Past Performance - 2

Once I participated in an oxymoron - a Fun Run - and survived to tell the tale.

The impossible had happened. I had volunteered for the Dew Pond Run. Seven miles uphill from sea level to 2817ft on Ascension Island. I had done no running (other than for the odd train) since I had been at school 30 years before, when I had striven not to be last in cross-country runs.

So reads the opening paragraph of a piece I wrote for an internal newsletter at my work. Remarkably it was published unchanged - but with some appropriate graphics - headlined “How I went from George Town to Dew Pond in 1 Hour 49 Minutes and 30 Seconds” in July 1992.

On the cover was written To Be Seen By All Staff . But that may be because it also contained a lot of management propaganda about pay and equal opportunities.

My placing was 83rd overall, 4th out of the 8 in my team of colleagues from the office, and a mere 49 minutes behind the winner - an RAF PTI who allegedly was a bit miffed to miss the sub-1 hour target he had set himself.

So, you may say, I am not a virgin runner after all.

Well, my case is that I did a lot of walking - I did not “go all the way” running:-

The air was cooler and more damp at that altitude. I was running again and found I was catching up and passing many exhausted runners slipping about dispiritedly. Previously having walked to the Dew Pond I knew that the hardest part came at the end: maybe they knew too.

What lessons does this hold for me now?

"Past performance is no guide to future returns." - The FSA

Hornbeam double-O

New regime from today - aimed at increasing distance not speed.

In just a short time I have got into a comfortable rut, Doing the same circuit but reducing the time taken. This is not a good way of preparing for a half-marathon.

So I have switched to using the runners forum guide for beginners.

This proposes a repeated alternating walk-run scheme over 20 minutes. Each week the running is extended at the expense of the walking.

I have jumped in at week 3 and this feels about right for me at present. Using the same circuit as the past eight runs, but going round twice to get the full 20 minutes, I find that the running phases seem to coincide with the uphill stretches. Or that is my perception.

By the end of the programme I should be running continuously for the full 20 minutes.

Then all I have to do is extend the 20minutes x 10 for the Bath Half Marathon.

Today's Weather
Bright and Sunny
Clear Blue Sky - moon visible.
Temp - 13deg C
Humidity - 70%
Wind - 0mph

Useless Factoids

• Dog walkers - 2
• Cats - 2
• Smokers - 1
• Other runners - 1
• Little Hoodies - 1

None would live past years again,
Yet all hope pleasure in what yet remain;
And, from the dregs of life, think to receive,
What the first sprightly running could not give. Dryden

  

Warm Ups and Stretches

Once I thought these were the same thing. Now, after looking at runners’ websites, forums and blogs, I know they are not.

Warm Ups

All the sites stress the importance of warming up before running. Broadly the advice seems to be walk and jog to warm up before running.

So that is what I do. My “running” is no more than a gentle jog anyway.

The beginners guide on the forum suggests a programme of alternating walk-run routines increasing the amount of running and reducing the walking each week. Alternatively your mate down the pub suggests running the distance you feel comfortable with, increasing this slightly each week.

For me, at present, the end result is much the same.


Stretches

It was an old ski buff who first taught me how to “warm up” with stretching exercises prior to flinging ourselves down the mountain. After a long ride up on an open ski lift leg muscles needed warming up - there was a real risk of injury else. Ankles and knees do unnatural things in skis. Mostly these exercises involved awkward postures grasping ski tips and they made the muscles feel the burn almost as much as when crouched in a long low shuss down the piste.

I was neither a fast skier nor an elegant one but I could overtake the train down from Kleine Scheidegg to Wengen. Newton beat Faraday that day.

Clearly these ski stretches are not practical for a runner. On the runners’ websites there is lots of stuff on stretching and how to do it - usually accompanied by pictures of attractive girls. So a bit like looking at the Business pages in the Telegraph.

Most of these sets of stretching routines take from 15 to 20 minutes to complete them all.

To me that’s Yoga not running.

The advice is not consistent. The choices are:-

1. The Do Nothing Option - no stretching 
2. Gently Does It - stretch at least once a week after a run - but not after every run 
3. Keep Regular - stretch only after a run - but for each and every run 
4. Go For It - stretch before and after every run 
5. Measured Max Out - warm up first - stop to stretch - do the run - warm down - stretch.

The accepted wisdom appears to be: 

• Stretching is a Good Thing to do - but only if you Do It Right 
• Stretching From Cold can be harmful - you should always warm up first before stretching

But now there are reports - based on recent research in Australia and the USA - that stretching is a waste of time. See USA Track and Field. 

Or worse.- one study suggested that those runners who do NOT stretch are LESS prone to injury than those who do.

One odd result was that those who changed from their usual routine were more likely to be injured than those who stayed with what they always did - irrespective of what it was. Do the researchers know what they are measuring? Maybe the ritual is of more value than the stretching!

The case FOR stretching at Dr Foot.
The case AGAINST at Paul Ingraham .

  

For me? I tried stretching yesterday. Today my run took more effort and felt harder. So guess which choice I have made.

There are three kinds of lies - lies, damned lies and statistics.
Benjamin Disraeli

Sunday Observer

Saturday was a scheduled rest day - and it rained.

No the rain was not an excuse for a copout. Advice on the runners forum and elsewhere for beginners was to take a break and not run every day.

So I got lucky.

Today another fine sunny morning with a Wedgewood sky - see picture.

“Go forth under the open sky, and list
To Nature’s teachings.”

Surprising number of people about in cars and on foot - including a few dog walkers and newspaper boys with trolleys delivering next week’s recycling.

Same circuit as before walk-run-walk with 1.25Km run time at 7min 36sec. So measurable improvement over just 4 days. Did ponder a second circuit but decided not good idea yet.

Am I going to post every time I go for a run? No. New and novel deserves a post - but routine not. And the whole point is to make running a routine. Isn’t it?

But it is time to think about a proper training plan rather than just busking it.

After 8 Sprint

D-day minus 198.

Out again this morning before the forecast rain - which arrived at 1-50 this afternoon.

Same circuit as yesterday but did not walk except at start and finish. Time of day a little bit later so more people and traffic. Lots of folk off to work.

But not me, ha ha!

Time spent running today - 8min 9secs. Distance approx 1.25Km. Felt better than yesterday.

Reality Check - In the Bath Half Marathon that distance would get me to Dolmeads a little short of Widcombe. So not even far enough to be able to nip in the back entrance of The Ram for a pint.

Action This Day

1. Wash Kit - Done. Techie details:- E-synthetics 40deg 900rpm spin. Non-bio wash-ball.
2. Reply to supportive comment on Runners Forum - Done.
3. Pick blackberries for lunch fruit portion - Done.
4. Fill and start dishwasher.
5. Read today’s newspaper and put yesterdays in recycling bin.

So much to do - so little time.

"Who wants yesterdays papers?
Nobody in the world."
Jagger -Richard

First Run

Just like other human activities, running attracts acronyms. PB stands for Personal Best - relating to a time for a distance. Except in my case - where it stands for Procrastination and Bullshit.

How long is it since I signed up for the Bath Half? Four and a half weeks.

“It’s the job that’s never started as takes longest to finish” - Gaffer Gamgee

This morning at 7, under an Artex® sky of clouds like swaged net curtains, I went for my first run.

If it can be called that. 6 minutes and 29 seconds of running approx.1 Km. Plus two gaps for walking in between and a warm up and warm down walk at each end. Less than 20 minutes out of the house.

Downs - Surprised how short of breath I became. Not fit! Reality check - this is going to take more commitment and persistence than I had reckoned.

Ups - The shoes and shorts worked well, providing comfort and support. They should also cope well with perspiration but I did not give them an adequate test of that today.
No pains in limbs or body - indeed aching knee felt better running than walking. How odd is that?

To Be Reconsidered - My top was a Sydney2000® Tee shirt. Looked Cool in 1999 but not cool today.

Running shoes have come a long way in the past half-century when Dunlop® daps (or plimsolls as we called them in London) was the Hobson’s Choice. Shorts too have changed dramatically since the old drop ‘em and cough days when floppy white PT shorts with coloured House stripe were the uniform wear for running as well as the school medical check-up.

Conclusions:-

1. I was right to get proper kit before doing any running.
2. Morning run before humidity builds is good
3. Repeat run tomorrow
4. Get a running top
5. Prepare a Plan

Shoes

Monday, following the advice of Nurse, I took myself down to the running shoe shop in Bath.

First I had to run without shoes to land one foot at a time on a pad. This showed a plot on a computer screen that revealed how I was landing - heel or toe or slightly askew - on the pad. It identifies over or under pronation of the feet whilst running - when the foot rocks inwards or out on landing .

Then the sales guy selected a suitable pair of shoes for me and watched while I ran up and down outside the shop in The Corridor. This is called “gait analysis”. From watching me he reckoned that I had a toes-out gait and in shoes did over-pronate a little - which had not been revealed by the electronic pad in the shop when barefoot.

He then selected another two pairs of shoes for me to try. I even tried wearing one shoe from each pair! Doing this helped me to make my final choice.

Which turned out to be the white and lime ones.

It may seem a bit bizarre running up and down a shopping arcade amongst the tourists, but it does mean a more natural test than on a treadmill.

The whole process gave me confidence:-

• Knowledgeable staff who are also enthusiastic runners
• Time taken - no rush
• Advice not hassle
• No pressure to buy lots of stuff
• Busy shop - lots of customers

For those interested in technical matters:-

• Shoes - Asics GT-2150
• Socks - Hilly
• Shorts - Gore
• The Corridor - 1826 - Architect Henry Edmund Goodrich

Sweated buckets on the First-bus going home. The heating was on.

The Forum

One of the great things about being human is the ability to communicate with others. Before doing anything new it is possible to ask advice from those who have been there, done it, got the T-shirt. If you get the running bug you can ask your mate down the pub

Or look at a Runners’ Forum on the web

Lurked a bit on the edge to find out what it was about. Read lots of advice for beginners. Signed up. Found out others shared the same misgivings as me. Stepped in to introduce myself. Mentally the equivalent of entering a crowded locker room for the first time. Fantastic welcome and support from lots of people and some more good advice, which I shall follow.

Made a bit of a hash of replying. Site thought I was no longer logged in as a member and came up with an error message. So as to be sure the post had not already gone, I waited to next day to send it again, which worked. Hope I got the etiquette right.

Don’t know if the cause is the <1Mb of our high-speed BTphoneline internet connection, the creaky old desktop, or Internet Explorer. Last time I came across this problem I used the laptop and Firefox with success.

Is this blog about running or computers?

Reasons Why

It is time that I examined why I entered for the Bath Half Marathon.

At first I was inclined to blame a list of others who had influenced me in different ways. But after a little thought I am now sure it was due entirely to my own best traits:-

1. Showing Off - a surprise bombshell for friends and relatives
2. Obstinacy - fighting back against the inexorable march of time
3. Wilfulness - deliberately doing something foolish and difficult
4. Auction Fever - bidding to get a place in the race
5. Controlling - a project over which I can have full control and am not dependent on others

Showing Off - There is much fun and satisfaction to be got out of a surprise. To step out from behind the stereotype. The gratifying reaction of friends. To have a new subject for conversation.

Or a blog.

Obstinacy - In retirement my intended regime was to include regular daily exercise of the mind and body to do battle against the decay wrought by time. In practice this has not worked out as planned. Wet days provide an excuse not to walk to the shops or work in the garden. Power tools take much of the effort out of gardening. Contrariwise the sunny summer has discouraged my project to learn PHP, MySQL and JavaScript and I have not got beyond Chapter 1. Also, I want to challenge my own settled habits and prejudices. My view that heavy exercise causes injury and is bad for you. My distaste for jogging in all weathers, and scorn of those who puff their way along slowly and agonisingly in the midday sun.

Now I shall discover for myself.

Wilfulness - My father had a joke that ran: "Go and find out what the children are doing, and tell them to stop." I loved his dry deadpan style. My mother, who claimed not to understand his jokes, said that I was a well behaved child. Or so she thought. 11th commandment - don’t get found out.

That was then this is now - time for me to join Peter Pan’s Pensioners.

Auction Fever - It was the Bath Chronicle that made me aware that entries for the 30th Half Marathon were about to become available. Affectionately known by locals as "The Chronic" the weekly local paper was promoting the Bath Half, encouraging readers to enter. I knew anecdotally that the race was usually sold out almost as soon as tickets were available and I had little or no chance.

Well, you know what it is like bidding against a deadline online.

Controlling - For the last 10 years of my working life I had to influence, cajole and pursued others to do things they and their managers were reluctant to do but which were necessary to enable me to do the tasks and meet the targets imposed upon me. In each of the 3 teams that I served during that period we won awards for what we did - even when we got no bonus. So we must have got something right.

Anyway, the point is that my Bath Half project depends solely on me. I set my own programme of training, my own milestones and targets to achieve. I do not have to do cold calling, organise meetings and presentations, cajole sceptical team leaders, chivvy their overworked team members, demonstrate and teach clunky software to reluctant users, prepare and analyse customer questionnaires, set up and run a help desk, or endure interminable, repetitive, irrelevant discussions without screaming.

Success or failure is mine alone. There are no excuses.

Past Performance - Part 1

The language of athletics has been adopted into workplace jargon.  These days, whether working in commerce or government, you are expected to have a proven track record in the field and when the starting gun goes off you are required to hit the ground running.
Buzz-word Bingo anyone?

Reversing the process, here is my early running CV:

School Sports at Moat Farm - Athlete No 21 - Faraday House

1. Egg and Spoon - dropped out
2. Sack Race - fell
3. Three-Legged Race - tripped
4. 100, 200 and 400 yards - unplaced
5. Slow Bicycle Race - disqualified for using outriggers

Sorry, but the last one is a lie. I always wanted to enter but did not have a bike.

Going up to the big school the sport was compulsory rugby.  Too small for the scrum and not fast enough as a winger, I was trampled into the mud.  Not really my scene.  After 2 years allowed to choose something else.

Cross-country running. No less muddy - indeed more so because the cows were herded twice daily up and down part of the route. Thick hedge on one side barbed wire fence on other - deep mix of mud and dung in between. Serious risk of suction removing shoes. But no risk of letting side down.  Endurance not speed. Aim - not to be last.

School moved to new location. New instant traditions instituted - including compulsory rugby for those in the 4th form.  Hey Ho, back to running around muddy fields grasping odd-shaped balls.

But big freeze. Ground too hard. All contact sports cancelled. Instead cross-country running again, this time with the opportunity to play Spot the Location where The Avengers was filmed for TV.

Thaw. Rugby restarted. Skive off every week until name appears on list of those AWOL and due for punishment.  After couple of days see that some of the names have been crossed through. When nobody about, cross out own name. Not spotted!  Mentally prepare to deny all knowledge. Hear no more about it.

Dishonest?  No, just the swings and roundabouts of outrageous fortune.
Bingo!

"Sport, sport, masculine sport
Equips a young man for society
Yes, all turn out a Jolly Good Sort
Its an Odd Boy who doesn't like sport"  Viv Stanshall

The Medical Exam

A condition of participating in the Bath Half is that one should be medically fit to run a half marathon. All the advice I have seen for new runners is to get a medical check up before starting to run. It might have been sensible to do this before putting in an entry. But by then it might have been too late to get in. "Sentence first, verdict after."


Appointment with Nurse:-

1.  BP 118 over 82 - Could do better
2. Weight 80Kg - Lose some
3. Height 1.69 - At least I have not shrunk since last check-up
4. BMI 28 - Overweight verging on Obese
5. Cholesterol - Not Yet Measured

As I said - not built for running.



Nurse turned out to be an enthusiastic runner and she recommended a good place in Bath to get running shoes.

Her advice included:

1.  Lose some weight to reduce impact on knees - cut down on the biscuits and alcohol
2. Do other exercise - such as walking
3. Seek out a running group & get advice
4. Go running with others
5. Enter a 10Km race before the Half Marathon.

Next health check next month. So first target - lose a couple of pounds in weight by then.

First Step

Everything in this blog is true. I should know, I made it up.
Only the names have been changed to protect the guilty.


It has started. I am committed. Perhaps I should be.
I have entered for the 30th Anniversary Bath Half Marathon to be held on 6th March 2011.
And my entry has been accepted.
So what?  Well that is 2 impossible things achieved in one day.

I don't do running. I don't like it. Never have. The alleged pain in order to gain trade-off has never appealed to me. Besides, I am not built for running. Was useless at athletics at school - never achieved the standard for my age.  Standard for age you note - not size. Discrimination!  Scarred for Life!  Excuses.

When I told She her reaction was "You've done what?  You are mad!  Why?"

Good question.  If I find out I will let you know.