Sunday 23 December 2012

Sunday 23rd December (Week 12)

Wow I'm shit at running. (Or just not very committed during the festive period). But hey-ho, at least I've got 14 weeks of time to prepare still..! I haven't run for about 10 days before today, or played football because of the awful weather. And I have eaten my weight in mince pies, cheese, burgers, chocolate and other shitty foods. I think my mind is feeling the pressure of having to run a marathon and taking it out on my stomach, forcing me to consume enough food for me to potentially go into hibernation for a few months. 

As expected, today's run was tough, but even tougher than expected which was annoying. May have to cut down on food consumption during Christmas and concentrate on exercising, dieting and minimising alcohol intake.

Bollocks to that.


Route for Monday Week 10: 5.11 miles, 45 minutes.
Estimated Marathon Completion Time: Probably somewhere around 51 hours 32 minutes and 5 seconds



If you do get given too much for Christmas, you can always donate some dollar to a very worthwhile cause...

Ali and Fiona run the Marathon!


Merry Christmas one and all! Hope you all get what you want from the big man. 



Wednesday 12 December 2012

Wednesday 12th December (Week 11)

Hello folks. Apologies for the (non-existent) updates recently, running has been going badly... I have run 4 miles in 9 days - that's an average of 0.44444444 miles a day. Shit eh?

Oh well, it's cold. And I'm busy doing fun things like jigsaws, watching tv and eating. Shit. I don't seem to be putting on weight though which is a good sign. Good metabolism n all. And I only have 10 days left of work. Woooooooo.

Tried a new route on Sunday after football was cancelled and I also had a running partner (who insisted on stopping to do star jumps every so often). Here some shots of the run:








That is all.

Monday 3 December 2012

Monday 3rd December (Week 10)

Playing football yesterday was a disaster - not in terms of exercise but in terms of pitch quality and inadequate refereeing. The pitch was so frozen that your studs couldn't get through, yet the ref seemed to think that it was "safe" (in his words). It was like playing on a mix of concrete and sheet ice and everytime you fell over/tried to make a tackle, the ground would cut up your legs. Despite the injuries obtained from yesterday, I man'd up and forced myself out this evening after a hard day at work. 

I went out today with no idea of where to go (again) or with any distance or time frame in mind. Started running though and soon I was running through the centre of Tunbridge Wells, when it occurred to me how many roads there are that I have no idea where they go. And that was it. My goal for the run was to explore. I felt good today and decided to take it slow and just listen to my music which was fun. This is where I'd like to introduce a new feature...


Running song of the week:




I would like you guys to help me come up with good running music for when I finally have to conquer this mission. Something bassy, dancy, cheesy, jazzy, anything that'll keep me smiling alert whilst I'm running!

But anyway, today was brilliant as I mentioned earlier. My breathing wasn't a problem, my legs weren't tired and most importantly it wasn't too cold or raining. 


I wore a much better choice of pants as I'm sure you were all dying to know; although I may invest in some 'actual' running pants in order to put an end to the chafing between my thighs. (After a quick googling, it appears that these are called compression shorts. If anyone has any experience in this subject, please contact me with some advice!)


I just kept running and running down roads I'd never seen before (until I got a little lost) and ended up breaking into double figures in mileage!



Today, I am proud to have run 10.34 miles (That's 16km!). Feel like I'm starting to get there now!

Here is my route if you care that much.


Route for Monday Week 10: 10.34 miles, 95 minutes.
Estimated Marathon Completion Time: Probably somewhere around 5 hours 42 minutes and 56 seconds





So yeah, pretty happy folks! Decided to celebrate with this beast:




Jealous?

Sunday 2 December 2012

Hospice In The Weald

139 days to go! Crazy eh?! Not a running update today but just to let you all know that the fundraising will be starting soon; we have set up our Virgin Marathon Just Giving page and we would appreciate all donations! We are running for Hospice In The Weald which is a small charity based in Tunbridge Wells. Follow the link to the website if you want to know more, but it's for a good cause.



This one is our donations page; again feel free to visit it but not very exciting at the moment! It will start to get more exciting as we get nearer the event.




I will be setting up a few things for you guys to participate in, it won't be too costly and you may have a chance to win some goodies!

Running again tomorrow so expect an update soon.

LOVE

Wednesday 28 November 2012

Wednesday 28th November (Week 9)

Good evening world. 

This morning was a bad morning. I went to bed late last night after an evening at the Amex eating pie and watching kickball, setting my alarm for 6 this morning...

I decided that it's about time I started running in the light as that is when I will actually be DOING the mission. I came up with the idea of running before work; not sure why I went for today, but so so...

Turns out it's STILL not light at half 6! Anyway, getting up was horrendous (but helped by good ol' Radio 6). I managed another 5(ish) miles this morning but it was freezing and it made it hard to breathe; it also didn't help that I barely had dinner last night OR breakfast before I went, so my sugar levels were low and the "passing-out" feeling was looming over me. DON'T WORRY GUYS, I DIDN'T 


Route for Wednesday Week 9: 4.89 miles, 45 minutes.
Estimated Marathon Completion Time: Probably somewhere around 6 hours





On another note, I'd like to mention yet another item of clothing that does not suit running of my standard. If any of you own a Prostar baselayer, do NOT wear it running. I felt like a right tw** as it rides up your belly rolls abs and ends up quite tight around belly button height, thus reducing the ability to breathe. On top of the cold weather, this is not something that you want... 

I took this picture of myself (ahem) wearing said garment:




And a photo without it for Alex Durrant:




Monday 26 November 2012

Week's 8 and 9

HELLO! 

I'd like to apologise profusely for the lack of 'action' on the blog. It's been partly due to the laziness of myself and the other part due to my extremely busy schedule. This weekend I had a very important meeting with a Christmas market in Nottingham and last week I was just plain old lackadaisical...

The weekend was fun though; sorted all Christmas presents bar one.., ate lots of tasty food, got a little tiddly after half a bottle of wine, half watched a film, ate lots of sweets, had 3 poo's, went to the cinema, almost bought another onesie, ate horrible risotto then good cheesecake, and drove around 400 miles. 

I also got to see this lovely site, and then again in about 30 freeze frame slowmo photo's on my phone...


I was also shown round an exhibition at Nottingham contemporary which was pretty cool. It was full of lots of sequinned flags and paintings from Haiti about voodoo and the history of Haiti. This was one of the coolest pieces:


And there was a sculpture that represented a man giving birth. SCARY SHIT.

But anyway, I know why you guys followed the link, you all want to know how I'm doing right?!

Well..

I ran once last week, on Wednesday - a big one. It hurt quite a lot actually; fortunately no pant problems then though. Here is my route:


Route for Wednesday Week 8: 8.07 miles, 75 minutes.
Estimated Marathon Completion Time: Maybe under 6 hours



So yeah, not bad eh. 

And then moving on to this week, I have been out tonight after 5 days of no exercise. I seem to have been smoking in my sleep or someone has been shrinking my lungs whilst I'm not looking... I CAN'T BREATHE AGAIN. Fuck. Maybe I just need to go out more often. But anyway, I managed 4 and a half so not all bad. But I MUST get myself out there more often this week (please stop raining and being cold). Here is my route anyway:


Route for Monday Week 9: 4.48 miles, 40 minutes.
Estimated Marathon Completion Time: Probably somewhere around 6 hours



Oh and I forgot to mention, my pants were yet again the wrong choice (apparently). I'm not going to photograph these ones though I'm afraid as they are currently sweaty and disgusting...(unless I get any special requests). My "inner-thighs" feel like they've been scraped by sandpaper over and over. Think I need to buy more Vaseline. 

Well for now, that's all folks...

Actually, I have one more special feature for you guys this week as I found these lovely photo's:


Isn't she just beautiful?!

PEACE OUT CHUMS xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Wednesday 14 November 2012

Wednesday 13th November (Week 7)

Hello friends. I am great, thanks for asking. The running is getting easier by the day. Taking a day off today to rest my legs for football tomorrow, but managed 6 and a half miles yesterday. Here is my route:


Route for Tuesday Week 7: 6.56 miles, 60 minutes.
Estimated Marathon Completion Time: Maybe under 6 hours



I've decided that I would like some more support with my running, so I am going to be asking for advice for a new blog "feature", which will start in a couple of weeks time.. I would also appreciate people honking me/shouting at me when I'm running - supportive and constructive criticism only please.

Au revoir for now mes amis.








Monday 12 November 2012

Monday 12th November (Week 7)

So I'm now 7 weeks in. Crazy! Struggled with another week without running but so so...

Another trip to Nottingham though which was FUNNN; I saw Father Christmas, his reindeer and a lady ironing steak and ate my weight's worth of wagamama's, pizza express and roast dinners. I did take my running gear with me but didn't manage a run - mainly due to the shitty feeling in my belly.

But I digress...

Here is a hilarious shot of a reindeer and a photo of Father Christmas and his "helpers":


We also went to a Performance Art evening which was interesting to say the least. There was a cheap bar, a room where you had to throw shots of white lightning at cardboard triangles, a lady with a standing outside with a cone on her head, people drawing, a band who faced backwards but had masks on the back of their heads, a man playing a banjolele singing about werewolves, a lady forcing herself to drink salty milk so she threw up everywhere whilst staring at the audience and forcing them to eat gingerbread, and my favourite: a lady dancing and ironing steak. Her she is in all her glory:

Back to the running...

Today I thought I'd struggle but not too bad. Back to the usual 5 or so miles. Need to keep on top of it this week! The trainers are doing wonders for my feet it seems.


Route for Monday Week 7: 4.78 miles, 45 minutes.
Estimated Marathon Completion Time: Maybe under 6 hours


Monday 5 November 2012

Sunday 4th November (Week 5)

Evening all. Running this afternoon was tough as expected. The copious amounts of fast food that has passed my lips in the last 2 weeks has undoubtedly had an effect to the rate at which I am running. This run did however give me a chance to test out the new gear!



Yesterday I decided that it was about time to buy some ACTUAL running shoes...

And here they are, say hello to my Brooks Ghost 5 Trainers (they even sound cool)



They were a bit pricey though and wangled a deal with my running partner in order to accept them as an early Christmas present. Tidy.

Next item of the new gear, a new baselayer. With the evenings getting darker (well daylight being non-existent), I have purchased a fluorescent one. Nike n all.


Yeah. I do look good in it.

And a fluorescent hat...


And finally, an armstrap for my phone. This has now become an essential item as I cannot hear my breathing and can listen to some music to take my mind off of the running:


I got very excited about wearing all my new bits and a little hesitant about actually going running. I did eventually manage to force myself outside in the cold and it resulted in a shattering 4 mile run. Not bad I suppose considering my lack of effort over the last two weeks. 

Felt a bit like this though:



Need to up ma game from now on. This week will hopefully bring a couple more runs, maybe I'll try a different route, in a different place...

And here's my route for those that care!

Route for Sunday Week 5: 4.14 miles, 35 minutes.
Estimated Marathon Completion Time: Maybe under 6 hours!




On another note, I am currently selling a couple of bits on eBay. If anybody would like to purchase/bid on any of the items below, I (and Larry) would be eternally grateful!

Thanking you in advance...



Sunday 4 November 2012

Week's 4 and 5

Sorry for the lack of update folks; been a busy couple of weeks. Unfortunately the running has not been going as well as I'd have like it to, but hey-ho...

The last couple of weeks have been fun though; a trip to London, gig in Nottingham, cake baking, an evening at the Amex and a hell of a lot of fast food. I definitely feel the need to get back into the exercise regime.

Oh and a tattoo!

I have discovered that I have a talent for baking. CHECK THESE OUT



Then we took a road trip to Nottingham. Caroline had never had a Burger King before so bought 2...


And then we saw Clock Opera in the evening; they were so SO GOOD


And to finish it off Lokamotiv Simmonds managed their first clean sheet of the season with a stunning 0-0 draw with Ramsey, so we went for celebratory drinks to discuss next week and cage-fighting chickens.


With regards to the running (and purpose of this blog), I am going out this afternoon for a run, I will update you AVID readers when I am back...


Sunday 21 October 2012

Sunday 21st October (Week 3)

With the prospect of playing no football over the weekend and the lack of a certain person being around (still), I turned my attention to sleeping... with a bit of running on the side. Friday night was a write off however as I was invited out on the town with the Simmonds crew for some end of week drinks. I think Julie was competing with everyone else with the drinking as this photo shows:



But anyway, Saturday brought us the visit of Middlesbrough...

Yep, I'll move on...

And Sunday, running had to be met with pride... and it was! A nice 10 hour lie in and I was ready and raring to go. The weather was beautiful: light rain and a reasonable wind, perfect for a jog (pronounced yog). After a little stretch, I began running, having no idea of where I wanted to go or how long I wanted to take. With QPR v Everton on TV, I didn't mind being out for a while...

But today was very successful, I just kept going! For miles! 

And it appears that I passed people I knew today (nothing like a bit of encouragement)...

  • Hi Andy and Karen, I didn't see you, but thanks for waving.
  • Hi Man in Orange Mini, thanks for the support and the wave and honk, but I didn't see who you were.
  • Hi People on Speldhurst Hill, I'm sorry for running past your pub on a Sunday afternoon, thanks for the advice/abuse (not sure which it was).

But yes; the running was sublime. 8 miles, 95 minutes. Really bloody sore now though... not my legs but my shoulders, apparently running is all in the arms...

After the love I received after the last edit, I have brought you this lovely picture... it's from the thoughts I had today about the worrying prospect of having to wee/poo during the marathon...


I should probably go before I start running, and avoid a Vindaloo the night before...

Anyway, as always:


Route for Wednesday Week 3: 8.07 miles, 95 minutes.
Estimated Marathon Completion Time: 5 hours 30 mins (fingers crossed)


Wednesday 17 October 2012

Wednesday 17th October (Week 3)

I got a little worried yesterday... I had plan to run around 3 miles just to loosen the legs up but could barely do that. Breathing was all wrong, did not feel comfortable and had to retire after just 20 mins...

And worst of all, I got overtaken by an electric wheelchair...

But anyway, I decided that I needed to prove to myself that I am still up to this marathon task (ha) and today was the day to get back on schedule. I was still a little overwhelmed at how far I had managed to run on Monday of this week - smashing my 4 mile target.

The hardest bit today was getting out the house, with temperatures of 7 degrees outside (now it doesn't sound so cold... but it was!). Alas, today was the smoothest run yet. I feel great. Felt like I could have doubled my distance and very proud of myself!

This is me completing my run today...




Route for Wednesday Week 3: 5.36 miles, 50 minutes.
Estimated Marathon Completion Time: Maybe under 6 hours!



Monday 15 October 2012

Monday 15th October (Week 3)

After a shattering weekend of football including a trip to prison, the running must continue...

I took to the streets of Tunbridge Wells today in the hope of beating the 4 mile mark (and all of my previous efforts). However, struggling with injuries from the weekend, I was sore. Really sore. A whopping bruise on my thigh, did not help with the pressure of running.


The running was OK though! Got into it and tried a different route; really regret choosing to run UP Major York's Road to finish though. Finally starting to actually enjoy it now, just need to keep it up... 

I'm starting to think that it may be wise to purchase some ACTUAL running shoes now because as cool as I look in my pink and black astro's, they are starting to produce little blisters on my toes...

They'll do for now I'm sure.

Route for Monday Week 3: 4.99 miles, 45 minutes.
Estimated Marathon Completion Time: 6 hours



Thursday 11 October 2012

Blackhorse FC 1 - 2 Lokamotiv Simmonds

Ali Jones scored a stunning winner as Lokamotiv brought their losing streak to an end, denying Blackhorse F.C. their third win of the season.
Table prior to Kick Off
A string of top-class saves from Sam Roberts kept Blackhorse at bay after Alex Carl squeezed his shot past the Blackhorse keeper to put Lokamotiv ahead. A domination of possession kept Lokamotiv on top and Ali Jones missed several chances to double the lead.
Going into the break Lokamotiv looked the much better side, creating the most chances and controlling the game. Unfortunately due to missing key players like Johnny Waters and Laurence Ford, Lokamotiv were lacking in fitness (and substitutes). In the second half, things took a turn and Blackhorse equalised due to some sloppy defending from Rob Jones. They continued to pile on the pressure and had plenty of shots at the keeper, but Roberts was proving impossible to beat. 
In the closing stages of the game, Lokamotiv resorted to pumping the ball forwards - Reece Crowhurst and Callum Funnell pushing on to support the stranded Jones. Against the run of play, Lokamotiv created a corner which proved to be the decisive moment. A dummy run to the back post and a quick change of direction shocked the Blackhorse defense as Carl drilled in the ball for Jones to volley home past the keeper.
A win could lift Simmonds off the bottom this week on goal difference and may provide the confidence that they have lacked so far this season.
Match Facts:
Goals: A. Jones & A. Carl
Player Ratings (out of 10): Roberts (11), Crowhurst (9), Funnell (9), R. Jones (2.5), A. Carl (9), A. Jones (9)

Wednesday 10 October 2012

Wednesday 10th October (Week 2)

BOOM

Wasn't meant to run today according to the schedule but football tomorrow night so thought I'd try and cure the burning calves and go for it again. 

3.3 miles - much much better. Actually solid running for 30 minutes; have a feeling I may be more sore tomorrow though...

Route for Wednesday Week 2: 3.30 miles, 30 minutes.
Estimated Marathon Completion Time: 6 hours



P.S If anyone is interested in my pants "situation", Calvin Kleins today - worked a treat. (Also a quick thank you to Callum Funnell for the Vaseline suggestion - magic!)



Tuesday 9 October 2012

Tuesday 9th October (Week 2)

So training week 1 was a bit of a disaster... 

With it being the same week as the release of Fifa '013, it became increasingly difficult to become motivated. I managed to scoop myself out of my slumber for one night only, forcing myself to at least go for a walk. This wasn't too unsuccessful as I managed to walk around 3 miles. What I didn't realise was that it actually feeling cold outside, does not mean wrap up like it's -10. With my t-shirt-sweatshirt-jacket-scarf-hat combination, I baked. I mean REALLY baked. It wasn't just the top half, wearing jeans is a bad move (some seriously unwanted constriction, where you do not want it)

Lesson 1: Don't wear too many clothes - it's warm when you move around!
Lesson 2: Jeans are constricting around certain areas.

So anyway, back to week 2...

According to the schedule, I should be running/walking for 20 minutes. I decided that this would be too easy for me as I play football twice a week and can't be THAT unfit...

I chose my outfit sensibly for running this time: a t-shirt (and baselayer), shorts and these baby's:



My aim was to have a 5 minute warm up walk and then run as long as I could, just to see how far I could go. Now having a style of football that's comparable to Andres Iniesta, I assume that I run about as much as him in one game. Google informs me that this is around 7 miles. 

This should be a piece of p***...

WRONG.

Absolutely loved the walking, got right into it - even managed a power walk for a couple of minutes. As soon as the running started, I was still ok. About 2 minutes in and I was flying; I felt like I was going to finish a double marathon in world record time at that point. How wrong was I?

After 15 minutes of running, I began to tire. And there was this "pain" between my legs...

Turns out I didn't choose ALL the right clothes for running, and that pant-choice is very important. 

If anyone has pants like these, do not even contemplate wearing them for running.



Lesson 3: Wear good pants. Frictions burns are sore down there.

My run soon changed back into a gentle stroll for a couple of minutes to let my legs "cool down". Nevertheless, I was up and running shortly after and managed another 20 minutes running home to complete day one of my mission. 

Glad that it was over though.

Route for Tuesday Week 2: 3.98 miles, 40 minutes. 
Estimated marathon completion time: 6 hours


The Plan!

As some of you may be aware, I will not be doing this alone. My partner is none other than my mother...

She seems a little/lot more into the whole preparation than I am - looking up best training regimes that fit into our timetables and planning what clothes to wear; whereas I was just planning on going running occasionally and relying on my already top notch levels of fitness. 

Anyway, we (mum) have (has) found a "'Beginner's Guide to the Marathon". It consists of a 24 week training schedule starting with walking/gentle jogging 3 nights a week, then building up to running for longer and longer. The longest we are meant to run is 20 miles, 3 weeks before the big day. 

Can't be hard, surely? 


Mum's Training - a little more organised than mine; even includes notes to say how long she ran/walked for!




My regime:



Doesn't look like much right...?