Hello, all

[marathondan]

Hello all. Here’s my brief running story so far.

I took up running in 2001. With my 30th birthday fast approaching, I decided it was time to do something active, so I entered the British Open 10K (now called the British 10K London Run). It was 0-10K in 5 weeks – I hadn’t heard of training plans back then. But I discovered that I could run, and enjoy it, (knowledge that had eluded me for the previous 30 years) and I had a great race.

To say I was hooked would be an exaggeration. But over the next three years I kept up a bit of training and entered ten or so 10Ks. Soon, I started to entertain the notion of entering the London marathon. In 2004, having survived 18 months of fatherhood and with plans for a larger family, I decided that in order to fit in the training, I would have to take the plunge there and then, or wait several more years. I took a deep breath, got myself a Golden Bond place, and started training. The whole experience, training and race, was a fantastic adventure and undoubtedly one of the best things I’ve ever done. I kept an online diary, which is here. (Hence my screen name, which is now rather fraudulent.)

The idea was then to keep up regular 10K and half-marathon running. I’m not sure what happened. One thing was that I took up 5-a-side football, which is not very compatible with distance running, and immediately put a dent in my training. Looking back, if I thought I’d be able to keep up the same quantity of training as pre-marathon, I was sadly mistaken. So the rest of 2005 saw a solitary 10K, a steady improvement in my football skills, and probably about one run a week – although I gave up keeping a log. A football injury before Christmas put me out for a month or so, but now 2006 is here and I sense the time has come for some renewed running effort.

[El Gordo]

Welcome Dan.

It's easy for good intentions to fall away after a marathon. Even though most of us feel fired up after completing one, we tend to take a few weeks off to recover and treat ourselves, and this is often the start of a downward spiral.

Different people have different suggestions to this, but many of us think that the best thing is simply to choose a race to aim for, look at a few training schedules, plan it all out on a spreadsheet (in my case), and before you know it, the motivation comes flooding back.

The other really good help is to join a local club if you've not already done so. You're in Maidenhead, aren't you? There are a few good clubs around there. It helps to get you out the door and, as I've found, forces you out of the comfort zone we tend to settle into.

Keep us posted.

[marathondan]

Thanks for your suggestions Andy. Don't worry, a spreadsheet is already in place, and goals have been set. I've been keeping a diary for the year so far (already nearly 5% gone...) which I will post shortly.

I've always shied away from clubs - although I know you've benefitted from them. Spare time is at a premium for me - and yes, I know it is for other people, and they still manage to get out, but there are other things that I think have to take priority over running. So for me, one attraction of running has always been that I can do it where and when I like, without having to fit in with other people's plans. I'll try and keep an open mind though.

[marathondan]

I’ve hardly done any running since November.

Firstly, we (me, my wife, and our nearly-3-year-old son) had a protracted house move to get through – only round the corner, and the sale itself was straightforward, but we had a couple of months’ building work done before moving in, and there seemed to be things to check, phone calls to make, visits to B&Q, every evening.

Then I badly twisted my ankle playing football (or twisted my ankle playing football badly), and walking was hard enough without considering running. (NB: Let me know if I mention football too often. Although "Football Commentary" has a certain ring to it…),

And, most happily, my wife is expecting our second child in May, and (less happily) was having some serious morning sickness (in the afternoon, and without physically you know what, but otherwise it was morning sickness) and so I was trying to give her as much support as I could whenever I wasn’t at work.

Now, the building work is complete, we are in the house, my ankle is 99% better, and my wife is in much more of a blooming phase. A new year, and a 4-month window in which to revitalise my running, before the baby arrives and family life goes crazy for 6 months or so.

The ankle healing came as something of a surprise. I realised I needed a target quickly, and the rearranged Reading half in April seemed ideal. And my local race, the Maidenhead Easter 10, is a week later, if I’ve recovered. However, my training is undoubtedly constrained by the following:

- Football – counts as a (rather poor quality) speedwork session, but as mentioned before is not an ideal complement to distance running.

- My employer’s New Year present of a compulsory 48 hour working week for 6 weeks (paid, but I’d rather have the time than the money). I’m up at 5.00 every day, with the consequent early nights.

- Decorating and suchlike of our new (old) house, with a toddler around, and his mum needing some rest at the weekends. We’ve had the luxury of renting for the past year – bliss on the DIY front. Now it's back to a never-ending list of jobs.

Even though it’s not my first, Hal Higdon’s novice half marathon program is way more than I can fit in at the moment. So as an experienced marathon runner (ahem), I made up my own, and the mighty "newrunlog.xls" was born. Each week consists of:

- one “speedwork session” (football)
- two midweek runs, rising from 3 miles to 6
- one weekend run, rising from 4.5 miles to 11

Actually, that’s not all that different from the Hal Higdon – but without all that namby-pamby stretching. However, I’ll probably struggle to manage both of the midweek runs.

And so it begins…

[Sweder]

Ah, the old 'keeping-my-hand-in-don't-have-time-for-weekend-matches' ploy, eh? I went that route too - rolled both ankles within 2 months of each other. I play badminton and run offroad a lot now.

I loved five-a-side - we're talking romance here - but it didn't love me. Too large, not quick enough and certainly not dexterous enough to kick the opposition without injuring myself.

Welcome MD, and good luck.
We like a maverick on RC - referring to anything written by Hal Higdon as 'Namby-Pamby' gets you a ticket in that particular carriage

[marathondan]

More the "at my age and lack of natural ability, this is surely the last time someone will invite me to play in a competitive team" route!

Badminton is fantastic although I haven't played for years. I've just been reading Bierzo Baggie's early diaries, and feel inspired to go offroad - might have to wait for the lighter evenings though.

Not sure of your precise dimensions, but I may be even bigger - at 6'4" / 14 stone I'm a centre-back build at best. Not the most useful of positions in 5-a-side. I got turned inside out several times last night by some young terriers.

Thanks for the welcome. For FLM I followed the Higdon novice schedule rigorously - except for all that namby-pamby cross-training...

[marathondan]

Tuesday 10th Jan

Tuesday night was my regular "speedwork session" at Slough Power League. I found myself playing for the "A" team, although I’m much more suited to the "B" team. The ankle twinged a few times but generally held up well, and I put in a pleasing performance, with a rare couple of goals and less than my usual quota of defensive mistakes. I came off at 7-5 up, but annoyingly we conceded three late goals to lose 8-7. Despite my frustration, I can hardly claim that things would have been different if I’d stayed on.

After 8 months or so, my body has finally adjusted to the new and interesting tweaks that football subjects it to. In fact my Saturday run (see below) was the first time I can remember not having some kind of groin strain. I can’t believe that 5-a-side football is really much good for my running. I typically play about half an hour, which consists of really high-intensity anaerobic sprints and high-end aerobic runs. Who knows the total distance covered – but I’d guess about a mile. As you might expect, the running doesn’t seem to help the time I can maintain anaerobic sprinting, but does seem to improve my recovery before the next sprint.

Warning: next entry may contain actual running.


Saturday 14th Jan

As I came to terms with the first week of 5.00 am starts, I had got to Friday night without any real chance of getting out for a run. I resolved that I would run Saturday and Sunday – not ideal after a couple of months off, but needs must.

Before tea-time presented itself as the ideal time on Saturday, so with the dinner in the oven (a team effort, I should point out) I slipped out for my familiar 4.5 miler around Maidenhead. This is the route I’ve been using for the last six months or so, and it was OK – a little sluggish, but I’ve had several weeks off. However, it’s slightly sobering to think that less than a year ago, I was doing four laps of the same circuit.

I returned to a hearty family meal of cottage pie, served with a garnish of elevated endorphin levels, and all was right with the world for a while.


Sunday 15th Jan

The prospects didn’t look good for Sunday evening - by the time evening rolled around it had been a typically non-stop day in toddler-land. It got to 9.15, the chores were as done as they were going to be, and I was veering towards a nice warm early night with the Sunday supplements. However, my wife persuaded me to go out, so I threw on some medium-weight gear and went for a fast lap of my old 2.5 mile circuit.

Does anyone else vary their breathing pattern to control effort? Most people naturally fall into a 2/2 pattern (breathe in every two steps, breathe out the same) but for medium or slow runs (i.e. most training runs) I go down to 3/3. It acts like a rev limiter – if I go too fast then I just run out of breath and have to back off. For hills, or race pace, I go to 2/2; sometimes on a steep downhill I go to 4/4. Apologies if everyone on the planet has tried this, rendering my comment as insightful as "Has anyone tried putting one foot in front of the other?"

Anyway, as it was a fast run I gave myself a quarter mile or so of 3/3 and then went up to 2/2. Too early, couldn’t sustain it. Even in 10K races I take the first 5 minutes at 3/3. So back down to 3/3 until about the last quarter. I probably haven’t run that circuit for 8-9 months, and it was nice to see some of the unlikely suburban landmarks from back when I used to do multiple laps – the ever-inviting Golden Harp, the houses that we were thinking of buying, the tight corner that requires swinging out into the road to maintain pace, the lamppost that marks the switch to 2/2 breathing before the last hill. Anyway, it all went jolly well, and I managed to finish with a flourish. I still took the Sunday supplements to bed, and tried to ignore the impending 5.00 start.

Shortly before sleep, my wife mentioned that she’d seen a local triathlon advertised for the summer and that maybe I should try it – I have talked of such things before. I dismissed the suggestion with a few comments about the cost of equipment and the high training demands – not ideal with a new baby around.

Week 1 summary:
Planned: 10.5 miles + football
Actual: 7 miles + football

[Bierzo Baggie]

Hi MarathonDan
Great to have another training diary to follow. I'll be counting how often I breathe next time I get out! Football and running combined isn't ideal but certainly not impossible. I ran my fastest marathon time whilst playing a full 11-a-side season (although I was still in my 20s back then...) Football's a hard habit to kick (and it's often me that's being kicked).
I'm not the most appropriate one here for giving advice but off-road running is a great cure for dodgy ankles. I packed the football in because of the wobbly ankles, strengthened them by running on all sorts of uneven terrain and ended up playing football again...so there you go.

[El Gordo]

Good start, Dan.

The breathing analysis is interesting. I've heard this sort of thing before, but I can't honestly say that I've ever noticed my own breathing pattern, and if it changes. I must become more conscious of this.

Regarding ankles, and joints generally... does anyone here take the supplement glucosamine? I started taking this a couple of weeks ago. Someone mentioned to me recently that a lot of runners take it to strengthen cartilage and tendons. It's prescribed to older people with osteo-arthritis, and is regarded as being highly effective. I later found a long article in this month's Runner's World about it, which also gave it a pretty positive write-up.

Might be worth considering if you're still having trouble, or if you want to help prevent future problems by strengthening your joints. Tey http://www.zipvit.co.uk for a cheap source. 1500mg is the optimum dose, apparently.

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

Good start, Dan.
Regarding ankles, and joints generally... does anyone here take the supplement glucosamine?

I've been taking it for about two years. For me it makes a helluva difference. I originally took it for arthritis in my hands, and for that it works a treat. For everything else - other joints and cartilage, I find it harder to be objective, but I firmly tend towards being positive that it helps.

The scientific evidence seems fairly conlcusive from my limited reading of the subject - the only debate left is whether it is better to use glucosamine hydrochloride or glucosamine sulfate. All the testing has been done on the sulfate, but manufacturers seem to believe that the HCl version is more effective, even though the scientific proof isn't available.

I take the HCl version, and it works for me. At least partly anyway.

[marathondan]

I'm not the most appropriate one here for giving advice but off-road running is a great cure for dodgy ankles.

BB, I have been reading your early diaries and they certainly inspire me to try a bit of off-road. I must echo others and say thanks for your excellent narratives. I'm not sure Berkshire has as much to offer as Bierzo though! Not a lot of basket-weavers or pilgrims down our way.

[marathondan]

Monday 16th Jan

The legs feel tender after two consecutive runs – the kind of tenderness I used to feel after long runs, a dull ache in the muscles as well as the usual sore joints. There are also some strange pains in my left shin and calf, which I suspect are due to compensation for the not-quite-right ankle. I know the aches will get better, but… is this really what I should be doing to my body?

A strange thought occurs… maybe triathlon isn’t such a bad idea after all. The benefit would be that two-thirds of the training would be low-impact. Looking 10 years into the future, would I rather look back over 1,500 bone-crunching pavement plods (that’s an optimistic 3 runs per week for 10 years, by the way) and the resulting permanently sore knees and hips, or 500 each of run, cycle and swim? Just think of that upper body definition…

But what about the expense? Principally, a wetsuit and a bike. Well, a little research shows that the swim leg of many of the shorter events is pool-based, and so doesn’t require suiting up. And a quick look at eBay reveals a number of old but serviceable racing bikes around the £50 mark – not world class, but OK for a beginner, and they’ve got to be better than my truly awful Halfords mountain bike (never buy a cheap bike for serious mileage, better to go for a decent bike second-hand – but then that’s obvious with hindsight).

Probably the event that my wife spotted was the Royal Windsor Triathlon in June. Baby one month old - a definite no-no as far as spare time is concerned. Anything available before May? The Thames Turbo looks ideal, despite being named after a commuter train. It’s a "sprint" distance event - 400m pool swim / 21k bike / 5k run - in mid-April.

Could I cut the mustard? A look at last year’s results reveals approximate mid-pack times as follows:

Swim 10 mins – sounds challenging for 16 lengths, but with some training might be achievable.
Cycle 41 mins – that’s averaging nearly 20 mph. When I used to commute by bike, I rarely got above 18 mph (on a mountain bike, admittedly). Gulp.
Run 24 mins – at last, something I can manage. Well, unless I’ve just swum 400m and cycled 13 miles.

Given that I could only realistically train each event once per week, it looks like I would struggle a bit. But hey, if running has taught me anything, it’s that growth comes out of struggle (on all levels – from the muscular to the mental.) My local pool has a late session on Thursdays. Maybe I’ll go and give it a tri…

(Damn, nearly made it all the way through without a single "tri" pun!)



Tuesday 17th Jan

The legs feel a lot better today – just the calf/shin thing still playing up. So the urgency to take up triathlon has diminished slightly. But I think I’ll still go for a dip on Thursday if I’m not too tired. Maybe a bike ride at the weekend on the rusty steed. Then decide which will be (probably) my only event of the foreseeable future:

Reading Half
or
Thames Turbo Tri?

Anyway, tonight it’s "speedwork", and again I am miscast in the "A" team. Tomorrow will bring a whole new set of aches and pains.


Wednesday 18th Jan

Disappointment #1: we lost 8-3 to the division leaders last night. We did field several new players, so there was a lack of cohesion initially, but we were outplayed, and I felt rather out of my depth. If I’m honest, I suppose my real disappointment is that I didn’t make a better impression on my new team-mates.

Disappointment #2: on Monday I took the train to work, something I do from time to time when my wife has the car for the day. Back in marathon days, I used to run the 1.5 miles from home to station and then 4 miles from station to work, both ways. These days I tend to cycle and take the tube. Which is what I did Monday morning, and then my wife picked me up in the evening. So the bike was left at the station for 36 hours, and I picked it up on the way back from football. Disappointingly, someone had taken the back light, and slashed the saddle and tyres. (I assume they slashed the tyres – I couldn’t find any holes, but I can’t believe they let the tyres down and then put the dust caps back on.) It’s unlikely that I’ll get it sorted in time for a ride at the weekend.

Yes, I know that leaving the lights on the bike was pretty daft, but as mentioned before it is a real old heap, and I’ve got rather blasé about security. At least I did lock it.

Disappointment #3: I am knackered. I’ve had less than 6 hours’ sleep for each of the last three nights, which isn’t enough for me. So the chances of going out for a late-night swim on Thursday are minimal.

Still, the best-laid plans of mice and men, and all that. Was Robert Burns a marathon runner I wonder?

Anyway, the ankle held up well again, just a bit stiff this morning. Along with my entire pelvic area. Apologies if that sounds rude. A couple of days rest are required, then hopefully some running will take place. It looks like the triathlon try-out is off for a while.

[stillwaddler]

great stuff, been taking it for approx 3years, I no longer have horrid "stiff feet syndrom" when getting out of bed in the morning, and after my last sprained ankle I did a half marathon 3 weeks later following some physio and good strapping.

Incidentally, don't dissmiss the "namby pamby stretching" recommended by Hal out of hand, the cross training at least can be invaluable, my physio reckons that my recent case of runners knee was probably due to the fact that I had changed my half marathon training plan to one which didn't inlcude any cross training which had previously kept my thigh muscles stronger thus supporting my knees.

Mind you I'm old.:o

Tesco have glucosamine 600mg, 90 tablets for a little over £7, about the cheapest I've found. have put Mr SW on them now too - tee hee! You probably need to take them for amonth or so before you will notice any difference. I think there was an article IN RW recently about Glucosamine??

[El Gordo]

Tesco have glucosamine 600mg, 90 tablets for a little over £7, about the cheapest I've found.

I can do much better than that, SW.

360 x 1500mg for £13.95

http://www.zipvit.co.uk

[Sweder]

I can do much better than that, SW.
360 x 1500mg for £13.95
http://www.zipvit.co.uk

Lil' ol' drug dealer me (in a Dean Martin stylee)

[El Gordo]

Hmm, yes, I hope I didn't sound too practised....

[marathondan]

Blank, diddly squat, insignificancy, naught, nil, nothing, nought, nullity, squat, zero, zilch, zip, zippo, zot. Such was the total of my miles this week. Even Robbie Burns would have been shocked at how agley my plans have ganged.

Thursday I was reasonably up for a late-night swim and the associated three-mile round-trip run, even though I knew it would kill me on Friday. But in the event a quiet night in with my wife seemed more important.

Friday I was philosophical, and concluded that now is not the time to take up triathlon. But it’s a definite possibility for the future, and almost certainly better for all-round fitness than just running. (Although possibly not as good for the soul...)

Friday night I was out, Saturday morning was taken up with odd jobs, Saturday afternoon a children’s birthday party. Saturday night my wife was out babysitting so I was confined to quarters. I was going to be down to one run this week.

Sunday daytime I could have fitted in a run, but I had earmarked the before-teatime slot and so filled the day with other pottering. But when 4pm came around, the choice was exercise or an extra family hour in the all-too-fleeting weekend. The latter won hands down. If I was committed, I should have gone in the evening, but by then my spirit was broken.

So that’s my list of excuses. Looking back, I could have fitted in at least one run, and of course as we all know, running is great therapy. This week I need to remember that a run might actually make me feel better.

Week 2 summary:
Planned: 11.5 miles + football
Actual: arse all + football

[Bierzo Baggie]

Marathondan,
At last, somebody with a training plan close to my own heart. Your week 2 sounds familiar.
Triathlon. Something I’ve always fancied getting into. Got as far as a mountain duathlon once (run plus mountain biking plus run again) which was as enjoyable as it was knackering. The appeal lies in the variety and as you mentioned it’s a great way to avoid injuries in the long term. Don’t give the idea up!

[Sweder]

You'll get very little grief from me, Marathondan.
It's not always as easy as 'just getting out there', is it? Modern life makes excessive and unfair demands on our time. If you work and have/ care about a young family, it gets worse. My wife often asks me how come I find the time to go running? She usually asks me this as she's lifting my legs to hoover - ouch! didn't realise she was reading this over my shoulder!

In reality I get out for two one hour pre-work sessions per week plus I've cashed in all my Sunday lie-ins for long runs.

Don't be too down on yourself, mate. At least you're still getting the footie in.
Of course you'll have to bugger off and find a five-a-side forum . . .

[marathondan]

Thanks guys. I'm already feeling more positive than when I posted. When I was training for FLM and fundraising, I could give training a higher priority. Now it's just another leisure activity to be fitted into those few leisure hours. Running is a classic "you get out of life what you put in" lesson and so I guess I'm going to have to try and make some time - and realise that I won't achieve as much as I'd like. Current plan is to go out tonight straight after my son's bedtime...

BB - I was initially sceptical of your response but now I seem to recall some big gaps in your training in the summer... BTW when the evenings get lighter I intend to follow your example and try some off-road. Regarding triathlon, yes I intend to come back to it - probably next winter!

Sweder - to be honest, it crossed my mind to stop the 5-a-side to get some running in. But it's very good socially, and it won't be that long before I'm too old, so I'll make hay while I can!

Conclusion - too much to do / too little time isn't a bad problem to have...