Further than a Fudgey has ever been before

Hello Fudgey Friends,

Well today was the long run - longer than I've ever gone before - plan was 18 miles which I knew to be about 29k.

Originally I intended to get up & be out for 8am but it didn't happen as planned. I never slept well last night so what I did was get up at 7.30am eat my cereal, have some juice and a small cup of tea & my omega 3 & got ready to go. Plan was to lie on the bed beside Mr Fudgey for a an hour to let the food digest and then head out about 8.30 / 9ish but I ended up dozing off. Must have been what I needed though. Got up just before 10am & finished getting ready. Filled my new hydration pack & filled my SIS belt with SIS Go Gels.

SIS are my gels of choice. I have tried both powerbar & lucozade gels but I find both too sickly & too thick. I also tried lucozade jelly beans and whilst I like the taste of these I don't like or can't chew on the run so a gel or drink is the best option for me, but I think it really comes down to personal choice and trying out what does and doesn't work for you & training runs are the best time to do this.

The new hydration pack was a gift from Mr Fudgey and it worked really really well. It saved me having to carry water, had a section for phone and keys, and the mouthpiece worked much better than the last pack I had - little effort required to get a good drink.

So off I set. First couple of km I didn't feel very comfortable at all - convinced myself I had a sore left knee - which I didn't. Decided to give it 5k & see how I felt. Took on my first gel just after 5k and was running really easily, not fast, but today was about distance not about pace, 12km done - still feeling strong & second gel in - I didn't really want this but I decided I'd take on 1 gel every 6km or so rather than waiting till I felt I needed to & this system worked for me. Ran for 15km which took me to the zoo & was still feeling good & turned to head back. Not so easy on the way back - strong wind right in my face. Third gel at 18km still feeling good and still nice steady consistent pace and not the least out of breath so I could have pushed harder if I wanted. 24km in took on my fourth and last gel but was starting to struggle - calves were tight, sore left knee & sore right glute - sore maybe not the right word - uncomfortable. Kms 24 - 27 were really tough & the wind was right in my face but I dug in and stuck with it though pace dropped a fair bit. But before I knew it I was at 27km and the home straight and I picked up the pace again I realised it actually felt better to run faster than slower but i could feel the blood pumping in my lower legs - felt so good I never stopped at 30km but ran an extra km to make it 31km (19.3 miles) in total for the day.
Though I was feeling stiff and sore physically, mentally I felt fantastic & a small glimmer of self believe is dawning on me that maybe just maybe there is a Marathon in me after all.

Into the house - SIS Rego Recovery drink, ice bath & then shower followed by juice, cheese & broccoli mash potato & a cup of tea. I'm surprised at how good my legs actually feel - yes I'm a bit tender but no where near as bad as I expected. Very very very much looking forward to my sports massage tomorrow now - think I've earned it.

Last but not least
Happy Mothers Day to all Mums



Take Care everyone
lots of love
Fudgey x

Short Post about a Long run

Hello Fudgey Friends,

I decided to do my long run today & am resting tomorrow.
It was my longest run to date & I finally conquered Arthur's Seat. The access road forms part of the course of many Edinburgh running events. The last time I ran it I had to stop and walk a little, jog a little, run a little and walk a little. So I was ecstatic today to run the whole of it. I wish I'd had a camera though as some of the view of Edinburgh were stunning, it was a glorious sunny morning but at the top of the ascent I could see the snow covered Pentland Hills in the distance.
I had a lucozade energy gel today & it affirmed to me that I prefer the Science in Sports products so will need to pick some supplies up.
Today's run on the plan was 1 hour 40 minutes, but I ran 1 hour 58 minutes and 16 seconds covering 18.12 km (11.26 miles). I ran the whole way with only a few brief stops for traffic lights on the way back.
When I got home I had a Science in Sport rego recovery drink and a lovely bath. Me being me I also cried! But these were very happy tears - 7 weeks till the half marathon & I'm beginning to realise that I can actually do this.
Mr Fudgey keeps telling me how proud he is of me & my wonderful family and friends do too but finally I've realised I am proud of myself.

So the Stats for Week 5
Total distance run this week 36.8km
Total running time 3 hours 58 mins 29 secs

Next week is a recovery week - there will still be 4 runs but they will be shorter than the last few weeks have been, before picking it back up again the following week. On my next long long run I am going to go round Arthur's seat again & I'll take my camera this time to share with you all the beauty of Edinburgh.

Hope everyone has a lovely Easter

Take Care
Fudgey
xxx

Keep on Running.....126 days to EHM

Hello Fudgey Friends

I've had an brilliant running / training week this week. Put in 29km not to mention the 2 spin express classes & some weights in the gym too.

This morning was the first time this year that I got to do my Sunday morning outdoor run. Finally all the snow & ice has cleared.

When I woke up I wasn't really feeling like going for a run but knew once I was out and running I'd be glad I was.
Mr Fudgey asked me how long I'd be gone for so I said probably around an hour as I hoped to run 10km but if it wasn't happening I'd be back sooner.

Kitted up and out the door.....what a beautiful day, sun shining, no wind,and pretty mild.

Today's session wasn't about speed.... I wanted to run at a fairly steady pace and be able to run for about 70 -75 mins which is what I thought I'd do for 11km. So much for not really feeling in the mood - the running was good 11km in 1 hour 6 mins and 41 secs and it felt amazing - there was definitely more running in my wee legs today.

At the half way mark I tried the Lucozade Body Fuel gel - it was like pure sugar and for someone like me who is very conscious of what they eat actually not that pleasant, but I sucked it out of the foil and washed down with some water. I don't know if it was psychological or not but I felt it did help me keep going and was probably the reason I felt I could have gone for further and longer.

With 126 days to go to my big challenge of the half marathon I'm feeling quietly confident, inspired, motivated and so so alive ;-)
Next planned event though is The Great Ireland Run (10km) in April but I'm hoping to find a couple of other runs between now and then. Remember all this is for charity so please please visit my just giving page and sponsor me if you can http://www.justgiving.com/Claire-Smith1
I'll do a lovely blog about my chosen charity CCLASP very soon.

Will update you on how the new running shoes feel tomorrow.

Love to everyone
Fudgey xx

New Shoes

I never thought I'd see the day I got so excited about a pair of trainers.....well actually running shoes.

I'd had a pair of Saucony shoes before & thought they were good, so back in November when I decided to invest in a pair of running shoes for my training I knew that I'd most likely buy Saucony.

I got a pair of Saucony Lady Grid Stabil 6 Running Shoes and from my previous blog you'll know I've already run 120km wearing them. Including last weekends Great Winter Run

Reading the fantastic book KMac got me for Christmas it suggested that you should have 2 pairs of shoes to alternate to allow the shoes to 'recover' (to do with the midsole being compressed during running) & also gives the shoes a chance to dry out & stop them getting too smelly. I've also read & been told the average shelf life of a pair of running shoes is 500- 800km.

So I've invested in another pair of Saucony's this time Saucony Lady ProGrid Hurricane 10 Running Shoes


I'm itching to get my new shoes on and run but tomorrows session is a long run - hopefully about 11km so probably not the wisest move to wear new shoes.....I'll have to wait till my Monday shorter session.

Tomorrow I'll also be trying out Lucozade Body Fuel Gel....so I'll let you know what that is like as well as updating you on my weeks training.


Hope you are all having a fudgey weekend.
xxx