Trouble with kids

Just back from my run. I had planned for 40 minutes but only managed the 30. Way too muggy out there.
Funny thing happened though. Spotted some kids fucking about with one of those life rings by the side of the river. In my best "passive aggressive" tone I asked him to return it to the box thing, which he did. Then one of them chirped up with "Hey! You're Isaac's dad!" Turns out. Kids know me. I'm not sure that's a good thing. Especially after i'd threatened to push him in the river if I ever caught him mucking about with the life saving ring thing again.... oh well!

I rarely do it with the wife.

Earlier today I actually ran with my wife. We rarely run together because we usually end up in a petty squabble about pace or course.
I managed 3 miles before the wheels fell off. I'd I had not been with Abby, it would have been a lot less.
30 minutes today. Will try 40 minutes tomorrow. A bottle of sauvignon blanc may say different.

Where I was, where I am.

I recently tracked down my PB for 10k. Well not just the 10k but probably my best race performance ever.
The race was the Great East Run 10k at Bungay in 2010. I ran 47.30. What I remember specifically is that during this race, I was holding back. Waiting to attack in the last kilometre. But I was undone by a massive hill around a blind corner. I wasn't expecting it and my fuel tanks were blown.
Since then, I joined Ipswich Jaffa running club, took up cycling too, changed jobs 3 times and set up my catering business.... oh and gained 20lb!
In other words, life took over. I don't like it.
Last night I stepped on the scales and out of curiosity, I checked my visceral fat and all the other bollocks which the scales tell you. I even checked what my BMI is with one of those charts online (yes I know BMI is massively flawed, but as a reference marker it suits purpose )
The results, unsurprisingly, we're not good. I need to do something about this. I want to be fast I want to be fit. I need to lose my boobies. I don't wanna be one of those fat dads. I'm better than this.

So I got up this morning and ran. It hurt a lot. But I need to stick with it and stop eating badly. I'm not very good at practicing what I preach. But I know what I should be doing. I need to work on will power as much as I need to get fit etc. My battle is truly 80% mental. 

Brighton Marathon 2016

Here goes. 205lb! And totally out of shape. Right now I'm really not sure how I'm going to make the start line of Brighton. But I will!
2016 please be good to me! I'm now off for a little trot.

Not two bad

TWICE! How does it happen twice? 1 hour 51 minutes and 17 seconds for the second time. I'm really not sure how I managed it, but at the Cambridge Half marathon I managed to match my previous "Personal Best"
I can't really complain too much. The previous PB was set after a solid winter training block and a race at Great Bentley. Whereas Cambridge was of the back of 4 weeks running after a layoff with a calf injury.
I really enjoyed the race yesterday. Although very crowded in the first few miles, the scenery was second to no other city race. Cambridge always delivers beauty.
The next race for me will be Brighton Marathon in April. I'm really looking forward to it. I now have the confidence that I will complete it. I was never worried about my time in Brighton, but it would be nice to get close to my 4 hour 11 min PB.
Always have a great laugh with the Ipswich Jaffa team. Lots of support and camaraderie. Perfect weather for running too.

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/714296862

Just another half a mile?

This week i've managed to run 29.5 miles. I think this is the highest ever weekly total of miles for me. The knees are sore, but holding out. A few times this week I have considered quitting running altogether due to the constant discomfort post run. This is something I am not ruling out completely for 2016. For now I'm just focusing on getting to Brighton Marathon. 

Slowly building the miles up. Planning on 12-14 miler next week. After that, I'll start bringing in speed work and intervals. 

Need to dust my bike off too. Ride anyone?

http://connect.garmin.com/modern/profile/BJP1974

A New kind of balance.

Nipped out for another run today. I think thats 6 runs in the last 7 days. Really starting to enjoy my running again now. Although I still need to work on the diet part of my new regime.
Anyway, I'd ordered some New Balance trail running shoes to give me better grip through the winter months. I ran in them today, along with the new Asics dual shorts and a NB Technical t-shirt.
The run went well and for the first time in a while, I did not get the sharp knee pain that I usually get in the first 15 minutes of my runs.
Obviously I don't want to just assume it's the new footwear. It could be the consistency of my running which has helped. It could be that I am relaxing more. Running more naturally and not thinking about stride length, cadence or efficiency. That can come later. For now i'm just running with a smile on my face and music in my ears. So far, it's going well.

http://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/666786553

The Morning After.

Not gonna lie. Today i'm feeling tired still. Just woken up and its not a physical exhaustion. It's more of a CBA (can't be arsed) tiredness. I am not due in to work until 4pm today. I have tonnes of housework which needs doing though. The front of our house looks like the worst kind of council Tip after missing the bin collection day last week :-(

I am great at making excuses aint I?

 Fuck it!

It's time to get on the Turbo Trainer!

Not quite to plan.

So my first week of marathon training, Christmas week, did not go quite to plan. I ate so much that i managed to gain around 8lb. Pushing me into the "Super-Heavyweight" category 200 lb+. 

Knowing the knee trouble which plighted me 2014  running. I thought it sensible to start of with some short one and half mile commute runs. They all felt good.

http://connect.garmin.com/modern/profile/BJP1974

Today I took it up a notch and tackled a 5 mile loop around Sproughton ans Bramford. This felt real good. slight burning in the knees at points, but not enough to stress me out. The memory of how much I enjoyed running in the past was enough to keep me motivated. 

Tomorrow I think I'll ride or even just get on the Turbo-Trainer with a bit of the Downward Spiral from The Sufferfest. Take a bit of pressure off my knees, burn a bit of fat and get the cardio workout I need.

Today score 8/10

GO time

I have entered the Brighton Marathon 2015. I last ran this race in 2011. My time was 4 hours 11 minutes and 47 seconds i think.
This particular blog is where I shall track and log my training.
I have not run since the Adnams 10k in Southwold, back in November. Now, its almost Christmas and I thought it was time to dig out some training plans. I think i'm going with the Hansons plan. It's an 18 week plan which I've already missed the first two weeks of. So today I need to get to it. Last night at a running club social event, I joked that "I'll be fine" and "No need to worry about me". I am now starting to realise that if I want to return to running for fun, training for this marathon could be my route back in. I have always run for fun, not results, bling and PB's. This is what I miss most. Disappearing for a run for a few hours. Running with no agenda.

Excuses:

• I've just turned 40
• My knees are sore
• I am a chef (Long hours on my feet)
• Married with 3 kids
• Really poor diet
• Too laid back

Listing my excuses I usually use. I can change some of these. But I can change how I deal with all of these. 

• Jo Pavey
• Get physio and stretch
• Rule 5
• Rule 5
• Eat better
• Commit

Let's see how this works out shall we?