Medical III

Just before the Christmas holiday I visited the doc again.

This was the moment of truth - finding out what effect four and a half months of regular exercise and disciplined eating - a little bit of bread and no cheese - had achieved.

A great deal.

1. Blood Pressure - down by 20 points on both measures to within normal levels
2. Weight - down 7.5 Kilos (that is about a Stone in old money)
3. Height - unchanged
4. BMI - down 3 points to a more satisfactory score appropriate for my age and build
5. Cholesterol - down on all measures - minus 1.1 overall. Still not low enough for Government purposes but on the way there.

The doc admitted that Statins would only reduce cholesterol levels by about 1 point - the amount that I had achieved using diet.

And this progress achieved by a gentle jogger not an elite runner.

I think she was impressed.

Elite runner at Goodwood

Santa Arrested

WikiLeaks has revealed that a Mr Nicholas Klaus - President of Worldwide Instant Logistics Company (WILCO) - had been pulled over by the Metropolitan police for driving recklessly in an overloaded vehicle.

The driver claimed he was on his way to make early deliveries of Christmas presents around the world via Heathrow Cargo Terminal. His usual vehicle - a hypersonic flying sledge and reindeer team - had broken down due to a failure in the space-time matrix. He was therefore using a more reliable form of transport - an Austin Lichfield - that he had borrowed from outside a house in west London. However, as it was unable to reach the unfeasibly high speeds of his flying sledge he had to make special arrangements in advance of Christmas.

What attracted the attention of the police was that the car and driver both appeared to be “lit up” and were travelling at what an officer described as “a reckless but not illegal speed” in a narrow icy lane. A breath test was negative. After the owner of the car was contacted the police released Mr Klaus with a formal warning and no other penalty.

It has emerged that the Backup Christmas Present Distribution System makes use of markets around the world and employs fathers to make the final delivery and that this system has been used frequently in the past. Indeed the hypersonic flying sledge has become so unreliable that the “backup” system has become the normal means of Christmas present distribution and for many years Mr Klaus has chosen to use an Austin Ten to make deliveries to his primary distribution points.

Until now the system had remained secret - with good reason. According to the leaked document the US Ambassador to London reported to President Obama that “The contract between Mr Klaus’s company WILCO and TESCO for deliveries in the USA contains no sanity clause and therefore appears to be in direct breach of US Federal Law - The Bros-Marx Act of 1935."

However, he warned that legal action“Could undermine belief in The American Dream” and “Damage the World Economy by throwing thousands of little people out of work”.

When contacted at Hamleys and asked to comment Mr Klaus said “Ho Ho Ho.”

Santa Sledge Shock

Santa photo by Monty Mumford

Story courtesy of the Editor - Austin Federation Newsletter.

"If it falls to me to start a fight to cut out the cancer of bent and twisted journalism in our country with the simple sword of truth and the trusty shield of British fair play, so be it. I am ready for the fight. The fight against falsehood and those who peddle it. My fight begins today." Jonathan Aiken

"Wellington and Brasenose College, Oxford" - Lord Archer of Weston-super-Mare

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

"These lies are like the father that begets them; gross as a mountain, open, palpable." Henry IV Part 1

New Benchmark

Global Warnings Advorkaat
Recently we have been having snow and freezing temperatures over a larger area and earlier in the year than in living memory.

Well in my lifetime anyway.

We have not got Frost Fairs on the Thames - yet.

Apparently this is caused by worldwide Warner Bros or some-such human activity. All that hot air arising over Cancun causes a reverse of the usual weather patterns - if I have understood it correctly.

“His reasoning was specious and so he convinced me”. - Bertie Wooster.

Jack Frost

Snow Running
The impact on runners has been two-fold. Some have not gone out because of the danger of falling over on the snow and ice. Others have put on shoes with studs or clipped on gripper devices - wrapping up in extra layers - to get out for some runs despite.

As something of a Shamateur, mindful of injury, and lacking the technical kit, I have been in the former group and stayed warm indoors - decorating.

Snow Stream

Pushing The Envelope
In the mild gap between ice ages I have managed a few runs. More than just keeping the training ticking over. I have tried to stretch my stamina in several ways:-

• Shorter faster
• Hill climbing
• Longer slower
• Rest days

My short loop of just under 4 miles I have been going round in about 33 minutes. This is not quite the speed I managed in the Swindon 10k race - illustrating the booster effect that running with others can generate. Though my route is more constricted, is hillier and has roads to be crossed. And kids with whirling scarves to be dodged.

One day when I had severely limited time I tried what I called “Hill Starts”. This involved repeatedly running up a steep hill with a rising gradient to see how far I could get. Walking back down to the starting point for the next attempt. I managed to increase the distance up the hill on all but the last run. Running uphill improves my running technique - like most beginners I am a heel jogger and rarely get onto my toes - as well as stamina.

Since Swindon I have managed three runs of more than 7 miles - the two most recent longer than 8. The idea is to stretch my distance gradually so that before I have to run the Half Marathon for real I have actually covered the distance in a single run in training. So far I am about 60% there with a couple of (winter) months to go.

Tendency to ache for a day and night after one of these longer runs - so planning in more rest days for recovery is important.

Benches placed beside the path provide a convenient half-way marker point at which to turn for home. Today I achieved a new benchmark. 8.38 miles in 1h 24m 02s. Not very fast - but even so it suggests my target of under 3 hours for the Half Marathon is not ambitious enough.

Should I be aiming for 2 and a half hours or even 2hrs 20min?

Food and Drink
It is noticeable that the last third of my runs are much harder work than the first two-thirds. Always glad to get home to that shower bath.

With these longer distances it is likely that I am depleting my energy reserves and that is why the last bit is so tiring. As a cyclist I used to experience this - but the bike carries the weight of the water and food.

Looks like time for a Nutrition Plan for my training runs. Banana in back pocket?

Shower Bath - Castle Drogo NT

Swindon 10Km

Its official - I am a runner.

Last weekend I took part in a road race. Got a number, a time and a medal for finishing the course. Ran all the way.

Reasons for entering were to:-

1. Gain experience of running in a crowd
2. Run in a competitive environment
3. Measure my progress
4. Run outside the comfort zone of my usual training routes in good weather
5. Establish a Personal Best (PB) time.

 All the above objectives achieved.


We arrived in good time for the 11 o’clock start. Weather was cold and damp with some wind.

To cope with the cold I had brought my red cycling top and black cycling bottoms. But the zip on the top would not work and the bottoms felt too tight for running. So had to extemporize some warm weather running gear using ladies track bottoms and fleece top.

Maybe the only transvestite runner? Worked - kept me warm - if not exactly stylish.

Placed myself near the back at the start. Set off at a gentle pace to begin with to warm up. Managed steadily to increase my pace with peaks at about the 2.5, 4.5, 9 and 9.5 Kilometre points. Worked on a strategy of pushing a bit harder on the uphill but not rushing madly downhill and avoiding any temptation to "race" other runners. Speed tailed off towards the end but with a kick up at the very end.

Average speed 10.2 kph, max speed 13.3kph.

Heart rate peaks appear totally unrelated. Heart rate peaked at about 4, 5 and 7.5Km points. As one might expect heart rate for second half of race was higher than for first half.

How do I know all this? Got a Gadget. Wore My Birthday Present, Precious.
A shiny Garmin.

Official Time - 10Km in 58min 39secs.

A small step for mankind but a giant leap for this man.

End in Sight



Which Charity?

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a runner entered into a long-distance race must be in want of sponsorship.

Everyone assumes that I have entered the Bath Half Marathon in order to raise money for a specific cause that I support. In actual fact the decision to enter came first - thought about helping a charity came later.
 
For many races - in particular the most famous and popular such as the London Marathon - it is almost impossible to gain an entry except through one of the major charities - who appear to blockbook places. To get one of these places you have to commit to raising several thousand pounds from your sponsors.

My choice of which charity to choose has come down to a final 3 candidates:-

• Lifeboats - RNLI
• Prostate Cancer - Cambridge
• Voluntary Service Overseas - VSO - Dr Becky Minting in Malawi

All these are charities that I support.

RNLI
It shocked me to discover that many people do not realise that the RNLI is dependent on volunteers to run its lifesaving activities and on donations and legacies for finance.

The volunteers regularly risk their lives putting to sea in the most dangerous conditions. And don’t always come home - the Mousehole lifeboat was lost with all hands on 19 December 1981.

Despite the Royal and National in its name the RNLI provides a service not just in UK waters but in the Republic of Ireland too.

The cost of running the RNLI is £123.5M a year. About £14k per hour.

This is the lead charity for the Bath Half Marathon so would be the easiest one for me to support.

Prostate Cancer - Cambridge
This is the most common cancer for men - mostly over age 50. There is a genetic component to susceptibility but most men will get it eventually. About 35,000 men were diagnosed with the cancer in 2006. More that 12,000 die of prostate cancer each year.

There is an urgent need to find a reliable test for use in national screening. This is one of the areas of research supported by Cambridge Cancer Reseach Fund The current test relies on measuring raised PSA levels. But 2 out of 3 men with raised PSA levels do not have the cancer. And it is possible to have the cancer without raised PSA.

The cancer also varies in the seriousness of its effects. In some cases a patient can have it for many years without serious harm - in others the cancer can grow and spread rapidly. Unfortunately the treatments available can have unpleasant side effects.

So more research is required into why some prostate cancers are more aggressive than others and how this can be detected accurately.

VSO - Dr Becky Minting in Malawi
Many of you may remember VSO as providing an interesting gap-year experience for students wishing to help out in third-world countries and to get something different on their CV.

Nowadays VSO depend on qualified and experienced volunteers to provide the most effective impact. The volunteer in this case is Dr Rebecca Mitting - Paediatrician - working in MZUZU Central Hospital.

MZUZU is the 3rd largest city in MALAWI and is capital of the Northern Province. Here there is no more than 1 doctor for 53,000 people.

The mortality rate for children under 5 years old is high. Main causes are:-

• Malaria
• Pneumonia
• Malnutrition
• Tuberculosis - largely due to HIV

In Malawi the HIV infection rate is 12%.

The hospital is overcrowded and under equipped. It includes:-

• Children’s Ward of 40 beds - usually about 100 patients
• Nursery for premature births - too small and lacking some basic equipment
• Nursery for slightly older children - small and overcrowded
• Under 5s Clinic - small booth - deals with 100+ children each day.

Before Dr Minting arrived in March there was no doctor there and the work was all done by clinical officers. Since her arrival she has:-

• Introduced a paediatric clinic twice a week for outpatients
• Set up a new High Dependency Unit for severe cases
• Introduced weekly Teaching sessions and daily Handover Meetings

With the Sister in charge of maternity she has applied for and obtained a VSO grant of £3000 to improve the services for newborn babies. The money will be spent on locally sourced but effective equipment such as ”Blantyre hotcots” incubators which will help to reduce the 26% death rate among admissions.


Help Me Choose
Three good causes. Which should I choose to support with the sponsorship for my run?

Help me decide. Post a comment.

Bath Post

 

New Training

"A formation of high flying geese
Lit up by the morning's low sun.
To see lovely sights such as these
Is truly reward for my run."

Apparently I train like a typical beginner - extending my distance but not my speed. Need new directions.

New Directions - Choose!

 
New Route
To extend my time and distance without doing repetitive laps of the same circuit I have tried a new route which goes down towards the River Avon and back uphill home.
 
It starts and finishes as my usual circuit - to retain the familiar Karma - but extends out and back to a loop at the other end. It has the potential to be lengthened.
 
Distance >6Km. About 4miles. But I am having difficulty measuring the distance accurately.
 
Four runs at over 40 minutes, one shorter run for 35. The 10+ minute mile average is a pedestrian speed. Whereas “slow“ for a long distance runner is an 8min. mile.
 
Does this matter since my aim is to finish?
 
New Routine
Reading a book from the library - “Everyone’s Guide to Distance Running" by Norrie Williamson - it appears my routine is not good. Apparently one should vary the pace and distance on different training runs.
 
So I have tried doing some bits faster than others. Floating down hill - pushing up. With slower recovery periods jogging along between them. Supposed to add strength and pace to endurance.
 
Mind you Norrie regards distance running as 50Km upwards. E=mc2.
 
This has made the runs more interesting and more difficult - which is probably a good thing. Did find myself with tired legs and lungs at maximum distance from home. Motivator!

New Risks 
MOH suggested I take my phone with me and call home for a lift if exhausted or have an accident. This is a bit like a WWI aviator with a parachute - added weight and a supposed disincentive to fight on. Good advice though - and will be followed.
 
Yesterday morning running style was all over the place - awkward almost stumbling or tripping once or twice. Tired? Over training? Something to watch out for in the event itself. It would be a bad trip to fall in a crowd and take others down too.
 
New Target
My entry has been accepted for the Swindon 10Km. Three weeks to prepare.
Sub 70 min?
 
New Time
Back to GMT. But local time - as on the new sundial at Widcombe - is plus a few minutes.

"I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree." - Kilmer

"Timber" - The Muppet Show 

Westonbirt Arboretum

Time To Rise

A birdie with a yellow bill
Hopped upon the window sill
Cocked his shining head and said
“Ain’t you shamed you sleepy head?”
Robert Louis Stevenson

One morning last week I lay in bed watching a blackbird eat blackberries. He hopped about a bit on the ground and then flew up to the top of the hedge grabbed a blackberry in his yellow bill and flew down to the ground again. He did this repeatedly until he had enough. I marvelled at his skill, energy, and persistence.

Routine
What was difficult has become routine:-

• Up before Dawn (roseate fingers etc - thanks for the reminder Homer)
• Run (well jog really) for 34-35 minutes / 4.8Km
• Shower
• Prepare breakfast

And all before my usual getting-up time.

This has been my routine - with interspersed rest days - for the past week. To many of you it may not seem to be a long running time or distance - but only a fortnight ago I was having difficulty at the end of 20mins / 2.4Km.

Next target - 40+ minutes or 5.5Km.

Upping The Anti
Yesterday I posted an entry for the Swindon 10Km race on 21st November.

Today I jogged for 5 laps - approx 6Kms - 44.4 minutes.

“A week is a long time in politics.” - Harold Wilson

A Footbridge

 

BC 250

Nothing to do with the First Punic Wars. This year the Bath Chronicle is celebrating 250 years and I thought I should not ignore it.

What has this got to do with this blog or with running?

It was the Chronicle that first sparked the idea in my head of entering for the Bath Half Marathon. The paper gave the opportunity to local people to put in an early entry to the Bath Half using a two-piece code that was provided in 2 weekly editions.

And I did - as described under Auction Fever in my earlier post Reasons Why.

The celebratory 250 anniversary edition - issued last week - describes the early Chronicles as being:-

"A mixture of the bizarre and the banal, of the ludicrous and the tragic."

Not that different from today - especially the Readers‘ Letters.

Some reports down the years read remarkably alike. The report of the bombing of The Corridor in 1974 and that of the exploding gas cylinders at the SouthGate were similar - at least in the described experience of the journalists concentrating on their routine reports only to be interrupted by the sound of explosions.

Another theme down the years is reports of visiting celebrities - and those later to become famous.

These include:-

• Princess Victoria in 1830 before she was Queen
• Winston S Churchill - an obscure parliamentary candidate whose first ever political speech was at Claverton Manor (The American Museum) in 1897
• The Emperor of Ethiopia Haile Selassie in 1936 - afterwards lived in Bath during his exile years
• Princess Diana - visited Bath in 1985
• Michael Palin in 2010.

The poster read - "Michael Palin in Bath - Pictures”.

"The newspapers! Sir, they are the most villainous -licentious - abominable - infernal - Not that I ever read them - no - I make it a rule never to look into a newspaper." Richard Brinsley Sheriden

That Was The Week That Was

Today I completed my first training run of more than 30 minutes.

Monday evening, after an exhausting rest day and a sleepless night, I had to backtrack and do only 2 laps. My first evening run. More people about than in the morning - plus a lost duck looking for her pond or a river.

To make up for the missed distance I decided to do 4 laps this morning. At the end of three I was beginning to think of excuses to stop. Knee ache? But went round again and clocked up just over 30 minutes.

Ruler on map suggests almost 5Km - less than a quarter of the Bath Half Marathon distance. Not bad progress for 8 weeks. Lost 8lbs in weight also. Now I need to repeat that for the remainder of the week.

My feeling is that I am on course. But I know it is going to get harder as the days get shorter and colder and my training runs get longer. My local routes are beginning to be a limitation and I need to get to places where I can run longer distances uninterrupted by features.

Am considering changing my routine to a mid-day run - avoiding running in the dark alongside rush-hour traffic. A pre-lunch run is popular with office workers. By doing this I can also postpone buying warmer running kit until I have saved some cash.

No Lidl near here!

Time to consider entering a 10Km race, as suggested by Nurse and other runners. To add pressure and provide a real measure of progress.

Public Bath

Now, here, you see, it takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place. If you want to get somewhere else, you must run at least twice as fast as that! - Lewis Carroll

Blogging on Jogging

Blogging is the modern vanity publishing - without the expense and with the potential for a wider audience.

My interest in blogging was aroused when I found that others were doing it. So I wanted to have a go myself. My blog would be more informative, erudite and amusing than others.

Or maybe not.

Learning new things from books is still the way I prefer. And it must be for many others too - as shown by the vast numbers of computer-related how-to-do-it books. All instantly obsolete - in Somerset there is a warehouse full of them.

In the Library I found a new edition of Blogging For Dummies I knew I had to give blogging a try.

This almost coincided with my decision to enter the Bath Half Marathon. Doing one new thing encouraging the other. It did not take long to recognise the synergy between the two.

You don’t see it? Agreed, it is neither Auden and Britten nor Merlin and Mustang. But the blog needs narrative and my running requires motivation.

Thus:

• Metaphorical boat-burning in pubic - no turning back
• Support and advice - from friends and followers
• Record of progress - and regression
• Momentum and self discipline - the project has to continue to provide regular blog material
• Helping a charity - by seeking sponsorship.

Each feeds on the other and combined provide more than the sum of the two parts.

That is synergy.

Synergy in Action

Coming Soon:- Options for sponsorship. Help me decide which of three charities to choose.

The Medical Exam II

The main reasons for my follow up medical with the nurse was to take the fasting cholesterol test and to measure any weight loss.

The good news was a loss of a couple of pounds - as intended.
The bad news - a few days later - was a high cholesterol score - so an appointment with the doc.

I am not very keen on medication. Unexpected side-effects appear to run in the family. The likelihood of aching muscles - how would I know if it is the running or the pills - does not fill me with enthusiasm. Also if my liver might get trashed - well I would rather do it the traditional way.

For a couple of months we are going to see what diet and exercise can do. So as well as losing the biscuits and cakes I now have to cut out the Cheddar, Wenslydale, Stilton, Cheshire and Red Leicester.

As the old slang for accepting bad luck has it - "Hard Cheese". 


Thought 4 the Day

If I had not made the decision to enter the Bath Half Marathon - and arranged for a check-up - would my high cholesterol levels have been spotted?

No lesson seems to be so deeply inculcated by the experience of life as that you never should trust experts.
If you believe the doctors, nothing is wholesome: if you believe the theologians, nothing is innocent: if you believe the soldiers, nothing is safe.
They all require to have their strong wine diluted by a very large admixture of insipid common sence.
Lord Salisbury - letter to Lord Lytton 15 June 1877.

Autumn Leaf Collection

Wrest Daze

This weekend was Rest Days.
One scheduled (SRD) and one due to very wet weather, so unscheduled (URD).

Post-modern "rest" is a relative term.


Garden Tasks

1. Move large potted plants from front terrace to back of house
2. Clear leaves from paths
3. Remove leaves from air vents in cars
4. Vacuum Mow front lawn
5. Dig over old potato bed.

Household Tasks

1. Walk to local shops to get paper and milk
2. Lay boards in loft and restack stored items
3. Final edit for e-newsletter - convert to pdf - mail out
4. Carry 2 x outboard motors down drive and load into a car
5. Install and set up new dishwasher.

Failed Tasks

• Seek Allen Keys to fix shower knob - unable to find
• Trim front hedge - battery flat
• Mow Vacuum carpets - ran out of time.

Ultimate Question

Mr Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many aircraft took part in Exercise Excaliber in April?
Mr Freeman: Forty-Two.
Hansard - 16 June 1986

Polruan. At the top of the hill!

Dawn Patrol

This week I joined the Twenty Minute-ers. Sort of.

My 5 runs in the past 7 days have all included at least 20 minutes running. But not necessarily continuously. Sometimes interrupted by a car in a narrow lane or, if using my early morning circuit, by the clanging-gated bridge.

Effectively this means that I am at the end of the 5 week Beginners Guide on the Runners' Forum.

Out very early this morning at 6-42 to avoid the rush-hour. Three gentle circuits within 23.03 minutes. Clang! clang! clang! It would have been faster but I stooped to conker.

On the map about 3.55 Km. Not far or fast but I was ready to stop at the finish. Average less than 8 minutes per lap - speed more than 5mph. So above my target pace for the Bath Half Marathon.

Compared with my first run just 6 weeks ago I have tripled my distance and time. And I am not as out of breath either during or at the end of  the run.

All I have to do now is extend my running distance 6 times.

Reality Check
Today's run represents getting from Laura Place to Vicky Park on the half-marathon route. Without stopping at The Ram at Widcombe for a pint.

Useless Factoids

• Dogs seen - 7
• Dog-walkers - 7: carrying laden dog-pooh bag - 1
• Cats on prowl - 1
• Birds twittering - innumerable
• Conkers collected - 2

Temp 42degF. RH 99%  Wind speed 0mph.
Rosy dawn's fingers were cold and damp this morning. Gloves?

In the shower the knob fell off. Loose grub screw.
Allen key?

Dawn Patrol at the FAA Museum

Health and Safety

“Warning - Running can damage your health.”

Nowhere will you see such a statement. Public policy is that everyone should get more exercise. Yet every day someone somewhere incurs an injury through running.

In the days when I oversaw and investigated sickness returns at work the most common cause of sickness absences among the younger employees was a hangover - but the most common cause for longer absences was a sporting injury.

So why the apparently high incidence of injury for running - which is considered a safe and desirable activity?



High Impact - Low Risk
Death or serious injury whilst running can arise from:-

• Heart Attack
• Stroke
• Road Traffic Accident

These are all relatively rare events. In the 29 years of the Bath Half Marathon I believe there has only been one death from a heart attack.

Running or other exercise leading to improved fitness can reduce the risk of the first two, reduce the effect and can mean quicker recovery.

For the third the risk can be reduced by avoiding running on roads in the dark.

But most people die in bed. So don’t sleep in!

Low Impact - High Risk
Runners seem to be at risk of lots of pains and injuries through running.

Some of these are due to the impact on the feet, legs and knees when running:-

• Foot pain - inflammation of the sole and heel or in the arch or ankle
•  Achilles Tendonitis
•  Shin Splints - sorry but I don’t know what it means but runners report getting them
•  Runners Knee - apparently this is a pain in the shin not knee
•  Painful knees

 Some are due to sudden unusual exercise:-

•  Pulled muscles
•  Stomach pains
•  Chest pains
•  Breathing difficulties
•  Dizziness

 Some are minor:-

•  Blisters
•  Joggers Nipple

Others more serious:-

•  Groin strain
•  Numb legs

 What causes them? How to avoid?

  

Cracknell Syndrome

Runners are very competitive. And driven. They have to be better - faster - sooner.

Once I watched an Olympic athlete compete in something outside his discipline - Place The Bottle. He just had to place the bottle farther than anyone else could reach. If anyone beat him he repeated the exercise again to remain ahead. He could not - would not - be second. Even in a silly game.

I believe that it is this impatient obsessive competitiveness that causes injury to many runners. Pushing for ever more speed and endurance often against an unrealistic timescale - wanting it now. They do too much too quickly. Instead of easing off when in pain they press on - “no gain without pain” - and injure themselves. Then allow insufficient time to heal and damage the half-healed injury worse than before.

  

Over The Hill

None of the above means that I am not at risk of pain or injury. As a not-fit non-athlete my starting level for a potential injury or health problem is much lower. Indeed I need to take more care not to over-do it - but have to balance this against the improvements in speed and endurance that I must achieve.

So I cannot afford to be complacent or think it won’t happen to me.

  

Mmm - knee aches a bit today.

Elven Safety

 “Do not touch the water!” - Lady Galadriel

  

Drink beer.

Or cider, my dear,

If you’m from around ‘ere! - Anon

 Unlikely Light Ales

Less Is More

D minus 168

Now here is a curious thing.

In the past week or so I have only been out every other day - instead of 2 or 3 days on the trot followed by a rest day. Yet this morning’s run was the most comfortable, the fastest and longest to date. Was it easier due to the extra rest, or because I was not fussing in my head about the run but thinking about something else?

Recently I have been trying to vary my route as I realised that I had been getting into a rut and comfort zone. One of these routes involves a significant amount of steady if slight uphill work and is only short before it forces a U-turn and repeat. Not the most inspiring but does provide a choice.

Away from home for a weekend I was able to try a footpath and cycle path route along a by-pass.  Not very nice but I could not get lost. Generally level, boring and noisy. But with less visible litter than one might expect - only about 2 cans per Km.

Back to my usual route today I just cruised around. Only walked at the gate and across the footbridge - all the rest was running. 7min 20sec + 9min + 4min to achieve the target 20min. The pace to my 1.25Km waypoint was also the fastest yet.

Distance covered - using the ruler on the map and ignoring the bridge - approx 3Km. A little over 5mph. Modest maybe - but both speed and distance increased, no aches and pains or strained breathing.

It has taken me a month to get to this point All I now have to do is gradually extend my distance over the coming five months. Things can only get better!

While running I was thinking about the previous night’s TV - “The Special Relationship” with Michael Sheen in his TB role and Dennis Quaid as Bill. Wondering which bits were quotation, attribution, or invention. Was portraying TB in his bath-tub meant to be an ironic Churchill-Roosevelt reference?

Surprisingly it was a more sympathetic portrait of the main players than I had been let to expect from the pre-programme spiel.

The fictional drama was more believable than the final piece of newsreel footage that featured the real TB and George W during their “Colgate” moment.

Now here is a curious thing.

Goals and Targets

For those tasks we regard as difficult it is always useful to have a clear idea of what needs to be done. Then seek to achieve whatever we have set ourselves.

Hence the image of aiming. For goals - hit or miss. Or targets - which provide a scale of achievement according to distance from the centre.

“I believe this nation should commit itself to the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and bringing him safely to earth.” - JFK.

This is often cited as an example of a SMART objective - one that combines the essential elements:-

• Stated
• Measurable
• Agreed
• Realistic
• Time bound

In the work situation Agreed and Realistic are often overlooked, Measured and Time bound fudged, and Stated misread or misunderstood.

Simple targets are best. Some might describe this as a clear target - but that is a technical term for one that has been missed!

My Targets
The Bath Half Marathon race rules require entrants to be able to complete the event within 4 hours. So crudely this gives me a “hard target” (that is one that must be achieved) of 4 hours.

How realistic is this? Well on the basis that I completed the Dew Pond Run - all uphill - and with no preparation or training - in under 2 hours then it should be possible for me to complete double the distance, more or less on the level, within double that time and after 5 months preparation and training. But 19 years on?

The roads will be progressively reopened 3 hours 15 minutes after the start of the race. It seems to me a good idea to try to finish before then so as not to breathe exhaust fumes. So this gives me a target of 3 hours 12 minutes. The lost 3 minutes is to allow for slow-starting at the back of the field. 4.2 (or 7 metric). An achievable speed for me?

Then there is the concept of a “stretch target” - intended to be difficult and maybe out of reach. On that basis rounding down to 3 hours makes sense for my target time.

Planning for Endurance
At present on my Beginners Programme I am running no more than 16 minutes in 4 minute blocks. By the end of the month I should be on 20 minutes running without a break.

Within 5 months this must be built up to being able to run for the full 3 hours. A suggested programme of increasing stamina is to add 5 minutes each week. After 5 months this would mean runs of 2 hours duration. Still short of the full 3 hours target.

As always time is insufficient and the plan takes too long.

Among the advice is that one should vary the runs - some longer and some shorter but faster. And include some rest days in between.

Milestones
One way of measuring progress is by waypoints on the route. It has been recommended to me - by a runner - that I should enter for a shorter run - say 10Km - before the Half Marathon.

A trial run

In theory this would:-

• Give me experience of running in a crowd
• Measure my progress
• Be a closer target easier to hit

The confidence gained in achieving the intermediate goal would help towards the end one. Or?

Far for Bath

Gadgets and Gizmos

Runners love their gadgets and gizmos.

The dictionary definitions are inadequate - gadget is described as a tool and gizmo a technical tool.

As an example of a gadget I offer the Swiss Army Knife - which includes a number of clever gizmos among the blades. A technically advanced gadget is the touch-screen phone for which many gizmos - or applications (Apps) - can be obtained.

Gadgets rarely live up to the hype.

The five kinds of gadget - with examples - are:-

1. Those that work and are useful - the Waiters’ Friend
2. Work badly - the WC hippo and water-saving flush systems - neither of which can cope with big jobs on a single flush so end up wasting both water and time
3. Pointless gadgets - altimeters for bicycles
4. Failures - the magnetic window wiper or the portable vice - both of which fall off
5. Worse that useless - the paper log maker. Even if you had sufficient time and old newspapers to make enough fuel you could not stand the smell or sight of burning compressed paper.

Incidentally No 2 is evidence of the Great British Plumbing Conspiracy.

Runners’ Gadgets
Runners need gadgets to measure performance. Gadgets provide data on:

1. Time elapsed
2. Distance covered
3. Height climbed
4. Energy consumed
5. Health - heart rate, breathing

The first two are primary data required by all runners. The other data is more in the “nice to have” category or for serious athletes.

Stopwatch
The only essential gadget. The old clockwork sweep hand stopwatches are no longer available. Cheaper and more accurate are the modern digital ones. Unfortunately these come with masses of needless gizmos that have to be set up - date, time, alarm - and extra buttons to press.

Pedometer
Usually sold under some fancy brand name these attach to your running shoe and count your steps. A modern spin on old technology. Need to be set-up for average stride length. Not accurate - can vary by 10%. A ruler on the map can do better.

GPS
Runners use GPS to tell them where and how far they have been - not how to get there.

Two main variants - one takes into account gradients and the other assumes a flat world. There is said to be a measurable difference in the resulting calculation of distance covered.

Not just boys toys - there are ladies, gents and unisex styles.

GPS can be equipped with a host of gizmos to provide all the above five data sets for any part or the whole of a run, plus calculate speeds; and record all this data in a way that can be downloaded onto a computer, analysed and published.

As you would expect - it does not come cheap.

Phones and iPods
On Run Entertainment (ORE) is so popular with runners that running tops come equipped with a pocket for the iPod and cut-outs in the collar through which to loop the headphone cords.

The Bath Half Marathon rules ban iPods and similar devices.

Some phones accept Apps that provide GPS.

Popular Apps for iPods are those that provide a running programme - such as C25K - short for couch potato to 5Km runner. This App talks the runner through a training programme of walking/running building up to the 5Km time and distance. The training programme is complex and the App is needed to follow it.

A symbiotic relationship - and astute marketing.

Heart Rate Monitors
Provides valuable information, I have read, for those seeking to maximise their sporting performance and can be used by everyone who wishes to measure their improvement in fitness. Can also record the results.

May not be any more accurate than counting pulse rate against a stopwatch but monitors during exercise as well as before and after.

ID tags
Can include any info you want - from basic NOK contact details to lists of your blood group, medication, allergies, and organ donation authorisation.

As far as I know these have not yet been combined with GPS to provide a Mayday alert system. Might be handy for fell runners.

Gadget or Gizmo? French brake tool.

Weak Week

D-day minus 179.

Not making progress. Will repeat this week’s programme. My feelings about each of my runs this week - if measured on a scale of Bad 1 to 4 Good - would be 2-1-3-1.

Got up later on the second day so decided to try a new route avoiding the pushchairs and 4x4s on the pavement. Felt like it was mostly uphill and with no familiar timing points I was forever looking at the stopwatch. Had to stop and turn at end of lane. Breathing difficult. Not a happy bunny.

Next day reverted to old route and was happier with my performance. Hope I am not developing a comfort ritual.

Out early today but not comfortable. Bloated feeling and aches and pains niggled at me Probably a mistake to do 4 days in a row but rain forecast for tomorrow and had an OK day yesterday.

• Clouds - 1 overcast
• Silver Linings - 0
• Squirrels (grey) - 2
• Snails - 3
• Trike - child’s - 1 broken, dumped

Now using new Nike running top from Running Bath. Much less clingy-sweaty than old T shirt.As a morale booster though it takes as well as gives. Dressed like a proper runner but not performing like one.

Very bright yellow, but…… Wakey-wakey Mr commuter!

Georgian Bath.

On Planning

"No one starts a war - or rather, no one in his senses ought to do so - without first being clear in his mind what he intends to achieve by that war and how he intends to conduct it."- Karl von Clausewitz.

But we all know someone who did just that.


My journey towards the Bath Half Marathon began with just a sketch plan in my head. It has grown since but even so remains faithful to the KISS principle - Keep It Simple, Stupid.

A plan needs to be flexible - to cater for those Known Unknowns - and have a contingency - for those Unknown Unknowns. It is also sensible to examine the “Do Nothing” option - the costs and risks involved - rather than just drift into it by inertia.

It is handy to break the plan down into sections, such as:-

• Physical - training plan
• Mental - motivators
• Risks Assessment - injuries
• Charity - sponsorship
• Publicity - blog.

These link together - an injury will require changes to the physical training plan and renewed motivation.

So the plan will need to be re-examined in the light of experience using the classic feed-back loop:-

Plan - Action -Assessment - Revise plan.

But there is a danger of imitating Rimmer in Red Dwarf by spending more time preparing the plan than following it. Microsoft provide a useful tool for this - you can spend hours mucking about with MS Project® - if you like that sort of thing.

The opposite is where the plan becomes shelf-ware - completed, put aside and forgotten.

Once in preparation for visiting an organisation I looked up the plan they had on their website. It was informative, if a bit dated, and my questions were based upon it. This left them baffled as nobody else at the meeting knew they had a plan. In due course their project went over time and over budget.

No surprise to me.

  

Early Bath

Just by way of a change here is a photo before the spiel. This morning's sky.
It has been "enhanced".

Chilly today - out soon after dawn‘s rosy fingers had crept through my window.

New walk-run regime harder than expected - just when get breathing right have to start walking again. Was not really warmed up until nearly half-way thru session. Co-ordination difficulties - keeping eyes on watch and on path ahead - switching stop-watch on and off. Where’s my key?

Walk-run stages different from last time. Did I get timing right before or am I wrong today? May try more boring route without “modal interchanges” (gates and bridges).

Received a “how are you getting on” query on the Runners Forum after I got home. Moral support as well as advice and guidance. V. Nice!

Today's Statistics

• Temp - 10 deg
• Humidity - 83%
• Wind - 0 mph
• Ley Line strength - 0.4218 zildas
• Schwarzschild radius - about 2 miles

One of the above I made up.

• Dog Walkers - 2
• Buses - in service 0
• Buses - not in service 1
• Cars >10
• Aircraft 2

Got back in time for an early bath.

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.