6 Sleeps, You'd Think I was Excited!

I've just realised that I haven't updated my blog for some weeks, reason being, I've been busy at work, busy at home and busy training and I took another cold and I made the decision to rest from running for a week to make sure I didn't make things any worse.
It's now only 6 sleeps until the big event and I'm in what can only be described as a loop of emotions, going from being relatively calm to being quite excited to feeling quite emotional. Hopefully on Friday night I'll be relatively calm and will get a good nights sleep, but to be sure of that Iain will have to sleep in another room, his snoring could waken the dead!! I've been tapering for the past week, but before that I've ran some big runs.  My biggest being 29miles - I had no idea that I could run that far (and given that I entered the D33, I only hoped that I could)!  It was an interesting 29 miles, which I ran with what some might say complete strangers, but it didn't feel like that as I met them on facebook - now that I've actually said that and thought that through and I think of all the messages that we read about meeting up with people from social networking sites and would bollock our children for doing this, some might say that this wasn't the cleverest thing to do. However in defence of my action, the event was posted on the fb page and people knew where I was going.  What a great wee group of runners it was and I've since ran with them again.  On the day we ran the 29 miles, the weather was perfect, I started off with running at the Strathclyde parkrun and then ran to meet up with the other runners who ran in from Glasgow Green along the Clyde Stride route, we then followed the route all the way to New Lanark.  The route was very challenging, we ran through a field where some work was being done, we had to be mindful as to where we were placing our feet as the ground was quite uneven and very muddy in places. One of the runners ran ahead and we thought that we had lost him, a quick phone call to him confirmed that we hadn't and he was waiting a wee bit ahead for us.  The field that we ran through had none of it's usual resident cows in it, surely it wasn't too muddy for them, or maybe they are kept indoors over the winter - who knows, but the 'where have the cows gone' kept my mind occupied instead of thinking about the distance ahead.  We stopped for one of our snacks, I like this bit and it's always interesting to see what other people bring with them - jam pieces, fudge, salted peanuts, hula hoops, jelly babies all of which we shared topped up with water or an energy drink before heading off at a nice easy pace.  I stayed at the back with Julie Docherty who is in training for the Clyde Stride Ultra in July, she was great company, chatted away and I only had to listen, I'm not great at the chat back bit when I'm out running, it's difficult enough having to breath let alone talk, anyone else like that?  Unfortunately Julie and David Mooney had to turn back, my choice was to go with them or continue to New Lanark, the distance was the same whatever I chose to do. I decided that as I'd never gone this way to New Lanark, I would continue on the route that I'd set out to do.  The group was diminshing as it had been a group of 7, with people joining in and dropping out at verious points and now we were down to a group of 3, David Martin, Robert Soutar and me.  David and Robert were a great support, they'd run on and one would run back to me or they'd stop and wait, we'd have a snack and then crack on.  The last 12 or so miles were a killer, who on earth put hills like that on the route and it was so very muddy. I got a tiny wee injury, which could've been a lot worse when I slipped on the mud and grabbed the fence to stop me falling, the fence was a barbed wire one, on this occasion I only nicked my finger and snagged my t'shirt.  Onward we went, I then became aware that I foolishly had not taken enough water with me and was beginning to flag, fortunately David had taken an extra bottle of lucozade with him which he didn't need and gave it to me.  When we came into a wee village we stopped at a shop to buy what ever we fancied, I wanted Red Bull, glugged it down and felt a bit more energised and off we all went again.  Not far 'till the end, however the climb only got harder and we could see the finish area, unfortunately we had to run away from it to reach it, my heart sunk as we had many steps to climb before coming back down to where the Clyde Stride ends, and as this was a practice run there were no hugs, bottles of beer or fudge.  Just a bit of a walk into Lanark to get the train back to Motherwell for me and Glasgow for Robert and David. The guys spotted Greigs and got themselves some sausage rolls - yuck!! We arrived at the train station and we could see the train there, so in fear of it taking off without us, we had to put the foot down and get on it.  What a great sense of relief it was to sit down, the train moved off from the station and we were homeward bound.  When we arrived in Motherwell it became evident that my legs didn't want to work and I struggled to get up and get off the train, by now I was moving like an 80 year old.  Having never been to this train station before I wasn't aware that I would also have to climb stairs to get onto the main street - not a pretty site as I groaned with every step, my shoes were covered in mud as were my clothes, not a bonny picture.  My car was about a mile away in Strathclyde Park and I hadn't quite reached the miles that I wanted to complete today, so I had no choice but to start moving one foot in front of the other as fast as I could until I broke out into a 'run'. Fortunately the road to the park is downhill so it wasn't too difficult to do and after adding on wee extra bits I got to 29 miles, I couldn't be bothered taking it to 30miles, I was stood by my car, it was time to go home a happy but tired runner who's longest run had been 26.2miles.  I knew then that I will run the 33 mile race on the 16th March.  A week later I met up with David and Julie and some well kent faces as well as some new runners and together with a number of dogs we did a section of the West Highland Way, a first for me and I loved it, a new route for me and the dogs for the future. I ran the first section with Harv, Iain met us half way and we swapped dogs over and Lily ran the second half.  Apart form waking to get fed and go out to relieve herself, she slept until Tuesday!  Well  that's my news, for the next week I plan to avoid people with colds and bugs, I've drafted my list of what I need to take with me for the race. Did I say it's only 6 more sleeps, I've got butterflies in mytummy thinking about it!

101 Miles in January

Well the last time I updated my blog, I had a bit of a viral hangover, I'm still not 100%, but it doesn't appear to be affecting my running and the D33 looks achievable, less than 7 weeks away - swallows hard!!  I'm building up my mileage as per the 4 day training plan, I have a couple of times had to drop one of the shorter runs, but I meet with a personal trainer once a week and he puts me through my paces - no rest for the wicked!  It is quite hard trying to fit work into family life, parkrun and D33 training.  I've also signed up for the 5x50 challenge which starts at the end of March which comes at a good time as I won't be training for the D33.  The 5x50 will help me with another challenge that a group of us from Strathclyde parkrun are doing on 21st - 22nd June, The Scottish parkathon.  The plan is to run all of the Scottish parkrun courses over a 24 hour period on the weekend of the longest day.  All of the runs will be 'freedom' runs with the exception of one which will be the last one - our home run and this will be a live run.  It'll be interesting to see how we cope with the travelling across Scotland, the stop - starting, running through the night and the sleep deprivation.  At present there are 8 Scottish parkrun's, but a little bird tells me there will be another one starting very soon and I know there is a lot of chat about another Glasgow one in Tollcross - hopefully nobody sets one up in the Western Isles before our planned parkathon!!!  Lily has started joining Harvey and me on our runs, she's not harnessed up and she only runs a very short distance, she seems to be enjoying it, but I want to be careful not to push her, her bones are still developing and to use one of my aunties quotes, she is 'growing like a weed'.  Harvey and I ran 13 miles yesterday, he was less keen to join me in my 20 mile run today, we compromised and he ran 4 miles, the weather changed for the worse when we were out, rain became really heavy and the wind was so strong that at times it felt like someone was hanging onto my jacket and I could barely move forward. Fortunately I have a treadmill at home and that's where I retreated to.  Some will say, that I won't be able to do that on D day and they're right, but just now I have choice and  when race day comes I'll just have to get on with it.  Todays 20 miler took me to 101 miles for January. I don't think that I've ever ran that distance in January since I started running in May 2003, it would have been nearer to the 200 had I not been ill at the beginning of January, but hey ho, mustn't dwell on what might've been and I am delighted with my progress.  Big miles to be run in February in preparation for the D33, I hope the weather gets better, it'll make the training so much more pleasurable.  Now to deal with the achy muscles, where is that foam roller?

Coughs, Sneezes and Wheezes

The training plan format for this past week states that I have a 3 mile, 6 mile, 18 mile and 5 mile run to do.  Due to returning to work on the 3rd January, I rejigged the plan to enable me to run my long run with the back to back on the 1st and 2nd.  So on the 1st I toddled off to Strathclyde parkrun, ran a 5k and then added a further 2 miles to take me to 5 (if only I knew how I was to feel later on that day, I would've continued to take my run up to 18 miles, but hey ho, hindsight would be a wonderful thing).  Come early evening my throat was feeling a bit funny and I developed an irritating cough.
On the 2nd when I woke up after getting very little sleep, I knew that the 18 miler was doomed for the day, so not to be thwarted and in the belief that what ever bug I had, it would be gone by the weekend, I made a new plan which was to run parkrun on Saturday followed by an add on run of 15 miles, I'd then get up and run the 6 miles on Sunday.  Pressure off, time to get better - I don't do sick and haven't had anything like this for 2+ years, Iain's been a trooper, but he should know by now just to leave me when I'm like this! 
I slept so badly on Friday night that I didn't make Strathclyde parkrun, attempting any distance, I believe will delay my recovery, so here I am sitting on the sofa on Sunday morning, I've watched the sky turn a beautiful red colour as daylight comes in, I still feel rubbish, but I think it's a better rubbish than yesterday, Hopefully I'll pick up on the training plan for next week which is similar to the one that I've missed.   I think a nice gentle walk is what is needed today - a sign that I must be feeling better.

The Year Ahead

"Who would've thought" was a line my mother used when she was talking about something I'd done in 2011 - in her own little way it was a back handed compliment - she doesn't do compliments very well or very often and this one has made Iain and I laugh many times - I don't think that she realises to this day what she said, but I'll take it, as it means a lot to me and I don't know if there will ever be another one!!!
The year ahead is going to be a busy one, with races planned, a new baby is expected to make her entrance into the family in April making me a Nona for the first time, and as one of my other son's recently got engaged, who knows there may even be a wedding. So I thought, why not start writing a blog and keep a record of 'stuff'.
I've signed up to do my first Ultra Marathon along with my cousin Caron Mutch on 16th March, which also happens to be her 40th birthday on that day - I don't know which one of us is the craziest, answers on a postcard to ..... 
In 2011 I decided to hang up my marathon shoes after running, what for me, was the ultimate marathon - ING New York Marathon. I loved it, but I wanted to focus on shorter distances and improve my times.  Injury and other things got in the way in 2012 and I lost my way a wee bit and I needed to refocus and find something for me - well, as I'd hung up my marathon shoes, I'd have to find a different distance to run.  After my family, running is my passion and a great stress buster and I heard about the D33 Deesideway Ultra which is to take place early Spring 2013.  I put a wee message out on Facebook to see if anyone might show an interest and my lovely cousin Caron took the bait, the next thing we're out there training, Caron in and around Macduff and me in and around Bellshill, building up our miles for this race before entry opens on 1st January 2013 - are we crazy or what!! Probably a bit of both 'crazy' and 'what'!!
My reason for chosing this particular Ultra over any other is that I'm pretty hopeless regarding routes and directions, I get lost very easily and I can't read maps or a compass.  So this run was made for me, it is an out and back starting in the Duthie Park in Aberdeen before heading out along a track to Banchory - how difficult can that be!! Well stick with me and I'll keep you posted over the coming weeks, who would've thought.....