final day of Janathon 2012 a Sprint finish

Its amazing what a few hours off can do. Yesterdays run was early morning todays early evening. The first 3.7 miles was with the juniors. And that warmed me up. The othe 6,5 was with the adults an I ran really well and comfortably. So thats it. Its all over for an other year191 miles of running.happy with that. Well done every one who took part and thanks Cathy for organising it again

#penultimateJanathon

By gum that did come round quick. Cant wait for the first day without running. Which incidently wont be Wednesday it will be Friday because of running clubs.Today how ever marked my most miles a month of running. As the darts announcer would say One Hundred And Eighty . Im pleased with that. Thete are some good runners on that leaderboard. Hundreds of miles have been run and we still have a day left.
Well done everone.

I am mainly out of shot but anyway here it is

Day 29 Janathon. All that jazz

Last night was the Ripon Runners annual awards evening and dinner. Part of the evening was a spot of entertainment, and I was a member of the dance troupe. we have been practising twice a week since Jan 5th. I can not lie, I have found it difficult, no natural rhythm, dont know my left from my right and a mass dose of self-consciousness. Against all odds I finally picked up the moves.
Preping for last night was not simple. My dance outfit was black underwear, (fake stocking style tights, black lacetrimmed body shaper shorts and a black boned basque. a top hat and feather boa) my dress was white and so I could not wear my outfit underneath. So I set off with a carrier bag with my dance outfit in ready to change in the loo after the presentations.
I was getting really nervous as I ate my meal and throughout the presentations It always took at least 3 run throughs before I got it right.
All too soon we were all in the loo getting changed. The plan was to come out and cavort around the blokes sat at the tables working our way to the dance floor. I was 4 th out and was shocked to see that there were very few blokes at the tables only women, the men were crowding the bar which was not even in view of the dance floor, any way I spotted two fellas one to wrap my boa around and one to put my hat on. then I was on the dance floor finding my position, near the bar door in line with a particular flag stone, the music started and I went into automatic pilot as we performed. It went very smoothly. and by the encore I was really enjoying it.
Dont really know how the audience found it, people kept saying how brave we were, would have prefered brilliant or even just good. Its hard to workout what they meant by brave.
I had my camcorder set up but the quality is not great, very dark and now I cant get it to upload, fortunately it was positioned in a way that rarely got me in shot.
Today, I had a lie in 7 am, after brekkie and messing with computer trying to upload video, unsucssessflly, I went out for a bike ride, no route planned I just went. I went on the old cronk ( fake mountain bike) as it was Icy. I biked over 40 miles and when I got home I took Jed for a dogjog.
41 miles biked
3 miles dogjogged
as the end of Janathon approaches.

#Janathon day 28. mental run

If you follow my blog you will realise that its not very interesting of late. I am tired, physically and mentally so I dont have a great imagination at the moment.
Todays run was planned a couple of weeks ago. 16 miles. Saturday instead of Sunday because its the running club annual dinner tonight.
Legs just were not playinf
g plus it was icy. Running on icy paths is energy sapping and we had to walk a couple of downhills for health and safety reasons. At around 9 miles I started to plan finishing at 12 miles as that would be near home.
The I thought "thats not an Iron attitude, get a grip and get on with it. If you cant do this you'll never do Outlaw" So I carried on and did 16 slow miles.
Tonight I am performing a dance at the running club dinner with 5 other girls. It should be funny. I am not at all graceful. So Id best go get ready and perhaps sqeeze one more practise in
Will blog about it tomorrow x

#Janathon day 27 here cones the weekend

At last, its here. Its felt long but flown. I have been so busy this week and am planning my equally busy weekend as I type. I have run and swum and cycled as well as danced and walked. As well as work and drama and sports massage. Ive only just had time to sleep and not had time for meals but I made it through.
The weekends going to be busy too. A run in the morning followed by a visit to mum and then prepare for my dance debut at the running club annual dinner. Sunday is cycle visit and work preparation.
Since they say that there is no rest for the wicked.
I must be incredibly WICKED

Day 26 Janathon got to dance

Started with a 2 mile dogjog in case I couldnt get to training because of dance practice. By tea time It was clear that dance and run training would ckash so I ate my tea quickly and went for a run. As I set of I decided i might as well do some training rather than just a run. I headed to landrover Hill a local hill that is about a third of a mile long. I did 6 hard efforts up with relaxed downs then ran home. 4.5 miles in the bag.
Got home 10 mins before my lift. Tonight was the final dance rehearsal so we went to the venue to get the feel of the placeI am not a dancer, I have never performed in front of anyone since I was a child. This will be as big a challenge as anything I have ever done, performing a dance at the running club annual dinner on Saturday.k

tired

Everything is taking its toll now. Loads to do at work, Mum, training, home life and Janathon. So tired that when I went upstairs to get dressed this morning I actually crawled back into bed for 3/4 hour.
I did finally get a grip of myaelf and geup. Abusy day at work was followed by school running club. 9 kids this week.
Then rush home got changed ate toast and jumped on old cronky bike to go fossage.
I cant remeber feeling so relaxed for weeks. Then cycle to drama and eventually home.
Home at last. Shattered but logged and blogged.
Night all.

#Janathon day 24 run run run

Well another busy day fir me, but hey whats new. Ended up running late for Juniors so had to run there, then we took the youngsters out for a run before going out ourselves. 9.6 miles under the belt.
We are heading for the last week of this years Janathon and it doesnt get any easier.

#Janathon day 23 Monday comes round quick

Where does the weekend go. It seems to fly by, in fact the weeks fly by too. Sign of age I suppose.When I was a kid, next week was ages away. Next week will will see the end of Janathon 2012 so Id best get a grip and get some miles in. Todays effort was a 3 mile dogjog and a 1300 yd swim.

Janathon day 22 Brass Monkey Half Marathon.

Today was the 30th Brass Monkey Half Marathon, this was to be my 100 th race since I started running just over 5 years ago. Last time I did this race (2010) I prepped for it, carbing and tapering then just before 8 miles I hit a pothole badly and sprained my ankle. I ran through the pain and shocked myself by completing it in 2:02:42 but could not run properly for a month. This year I have run everyday this month, plus done extra training for Outlaw Triathlon am not sleeping well, due to Mum being ill and my nutrition is pretty hit and miss. So I decided to treat it as a training run. I got up this morning and its blowing a howler. York is flat and the course is open, Challenging. The wind was blowing hard in our faces and into our sides for the majority of the race and being big meant there was not much oppertunity to hide behind others. The wind was so strong it was blowing me sideways at times. My plan was to do 3 miles steady, 3 miles hard, 3miles steady , 4 miles hard. I stuck with it and was pleasently surprised to finish in 2:02:35. A course best by 7 seconds. There were quite a few Ripon Runners racing and all seemed to have good races despite the weather. Special mention goes to Caroline who came to support us and walked 3 miles along the course to cheer us on, then walked back to cheer us to the finish. Also Vicky my running and racing parter who has had a fantastic year with pb after pb. To day she did sub 2hr fothe first time. Annette ans Sherrie are both quite new to Ripon Runners and they completed their first ever Half Marathon in 2:9 and 2:5 respectively.

#Janathon day 21 getting carried away

Taoee abd Janathon dont exactly go together. I'm racing tomorrow, the Brass Monkey half marathon. It starts at 10 am, so I went out for a mile just after 7 this morning. I set off at a comfortable pace and before I knew it Id done 3. Oops hope it doesnt affect tomorrows race. I have managed to do it so I have over 24 hrs between runs. Went to visit Mum today she seemed to re ognise me. She is progressing slowly which is good. I told her she needed to be better by 19 June to see me carry the torch. 10 days of Janathon left. Its flying by.

#Janathon day 20 taper

One other thing that I find difficult about Janathon is racing. Taper is particularly dificult. Part of me wants to run miles and miles to get up the leader board. But my sensible head is saying rest. The happy medium is run a little on the days before to save some energy whilst still fullfilling Janathon commitments. Hence another short run today and significantly less mileage than last week Sunday is the Brass Monkey half marathon at York.

#Janathon day 19 sleep needed

Felt dreadful all day. Slept less than 2 hours last niggt. I expected to do badly at training. But I did well. It was 6 min efforts with 2.5 rest. It was tough but It was a good session. Afterwards was dance practice. I need more of that. I dont think Im quite as slick as the others yet. Anyway 5.77 miles in the bag

#Janathon day 18. another day over

Still going. I think I have blogged this before. Tje hardest bit of Janathon is not running everyday, its not normally logging. (I've had trouble getting on the site today) or even reading and commenting on other peoples blogs,its the blogging. Trying to think what to write, trying to find the time. I run and think of clever things to write then get home and my brain goes blank. Today was another busy day. Work swim drama group. Im not long in and bed is calling. School running club is coming alobg. 10 members now, and they say they love it. Bonus.

#janathon day 17. get it in when you can

To start the day I did a short sharp turbo followed by a dogjog. Then it was just the same old, same old. Work and then dash in get changed and get Jed walked ( wish we had a garden)dash back home, feed Jed , pick up training stuff and dash off to running club juniors. After Juniors it was running club, then home, phone hubby (working away) and bath. Its now gone 9 and soon it will be bedtime. Ive jogged (twice) logged and blogged. "yawn" soon be all tucked up in bed. Janathon 17 done.

#Janathon day 16, Ooh! EXCITING

We are more than halfway through Janathon now and I'm still going strong. I'm in the top ten for running distance, so I'm happy with that. Todays effort was not massive, another DogJog but it all adds up. Now thats not very interesting you say, you always run but here is why I am all excited today. Yesterday evening I had a phone call from someone from Lloyds TSB she said they now had a place for me on the Olympic Torch bearing relay team and would send the details in an email today. I was itching to scream it from the rooftops but thought Id best double check the email. I was so excited when it arrived, they are holding a relay position for me somewhere on 19 June when the torch travels from Hull to York and passes through Ripon. I hope it is for Ripon but I will be proud to carry it wherever. I have to complete a series of paperwork (which I am currently scanning to email back to them) and undergo some background checks. Then the final list will come out in March with where everyone will run. Soo Excited :-)

#Janathon day 15 almost failed

Today was busy and I nearly ran our of time to run. Original plan was go for a bike ride and follow it with a run. Hubby however wanted to go sofa shopping. So no bike ride. Got to Harrogate at 10:00 to find the shop we wanted was not open till 12:00. Ended up wandering around the few shops that were open. At midday we went to the sofa shop. Found the sofa we liked but when we measured it it was too big for our livibg room. So we came home. I had dance practice at 2:00 so no time for a run. Dance practice ran over so Hubby was grumpy cos he held tea off waiting for me. So I waited for tea to settle and just went for a quickie. 2.2 miles. Today is now my unplanned rest day.

#Janathon day 14, Chubby rub :-(

Got up early because I wanted to do at least 15 miles. I knew it was cold and was worried about slippy surfaces. Fortunately it was very dry so no ice. The sky was clear and there was salt in the air as gritters passed.it had the makings of a good run. I had a varied route of hills and flat, town and country. Keeping the pace down was not an issue today, I kept my heart rate in zone 2, the only time my Garmin buzzed for high heartrate was going up hill so I ignored it then. I am a hot runner. I like winter running because I overheat in summer but today I was cold through to the bone for the whole run. Wish Id put gloves and a thermal on. When I got home it took ages to warm up enough befote I could get in the bath. And even when I did get in, the water cooled quick when I put my cold body in it. It was very stingy getting in the bath because wearing running tights that are now too large meant they had chaffed my inner thighs otherwise known as Chubby Rub. Anyone who has had this issue will appreciate how painful getting in a bath can be. Best thing for chubby rub is germaline. Sorts it in no time. Need to chuck those running tights out. Managed 16.62 miles in 3 hr 14 min. Very happy. That is 5:14 marathon pace.

#Janathon 13. A good day

Today is the day that many are afraid of. To me 13 is just a nimbe that follows 12 and precedes 14. I do have superstitions nut not that, Friday 13 th is normally a good day. Its Friay after all. So today started well. I awoke before the alarm and took Jed for a DogJog. 3.61 miles. Not fast but it was nice on a cold crisp morning. When I got home there was a text from my sister saying mum hsd had a comfortable night and had slept well. This afternoon I got a phonecall whilst at work. It was my sister. My heart raced and I was reluctant to answer the phone, she normally texts updates on Mum. Last time she was in HDU she got an infection and went downhill fast. I answered the call and my sister told me that Mum was to be moved onto a normal ward and that they are thinking of removing the trachiostomy. That is such good news. Another step on the right direction. After work was the swim training. Tough but I love it. I can feel it improving my stroke and speed. So today Friday 13th was a good day for me. Hope everyone else had a good day too x :-)

#Janathon day 12 Happy with that

This morning was an early start windy weather disturbed my sleep again so got up and did a quick 30 min turbo. Thought I might as well as I was up. Thenit was the usual routine of the day. Running club was training night. Hills, was way easier than Saturday. I felt strong the whole session and no annoying niggles. At last I felt good running again. Gotta be happy with that :-)

#Janathon day 11 rest day!

Today is rest day. It is also running club day at school. Club has been slow to get going but I now have 6-8 runners. Tonight there were 6. 4 boys and 2 girls. The other adult and I decided to take them out on the streets. I cannot run as fast as the fastest bous but I instructed them to wait or run back at busy road junctions. Which they did. Their behaviour was exemplary. They were incredibly mature. All had a good time. When I got home I took Jed for a dogjog. Just a couple of miles to tire him a bit. Mum update: No real change but that in itself is good. Janathon miles today 4.5 Janathon is going well and I am enjoying reading peoples blogs.

#Janathon day 10 The return of routine

Today I felt a sense of normality again with the usual rush from work to walk the dog and get to club to take the juniors out. We ran a mile and then set up a sprint session. Afrerwards we ran back. We have some really tallented youngsters in our group of 23. Later after lots of announcements we adults had our run. I went with my usual group and led them for 6 miles around the town. The downside of living in a small town is its not much more the 6 miles around the outskirts. So ten days in and 8 more miles under my belt.

#Janathon day 9 First day back at work

First day back at work today with a late finish. Needed to get run done early so went for a dogjog. Jed was a pain stopping more than usual. But its done now. Lots to do, dance practice tonight hsve a good day everyone.

#Janathon day 8 nearly forgot to blog

Started the day with a dog walk as a warm up then a long run. Aimed for 10. Managed 13. Bonus. Back in August I started my NCFE level 2 sports coach. After my holiday before school started I got loads done. But once back at work I never seemed to have time. I planned to finish it these holidays but what with one thing and another it did not get done. Over the last week I did I have done little bits. I am back at work tomorrow and I had promised I would get it finished. So this afternoon was lost to the laptop, and 1/2 an hour ago I finally submitted the last assessment. Just need to wait till its marked to see if Ive passed. Fingers crossed. I shut down the laptop and realised that I had forgotton to blog.

#janathon day 7. tri club double session

Started day with a visit to Mum. She was much briter today, her eyes were open and she was communicating with head movements. This afternoon was a club training session. Starting at a local school we ran to a hill, warmed up then ran up and down it for 15 mins. I managed 6 reps. Leg was a bit niggly. Then we ran back to the school for a swim session. Was a little worried that leg would not like swimming but it did and the swim session went wel. A mix of leg and arm drills with some 400yd repeats thrown in. Oh by I enjoyed my tea tonight. Not massive distances but massive effort. Run 4.53 miles Swim 2040 yds Week one Janathon , Done :-)

#Janathon day 6 Getting it over and done with.

Last nights dancing seems to have kept my leg well stretched. It was a little achy when I woke. But by the time I set off on my dogjog it felt normal. The first 1/2 mile I could feel my achilles but then I totally forgot about it and enjoyed my early morning run. Today should be a rest day for me so a short early run gives me the rest of the day as rest and its over 24 hrs until run and swim training tomorrow afternoon. I am writing this whilst on the 36 bus going to Leeds to visit Mum. Mums op went well last night so we can start moving forwards again.

#Janathon day 5 better late than never

Today has been a challenge. I planned to swum at 9 followed by a turbo session but my son had bike issues. His had broken disc brakes so was using my old cronk. That had three punctures and he was now late for work. I tried to help but stuffed his brakes further. Whilst he was sorting punctures. I had to give in and call the local bike shop Moonglu and book it in. Thank goodness they could fit it in and I finally headed for my swim at 11 taking his bike to the shop on the way. When I returned from my 50 lengths it was lunch time so I never turboed till 3. Plan said 45 mins at heart rate zone 1 but I only did 35 mins. My heart wasnt in it today. Then tonight was running club training so I never got to see Mum today. It took 7 hours yesterday for 1.5 hr visit using the bus. My sisters went though. Unfortunately all is not well with mum she is back in intesive care and needs another op. Tonights training session was followed by a dance session. That was not as bad as anticipated. So Im just home now. Its been a long and difficult day today but Janathon was completed with a swim bike and run. All logged and now blogged. Night all x

#Janathon day 4 unhappy achilles

Went for my long run today, only it wasnt as long as Id hoped. The weather was rotton. Windy and wet but thought I was doing ok till about 7.5 miles when it suddenly felt like hard work. I persisted though. Unfortunately at around 10 miles my calf/ achilles started to hurt, I was nearly home so I slowed down. I cant believe it, I have lost so much endurance over the last few weeks of only doing short runs, initially due to my calf injury and then a cold then family commitments. Outlaw training will be even tougher now. I was thinking my natural endurance was my advantage but now its gone it will be like starting over again. Hope the calf dettles again soon. Total distance today 10.87 miles

#Janathon day 3 do all three

Day three calls for all three disciplines I'll need for Outlaw. So today I hsve cycled 25 miles, swum 1 mile and run 3.6 miles. A good day really. Also good news about Mum moving out of intensive care. Shes still quite poorly on the High Dependancy Unit. But to say that this time last week she was having an op with only a less than 50 % chance of survivalthings are looking up. I always thought I got my determination from my Dad. But maybe I got a double share because my Mum is one determined woman. Thats all I have to say today.

Janathon day 2 Its good to be home

Today I have decided to Jog Blog then Log ( what a rebel). Today started a long time ago, or so it seems. I woke up wide awake to a light room. But it wasnt morning it was London liggt pollution. It was 4:15 am. We had an early start planned to avoid the congestion charge, so I got up. We were out of London by 6:00 and at Leeds General Infirmary just after 9:00. It was a shock seeing Mum like that. As if she is sleeping but with tubes everywhere. There was no change from Yesterday but no deterioration either. We stayed a while then continued home via the supermarket. We unpacked then went to collect Jed from kennels. He was so pleased to see us bouncing around like Zebedee. When we got home hubby said lets not bother going for a run we could just sit and watch telly. Tempted as I was I told him he could if he wanted but I was going for a run. I went to get changed and when I got downstairs hubby was changed too. We didnt have time for a long one as I wanted so we had a fast hilly one instead. On return I got on the bike for a turbo session, 1 hour at 90 rpm cadence was my plan. And I achieved it. I have just refueled with a roast dinner and am sat watching Avatar drinking coffee aaahhhhh!!! (sigh) it has been a busy day

Janathon day 1

I am in London for the New Year celebrations. Its a bit odd because I aught not have come really. On Tuesday, shortly after my 99th race since I started running, I got a phone call telling me my Mum was on her way to hospital after collapsing with a suspected stroke. After hours of surgery she was critical but stable. It was decided that since there was little I could do it would be best to carry on with our plans and my sisters would keep me updated. So here I am in London. A nice place to start Janathon 2012. Last night we went to the crack comedy club and so we we behind the London eye for the fireworks. We had a lovely evening when the police herded us away from Tower Bridge where we are staying. They refused to let us through even when we said we were walking (Its only 2.5 miles). We were herded to Waterloo station where we managed to get down a side street and work our way back to the hotel. Goodness knows how far we walked. This morning I slept late and didnt get up until 7:45. I had wanted a long run but now did not have time so I ran to Tower Bridge then to Westminster Bridge and back again. So 5.6 miles in a surprisingly quick for me 53 mins. We have spent the day walking again. We went to Trafalgar Square and back. Mum is improving slowly will go see her on the way home tomorrow