Everything Comes To An End

I really let this blogging slip... I'll start with an update of the final races that I ran:

Great Yorkshire Run - Sheffield

The race was all flat, fantastic right? Sadly not, the heat during the race was probably the worst I encountered over the entire year, and no amount of water helped to quench an ever growing thirst. The best reprieve I got was running through a shower that had been sent up on a race track, it refreshed me and I managed to pick up the pace for a while. I'd definitely run this race again, fantastically organised and whilst not a great way of seeing the sights, enjoyable and stress free all the way.

Stockton on Forest

If there is one thing I have learnt from this year, give me running through fields and mud over running on tarmac in cities. Not only is there more things to see, the challenge is far greater. In this race I ran through wooded areas, alongside haystacks that were as high as houses and across the tops of hills, looking down across North Yorkshire. This race wasn't too challenging either, and my sister Vikki came along, which was an added bonus. At this point I began to grow weary of running the races, and they felt like somewhat of a burden.

Wistow 10K

Wistow was much the same as Stockton, not surprising being that they are within the same area and offer much the same landscapes and sights. In fact, at points you could have barely told the two races apart, but luckily I loved Stockton and loved this one the same. I think as I got to the end of the year I was less about competition and more about finishing the race and getting it over with. I think I began to resent things because I wasn't preparing myself for the races, my fitness was declining and, at the time, I had just changed jobs and was spending time before/after races moving things out of my flat. Once I got home i'd be unpacking and my weekends had gone. That's life though, and 2012 has been a big year for me.

Pickering

What a great race! This was during the rainy part of October, and whilst it wasn't raining during the race, the ground was sodden. Better yet, the majority of the race was off road, so I was trudging through mud, and puddles, the race became all about running through the puddles, laughing at the people trying to step around them and just having an attitude of enjoying it. I finished the race coated in mud, the water absolutely ruined my feet, the skin tearing off because I didn't have waterproof socks. It was painful, and is still healing now. It was a fantastic feeling to finish that race, the last of the 12.

So how do I feel after running 12 races for charity, and raising over £1,500?

Well, firstly, I feel very proud of what i've achieved and am glad to say that I have been able to do this, and achieve it in memory of my father. 12 months ago I wasn't sure that I would be able to hack it, and when injury struck in only the 3rd race and persisted I thought it could all be over in a second. I feel to have overcome what I have had to in the past 12 months shows great will and determination. I am also happy I was able to be a catalyst towards raising money for BHF, and hope it'll go towards preventing ill health and deaths from heart related problems.

Secondly, the flip side of the coin. I wasn't prepared for this. I didn't realise the sort of training i'd require, the injuries I faced, or how to run a charity campaign. This blog for example wasn't kept very up to date, and there are plenty of other channels, including the many forms of social media that I could have used. I think I will do this again in a few years, and I will approach it as someone who is informed on how it works. I feel that I failed to maximise my fund-raising potential by some way, even if what we raised was such a huge amount.

What next?

Well, on the charity front, I won't be doing any out and out fundraising work for charities over the next 12 months to my knowledge, and if I do, it won't be anything to shout about. What I plan to do instead is work on marketing campaigns for charities, such as social media strategies, and I may even provide them with some videos. I'd also like to start giving blood. I'll be looking forward to the next fundraiser I do though, which I may do in 2014.

On the running front, well, i'm diversifying! Next year I plan to run one 10k, this time the goal is to run it under 40 minutes, rather than to run twelve of them.Secondly, I plan to run a half marathon, and as long as I finish it i will be happy, it's meant as a taster. As well as that I will be competing in two open water swims, again as a taster for the future. I also plan to buy a bike in the spring and start cycling more. Finally, if the opportunity arises, i'd like to compete in an aquathlon (a run and a swim). This year I am working towards fitness goals, reducing my body fat to 10%, increasing muscle mass and looking forward to the future where I plan to compete in marathons, triathlons, adventure races and just about anything I can.

I'll be keeping this blog up and running, and plan to make more of a habit of updating it in the new year as I begin my new training. The focus will shift from the charity campaign to a more generalised blog about the sports I partake in, training, diet etc.

Thank you for following me this year in what has been a defining achievement that I will remember for the rest of my life. I could not have done it without every single one of you. Thank you.

John

York 10k

Hey Guys,

So a week ago I ran my 8th race in York, so we are slowly getting towards the end of my 12 races. I will have run them all by the end of October, so I can take the winter to recovery, before i move on to new sports goals, which includes open water swimming.

Racing around somewhere you've called home for the past 4 years, and know like the back of your hand, is more like just going for an easy training run. It was very relaxing running past the minster, down by the ouse and starting at the race course, with all the other places inbetween. I did it in a time of 54:53.

With 4 races left, i've now joined the gym to work on my overall fitness and also to take a weight off my knee as much as possible for it to fully heal. As well as open water swimming next year i'd like to do an aquathlon. Plus if a new job arises and i'm not working weekends anymore, i'm definitely joining a weekend football team!

Cheers,
John

Hull, Leeds Centre, Pudsey - Finally a New Blog

Hey all,

I've been crap at updating this blog recently, 2 months since my last post, which is terrible, so I am going to make more of an effort! Here is a 3 race catch up:

Hull 10k

What a miserable day. Start by crawling, lifelessly, out of bed at 4am, getting ready for what was my biggest race so far in terms of field size. The weather wasn't fantastic, some light rain turned into a downpour by the start of the race. I hadn't really prepared for that sort of weather, I never do. So I was really quite lucky not to get ill, as by the start I was already saturated and freezing.

Hull ain't much of a looker as a city, not going to lie! Though the race its self was quite an easy route, with not too many hills and a good variation of the sights around Hull. I think my main concerns that I got from running this race is how you have a lot of people who just decide to run it on a whim, very little training and no understanding of race etiquette.

Things like:

- Don't chuck empty bottles and cups into the middle of the road where people run, chuck them off to the side
- If you are going to throw the water over your head, make sure you hit your head and not tip the water on the person behind you.
- If you are a slow runner, admit it, don't hold people up or cause yourself exhaustion
- Don't try and shoulder barge your way through the field, there's always someone bigger than you that you'll come off worst against
- Don't stop in the middle of the course to tie your shoe lace, we didn't come to do a slalom.

I finished with a PB of around 51 minutes, though I can't exactly recall and it was the first race that may knee made it through without failing again.

Leeds 10k -

This one was much better weather wise, but the race field was even larger and the course had this really odd layout which constantly bottle-necked you and made it impossible for the field to flow. People were even ruder in this race, and afterwards I said I'd need a lot more patience to run the London marathon.

Anyway, the actual run was really fun once you got going and it made me realise that Leeds is actually a really nice city that has a bit of everything. I completed the course in around 56 minutes.

Pudsey 10k -

As I did this one yesterday i remember it a bit more clearly. This 10k definitely wins the award, so far, for most challenging and varied 10k I have competed in. The course was this fantastic combination of asphalt, sand, lose rocks, gravel, soil, mud, puddles, even horse muck that ended up all over my shoes! It had fantastic inclines and declines, but given that i've been off training for 2 months due to my injury, my fitness levels made it horrendously challenging, combined with the heat!

I wasn't at all prepared for it, as we started on the roads I, wrongly, assumed that it was going to be more of the same, and that the inclines wouldn't be too bad. Well, about 2k in, it all went downhill (and uphill). I don't think I ran a flat section after that. My shoe lace came undone so that dropped me down the field and then my attempt to catch up left me breathless from all the hills.

When I finished I was amazed to do it in under an hour as it was that much of a struggle. Though I was a wreck after the race, it took me alot of water, alot of food and a two hour nap to recover from the race. The race was so bad I was coughing quite a lot for a few hours, but this was more to do with being a bit unwell last week, the stress of the run was a bit much on me!

I now also seem to be fully recovered from my injury and returning to training later today, though i'm starting from the bottom and working back up, looking not to stress my body too much.

Sorry for taking so long to catch you up on things!

The next one is York 10k

Best,

John

Kirklees 10k

Hey Guys,

Today I ran the 4th race for my 12 races, 1 charity, campaign. As i'm currently suffering from a torn band behind the knee in my left leg, running is quite a challenge, and training is restricted to weights, stretches and other low impact things, which has left me missing running quite a lot, and the feeling you get after a long run when the endorphins pump through you.

Today was the first time I have run in 2 weeks, and Kirklees provided a somewhat unique challenge. The terrain and surfaces changed regularly. The run was mostly down the side of a canal, which I wouldn't say is the best idea. Overtaking was highly restricted and running under bridges down a canal is a nightmare for a guy who is 6 ft 3. Though at the same time, I felt I was quite lucky to be restricted from powering through, with my knee problems and all.

I was wearing a knee support for the race, which managed to delay my knee going but it did eventually go at the 7k mark, it feels like something has just torn in your leg, and running on it feels like something is trying to force its way out from your skin. It's not pleasant. But the knee support pulled my knee in and the pain dropped after another kilometre running on it.

Like a driver with road rage, I have my usual complaints. The guy who went to tip his entire bottle of water over his head, missed and got me instead was a bit frustrating, but hey free water. I was annoyed by one guy who decided not to take a water bottle along on the 10k with him, who seemed to develop heatstroke and began to wobble all over the path. Be that a warning to anyone, you can run a 10k without water, particularly if you run it in 30 minutes, but it's unadvisable in this heat. There's never a point to risking your own well being.

Next week is Hull 10k! That is probably the biggest race I have taken part in so far, so i'm looking forward to the goodies :)

Anyway, as for a full return to training, I don't think that'll come for another month, and as for the times I was previously hoping to be logging now (low-40's), I probably won't manage until October. I'm keen not to making this a recurring injury.

John

Donny 10k

Hey Guys,

For this race I upped my training and also began to focus more on 10k training, rather than the varied training that I was doing before in order to hone my speed. The training period was semi-successful, my birthday celebrations, which included much beer and two cakes, threw things a bit.

Anyway, I did all the proper preparations for the race, but I had felt some worrying niggles in my knee in the run up to the race, during my taper. So for the race I took paracetamol and just went for it.

The race started really well, I bought a cheap wristwatch with a stopwatch to monitor my time and I was on for a time in the low 40's, running really really strong. The course its self was a nice mix of inclines, declines and flats but as I powered downhill there was a click in my knee followed by a sickening amount of pain. I slowed, but kept going, in agony.

At that moment in time I considered stopping all together and retiring from the race, the pain was unbearable and I still had 3/4 of the race to go. But as I was running, I thought about it all, summed it up, and also thought about my Dad. Suffice to say, it helped to get the adrenaline pumping, the ultimate painkiller.

I ran on, closer to a pace of my first two races and I think I hit a time a bit faster than those two races, though I am awaiting confirmation of the final results. As the 9k sign passed me, I felt a sudden rush of relief as I got towards the end, just looking for the finish and waiting for the pain.

I got across the line, picked up a shirt and a goodie bag before the pain in my knee really hit me. I felt really sick, the pain was horrendous and still is now. It's ITB Syndrome, and i'm not sure how long the injury will persist, but I have 2 more races in the next 3 weeks. So i'm taking it easy, both in the run up to and during those races.

Though, ever looking for new challenges I am considering a triathlon, open water swims, bungee jumping, skydiving, cross country cycling and the three peaks challenge (both Yorkshire and National) for 2013/14

John

2nd Race - Rother Valley

Finally got that second race done! Over the summer I will probably be running 2/month most months in preparation for any other potential delays.

Anyway, the race. I ran a 52:39. I'm pleased with it because it is an improvement but considering how hard I have trained I know I am capable of much better. I think I was too relaxed on the day, and that combined with a week of poor diet due to me being on holiday, and weetos as my pre-race breakfast. Meltham proved that pre race nerves help you to race better.

It was an odd day for a race, very misty, and the race field was twice the size of Meltham. The route its self was very flat, probably another reason I was too relaxed, and a pretty fantastic route around. A complete variation on Meltham which was cold with enchanting sites of the country side, this one had the smells of spring, people practising wakeboarding in the lake and an enjoyable route through and through which was more centered around a local community, rather than the remoteness of Meltham.

I also picked up some minor injuries due to worn out running shoes. Pain in my left big toe tendon, as well as pain in the arch of my right foot. They're pretty much better now, and i've replaced those running shoes with a brand new pair! After doing some maths on the mileage I now clock up i've realised i'm going to be going through a pair of running shoes every 2-3 months. Expensive!

New training - More strength training, more speed training.
New diet - Addition of higher iron foods and whey protein
New lifestyle - Still working on my ever so erratic sleeping pattern

I've ordered a few books to give me some inspiration, as I could definitely do with it right now, I need a bit of a push at the moment, especially with the sudden rise in heat making running a somewhat more torrid affair. And some sunglasses, because i'm not a fan of running and squinting.

I'm on a slow week to recover from the race this week, running 20 miles in total, split into 5 x 4 mile sessions. Then next week I will be back on it, once I know what my next race is, and I will be training according to it.

John

Time for a break

Hey all,

I'm not talking too much about training in this blog, more other stuff, but i will start with the training. I currently run 30-ish miles a week, with a 13 mile long distance run. I'm needing a better long run shoe for this distance (pretty much half a marathon) to support my foot and have also been looking at post run recovery shoes, but combined with suggested supplements, diet, other equipment etc if I bought everything it says i need i'd run out of money pretty quickly. Next race is planned as Rother Valley 10k a week tomorrow.

I've also bought myself a little herb garden to put on the window sill, so I am quite excited once they grow out to be able to add to my cooking! Seen as I cook constantly.

After months of hard and exhausting work I am going to have a week off (give or take a day for a meeting with John Lewis buyers), just one more shift to survive. Without a doubt i'm pretty exhausted right now and I know that the biggest challenge for me is to take my time off completely, which i've struggled with for a long time. Not great at chilling out completely, but i'm hoping I do this time.

The plan for my week is to eat lots, and preferably put back on some weight, as I am well aware I will just burn it off anyway. Sleep lots. Hill train lots. Play games, like Fifa, and I fancy doing Red Dead Redemption again. Then i've grabbed some of my favourite films like Pulp Fiction, Goodfellas and Four Lions. And read a few books too! But most of all the plan is to eat, sleep and relax.

On Sunday, i've got the day off thanks to Mr Tom Goddard, and i'm looking forward to seeing the place where my sister will be getting married, in Filey. So i'm really excited for that, and cos it's mothers day too, its really nice that I get to be there. Part of my family comes from, and some still live in, Filey and it was also where we would go on holiday when I was younger. There's a lot of memories for us there.

Now i'm mid packing, eating philadelphia on rice crackers cos i don't want to come back to wasted cream cheese! F1 is back too, so now i'm going to check out what I missed in free practice