Making Progress

Hello Fudgey Friends,

Sorry I haven't had a chance to post since Monday - I honestly don't know where the time goes.

2 Weeks to go
It's now less than 2 weeks till the Edinburgh Marathon and I'm starting my taper & race day prep already. I've written my name on my Bliss running top, though this looks like it's run a little when I washed it after wearing to train today :-(. I've stocked up on the gels I'll be used, checked I have enough foot tape and tested out my race day kit. I also had a wee emotional moment yesterday and I'm sure it'll be the first of many between now & race day, but I've done as much training as I possibly could and thankfully am injury free so there's not much more I can do now. I'm nervous & excited at the same time.

Making Progress
The last couple of months have really seen me progress in terms of my running. A few edited highlights...
* March: logged my first 50km + week (in fact there were 2 weeks > 50k)
* March: ran the furthest I ever had before (31k)
* April: logged my first 60km + week
* April: a new PB at Kilomathon distance (26.2km) taking 6 minutes 21 seconds off my time from October 2010
* April: increased my furthest distance run (32.35km)
* May: though only 1 week old has seen me log my first 70km+ week
* May: a new furthest distance (35.17km)

I also looked back at the first 4 months of last year compared to this year and it looks pretty good to me:-)


Training this week
It's been a strange week as I had my long run on Monday so though this was the start of my taper I was beginning the week with my log run delayed from Sunday - so technically that belonged to last week.

Tuesday I squeezed in a short recovery run and was really please at how good it felt. I expected this to hurt so was delighted when it didn't.

Wednesday - just a short run before work as that was all I could fit in

Thursday - run & ride. I ran most of the way to work about 85% of the way but then got the bus the last bit. Partly to get to work quicker and partly as I don't want to overdo it at this late stage.

Friday - Personal training.

felt so tired all day & then I had PT - afterwards apart form the dead arms I felt fab.

3 sets of 10 squat thrust & jumping pull up - these pull ups are starting to look real good even if I say so myself

4 supersets of 10 narrow grip underarm cable pull down 37.5kg with hanging legs raises - these were poor given what I know I can do, sets of 9, 11, 7 & 6

4 supersets of 12 wide grip cable pull down 70kg & 15 cable flyes only 7.5kg

3 evil trisets if 15 lunges 55kg, 16 overhead alternate powerlunges 10kg & 20 alternate komodos

3 supersets of hamstring cable curls 30kg 10 each leg with 12 cable crunches 35kg

My upper body then had that lovely dull heavy ache :-) I love it

Saturday = Total rest Day. I did acquaint myself with Mr Foam Roller - he hurts.

Sunday - A fairly short run today & it didn't feel that great - too be honest I wasn't in the mood but knew I had to run at least 7.71km to reach 70k for this week - I managed 8.4km and if I'd had more time probably would have run about 12 or 13 - but was glad I was on a clock and had to stop. There was no problem with my legs they feel pretty good but my arms are so broken. After my run I really struggled to get my top off!
Mr Fudgey & I then went to Thor in 3D. We both really enjoyed it. I struggled to get my coat off and then back on at the cinema - hope my arms feel better tomorrow. Lazy tonight too and went to the fish & chip shop for tea - sometimes you need a treat.

Well I think I will leave you there. I want to go get my kit organised for tomorrow and lunches etc. I have a few busy days coming up but will be back soon with a new post.

Take Care all
lots of love
Fudgey
xxxx

Kilomathon Scotland - Race Report

Hello Fudgey Friends,

Finally a race report from Sunday's Kilomathon - sorry for the delay.

The alarm went off at 5.30am on Sunday and I was up and eating my usual pre race fuel of Marks & Spencer's Sultana & apple instant porridge by 6am. It was a real struggle but experience has taught me how important it is for long runs to get the correct food in and when is the best time for me - I find about 2 hours before the start works best for me. I also drank some water & a small cup of tea.

The taxi arrived to take us to Ingliston at 6.30am.

Once we arrived I had to collect my race number & timing chip as I was technically a late entry as entered through my charity Bliss and it wasn't all finalised till late March. No problems getting sorted at the help desk though I did feel for the 2 women staffing it and the growing queue - they seemed to have it all under control though.
The sun was already out though it was a little chilly and forecast was for temperatures around 17c.

Just after I came out of the help desk we met KMac & Rob. Kmac was running the half kilomathon.

Several loo trips - luxurious by other race standards as they were real toilets not the usual portaloos and then it was time to go to our starting pens. The half runners were about 3 pens in front of me so I waited with KMac till almost the last minute & then joined my pen which was the last one and I was pretty much at the very end. Experience from this event last year when I was at the start of my pen had meant that I had gone off to fast and then been passed by lots of runners which can be demoralising so I figured if I started at the back the crowd would force me to initially keep the pace down and the I could be motivated by moving my way forward rather than seeming to go backwards.

8am sharp we were off.


Saw Mr Fudgey & Rob on the way past & then saw Mr Fudgey again as I came past the entrance area after initial half lap within Royal Highland Centre. I looked at my garmin and thought oh no I have gone off too fast though I didn't feel like I was going fast so I tried to slow down a little but I was feeling really good.
First water station about 4k - I felt brilliant.
Took on a gel about 6k - didn't really want it but the run was as much about Marathon preparation than anything else.
8k still feeling really good but starting to think there was no way I could maintain this pace for the full 26.2km

Just before 10km on the bridge I saw Kmac ahead of me so when I caught her I fell into stride with her. She looked fab but said she was struggling a little and her IT band was hurting. I stayed with her all the way to 13.1km and walked a little of each km when she was starting to hurt - but looking at my splits it was only really the 13th km that was much slower. Took another gel at about 11k again not really wanted but knew better to have before I needed it. It was really pleasant on the bridge crossing with a nice breeze - though there was still hardly a cloud in the sky.

KMac finished the half in about 1hour 24 minutes and I'm so proud of her.

I still had another 13.1km to run.

Was feeling really strong and pace was still better than I could have hoped for. Knew the killer hill was coming at around 18km so was mentally preparing myself for that. It's a tough one. You can see from my splits where that hill came! I knew after that though that there were only another couple of small hills before 20km & then it was pretty much downhill & flat to the finish.
After the hill I had another gel. It was amazing this time to maintain my pace through the last 6km whereas previously this was where I had struggled.

Back onto the gravel track past the airport at 24km was torture on the feet but my theory was if I ran I'd be over if quicker than if I stopped to walk - I think though this is where the damage to my poor foot was done. It was also pretty hot at this point with no shade from the sun but I knew I was nearly there and that pushed me on.

Coming into The Royal Highland Centre was brilliant - loads of race crew cheering us on. Fab to see the lovely Sarah B too cheering me on - always helps when you hear your own name.

Then into the finishing straight and saw Mt Fudgey & his Dad - I felt absolutely brilliant and even had enough for a sprint finish to bring me in just under 2 hours 50 mins.

Mr Fudgey told me that I looked really strong compared to last time I ran this race where I looked tired at the finish.

It's certainly boosted my confidence for the Marathon.


Through the finish line into the finish area - a bottle of water, medal, energy drink and goody bag.

I need to find out what that energy drink was - not so I can get some so that I avoid it - it was vile - but that's my only negative of the whole event.

Disappointing it wasn't better attended - I think numbers were well down on October.

Being a complete stats geek I've managed to put 2011 & 201 splits side by side and they make me smile - shows me how much stronger I am getting all the time.

Official time was 2 hours 49 minutes 55 seconds.



After the run I had my ice bath and I have to admit my legs although a little stiff on Sunday by Monday didn't feel like they'd run 26.2km, unfortunately my right foot did & I have a very nasty blister & bruising which needed a trip to the doc :-(
This was actually partly my fault as I am prone to blisters and always tape my feet. However on Sunday I taped my feet but didn't put my socks or trainers on straight away. I then walked about in bare feet & the tape slid slightly and wasn't sticking properly but rather than retaping I just put more tape on top. Sore lesson learnt! So no running for me for a good few days to allow it to heal. I have found a way to use this positively though and am threatening to expose what is under the dressing if people don't sponsor me - yes I am that evil ;-%

Hoping to get in a 20 miler this weekend and next before taper caper commences - less than 5 weeks to the Marathon now and I'm in a pretty good place.

Take Care everyone
lots of love
Fudgey xxxx


Just giving link

Virgin money giving link

Consistency, Control & Confidence

Hello Fudgey Friends,

Sorry I've been awol a while it occurred to me I hadn't posted since last Thursday (3rd Feb) & the reason being that there was no training whatsoever between Thursday 3 rd & Monday 7th - I was still feeling pretty yuck with the sinus infection & there was no running at all all of that week :-( I'm pleased to say I'm back into the swing of things now though & though not 100% I'd say I'm 99% better.

Catch Up
Last Sunday I made really yummy toffee blueberry pancakes - they were meant to be post run but the run never happened but I made them anyway. , just the kind of comfort food you need when you feel poorly.

Monday saw me feeling quite a bit better though Mr Fudgey felt worse than ever & ended up at home and with a doctor's appointment too. Thankfully he's much better now too. I decided on Monday after over a week's decline in training that I'd try to get back into it & see if I could sweat out the last of my illness - kill or cure! Well it certainly worked for me. I managed to do my assisted chin ups (not as good as usual - but better than not at all) superset with hammer curls, lat pull downs superset with upright rows & 50 compound crunches. I also squeezed in a 10.62km run - it certainly did the trick as by Tuesday I felt great - better than I have in weeks.

Tuesday I managed to fit in the other half of my resistance work, squats with calf raises, leg press with medicine ball lunges & jack knifes & hanging leg raises and then later on a cheeky 9.38km run.

Wednesday was a well earned rest day & a long day at the office.

Thursday - back to PT & really starting to feel myself again. Tough tough session....
4 supersets of 10 assisted pull ups with 12 standing press
4 supersets of 10 lat pull downs 35kg with 12 alternate bicep curls 8kg
3 supersets of heavy squats (about 70lb I think) with 10 weighted step ups each leg.
3 supersets of 15 leg press (65kg, 75kg & 85kg) with 10 single legged dead lifts each leg with 25lb weight.

Friday I had planned to run, but work kind of got in the way which was probably no bad thing.

Saturday my Gran came to see our new house & I made afternoon tea. It was great to catch up.

Today - the long run returned. A cold, windy & hilly 16.26km (10.1) miles which saw me lose my Asda £1 pink cap in the wind - but I had a fab run.
It wasn't fast, but it was consistently paced and I felt at the end I could have pushed on a little further. I feel a little less worried now about the half marathon in 3 weeks.
After the run I 'enjoyed' my now routine ice bath! I can't believe those are my legs by the way!!


Consistency, Control & Confidence
So finally I reveal the reason for the title of this post - I received on Friday a weekly marathon newsletter from my charity Bliss which had an article from LGN about the 3 c's philosophy - I found a link to this on the anthony nolan site. Anyway as I was running today and seeing the times for each km I realised that though my pace wasn't fast it was consistent which made me think of the article & about those 3 words which I've decided to adopt not just for my running but for work too. Over the next 3 - 4 months I want to be consistent & in control of my training, my nutrition, my work & my stress levels & I want to be more confident in my ability. There are different kinds of confidence & I'm not talking about becoming cocky, boastful & over confident but a little self belief goes a long way - if I set out with the attitude of 'I'll never manage the whole 26.2 miles of the marathon' then it's not a good place to start really & how will anyone else believe in me or want to sponsor me if I start out with a defeatist attitude? Likewise if I don't get more confident in my role at work - how can I can gain trust & confidence from others? see you can tell I'm feeling better as the determined positive me is bursting back out :-)

Lucozade Sport - Product reviews
I've been using my Lucozade products this week & some I totally love & others I'm not so fussed for - I hope to write a post on this specifically during the week, but on the whole I'd highly recommend you get on over to their online shop & see what they have to offer. It's not just the shop though, they have loads of really good articles, advice, training tools & much more on their website, and not just for runners. So go & take a look. I don't get anything in return for promoting their products - I'm doing this because I like them - however if you are interested in ordering from them let me know & send me your email address & I can refer you as a friend & you'll get 20% of your first order.

Well I better go & get my kit ready for tomorrow I'm hoping for a run & body pump after work :-)
I've also made some courgette, feta & mint soup that I need to go blend - will let you know how that turns out.

Take care all
lots of love
Fudgey xxx

The Great Winter Run - Race Report

Hello Fudgey Friends,

How is everyone? Back to normality after the festive period?
I was back to work & the health & fitness regime on Tuesday 4th January and so far so good. I've had no fizzy juice, no chocolate, no crisps & no sweets at all, I've fitted in 2 training runs, 1 of which was a hill interval session, I've also been in the gym to do my programme, at circuits class & had a PT session, so little wonder most of the Christmas excess is back off and I lost 4 pounds this week :-) And now here I am with my first race report of the year too.

Pre Race Preparations
No lie in for Mr & Mrs Fudgey on Saturday morning, as we were up getting ready to head off to The Great Winter Run. It had snowed overnight on Friday and we had a good couple of inches of snow lying. I was awoken by a text from Great Run to say that the race would go ahead but it would be over a contingency route
It had been a long and stressful week and I could have done with a rest but what better way to unwind than to be out and running in the snow! Fuel for the race was porridge with cinnamon sugar which I didn't really want but forced it down. I taped my feet and got all my kit organised - I had a number of layers as it was so cold.
We headed off for the bus and were really lucky to be be picked up by Rob who was on his way to support KMac. Thanks Rob :-)

When we got to Holyrood Park we met the lovely KMac & headed to the information tent as I had to change my race number - I had been incorrectly allocated to the last wave of runners with expected times of 36 minutes plus, based on my previous races I should run sub 30 minutes so was changed to the orange wave. I had been feeling nauseous most of the week and had a sore right inner thigh, sore left ITB & sore right shoulder so I was kind of wishing I hadn't complained about my start position, also given the conditions underfoot I really didn't think that a sub 30 minute result would be possible.I was really really looking forward though to completing my first race supporting Bliss & wearing my Bliss vest.

It was bitterly bitterly cold so the boys headed off to get some hot food and Kmac & I went to use the toilets before the race. Soon enough it was time for us to head to our starting areas.
I found myself standing in the orange wave wondering what I was doing there - these people looked like proper runners and I feared that I wouldn't be able to keep up with them, but no time to get anxious as we were warming up and then getting ready for the start gun.

The Race
As always in the first km of any race I've run it was quite congested but it was a good steady 1okmph pace so I felt fairly comfortable just tucked in and not trying to weave in and out, though I did overtake a few people and a few overtook me. Conditions underfoot were slippery and we had been told it wasn't a day for PBs, safety had to come first so I just wanted to get round in one piece - deja vu to 2010's race. Though we weren't running round the hill and the elevation wasn't as steep as it should have been, the first 2.5km were uphill but I ran them better than I've ever ran this route before.

At around 2km I heard someone call my name and saw Richard Hope who I work with was marshalling - this was just the encouragement I needed to dig in and push on - it always motivates me to see people I know. After the turn to head back towards the finish I passed KMac coming up the other side of the road & we high fived - she was looking great & seemed to be running effortlessly.

The last couple of km were downhill and I was flying, I had to hold back a little as it was so slidey on the ground but the pace was fast. I came to the 400m to go mark and I knew I'd paced it just right as I didn't have much more than 1/2 a km left in me. I didn't push at the 200m to go marker either as I was still going faster than my usual pace but at about 100m to go I dug in really really deep for a sprint finish across the line & stopped Mr Garmin at 29 mins 43 seconds. I knew straight away it was a new pb. I was very nearly sick just beyond the finish line a sure sign I had pushed myself hard, but I managed to take some deep breaths, get my chip removed & collect my water & goody bag before seeing Mr Fudgey & Rob, and waiting for KMac to finish - she was in the wave behind mine for starting so started a couple of minutes after me, but didn't finish far behind me.

Post Race
As always a fabulous goody bag from great run, as you can see from the picture. I've had the tshirt on today too and it's really nice.
I had hoped to stay and watch Mo Farah run but it was just far too cold to hang around. We were going to go for a coffee after the run but everywhere was mobbed, I did get some funny looks walking through John Lewis wearing a space blanket - but I didn't care I was happy. Mr Fudgey & I just decided to head home, when we were on the bus I got a text from Kmac to say she had got her official time by text. I had to wait till we got home as I had changed my running number from the pre allocated one but it was worth the wait. Official time of 29 minutes 41 seconds. A new PB by 5 seconds :-)









Geeky Data Stuff
I'm such a data geek so I took some data from Mr Garmin - I won't be offended if you skip past the boring stuff.





I also got more results info from the race website:
Overall: 634th / 1267
Age group & gender: 17th / 92
Age group: 79th / 180
Gender: 174th / 614

very happy with these indeed.

THANK YOU
As always many many people to Thank for a great day and number 1 as always - Mr Fudgey. You & Rob both deserve medals for standing in the cold for so long at least KMac & I were running & got warm.
Thanks to Rob for the lift to Edinburgh & suffering the cold to hang around for us.
Thanks to KMac for making it eventful as ever! Thanks to Colin for putting up with me and constantly pushing me to be stronger & fitter.

Another great event organised by Great Run, Thanks to all the organisers & race crew. The marshalls on the course did a fab job.

Thanks to Mum & Dad Smith for a lovely dinner last night too, just what we both needed.

I had a really good day & very positive start to 20111 running - next up half marathon 6th March..... can't wait :-)

Will try & post again soon, life is just so hectic right now it's hard fitting everything in, but I will keep blogging even if it's just once a week.

Take Care everyone
lots of love
Fudgey
xxx

New Year New Challenges

Hello Fudgey Friends,


Happy New Year x
Hope 2011 is a great year for all of you.

As promised I'm back with news on what is in store for Little Running Wife aka Fudgey this year.

As many of you will already know I have signed up for The Edinburgh Marathon this year. This wasn't a snap decision it's something I've been considering since last years Edinburgh half marathon. I'm under no illusions that this will be the toughest challenge I've ever set myself and it's going to take a lot of hard work and determination. After raising money for charity last year I knew that if I took on the marathon challenge that I would again. I knew exactly which charity I wanted to run for and why, part of the reason is quite personal to me and my family & nearly 5 years on still very emotive, but this is what will make this years challenge so special and every training mile, every ache and pain, blisters, tears, laughter and all my events this year culminating in the marathon in May worthwhile as I will be raising funds for Bliss

I'll soon be setting up an online donation page and have some Fudgey fundraising ideas.

Like last year I'm going to run all my events for the one charity & Bliss have already provided me with a lovely running vest which will have it's first outing next weekend at The Great Winter Run

I also already have The Meadows Marathon (half marathon actually) & The Scottish Kilomathon lined up for 2011.

I've already got 5 rolls of foot tape and have ordered 2 new pairs of Saucony running shoes in preparation for this year's challenges.

So there you have it the first half of 2011 pretty much accounted for, I deliberately haven't planned anything beyond the Marathon as I've heard that a marathon is physically, emotionally & totally a huge commitment and stress on the body and mind - but it will be so worth it.

I can't wait :-)

I'll be keeping you updated on my progress and you only have week to wait till the first race report of 2o11.

Take Care all

lots of love

Fudgey

x x x