New Mature Runners Thread

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  • AquariusAquarius ✭✭✭
    Good afternoon all,

    HS: What a good run you had yesterday, it’s lovely when everything “clicks into place” like that (and the weather sounds like it was an added bonus). Your 5k challenges are certainly reaping benefits, I suppose that’s one positive to take from this lockdown situation (well, of course as we now know it’s only a lockdown if your name isn’t Dominic Cummings). What a moronic driver that was, throwing a can at you as he passed, you were lucky it didn’t hit you, also that you didn’t trip over it. We saw our neighbours return from a walk yesterday, both mum and dad had baby carriers on, one with a baby in and the other with a toddler. They told us that a white van had passed them as they walked along and the passenger opened the window to spit at them! Unfortunately his aim was good and the mum was spattered with his spit. They didn’t manage to get the number of the van so I doubt the offenders will ever be traced, but what a disgusting and cruel thing to do. 

    WtnMel: You must all be delighted that your mum has been allowed to return home. How is she settling back in, is she managing ok with her additional help from social Services? My aunt fell and broke both her hip and shoulder a few years ago, and after her operations she was discharged initially to a care home to get back her strength, and some degree of mobility, before being allowed back home to her (upstairs) flat. Social Services delivered various aids and I think for a while she had meals on wheels. A carer would come each day to put her to bed, but as the carer had so many other calls to fit in my aunt’s “slot” was just after teatime so my aunt soon stopped those visits. She stopped the meal deliveries too as they also came at strange times of the day. She was a very independent person and hated having to rely on other people. However I think the various pieces of equipment Social Services provided were gratefully received, things to help her use the toilet, get into and out of the bath, mobility frames for getting around her flat etc. I hope your mum gets the necessary help and equipment she needs too, as it all helps restore confidence.
    I’m impressed that you got up for your early run despite having had a bad night’s sleep. I have to confess I also slept badly last night (too warm and stuffy) however unlike you I didn’t make the effort to get up when I should have done, so yet another day goes over without a run. I’ll have to give myself a good talking to, and really make the effort tomorrow to get out of bed as soon as I wake up, before I can change my mind. Congratulations on your new VO2 Max btw.
    How did your golf practice go today? (I hope Alan isn’t also having practice sessions.)

    Damien: Well done for another run in the heat, you must be getting quite acclimatised to it by now, not so good though as regards the number of people heading for the beach. The main reason I go out so early is to avoid the crowds, I hope you can find a time of day that is convenient for you and also not too busy or too hot.

    Molly: What marvellous news about Brian’s AF results, I’m so pleased for you both. It must have taken a great weight off your shoulders. I expect that Brian will now  be looking forward to gradually increasing his level of exercise. 
    Also good news (in a way) about the marathon being unlikely to take place. I think you are very wise to ditch marathon training, it’s much more sensible to concentrate on a half marathon distance in the circumstances, particularly as virtually all your training was taking place on your treadmill, and this cannot fully replicate the conditions you would find when road running, and may even result in injuries. So, that’s positive news on two fronts - what next I wonder? Perhaps you’ll get a dream commission for your textile creations? 
    Well done on your treadmill "hill" session yesterday. It looks like your decision to take a few days off running has given you a boost, mentally as well as physically.

    Runningfox: I’m glad to see you are still managing to get out for runs, and sharing them on your blog. I was sorry to read about the death of your running friend Peter Dibb, he must be a great miss to you, but you did him proud with that write up of your recollections of him, and his influence on your running career. He sounded like a lovely man, and I’m sure he valued your friendship as much you did his. 

    Since I last posted on here (Friday) I haven’t done any running, mainly because I’ve been suffering with hay fever symptoms, which always make me feel lethargic. I have been out for a couple of walks though, and kept up with some circuit training and also Pilates. My physio posted a new Pilates video which, amongst other things, is great for glutes. She also sent me a video where she demonstrates some alternative versions of squats and lunges after I told her I sometimes struggle with my balance on lunges. I have to admit I’m finding them quite challenging, but I will persevere and see if they help. 
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Evening everyone,

    Molly - you don't have to be mad to get up at 5:30am and run early - but it helps (less people around so saves on all that dodging about). I've sent an updated version of my 5G presentation to the U3A guy who leads our Science & Technology group .. it has less slides and clearer text on the ones that are left, so hopefully he'll approve. Well done re your 4ml 'hilly' treadmill run. 

    Aquarius - what a revolting white van man. Such a shame your neighbour didn't get the registration so the police could 'have a word' with that evil scumbag. Thanks for asking about my Mum - she's managing okay with help from the carers and meals on wheels. My sister is keeping in constant touch with her - the only 'blip' was she fell over again trying to put her nightie on while standing up so she's been told to sit down in future as we don't want her to damage her hip as it's still healing. The equipment my Mum has been given sounds like your Aunt's stuff - various things to help her get around and to make it easier to sit down. I have to say, it was a real struggle getting up this morning as it was gone midnight before I got to sleep. The golf practise went well today (see below). Inspired by you talking about your exercising on non-running days, I looked up the core exercises I learnt when we were away at the Health Farm and wrote them up and added them to my exercise folder (which is my collection of cuttings from magazines over the years). Now I just need to get into the routine of doing the errr .. routine :) You mentioned a new Pilates video which is great for glutes - a few members of my club have been doing the "Bring Sally Up squat challenge" which looks like hard work to me. I've not been tempted to try it myself but some of them have been complaining about feeling it in their bum the day after!
     
    I tried going to our post office but there was a socially-distanced queue at least 20yds long so I'll try another time.

    The golf practise at the driving range went well this afternoon - 110 balls and only a handful of 'duds'. Let's hope I manage to only have a few 'duds' during tomorrow's match with Alan.

  • AquariusAquarius ✭✭✭
    edited May 2020
    Good morning all,

    WtnMel: that sounds like a good golf practise session, so fingers crossed for tomorrow's match. 
    I haven't heard of the "Bring Sally Up squat challenge" - does it involve weights perhaps? Is the challenge something your club have thought up, or is it one of the many challenges appearing on the internet at the moment? It sounds quite effective if it results in sore bums!
    Sorry to hear your mum had a fall, I hope it doesn't knock her confidence, it's good that your sister is keeping in touch with her. Very frustrating though for all of you that you can't visit her in person (and don't start me off again about Dominic Cummings - I've written to my MP about him).
    I'm not surprised you didn't bother with the post office queue, better luck next time perhaps?
    I made the effort today to get up early. I thought it was 5.30, but it turned out to be 4.30 (my eyes) so it was another pretty early start, which I wasn't sorry about as I was going to do my long run (7 miles) and I was hoping to have the Derwent Walk to myself. I think I saw my first person about a mile or so from the end of my run, and in total I only came across 4 walkers, two runners (running together and both with dogs off the lead, grrr) who apologised for their dogs stopping me dead in my tracks when they blocked my way. Oh yes, one cyclist too, plus countless rabbits criss crossing my path and various cows and horses in farmers fields along the way. I must have been lucky with timing this morning as when I'd finished running I stopped to stretch for a few minutes on an access path and in those few minutes 5 runners and a cyclist passed by on the Walk.
    Disappointingly my right knee became very painful five miles into my run and was stiff when I stretched it afterwards. I noticed though that the pain was also felt in my right quad and into my adductor, so it seems my physio's diagnosis is probably correct and I need to keep on with the stretches she provided.
  • hillstriderhillstrider ✭✭✭
    Good afternoon everyone,

    Damien, it's unfortunate that the beach gets so crowded now, that you are unable to do your early morning runs. It's odd that a headwind  never turns into a tailwind on the way back. Hope you are able to fit runs in later in the day.

    WtnMel, thanks for the info re Fetchpoint. If I wanted to just change my  home point, would I also do that in the settings?  I did enjoy Sundays run, I felt as if I could have run on and on. Wish every run was like that.

    Well done getting up early for an early morning run. I'm always up early, but don't run until after breakfast.

    Good to hear that your mum is being well looked after, but sorry that she had a fall. Thankfully it didn't seem to have damaged her hip.

    Good that your golf practice went well yesterday, and I hope that you beat Alan today.

    Molly, I just can't understand the mentality of people that throw things, or spit etc at others. They must get some sort of sadistic pleasure from these activities. They probably wouldn't say "boo to a goose" in face to face situations. The same as those that slag off people on twitter etc. I was very lucky not to have tripped over the can and fallen. If I had been a "new runner," that experience would have probably have put me off running for life.

    Good that you have eased back from your marathon training and had a few rest days. That 4 miles on the treadmill with steep inclines sounded like hard work, but am sure that after your recovery , you had the strength to give it 100%. I hope it won't be too long before you are able to run outside again.

    Aquarius, Sundays run was rather special.  I may have experienced the elusive runners high😂

    I thought for a moment that your reference to the moronic driver was aimed at a certain Dominic Cummings. What intelligent person would do a 60 mile round trip to see if their eye sight was ok. He could have crashed the car and killed himself, wife and child, and others. Johnson won't sack him because he is 100% reliant on him, and unable to make any decisions himself.  Sir Keir Starmer runs rings round him in PM Question Times.

    How disgusting for white van man to spit at your neighbours and score a direct hit. What is it with white van men, they seem to be in the same moronic mould.

    Sorry to hear that you have been suffering with hay fever. I believe conditions have been bad this year for sufferers.

    Well done for getting out for a run so early in the morning, but sorry that you experienced pain in your right knee, right quad and adductor. Definitely keep up with the stretches.

    I had a really good forest run yesterday with Sarah H, and we ran 7.77 miles in the forest. We ran hard up all the hills, and at the end of the run, Sarah suggested that we do a couple off flat out sprints to finish off. We did them in the Leisure Centre car park which was empty due to  the Centre being closed. We sprinted from one end of the car park to the other, rested for a couple of minutes, and then sprinted back. According to my Garmin, we hit 5.99 minute miling.  

    I went for another nice walk this morning into the village and round the Marina again, and took some more photos. I will post them on here later. It was very hot work.

    We have done 9 virtual 5k's now and some runners are getting a bit bored with the same every week, so Dan, who is the coordinator asked for suggestions for the 10th run. I suggested we should all do the 5k in the forest, which would not be so serious as road running, as our WAVA's would almost certainly be lower. It will be interesting to see the difference in our road and forest times.

  • hillstriderhillstrider ✭✭✭
    Here are 3 photos I took this morning in the Marina 

  • AquariusAquarius ✭✭✭
    Morning everyone,

    Nice photos HS, and well done on your 7.7 mile run with Sarah H and the sprints afterwards, you are certainly keeping the years at bay. That's an amazing time of 5.99 minute miling, well done to you both!
    I'm not surprised people are getting bored with the same format for your club's 5k challenge, I think a lot of runners are getting quite restless at the moment due to club training currently being suspended, plus not having much variety in their runs, either through circumstances or just not motivated enough to try new things. So that was a good suggestion of yours to swap from road running to a forest run. I bet it would be more enjoyable, whatever the outcome as regards timings. It'll keep the challenge "fresh" and hopefully motivate people to continue with it. Let us know what is decided for run number 10.

    WtnMel: we are all waiting with bated breath - what happened in the golf match?

    Today will be a rest day for me. Yesterday afternoon we went for a walk which turned out to be almost 6 miles, so after my 7 mile run in the morning I thought it would be wise to take it easy today. It's a lovely day today so I will probably sit out in the garden this afternoon with a book. B)
  • hillstriderhillstrider ✭✭✭
    Good afternoon everyone, 

    Damien and Aquarius, I'm glad that you like the photos.

    Aquarius, thanks, my run with Sarah went really well, and the sprints at the end were "the icing on the cake!" I jogged across the car park during this mornings run to get an idea of the distance. It was approximately 105 metres, so a good distance for sprints. I think Saturdays 5k off road will be enjoyable, but still competitive.  We should get confirmation by tomorrow if off road has the go ahead. It should do as no one else has come up with any suggestions.

    That was a long walk yesterday, which I hope wasn't impeded too much by other walkers, cyclists, runners etc.  Just noticed that you ran 7 miles first in the morning, so a half marathon distance covered during the day. You certainly deserve a rest day today sitting in the sunshine in the garden, reading a good book. Hope you don't fall asleep in the heat.😴

    WtnMel, hope the golf match with Alan went well and that you beat him?

    I think that I have sussed the fetchpoint game out now. I have amended the map to enclose a circle in my region. I note that all I have are red bugs and plants that I have watered from time to time. How do you squash the bugs?

    Another very hot and sunny day here today and I ran 7.6 miles in the forest. I had to amend my route slightly, as the field I intended running through had lots of white cows with horns, which are dangerous. I saw several ponies with their foals in another field which were laying down. They probably thought that I was stupid, running in the heat.

    There have been quite a few posts on the local facebook pages, complaining about all the rubbish visitors have been leaving. The consensus seems to be that it is much worse than before the lock downs etc. People have also been dropping their disposal gloves on the ground, instead of the bins. This is disgraceful, as they are probably infected, and could be picked up by dogs, who could then infect their owners if they licked them.
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Evening everyone,

    Aquarius - no weights involved .. the "Bring Sally Up" challenge just involves squatting down. I think someone from the club found it and posted it on the club's FB page and it's now part of the "Almost Athletes Bingo Card" (more on this below). Well done for getting up early yesterday to run - yes, definitely good timing if it had been quiet then but was busy as you finished. Sorry to hear about your knee/quad/adductor getting sore - hope the stretch from the physio helps sort it out. That was impressive doing a 6ml walk after your 7ml run earlier in the day.

    HS - I see you've managed to suss out how to change your home point in Fetchpoint. The red bugs are the only ones you have to worry about as they lose you points. To get rid of the red bugs you have to 'run through' the point where the bug is and also run outside your home circle .. but it doesn't matter in which order you do that. If you do both, they'll get squished. Well done re that run with Sarah H - and the impressive pace you managed on that sprinting at the end. If you're looking for ideas for something other than a virtual 5k, maybe take a look at the Almost Athletes Bingo card I mentioned? Nice photos again - that's a huge cruise ship in the first one - how do they stay upright with that many decks? 

    I mentioned the "Almost Athletes Bingo Card". Someone at the club put together a whole load of challenges in the form of a bingo card to keep people motivated while we can't run as a club. People have been busy ticking off the various challenges but I don't think anyone has shouted "House!" yet. I'll try and post a photo of it - might give you some new ideas for your club HS? 

    Unfortunately I lost our golf match. We were fairly close most of the match but on the 8th my pitching onto the green let me down as I was far too tentative and took three shots instead of one. Then on the 9th my drive off the tee was awful (I'd been driving okay up to then). However, I do have a brilliant excuse! Just before we headed off to the first tee my golf trolley's brake stuck on and I couldn't free it up. So I ended up having to carry my golf bag around the course. I was far too hot and was getting very knackered by the end of the round. See, told you I had a brilliant excuse! :)

    I ran early again this morning. Just 4 miles as I was still feeling the effects of yesterday. While checking my run on Fetch I noticed my monthly total is 54 miles - I know that's small beer for some of you but it's my highest monthly total since Nov 2018 and I still have Sunday's run to add to it. 



  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    I forgot to say that I had a look at my golf trolley today. Despite my best efforts with WD40 and adjusting the locking mechanism, I couldn't see how to adjust the lock to get it to function properly. So I adopted the KISS principle (keep it simple stupid) and have taken the brake off the trolley - problem solved ;) I'll just make sure I position the trolley in future on any slopes so that it won't run away - or add a small wooden chock to the golf equipment I carry around in the bag :)
  • AquariusAquarius ✭✭✭
    Good morning everyone,

    HS: 105 metres is indeed a good distance for sprints, and in view of how quickly you covered it you should consider entering some track events once the athletics world is back to normal. Just think how much faster you would be if you just did that distance without a long run beforehand.
    I’ve seen similar Facebook posts about people flocking to the coast up here and leaving loads of rubbish behind, apparently it’s been worse than usual, and we haven’t got to the height of summer yet. There’s certainly no excuse for discarding used gloves, why not just put them in a bin, or better still take them home. I can’t understand this attitude of “someone else can pick this up and dispose of it for me”. It’s the same with fly tipping, if I could catch someone in the act I’d report them to the police. 
    I did enjoy my afternoon in the garden yesterday, thank you. Slightly marred by radios from furloughed adults and screaming from over excited lockdown children. The children can be excused, they must be getting very bored, and playing in the garden is probably their only way to let off steam, but I do get slightly annoyed with neighbours radios, we don’t all want to listen to their choice of music.

    WtnMel: Well I’ve heard some good excuses, but never the one about the broken golf buggy. ;) Seriously though you must have been exhausted lugging your golf bag around, so excuse accepted. :p
    The Almost Athletes Bingo card looks quite daunting, are there rules for each activity? For instance what do you have to do on Plonker in the Park and Rocky Run to complete those challenges? 
    54 miles in a month sounds pretty impressive to me, well done. I’m lagging behind that somewhat at the moment. I think I need to introduce some new routes and sessions as I’m getting in a bit of a rut with my one long run, one interval session and one hill session per week.

    Speaking of which, I did my hill session again this morning, nice and early at 5.00am. Fortunately not too many people about today - four walkers, no runners, no cyclists. I had a slight twinge in my right knee on a downward stretch, but otherwise all seemed ok.
    We’re off for a walk soon, hopefully we’ll get out and back before it gets too hot. 

    Molly: has Brian received his exercise routine yet from the doctor?
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    edited May 2020
    Afternoon everyone,

    Aquarius - we've not only had neighbours playing music loudly. There's a road over the back from us (100yds away) where they've had what on the local FB page they've jokingly been calling a 'socially-distanced rave' - very noisy and goes on for several hours but they have been stopping at 9pm. It was a weekly thing (following on from VE Day), but we're told (via FB) that it will be a monthly thing from now on - phew! Yes, there are rules for each of the bingo squares but I didn't bother boring everyone here with the details. If I remember correctly, Plonker In The Park is where you do what they called Oregan Circuits where each letter is a different exercise like lunges, press-ups etc. You jog round a 200-300yd course then do the exercises that spells out a word you've decided on with a jog around between each one. A Rocky Run is where you find some steps to run up and down (like in the film). If you're getting into a bit of a rut, that Fetchpoint game I mentioned (on Fetcheveryone) is good for getting you to run places you might not normally go. Well done re your hill session - glad to hear it was fairly quiet and hope that knee twinge goes away.

    Margaret and I had our weekly chat with my friends Alan & Diana earlier (a phone conversation as their internet was playing up so Zoom wasn't working). He's playing golf on Thu so we've agreed we'll play on Tue and we're going to aim to get there for 9am - fingers crossed it's quiet as it's a pay & play course so you can't book a particular tee-time. 

    I tend to normally run on Tue, Thu & Sun but with the golf in mind, I'll run tomorrow and Mon instead.
  • hillstriderhillstrider ✭✭✭
    Evening all,

    WtnMel, thanks for your help re fetchpoint, I'll check on it now and again, but don't  want to spend too much time on it. I'm still checking the circles after each run, but haven't reached a 1000 per month for ages now. Lack of races, means not many different routes. Thanks for your comments on Sarah and my run. I don't expect that we will do those sprints too often.

    It's amazing how huge the cruise ships are these days. I hadn't thought of them as being top heavy! Did you spot the swan in the middle photo?

    Sorry to hear that you lost your golf match with Alan, but like your brilliant excuse. Thanks for the bingo idea, it's certainly something different.

    Well done for your increase in mileage, with Sunday still to come.

    I note that you have now solved the golf trolley problem by removing the brake. I hadn't realised that they had them. 

    Our club sometimes does Oregon Circuits, they are very tough.

    Aquarius, that's an idea doing track events, but I've never really been into the idea of racing on the track. I did twice a week training on the track in my Team Solent days, which is how I attained my fast base pace, but never considered putting it to the test by racing on it.

    I'm glad that you enjoyed your afternoon in the garden, but such a shame it was rather marred by neighbours noisy radios. Some people have no consideration for others. I remember many years ago going to Hampton Court with my parents and sitting on the grass. The tranquillity was spoilt by so many people with transistor radios blaring out.

    Very well done for doing a hill session at 5 o'clock in the morning. That must be rather a shock to the system. Hope the knee didn't bother you during your walk later this morning.

    Today is a rest day, but I did a 60 second front plank and 25 press ups. I'm looking forward to tomorrows 5k in the forest. It should be interesting.

    Now that we can meet up with 5 other people, we will be getting the Monday Club together again on Monday😁
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Afternoon everyone,

    HS - glad I was able to assist re Fetchpoint. I missed that swan in the middle photo and looking again, I probably assumed it was a gull (shades of Father Ted I think! Is it small? Or far away?) :) The 'brake' on my golf trolley was actually a spring-loaded piece of metal tube that slotted into holes on the wheel .. but as I mentioned, it's not that important so removing it isn't going to cause any problems. Our club members have begun to wonder if there's a chance to have groups of six of us doing socially-distanced runs in the coming weeks .. but it will probably be the Thursday club in our case :) I don't understand how these circles work on Fetch - it says I've only explored 331 circles this month but I was sure it was more than that last time I looked. Do you now how it works?

    I realised after chatting to Alan that it's my Aunt's funeral on Tuesday (not covid-related btw). So I hastily re-arranged our golf match for Wed. That means he'll be playing golf two days running as he already has a match with another friend on Thu. But in his words "it's only 9 holes each day so not a problem". 

    Having re-arranged the golf I needed to change my running days so we can watch a live-stream of my Aunt's funeral (limited numbers able to attend in person). So I have been out this morning and run 5mls and will go out again on Mon. I saw from my Fetch training log I've managed to run 60 miles this month - the last time I did more miles in a month was in Jan 2015 when I did 80 miles as I was busy training for the Bath Half (Mar 2015). I enjoy keeping a spreadsheet of my running and a graph of my pace/mile for Jan to May this year is satisfying for me to see (photo attached).

    Also, while I was out running this morning, one of my two bugs I wanted to squish was on our local sports field. So I took the opportunity of running around there to 'write' my name (photo attached) :)



    Given the fact I was running clockwise so 'writing' my name backwards, I impressed myself with the resulting signature ;)


  • hillstriderhillstrider ✭✭✭
    Good afternoon all,

    WtnMel, the swan was some way away and that is why it looks so small. I took all the photos on my phone.I'm always amazed at the quality of phone photos. Nearly as good as cameras, but without telephoto lens etc.

    I can't see any reason why 6 of you can't run from Monday onward, provided that you keep 2 metres between each of you. We are resurrecting our Monday running group next week, but keeping it to a max of 6. There will probably be 4 of us.

    I'm afraid that I don't know how the circles work either. I've noticed that sometimes the number has decreased, rather than increased after a run. I don't take too much notice to be honest. I've checked my fetchpoints and have now got some different coloured items. I checked the overall total table and see that I have 291 points and you have 330. I'll have another look after tomorrows run to see if I have increased or decreased my points.

    Will you be able to attend your Aunt's funeral? I think the number has increased to 10, but I'm not sure.  I've just looked down further and note that you will be watching by live stream.

    Well done for your increase in monthly mileage. I note from your graph that your increase in mileage has resulted in an increase in pace. Well done also for writing your name to crush a bug.

    This morning I ran the isolation virtual 5k forest challenge. This is the first week, week 10, that it has been off road.  I was really pleased with my time as it was only a few seconds slower than last weeks road time. I ran it in 26.49, a WAVA of 68.77%.
  • I ran today after the last two days of work I feel really knackered.
    There was a sideways wind blowing towards the sea and no lies it really twatted me in the heat today.
    I need to race again as I need someone to chase and beat.
  • AquariusAquarius ✭✭✭
    edited May 2020
    Good morning everyone,

    WtnMel: I don’t envy you that socially distanced rave. Perhaps I’m just getting old (oh, wait a minute, I am old :o) but I do think there’s little consideration shown these days for other people when it comes to playing music outdoors. I try to block out the noise from other gardens when I am sitting outside, but it’s not always easy. Yesterday was a prime example, an ice cream van visited the estate (not quite sure how social distancing operates there) and the “Greensleeves” music it was playing was so loud it actually hurt our ears as it went past our house. I know ice cream van chimes have always been pretty loud, but this was unbelievable. I suppose it’s some consolation that the “rave” is only going to take place once a month now, but it must still be irritating. 
    Thanks for the explanation of how those bingo games work, it does seem a good way of introducing a bit of variety and fun into training. It’ll be interesting to learn if anyone does manage to complete the whole card. Is there some sort of a prize or virtual medal if they do?
    Sorry to hear about your aunt. I imagine it will be strange to watch a live-stream of the funeral service, but better than nothing if you are unable to attend, and actually probably safer all round for everyone. I know a lot of people are anxious to get back to socialising again, or meeting up for sporting activities but personally I’m in no hurry to do either. We still have a high R number in the North East and just by saying it’s ok to gather in groups of six isn’t actually going to change the chances of infection. It’s worrying how many medical experts and scientists are coming out to say publicly that they think it’s a mistake to ease the restrictions just yet. I heard today that one of the Scandinavian countries that has allowed young children back into school have 99 teachers now suffering with the virus. I suppose time will tell if it was the right time to ease restrictions here, but I can’t help thinking I know the answer to that already.
    That’s an impressive pace/mileage chart for May, and well done for writing your name during your run, are you going to make a practice of writing words on future runs? How about trying a drawing? :p
    So Alan isn’t too worried about back to back golf match days? Is this a bit of bluff do you think? Get practising and think lots of positive thoughts on Wednesday, you’ll be bound to win then. 

    HS: Well done for managing 26.49 for the off road version of your 5k challenge. Normally you would expect off road running to have more of an effect on your time, so you must be really pleased with that. I wonder how everyone else’s time turned out and if they enjoyed the forest run as much as the usual 5k. Do you know yet which version you will be doing next Saturday? 

    Damien: Do you have any running buddies you could “socially distance” race against? I agree it is hard to keep motivated when running on your own, but well done for persevering when you are tired from work.

    Molly: I hope everything’s ok with you and Brian, and training is going well.

    This morning I did my interval training again, but unfortunately Garmin was slow to get the satellites, missing my warm up run and first interval. A similar thing happened on my run on Friday, but that time it only missed the first half mile, today it probably missed about a mile. I’ll have to try that satellite location thing again I think. 
    It was very misty this morning when I was running, but it's now sunny and warm. I think we are due to go for another walk today. It’ll be interesting to see how busy the roads and pavements are now that people seem to be gearing up for lockdown restrictions easing. When sitting out in the garden yesterday I could hear a children’s birthday party taking place in one garden, and at least two other gardens where a number of voices could be heard.

  • AquariusAquarius ✭✭✭
    Some phots from our 6 mile walk today. The first looking across the fields to some houses in the distance (including our house). The second is the bridge at Shotley Bridge, the last is one of the country roads we walked along.
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Afternoon everyone,

    HS - I don't use my digital SLR much these days but it does much better photos than my phone .. it's just heavier to lug around! I've not seen anything on my running club's page yet about socially-distanced runs of 6 people starting just yet. I might ask Fetch how those circles work then - I'm just curious. From that graph, I can see that the regular running I've been doing has resulted in a gradual increase in average pace. Well done re your off-road isolation challenge 5K.

    Damien - I always used to find running after work (and before dinner) tiring.

    Aquarius - the guy who plays the music at the 'rave' (which is mostly old tunes - some good - some awful) seems to have belatedly realised we people living nearby don't like it so loud or so bass-ey. I'm not aware of any prizes for ticking off all the squares on that bingo card. We're not in any hurry to get back to normal either. I'm just about okay with playing golf again - but apparently a local car-boot sale is re-starting (I think anyone going to that will be mad). I don't know if I'll be 'writing' or 'drawing' anything else. I think Alan really isn't bothered about playing 9 holes on consecutive days - he's been on golf society days before where he has breakfast, plays 9 holes, has lunch, plays 18 holes, then has dinner. Sorry to hear your Garmin is playing up again - it might be time to try the more powerful reset (though I can't remember the details of that now). Nice photos btw - do we have a new game called "Spot Aquarius's house" :)

    As far as I'm concerned, the 'R' number is still too high to be mixing with people again. There isn't an adequate test, track and trace system in place yet. In my opinion, Boris has announced the relaxation of the rules without following any science, because he wants to try and distract the public from the furore over Dominic Cummings ie. political expediency over public safety. 

    Apologies - rant mode! The latest thing I've read brings the mentality of Dominic Cummings into focus. He claimed that stories of him reacting to covid late in the day were 'fake news' and claimed he'd been warning about the possibility of it as far back as Mar 2019 in his blog. A Dutch journalist didn't believe him so did some digging around. He found a blog entry from Mar 2019 where he did say just that. But he investigated further and used an internet archive called 'Wayback' which showed the blog entry had been updated recently in Apr this year and the text changed from the original (around the time DC was driving to Barnard Castle to test his eyesight btw). So the evidence that he was 'on the ball' re covid as he claimed to the media, was manufactured by him after the event and he was busy re-writing history. Rant over!!

    My cousin has given me some logon details to watch my Aunt's funeral (and an order of service is in the post).

    I've had a fairly quiet day. Now the garden waste collections have restarted, I've been able to move the pile of stuff at the end of the garden into the bin ready for Thu. And I've been browsing the internet as my BT Broadband is up for renewal on 20th Jun so I need to compare prices and decide who to sign up with.

    Well - I can see it's time for me to head to the kitchen, don my pinny and cook Margaret's roast dinner.

    I should be running again in the morning - and there will be more bugs to squish!
  • hillstriderhillstrider ✭✭✭
    Good afternoon everyone,

    Damien, our club runners have been doing the virtual isolation 5k each week, and comparing results. Is it possible that you have some running buddies that you could do something similar with?

    Aquarius, I suppose that I am lucky because I live at the top of my road and my neighbours are all getting on a bit! There are more younger couples in the street now, but they are at the lower end of the street, so I don't hear any noise from them. We don't often get an ice cream van down our road these days, but quite a few years ago now, Chris Akabusi, remember him, used to live at the bottom of the street with his wife and two children. He often came out to buy them ice creams. His wife used to work in the Leisure Centre.

    I agree that it is probably too early to ease the restrictions. What with the Cummings fiasco, and shielded people also being allowed out, a second spike is only too likely, and we will be back to square one.

    Thanks for your comments re the off road 5k. I was very pleased with my time, especially as it was very hot, and I was wearing a bottle belt, which wasn't ideal for running hard. It seems that everyone that has reported so far has enjoyed the change to off road, so I am hoping that this will continue. It wasn't compulsory this weekend to run off road, but encouraged. The results will be up later this evening, so it will be interesting to compare off road with road times. Our coordinator Dan, who I passed in the opposite direction this morning whilst running, was doing his 5k  and twisted his ankle soon after. He still managed to finish in 20 minutes and a few seconds. Amazing with a badly twisted ankle. I'm hoping that we will be encouraged to run off road again next week, as that will make it more like a genuine parkrun.

    I can't understand why your garmin is having such problems locking onto the satellites. I believe that there are 6. I always press the start button as soon as I get outside the front door, and it invariably syncs within a few seconds.

    I hope you didn't encounter too many people during your walk?

    Thanks for the photos from todays walk, no sign of any other walkers.

    Molly, as Aquarius was enquiring, hope everything is ok with you and Brian, as we haven't heard from you for 2 or 3 days.

    It was very hot and sunny this morning, and I ran 8 miles in the forest with Andy. There were quite a few runners and dog walkers, and 3 horse riders. 


  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Morning everyone,

    HS - we occasionally hear ice-cream vans around but have never seen one in our road, not even driving past. I do remember Chris Akabusi btw. Good to hear people seemed to enjoy the change to off-road running to keep them motivated.

    Aquarius - I had a look online for you. Last time I found the instructions for doing an 'autolocate' but apparently, if that doesn't help get better satellite signal pick-up, you can try a 'master reset' instead. Instructions for doing that below ..

    I ran earlier this morning. It didn't feel particularly fast so I was surprised to see I managed an avg pace of 10:17mm. I don't know if its because I was running on a Mon rather than Tue but it seemed busier this morning - as well as a few cyclists and 5 dog-walkers, I counted 9 people walking and 10 runners.
    .
    .

    Instructions for doing a 'master reset'

    Power off watch (press and hold Light, Yes on prompt)**
    Press and hold Start/Stop and Lap/Reset
    Press and hold Light (three buttons should now be pressed in)
    After first beep, release Start/Stop
    After second beep, release Lap/Reset
    Release Light
    **If the Forerunner will not power down, press and hold Light until the watch powers off. This causes the watch to reboot itself.


  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    edited June 2020
    Aquarius - I forgot to add the warning from Garmin that a 'master reset' may mean user data like activity history, waypoints, courses, routes and tracks is deleted and that the watch needs to be outside with a clear view of the sky for 20 minutes. Here's the fuller description from their support website ..

    Performing a Master Reset

    1. Ensure watch is powered off**
    2. Press and hold Back/Lap
    3. Power on watch while continuing to hold Back/Lap
    4. Release Back/Lap button once "Clear user data?" message appears*
    5. Select Yes

    The reset is successful if the watch finishes powering up and goes through initial setup. Try the steps again if initial setup does not appear. Following the reset, place the watch outside with a clear view of the sky for a minimum of 20 minutes to acquire satellite data.

    If the master reset does not work, another method to reset the watch can be tried. Select the heading below for steps on the secondary reset.  

    Secondary Master Reset

    1. Ensure the watch is powered off**
    2. Press and hold the Down, Start, and Back buttons
    3. Power the watch on while holding these buttons
    4. After the first beep release the Start button
    5. After the second beep release the remaining buttons

    The watch should now be reset.

    *  User data consists of activity history, waypoints, courses, routes and tracks

    ** If the watch will not power off, press and hold Light until the screen goes blank. This causes the watch to power off and should only be used when a normal power down is not possible.


  • Good afternoon everyone,

    WtnMel, we didn't all do the 5k off road and the results didn't show who did and who didn't, so it is difficult to say whether the off road times were quicker or slower. Those that I knew ran of road were slower, and the few that were quicker may have run on the road. I don't know what next weeks will be, but I imagine it will be optional.

    Well done for this mornings run. It's a good sign when a run that feels easier is faster than expected.

    I ran 9.1 miles in the forest this morning with the two Sarah's. That's the furthest we've run for months. It was very hot, with almost no breeze. There were some white cows with horns in one of the fields that we ran through, but thankfully they ignored us! We saw several ponies with their foals, but thankfully, no sign of the stallions.
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Afternoon everyone,

    HS - I would expect the off-road 5k times would be a bit slower simply because of the terrain people were running on? Yes, it was good to get back from the run thinking - that was 'okay' - only to find it was better than expected. Well done re your 9ml run in the forest with the two Sarah's - I ought to try running a bit further than 5 miles which seems to be the furthest I go at present. It's because I don't have any races lined up - but if the Tring Ridgeway Run does happen later this year (usually mid-October), I'll be needing to work my way up to 10mls. Btw, I asked Fetch (Ian) how those circles work in the training log maps. The answer is, they just show how many circles you've 'explored' based on whatever time period you are looking at (current month, previous month, year-to-date etc.).

    No running for me today and as I'm playing golf tomorrow, I'll probably run again early on Thu morning. I really will have to get an early night tomorrow (the golf should help!) as I am doing my 5G presentation on Thu afternoon so will need to be 'awake' for that.
  • Good afternoon everyone,

    WtnMel, yes, it is almost inevitable that off road running would be slower than roads, because of the uneven terrain. Yesterdays forest run was the furthest we had run for several months. We intend to start building the mileage up again, so that we can run the Solent Half marathon route again. That was a fairly regular Monday run before the pandemic.

    I've just had an email advising that the Southampton Marathon, Half and 10k have been postponed to next year. I hadn't entered any, as I anticipated that they wouldn't go ahead. The New Forest Marathon etc have stated that they still intend proceeding with the events in September. I entered the Half months ago, but am not convinced that the races will go ahead.

    Thanks for the info re the circles. I wasn't aware that you were able to set a time period. I'll have to have a look to see how to do it.

    Good luck with tomorrows golf and Thursdays early morning run. I hope your 5G Presentation Thursday afternoon goes well.

    Today is a rest day from running, but will be running again tomorrow.
  • AquariusAquarius ✭✭✭
    Good morning everyone

    Rain - at last.   :)
    I was quite pleased when the rain arrived yesterday because I’ve been having to water the plants every night with a watering can. I’d been taking the water from our water butt, and we noticed yesterday when we checked it that it was getting pretty empty, we also noticed that the inside of the butt, and the surface of the remaining water, had a thick coating of pollen, so we emptied out the last bit of water and scrubbed the inside of the butt clean. The rain overnight has almost filled up the water butt again, and very thoughtfully has washed the pollen off the roof, down the drainpipe and into the water butt. Talk about one step forward and two steps back. A weird thing though, when we looked inside the butt yesterday we saw three or four earthworms wriggling about in the water. I didn’t know they could survive in water, anyway we evicted them so they have had to find a new home now. 

    HS: Yes, I do remember Chris Akabusi, how strange that he lived down the road from you. I have a feeling I’ve seen him recently on TV in some ad or other. 
    I see you are building up your mileage, over 17 miles in two days and in the heat, I don’t know how you do it. Is Andy a member of your running club too? I don’t remember you mentioning him before. Pity about not being able to distinguish the off road runners in the 5k from the road runners. It makes it impossible to make a direct comparison.
    Do you think your half marathon will go ahead in September? I know a lot of people are desperate to get sporting events back on, but it still seems too soon for a mass gathering to take place. The Great North Run, also September, still hasn’t made a decision yet whether to cancel. I can’t see it going ahead though. 
    We had a different ice cream visit our estate yesterday - playing “All The Nice Girls Love a Sailor” I’ve never heard that from an ice cream van before.

    WtnMel: Thanks for the information about Garmin’s master reset. I don’t keep any data re routes etc on it, and I download each run as soon as I get home, so a reset won’t cause any problems. I haven’t got around to doing it yet, so today it was about half a mile into the run before the satellites were found. 
    I hope you were able to “attend” your aunt’s funeral successfully, it’s not right that relatives can’t attend in person, especially when morons like Cummings can do what they like. I had heard about him tampering with his blog actually. I’m just disappointed that, like the trip to Durham and Barnard Castle, it’s all been swept under the carpet. I see the latest opinion polls are showing people are losing faith in Boris. About time too. Still it could be worse, we could be living in America with that idiot Trump in charge. 
    Re the photos - there are some rather spindly branches on the right hand side of the first photo, they are half hiding a fairly big building in the distance. That’s the local hospital (about to be demolished I believe) to the left there’s a row of houses on the top of the estate, our house is about the middle of that row.
    Well done on your run, you are definitely getting quicker. It’s particularly satisfying when that happens and you didn’t realise how fast you were going. Since you have become such a finely honed athlete I expect you will wipe the floor (or grass) with Alan today in your golf match. I hope it isn’t raining where you are, and your golf bag behaves itself. 
    Good luck too for tomorrow’s 5G presentation. 

    I ran 7 miles this morning on the Derwent Walk, I’d set out an hour later than usual because I was hoping the rain would keep most people away, and it did. I only saw a handful of dog walkers and a couple of runners, so for once it was quite a stress free run. It was a bit strange though running in rain after the recent lovely weather, the sky was grey with low clouds and made me think of winter, fortunately though the temperature was somewhat milder than winter.

    (Molly: if you are reading this I hope you are keeping well, and are just too busy to visit us at the moment. I’ve seen all the demonstrations taking place across your country the last few days and I hope you aren’t being affected by them.)
  • Hi Guys,
    I'm just popping in to wish everyone well. Things are a bit of mess in the states, right now.  The protests are everywhere and we, our friends, and family, are actively supporting the protests, which is not always easy.  With so much stuff going on, I'm taking some time off from social media stuff.

    However, I'll be back when everything calms down. 

    I hope everybody stays well and keeps running :)
  • AquariusAquarius ✭✭✭
    Good for you Molly, take care.
  • Good afternoon everyone,

    I'm not going to click on the above link, as it might contain a virus. I haven't flagged it up though.

    Aquarius, its raining here too. It wasn't too bad when I went for my morning run, but has got heavier during the day. It should clear up overnight. I didn't know that earth worms could swim either, but I suppose they live in earth that is soaking wet when it rains, so it would be interesting to know how they breath. I presume they don't have gills🤣

    I was a member of Team Solent at the same time as Chris, but never saw him at training.
    I'm starting to build up my mileage again, but don't believe the NF marathon, half and 10k will go ahead in September, despite what they say. Last year the queues for the ladies and gents portaloos, were very long, so this year, with 2 metre spacing, would stretch back for miles. Impossible in my opinion, logistically.

    Yes, Andy is a member of the running club. I've only run with him once before, and that was before the start of the virus. He messaged me asking whether he could run with me on Sunday, so I agreed. 

    I can't imagine the GNR going ahead either.

    I've never heard that ice cream van jingle either.

    Well done for your 7 miler this morning, it must have been a relief to have a stress free run for a change.

    Molly, great to hear from you again. We were getting a bit worried with the situation in the States, with the racist President stirring things up, making matters worse. I presume that you are still working out on the treadmill?

    Hope you and your husband are keeping safe, and don't blame you for keeping off social media for a while, it's all doom and gloom!

    As I mentioned above, its been raining all day here, but was only light rain during my morning run. I ran 7.26 miles on roads, and ran through the village and round the Marina. I wish I'd had my phone with me, as a swan waddled up the slipway towards me, and I could have taken a lovely photo. There is a pair of swans, but not the same as have been there for the last year of so. The way I know is because the previous pair were ringed  and these weren't. That's according to a Facebook post.

    The village is slowly coming back to life, including the opening of the little green grocers, whose products are always fresh and local wherever possible. Their tomatoes are grown locally and are really lovely. The supermarket fruit and veg are nowhere near as nice. The Costa coffee shop is reopening tomorrow, with take away only. This is a shame really because they are part of a wealthy chain, and the other village cafes might not be able to reopen. 
  • WtnMelWtnMel ✭✭✭
    Evening everyone,

    Aquarius - yes, we've had rain here in Gloucs today, though fairly light rain and I expect you've had more of it. I've been having to water our plants each evening so nice not to have to bother tonight. I wasn't aware earthworms can survive in water either. Chuckling at your ice-cream playing that song - sounds like what they should be playing down in HS's part of the country. Yes - it was pleasing to see how much support Boris has been losing lately - did you see someone suggested change "Clap For Carers" to "Boo For Boris"? I think I can make out your house from those instructions - looks like a much nicer estate than some of the ones round here (which are a sea of houses with no trees or anything other then scraggly bushes). I'll be doing a run-through of my presentation in my head tomorrow before the main event in the afternoon. Well done re your 7ml run - glad there were only a handful of people about so it was stress-free.

    Molly - glad to hear you're okay .. look forward to hearing from you again once things have settled down a bit.

    HS- as there's no explanation from AGary I've flagged that link as spam (if it isn't I'll be amazed!). I'm friends with Molly on Garmin Connect and she's posted a 3ml treadmill run today so yes, she's still managing to do some training despite the current troubles. I've not been to Pittville park in Cheltenham but I see from photos posted by club-mates, that the resident pair of swans (George & Zelda) have five cygnets at the moment. Our greengrocer has been open for a while and two local cafe's have opened this week. We have a Costa 'implant' in our local Costa but as Margaret does the shopping, I've no idea whether that's been open or not. In Cirencester, where we used to live, one local café used to have a board outside saying "Try our coffee - it doesn't COST As much as other places" :)

    It was a shame about not being able to attend my Aunt's funeral yesterday but the webcast was a reasonable alternative in the circumstances and we hope we'll all be able to get together in person later this year for a memorial get-together in her memory.

    I don't know about Aquarius's description of me being a finely-honed athlete. And it was very light rain I was out in (which was actually very refreshing after the recent heat!). But I'm pleased to say my golf went really well today. Shipton is a par 35 course and I got round today in 46 (including 2 pars and 3 bogies). That's only 3 shots more than my best ever score of 43 and I ended up beating Alan by 8 strokes.

    I should be out running again early tomorrow - there's a few more bugs for me to squish!
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