New Mature Runners Thread

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Comments

  • Molly, ah is that what lamaze breathing is? I used it during labour (not that it helped a lot), but I wasn't aware that was what it was called. 

    You're probably right about your lack of adequate nourishment causing you problems on Saturday. I tend to do the same thing, especially if I'm running early in the morning. I find I get an upset stomach if I try to eat less than a couple of hours before running, or immediately afterwards come to that. So if I'm running before breakfast I'll make do with a quick cup of tea and hope for the best. I can get away with doing that occasionally but after a while it catches up with me and I get that run-down feeling where I'm really tired and out of sorts, but find it difficult to sleep at night, which just compounds the problem.

    A rest day for me today, then (weather permitting) a trip to the coast tomorrow night for our next club Grand Prix 5k.
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Afternoon all - 3 days away and 14 new posts! :)

    Molly - I wouldn't be surprised if the snow squalls and whiteouts you were talking about last week are the storm that's started battering the UK today. Yep, I don't seem to have started the year well re injuring myself do I? Sorry to read your achilles was complaining during your treadmill run. I also often nod sagely when my Garmin informs me what IT thinks I should be doing ;) Apologies - even though I know the term 'bonk' is used to describe not fuelling properly and having no energy, I had a snigger to myself when you wrote about the overtrained, semi-wrecked feeling that goes with bonking (blame my schoolboy sense of humour and the fact, some American words, have different meanings in English!!).

    HS - as I mention below, I seem to have got on top of the back problems. Going for walks and keeping moving definitely helped. Love your description of your 'challenging' run last week as "character building" - b***y hard you mean! Well done!  

    Aquarius - you sound like you use the same approach as me to facebook .. it has it's uses, but try and steer clear of getting sucked in to posting anything and everything. My physio did say my shoulder problem was fairly minor and if worse, could have developed into a frozen shoulder. Good/bad points then re your house (great views/strong winds). I'd never considered breathing exercises needing to be done as a warm-up too. Would love to know how you would surreptitiously manage squats and dips :) I'm another in the "need to do speed work" camp - but first, I need to get back running! Reading on further, thanks for the info re those breathing exercises. Reading your last post, if I was running early and before breakfast, I'd probably try and fuel up a bit the night before.

    Damien - I never run with music unless I'm indoors on my treadmill.

    Not feeling quite so old and decrepit today! The stretching and rollering I did, seemed to do the trick and my back is better now (well, back to normal anyway!). Similarly, my right shoulder is getting better. I've been to see the physio again this morning - she's upped the shoulder exercises a bit and also advised me about exercises for my back to help stop any further problems - seeing her again in two weeks time.

    I'm hoping to get back to playing golf later this week. And fingers crossed I can get out running again too.

  • ColumbaColumba ✭✭✭
    Hello all and happy new year. I've been AWOL for ages, though keeping up with the Fetcheveryone website (WtnMel, I think you used to post on there, but do you still?) Good to see several names I remember in addition to WtnMel. How about Redhead, does she still post? Her website is still functional and up to date.
    Keeping the parkruns going, helped by the fact that an almost local one started up last year, only 7 miles from home. I ran my 50th at the end of 2019, and now have a tee shirt to show off with, but it's not really tee shirt weather at present. Youngest Son is threatening to sign me up for the Bristol 10k in May; that will be the first actdual race I've done for a couple of years. From which you may gather that my iffy knee has recovered to some extent, though I do run with a brace on it, and don't risk it on uneven ground.
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Hi again,

    Columba - good to 'see' you here again. I'm still on Fetcheveryone and we're still connected on there. Redhead hasn't posted on here for a while as her husband wasn't well (I'm connected to her on FB but she's had other things on her mind so not been active there either). Good news that a parkrun has started nearer to you (I seem to remember you would have to drive 20mls in the past?). Maybe you could wear your t-shirt outside several other layers? Glad to hear the iffy knee has recovered somewhat - as you may have read above, I've had an iffy shoulder and iffy back in the meantime. Will you have to pay your son ransom money to stop him signing you up for the Bristol 10K :)
  • Good  evening all,

    Aquarius, My Ipod shuffle "died" a few months ago as the battery could no longer be recharged. Sarah F gave me her daughter's shuffle, but that was "dead" too. I think I am running better without music now.
    Thanks for your good lucks for my 50th parkrun on Saturday. I certainly hope to be able to get a photo to post on here.
    I've never thought about breathing exercises being a training aid. Interesting that you tried them before your race. Do you think that you will make this a regular part of your training?

    Molly, I never run without eating beforehand, even if it means getting up early on occasions to leave a reasonable time for the food to be digested. I think of it being like a car needing petrol, and then running out of fuel.
    The majority of races in the UK ban headphones, and my club's Solent Half Marathon disqualifies any runner found wearing them.
    I did enjoy yesterday's rest day.

    WtnMel, good to hear that your back and shoulder are feeling better now. Hope you can get back into running and golf soon.

    Columba, welcome back to the New Mature Runners Thread! I've seen you posting on fetch, and I am a regular on there also. I mainly post on the 1,000 mile thread, and was top of the leader board last year. All my training and races are on there too, and sync from my Garmin to Strava and fetch.
    It's many months since Redhead posted on here.
    Good that you now have a local parkrun and have completed 50. I'll be doing my 50th on Saturday. Good also to hear that your knee has recovered somewhat! My knee also seems ok, but I'm not doing much speed work, or many races. All the races that I have done are multi terrain.

    This morning was the "Monday Runners Groups" social forest run, and we ran 7 miles. We were celebrating Danii's 25th birthday and we presented her with a balloon to run with. Unfortunately, it blew away just after the first mile, and got lodged in a tree. On completion of the run, we enjoyed prosecco and home made cake.
    We finished before the worst of the wind blew up, but it is now blowing a gale and I'm glad I'm indoors. 
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Afternoon all,

    I went out for a tentative run this morning. I was worried my dodgy back might cause some minor issues and was hoping I would get round before the rain started. Turned out I was wrong on both counts but I consoled myself with the fact a run in the rain with strong winds was 'character building' and I felt very virtuous when I got back home to the warm and dry. I only ran 3.5mls and within the first mile or so met my clubmate Virginia. She was out running with her training partner - they'd already done 10mls (including Cleeve Hill) when they met me and had another 4 or 5mls to go. 

    I've just been having a 'play' with my Garmin and installed a Connect IQ app on it. I wear it when I go swimming and use it to time myself while counting lengths. On searching, I found an app called 'pool swim' which allegedly tracks your lengths by using the inbuilt compass to detect a change of direction. It's just a bit of fun on my part to be honest but I'll try it next time I'm swimming and see how accurate (or not!) it turns out to be.

    Having managed a run this morning without any problems (back and right shoulder both fine) I'm planning to go to the club run on Thu morning.
  • Columba, welcome back and happy New Year to you too! 
    I’m glad to hear your knee is behaving itself and I think you should definitely go for the Bristol 10k in May. It’s always motivating to have a race to aim for. Well done on your 50th parkrun, how fortunate you’ve got a more local one to go to now (although 7 miles is still a bit of a stretch to call local). Onwards and upwards now towards your 100th parkrun T-shirt 😊

    WtnMel good news that your shoulder and back are improving and that you managed a run this morning with no ill effects. I agree about running in the wind and rain being character building. I will be “building  my character” this evening during my 5k, judging by the weather forecast. I’ll take warm dry clothing with me again for after the race as we’ve a long drive home before I can get a hot shower.

    HS well done on yesterday’s 7 miles, your consistently high mileage is very impressive. How nice to celebrate Danii’s birthday with a balloon, pity it blew away so soon though. Lucky that you all escaped the worst of the wind, I imagine that  Prosecco and cake were very welcome when the run was over.
  • Just found out my race is cancelled this evening as there’s a flood warning in place for the sea defences to be breached along part of the course. We were just about to get into the car to go over to the coast, but now I’ll unpack my bag, get changed back into normal clothes again and enjoy a night in. 
  • Good Evening Everyone,

    WtnMel, Ha! I appreciate the extra insight re: bonking. My first thought was 'Great to know! It's sure to come up as an answer to a crossword clue sooner or later. In the last couple of weeks, the NY Times crossword had 'What an English person might call a French', as a clue, with the answer being 'snog'. And, the answer to another clue this week was 'bum'.  And, yes, I am a bit of a nerd. 

    I am really glad that your back and shoulder are on the mend.  Good for you for venturing out on a run, but having the wisdom to take it easy.


    Columba, It's nice to read your posts. As a newbie, I am having a lot of fun hearing what everyone has to say about their running experience. Congratulations on your 50th parkrun!


    HS, The birthday balloon sounds like a wonderful tradition! It's too bad it flew away.  

    As of Sunday, I have resumed my morning protein shake routine. It had fallen by the wayside after the marathon.  Oh my gosh, do I feel better!  Not just during my runs/workouts, but overall.  And, I'm not nearly as cranky as I have been lately, at around 3ish in the afternoon :smile:   I suspect that I have been running on an empty tank for a while.  Thank you for the reminder to think of food as fuel, as opposed to something that is slowing me down, when I have things to do.  


    Aquarius, If I go without eating before my runs, I also have trouble sleeping. And, like you, the lack of sleep compounds the problem.  Good to know that I'm not alone.  

    I'm so sorry your race was cancelled. But, it sounds like it was cancelled for a very good reason, and, at least, you hadn't left yet. I hope that you had a wonderful night in!


    I've been thinking a lot about Garmins and their accuracy.  I talked to one of my husband's cycling buddies about my thoughts, and he made a couple of interesting observations that I thought I would share.  But, first a disclaimer, while Steve is very knowledgeable, as both an ex cycling pro and someone who has managed a bike team for a long time, his information is based in the cycling world not the running world.  The degree to which the two sports overlap in training metrics is at best unclear and often debated. But, for what it is worth here are the points that I thought might be of interest:

    -Years ago when I was running well and training hard. Steve arranged for me to have a graded stress test, with the oxygen mask and all the bells and whistles, to determine my Vo2 max and other salient numbers.  Therefore, the data that my Garmin is giving me is based on fairly accurate numbers (or, at least numbers that were accurate before I got out of shape).  This might be why my Garmin's data is generally accurate in it's reflection of my performance.  Steve feels that when people use looser methods to try and calculate their base metrics, the numbers that they get are often not very accurate and that can affect the resulting data that the Garmin offers. 

    -He felt very strongly that the Garmins were still useful for people who were working with base numbers that they may not be sure of.  But, more as a tool for evaluating trends over a training cycle. ie. Did your cadence getting faster? Did your recovery time getting shorter?  What is your HR doing over time?

    -He also felt very strongly (HS this reminded me of you), that the best training device was the athlete his or herself.  And, while he felt that Garmins, power meters, and other data collecting devices are very useful, he believed that their biggest drawback was that they interfered with an athlete developing a strong understanding of their own body in motion.  And, he recommended that I take the Garmin off completely for one run a week. Yikes! (a little panic there.) 

    Anyway, I kept the Garmin on today, and went out in search of hills.  The snow is still gone after our surprise heat wave, and there wasn't any wind this morning. But, it was really really cold.  I managed to get in 90 ft of climbing, during a 4 mile run by doubling up the few hills near my house.  At my current fitness level that was about right.  I was really struggling to keep my pace steady.  But, it's a start.  
  • Good afternoon everyone,

    WtnMel, good to hear that you were able to run without your back causing you any problems. It certainly is character building running in adverse conditions.
    I was wondering what model Garmin you have, as I have read that the 235 and 220 before that, although specified to be waterproof up to 50 feet, were not recommended for swimming. I'm sure that very few swimmers would go that deep, without breathing apparatus. I got that information from U tube when researching the models before deciding which to buy. A few of my club mates have upgraded to the 245 which enables them to play music.
    Good luck with your club run tomorrow.

    Aquarius, I've just seen that your 5k was cancelled last night. Our club session was also cancelled. We had torrential rain and gale force winds, with trees falling and roads being flooded. Its been chaos on the roads this morning, with diversions etc. 
    Thanks for your comments on "the birthday run!" I will try to post a photo of us in the car park with our Prosecco and cake.

    Molly, when I was at school, deliberately missing a lesson was called "bonking off." I don't know whether kids today still use that expression.
    It's not really a tradition running with a birthday balloon , it's just something the "Monday Club" does occasionally.
    Good to hear that your protein shakes are helping you to feel and train better.
    Thanks for the observations on the accuracy of Garmins. There is a thread on "fetcheveryone" about heart rates, and the overwhelming consensus is that formulae, such as 220 minus your age are wildly inaccurate. They produce a max that is much lower than most are recording. 
    Well done for your 4 miles hill training. I love hills, hence my user name.

    Yesterday was a spin session which was just as well, considering the atrocious weather conditions. They are better today, but I started sniffing and sneezing early morning, so decided not to run. I'm getting boringly sensible in my old age.
    I'll try to post the photo of our post birthday celebrations as a new post. It might not work on this post as it is fairly lengthy.
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Afternoon all,

    Aquarius - lucky you heard your race was cancelled before you set off!

    Molly - must admit, I don't understand that crossword clue/answer about why an English person would call a French person a 'snog'. A 'frog' maybe? (so presume a typo on your part?) and of course, they refer to us Brits as " Les rosbifs" :) Sounds like your morning protein shake routine has saved you 'bonking' in the afternoon ;) I'm very sceptical of how accurate Garmins are and don't take much notice of the VO2 max, suggested rest period etc. stuff. I don't take that much notice of the distance either - I've proved to myself how wildly inaccurate the gps readings can be, so never feel the need to run up the road and back to get the distance up to the next whole mile like some clubmates do, figuring I've probably already done it. Our club run leader Claire proved how bad gps can be - the gps track for her swim portion of a duathlon last year suggested she had jumped out of the pool and run around on the grass! But like you, I do like to record every run and would struggle to try a 'nekkid' run (where there is no device there on the wrist to record stuff). I'd probably have the watch somewhere nearby so I could check it after the run and manually add the route to find the distance. Well done re your 4ml run with a bit of climbing.

    HS - I was a bit hesitant wearing my Forerunner for the first time when swimming - but it was fine so I've taken to timing myself each time now to see if I'm getting any faster. Hope for your sake that sneezing and sniffing isn't a precursor to a cold.

    Having had a further 'play' with that 'pool swim' app I hope it does automatically register a change of direction after each length - because the 'backup' way of doing that by pressing the lap button on the Forerunner doesn't work.

    It looks like we might get away with keeping dry for tomorrow's club run - fingers crossed.

  • Here is the photo, fingers crossed 🤞

  • Good Afternoon All,

    HS, What a wonderful picture! Everyone looks so happy :smile: What a nice group to run with.

    I love hills when I'm feeling strong. At the moment...not so much. But, this year's lesson is patience. I'm sure that that that loving feeling for an uphill challenge will return in time.  

    'Bonking off' is an interesting turn of phrase. I don't think that one ever made over here.  

    Oh Jeesh, I think WtnMel was right and our bad weather from last week made it over to you guys. Please be careful driving while it's that bad out!

    I hope that your sniffles have gone away. I must be getting old, as well, because the sensible course of taking care of yourself sounds very smart to me.  



    WtnMel,  'Snog' is a term that came to the US via the Harry Potter books and is supposed to mean kissing.  Crossword puzzles tend to twist the phrasing in the clues so that they are little misleading.  I actually had used 'frog' as my first entry, and then realized it wouldn't work.  What the clue was referring to with the phrase 'a French' is a term used in the US for passionately kissing.  

    Your Garmin swimming adventures sound very interesting. It is amazing what has been developed with electronic devices for tracking activities.  

    I'm with you on being able to set aside my Garmin, if I could still access it to record the length of my run.  Or at least, I think I could. 

    I hope you have a dry and fun club run tomorrow!!
  • oops, I forgot to add-I did 50 minutes of light spinning on the bike today followed by some strength training.  I kept the spinning easy, as I am hoping for a solid 40 minute tempo run tomorrow at at good pace. 
  • Good afternoon everyone,

    Molly, glad you liked the picture. We really enjoyed the run. Running through mud, climbing over gates, wading through water etc is great fun if not taken too seriously. The drinks and cakes afterwards was "really the icing on the cake!"
    Good to hear that you like hill running when feeling strong. There is nothing like the feeling when in races, powering up the hills overtaking all and sundry and then maintaining the pace when over the top. Many runners "recover" at the summit instead of pushing on hard. That only comes with practice. 
    You are right about patience following an injury, as attempting to get back into hard training too soon is counter productive.
    The sniffles seem to have gone thanks. I think that the rest day yesterday was key.
    Well done for the 50 minutes light spinning. My instructor has advised that every down push on the pedals is equivalent to single leg squats. The strength work should also help your recovery.
    Hope you managed your solid 40 minute tempo run today?

    I just ran 5 miles on roads this morning. The first couple were at a steady pace and then completed the run with intervals. 4 x 90 seconds with 60 second recoveries, 2 minutes further recovery, 3 x 4 minutes with 90 second recoveries, 2 minutes further recovery and then another 4 x 90 seconds with 60 second recoveries.
  • Good morning all,

    A rest day today and making good use of it. An early morning haircut and then sweeping out the rain water from the garage, and sweeping up the leaves from the front garden. I'm classifying this as cross training 😁
  • Good Morning All,

    HS, I have to say that your adventure run sounds like a blast!  I can see how that would be great fun, as long as the water isn't too cold.

    With hills, I try really hard to keep an even pace going up and down. When we lived in Maine, we lived in the foothills of the White Mountains. As you can guess from the name of the area, the terrain was extremely hilly with very steep inclines and descents. Before I moved there, I used to slow down on the uphill and make up time on the downhill.  But, running in the region of the White Mountains taught me that running downhill can be just as hard and tiring for the legs as running uphill.  I don't think that I was ever able to power through the summits, as you describe.  I can only hope to be that strong :smile: But, I do hope to get back to the point where I am not desperately struggling to maintain an even pace.

    I am really glad to hear that your sniffles are gone! Well done on your rest day.

    It's kind of funny. I can manage a fairly long time on the treadmill, but it takes real discipline for me to stick to 50 minutes on a stationary bike.  However, if each pedal stroke is worth 1 squat, I'll make myself stick to it.

    Congratulations on that interval workout.  It sounds really exhausting.  Are you hitting a consistent pace with each interval, or are you varying the pace depending on where you are in the workout?

    I hope that you continue to enjoy your cross training/rest day!  


    Yesterday, I managed my what I would classify as my first successful training run since my injury developed.  I did a forty minute tempo run on the treadmill at just shy of what was my 10k race pace. It felt pretty good. My stride was even. I was able to push off with my left foot. And, today, my achilles is only sore if I go poking at it.  My level of fatigue after the run felt appropriate, and, today, my legs are tired but not particularly sore.  All in all, I am feeling cautiously optimistic that I might be back on track.  Today is a rest day. But, tomorrow, I am going to try a 'bonk free' 8 mile run.


  • Good afternoon everyone 

    After my 5k was cancelled on Tuesday I was intending to go for a run on Wednesday, but heavy rain and bitterly cold winds put paid to that idea. However although Thursday was also cold and windy I did manage to get out for some fartlek running on my outward leg but a rather slow pace on the return leg due to both a head wind and the fact I had a horse and rider (from a local riding school) a little way ahead of me on the track. There was very little room to get past them and as the rider was struggling to control her horse I decided it would be better to keep a safe distance behind. She was trying to make the horse trot in a straight line, whereas the horse wanted to prance about sideways in a rather lively manner. The end result was a sort of equestrian dancing. Just before they reached the path I take to come off the track the rider managed to pull the horse over to the side so I could get past. I just got home before the rain started fortunately.
    Tomorrow will probably be parkrun, I hope it won’t be windy again as it’s no fun running in these strong winds.

    HS I’ll be thinking about you on your 50th parkrun and looking forward to your photo. I seem to remember it took months for my 50 T-shirt to arrive as parkrun were having shipping problems at the time, then my 100 T-shirt took over a year as they were changing suppliers and had huge backlogs. I hope you don’t have similar problems as it’s rather disappointing to have to wait so long once you’ve hit that milestone. Yesterday’s interval session sounded quite tough, like Molly I’d be interested to know what pace you ran them at, presumably your 4 minute intervals were at a slower pace than your 90 second ones? Enjoy your rest day today, glad to hear your sniffles have gone (loved your Mondays Runners group photo btw).

    Molly well done on your 40 minutes treadmill session at just under 10k pace, it must have been a real confidence boost to achieve that without aggravating your Achilles injury. Good that you didn’t feel unduly fatigued afterwards. Do you attribute that to reintroducing your protein shake? I’ll be keeping fingers crossed for your 8 miles tomorrow, will that be on the treadmill or are you planning to try to run outdoors? 

    WtnMel how did your club run go yesterday with the Thursday group, are they still looping back for the slower runners? 
    Have you played any golf this week, I seem to remember you saying you hoped to fit a match in sometime soon?

  • Running Fox thank you for your latest blog post. I’m glad to see you’re getting out and about again. As I’ve mentioned before I can’t post comments on your blog page for some reason so I hope you don’t mind me commenting on here. You are a much more experienced runner than I am so I’m sure you don’t need me to tell you slow and steady is the way to go just now. I’m sure your speed will return in time. These dark dreary winter days can be very depressing, but as you know running is the best medicine there is. 🙂
  • Good afternoon all

    Parkrun today was a little chilly, but the frost had melted by the time we started, although there was still a stiff breeze at times. When I arrived I had time for a bit of stretching and some slightly modified breathing exercises (didn’t want to look too bizarre) and a short jog warm up. I think this definitely helped as I found the first mile less tiring than normal. As I’ve said previously this parkrun is mainly uphill for the first couple of miles (with one or two short descents) then a nice long descent of about half a mile or so, with a finish on the flat. Normally I struggle with my breathing in the first mile as the first uphill section is just after the start, but today I managed a lot better. I’m still a couple of minutes off my pb, so still some work to do.

    HS how was your parkrun?

    Molly, did you manage your 8 mile run today?
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Evening all - a very quick visit as I need to get downstairs to cook our dinner! :)

    HS - great photo of a happy-looking bunch of runners. Well done with that run and your other 5ml road run with intervals. I called my leaf-sweeping cross training - don't see why you shouldn't either :)

    Molly - snog is a term for kissing over here too (as is french kissing) .. it just didn't seem to make sense at the time with that crossword clue. Well done re the spinning and tempo training run on the treadmill.

    Aquarius - well done re your fartlek .. shame about the horse interrupting your training! The club run on Thu went well (18 of us - possibly the most ever) - and everyone is well-behaved these days, looping back as they've been asked to (reminded!) by Claire. No golf this week - my mate is busy decorating and the weather hasn't been ideal. I have a lesson on Mon morning and then we should be playing on Wed. Well done re your parkrun good to hear the warm-up breathing exercises seemed to help.

    I usually run on Sundays. But the walk training for July's 90ml trek starts tomorrow. Barring any problems, I'll be joining the local Rambler's group on an 8ml circular walk from Adlestrop.

    I'd normally have fitted in a short run today instead because I'm walking tomorrow. But Margaret's son came round to help me move some stuff into/out of the loft (didn't want to aggrevate my dodgy shoulder).

  • Good Afternoon Everyone,

    HS, How was your 50th run?  Photos? I hope you enjoyed yourself :smile:

    Aquarius, I am glad that you let the horse have right of way.  And I am also glad that you managed to get home before the rain.  

    Regarding the protein shake. I do think that they help offset fatigue and help my recovery a great deal. But, I should also add that my husband and I eat a solely plant based diet (going 10 years), which means that I need to make a little extra effort to get enough protein when I'm training.  Oddly, my husband doesn't seem to have the same need.  

    Excellent job on your parkrun. It sounds like your warmup combo of jogging and breathing exercises are working well.  I'm sure that you'll set a new PB in no time.


    WtnMel, I am constantly amazed by your range of activities: golfing, rambling, swimming, running.  

    Good job on your club run.  Running with a pack of 18 sounds much more enjoyable if all are behaving well.

    It is too bad that you didn't get your run in today. However, I think that the demands of supervising while people move items into a loft should qualify as crosstraining :wink:


    It is well below freezing here, with very high winds, and a winter storm watch in effect through tomorrow.  So, I decided to do my long run on the treadmill.  I ran a steady 8.5 miles at .5 % elevation, at a really easy pace.  The run felt pretty good, but my achilles is a bit sore.  Tomorrow is a crosstraining day on the bike, and Monday is a rest day. I am hoping that that will be enough of a break from running for my achilles to recover.  Instead of my long run next weekend, I may run a 5K, depending on the weather and the state of my tendons.  

    My husband is off to get gasoline for the snow blower. My strength training tomorrow will probably include shoveling  :'(


  • Evening all,

    I'll reply to your posts tomorrow and report on my 50th parkrun with a couple of photos. It went really well 😁
  • I did another park run today timed at 24.33 which was 5 seconds slower than my PB.I feel if I had known the time that I would have given that bit more to beat it.
  • Good evening all,

    Molly, it is often tougher running down hill than up, and I have been working at it, to try and improve mine. Regarding the interval sessions, the 90 second efforts were slightly quicker than 5k pace, and the 4 minute efforts at 5k pace. 
    Well done for your 40 minute effort on the treadmill at tempo pace. Well done also for your steady 8.5 miles on the tread mill.
    Hope your cross training on the bike today went well? Don't overdo the snow shovelling on Monday!
    The parkrun went very well thank you, see post below, and I will post a couple of photos as a new post.

    Aquarius, sorry to hear that the horse rider interrupted your fartlek session. We often encounter horse riders in the forest and usually stop to let them trot past. Otherwise they tend to get out of control.
    Glad you managed to do a parkrun yesterday, and it seems that your pace and fitness is improving.
    My parkrun went well, see below.

    WtnMel, glad that your Thursdays club run went well, and everyone behaved themselves. Good luck with the golf lesson tomorrow and hope you beat Alan on Wednesday.
    Hope you enjoyed todays walk!

    Yesterdays parkrun went really well, and I was supported and encouraged by several club mates. Several photos were taken after the run and I will post a couple of them on here as a new post. The going was, to say the least, very heavy. Thick mud covering most of the trails and a very congested start with everyone shuffling until it started thinning out.
    Today was a very enjoyable 7.5 mile forest run with Sarah F. We set off at 8am into the cold and frosty forest. It was 1 degree, but bright and sunny, and it was a pleasure to run on the firmer ground, after weeks of ploughing through wet squelchy mud. We both said how lucky we were to live so close to the lovely New Forest, especially when covered in frost.

  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Evening all,

    Molly - I did try a home-made recovery drink a few times in the past (banana and some other stuff, now forgotten!) but don't bother on a regular basis. I'm happy with a pint of orange juice/water with a sprinkle of salt in after a run and a handful of nuts. I think I'd get bored if I stuck to one pastime which is why I do a variety of things. No cross-training snow shovelling here thank goodness .. though I did do some leaf-sweeping a month or two ago.

    HS - I'm obviously hoping having a golf lesson tomorrow will mean I've more chance of beating Alan on Wed! See below re today's walk .. the 'going' for your 50th parkrun sounds like what we encountered on our walk today .. rutted mud that had formed a hard crust with the frost .. but also, in the sunnier parts, squelchy mud! Loving the 50th parkrun photos .. and you're in your shorts! (as a southern softie, I'm still in my tracksters).

    Damien - I bet you would have sped up if you'd known you were so close to a new PB. One thing I miss from my previous Forerunner 305 was the feature where you could program in your best time on a particular route and race against your virtual self.

    Been out with the Cleeve Ramblers today. A lovely sunny day with blue skies. And an interesting 9ml walk with lots to see on the way round (iron-age hill fort, churches, 'fancy' big houses). The going, as I mentioned above, was a bit muddy in places and icy on some roads that were in the shade. I haven't walked that far for a while so I am relieved that my legs (and toes!) feel fine now.

    My treadmill was given to me by my friend Joan and as I've mentioned before, it doesn't get much use. I don't have a lot of room in our single garage as my sauna is in there too. I'd been thinking of getting rid of it and Joan has emailed to say her brother has been looking for one. I need to check the measurements for him but all being well, he'll have the treadmill from me which will do us both a favour.

    As mentioned above, my first golf lesson of 2020 tomorrow morning - and then as I've been out all day today, I'll be cooking a sunday roast tomorrow evening. Hoping to run on Tue, golf on Wed (straight after having my hair cut - so will need to be very organised!), club run on Thu so probably a quiet day at home on Fri! :)
  • Good Afternoon Everyone,

    DamienNagle,  If you were 5 sec off from your PB, it sounds like your PB is becoming your new normal.  You'll soon have a new PB.


    HS, Congratulations on your 50th park run.  I love the photos! The photo frame is a hoot. and your running crew looks like a great group.  How nice to have people cheering you on during the run.

    Thank you for explaining your interval workout. It certainly is demanding.  Especially, as you are not doing it on a flat running track.  It is impressive to me that it isn't a one off, but part of your regular training, which speaks to your level of fitness.  I really hope to be able to start putting in near that level of effort, on a regular basis, by the spring.  But, as my fitness is now, the recovery that that level of effort would require would derail the rest of my training schedule.  

    Your 7.5 mile run through the forest sounds lovely.  I agree with you and Sarah F.; you are very lucky to live so close to such a great running place.  I think my husband and I only have so many winters living in this area left in us.  We definitely need to find an enchanted forest in the US. Do you have a problem with insects in your forest during the spring or summer?


    WtnMel, Orange juice and salt sounds surprisingly good. I may have to try that.

    I hope that your golf lesson tomorrow goes really well. I'll be rooting for you to win on Wednesday.

    Your 9 mile walk sounds fascinating. Do you post pictures of the walks anywhere?

    Congratulations on finding a new home for your treadmill. Enjoy the extra space.


    Today was 50 minutes of crosstraining on the bike, plus strength training. An unforeseen benefit of using the bike is that I am much more likely to stick to my strength training schedule, since I am already in the room with the equipment.  

    We got about half a foot of snow last night, but my husband took care of most of it.  He goes back in for his second ablation procedure in a couple of weeks, so I'll be the one shoveling from that point on.  

    The local half marathon is 7 weeks from today on March 8. I am beginning to think that I might be in shape to run it.  Because there is usually some combination of snow, ice, wind, freezing temperatures and freezing droplets of ocean spray, it tends to be more of an adventure race.  But, surviving it is a good confidence booster to start the spring with.  



  • Hillstrider.
    Well done on the 50th park run.

    Wtnmel.
    I am currently using a tomtom spark and it's battery life is making me look for another watch.Garmin will most likely be the next brand I use.

    Nikkosrunningpartner.
    Big jump for the half marathon but if you feel up for it ...go for it!


  • hillstriderhillstrider ✭✭✭
    edited January 2020
    Evening all,

    WtnMel, I'm a southern softie too, but I showed the Scousers whilst I was living in Liverpool, what I was made of!
    One of my earlier Garmins also had the facility to run against a virtual runner.
    Your walk yesterday sounded very interesting.
    Good luck with Wednesday's golf with Alan, the haircut should help LoL.

    Molly, thanks and glad you liked the photos. I'm lucky to have so many lovely club friends!
    Hope you are able to step up your speed work training by the Spring, as you mention.
    We really enjoyed our 7.5 mile forest run yesterday. The forest is almost magical when covered in white frost.
    Regarding insects in the forest during the spring and summer, we usually have them buzzing around our heads. However, last year there was only one run where I had a swarm of insects accompanying me. Very unusual, they must have gone on holiday😁
    Well done with the cross training on the bike and strength training.
    We've had no snow here in the Hampshire County. Hope your husband's ablation procedure goes ok.
    Hope you are fit for your half marathon on March 8th!

    Damien, thanks and well done for your parkrun, another excellent time.

    I ran 12.6 miles on roads this morning round most of the Club's Solent Half Marathon route. Jane ran all the way with me, and Sarah H ran the first 4 miles with us, and then ran back. She ran a negative split, so we are very proud of her. It was very cold, below freezing, and I'm afraid to say that I wore my Ron Hill Tracksters.
     


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