JogBlog

Eek, just about 5 and a quarter hours to go until I have to run 3.5 miles round the streets of Central London with about 2,000 other people wearing red t-shirts, instead of doing a few laps of my local park wearing a black t-shirt and my iPod and growling at random members of the general public.  Not that the colour of my t-shirt has any bearing on my running ability, or maybe it does, and that's where I've been going wrong.  Hmm.

Right then, I have everything in place.  Have my Garmin, two cameras (one for Kate to take pics from her supporter's spot at the pub and one for me in case of photo emergencies en-route), running kit and a pub to meet in afterwards (most important bit).

Now, after I've done my first ever 5(and a bit)k, what's next?  Do it better and without stopping (if I do stop) or do it faster?  Do more training and less beer drinking and pizza eating?

It's going to be a fun evening!

Ooh, tomorrow's the big day, my first race! Not that I'm racing it, just trying to complete it and as it's only 3.5 miles I should be ok. And you can still sponsor me if you want to and I promise not to spend all the money on beer and pizza, heh heh.

Gary's friend has challenged him to run it in 25 minutes which I pointed out today would mean 7 minute miling. He said "oops". I said I was surprised he hadn't already worked that out, what with him being a mathematician and that.

Anyway, have felt really crap all week and haven't been out for a run at all and it wasn't looking likely that I'd even make tomorrow but felt better today and went out for a few laps of the park. Wasn't too bad after I'd warmed up a bit, as initially I wanted to stop after half a lap of the park (about 2 minutes), and apart from the other people running in the opposite direction to me. I've worked out what it is. They go in the supermarket direction (i.e. anti-clockwise). I tend to avoid supermarkets (pizza menus were invented so people don't have to go through the horrors of the supermarket) so I go clockwise round the park. Although saying that, the big Tescos goes clockwise. Oh well, maybe my theory is wrong and I'm talking rubbish.

I shan't be updating my blog tomorrow night as I'll be in the pub. Ben pointed out today that there's a lot of pubs on the route tomorrow night and hopes I won't be distracted. Then he said maybe I can stop halfway at one and meet him there? Hmm, that's no way for a finely tuned athlete to behave.

Wish me luck then! This time next year, you'll be wishing me luck for my first half marathon, heh heh.

Stats:
Miles: 1.68 miles
Time: 16:27
Average pace: 9:47 minute/mile
Average speed: 6.1mph
Max speed: 7.5mph
Calories burnt: 145
Music: Shuffle (Strokes, The Fall, Ash, Muse)

Woo, go me, I did 3.5 miles non stop (sort of) this morning! Hee hee, I always say "sort of" don't I? Only a few seconds though to take pics of horses and invisible squirrels. I don't have time to write a proper blog at the mo as Gary's coming round to help with stage two of the garden in a bit so I'll update later and post pics. Hope I can think of something to say. There were the two female runners who smiled at me, that was nice, better than the usual miserable gits and the strange man asleep in a car. Oh yes and the ducks. I have a pic of the ducks. It was very sunny too and it's only 9:30am so it's going to get hotter and I'm going to get sunburnt again doing the garden but at least I'll earn me some more calories to eat and drink tonight as my diet's going to be ruined later but I have lost 3 lbs this week, hopefully all off my belly.

Right, Gary's running late so here are today's pics:

'tis a horse. But you probably knew that.

And here's another horse.  It looks like the same horse but it's not, honest.

And here's some ducks. Well, maybe not some, just two. There were some more but they're not in this pic. Obviously.

There was also a squirrel but he ran away before I could take his pic.  I was going to take a pic of the man asleep in a car but thought I might get in trouble if I do that.  Maybe his wife kicked him out.  Heh heh.

Stats:
Miles: 3.51 miles
Time: 40:39
Average pace: 11:34 minute/mile
Average speed: 5.2mph
Max speed: 6.4mph
Calories burnt: 358
Music: Shuffle (Cardiacs, Ash, Outkasts, SMDO, Yellow Stripe Nine, Madonna, Primal Scream, Air, Bobby Conn)
Friendly runners: 2
Men asleep in cars: 1

Eek, have I gone mad? Due to lack of alcohol and an early night last night, meant I was up at 6:15 this morning and at 7:30 decided to go for a run. Had decided just to do a quick mile as I don't usually run two days in a row due to fear of overdoing it and getting injured but thought a quick mile wouldn't hurt but it turned into 4 and a half laps of the park.

Was a surprisingly easy 2 miles too and didn't once feel like stopping, although I'm not usually a morning runner. Still not going to start running before work though as I'd have to wash my hair afterwards and I can't be bothered to do that in the morning. Am feeling guilty now as I'm going to the hairdressers later and they're going to have to wash the greasy mop on top of my head, oops!

I had the park to myself until the last lap when two dog walkers turned up. Spoilt it for me as I was in a little world of my own with my music blaring into my ears and could have kept on going but when I saw them it brought me back down to earth so decided to make it my last lap.

Oh and by the way, I've decided today is "leave a comment day". Some of you do (you know who you are) and I'm grateful for that but to you people who land on here and maybe read a bit, go on, don't be shy, say something! You don't even have to register. Then again, even my friends don't leave a comment. They don't even read my blog. They say "how's the training going?" so I say "if you read my blog you would know" then they say "can I have the link again?" Sigh. At least I get to talk about them without them knowing I suppose. Heh heh.

Stats:
Miles: 2.10 miles
Time: 20:23
Average pace: 9:43 minute/mile
Average speed: 6.2mph
Max speed: 8.1mph
Calories burnt: 187
Music: Primal Scream
Dog walkers ruining my anti-social behaviour wanting the park to myself: 2

Hmm, got home raring to go and really looking forward to a run, especially as the sun had finally came out (not much point in it coming out at 6 o'clock in the evening but ho hum) but ended up walking quite a bit. At least I don't want to kill anybody anymore. I don't care if Bernard says I sound like Denise (and if he keeps comparing me to Denise I'm going to have to punch him), people on the tube and trains REALLY bug me. Why can't they just be quiet. I want to listen to my iPod not their inane conversations. Oh well, three days off work, yippee!

Think I'll leave my camera at home next time I go out running and do more running and less stopping and taking pictures but it would appear that the council read my blog as they have trimmed back the path. Look

it's not so scary anymore, hurrah!  Here's what it looked like last week

Took a scenic route tonight so I can show everyone that I really live in the countryside and not in the fag end of East London. Look, we have canals and everything.

At least, I think it's a canal. I don't think it's the river. God, I sound dumb. Never mind. Let's continue on this scenic route.
Yee ha! Gee gees! (That's horses to the more grown up of you out there.)

Aah.
Here's some greenery.

It's green and grassy, that's because it's green grass and stuff.
Here's some more green stuff.

I actually hate the countryside. What's all this no pavements and have to walk in the road nonsense? Madness.
Aah, more gee gees.

Um, some more horses. (Going to revert back to my real age now.)

All this talk about a drought, we have loads of water here. Look, here's some more watery stuff.

Well then, that's my scenic route, isn't it pretty?

Just two weeks til my mini-marathon (heh heh) and it's not looking very likely that I'm going to complete it without stopping. Oh well. Kate's finally made a decision about whether to do it or not and her decision is not. She's going to come and support me and Gary though which means she's going to see us in the pub afterwards. At least we now have an official bag looker afterer.

It's Friday which means it's beer o'clock although it's water o'clock for me tonight as I'm going to have a sober Friday and a hangover free Saturday which I haven't had for a few weeks and anyway I have to make up for the bottle of wine and half tub of Ben & Jerry's I had last night.

Here are my not very impressive

Stats:
Miles: 2.91 miles
Time: 35:12
Average pace: 12:05 minute/mile
Average speed: 5.0mph
Max speed: 7.2mph
Calories burnt: 281
Music: Hard-Fi, Black Wire
Horses and stuff: see pics above.

Had to force myself out the door today as a) I couldn't be bothered; b) am fed up of the route I've been taking; and c) think that if I keep going down the scary desolate path then one day my luck's going to run out and I'm going to get mugged or something.

So I decided to do one lap of the park, go up the road and back, then another lap of the park. Got to the park (ok, it's a nanosecond away) and saw it was empty and thought "yay, got the park to myself" then saw someone running in it and thought "bugger, someone's in my park, git" so thought he'd probably be gone by the time I got up the road and back as no one's going to want to just do laps of the smallest park in the world, but when I got back (ok, I hadn't exactly gone very far) he was still there so I did do a lap of the park just as it started to absolutely pour down, it was bloody freezing too!

Still, I did venture out although my motivation was at minus six kijillion. No pics today though as thought I couldn't be that feeble that I can't even do a mile without stopping, not that there was anything to take pics of anyway.

Oh, and look what I heard about on the radio today. A new gadget, I think they made it especially for me!

Stats:
Miles: 1.04 miles
Time: 9:56
Average pace: 9:32 minute/mile
Average speed: 6.3mph
Max speed: 7.0mph
Calories burnt: 78
Music: Black Wire
Other people running in my park when I want the place to myself: 1