I went for a run last night and found it pretty tough. I had a dodgy stomach beforehand (without going into the details of how long I spent in the bog!) - but I felt OK when I started out for the run. However, I felt really tired in my legs - not the heavy legs that you get after weight training or hill climbing - but just a lack of energy in them. I’ve never had that before. My speed just felt way off and when I tried to push myself harder there was nothing left in reserve. Totally different to the way it has been for the last month.
So I managed to run 5K (although I was hoping for 7-8K) and I walked for another 3K afterwards to try to warm down. My left knee was hurting too - I’m becoming concerned that I am damaging my knees with my running style. If I kneel down on the floor, both my knees are sore - but I’m fine when I’m walking about. I may look into going to a running clinic to analyse my style of running. I know there are many things to look at such as cadence and foot fall.
At least I managed to get the Ks in though, which is all contributing to my gradual weight loss and general well being. I weighed in at 93.2KG which means I’m losing a little weight but not a massive amount. I am happy though as this is probably a sustainable amount - I’m not starving myself or missing out on too many luxuries - I feel like I could keep going with this regime for the rest of my life. Plus I definitely feel much tighter around my belly and my jeans fit better so I think I’m losing weight in the right places.
I’m going to Sydney in 10 days so a couple more pounds off would be nice 
Cheers, Mark
I’ve been away for the weekend with all my extended family and I haven’t managed a run (despite taking my kit with me). It was just really difficult to find the time (even 30 minutes) as there were 7 kids and a mad rush to try to squeeze lots of fun stuff in for everyone.
The only time I could possibly have done it would have been on Sunday morning. I left all my gear by the door and staying away from the booze on Saturday night but I still couldn’t bring myself to do it. I don’t like running in the morning - full stop. I wish I did. I do get up early to work but I always feel like I would really hurt myself if I tried to run.
Anyway - this means that I am really pissed off with myself as all my good work is starting to tail off. People have started to comment that I have lost weight and it feels great. I’ve started wearing T-shirts that I got for a present last year but couldn’t wear as they were too tight. I just need to focus on that goal and keep going.
I’m doing OK with my food - staying away from junk and not snacking. But I do feel like this is a bit of a hurdle at the moment. It has been neraly two months since I started this and no the complecency can set in. Time to kick myself up the butt again and go for the next level. I am currently exactly 94KG - I wan’t to be below 90KG in a couple of months.
Here we go…..
Went to the dentist last night with the whole family and then went for good old fashioned Scottish fish supper - apparently this is traditional but I don’t remember ever doing it before. This was seriously greasy but tasted great. I felt really guilty after it though and went out to 5-a-side football a couple of hours later to burn it off. Footie went well although I though I was going to see my fish for a second time
I have definitely slipped a bit in my diet, nibbling bits of chocolate here and there. I’m also not doing long distances for running at the moment - 5K rather than 10K. My times are getting much better though - a new PB with each one. I need to get a really good 10k in again to make sure I can still do it OK.
Cheers, Mark
I haven’t blogged for a few days but I am still here. It is funny - once you miss a couple of days it is really hard to get back on your blogging horse again.
I went for a great run on Sunday night and played an hour of 5-a-side football on Monday. I am feeling generally fitter - I recover faster and don’t find it as hard to get my second wind.
I now feel as if the stomach bug I had last week is finally out of my system - the last two or three runs I’ve done I have felt like being sick the whole time during it. The only way to stop yourself being sick while running is to concentrate on your breathing pattern - even if you have to do this for 30 or 40 minutes. The technique I use is to take one breath in and two breaths out. By blowing all the air out of your lungs you are able to train the whole of your chest rather than just the top bit. This forces you to take a deep breath and really load up on oxygen. You may sound a bit like a bloody steam train as you are running past people - but hey you can’t have everything.
I have been doing 5K runs in the last week rather than 10K runs because I’ve been feeling sick the whole time. Because of this I’ve tried to increase my speed - which has been pretty effective - I had a new personal best for 5K after each run. The Nike+ with my iPod rewards you with a special message from Paula Radcliffe or Lance Armstrong. Cheesy as fuck but it makes you feel like a hero in your own little world
Cheers, Mark
I am aiming to reduce my weight as part of my running program. However, I haven’t been really focusing on it. I think that was the wrong approach. I tied myself up in knots by trying to say “the weight isn’t important - muscle is heavier than fat etc”. But in reality the scales do not lie - not when I know that I am at least a stone overweight. By ignoring the measurement against my goals I am just kidding myself.
So my wife bought a fancy set of digital scales and I am now measuring myself once a week. The best time to weigh yourself is when you get up in the morning, after having a pee but before any shower/shit/shave
Yesterday I stood at 94.7KG. Let’s see where we go from here. I am also going to measure all my vital bits (especially chest, belly, hips).
Ta, M
I can honestly say there is no such thing as a bad run. Here’s why:
1. Some days are always going to be better than others (more motivated, better weather, etc). Just accept this and you will be OK. Some days you may not run as fast or as far as you did last time but that’s OK - don’t beat yourself up about it. The important thing is to keep getting the miles in the bag or you will start to lose the benefit.
2. If you do feel like a run wasn’t great - learn from it. If you manage to learn something then it can still count as a good run. For example, did you eat too much beforehand? Have you been over training?
3. The main thing is to keep going and keep increasing your mileage or your speed over the long term.
M
This is a difficult question…I’ve not been feeling well since yesterday and I initially put it down to a bit of a delayed hangover but it is obviously not that. I am feeling really queasy and feel like I could throw up at any point.
I was supposed to go running and play 5 a side football last night but there was no way I could face it. Th problem is that for each day you miss, it gets harder to get back on track again. I need to keep telling myself that as soon as I feel OK I need to go out for a short run (5K) just to get going again.
This has put a real question mark over whether I will manage a half marathon next month as it has knocked my confidence a bit. I’ll let you know how I get on in the next couple of days.
Cheers, M
I’m now interested in gathering some info on my body. My wife ‘kindly’ bought a new set of decent digital scales. I weighed between 15 stone 2lb and 15 stone 5 lb depending on time of day etc. I am going to weigh myself once a week to see where things take me.
I am also interested in measuring my Body Mass Index - this is a simple measure of weight against height. I am smack in the middle of the ‘overweight’ section - at least I’m not technically obese. However what is scary - to reduce my BMI to below 25 (technically normal weight) I would need to drop to around 13 an a half stone. I thought 14 stone would maybe see me right but not according to this.
Fuck me, that means I need to lose the best part of 2 stones. Ouch - this could take longer than I thought. I guess that means I need to work even harder - well here goes….
BTW - here is a link to an online body mass index calculator (BMI calculator) - http://www.whatsmybmi.co.uk
I am feeling pretty crap today. I haven’t run since Thursday and I feel bad about it - I feel like I’m undoing the hard work I’ve put in for the last month. I had plans for Friday night, all day Saturday and Saturday night - so no running. I thought I may manage Sunday morning but something came up at work and I had to spend a couple of hours sorting it out.
I also went to Murrayfield on Sunday afternoon to watch Scotland get humped by France. Murrayfield is an alcohol fuelled day by tradition and this was no different. I ate chinese chicken and chips from a burger van, drank a few pints of Guiness and a hip flask of very nice whisky. On returning home, we also ordered a curry which was the final nail in the coffin.
Today I feel a bit dodgy - I’ve been working since 6am and felt OK but now I feel really lethargic and crap. Chocolate is calling and I’m not sure if I should have it as a quick fix or whether this is slipping back into old habits. I’m supposed to be playing football tonight but I’m not sure if I’m going to manage it.
Alcohol is a lot of fun but it is definitely having an impact on my training. I don’t want to cut it out altogther but I think I should cut down at the weekends. It would mean so much to me to be able to do a good half marathon that I think it would be worth it.
Cheers, M