A busy month

Hey ho,

It's been a while but I've had a busy month. Nothing major, just lots of uni work as exam time is upon us and the usual life getting in the way of stuff kinda thing.

My last post talked about how I felt I was under a bit of a black cloud. Things have definitely improved since then. It's a bit like being on a rollercoaster at times, you just have to hang on in there.

Running has been a bit of an effort at times. It has seemed like a lot of hard work and it hasn't been until the last week or so that I've felt that I'm enjoying it again. That aside I've done some great things with the runner. My club, Tyne Bridge Harriers, held a fundraising event for the Children's Heart Unit at the Freeman Hospital and The Freeman Heart and Lung Transplant Association  which was completed in around about 6 hours. It was fabulous to be part of the team and we were also joined by some of the recipients of donor organs who ran a lap, the Fit Factor team from the Journal and my friend and one of my inspirations Graham Smith who is running 2012 miles this year to raise money for the Tony Blair Sports Foundation which helps train volunteer coaches and officials so that more young people can get into sports.

I was meant to do the City of Sunderland 10k on the 6th May, however it was Newcastle United's last home game of the season and I would have been struggling to get back in time for kick off. I decided to change my plans and enter the Greggs Children's Cancer Run the following week instead, and managed to avoid a trip to the dark side, lol.

The Gregg's run is held at Newcastle race course and goes through the woods surrounding it. With the typical British summer weather it meant that the route was really clarty. Unlike other runs I've done there was no set starting time, people are allocated their number and are told to start anytime in an hour long slot. I hadn't experienced anything like this before and wondered if it would work. However I needn't have worried. At the start line it was like being at a theme park, lining up to start, being brought forward in a little group before being set away, and I have to admit that I had some nerves that were not dissimilar to those I might have felt had I been queueing for a white knuckle ride.

We set away, and I was quickly into a nice pace for me, and started really enjoying running through the mud and puddles and laughing at people who were gingerly trying to pick their way through. That was until the two mile point. An unexpected incline, some mud and a woman in front of me deciding to change her running line to directly into me saw me go flat on my front trying to avoid her. But I was straight up and running again, after throwing her a dirty look (to match my dirty hands and knees).

The distances were questionable. The first mile sign came at just over a mile according to my garmin, the second a good 200m before the 2nd mile, the 3rd came when my garmin said 2.6 miles and the 4 mile sign was placed at around about 3.65 miles according to the gps. I didn't know if it was me or the signs that were wrong but after asking some other runners afterwards it seems that they are quite free and easy with the mileage usually. However it didn't spoil the run any.

After crossing the finish line which is parallel to the racecourse itself, you are handed a medal (I love a medal when I've finished a run), a Greggs goody bag, consisting of a cheese and onion pasty, a gingerbread man and an apple, some water and another apple before you go to a stand where you collect your t-shirt.

Looking cream crackered after finishing 

Another medal for the collection

I definitely think that the Age Concern Run organisers can learn a lot from the Gregg's run organisers. The whole set up from Parking to good bag's after was a lot better and it's a run I'm looking forward to doing again next year. 

On Tuesday it was the second Grand Prix of the season at the running club. I was in two minds whether to go due to having an exam on the Wednesday but I am glad I did now, because I finished second and knocked a massive 1 minute 40 seconds off my previous time. To say I was buzzing would be an understatement. Achievements like this remind me why I started running, and why I continue. 

On Saturday I was going to give Park Run a miss due to a massively busy schedule but Graham asked if I was going so I said I would, then my friend Karen said she would come too. There was no PB today but Graham ran alongside me all the way and it was great to have someone who was encouraging me on. He really is a great lad, and managed to convince me to sign up to do one of the half hour slots in his 24 hour treadmill challenge in June. Seeing as I hate treadmills I think he did very well getting me in there. 

This week sees the club running at the Clive Cookson 10k on Wednesday, where my friends are also running, so a sneaky (non-alcoholic) drink beckons afterwards, and then it's the track and field event for the harriers where I am chucking things (shot put and javelin) and hopefully not hitting anyone in the process. 

Catch you all soon! 

Achieving so much

What a week I've had. It's been amazing!

Firstly I have got my eating well back on track. I had to make a massive effort to control what I was eating, as I was letting food slip back into my diet that I shouldn't have. Because I've got my head back in the game I have lost 6lbs this week. I know that the weight loss is as important as anything else in this journey and it's about getting everything in synch.

After last week's parkrun PB and I have managed to get 19.76 miles under my running belt. With Tyne Bridge Harriers I have been able to concentrate on being able to run better. It's about quality running, I have gone now from sounding like a bust set of bagpipes to being able to hold a conversation while running. It's not the talking though that's the good thing, although it is nice to be able to put the world to rights when you're out on a run, it's the breathing that has been the important thing. I can see that my heart and lungs are coping better with the exertion of exercising. That is a fantastic thing to know.

On Saturday I went to the Newcastle Parkrun again, as the Tyne Bridge Harriers were running their last winter parkrun grand prix race there. The pacesetters were out this week, basically people running the course in a specific time, and I was determined I was going to chase the 35 minute pacesetter as much as I could. I was determined to get a new PB this week. The first two miles seemed to go quite quickly, well quickly for me, but the last mile was a killer. There is a ferocious crosswind on the Town Moor, even on a non-windy day and I felt at times like I was taking one step forward and two back. However with less than half a kilometre to go Micky from running club became my personal cheerleader, I could hear him shouting at me to keep going all the way to the end, and he definitely helped me to dig in and get to the end and as I crossed the line I had taken a massive 46 seconds off this week, a new 5k time of 36.03 minutes. Looking at the photos taken later on I definitely looked worse for wear, pale and interesting as my mam would say.

I've decided that for the next few parkruns I am going to concentrate on just running them, rather than aiming for PB's. My pace is improving all the time, I know I can get better too with practice and help from the running club, but I don't want to push too hard to quickly.

On Sunday I had decided to break the mental barrier of the 10k. I am doing the Age UK Wrap up and Run 10k on Mothering Sunday and there is no way I wanted to go into that without having managed the 10k distance, because I knew I would doubt my ability. One of the lasses from running club, Davina, said she would come along with me on the run. Davina is brilliant. She is a lot like me, as in we don't have the stereotypical runners' build, but we do have bags of determination, we're stubborn and we are going places.

We met at Tynemouth and the sun was shining beautifully. It really felt like spring.

Starting at the Priory we just set off and ran, the aim not being the pace, but getting that 10k barrier shattered. Having the lovely Davina with me really helped me. We chatted about all sorts of stuff and it felt great to be able to talk about why I am running, what I want to achieve, what she has achieved and basically keeping each other motivated.

I got to 3.5miles out and turned back (Davina needed a quick pit stop to powder her nose so I had run a little way on my own). I felt really great, strong and happy. Then I got to the Surf shop at Tynemouth and my legs felt like cement. Without Davina there telling me she wasn't going to let me stop I probably would have started to just walk, but I managed to keep on going. Getting to the corner just past the Grand Hotel and I felt like all the heaviness had gone in my legs. It was if the knowledge of being on the home strait had energised me, and I finished feeling stronger. I was delighted to see that not only had I broken the 10k barrier, I had absolutely smashed it! 11.3k in total! ELEVEN POINT THREE K!!!

I now feel like I can go to Leeds on Sunday and I will manage the 10k, because I know I can run even further than that! Getting that 10k wall smashed down has been brilliant!

This week is planned to get a little bit of running in with Tyne Bridge Harriers and plenty of rest too. I'm still keeping my eating on track and hope to have another nice weight loss for next week. All in all I'm feeling so positive and motivated, and ready to take on the world.

Smoother running

Since the Grand Prix I have felt like my running has been going a lot better. At the moment it is about consistently getting out, getting miles under my belt and making little improvements.

I attended the Newcastle Parkrun again this weekend past. After the run I enjoy a cuppa with my good friend, Karen which is one of the highlights of my week, but the run is important too, lol. This week saw the sad death of PC David Rathband, and David was someone who attended the parkrun with his running partner Kerry. So it was apt to mark his death with a minutes silence, a balloon was released and many people, including David's twin brother Darren, ran in Blue Lamp Foundation t-shirts. It proved to be quite a sombre occasion. I decided to run this week for David.

The parkrun this week felt considerably easier than the last one, which I wasn't that happy with. I knew after 2 miles that my pace was considerably faster than the previous parkrun. I kept on going, despite a really strong wind in the last mile, and Karen was waiting at the final corner cheering me on. I crossed the line and found I had knocked a staggering 4 minutes off my last parkrun time. It was a new PB for me, and I was absolutely delighted with it! That was for you David, I hope I did you proud. To see the improvements in my running over time is motivating me to keep going.

I also managed my longest run so far with Tyne Bridge Harriers on Tuesday. 5.11 miles was ramped up on a cold Tuesday night around Byker, along the coast road and then along Chillingham Road. My pace is definitely improving over the longer runs too and that is important for me with my first 10km coming up. However the camaraderie within Tyne Bridge Harriers is something that I am enjoying too. I haven't come across one person who believes they are better than anyone else. Each person's achievement is celebrated no matter who they are.

I hope to run 10km this Sunday for the first time. It is important for me to get the distance broken before the run at Harewood House on Mothering Sunday, mentally more than anything else. I know I can do it, I just have to get out there and hammer it!

Running in circles

Last weekend saw me participate in the Newcastle Parkrun at Exhibition Park in the city centre. It's a weekly free event, you against the clock. All you need is to register on the park run website and print off the barcode that comes in your welcome email and you are set to go. Along with my friend Karen, I headed into Newcastle for 9am for a cold and blustery 5km run. I felt like I had cement in my running shoes. I don't know if it was a lack of running in the week before, or the cold or what, but I felt like I was taking 2 steps forwards and 1 step back all the way round. I finished the course last, and felt like I hadn't put my best in. However I've decided to do the Parkrun on alternate Saturdays with bootcamp on the other Saturday and want to see a marked improvement in my times on this course.

On Tuesday I went to Tyne Bridge Harriers, and signed my papers to join them. Since starting training with them I have felt nothing but made welcome. Despite there being a wide range of abilities there isn't any elitism. I feel like by joining I will improve my running immeasurably. It was their penultimate Grand Prix event on Tuesday evening. Basically its a Yacht handicap system, where the person with the slowest 5km time starts first and the fastest starts last. This means that everyone finishes at about the same time. Naturally I started first with two other lasses, and while one was faster right from the start me and the other one ran the whole route together keeping each other going around the course.

It was nice to not be trailing at the back from the very start. From Glasshouse street we ran to the Pitcher and Piano, across the swing bridge, along to the Millennium bridge and across and then back along to Glasshouse street. I had managed to keep a little bit in my tank to pull away from the lass I had ran with at the very end and finished 5 seconds in front of her, and third from last. I had run the 5km in a time 2 minutes and 43 seconds faster than on the Newcastle Parkrun on the Saturday. I felt so much happier with this effort, and it's set me a bench mark for the final Winter Grand Prix in four weeks.

My number has arrived for my first 10km, the Age Uk Wrap up and Run at Harewood House in Leeds on Mothering Sunday.

I am so nervous about doing this 10km. Like my first 5km I haven't set a specific time that I want to get, I just want to finish my first 10km. It's just another step on my way to the Great North Run. But it will be a step up from what I have achieved before. Before then, though, I just need to keep the training going in. Thanks once again for all your support, I couldn't do it without you all.