuries marathonites experience! Feeling the shame - then please support my efforts and sponsor me here!
Monday, 18 February 2013
15 miles of grey
After the desperation I felt yesterday following my 15 mile run and having very little left in me (certainly not another 11 miles) today was a good day! Having woken with a heavy heart that simply wanted to throw in the marathon towel I was struggling to even see the logic. I know I am more than half way through, that I have not (so far and touch wood) experienced injury or set backs and that I only have another 5 long runs left before the big day but I just couldn't shake my grey cloud which focussed on my 30 mile minimum weekly mileage and screamed I WANT MY WEEKENDS BACK!
However, having limped into work I caught up with the Head of People and Environment (HOPE!) and was delighted that the talent evening I proposed last week has been given the green light. I am so excited that we can have a fun night at the local pub and really showcase some of the talent (or lack of talent) we have. I am thinking maybe some accoustic singing, a fancy performance of Beyonce's "Single Ladies" (check out the video and the aspirational thighs here), a "Morecombe and Wise" comedy duo or maybe a couple of rounds of Radio 4s "Just a minute". Whatever gets showcased it is bound to be fun and help raise some great funds for the onemillionpence charities which is great. Grey cloud was beginning to be blown away....
But it gets better - later in the day it was announced at the company meeting that for every penny a TMPer donates, the company will match it (up to a phenomenal total of £1000)! That is such a huge amount that I am so thankful and grateful for. It has given me the lift I needed and suddenly the pain becomes worth it and my commitment and determination comes back with a vengance.
And it gets better still; I have received the amazing news that my lovely sis-in-laws chemo is actually doing its job and the bugger is being blown away all thanks to some amazing doctors and nurses, lashings of positive thinking and some fantastic medicine combos.
So note to self: "Always look at the bright side of life!"
Bring it on!
However, having limped into work I caught up with the Head of People and Environment (HOPE!) and was delighted that the talent evening I proposed last week has been given the green light. I am so excited that we can have a fun night at the local pub and really showcase some of the talent (or lack of talent) we have. I am thinking maybe some accoustic singing, a fancy performance of Beyonce's "Single Ladies" (check out the video and the aspirational thighs here), a "Morecombe and Wise" comedy duo or maybe a couple of rounds of Radio 4s "Just a minute". Whatever gets showcased it is bound to be fun and help raise some great funds for the onemillionpence charities which is great. Grey cloud was beginning to be blown away....
But it gets better - later in the day it was announced at the company meeting that for every penny a TMPer donates, the company will match it (up to a phenomenal total of £1000)! That is such a huge amount that I am so thankful and grateful for. It has given me the lift I needed and suddenly the pain becomes worth it and my commitment and determination comes back with a vengance.
And it gets better still; I have received the amazing news that my lovely sis-in-laws chemo is actually doing its job and the bugger is being blown away all thanks to some amazing doctors and nurses, lashings of positive thinking and some fantastic medicine combos.
So note to self: "Always look at the bright side of life!"
Bring it on!
Thursday, 14 February 2013
Hedge your bets!
I have officially 66 days left of training left before the big 26.2 miles and I still have a few more goals to achieve before then:
- Increase my longest run by a mere 7 miles (up to a max run of 22 miles on 24th March)
- Reduce my average mile pace to my ideal marathon pace of 10 mins 30
- Raise another £1300
The pace issue is just about running faster - who knew? So on Tuesday's 6 mile run I focussed on setting a fast pace and achieved an amazing average pace of 9 mins 44 per mile which was a huge improvement on my previous PB of 9 mins 59. However there is no way I can keep that kind of pace up for a whole marathon but I would like to improve my average long run pace of 11 mins 17. Sadly though the faster I run the more I look like Phoebe from Friends (click here if you want a preview), which when coupled with my really appalling running wardrobe (80s legwarmers, child's high vis jacket, luminous shorts over supermarket leggings and ski sweatband) you can see why I have been avoiding it until now. Hey ho London must have seen worse...?
The money raising, though, is more of an issue. My penny pots are slowly infiltrating friends' mantelpieces, desks and kitchens and the two I have already had returned have raised a staggering £29.45... although I am fully expecting this average to be drastically reduced.
So I havestolen borrowed a great fundraising idea from the remarkable Ms Johns and have created a human version of "guess the number of sweets in a jar"... I can tell you are on the edge of your seat now.... which is "guess my London marathon time". Riveting huh! I have listed 240 time spots between 4:30:00 through to 5:29:45 and loaded the document onto Google docs (click here) so feel free to dive in and nab your best guess (or guesses) cos you could be a winner! For just £1 per go the winner will be the guess closest to my official marathon time and they will receive 26.2 pence for every time slot bought. So if all 240 time slots get bought the winner will win a staggering £62.88.... that has got to be better odds than the national lottery! So go on buy a time slot, pay your £1 (or multiples of as I am sure you want to buy more than one) via my just giving page here or give me the cash when you next see me and you could be set to make a small fortune (small being the operative word).
- Increase my longest run by a mere 7 miles (up to a max run of 22 miles on 24th March)
- Reduce my average mile pace to my ideal marathon pace of 10 mins 30
- Raise another £1300
The pace issue is just about running faster - who knew? So on Tuesday's 6 mile run I focussed on setting a fast pace and achieved an amazing average pace of 9 mins 44 per mile which was a huge improvement on my previous PB of 9 mins 59. However there is no way I can keep that kind of pace up for a whole marathon but I would like to improve my average long run pace of 11 mins 17. Sadly though the faster I run the more I look like Phoebe from Friends (click here if you want a preview), which when coupled with my really appalling running wardrobe (80s legwarmers, child's high vis jacket, luminous shorts over supermarket leggings and ski sweatband) you can see why I have been avoiding it until now. Hey ho London must have seen worse...?
The money raising, though, is more of an issue. My penny pots are slowly infiltrating friends' mantelpieces, desks and kitchens and the two I have already had returned have raised a staggering £29.45... although I am fully expecting this average to be drastically reduced.
So I have
Saturday, 9 February 2013
The confessions of a novice runner
I knew today's run was going to be hard. 15 miles is a crazy amount of miles to run and I approached it with more caution than my previous runs and I am sure this mental doubt certainly hindered my efforts, along with the snow, sleet and rain that had me soaked to the bone by mile 4!
For the past 7 weeks, my weekly long run has increased week on week, never allowing me to simply plateau for a week and repeat the distance with confidence. Whilst I know this is an important part of the marathon mental preparation as I will never actually run the full 26.2 miles before the big day, it is really hard going. Thankfully, next week I get to repeat my 15 miles before increasing to 17... gulp!
However today's run did have a few highlights including a row with a dog walker (and I admit I might have been in the wrong for which I must pass blame to my obviously low Glycogen stores)! Now before you read the following please also consider that I had spent a good few miles being "shot" at by the Saturday shoot. Seriously they were out in force today and at points I was leaping around so my fluro jacket was seen (in my mind through a gun sight) and I wasn't mistake for a plump Partridge. Many times I nearly pooped my pants as the shots felt like they were whizzing straight past my ear and that I was an extra in Saving Private Ryan!
So with no further excuses as I can tell you are itching for the goss here goes my-row-with-an-oldie in glorious technicolor detail. Imagine it, mile 11, cold, tired, wet and 4 miles still to go. At this point I had been running for nearly 2 hours and hadn't seen any sign off life for 6 miles, apart from being shot at which does very little to warm the cockles for humanity. So when I finally did I was so overcome with being back in civilisation that I think I experienced extreme acclimatisation (surely it is not farfetched?). So there I was going stir crazy, thighs aching when I saw a man a few hundred yards in front of me with two dogs, one of which was squatting. To my utter horror, when the squatting dog returned to the more traditional standing pose his owner failed to remove the offending item with a poopa scooper (lesson number one: not all dogs are male). So (and here is my second lesson) without removing my headphones I pointed to the spot and said "pick up the poo". Now I appreciate that seeing a crazy runner lady wearing a (slightly too small) boys Florescent jacket, orange shorts over running leggings, ski head band and 80s legwarmers shouting might be a little starting. Add to the equation that I was probably suffering from headphone deafness which amplified my "pick up the poo" comment to screaming banshee levels. At this he gave me a quizzical look (which I took as defiance) so I repeated myself and this time he responded. Now because I still hadn't removed my headphones I couldn't make out the response but was now close enough to lip read the word "bitch". At this I yanked my headphones out of my ear and said "there is no need to be offensive, I was simply asking you to pick up your dog poo" to which I got the reply "I simply said my dog is a bitch and had just urinated"... OMG please ground swallow me.... nope that didn't work so instead I picked up my pace and ran on.
Cringy huh! But it got worse when I realised that the song playing (and which was still belting out in clear audible tones to the poor man) was, you guessed it, WHO LET THE DOGS OUT. Seriously you couldn't make this stuff up!
I will be buying next months Cotswold Style to see if "angry resident of Faringdon" has complained about crazy runner lady listening to tunes supporting the irresponsible release of dogs!
So dear readers... am I forgiven?
For the past 7 weeks, my weekly long run has increased week on week, never allowing me to simply plateau for a week and repeat the distance with confidence. Whilst I know this is an important part of the marathon mental preparation as I will never actually run the full 26.2 miles before the big day, it is really hard going. Thankfully, next week I get to repeat my 15 miles before increasing to 17... gulp!
However today's run did have a few highlights including a row with a dog walker (and I admit I might have been in the wrong for which I must pass blame to my obviously low Glycogen stores)! Now before you read the following please also consider that I had spent a good few miles being "shot" at by the Saturday shoot. Seriously they were out in force today and at points I was leaping around so my fluro jacket was seen (in my mind through a gun sight) and I wasn't mistake for a plump Partridge. Many times I nearly pooped my pants as the shots felt like they were whizzing straight past my ear and that I was an extra in Saving Private Ryan!
So with no further excuses as I can tell you are itching for the goss here goes my-row-with-an-oldie in glorious technicolor detail. Imagine it, mile 11, cold, tired, wet and 4 miles still to go. At this point I had been running for nearly 2 hours and hadn't seen any sign off life for 6 miles, apart from being shot at which does very little to warm the cockles for humanity. So when I finally did I was so overcome with being back in civilisation that I think I experienced extreme acclimatisation (surely it is not farfetched?). So there I was going stir crazy, thighs aching when I saw a man a few hundred yards in front of me with two dogs, one of which was squatting. To my utter horror, when the squatting dog returned to the more traditional standing pose his owner failed to remove the offending item with a poopa scooper (lesson number one: not all dogs are male). So (and here is my second lesson) without removing my headphones I pointed to the spot and said "pick up the poo". Now I appreciate that seeing a crazy runner lady wearing a (slightly too small) boys Florescent jacket, orange shorts over running leggings, ski head band and 80s legwarmers shouting might be a little starting. Add to the equation that I was probably suffering from headphone deafness which amplified my "pick up the poo" comment to screaming banshee levels. At this he gave me a quizzical look (which I took as defiance) so I repeated myself and this time he responded. Now because I still hadn't removed my headphones I couldn't make out the response but was now close enough to lip read the word "bitch". At this I yanked my headphones out of my ear and said "there is no need to be offensive, I was simply asking you to pick up your dog poo" to which I got the reply "I simply said my dog is a bitch and had just urinated"... OMG please ground swallow me.... nope that didn't work so instead I picked up my pace and ran on.
Cringy huh! But it got worse when I realised that the song playing (and which was still belting out in clear audible tones to the poor man) was, you guessed it, WHO LET THE DOGS OUT. Seriously you couldn't make this stuff up!
I will be buying next months Cotswold Style to see if "angry resident of Faringdon" has complained about crazy runner lady listening to tunes supporting the irresponsible release of dogs!
So dear readers... am I forgiven?
Friday, 8 February 2013
Loose change
What is it about handling coppers that make your hands smell? Why can't I stop smelling them even though I know the smell is really rather nasty - I don't need to keep checking! And do I really want to know or shall I just anti-bac and remain ignorant? Yep I agree ignorance (in this case) is bliss!
Now I can hear the tired, Friday evening cogs whirling in your heads wondering why I am playing with coins on a Friday night (I do have a gin if that makes my Friday night social life slightly less tragic)? Well, this evening I have been doing some investigating as how much in loose mixed change (nothing over 20p) can fit in one of my Blue Peter copper pots.
Having now given out / posted over 25 copper pots the "Save the Copper" campaign has officially launched. At work I am even offering a whole tray of homemade (and delectable) pecan brownies to the person who collects the most pennies in February and, being a competitive lot, there has been talk of including a few golden nuggets to increase integral value! It's amazing heights people will go to for a tray of Brownies.
But instead of waiting for the pots to be handed back, and being of an impatient imposition, I couldn't wait to begin calculating what a full pot might generate. So, kids tucked up in bed, I emptied out the inspiration behind the campaign, our own loose change pot, and filled a "Save the Copper" cup:
This totalled a staggering £5.53 and I still hadn't completely emptied the our loose change pot! Of course I also found a random array of oddities including a shoe horn, button, American cent, toy penny and a pen!
So whilst I am not expecting each pot to be filled to such levels as my example, this does fill me with excitement that, over the year, the penny pledge might reach £200! What do you reckon?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)