Thursday 26 February 2009

Day 139: running substitute.

20 minutes of cross-trainer last night at the gym. Rather boring and nothing like the real thing, but it did get my heart going, and certainly my legs felt the heat after two full weeks without significant exercise. It's also a safe way to carry on training while maintaining a straight posture and minimising shock on the legs and back. It should do for now! :)

Wednesday 25 February 2009

Day 138: how is that possible??

So, here's the deal: I am less than three weeks away from the big day, I have not trained for more than two weeks because of a presumed coccyx injury, and today, I am told that I have to wait another week (without running) to be referred to a private sports injury specialist who will (maybe) prescribe an MRI (maybe) that same week. By then, I will therefore be 10 days away from the big day and still not have run. It is completely maddening. The combination of the bureaucracy of the National Health Systems and the blatant inefficiency of my local practice's red-tape bullshit makes for an incredibly lame (potentially even dangerous) process.

:(

I am still going to run that race, dammit! I envisage at least maintaining my level of fitness through lower-impact cardio stuff, possibly some extended cross-trainer sessions at the gym. I guess I'll have to make do with the enclosed, air-conditioned environment of the gym for now, and imagine the lovely London views, smiling fellow runners and staring foxes, instead of seeing them for real. Cheap video clips of pop aerobics music: here I come.

AaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!!

Tuesday 24 February 2009

Day 137: well at least it's raining!

It's raining today in London, which makes me significantly less bothered about not being able to train (or, more precisely, not knowing whether I can or cannot train). Good news though: my appointment with the doctor has at last been scheduled, for tomorrow. I will then know if I should wait longer, or if it's OK for me to get back into jogging at the very least.

In light of all this, I am now really happy that I did not listen when people told me 5 months ago that I was starting my training too early :) Now that I am stuck not running for a while, it's great to have done all the ground work, because I am confident that it will not be as hard to get back into it, and that the impact of this break will be minimised.

I am looking forward to trying on my new Shelter running t-shirt!

Saturday 21 February 2009

Day 134: received my Bath Half running top!

Argh... I am so annoyed that I cannot train right now! The weather is gorgeous, there are more and more people running around as the London Marathon is looming, and I am stuck with a probably-cracked tail bone. But, I received a bit of motivation today: my Shelter t-shirt has arrived, and it is quite striking. They recommend using it and washing it a few times before the actual race, so I will make sure I take a photo of me wearing it on the first day that I am able to train again, which hopefully will be no later than middle of next week...

More soon! Have a good weekend y'all.

Friday 20 February 2009

Day 133: bummer.

Things are kind of stuck for now. After a great race in Ashford I am finding myself forced to rest for longer than expected: somehow I appear to have injured my coccyx bone, and unfortunately I won't be able to have it seen by a GP and get reliable advice until next week. It will have been two full weeks without training, and I'm not really trying anything out right now, as running seems to be what triggered it, and I just don't know if jogging would make it worse or not. Agh!!! That being said, I will be at the Bath Half even if I have to jog it all the way!

Apologies to my keen readers for the lack of news lately - I shall keep you posted on how things go!

Sunday 8 February 2009

Karen Runs Ashford and District!

What we did today:

1. Got up early.
2. Got on a train to Ashford
3. Got in a taxi to go to a race

4. Karen started running ...

... behind a weird car

5. Karen finished the race:




The full set of photos can be found here.

Day 126: beat my time :)

We are just back in rainy London after a successful day in Ashford, where I run the Ashford & District race -- my second 10-Kilometre race. Last time, I completed the course in 53 minutes and 48 seconds. This time? 51 minutes and 58 seconds!!! I finished 291st out 563 runners. I am incredibly pleased, not least because I was bothered by annoying stitches (the same cramping muscle in the same spot of my abdomen, and the same cramping muscle in the side of my neck, as usual), and had to moderate my speed for kilometres 6 and 7.

The course is really pleasant and challenging at the same time. We had some beautiful sun and there are some good bits of countryside there. There were lots of hills, one in particular which was particularly long and got steeper towards the end, causing a couple of people to break into a walk.

I kept tagging my self up to a couple of ladies from the Folkestone running club towards the end, as they were running at a good consistent speed and I knew to run back up to them at times where I found myself slowing down a bit. They finished just in front of me, as in the last few metres I managed a really cool sprint and took over another guy to run back up to them. This time I made sure that I started my sprint a little later, so as to have the energy to run through the finish line at full speed.

All in all, a challenging but rewarding race. Stephen managed a few very good photos which he will be posting shortly. We had a really good roast lunch at an 18th century inn in Ashford, topped with a portion of apple and blackberry crumble. And now, we are back in London after a train trip which I mostly do not remember, because I fell asleep and spent most of the journey vaguely waking up and adjusting myself in my seat.

Tonight: a long, warm, soothing bath, and a generous slice of pizza await... Yum!

And she's in!


Posted by ShoZu

And they're off!


Posted by ShoZu

Arrival!

We're here!

Twenty-three minutes until racetime.

Posted by ShoZu

On the train ...


... and ready for action!
Or maybe tired.

Posted by ShoZu

Race Day


And we're off! To Ashford for a 10k. Most pictures will have to wait until the end of the day, as I have brought a proper camera.

But here's one to tide you over.

Posted by ShoZu

Sunday 1 February 2009

Day 119: snoooow!

When I woke up today (at about 11...) the sun was shining beautifully in the sky. Pretty much as soon as I mentioned "let's go running", the clouds came in. When we stepped out and started jogging, it was cold. When we got to the park for our pre-run stretch, the first few snow flakes started falling :)

We run 40 minutes today, as per plan, and half of which under the snow. It was nice. Nice also was to reach Canary Wharf in about 13 minutes - another time beaten!

However, I was tormented by a collection of painful stitches in my abs and chest, which got me to gasp for air and slow down on the running for the second half. It was lovely to have Stephen back, even though he too was being bothered by pain, in his knees.

But surely if neither the cold, nor the snow, nor our aches and pain can stop us, it means we are hard core?!

Lastsly, another good news today is a new and generous contribution to my fundraising efforts - thank you Adrian for your help. It sure is going to make a big difference. Cheerio!

Oh, I almost forgot: I received my number for the Ashford & District race next Sunday: I am number 195. Yee-heee!