Two steps forward...then ouch!

The orthotics are in the neutral shoes, talk of "medial collapse" and such like are now a thing of the past.  Mark has done and excellent job in sorting me out.  My new friend is this little fella on my heel!

A Good Day's Training

Hello from the Large Runner.....

Well today i thought nice coolish day for a marathon or a half one ish!! I accompanied by my better half who decided she would come because she is fitter than me as she attends a gym three times a week, headed off from home. On arriving at the bay of Greve de Lecq the sun came out the clouds cleared and the wind dropped....................Arse.! Well not put off by this we entered the cliff path up towards Grosnez castle and carried on and carried on with the occasional look over my shoulder to see if Kaz was still with me, only just we clocked up 4.3 mph on the uphill according to the watch at which point Kraen came out with the funniest thing ever. " Iam so sorry for ever saying you are not fit... why do i pay to go the gym when i can come on a little walk with you dear "! Anyway 9.5 miles later in 2hrs 50mins and we where home.

Onwards and upwards troops not long now........

Rab XXXXX

So blooming near...

Yesterday I took part in the Dinosaur 10K - a 10K road race in Deal - on what felt like the hottest day of the summer so far. I have to say I was a bit worried going in to it, mainly as I'd had a dream the night before where I'd missed the start of a race and had to run to try and catch up with everyone else which proper freaked me out. Everyone was really lovely though - even though they were all 'proper runners' and I felt totally out of my depth! And yes, I did get overtaken by someone old enough to be my grandad who made me look like I was standing still - at least he wasn't in a banana costume though!

I finished in 1 hour 1 minute and 1 second, according to the official results - just outside my target of under 1 hour. Although I was a bit gutted that I missed my aim by such a small margin, I'm still pretty pleased with the way it all went considering there was a never-ending hill in the course and even the spectators were sweating buckets. And I have never been so grateful that the Great North Run is held in October and (barring freak weather) should at least be slightly cooler than yesterday was!

Its not all That Bad!!

Hello from the Large Runner,

I say large but actually not so large anymore, when i signed up for this mission nobody told me i would be able to fit into my old clothes that i used to fit! So consequently i am having to wear stuff from Karen my wife;s wardrobe. Nothing new i hear some of you say. (only joking). I thought i would blog for you lot that are down and despondent. Tom you will do it because you are doing it for the same reason as me, Fluff. After seeking advise from a athlete they have told me i will probably not be able to run the whole amount before the actual race, so what i have had to do is plan into my training schedule that the race itself will be the last run of my schedule, if that makes sense.? Saying that it the last two weeks i have managed a 6 mile walk at 4.4 mph cos the training watch tells me speed over distance etc in around an hour and twenty, that includes stopping to chat to various people on the way.

To all you Team Atko members just remember this:

Some things in life are bad
They can really make you mad
Other things just make you swear and curse.
When you're chewing on life's gristle Don't grumble, give a whistle
And this'll help things turn out for the best...

See you all on the 1st for a drink....PS its my B/day.

Love Uncle Rab x

Kneely over

I have been out of it for far too long now. It has taken a while to sort out this knee thing of mine, which is actually a hip fault rather than my knees. In fact it might be my feet, no one seems to be entirely sure.

I have been to see 3 physiotherapists, I now have Orthotics (insoles) made up, but now I need some neutral shoes for them to fit in. Mark did a video gait analysis on me and it seems I am running like a prawn, so he has sent me off for a few days to sort myself out and get rid of my muscle memory, and when I have settled into short runs with my neutral shoes, the insoles will go in and I should be off again... finally.

I also have been doing some odd looking hip stretches 3 times a day.  When I signed up for this I thought it was just a case of running about looking sweaty.

I did a couple of 2.5K runs in Jersey last week. My left knee gave me no discomfort, but the right was still a problem. My only interest now is getting back up to 10K, from there I am confident I can keep training and make the distance on race day.  I will run the whole way.

On 31st of August I have entered the NIKE+ 10K HumanRace,  You can run in 25 cities around the world, or like me, you can run where you like. I will be running the Newburn circuit in the Tyne Valley which is just over 10K, so that is my short term target.

I have also got some strange hacking cough which is starting to irritate me.  It has a rattle like TB and my voice sounds  a bit 0898.  It doesn't seem to stop me running 2K, but I hope I can get well soon and hopefully I will finally be back on my feet!

Will let you know.

Back on track?

Last Sunday, I took part in our local Race for Life 5K, which I completed in a fairly respectable 32mins. Not too bad (for me, anyway), but I was hoping to come in under the half hour. I'd probably blame it slightly on the traffic - I understand if people need to stop for a walk, but do they really have to stand in a line across the path??? It was, however, the first time I'd completed this race comfortably, thinking I could really have run it faster, so I'll take something positive from that anyway! Usually the race for life was an event we almost forgot we had signed up for, then went out in Canterbury on the night before in spite of. I have very fond memories of the girls rocking up to Herne Bay with assorted hangovers to do their bit for charity.

I have now signed myself up for the Dinosaur 10K - the local road race organised by the Deal Tri club which starts about 5 mins walk from my front door. The aim is to finish in under an hour, which only gives me a couple of weeks to get back into running and sort my pace out. This race is actually run by proper runners, rather than fun-runners (if that makes any sense?) so I'm a bit terrified I'm gonna show myself up - I have mental pictures of me wheezing at the back 5 mins behind everyone else - but I'm hoping that fear will also keep me on track with my training schedule... Keep your fingers crossed for me!

Running through the vines

Hot! hot! hot!

I had been struggling with the arrival of summer. Not the sunshine, which I adore, but the heat. Running is so much harder when it is really, really hot. As you all know, old injuries have proved a challenge for me and new injuries have cropped up. I think my body was in shock at the extra work I was putting it through, particularly as I am now embarking on an actual half marathon training program.

The hardest thing I have had to learn is the difference between pushing myself enough and pushing myself too hard. I do need to push myself hard otherwise I would still only be able to run for about two minutes before stopping. This running lark does involve a lot of trying to push myself that extra bit harder all the time, so that I can improve. But there is a line and I have to be realistic. One lesson that I have learnt is that it is better to rest an injury instead of running on it and taking even more time to recover. That was a hard lesson. Ouch!

It has also been hard realising that I do have a life and there is going to be the odd missed run. I've got to stop berating myself when runs are missed because of other genuine commitments. But I also need to remind myself on a regular basis that Eastenders isn't a genuine commitment!!!

It has been really tough to date. But Ladies and Gentlemen, something strange happened this week. I had my FIRST EVER good week of running. The first week where I have felt that I could actually do this half marathon. I actually enjoyed some of it.

I'm sure there are plenty of lows to come, but it is nice to report a big high for a change.

I'm very proud of how we are all doing. Look at where we started and how far we've come. We've still got a long way to go, but the time has come to take a look back at what we have achieved so far. The most important thing to remember is that, even on the bad days, we're not giving up. Go us!!!!

"If you are going through hell... keep going"

The high of 10K in 57 minutes now seems a distant memory.  I have been struggling with core work in the gym,  and my knees are still far from ok.  I only managed 2K on the treadmill last week because of the discomfort.  I have been told to lay off the running until we find out what the problem is.

It seems to be an issue with hamstrings, still lugging around excess weight (despite loosing a stone and a half), and possibly feet requiring a custom made sole for my running shoes.  It is all enormously frustrating.  My 12 week training plan starts on the 13th of July so I am hoping that the physio has good news for me on the 14th when I go to see him.

I am quickly beginning to realise that you can't blag your way through a half marathon.  I am committed to covering the 13.1 miles in the fastest time I possibly can and I will put in the work to do it.  The fact is that despite my enthusiasm I am still paying the price for sitting on my arse for the last 10 years.

Winston Churchill said "If you are going through hell... keep going".  

Naturally things are not really hell-like, but those words seem to sum up what is required at the moment!

Slow recovery...

After a period where things had been going pretty well on the training front, its all come crashing down around my ears now. Last week was spent at Glastonbury - which was hugely awesome - and as a result of the lack of sleep and consumption of vast quantities of pear cider, this week has been spent trying to get back to normal, rather than running.

Luckily, I'm running in the local Race for Life on Sunday morning, so I'm hoping that will kick me back into training mode - all of a sudden, October doesn't seem that far away anymore!

Tick, tock, tick, tock...

Another training week lost due to sickness throughout the family. I spent the first few days looking after t'Mrs night and day as she evacuated her body of all liquids then young Ms D got an ear infection and now I have taken up close residence to the bathroom so please excuse me if I have to go suddenly. Hopefully I will be able to train next week but I don't feel very good right now and am severely deprived of sleep.

Now, pass me that bucket if you would be so kind...!