Tuesday 3 November 2015

Such a great way to start the day..


So far I've been really enjoying running in the morning.  I've worked my way up to 3km at the moment and it's a nice easy distance, long enough to make you feel like you've been for a run, but not too long that you have to get up TOO early!

I find that I get home, feeling amazing, and get to greet my waking family and get on with the morning. It's so much nicer than being woken from sleep by them.  It was a 6.20am alarm today which actually wasn't too hard to get up to :)  Hopefully I can keep it up as the weather warms up for summer and then I won't have to worry about running in the worst of the heat.  There were some 30 deg runs last summer which weren't too great.

Monday 19 October 2015

Some new running kit & a plan of attack

Nope, no new shoes, running shorts or bright new cap. 

Just some orthotic insoles for my shoes. Just off the shelf ones for now, as a trial to see if this nerve problem is a biomechanical one. Potentially my foot movement on landing is causing something to impact on that nerve. 

So, I've been instructed to start very short and light, and work my way up from there.  It feels like I'm starting from scratch again but I'm trying to reassure myself that my body does know how to run, and if I can keep some cardio fitness by swimming in the meantime, hopefully it won't be too frustrating.

I'm wanting to make the most of this though, and try and turn myself into a morning runner. I do NOT get up earlier than I absolutely have to, but only ten minutes earlier to throw on shoes and run round the block for 1km? I could do that. If I really love it, maybe it'll become a habit and getting up at 6/6.30am won't seem so awful... This mama has been spoiled with very good sleeping children, and uses absolutely every minute of sleep in the mornings, usually!!

I've never exercised before eating though, so that'll take some getting used to.  My morning hunger pangs are way less (and sometimes non-existent!) these days since 'turning LCHF'. I suspect the biggest obstacle will be my brain, but starting off with small distances to begin with and building slowly should work well.  I'll be retraining my mind as well as my body!

Below is my rough plan I want to follow - running 3/4 times a week, increasing 'long run' by 0.5km each week but not increasing weekly total by more than 15%. 

Week 1: 4 x 1.5km Total 6km
Week 2: 1 x 2.5km, 2 x 2km - Total 6.5km
Week 3: 1 x 3km, 1 x 2km, 2 x 1.5km - Total 8km
Week 4: 1 x 3.5km, 1 x 3km, 1 x 2.5km - Total 9km
Week 5: 1 x 4km, 2 x 3km - Total 10km 
Week 6: 1 x 4.5km, 1 x 4km, 1 x 3km - Total 11.5km
Week 7: 1 x 5km, 2 x 4km - Total 13km

Thursday 8 October 2015

Getting back into it

This week has marked my return to running after a three week lay off.

The first was a run on a walkway with hubby, in New Plymouth.  I actually said, mid run, "I hate this".  I felt slow and sloppy.  Nevertheless, it was a little over 4km and I realised I hadn't lost as much running fitness as I thought I had.  I really thought I would have to run/walk in 3 or 4 minute intervals!

A few days later, hubby and I had an opportunity to run along the coastal walkway in New Plymouth.  It was magic.  A gorgeous sunny day, and despite a strong headwind on the first leg, it was the best run I could remember for a very long time.  We took our time, stopping for a few photos, and a missed turnoff lead us to some rock scrambling along the water front. Heaps of fun!  I realised that it's so easy to get caught up in the target paces and distances way of running and sometimes it's just great to run for fun.


To round off the week, I managed a quick 3km over dinner time on Thursday night.  I was feeling tired, and hadn't eaten for about 2 1/2 hours, but surprised myself by how fast I was.

The foot feels okay.  On my first run the side of my foot (the original injury) was a bit niggly, and I even noticed the exact same pain on the other foot afterwards.  I wonder if those tendons/ligaments have been a bit weak?  It flared up at the start of the coastal walkway run as well but after a couple of minutes it disappeared, and last night I didn't notice it at all.

The top of my foot remains numb/tingly, and the occasional ache appears, but I haven't heard back with the results of the x-ray so I assume there was no fracture picked up.  I go back to the specialist next week so it'll be interesting to see what he says we do from here.

Wednesday 30 September 2015

I can run!

The good news: The specialist I saw today (who was awesome, by the way!) said he was confident there was no bone involvement causing my pain (given that I could easily hop up and down on my foot with no pain) and therefore I am clear to run with pain as my guide. Yay!

I do have an x-ray for tomorrow just to rule out a stress fracture as a cause (even though if I had one, I'd probably know more about it) at least that will rule out one possible cause.  There may be a couple of other things going on, including some ligament irritation on the outside of my foot where the initial pain after the half marathon was the worst, and this may just require a little more time to come right.

So, if I can get out for a 20-30 minute run twice a week and swim a couple of other days a week, I will be a happy girl. Hopefully it'll be light enough to encourage healing on it's own, but it'll be enough for me not to feel like I'm missing out on running so much.  It's felt like a VERY long two weeks!

Tuesday 15 September 2015

An update

I've been referred to a sports medicine specialist.  No running AT ALL for at least two weeks, until I have my appointment and get further assessment. 

I gather he'll have more of an idea of what testing and/or treatment will be required.  In the meantime, the physio has strapped a disk to the ball of my foot to cause the metatarsals to splay out when my body weight is applied.  I believe this is to reduce any compression or swelling in the area.  It's like walking around with a large flat stone in your shoe, not terribly comfortable.

I hope to keep swimming twice a week and perhaps cycle on the weekend, to keep my fitness up.  I'll take the opportunity to keep up with the strength exercises and weights to keep my body strong.

Trying to stay as positive as I can for now.  Best case scenario - the complete rest sees me healed in two weeks time... we'll see.  I want to get this right so I can run another half marathon (or several) but if this injury/condition rules me out from long distance running then I'll just have to find other challenges to keep me busy :)

Monday 7 September 2015

I miss running!

It's been a quiet few weeks since the half marathon. My foot still isn't right.. And we're a month post-injury now. 

I'm on the ACC/physio books too. The physio said it was a compressed nerve and it's the sort of thing only time can heal. Have been running easy and light as suggested, it's been nowhere near the mileage I was doing 6 weeks ago!! Back to physio next week to reassess. I'm not sure what the next step is. 

Last week I ran a measly 3.7km. I went to the pool on Sunday though and had a great session - 60 lengths (1.5km) in about 45 mins. 

This week I hope to run 10km over the week (3 runs) and go for another long swim on Sunday. 

I'm also working on building my strength in my hips and glutes, as well as overall muscle tone. I aim to do a weights/strength season twice a week from now on. 

I miss running, especially long runs, but I'm hoping that a little time to rest now wil l have me running again before long!! 

Sunday 16 August 2015

A chance to cross train

My foot is most definitely on the mend now, only the occasional twinge if I move it in a funny direction, and I'm not even limping anymore which is great. I'm planning to stay off it for just a bit longer yet - hopefully when the weekend comes I'll be out there pounding the pavement. 

A week after the half marathon, without any physical activity meant I was pretty frustrated, cranky and craving some exercise endorphins. 

Sunday morning I did a session at the pool, such a good time to go! There were heaps of lanes and a few happy swimmers. I shared the slow lane with another lady.  We each had our side which was great; no need to worry about being held up for either of us. 

I'm probably the fittest I've ever been in my life but I'm always surprised at how different swimming is. It's exhausting! I think it's due to the breathing and water, and using different muscles? (Yes, my triceps were sore the following day) I managed 40 lengths (1km) and felt pretty awesome after that. 

Today I took hubby's bike along the river track - 16.5km, no traffic (apart from the occasional dog and child who are unaware of passing cyclists!!) and a lovely scenic outlook. Had to stop for the obligatory selfie! Lovely to get out and enjoy the sunshine, though I know the old saddle will be sore tomorrow!!! 


Being unable to run sucks, but I have enjoyed the chance to do something different the last couple of days. Hopefully I can get myself organised and add some regular cross training to my schedule going forward. 

Tuesday 11 August 2015

Ice, heat and repeat..

It seems I have an injured foot.  I noticed no pain during or after the run, or the first day afterward, but randomly on the second day after the half marathon my left foot hurts to walk. 



The pain is on the outside of my foot, along the sole, and radiating up towards the knobby ankle bone (not the technical term, hehe). 

I'm currently icing and heating alternately when I can. Also bought some deep heat from the chemist this morning. Lots of rest and treatment, I hope it comes right asap!!

I feel pretty well recovered elsewhere, hamstrings and quads were most sore on days 1 and 2 post-half. I can feel a minor amount of glute soreness but it's a good feeling really!

I've been thinking about my next set of goals and will post about that soon. Perhaps once my foot has healed fully and I can get out for a couple of runs to shake things out. 

Saturday 8 August 2015

My First Half Marathon!

I did it! I ran a half marathon today.  

Pretty chuffed with myself. I think I paced it nearly perfectly (although I did slow somewhat in the final third) as when I finished I didn't have anything more to give.

The run was along the river, out and back.  It's quite exposed in places and the southerly winds were pretty brisk!  I'm not sure what the temp was for the race but it was 6deg when I left home at 9am.  Once we got started though, I didn't really notice the cold.

My goal was to average 6:00min/km for the distance.  My GPS told me I did exactly that (but also recorded the distance as 21.4km!) so something was a bit off there... 

My unofficial mat time was 2:08:30 so not quite the 2:06 I'd hoped for but I'm still happy!

Actually a photo after I'd finished (once I'd had something eat and drink!) Should've
stood on the other side for the 'FINISH'!!


Split timings from Runtastic are below.  First half or so was great. I felt strong.  Then I got a splitting side stitch at the 9km mark. A quick fuel and some water at 11km marker and I felt better after that.

Sadly I ran out of steam a bit after around 15km! My mental game started to falter a bit.  That's the hard thing about 'out and back' runs I reckon. You can see just how much further you've got to go... Had another bliss ball and perked up a bit.  

The last 2km were pretty horrid.  So close, yet 2km is still 2km!  The final push up to the finish line was a fairly short but still pretty steep hill (you can see it in the elevation profile below). I had to just keep plodding, one after the other, to get to the top.  My husband and three boys were at the top to cheer me on and it was the best thing ever.  Hubby told me to sprint.  I just laughed.

Split timings from Runtastic.com

GPS Elevation and pace from Runtastic.com

It was a great event and I enjoyed it.  Especially the start and the finish! Hard not to feel enthusiastic taking off with a couple of hundred other keen runners.  Bit of a buzz.  At this stage, I'm thinking it's something I'd like to do again, and soon :)

Looking forward to some Dominos Pizza for tea tonight and a long hot bath once the kids are in bed.  (and on that note, a big thanks has to be said for my hubby for doing his best to support me in training by looking after the kids when needed.  You're the best, hun!)



Thursday 23 July 2015

2 weeks to go!!

The countdown is on.. 2 weeks and 2 days until the half marathon event and I'm starting to get excited.  Well, truthfully, nervous, but I'm trying to channel that nervous energy into excitement.

I know I can cover the distance. I've done two training runs of 2 hours and covered 20km. So making the distance won't be a problem.  

I have a goal in mind: 2 hours 6 mins (approximately 6min/km average pace), and I'm pretty sure I can achieve this based on the training runs mentioned above

The most important thing though is that I want to enjoy it. It's my first half marathon so of course it's an automatic PR :)  I don't want to get so obsessed with meeting any particular time goal that I actually feel like I've failed because I haven't run 21.1km fast enough!  

Last long run this weekend before the 2 week taper, I'm looking forward to the shorter easier runs :)

Wednesday 1 July 2015

100km for June!

Well, actually 101.2km. Well pleased with that. 

Had some great runs this month. Missed a couple from the training schedule including an 1:50 run due to extreme weather conditions and some of the worst flooding in our region (so I don't feel too bad about not going out!)

Last weekend I ran a full 2 hours and covered 19.4km. Still feeling pretty chuffed about that :-)

About 6 weeks to go until the half marathon. Still haven't officially registered yet but will do so soon!!

Sunday 14 June 2015

5km time trial - result!

Absolutely thrilled with my 5km time trial this morning. 

26min 13 seconds!!



(An improvement of 1 min 47 seconds since my last fast 5km two months ago). 

Stoked, and knackered. Happy with how I paced myself - I couldn't have given any more judging by how I felt like throwing up at the end!!

It's gonna be hard to beat too!!

Saturday 30 May 2015

Progress Report, May 2015

It's been a great month. I started my half marathon plan two weeks ago and so far enjoying it. Except maybe for the interval/threshold runs. They are hard work!!

Today's long run was 1:20 - I covered 13.2km. Officially the furthest I've ever run!! 

Was my biggest month too at just over 73km, even with a week off after the Mother's Day fun run 😊


Monday 18 May 2015

Half marathon, here I come!!

I was super lucky to win a personalized training plan through a facebook completion recently. 

I decided it was a sign to start training for this half marathon I've had in the back of my mind since the beginning of this year. 

Alison from Run for your life coaching took into account my goals and family situation and came up with a 12 week plan for me for the August half in my hometown.

Three runs a week, with hills and intervals, long runs of up to two hours!! All very exciting though and having a plan will take the guess work out of it for me. 

Watch this space..


Saturday 16 May 2015

Kids are exhausting..

Kids! Who'd have them? They interrupt your sleep, they're noisy, make mess, use up all your time..

Don't get me wrong, I love them with everything that I have, but they're awfully frustrating sometimes. Especially at midnight when they won't go back to sleep!

Running and being fit makes me a better mama I think. I have more energy to cope with three young boys plus there's something about running hard, puffing and sweating that's really cathartic and an incredible stress relief. 

So it's Sunday afternoon, I'm feeling shattered and probably in the throes of PMS, I have the choice of sleeping or a long run.. I know which one feels more tempting right now but I know which will make me feel better in the long run (pardon the pun!)

But first, a coffee... 





Saturday 9 May 2015

Mothers Day, 10k

This morning I took part in a 10k charity run here in town.  It was to support women and their families living with breast cancer.  Runners/walkers were encouraged to wear pink. I've never seen so much pink in my life!!


I had to buy a pink shirt especially for the occasion!


My goal was to beat the 60 minute barrier, and I nailed it, coming home in 55:53!! 

However, as my Runtastic app recorded 9.8km, I don't know which of the two is more accurate (but the kilometre markers on course were pretty bang on) so probably my time for 10k would have been more like 57 minutes :)


Very pleased with myself, and definitely rewarding myself with chocolate on the couch this afternoon :)

Me and my three boys after the race


Friday 1 May 2015

Progress Report, end of April 2015

It's been a mixed bag this month - ten days away on holiday including Easter treats, but I feel I've done well. I gained around 1kg but promptly lost it again when I got home and back on track.

Total mileage was 51.2km this month - but only 10 activities compared with 14 in March.

My fastest run was a 4km evening run - 22.07, average pace of 5:31km (the first km was 6:00 and the other three were 5:23 or faster).  This is the fastest I've ever run.  I felt amazing! 

My longest run was 9km last Sunday - a training run where I actually aimed for 8km but misjudged the loop that I added on in the middle.  I got home in 53:54 which is only JUST shy of the 6:00min/km goal I intend to beat next week.

Wednesday 8 April 2015

Holiday running

Long ago, going on holiday was always a good excuse to take a break from exercise.. Now it's a perfect excuse to explore some new places by foot!


The Whakarewarewa forest (Rotorua) was just beautiful. Gorgeous redwood trees, so springy underfoot and quiet! Just lots of tourist traffic. I only explored one walk (with a steep uphill side excursion for 'fun') and there was a gorgeous spring along the way (see below). 


We also had a couple of days at lake taupo, was just lovely running in a different neighborhood, a bit of trail running and some time along the lake front. Just gorgeous! 



Wednesday 25 March 2015

Events 2015

I'm in the process of setting some personal goals for this year, part of that is setting out where I want to go (figuratively) with my running. 

Long term I'd like to complete a half marathon. My first goal would be to finish, but my secondary goal would be to meet the 2 hour mark. (Far out, 2 hours of running?! That's crazy!)

A half marathon in 2 hours is a 5:42 min/k pace.  I ran 6.5km at exactly this pace. It's hard to imagine running this distance again two and a bit more times at this speed, but by August it's possible.

Well, confidence is key, right? And I've written it down now so it's something to work towards ;-)

The half marathon is early August.

I've got four months to train.  I read recently that in order to run a half marathon, ideal weekly mileage would be 25-30km.  I'm currently averaging about 15km. So I guess I need to work on that.

I plan to find some events to run in the coming months too - here is what I've found...

April

May 10 - Mothers Day Fun Run - 8km

June

July 19 - 15k -  (a great lead up to the half - would start tapering after this event I guess)

August 9 - Half marathon 



A 'bad' run..

So every now and then, I have a 'bad' run. When it just feels like a struggle - achy joints (this week it's the hips) and just feeling sluggish.  It's a real battle to not get dragged down by that.

I've been running with the buggy on kindy mornings, as it's getting dark in the evenings now (and dinner time is stressful enough without having to coordinate everything to be ready by the time hubby gets home to look after the boys) and I've never been a morning person.  It's okay, and will have to do for now.

Yesterday I headed out at lunchtime, was feeling crappy, so ended up run/walking for a couple of kilometres. Decided I've give the steps at nearby park a go, ended up doing three repeats of that before baby decided he didn't want me to leave his side and lost his nut.  So we ran/walked home.  It wasn't a great workout and it didn't add anything to my fitness, but at least I tried, right??

In February I ran 46km with runtastic.  My goal for March was to increase it to 60km.

It's the 26th of March today and I've run 50.5km.  I'd love to get those last 10km in before the end of the month!!

Thursday 5 March 2015

New shoes!


New shoes! Hooray. Can't wait to test them out. 

These are the Brooks Adrenalin GTS 15 - this season's version of my current shoe (GTS 12). They look quite different in design (insert technical detail the shoe clinic dude told me here!!) but felt totally familiar on my feet walking around and on the treadmill. So, all that's left is to give them a whirl around the block and see how they go. 

    

I'm totally not a pink/purple person usually. But these are kind of fun! And an injection of girly spunk into my household of boys.


No filter on this shot, I promise. They really are this bright!!

That weird (possibly) ITB niggle of last week seems to have resolved itself with a bit of rest (5 days of no running then starting off with 2km to test it out. 5km today and all felt great. 

Still, will heed advice on easing into the new shoes over next week or so. 


Wednesday 25 February 2015

Runner's World - A complete guide to running

So I'm into reading the runners world magazine at the moment (Aus/NZ version). 

In fact, I manage to score a whole lot (18!) of back issues from 2012-late 2014 really cheap off a trading website. It's amazing they can find so much to write about what is essentially a very basic sport! I'm sure it'll start repeating itself as I make my way through the stack but for now I'm enjoying having something to read that isn't baby/child or fashion related! 



I saw a special edition "complete guide to running" advertised but couldn't find any reviews or more detailed list of contents other than what was on the cover. 

I was stoked to find it included in my magazine stack so I am going to review it here for anyone else interested. 


It's a great size, A5, so easy to hold in one hand to read whilst sipping your latte, feeding your baby, dusting? (Not that I even own a duster). 

The format is similar to a magazine, with a two or four page spread on each topic, but it's informative rather than editorial (if you know what I mean.). Kinda a cross between a magazine and a book. 

I was going to give an overview of what's in it, but actually this photo of the contents says it all.  There's heaps in there.. of particular interest to me right now is the speed work aspect of training & health/injury, and I think the training schedule for a half marathon could come in handy too.




I think it's worth the $20 to buy it. I know it's going to find a home on our bookshelf indefinitely. 

You can get yourself a copy here:

Anyone else a total geek like me when it comes to reading about running? or just general fitness? Are there any other books out there that I need to get hold of?

Sunday 22 February 2015

A 'proper' warm up?

I had an awesome 8 km run yesterday morning before church.  My fastest ever - 47 min 27 sec, which I was pretty happy with.

However, within half an hour of getting home, I noticed a rather unusual niggly pain on the outside of my right thigh.  It's not just that 'good sore' feeling in my quad after a good run.  It's one of those 'bad sore' feelings.

I've got a lovely facebook friend who's a physio so I briefly chatted to her about it.  She says it *could* be an Illiotibial band (ITB) issue.  This is something new to me so I spent some time on Google yesterday sussing it out.  It seems the most common symptom is actually knee pain (because that's where the ligament inserts), however, I'm not experiencing this.  Perhaps at this stage it's just 'tight' rather than 'injured' (if that makes sense).

Anyway, this week I'll be taking a break to protect myself from further injury.  Hopefully those pretty new shoes will be on special next week, then I'll snap them up and cover off the  possible cause of 'running on worn out shoes'.

I've always been a bit complacent about warming up, (if anything it's just been a 5 minute walk before breaking into a run!) but I'm going to be a bit more proactive about it from now on. 

This warm up routine showed up in my facebook newsfeed this morning so I've linked it here to give it a go from next week.  It looks pretty straightforward and sensible and only roughly 5 minute time commitment which sounds perfect by me.  Thanks, Runnersworld.com  :)




Physio friend has also suggested using a foam roller, which I know absolutely nothing about, so I've left that as something to google for another day!!

Saturday 21 February 2015

Words to inspire

This is probably how people manage to run a half marathon/marathon etc. by taking each kilometre at a time and just keeping on running til the end. 

Thursday 19 February 2015

My plans for the month of March



1. Just keep running.  Longer, faster, stronger.  I've got a heap of magazines about running with ideas how to increase pace. I've just got to sit down and make a plan of how to go about it.

2. Get some new shoes. My Brooks were bought after baby #2 so they've been used for a lot of walking while I was pregnant with #3.  And apparently the walking motion is so different to the running motion that you shouldn't use the same pair of shoes for both.  So, just to save up the $270 required to buy this year's model of Adrenalines. Which happen to be very loud. And purple!  (oh well, at least they're not pink).
3. Shed a bit more body fat. Namely, reduce the waist/love handles. I don't have fancy body fat scales so I'll just have to do the old tape measure trick and watch the centimetres.  My theory is - lighter = faster.


Where I'm at, February 2015

This month I've completed the river track, a 10.3km distance, in 63:11.




A couple of weeks ago I set out to 'finally' break the 30 minute barrier for 5km. I knew I could do it, I just had to break the mental barrier.  I was super excited to run it in 28.05.

I'm also working on pushups. My plan is to be able to complete five full press ups by the end of February. That gives me one more week. Watch this space!!

I never thought I'd start a blog...

Yeah. I'm now officially a blogger.

'K8 loves to run' because running keeps me sane. I've got three young boys. Stressful enough and the baby isn't even really moving yet.  Running gives me a chance to get out of the house, focus on something else, get a great cardio workout and a sense of achievement after a day of feeding, changing nappies and household chores.

I started off with the C25k programme six weeks after the birth of my third baby.  I haven't looked back. The endorphin rush that comes with running is addictive.

For my birthday this year I spent the morning running along a river track, a 10k distance that I'd been working towards for a few weeks. Never dreamed I'd want to spend my birthday running!

I'm toying with the idea of training for a half marathon in August this year. My aim for the next three months is to build up my strength, fitness and confidence so I can set that goal.

This blog will be mainly used to log my training and how Im going, ponder new ideas on cross training, incorporating strength workouts, and so on.

I'm really interested in nutrition and fitness so I might even share things that I've found useful along the way.

Who will read this blog? I don't know. Maybe only me!