The prodigious @marathondan has revealed that the big new thing for running newbies is '100 miles in 100 days', and has manfully confessed to embarking on such a ludicrously pathetic quest himself. Huh!
Er, sorry.... just consulted my script again. Ah yes, and I've agreed to join him, apparently. I see.
And despite the hotel sheet being held up to try to conceal their identities as they were bundled into the taxi of shame, even the notorious running monsters known as @sweder and @MLCMM have been spotted signing up. Naturally, the truly heroic RC flag-fliers, including @charliecat5 and @glaconman have deeper, more painful furrows to follow, but have at least been decent enough to offer some moral support and some advanced Excel tips.
People of RC -- feel free to use your own forums or this one to keep the world updated.
El Gordo
Great things are done when men and mountains meet.
Day 2, and I've managed to keep my head above water with my two rowing 'miles' -- or 4K metres.
More remarkably, after this afternoon's throbbing 10 minute Erg blast, I immediately tottered down 3 flights of stairs, and continued to plunge down through the precipitous alleys of Horgen to the lakeside path, along which I waddled and panted through 3kms of blazing sunshine and unspoken derision (the Swiss reserve has some benefits), before heading back up the hill -- this time with no intention of trying any movement beyond a two-legged slither.
I guess we have to arrive at our own interpretation of the mile-a-day idea. Despite my Garmin's assurance that I traversed a total of about 2.5 miles, I've decided to think in terms of 'merit miles'. I can't fool myself, despite more than half a century of trying. And so I am awarding myself a solitary merit mile to recognise that (1 downhill plunge) + (3 stuttering kilometres of run-walk) + (1 uphill 2-legged slither) does not deserve more.
On a gloomier note, the hour or two I spent yesterday afternoon, smirkingly twiddling with my new spreadsheet, appears to have been a wasted effort. The result is nowhere to be found, so I must start again.
But here I am:
Day 2 running total --- 2 row miles, 1 run mile.
El Gordo
Great things are done when men and mountains meet.
Day 1 - or is it Day 2? Was Sunday the Off?
I hope so. Ten days in Rotterdam saw zero running, oodles of beer and red meat and one tram-bounce.
Speaking of which, my shoulder appears to accept plodding as non-invasive. Good news.
This morning I bashed out a sweaty 4.84 kilometre navigation of Landport Bottom. Humidity hung heavy, late morning dew awaiting permission to land. 186 metres of elevation at an average of 6.32 minutes per kilometre. I rather like the idea of merit miles but today's effort was honest, so I'll round down to 3 miles. With none yesterday and the obligatory rest day tomorrow, I'm level par so far.
The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph
100 miles in 100 days is just not going to cut the mustard.
Whilst still many months away, I am beginning to sense the Jog Shop 20 becoming restless.
It may look cute and fluffy on a perfect sunny day, but I know its roar can be fierce, its teeth razor sharp as it lies in wait to rip apart anyone who is not prepared.
So I have upped the ante, my 100 mile challenge in 100 days needs to be a 200 mile challenge in 100 days.
Mad… Yes… but when you’re stuck in the middle of the Savanna being ripped apart by the big cat… screaming “it’s not fair, I wasn’t ready” will be the last words ever uttered.
Good stuff Charles, but as you are actually a proper runner and preparing for an event, really I think your line should be curving upwards. Unless you are just posting here to humour / shame us (which is fine, we can take it) -- 200 miles in 100 days is 14 miles a week, and you should be knocking that out (and more, eventually) just on a Sunday morning.
(15-06-2015, 08:03 AM)marathondan Wrote: Good stuff Charles, but as you are actually a proper runner and preparing for an event, really I think your line should be curving upwards. Unless you are just posting here to humour / shame us (which is fine, we can take it) -- 200 miles in 100 days is 14 miles a week, and you should be knocking that out (and more, eventually) just on a Sunday morning.
You're right... I was trying to be kind. This is my real one. It's a bit scary.
The rowing miles are going reasonably well -- 6 out of 7. But the running? I've managed to add just a single 'merit mile' to my total, so after a week, I'm already 5 behind.
The situation may not improve over the next week. In an hour or two, we are packing up the car and heading down one of the world's greatest drives (not that I can say that with any authority -- but it is very nice, and certainly beats the M25) -- the San Bernardino Pass -- which takes us through Ticino, the Italian bit of Der Schweiz, to Milan. Weirdly, in 5 years here I've not been to Milan, though it's only 3.5 hours away. From there to Verona to see the famous open-air opera (not usually my thing but this event has always sounded like one for the bucket list). Then up through Austria, and a night in Innsbruck, sneaking back home through Liechtenstein -- where I may just hole up for a few years if Greece implodes over the next week and takes down the entire European economy with it.
I don't expect our back-street B&Bs to have rowing machines so expect to see this line drop on my graph -- when I do my spreadsheet. But I will pack my running shorts -- the ones with the mercifully elasticated waistband. More important, I will pack my best intentions too, though as we know, these frequently remain undisturbed at the bottom of the suitcase.
El Gordo
Great things are done when men and mountains meet.
My last 7 days have been a little more productive than those of El Gordo. But fair play to the man, he is prepared to concede his failings as well as his successes (which is just as well, as we would hardly hear from him otherwise )
The first stepping stone to addiction is having the honesty to admit that your are not addicted. Only then can you start to cure the evils of distraction and build that addiction to running.
For my part, I ran 11 hard, HARD, miles this morning... which leaves me nicely ahead of the 100 mile line, and slightly ahead of the 200 mile line. To save you the job of visiting Lewes to kick the arse of this cocky bastard, I will plunge myself into a freezing cold outdoor pool later on this afternoon as penance.
It's been all about cross-training for me this week. 12 miles run, 6 hours' competitive ocean yacht racing and a record score at the Lewes Skittles Championship. OK, there's not much merit to be claimed there. The final is tonight, when the good work of this morning's honest plod will be washed away on a wave of Harveys and burger grease. That's me, always striving for balance in life.
The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph
(20-06-2015, 12:30 PM)Sweder Wrote: It's been all about cross-training for me this week. 12 miles run, 6 hours' competitive ocean yacht racing and a record score at the Lewes Skittles Championship. OK, there's not much merit to be claimed there. The final is tonight, when the good work of this morning's honest plod will be washed away on a wave of Harveys and burger grease. That's me, always striving for balance in life.
It was the thought of this evenings beer and burger grease that kept me going on the hills this morning.
Good work. Less satisfactory running here. Not entirely without some running-related news (see my diary!) but hardly marathon-ready on this side of the planet.
(17-07-2015, 12:10 PM)Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man Wrote: Good work. Less satisfactory running here. Not entirely without some running-related news (see my diary!) but hardly marathon-ready on this side of the planet.
(24-07-2015, 07:25 AM)Sweder Wrote: Is this thread still a thing? We seem to be logging 100MC updates in our diaries.
Just asking *whistles, strolls off*
I think it was mainly for EG to log his updates...
Incidentally, is saying "is this a thing?" still a thing?
Just asking, *whistles, disappears into loop of logic*
I've broken up... tomorrow sees me heading south for sun, wine and relaxation. The running shoes are coming, so I'm afraid you're unlikely to be having a break from me.
Time for a 100 Days of Ploditude review (aka, look what you buggers have made me do).
I tipped 100 miles by day 43... but hey I am on a 200 in 100 plan.
To date I have done 118 miles which is an average of 2.6 miles a day.
Scarily, my total elevation is 3,932 metres - Holy Shit Batman... not wonder my legs hurt. That's like running up the Gran Paradiso, although admittedly spread over 45 days.
General well being... I haven't enjoyed my running more than I am at the moment.
Outlook... Looking forward to holiday adventures and getting home for more with BGG and OATR.
)
