The Things Runners Forget #4

Posted on May 27, 2014 by James Clay

As I get back in to running, training and racing I’ve discovered there are things that had become commonplace which are now once more ridiculous. In a short series of posts I’m going to remind you, fellow runners, of the once unusual things you now happily do to yourself.

#4 – PARKRUN IS ACE!

Okay, so it’s unlikely you’ll actually have forgotten how ace parkrun is.

But if you are training for a specific run, especially if it’s any longer than a 10k, then it’s equally as unlikely that parkrun fits in to your training schedule. I’m yet to see the marathon schedule that says “Saturday – run really fast around a lake with a couple of hundred others for only 3 miles”.

Of course it can be incorporated. With a little creativity and planning it can form the middle 3 miles of your long run for the weekend, or maybe you can forget the time and do 3 miles of interval training over the parkrun course instead.

I’ve already talked about how much I love our own Cheltenham parkrun (and as one of the Run Directors I do think of it as ours because we would turn up in the middle of an apocalypse to make sure the event happened. But it fills me with immense pride that so many people want to share it with us!) This weekend we had a visually-impaired runner being guided by volunteers, a gentleman with 3 hours to kill before his wedding and 200 other stories all turn out in the rain to run, that’s what makes parkrun great.

So don’t forget about it. Just because you can run further than 5k, or you are entering big races or any other of a myriad of excuses, don’t stop going along and supporting your local parkrun because I’m sure it will be your most fun run of the week.

(this post is dedicated to the memory of Nikki Herbison, a member of the parkrun family who collapsed at Rushcliffe parkrun last week and despite the best efforts of fellow runners (including doctors) and marshalls sadly passed away the following day in hospital).

 

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The Things Runners Forget #3

Posted on May 20, 2014 by James Clay

As I get back in to running, training and racing I’ve discovered there are things that had become commonplace which are now once more ridiculous. In a short series of posts I’m going to remind you, fellow runners, of the once unusual things you now happily do to yourself.

#3 – RUNNING INVOLVES MUCH MORE THAN RUNNING

One of the great things about running, the big selling point, part of the reason we love it so much is that you can just pull on your trainers, go out the door and run.

This is true, to a degree…

Once you start running regularly there suddenly appears a whole lot of peripheral tasks. They creep in, like an insidious time eating parasite, until suddenly you realise that your whole life is revolving around those few hours you actually spend getting your sweat on.

Here’s a few examples of the things I have done this week, directly related to running but not actually running itself…

  • charged my Garmin
  • foam rolled 3 times
  • 2 cold baths
  • 4 extra showers
  • 2 extra loads of washing & drying
  • 4 extra car journeys
  • uploaded and edited Garmin stats
  • 1 shopping trip to buy a new club vest
  • Checking out running routes, race details, training ideas etc on the web
  • Countless hours talking about running
  • 2 blog posts!

Still, it’s nice to have a hobby that’s so easy to get out and do!

Do you spend as much time doing running related admin as you do running itself?

 

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The Things Runners Forget #2

Posted on May 11, 2014 by James Clay

As I get back in to running, training and racing I’ve discovered there are things that had become commonplace which are now once more ridiculous. In a short series of posts I’m going to remind you, fellow runners, of the once unusual things you now happily do to yourself.

#2 – TRAIL RUNNING IS MUCH TOUGHER THAN ROAD

Yes, it’s more fun.

Yes, it is better for you, easier on the joints, better for fitness etc etc blah blah

But if, like me, you made the transition ages ago you’ll have forgotten how tough it was to begin with.

Once you’d got over the shock of hills, thousands of the buggers, you then had to learn to run again. I strongly suspect you started trail running looking like a cat on a hot tin roof, we all did. Tip-toeing your way from one safe footing to another, avoiding anything that looked rock like, mud like…in fact trail like! Only with time do you learn to glide over the terrain like a trail bossing ghost, worrying not about where your feet go because your titanium ankles and rugged rubber soles can cope with anything.

You might also have made the error of expectation. “I can do a parkrun in under 30 minutes again…get me to the hills!”. 3 miles is a lot longer when you’re negotiating quicksand, fallen trees and wild beasts. Coming away from a run disappointed because you were much slower than expected is a very real prospect for those new to trail running.

I know this because I have just become new to trail running again, and have been reminded of just how daunting it is when you take those first tentative steps in to the unknown.

If you’ve been there, and got through it, give yourself a pat on the back. If you think back to how terrifying it was that first time, you definitely deserve it.

I WILL be back here again!

I WILL be back here again!

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The Things Runners Forget #1

Posted on May 8, 2014 by James Clay

As I get back in to running, training and racing I’ve discovered there are things that had become commonplace which are now once more ridiculous. In a short series of posts I’m going to remind you, fellow runners, of the once unusual things you now happily do to yourself.

#1 – FOAM ROLLING HURTS

Yes, we all know that, it hardly comes as a suprise, but…

Do you remember when you first foam rolled? When you’d been running a while, long enough for your legs to develop knots and adhesions. Long before the foam roller became your best friend, and you’d cavorted together often enough that the big issues were dealt with as a series of small issues. Do you remember how much those first few forays in to the world of foam rolling hurt?

Let me tell you…

A hell of a fricking lot!

IMG_20140507_074745

This made me cry on Wednesday morning. Actual real tears.

 

 

 

 

Yes it gets better with time, and yes it is beneficial, but is it not strange that as runners we forget just how goddamn painful it is and accept it as a part of our lives?

We’re a weird bunch, us runners.

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Running Naked Was A Bad Idea…

Posted on April 30, 2014 by James Clay

It’s only been 2 weeks/7 runs since I started recovering (I refuse to call it training until I can actually cover a race distance again!) and already I’ve learned something very important.

Running naked can be a bad idea.

For the uninitiated among you, who currently have a mental image of wobbly bits and chafing inner thighs, please lift your minds out of the gutter!

Running “naked” simply means running without a watch on. No GPS measuring your pace, distance, time, cadence, hydration levels or likelihood of pop stardom in Lithuania. Just running how you feel, letting your body choose how far and fast you go.

When you’re training, living by the stats and with every run governed by a plan dictating exactly what you should be doing, it can be a great relief to run naked. If you spent a 16 week marathon training plan doing only what you were told, you’d soon fall out of love with running. It’s good to occasionally leave the watch and expectations at home and reconnect with the joy of just running.

But since coming back from months off I’ve been really struggling. I’ve not taken the watch out as I just wanted to do some running, and the first 6 runs back have followed a similar pattern…

GO>>>GO FASTER>>>REMEMBER HOW IT FEELS TO FLY ACROSS THE PAVEMENT>>>KEEP IT UP FOR 500 METRES>>>START A SLOW DEATH>>>PACE DROPS>>>GO THROUGH 600 METRES WONDERING HOW THE HELL IT CAN’T BE A KILOMETRE YET>>>SLOW FURTHER>>>START THINKING I’LL NEVER RUN AGAIN>>>LOOK FOR AN EXCUSE TO STOP>>>CHANGE ROUTE TO INCLUDE THE NEXT AVAILABLE ROAD CROSSING>>>STOP AT CROSSING AFTER 750 METRES GASPING FOR BREATH AND DOING THAT “STRETCHING/WAITING FOR THE LIGHTS TO CHANGE/TRYING TO CONVINCE THE WAITING CARS YOU’RE AT THE END OF THE FASTEST 5 MILE RUN EVER SEEN” DANCE>>>REST FOR 2 MINUTES>>>REPEAT.

Yep, 6 runs exactly like that, the longest of which totaled a leg breaking, lung busting 3 miles.

I even did a trail run along a canal at the weekend. I stopped to watch cows humping as an excuse for a rest. This is an all time low.

So yesterday I tried taking my watch out again for the first time and it made all the difference!

Turns out what I thought was a comfortable pace was actually quicker than my 10k PB pace. While I’d been beating myself up for being crap I’d been beating myself up by being an idiot. Having my trusty companion on my wrist to slow me down and coach me to a steady pace helped me keep going.

So yesterday this happened…

My first steady paced, non-stop run since January. It’s not fast, it’s not yet a 10k, but it felt immeasurably good to be running again instead of struggling. I rediscovered the joy of running and it was all thanks to my trusty Garmin.

It will be some time before I run naked again.

(p.s. yes, this is the world’s oldest, largest gps watch. If anyone knows of a cheap alternative shout now! I reckon a smaller, lighter, more aerodynamic version must be worth about a minute a mile!)

 

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