New Mature Runners Thread

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  • Mel, nice photo. We tried to go for a 'no mow May' but the grass (I mean weeds) was growing so much I feared that our pathetic mower (ie. me!) might not be able to cope, so we only managed about 3 weeks.
    Your lawn looks much better than ours. Removing the invasive dandelions has left bare patches that look like they've been attacked with flame throwers.
    Sounds as though you are as busy as ever. I see you as a community hub!
    Still feeling sorry for myself about the running injury but today went out for a very slow 5k at Mrs Bs pace and cheered up. But the hammy felt a bit stiff and I shouldn't have done it.
    Watched my 3 grandchildren all do the Junior parkrun. 2 made it but the little lad dropped out in tears saying his leg hurt. He reminded me of someone......
    We have my son's dog for company this week. I am totally smitten. More sadly it's my aunt's funeral tomorrow. She was lovely lady, although my uncle (my dad's twin) was a very troubled man. There's a lot of family baggage that I don't fully know.....and my sisters won't be going.
    I leapt on the rower yesterday and banged out a decent 2k. It doesn't seem to have any impact on my injury. I'm on a couple of rowing forums and they are obsessed with the bio mechanics of the rowing stroke. People film themselves and then others off advice. I think it attracts a certain nerdy element!
    I'm working on improving my PB and at least I got an SB yesterday not that that is saying much.
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    JB - I'm wondering about how I'll get rid of the long grass come September(ish?). I have a scythe and may have to use that, then the strimmer and finally the lawnmower. I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. We went to the local garden centre this morning and as well as some plants for a border in the back garden, we bought some wildflower seeds as the 'wildlife' garden is all grass as you can see and not a lot of flowers. Let's hope these ones don't all get eaten by the birds! Correct - you shouldn't have tried running with your damaged hamstring. Oh dear re your grandson dropping out of parkrun in tears. I'm sure nerdy elements are around whenever anything is being discussed - witness me checking out YouTube videos to check the correct technique. I have a waterproof GoPro camera - but I don't see me getting someone to film me to check the reality against the theory.
  • Mel, crikey I've not used a scythe since 1971 when I got a summer job tidying up church yards. 
    I think I'd like to be a technique nerd but I'm just too casual. That's why running appeals, in that technique and kit are not really too much of a big deal.


    Mrs JB intended to sow some wildflowers but didn't get round to it. Our council has planted some on a horrible stretch if dual carriageway and every time we travel along it we just want to smile.

    The family funeral went very well. It was nice finding out more about a branch of the family we almost totally lost touch with, despite the whole lot of them living within about 3 miles of us! 

    Our puppy lodger is such fun. She really is very good company.

     We were on edge yesterday with our sin and family travelling to Poland. We kept hearing the horror stories of air travel all day. But they got to Poland without any major problems. Big relief.

    So today I'm trying to do a half marathon. Not running but on the rower. No way would I try this in one go, it's just too uncomfortable. So I'm doing 7 x 3k. 3 down 4 to go....
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Just popped back but I see no-one else has stopped by .. 

    I've done my stretching and strengthening exercises this morning .. first time for a week :( I really must get back into the habit. I'm currently house-sitting as Margaret has gone out and we have some window cleaners round doing the conservatory roof and cleaning the gutters. It's an apex-style roof so difficult to do myself and although I could probably come up with a Heath-Robinson style 'scraper' on a long pole to clean the gutters, Margaret prefers to get the 'experts' in and pay them.

    Good news re yesterday's golf with Alan. I couldn't seem to do much wrong and only fluffed a couple of shots all day. We played a local 9 hole course twice. The first time round I managed 4 pars and 4 bogies (1 over par) for a new lowest-ever score for me of 41, which equalled Alan's best-ever score there. The second time round I wasn't quite so good but still managed 1 par and 5 bogies for a score of 47. My overall score of 88 was my best-ever on that course so quite close to Alan's best-ever score of 84. I beat him by 5 shots (he scored 93) and I won more holes than him (7 holes to his 6 with 5 holes all-square). And points-wise, I ended up on 46 to Alan's 35. So a 'total victory' under Alan's regulations ;) The only downside is that with this new low score, I've calculated that my handicap has now dropped from 34 to 32 - so I'll have to try even harder in future. 

    Alan gave me a present after we played golf - four sunflower plants which his partner Diana insisted we should have. Apparently they've given plants to several friends and we're having a 'virtual' competition to see whose plants grow the tallest (presumably we have to supply photographic evidence of the results).
  • hillstriderhillstrider ✭✭✭
    edited June 2022
    Good afternoon everyone, I'll try to catch up.

    JB, I see you ran on Monday, but your hammy felt a bit stiff. You must listen to your body more! That was nice, watching your 3 grandchildren doing the junior parkrun. A shame though that the youngest dropped out saying that his leg hurt. He's learnt from "A master!"

    I'm glad to hear that your Aunt's funeral went well. They are always sad affairs, but it is nice to meet up with relatives that you might not have seen for many years.

    I'm glad that you are finding your puppy lodger to be good company. Also glad that your son and family got to Poland safely.

    Good luck with your attempt at a half marathon on the rower, broken down into 7 chunks of 3k.


    WtnMel, a nice picture of your lawn, it looks nice and green. You are certainly always very busy, and I don't know how you find the time to fit it all in. 

    It's good to hear that you have started your stretching and fitness exercises again, after a weeks lay off.

    I was watching a "professional window cleaner" yesterday cleaning a neighbours windows. He was using a hose with a brush attached. Much safer than using a long ladder.

    Well done for yesterdays golf match with Alan. I see that your handicap has now dropped from 34 to32, meaning that you will have to try harder.

    That was nice, being presented with four sunflower plants. Fingers crossed that yours grow the tallest.


    I've lost track a bit of where I got up to after my last post, so I will start with the charity breakfast on Sunday in Sarah F's garden. It went very well, and raised just over £300, which will be divided equally between a cancer charity for a running friend who died recently from cancer, and a local hospice.

    I'm still recovering from my heavy fall on Sunday 22nd, and walked for several days until Monday when I set off with the Monday Group. I couldn't keep up with them so I turned back. I tried walk/run, but ended up just walking. This morning was my first non stop run, and I ran 4.67 miles in the forest with Mike at a very slow pace. My left side ribs are still aching, and so is my right arm, but neither as bad as they were. I entered the Salisbury Race for Men a while ago, which is this Sunday, but obviously I won't be able to partake. I'm glad in a way, as it is the Queens Bank Holiday, and Salisbury will be absolutely heaving with visitors, and the roads into and out of Salisbury, in gridlock. It's always bad, and a few Sundays ago when I did the 10 mile race, it was nose to tail on the roads out. It will be 10 times worse this Sunday, and I wouldn't fancy sitting in a stationary car for ages.
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Hello everyone,

    HS - I did investigate and you can buy an extendable pole to fit to your hosepipe with a brush on the end to do window cleaning yourself. But Margaret said she knew, but she'd still prefer to get someone in to do them. The conservatory roof and gutters are a different challenge as mentioned, so I won't be clambering over the roof like the guy who came round yesterday does. I shall keep quiet about my handicap lowering until Alan mentions it - may as well take advantage for the time being because I'm sure he would! Hoping to get those sunflower plants into the border today - along with the wildflower seeds we got at the garden centre a few days ago. Good to see you've managed to get back to running after your fall after one or two (metaphorical) false starts and having to walk. In my experience, from driving around the ring road on the way somewhere else, Salisbury always seems to be heaving.

    I shall be wielding the vacuum cleaner and feather duster today - we have Margaret's son and family coming tomorrow and so I've been asked to 'tittivate' the rooms and make them a bit cleaner. I don't think I need to do everything - just enough of an effort to make things a bit cleaner and tidier. 
  • Morning all,

    WtnMel, I see that you have been put in charge of cleaning and tidying up, before Margaret's son and family arrive tomorrow. I hope you all have a lovely day. 

    I decided not to run today, as I'm feeling the effects of yesterdays. I want to be able to run "properly" on Saturday. 

    I'm having a pub lunch in the village today with Sarah H. 
  • HS, very sensible taking it easy and recovering slowly. I agree with your analysis of the Salisbury traffic. We used to travel to the west country via the city and I recall the jams being very frustrating. Must drive the locals mad. Hope you enjoyed your pub lunch. Good luck for a Saturday run.

    Mel, enjoy your visitors; Imnsure they'll appreciate tour prowess with a feather duster!

    Not much happening here. I'm a staunch republican so the whole Jubilee thing passes me by, although if folk want a street party then that's fine.
    We went for a local walk along a nice stretch of the town where the sea meets farmland. This is very rare and precious in this part of Sussex and yet it's under threat from developers. I'm no NIMBY but it will be awfully said we lose this.
    Pleased to see the England cricket side doing well, for a change.
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    edited June 2022
    Morning everyone,

    The house has been 'tittivated' ready for Margaret's son and his family descending on us in a bit. I've been 'doing my bit' getting the extra table down from upstairs. laying the table ready for dinner and doing whatever else needs doing (Margaret is the boss where meals are concerned unless I'm doing the 'usual' cooking at weekends. 

    HS - don't blame you having a day off running. Enjoy your pub lunch with Sarah H.

    JB - I'm not a staunch republican. But there are too many 'minor' royals around who don't seem to do much. And awful ones like Prince Andrew who if he was a normal member of the public, wouldn't have had his Mum pay £12M to someone he claims he doesn't remember ever meeting.  But imagine if we had President Johnson instead. Who would no doubt act like a South-American style "El Presidente" ignoring the law of the land and doing what he wants .. wait a minute! :) If our royals were like the Dutch royal family I wouldn't mind. Anyway, I don't begrudge those who do want to celebrate (my u3a ladies are having an afternoon tea today which has been weeks in the planning). And they lit a beacon on top of Cleeve Hill last night (which we'd have gone and seen if Margaret was able to walk up the hill).

    Btw JB, don't know when you wrote your post but according to the sports news, there was a bit of a collapse in our batting order ..
  • Good afternoon everyone,

    JB, thanks, we had a very nice pub lunch. The village has "come back to life again." It's as if Covid had never existed.

    I'm rather bored with all the elaborate and expensive ceremonies, parades etc. So many are living in poverty, and yet there is limitless money for all the razzmatazz. I'm hoping that after the Queen has passed away, the Royal Family and all the hangers on, will be slimmed down.

    I'm afraid that after another promising start, England collapsed again. I'm not going to watch them again, until they show some improvement. 


    WtnMel, I hope that your guests will be impressed with your efforts getting everything ship shape and bristol fashioned. 

    Thanks, we enjoyed our pub lunch, and it was good "to catch up."

    I remember my ex Father in Law calling the Royals Parasites.


    Another rest day for me today, except for the usual Friday Farmers Walk. I had a nice surprise this afternoon, Karen popped in to see if I was ok.

    I see that the nutcase of a PM wants to re introduce the pint crown to the pint glasses, and bring back imperial weights and measures. Surely this is a desperate last throw of the dice of a drowning man.
  • HS and Mel, we might have some differences on the role of our Head of State, but on one thing I suspect we are in full accord: our current head of government is a total and utter disaster, on just about every level. Definitely the worst PM of my lifetime, although I'm was too young for MacMillan and Eden, the latter of whom had the Suez disaster on his CV.

    Yes, England batting collapses are the one thing about our team that can relied on. What on earth would we have been like without Messrs Broad and Anderson in the past decade or so.

    Yesterday I was rather naughty in that I 

    A) succumbed to temptation and worked my way through a packet of wine gums and then

    B) was so cross with myself that I forced myself to run a hilly 8k in very hot evening sun, thus risking my dodgy hamstring.

    Anyway I got away with it but have spent today feeling, well, spent.

    Later today we return the little dog to her owners as my son and family arrive back from Poland. We'll be sad to see her go, although won't miss her habit of sneaking onto our bed in the middle of the night.

    Parkrun tomorrow and my main focus will be on running with Mrs JB rather than chasing my rivals down the prom.
  • Just back from the parkrun. 21.28 was OK in very blustery conditions.
    Category win and the 3rd best WAVA in a field of 400.
    But the main thing is that thanks to a strapped up hamstring, I got through it without injury.
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Afternoon everyone,

    HS - I'm buddies with Columba on Fetch (she used to post on here) and she logged a walk to the shops and back with the shopping. I told her you refer to that as a "farmer's walk" which she quite liked. I'm ignoring all the jubilee stuff that's going on (like the 'party in the park' happening this afternoon). In the paper it reported Boris was jeered when he arrived for the service yesterday - some wag wrote a letter referring to it as a "bring your own boos" party.

    JB - agreed (that Boris is a disaster). I heard someone on Any Questions saying he was surprised Boris had ever actually become PM given his track record of lying. There was some Tory twat (no idea who) trying to claim we're all fallible and shouldn't criticize Boris but he was being laughed at. He was obviously some useful idiot trotted out by No. 10 to try and take the flak. I see your wine gums - and raise you some of the left-over chocolate biscuits from yesterday. Glad to hear you managed parkrun without your hamstring causing any issues.

    Those M&S trousers I got last week are going to have to go back. I just tried them on at home a short while ago and they're definitely too large (as opposed to too small). M&S's sizing seems to have gone completely la-la lately and I think I should give up and see if I can get some similar trousers elsewhere. I just want some dark grey ones and navy ones so it shouldn't be too difficult to track some down.

    We've just about finished catching up on the washing up etc. from yesterday. The dishwasher was seen waving a white flag ..

    I did a 3ml pre-breakfast walk this morning. It was a bit blustery but the rain held off.  And I managed just under sub-16 minute pace all the way round.
  • Good afternoon everyone, 

    JB, that was a bit risky running a hilly 8k, with a dodgy hamstring. I see that today you took another risk, running 21.28 in the parkrun, with a strapped up hamstring. Please take care as your luck can't last. I pulled my left hamstring soon after I joined the club in 2012, and I was off for 6 weeks. 


    WtnMel, Columba was one of the originals on here, and I believe she left about the same time as Double Bionic Ironwolf. They were both having problems after RW was taken over by the States, and posters in their droves deserted over to fetch. Fetcheveryone is far superior now to RW, and I remember at the time saying that I didn't think RW forums would last much longer. I was wrong, but there are nowhere near as many posters nowadays. 

    I liked the way Boris was bood, but the Daily Wail typically said was also cheered. I didn't hear any cheers, and I don't know anyone who did. There was some remark that he looked as if he had collected his outfit from a clothing hire shop, as it was so shabby looking and ill fitting. 

    You are correct that some poor minion is always trotted out to defend the twat, and answer all the awkward questions. 

    Sorry to hear that you are still having problems with your M & S trousers. Try fat face, their products are good quality. I haven't bought any trousers from them, but have a number of tops which are excellent. 

    Well done for your pre breakfast walk at a good pace. 


    I did my furthest non stop run in the forest this morning with Andy, since my fall. We ran 7.15 miles at an easy pace and I don't feel too bad. I will have a rest day tomorrow, so that I can keep up on Monday with the Monday Group, and not have to turn back. As I've mentioned previously, I'm glad I'm not doing the Salisbury Race for Men tomorrow. They have my entry fee which will go towards prostate cancer research. 
  • Mel, that's a very good pace for a walk. I'd be lagging you for sure as I'm a very slow walker - which apparently is a marker for dementia!

    HS, I recall Columba. She lived out in the wilds of mid Wales.

    Nadine Dorres was claiming that there were more cheers than boos for Johnson. Perhaps she thinks jeers are cheers?

    I've been invited for a slow 10k tomorrow which I'll treat as a recovery run.

    Am watching the England football game which TBH is deadly dull.

    Just had a phone call from Mrs JB who has been on a train in which there was punch up between a drunken homeless guy and the guard. Just seems a bit symbolic of post Brexit, Johnson-run Britain.


  • Good morning everyone, 

    JB, I didn't watch the footie, but watched the tennis on the red button, and saw Andy getting beaten. 

    Lucky that Mrs JB didn't get caught up in the punch up.


    I've been looking back to where I started the New Mature Runner's forum, and all the problems we faced. It was interesting reading and I read quite a few pages. It's surprising how many posters have come and gone. There was just Aquarius and I posting for a while, until other regulars found their way back. 
  • HS, we owe you and Aqua a debt for keeping it going. I occasionally look in at the Over 60s thread and they have got a hard core of contributors.

    Am listening to England  making a good stab at (finally) winning a test match.

    As planned did a 10k run today at easy pace around 62 mins. My running partner has got an HRM and sent me through the data. It showed that he'd run 75% in his zone 3 and 25% in zone 2. Of course there's no point extrapolating the data to me as he's younger but much heavier than me, but I was surprised the run was relatively taxing in terms of HR as we were able to chat easily throughout. On 'Perceived rate of effort' I would have put the run into zone 2, for me anyway.

    Comments welcome!
  • Evening all, 

    JB, I didn't think this thread would last as long as it has, and we haven't had any new posters for ages. Over the years, posters have come on gone and we can't seem to hold on to them. 

    Surprise surprise, England have won a Test Match.

    That must have been a very easy 10k pace for you, as I think I could equal that time. I don't know about comparing zones, as our thresholds are all different. It does look though that your hr was higher than expected for an "easy run." I find it very similar in that my average hr is lower in high intensity runs, or sessions, than in easy pace social runs. 
  • AquariusAquarius ✭✭✭
    Afternoon all, 

    I’m back again and hanging my head in shame for leaving it so long. My excuse is we’ve been busy with various things (gardening, babysitting, helping out at son’s house etc) but I also made the mistake of doing a bit more family history research. Every now and again I get the urge to try to fill in a bit more of the family tree. I’m currently using Find My Past to do this, but knowing from past experience how addictive it is I fully intended to limit the time I spent on it to a few hours. I think that was a week ago. However I’ve had to stop for the moment as I’m stuck now until some certificates arrive which I’ve ordered from the GRO. When they do I really must be firm with myself - no more of this “just another half an hour” business. 

    I’ve quickly read over your posts -

     WtnMel I’m pleased to see that you have made improvements on the golf front and also got back to the stretching and strengthening exercises. Well done for wielding that feather duster and vacuum cleaner - but finishing off the chocolate biscuits?? Whatever happened to your diet? 

    HS I’m sorry to see you are still suffering the ill effects of that fall. You usually bounce back (so to speak) quite quickly after an injury so this one must be a lot worse than usual. I’m glad to see you managed a 7.15 mile run, but don’t push too hard too soon.

    JB Well done for your parkrun result, but take care of that hamstring. What a frightening experience for Mrs JB, there seems to be a lot more of this type of behaviour these days, doubtless down to the general lack of respect for law and order as characterised by this government. How did your 10k run go? I have to confess that we are Royalists (and are proud owners of a photo of Steve being presented to Her Maj), but I do agree with WtnMel that there seems to be too many minor royals being supported by the public purse. As regards this weekend, perhaps one day of celebrations would have been sufficient. Most of the people I know who have attended street parties haven’t given much thought to the Jubilee, they just wanted an excuse for a party.

    Still not much happening on the running front here. I’m slowly building up my run distance and managed a 3 mile run this morning including a couple of hills. My pace is still very slow, and HR is higher than I’d like, but I’ll keep plugging away at it. Pilates and yoga are no problem strangely enough.

    At last - a vote of no confidence in the clown. Even if he wins it his end is in sight.  :)




  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Afternoon everyone,

    HS - I doubt JB will listen to any of telling him to take care of his hamstring .. he likes to 'live on the edge' ;) Although I'm on Fetch I don't bother contributing to any threads on the forums apart from the "Things You Want To Say But Can't" one which I enjoy reading. See below for a good news update re the M&S trousers. Well done re the 7ml forest run with Andy. Regarding reading back to the start of this thread - there seems to be lots of posters who turn up, hang around for a bit - then bugger off again.

    JB - as a fast walker does that mean it's a marker for super-intelligence then? (don't answer that). Mistaking jeers for cheers wouldn't be the first thing Nadine Dorries has got wrong. I see Eng-er-Land :) DID manage to win a test at long last. I love the fact your 'easy pace' 10k was faster than my best-ever time for a 10k when I was at my fittest ;) Sorry - I don't take enough interest in relative HR zones to feel able to make any useful comments.

    Aquarius - there's no shame in not posting for a few days (I seem to recall I was away for a week not so long ago). Re my diet - it's more of a "don't eat too many biscuits and nibbles" than a diet as such. Surprisingly, despite polishing off some of those left over chocolate ones, I haven't put on any weight. I've seen on Strava and Garmin Connect that you've been managing to get out for a few short runs lately. I agree - great news that there's finally going to be a vote of no confidence. However, don't underestimate the sycophancy of Tory MP's.

    I went into Cheltenham with Margaret this morning as she also had some things to return to M&S. I got the money refunded for the trousers and we thought we'd have 'one last look' to see if there were any other pairs of trousers that might suit. Serendipity - we found some tucked away in a corner, a slightly different style to the ones I've tried previously and lo and behold, when I tried them on they fitted. And they were cheaper (half the price) of the previous ones. Even better - when I went to pay we used Margaret's 'Sparks' card - and got a 20% discount! :)

    My broadband contract with BT was up for renewal as it was due to expire on Friday. Expecting the worst, I settled down for a long slog to try and battle through the various options and small print to see which was the best value new contract. I ended up chatting online to a customer services bod and it was all relatively painless. I ended up renewing for the same level of service (same upload and download speeds) but for £5 less a month :)

    Aquarius - a quick mention that we've been planning our trip "oop north" for the North East Skinny Dip at the end of September and are making a holiday of it. We've booked ourselves a trip to the Kielder Forest observatory one evening (and are obviously hoping for clear skies rather than cloud or rain!). Have you ever been?

  • HS, I suspect that someone with your level of running experience doesn't need to experiment too much. You are right: we can't seem to hang on to our occasional visitors to the thread. Are we scary?

    Aqua, good to have you back (as it were). Pleased that you have been running again. Like Mel I've noticed you on Strava. Yes, I'll be on edge this evening to see if 'that clown' gets the boot. However if he doesn't I'm quite happy to see him drag the Tory party further into the mire.

    Mel, good negotiation skills on the broadband. I dropped all my sport add ons from Virgin and confess that although I saved a bomb I do miss the live coverage sometimes - eg that Engand win!

    After blathering on about HRMs Ive sent  for one from Amazon. It's only a tenner, so warning: I'll let you know how I get on with it. 

    Today I went a bit eccentric (Mel nods safgely!). I was inspired by a local (elite level) runner who ran a marathon of his own design up a down a local 1 mile hill which is just about the steepest around: average 8% but with a couple of 20% stretches. He did it in 4.49 which is pretty damn impressive.
    I've ran up it once before and it was really tough. So today I biked to the top from the long 'gentle' side (still hard) and then ran down and back up the steep side twice. It was hard! How anyone could do it 13 times is beyond me.
    And goodness knows what my HR was.....
  • Good afternoon everyone, 

    Welcome back Aquarius, 

    You may remember that I also did quite a lot of research into family history, a few years ago, but did find it was too time consuming. 

    Thanks, the fall was a heavy one, and on gravel. I caught my right foot against a root, and next second was doing a perfect "swallow dive!"It really knocked the stuffing out of me.

    Good to hear that you are building up your mileage now,  and that yoga and pilates are doing well. 

    The buffoon did win the vote, but by a much smaller majority than expected. He's living on borrowed time now. 


    WtnMel, that's good news about the M&S trousers. They have quite a good reputation for changing goods. Lucky that you were able to find another pair, half the price and a good fit. Even better, the 20% discount. 

    Good negotiation skills with BT Customer Services. 

    I've saved £200 by changing to a new provider for my car insurance. The existing one increased the renewal price by £100. The house and contents insurance expires at the end of the month, and I haven't had their renewal pack, but I will try my new provider again. 


    JB, I'm looking forward to hearing how you get on with your HRM. I presume it is a chest strap device?

    That marathon up and down a steep hill was crazy. Did he do it for charity? I'm glad that you didn't attempt it 🤣


    I'm looking forward to PM's Question Time tomorrow, and Sir Kier giving him a real roasting. I can't honestly see him hanging on much longer, especially if they lose the two by elections.

    I ran 8.26 miles in the forest yesterday with Sarah F and Jane. The ache in my ribs on the left side has eased up a lot, so hopefully I'll be fully recovered for the Exbury 10k on 26th June. 
  • john bateman 6john bateman 6 ✭✭✭
    edited June 2022
    HS, great to hear you are back in action. 8 miles plus is very impressive. I hope your confidence is not undermined by that nasty fall. I too am a keen follower of PMQs and it should be very lively.

    The HRM arrived. Blooming heck it took some time to set up. The usual tech stuff of passwords and synching it to a phone. It's not a chest one. Mrs JB did all the setting up and it seems to work OK.
    I plan to wear it on a slow run tomorrow. According to the Maffetone formula my max heart rate should be 113! 

    The guy who ran the marathon distance just did it off the cuff I think. He's a 3 hour marathon runner and it took him just under 5. Goodness know how long it would take me, not that I could dream of it. The hill is Bostal road, Steyning and is well used by local cyclists. I would say youd have be a decent cyclist with a good bike to get up it.
    For me, running up a hill is just that bit easier than cycling. This one is listed as one of the top hundred in Britain.
  • Good morning all, 

    JB, I am a bit more cautious now with my running. I'll be interested to hear how you get on with the hr monitor. A max of 113 sounds very low to me, and the sort of reading I would expect from walking. 
    Running up a hill brings to mind Kate Bush's hit, which is back to number one again 😃

    I've got a dental appointment in about 30 minutes, and decided to take a running rest day. 
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Morning everyone,

    JB - I don't think we're scary. We make newbies welcome but they always seem to bugger off with no explanation. No negotiation skills were required re the broadband - the offer was there already when I logged on. Margaret was a bit miffed as she thinks she was 'done' last time she renewed - so she's going to let me take control when hers comes up for renewal again. That 'eccentric' marathon does sound a bit weird with that steep hill. Not surprised you found it hard. I could do something similar with the lanes leading up towards Cleeve Hill - but I've no plans to do so just yet. Glad to hear you (well, Mrs JB!!) was able to get the new hrm set up. That Maffetone formula sounds a bit dodgy? In my running days, when working hard on a run, my heart rate was usually between 150-160bpm.

    HS - those M&S trousers are hanging up in the bedroom at present. Can't quite believe I've finally managed to find some suitable ones so am going to try them on again at home to 'convince' myself they'll be okay. But Margaret gave them the thumbs-up so they must be. As mentioned to JB, no haggling required with BT this time. Well done re the 8ml forest run with Sarah and Jane. I noticed "Running Up That Hill" had gone to No.1 and we oldies can be smug as we know it from when it was originally released. My personal favourites however are "Cloudbusting" and "Don't Give Up" (which she did with Pater Gabriel).

    Nothing planned for today apart from doing my exercises. Hoping to get to the pool tomorrow morning then I have 'social cards' in the afternoon. Then on Friday it's (drum roll .. ) time for the golf re-match and Alan will no doubt be out for revenge against the young(ish) whippersnapper who beat him last week.

    Really pleased with this morning's pre-breakfast walk. I managed 3.7mls and the splits were all sub-16 (15:49 15:18 15:30). Helped in no small part by a very fast dog-walking woman on the other side of the road who I was determined I was going to beat to the top of one uphill bit :)

    I received a new NatWest debit card in the post today. Not only have they changed from Visa to Mastercard but the design has changed completely too. It looks really odd compared to the old one (new colour scheme; lack of printed detail). I shall have to remember to use it with my pin first before attempting any contactless transactions.
  • Mel, I looked up Cleeve Hill for its gradient. There appears to be different segments but one of them looks a brute: short but very sharp averaging 8% but with the odd 25% stretch. I'm not sure even Kate Bush could run up that. Just walking up would push the heart rate to uncomfortable levels, especially if one were trying to overtake a fast dog walker!
    Talking of bills as you were, I'm beginning to think that we might be the only household in the UK whose energy bill, by direct debit, has yet to change. We pay £86 per month and that's been constant for at least a year. We keep bracing ourselves for a hit, but not as yet. We did replace our boiler back in November and can only put down the unchanged bill to more efficiency. Not complaining, just mystified.
    Good luck with the golf!

    HS, the HRM experiment lasted one day! It's a swine even to get the thing on my wrist. The readout is almost invisible when the sun shines and I don't trust the data. As a technophobe I'm always sceptical and this bit of kit failed at the first hurdle. It's been donated to Mrs JB as it records steps very nicely.
    I think this also heralds the end of the slow heart rate training. You and Mel are right in that 113 BPM is ridiculously low and would be walking pace.
    So I'm switching back to my own eccentric methods. Old dogs new tricks!
    Thus today an 8k run at under 5 mins per km target. Quite straightforward other than that half of it was with a gale behind me and therefore half was into it. I managed to come within target at 4.57 per km and was pleased with this.
  • AquariusAquarius ✭✭✭
    edited June 2022
    JB I agree with HS 113 max for your HR does sound very low, I've been in the region of that on hilly sections of walks. I know we're all different but I'm sure I could never run within that max. I'll be interested to see how you get on, I suppose for this method of training to be successful it must be possible. 
    What is it about where you live that inspires people to take on such eccentric challenges? You must introduce that local marathon hill runner to some of your own. I can foresee quite a competition developing here (and possibly a number of injuries). 

    HS I didn't realise your fall was on gravel. That must have been very painful, no wonder it knocked the stuffing out of you. Good to see you are hopeful of recovering in time for the Exbury 10k later this month. Well done for saving money on your car insurance, it really is worth shopping around at renewal time. I hope your dental appointment went well this morning.

    WtnMel Why am I not surprised that you enjoy the Things You Want To Say But Can't thread ? ;) 
    A good result on the M&S trousers, also your BT contract. 
    Well done for not putting on weight despite polishing off the remaining choc biscuits, but wasn't the idea to actually lose some?   :p  You are such an active person I'm surprised that you carry excess weight anyway. 
    Glad to hear that you are planning to do your skinny dip this year, and a great idea to visit Kielder observatory while up this way. I haven't been there myself but I'm fairly sure one of my sons went a few years ago, I'll check that with him and get back to you.

    Pilates yesterday morning then a trip to the physio in the afternoon. I intended going for a run this morning, but I'm really tired today (and the sound of pouring rain when I woke up this morning didn't help) so I'll leave it until tomorrow when I'll hopefully feel a lot more energetic. I'm still having intermittent problems on Garmin regarding both HR readings and GPS. I've tried stopping and restarting Garmin while running, with varying degrees of success although I think I've cracked the HR issue. 

    I'm looking forward to PMQs too.

  • I've lost another post, I was almost finished when the screen for no reason reverted to page 1. I didn't touch anything, it just happened in front of my eyes. I've read your posts ,but am not going to reply  to each again.

    I will however, comment on the Maffetone Method. The MAF test is done by running 5 miles continuously on a track, at your maximum aerobic heart rate. The maximum aerobic hr is the 180 formula formulated by Dr. Phil Maffetone, but I've no idea what that is. From Garmin Connect my highest recent aerobic lactate threshold was 4.6,and I think my max is 5.0, which is overreaching. 4.0 to 4.9 is highly improving. I'm often in the 2.0 to  2.9 which is maintaining. This doesn't relate to maximum aerobic hr though, so by not knowing the 180 formula, don't know you arrived at 113. I expect I have thoroughly confused you all now, including myself.😧
  • Aqua/HS the Maffetone formula is basically 180 minus age = 113 for me. I've not read his stuff so I've no idea why he chooses this formula.
    I think your Garmins must be a lot more sophisticated than mine, although you (Aqua) seem to be having some problems with yours currently.

    My exercise bike has an HRM in the handlebar grips. I can cruise along at around 113 on that and I reckon that gives me some sort of quasi MAF training effect. I don't mind this but I just don't like slow running unless I'm with someone and can have a chat e.g on topics like 101 Things I Like About Boris.

    I guess we are all individuals and our running reflects this. Mrs JB would say that my running is very much like my approach to the allotment i.e. go ballistic for 45 minutes then collapse and lose interest. I did think that joining a running club would give me more structure, but it hasn't really worked.
    And as for the eccentric who ran the marathon up and down the hill, well he might be as mad as me, but he is a lot fitter!



  • Thanks John for the info on the formula. Application would give me 104. My hr will be much higher than that doing the Farmers Walk. It obviously worked for Maffetone if all in his book can be believed. 
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