It seems like years since it's been here

If all goes exactly according to schedule I'll be up to half-marathon distance sometime in October.  This presents both a challenge and an opportunity with the Great North Run being in September 2014, almost a year later.  The challenge will be to maintain my level of fitness through that year; something I plan to do by repeating the training programmes with increasing gradient levels on the treadmill.  The opportunity is the ability to be flexible with the programme - repeating weeks I find difficult rather than pushing myself pointlessly on to targets I'll be unable to reach.  I've already exploited this by repeating the week I should've done in Spain (I did do some running there, as I believe I may already have mentioned; just not enough) but this week it came in very handy.  I felt as though I'd finally hit the limit.  This week's scheme was three workouts, each alternating 3 minute and 90 second runs with 2 minutes of walking.  I have now stepped up the pace to 8kph which I realise is pretty pedestrian to any proper runners out there but, as I keep harping on about - fat, unfit, little legs etc.  This is proving a significantly sterner challenge than 6kph (although I was a bit alarmed during my road runs in Spain to learn that my walking pace is faster than my running pace).  Anyway, for the first time I really struggled with my breathing (again, as mentioned before) so decided to repeat the week this week.  Just did the first workout again today and I'm delighted to report that it did actually feel easier.  Managed the whole thing without breaking my breathing rhythm - I think when you do start to get properly breathless and have to drop your rhythm to start gasping, a certain amount of panic sets in and you end up defeating yourself mentally.

The wife did the Woodhall Spa 10K this Sunday in a rather impressive time of 59:32; she ran all the way and actually found it pretty easy, certainly more so than the Lincoln 10K earlier in the year.  I'll be hoping to emulate the feat (although perhaps in not quite so sporting a time) later in the year, perhaps the Great Yorkshire 10K in Sheffield in September?  The winner of the race by the way did it in 32:14. Not human.

In other news, there's a great yellow orb hanging in the cerulean blue sky outside radiating heat and light upon me.  I've no idea what it is and don't recall seeing anything like it for many a year - I'll keep you up to date.

End of Phase Two, Week Three (about to be repeated):

Ran/walked 6.75K total
Still weigh around 128kg - maybe the fat's turning into muscle?
Shin pains seem better with new shoes
Cardiovascular fitness appears to be picking up

Before you judge a man

Slight blog delay this week; slight run delay too.  A bit too much festivity at the weekend, coupled with a Bank Holiday monday has meant a bit of lay-off from the 'mill.  As ever, there were consequences - a slight step up in runtime today has been extremely hard to cope with.  I almost had to give up at one point, breath coming in ragged gasps through a sandpaper windpipe, but did eventually manage to run at 8kph for an entire 3 minutes non-stop!  That wasn't the whole routine before you scoff; just a split.

Finally got round to my gait analysis this weekend.  A visit to my step-brother's gym in Harrogate led to an introduction to the local sport shop - they got me on a treadmill and videoed me walking and running.  There was a slight mishap at one point as the belt slipped and I nearly came a cropper but we did get some useful footage.  It's really quite alarming - my ankles bulge inwards to a degree that looks as though my leg's about to snap off.  Apparently there's only one shoe for me (a Brooks Adrenaline GTS 13 if you're interested).  With shoe fitted (a bloody size 13) I was retaped with impressive results - leg came down straight with much less stress on the ankle.  They do take a bit of getting used to; lot's of medial support made my balance feel a but dodgy on the 'mill today.  The result is worth it though - no shin pains at all today.  Just the rough breathing!  If you're seriously considering any sort of significant running I can't recommend it enough - most places who do it do it free (or with a small charge which is then deducted from your shoe purchase).

The weekend was a success - Saturday doing a restaurant crawl in Harrogate and a bit of a Leo on Saturday to celebrate a birthday (Happy Birthday Kirsten).  Unfortunately it was topped off by us ordering £40 of Domino's Pizza between three of us!  Unsurprisingly the old weight seems determinedly stuck at around 130kg.  England's cricket team seems to be rediscovering its mojo, largely down to Yorkshire (when Yorkshire're strong etc. etc.) and the Mumbai Indians romped home in the IPL to win me a tenner.  Get in.  Also managed a barbecue on Monday - grilled seabass stuffed with coriander, lime, nam pla and coconut. Mmmmm.....

I'll be watching the Woodhall Spa 10K at the weekend (running's 90% mental you know) and may even enter a 10K before the year is out so watch this space!

Apologies for no stats recently; will resume them next week, perhaps with a calorie count!

PS Before you judge a man, walk a mile in his shoes.  That way, when you judge him you'll be a mile away and have his shoes.

The man with no name

OK - it's done.  A week in Spain.  Managed a couple of runs alongside a canal through a golf course (I think it's part of the irrigation system) which was a hell of lot more picturesque than my gym!  Learned a couple of things though:

1) Running on roads is actually a lot easier than on the treadmill.  I've always presumed, and been told, the opposite (and hinted as much in earlier blogs) and I'm sure the fact that I was running on dead flat concrete helped but it was so much easier.  There was none of the time dilation I've previously bored you with and the pace I did (measured by GPS on one of the many running tracker apps available) was actually faster than that I do on the treadmill whilst feeling easier

2) Running through Spain on a bright hot day listening to Ennio Morricone is quite cool

As I feared I've regained a little bit of porkiness but I did have a damned fine holiday.  Good sustained periods of sunshine, daytime temperatures of around 25C and wandering out of a night in shorts and T-shirt for beer and food.  If you're in the area around La Manga del Mar Menor in spain (between Cartagena and Alicante) I can recommend a place called La Catedral in Cartagena behind the roman ruins, Escuela de Pieter at the end of La Manga (a little sandbar protruding about 22km into the Med) which is on the beach and a really rather nice place to spend the day and Meson del Prado in San Miguel de las Salinas which does a Menu del Dia including wine for 9€ a head.  Restaurante Rebate is also pretty good.  As I write this the reason for my slight weight blip is rapidly becoming clear!

Done another session on the treadmill today and it felt hard.  Really hard.  For the first time I started to get significantly out of breath and on a couple of occasions almost had to give up.  However I completed the session as planned (a 4.5km run/walk) and probably lost about a pound of sweat.  It was only when I finished and switched the treadmill off did I notice the servos spin up as the deck settled down to level - I'd done the whole thing at a 1 degree incline without noticing.  Now that 1 degree may not sound like much but, as I now speak from experience, it bloody well is!

So - at the end of phase two, week two:
Two runs whilst on holiday in Spain
Pretended to be Clint Eastwood (a bit)
Weight: Not telling!
Culinary highlight : Prawn and seaweed salad at La Catedral and ice cold draft Cruzcampo; rather a lot of

Phase One complete

On Saturday I ran for 20 minutes straight.  This completes Phase One of my training (to progress from couch potato to a 20 minute run).  This is both good and bad news; the good news is that I managed a physical feat which would not have been possible just a few weeks ago while the bad news is that I now have to progress to Phase Two - training up to a 5k run.  I did the first part of that this morning, increasing my running pace to 8kph (I've only got little legs) and I don't think I'm going to enjoy it!  On a more positive note the weight continues to follow a downward trend, although I don't think the upcoming week in Spain will help in that respect!

The sun is finally shining and it's actually warm enough to go outside and enjoy it.  The heating's been turned off and we've even managed a couple of barbecues.  I'm now officially on holiday for the first time since last October so things are generally looking up!

So, end of Phase One
Can run 3k easily
Weight 127.7kg (a drop of 5.7kg, very nearly a stone)
9km covered last week
First big challenge coming up - a weeks' holiday

I'm gonna hit the highway like a battering ram

I have a dilemma this week.  Next week I'm off to sunny Spain - my first break from work since October and sorely needed.  It also coincides with the end of my current training programme (to get me running for 20 minutes) which will then dovetail in to the start of my next (to get me running 5K).  The question is; do I have a week off or do I continue to run whilst on holiday?  I've a nagging feeling that any progress lost during a weeks' break will take far longer than a week to recover.  And besides, the whole point of this is that it is a lifestyle change rather than a temporary health kick.  Looks like I'll be running in Spain.  D'oh!  Still, at least a nice run down the riverside in 21 degree sunshine will prepare me nicely for running along the coast in South Shields.

Managed some good sessions this week - up to 40mins on the treadmill (albeit at a fairly slow pace) and can easily run for 10 minutes without too much stress or panic.  The pain in my ankles has completely disappeared and the pains in my shins are becoming more manageable.  My wife has been to a sports shop where they got her on a treadmill to analyse her gait and recommended a particular type of running shoe.  I think I should probably do the same - I definitely come down on the outside of my heel rather than straight on.

Anyway - these ribs.  The trick is to sous vide them first - this is a (fairly old) French cooking technique akin to boil-in-the-bag.  I used belly ribs (the big ones with loads of meat on them) covered in a dry rub (paprika, oregano, salt, sugar, cayenne pepper, mustard powder and black pepper) then vac packed.  The resulting bag of goodies goes in a temperature controlled water bath at 57C for 72 hours.  Then chilled, smothered in a barbecue sauce and grilled on the barbecue until caramelised (slightly burnt to you and me).  The meat will fall off the bone.  Proper sous vide kits are pretty expensive but you can rig your own up using a slow cooker and something called a PID unit; an American company called SousVideMagic sell them online.  You'll also need a vac pack machine but these are pretty cheap nowadays too.  Enjoy.

I went to see Meat Loaf live last Friday - as part of the show he performed the original Bat Out of Hell album in its entirety.  It was a good night but you had to feel a bit sorry for Meat.  His voice has gone.  Completely.  He struggled gamely through but I think this'll be his last tour.  One for nostalgia only I think.

So at the end of week eight:
9 kilometres covered
128.5kg (thats 5kg down from where we started)
Not that sweaty or breathless
Finding it easier going upstairs at work (I do have 8 stories to cover)
Ankle pain gone
Musical highlight: Meat Loaf (for old times' sake)

E=mc2

I’m guessing not many of my readers are familiar with the concept of time dilation.  I’m especially sure seeing as my number of readers is zero according to the stats that Google kindly provide.  Anyhow - if anyone ever does read this, they may not be familiar with the concept of time dilation.  Put simply, time moves at different speeds depending on gravity and velocity.  A real example for this is the fact that astronauts on board the International Space Station age slightly slower than those of us on Earth (it’s fractions of a second but it is true; you can demonstrate the phenomenon using highly accurate atomic clocks).  This is because they’re in a region of low gravity.  Similarly, the faster you go, the slower time passes.  This is a staple of many science fiction books where they often talk about time debt - if you travel to a distant site in the galaxy, lets say 100 light years away, at just shy of the speed of light then it will take just over 100 years for you to get there according to an observer on Earth.  However, because time passes more slowly for you while you are traveling at that speed, it’ll only take you say 60 years (I don’t know the precise calculation).  If you then return, a total of 120 years will have passed for you but it’ll be 200 years later on Earth.  Another example of the bizarre world of relativity.  And I haven’t even mentioned quantum!

There is a reason for all this geekiness.  I can only surmise that when I run I must run at speeds approaching the speed of light.  My training routines are often split running and walking, for example run for 4 minutes, walk for 1, repeated 6 times.  That 1 minute walking zooms by whilst the 4 minutes take forever - time definitely passes more slowly when you are running on a treadmill.  The thing beeps every minute and the mental discipline required not to look at the clock until it beeps is phenomenal.  When you eventually give in and look, because surely you just didn’t hear the beep or the machine is malfunctioning, you find that actually only 38 seconds have elapsed.  Time dilation*.

In other news, I had the first barbecue of the year yesterday - I think it was a roaring success (I'm not entirely certain due to the intervention of Patron Tequila).  If you're really lucky I may post my ribs recipe in a future blog.  The weight does seem to be starting to drop off - I've clocked below 130kg for the first time in about 2 years and running feels easier - I managed a whole 10 minutes the other day without dying.  The London Marathon took place this morning - at one point the elite runners were running 4.45m miles.  Madness.

So, at the end of week seven

3 miles covered

Sweaty but stronger

Bottomed out at 128.6kg - woo hoo!

Highlight of the week: Rediscovering A Flock of Seagulls - I Ran is the greatest record of all time.

*Incidentally the actual difference between my running speed and the speed of light is so close to the speed of light as makes no difference**.

**The speed of light is 1,079,252,850,000,000,000kph.  My treadmill only goes to 15.

Mmmm.... Black pudding

I have a confession to make.  It's been two weeks since my last blog.  While I am determined to keep things up life has a way of interfering - I seem to be have working every day (including weekends and bank holidays) for about three weeks now, at least it feels that way.  I have the unusual privilege of a full weekend off with no plans at the moment so clearly I'm going to waste it by sitting in and watching telly all day!

Actually, I have already been active today - a 25 minute brisk walk on the treadmill and the first lawnmow of the year; really quite late this year for obvious reasons but the sun is actually shining and I've even considered having a barbecue.  I suspect that when the sun disappears this afternoon it's going to be rather cold however.

GNR preparation-wise I appear to have become a bit stuck.  The initial surge in extra fitness and strength seems to have plateaued out and I seem to be gaining weight (muscle, presumably?).  I'm assuming this is normal however and will stick to the training programme as planned.  My wife did the Lincoln 10K last weekend in a time of 1hr 5mins which is pretty impressive especially when you consider it was her first actual road run (all of her training was on the treadmill).  Unfortunately I missed it; guess what?  I was at work.

Went to see The Hairy Bikers live (in Skegness) last week.  A really quite bizarre show involving watching clips of their TV show while they took their clothes off.  Probably not how they would promote it but that's what sticks in the memory!  Mind you, I did enjoy the bit where Si held up a little pot (of what was actually cornflour in water) and said "This is the dieter's best friend ......... amphetamine."

The programme next week involves a few more prolonged runs and brisk walks and hopefully I should be up to running for 20 minutes within another 2-3 weeks.  Then I just need to string about 10 of those together and I reckon we're there!  Easy.

So - weeks five and six:
6.25 miles covered (but another session to go tomorrow)
1kg gained
Legs ache - knees feel stronger; start to get out of breath after 20mins (about 10 when I started)
Highlight : Watching someone make smoked haddock scotch eggs with black pudding salad on Saturday Kitchen
Total distance :19.3 miles at a might just over 3 miles a week.  Feel the burn!