Scaphoid

Well, as I write this it is two weeks on from the Great Forest Run, and two weeks before my next race, and my running plans are in tatters.

Last Tuesday, my Mum was trying to get Zac dressed for school, and he was not being at all co-operative. He twisted out of her arms, and she fell over and landed on her left wrist, unfortunately breaking the scaphoid bone. Well, that was the initial diagnosis… she was later told that it wasn’t broken, or that it might be. Time will tell… and further x-rays in a couple of weeks.

Poor Mum – for her it means pain, a plaster-cast, potentially no driving for at least 4 weeks (if it is broken), difficulty dressing etc.

For me, it means (as well as feeling very guilty, and sorry for Mum) a change in my training plans, as she often looks after Lily-Rose in the mornings so I can go for a run. Obviously she won’t be able to do that for a while, so I have had to mainly stick to the treadmill at the gym, but also to get creative and try something new…

So, these last few weeks in September have looked a little like this:

Monday 13th: 5k on the treadmill (3.1 miles)
Tuesday 14th: Same again

Thursday 16th: I tried something different! My friend Dave, who also has a severely autistic son, competes in races, running whilst pushing Jacob along in his special needs buggy. He often runs in 10k events and still manages to complete in under 60 minutes, despite the extra weight of a 9 year old boy in a very heavy buggy. (I am in awe.) So, taking inspiration from my friend, I decided to go for a “buggy run” with Lily-Rose, along my favourite riverside route, the Millennium Walkway.

It was a very different experience running whist pushing a pushchair because 1) the extra weight obviously makes it much more challenging, and 2) having to hold the buggy handles the whole time means not using your arms to run, and this makes the whole thing feel very unnatural and awkward.

However, I managed 2.2 miles, which is not bad for starters. I think it’s probably good stamina training anyway, and I will be trying it again. The good news is Lily-Rose absolutely LOVED it.

Friday 17th: Made it to the gym twice in one day! 5k x 2.
Tuesday 21st: 7k (4.3 miles) at the gym.
Wednesday 22nd: 5k at the gym.

Saturday 25th: Finally a proper outside run, on a very cold autumnal day. I ran my 5 mile Viaduct route, crossing the River Medway at two points. It was just a fantastic run… the cold weather was perfect, meaning I didn’t overheat, and the views were amazing as usual, but something just “clicked” and I felt full of energy and ran the whole way without slowing to a walk at all, even on the steepest of hills. I wish I knew what the ingredients were for a good “running day”, because this is how it should always feel.

Tuesday 28th: 7k (4.3 miles) at the gym.

Well, that brings me up to date. I’m hoping I’ll be able to keep running enough over the next few weeks, that the Petts Wood 10k race on 10th October will be comfortably manageable. I will be hoping for another sub-60 time, and possibly a new personal best. But it all depends on how much training I can put in, and that all depends on the scaphoid bone of a certain lovely Grandmother!

Distance run (in miles) since 11th September: 31.3
Total miles for September: 60.9
Total since starting blog (21/6/10): 259.4

Great Forest Run (aka Bedgebury 10k)

Saturday 11th September 2010, 10.29am, and I am runner number 5116, standing in the starting pen, waiting for the race to begin.

It is freezing cold and tipping down with rain.

Katie Bertie, my loyal-friend-for-25-years (despite forcing me to wear a bright green bridesmaid dress at her wedding), partner-in-crime, picker-up-when-I’m-down, and unofficial running coach, is by my side.

“These are PERFECT race conditions”, she says. “The rain means there is more oxygen in the air, which makes it easier to breathe.”

Really?

I don’t actually hear the start of the race (was it a gun? A “ready, steady, go”?), but suddenly Katie says "we’re off", and we all hit the Start button on our stopwatches, and start running.

My first official race has begun!

During the first mile or so, Katie is the voice at my side telling me I’m doing really well, to speed up here, slow down there, and above all to PACE myself. More advice: Lean forward slightly on the uphills and use your arms more; Try to relax your arms on the downhills.

Disaster for the faster runners ahead of us as, at around the 1 kilometer point, the signs are unclear and a whole group of runners go the wrong way, losing valuable seconds or even minutes off their time in the confusion, as they have to double back. Many cross words exchanged.

Katie is tracking our speed on her magical Garmin GPS watch and makes sure we stick to 9.5 minute miles or less, thus theoretically ensuring a sub-60 minute finishing time.

I have to admit, I am feeling full of energy and want to go faster, especially on the downhills. But Katie assures me that it is important to stick to the slower speed for now, so that we have enough energy for the second half of the race when we are more tired.

I do trust Katie Bertie, I really do. She knows WAY more about running than me. She regularly runs 10k races, 10 milers, half-marathons, and did her first marathon (Brighton) earlier this year.

But the rebellious side of me wants to ignore her advice and just run as fast as I possibly can.

Dilemma. Do I stick with my wise friend, and guarantee a respectable finishing time, or do I follow my heart and risk burning out altogether?

In the end, the decision is taken out of my hands because Katie is not feeling great today and has a bad cold; around the half-way point she starts to really struggle and urges me to go on ahead while she takes it a bit more slowly.

Feeling sorry for Katie, and a little bit guilty, I pick up the pace and head off on my own, trying to remember all the tips she has given me. This is a very hilly course, and the uphills seem to go on for ever, especially in the second half of the route. The runners start to thin out now, and in several spots there is no-one around me.

Without Katie’s GPS watch, I have no real idea of my distance (I just have a basic stopwatch), but at around 40 minutes into the race I pass the second water station (but don’t stop for water) and I overhear one of the marshalls say the words “only 2 kilometers left”. This is GREAT news, I think, as I look at my watch, anticipating an absolutely amazing finishing time! After about 5 more minutes, I pass another marshall, clapping all the runners on and yelling “only another 2 kilometers!”. What?! That can’t be right… or can it? Several more minutes down the line, and there are two marshalls clapping on the runners and yelling “just 2 more kilometres to go”.

Now I feel like I’m in a dream – or a nightmare – where I will have to keep running this race forever, and there will always be 2 kilometers left to run…

But of course, eventually I did run those last two kilometres, and they seemed to be uphill all the way. But finally the ground levelled out and there was a lovely downhill descent to the finish line.

About 200 meters from the line, I could see out of the corner of my eye a lady in pink on my right, trying to get past me. I was determined not to let her overtake me and, finding some energy from somewhere, I managed a great sprint finish, crossing the line at 57.08.

It was a fantastic feeling.

I collected my shiny, sparkly, medal and then doubled back to the finish line to wait for Katie Bertie, who despite feeling really unwell, still managed to finish in 58.48 - I am in awe!

Munching bananas and guzzling water, we met up with Katie’s lovely friends, some of whom had run too and compared times and stories. Then back to Katie’s car for champagne and chocolate. Is this how all races finish?

A fantastic time was had by all, despite the cold and the rain. And I couldn’t have asked for better company for my first race!

As for my time of 57.08, I was really pleased to get sub-60 minutes, but it is only my 2nd fastest time for 10k. In one of my training runs I managed 55.41 (see blog post: East, West, Home’s Best), but that was on a completely flat route, as opposed to today’s very hilly course.

Secretly I wonder whether I would have made a better time if I had pushed myself to run fast right from the start, but probably not. And I’m sure I wouldn’t have managed that sprint finish if Katie Bertie hadn’t made me pace myself in the first half.

I guess the only way to find out is to run another race.
And that’s exactly what I’m going to do.
Katie and I are booked on to the Petts Wood 10k, at 10.10am on the 10/10/10!

I guess I’ve really got the bug now!

Distance run (in miles): 6.2
Total miles this week: 20.5
Total miles for September: 29.6
Total since starting blog (21/6/10): 228.1

Countdown

Well, as I write there are only “two more sleeps” until my first charity race, the 10k Great Forest Run at Bedgebury, and I am feeling a little nervous. Not about the distance, as I know that will be no problem, but I really want to complete it in under 60 minutes and the pressure is on. My last three 10k training runs have all been sub-60, but I have since found out that the course at Bedgebury is very hilly, and that may possibly be my downfall… we’ll just have to see. I have my race number now: 5116. I prefer my numbers a little more symmetrical, but there you go.

The good news is that the fundraising has gone well, and my original tentative target of £200 pounds has been well and truly smashed, with the current total standing at £335. Thank you to everyone who has sponsored me!

Tomorrow I’m going to officially “rest” before my early start on Saturday morning, but here is how my last week of training has shaped up:


Saturday 4th September

Only time for a quick 5k (3.1 miles) run around Rochester and along the river, but disastrously I am feeling tired and out of sorts and the hills get the better of me. A terrible time of 29.52. Not good for my confidence at all.

The following evening is traditionally Sunday-evening-running-with-Anna, but unfortunately my jet-setting friend is in California this time, tackling Half Dome at Yosemite National Park and visiting San Francisco among other places. So I planned to go for a run by myself.

I really did.
But I fell asleep.
Oops.

This was not like me at all, but I think the six weeks’ school holidays just totally caught up with me and there was nothing I could do about it.


Monday 6th September

Zac went back to school this morning, and I’m not sure who was happier about that fact… him or me! School holidays are certainly tough on autistic children, who live and thrive on routine and structure.

So my day was spent trying to restore some sort of order to the house, after six weeks of chaos. In the evening I went to the gym for a quick 5k run on the treadmill. Better than nothing, I suppose.


Tuesday 7th September

Katie Burtonshaw, my official/unofficial training coach emailed me today, saying: "it's totally normal for you to feel absolutely crap this week. You will ache in places you've never ached before! You will start to think you are getting a cold, that you've got no energy etc etc but DON'T WORRY!! Try to relax and save as much energy as poss. You've done more than enough training... you can do the distance 'no probs' so we can now look forward to a run that is going to be really enjoyable, great fun and all for a very good cause."

Very reassuring, as I wasn’t feeling my best, especially after my disastrous run on Saturday, and my aborted run on Sunday!

So, back to the gym this morning, with Lily-Rose booked into the crèche, and my plan is to run 10k. Having been away from the crèche for 6 weeks, Lily-Rose is very unhappy to be left there and I feel quite guilty. And after running only 1 kilometre the crèche staff come and get me; she has worked herself up into such a state that she has been sick, and I have to take her home. (Of course, she is absolutely fine as soon as she sees me!)

I return to the gym in the afternoon for Luca’s swimming lesson, but there is not enough time for a run.

So, back to the gym for the THIRD time in the evening, and I finally get to run my 10k, in 58.02 (oh, how annoying those 2 seconds are!).


Thursday 9th September

My final training run before the actual race! I decide to run my 5 mile Viaduct route – a familiar, spectacular and very hilly circuit. Not the full 10k (6.2 mile) distance that I will be running on Saturday, but challenging enough all the same. I decide not to push myself too hard as I don’t want to get injured, so I stick to around 9.5 minute miles and complete the 5 miles in 48 minutes 11 seconds, and without slowing down or walking at all, which is good for me, on this particular route.


So that’s it! Training all done. A rest day tomorrow. And the big race on Saturday.

Full report on the race in my next blog post. And of course, it’s not too late to sponsor me, at www.justgiving.com/KatieBarrettRuns.


Distance run (in miles): Saturday 3.1, Monday 3.1, Tuesday 6.2, Thursday 5.0
Total mileage this week: 14.3
Total mileage for September: 23.4
Total since starting blog (21/6/10): 221.9

East, West, Home’s Best

Back from the Isle of Wight and the focus is on unpacking, washing clothes, unpacking, looking after children, unpacking, more washing, children, washing, unpacking and then some more unpacking (oh, and some more washing and unpacking).

But three weeks of excessive waffle-consumption and limited running opportunities also means the focus needs to be on getting in shape for my first 10k charity fund-raiser at Bedgebury on September 11th (www.justgiving.com/KatieBarrettRuns).

I have no worries at all about the distance, having now regularly run much further than 10k, but I do want to make good time, and am determined to do it in less than 60 minutes. So, it’s straight back into training…

Sunday 29th August

My friend Nigel, who is training for the Great North Run on 19th September, posted on Facebook today that he had just run 10k in 56 minutes. A challenge! I set off in the evening for the Millennium Walkway and the River Medway, determined to do as well (if not better).

I can’t believe how much I had missed my river! My sky, my sunset, my castle. I couldn’t stop smiling as I settled into the now familiar routine, even though this Sunday evening I was running Anna-less.

On the Isle of Wight I had achieved my first sub-60 10k time, at 57.25 (see my blog post: Steep), and I pushed myself hard to try and beat it. And I did! My new personal record for 10k is… 55.41. I was delighted to (just) beat Nigel’s time too, but keep reading… he soon got his revenge!

Monday 30th August

Another virtual race with Nigel – this is good for my motivation! I chose to run my 5 mile Viaduct route crossing the river on the M2 and Rochester Bridge. The run itself was uneventful, apart from a crazy cyclist nearly knocking me off my feet as he whizzed by, all in black, with no helmet, whilst chatting on his mobile phone! But once again I was so happy be reunited with all my familiar landmarks, from the awesome view of the Medway from the top of the viaduct, to the little number 8 etched into the concrete of a particular paving slab by Rochester Bridge!

5 miles (8.05km) completed in 47 minutes and 1 second, but Nigel triumphed this time with 8.23km in 46.02.

Wednesday 1st September

Just a small window of running opportunity this evening, so I decided to run my 5k circuit of Rochester taking in the castle and the Esplanade – a beautiful and speedy (but always hilly) run.

It had been an incredibly busy day, and I was very hungry, having not eaten for several hours, but consoled myself with the knowledge that a take-away curry from the amazing Shozna restaurant in Rochester was on the cards tonight. I had never run in a state of acute hunger before, but there really was no time to eat, and I thought that eating something immediately before a run was probably a bad idea, so I set off regardless.

Big mistake. A mile or so into the run I became extremely dizzy and faint to the point of almost passing out. Handily, I was right beside a bus-stop and collapsed onto the bench, my head between my knees. After several minutes I recovered enough to walk home, defeated, and feeling rather stupid.

I am never doing that again.

Thursday 2nd September

Number 2 son, Luca, went back to school today, but I won’t consider the school holidays truly over until Zac goes back on Monday. He was being looked after by his grandparents this morning, and Lily-Rose was with our au pair, so I had a chance to make up for last night’s aborted run. Feeling slightly nervous, but making sure I had a good breakfast (branflakes and a banana), I set off for my 5 mile Viaduct run again, but this time in reverse!

Usually my runs always end with the mile-long uphill slog back to my house, but this time I started in the opposite direction, running down the hill. I absolutely love running downhill as fast as I possibly can – it always makes me smile and it almost feels like flying. (Actually, paragliding off the top of a cliff in Queenstown, New Zealand, a few years back felt more like flying, but this is a pretty good feeling too!)

I paid for my fun later though, because reversing the route meant several incredibly steep uphills on the way to the Medway Viaduct. I just can’t win with the hills in Rochester! I completed the 5 miles in 48.54 – a slightly longer time than on Monday, but I’m not sure if that is due to reversing the route, or still being a little wobbly from last night.


Overall conclusion from these runs: there’s no place like my beloved Rochester, and it’s good to be home!

Distance run (in miles): Sunday 6.2, Monday 5, Wednesday 1, Thursday 5
Total mileage this week: 17.2
Total mileage for August: 66.4
Total mileage for September: 6.0
Total since starting blog (21/6/10): 204.5