Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 52:22

First run in over 4 weeks and surprisingly I could still do the distance.

Felt OK to begin with and it wasn't till Lauriston Rd before my legs began to slow down. The Meadows part dragged a wee bit and on the uphill I felt quite out of breath. Knees were hurting by Napier so I just cruised the last bit. Mind you still relatively fast - 3 mins faster than last time I ran it.

Mind you, it's getting cold and I did notice it today. Motivation is going to be the issue in coming weeks.

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 55:31

A very slow run yesterday. Just cruising but haven't run for about 2 weeks so wanted to take it easy. Felt really slow but legs felt ok. Feet were very painful and I was also quite out of breath. The uphills felt hard too. Guess I need to get back to a 3-times-a-week routine.

9 days till the wedding.

Glasgow 10km - 1:05:23

Oh well.

Was really trying to get sub-60 but at least I improved on both the Edinburgh and Balfron times... not by much but an inprovement none the less. Graham did well today. Infact, as I crossed the line I felt a slap on my shoulder. It would appear that he'd kept up with me for the whole race and I only just tipped him at the line. Good to know that we run at the same speed for future races/training etc.

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 48:09

This is possibly going to be my last run before the 10km race in Glasgow as I'm on nights next week and the chances of squeezing one in before then is unlikely.

Fortunately, I posted a good time (my fastest I think) and that's made me happy but I really had to work at it and I went out too fast and paid the price on the return leg. I'll need to be smarter next sunday if I'm going to do it in under an hour but my mate assures me that it's flat so that should also help. Fingers crossed.

Yup - just checked - this is my fastest time by 11 seconds. Nice.

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 48min 57secs

Well well,

I was pretty surprised with this time. Didn't think I'd get down to this in so short a time. I guess the weight loss is what's done that. Pretty pleased with this. Need to get in at least 3 more loops before the Glasgow 10km.

Please Please Please sub 60min!!!! (Which means I would have to do this loop in under 45 mins).

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 52min 47secs

Signed up for the Glasgow 10km in 2 weeks time and realised that I've not run in ages. So got up yesterday at a very horrible 5am and went out to pound the streets.

It was actually not too bad. Knee was fine and there was no point where I was out of breath.

Lovely actually.

48 hours till next run.

Haddington Cycle - 84km - untimed

Simon and I blew the dust off the bikes and headed down the coast to Aberlady and then up into the hills towards Haddington. Haven't been on the bike for ages so was glad to get out on it again.

However, horrific head wind. Surely must have been topping out at 50km/h. By the time we were back near the city the legs were burning. Had to stop for a bit of cake on the Portobello esplanade which was well deserved. After that, only managed 10 metres to the next doorway which happened to be a pub... so we had a pint.

Back into Leith followed by the climb up Leith Walk which I always hate. Again it was made worse by the head wind but finally it ended.

Have had a headache ever since.

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 52mins 16sec

Well, I've not been running since the Triathlon so I thought it was about time that I got back into it. Ironically since all my training stopped I've been steadily losing weight thanks to the South Beach Diet and I think that might have something to do with today's time.

I really took it easy but my legs felt amazing and I wasn't out of breath at all. Unfortunately, my right knee started hurting on the way back through the Meadows and I'm quite worried that it starts to play up again. None the less pleased all the same since this was the 5th fastest time I've done this run - and I've been off the running for about 6 weeks. I guess the weight loss has been the biggest factor.

Cycle - Gullane and back - 70km untimed

Did this with Simon yesterday. Was good fun and we certainly got the best of the day as there was thunder storms and all sorts later. Simon was trying out his new bike "Sasha" and it made for a much more pleasant ride than the last time we went to North Berwick as he was on a mountain bike which was considerably slower.

Stopped for one or two pictures en route then at Gullane Golf Course turned round and headed back to Edinburgh. We spilt up near the city and I went through Duddingston which had a significant uphill section. However, legs felt really good and I think that the recent weight loss has had a massive effect on how well I can cycle.

Keep it up Dude.

Stirling Triathlon - 1:40:31

Well I guess I'm pleased. 3 mins faster than last year. I'm sure the weight loss that did more for my time than any training I'd done. Here's the breakdown....

Position - 197 (last year 196)

Time - 1:40:31 (last year 1:43:39)

Swim + T1 - 20:58 (last year 18:48)

Cycle - 44:20 (last year 46:47)

T2 - 1:02 (last year 1:07)

Run - 34:25 (last year 36:57)

So overall a better time for everything except the swim which is unsurprising since the last time I swam was LAST YEAR'S TRIATHLON!!! Please with the cycle since there was a horrid head wind this year too so I'm glad I knocked 2:27 off the time. Also pleased with the run although I thought I was going to have a much longer time than this.

Most important is that I wasn't last in category this year.

Next year..... 1:30.

Meadow's Loop - 7.5km - 53mins 20sec

I pretty much just went out for a jog this morning as my legs had been a bit sore since the fart-lek on Tuesday and also I played an hour of badminton last night (there was only three of us so plenty of one-on-two action which is always hard work... but good fun).

About half way round I though "this is the best that my legs have ever felt" and I was pleased by that. The time, however, was a good 5 mins off my best and that was disappointing but I suppose I wasn't really trying and there was plenty in the tanks.

One thing that is getting much more obvious is that my recovery time for a run like that is minutes now. My breathing goes back to normal almost as soon as I stop which I guess indicates improved CV fitness. I wonder what my BP and heart rate are doing? Perhaps I should find and blow the dust off my heart rate monitor!!

17 days till the Stirling Triathlon. Quite excited. 1:42 to beat from last year.

Meadows Loop (Fart-Lek) - 7.5km - 52min 49sec

This was the first time that I'd ever tried fart-lek properly. I tried to sprint-run the whole way but eventually it became sprint-walk then run-walk then hobble-walk. I can definitely see the advantage to it but to be honests it's really horrible and making the effort to do it once a week it going to be hard.

We'll see.

North Berwick and Back - 80km - untimed

Bailed on the Loch Leven half marathon out of sheer laziness so punished myself by getting on the bike and cycling into the wind for 40km. Was originally planning to take the train back up but since the wind was behind me I decided to got for it on the bike.

Good fun but not too pleasant by the time I got to Arthurs Seat on the way back - ended up with cramp IN MY THIGH. So weird. Had to stop on the hill for a bit and then slowly cruised home for some much needed water.

Legs feel fine today so quite happy with that. Need to do a LOT more as I've got the triathlon in less than 3 weeks.

Dunfermline Half Marathon - 2:30:54

Well that's another one in the bag.

This was a mixed bag today. There was not that many people there and it was a 2 loop course. Things started out ok and overall the first lap was relatively straight forward but it became apparent there were a significant number of hills and the second time around they made their gradient felt.

On top of that it was a late (11am) start and the sun was beating down. I had to take two bottles from every water station - one to drink from and the other one to pour over myself. The salt in my eyes became quite annoying and it wasn't long before I couldn't wait till the end.

However there were some good points...

1. I managed to overtake and beat a girl that whomped my ass at the Edinburgh Half Marathon

2. The legs felt better this time and my ankle/achilles didn't give me as much jip as I thought it would

3. I got another medal.

4. I managed to overtake several people in the last 2 - 3 miles.

5. I beat Arfon (sorry mate)

6. Although my time was slower than the Edinburgh Half I feel the victory was mine due to all the hills etc.

Loch Leven Half Marathon in 6 days.... if I'm up for it!

Results

Fastest time - 1:06:59
Slowest time - 3:03:43

Stuart - 1:37:49 position 141
Zain - 2:30:54 postion 646
Arfon - 2:52:48 position 660

Well done everyone.

Long random loop - 17.3km - 2hours 8min 5sec

This was a post race training run but at the same time was a pre-half marathon training run. All in all it was quite good. Totally relaxed and I totally ran at a really easy pace. My left achilles was agony again but stayed consistantly shit the whole way round. I guess it's something I'm going to have to put up with for the duration of this "season".

Anyway, glad I got another run in. Two more halfs in the next 10 days so we'll see how they go.

Edinburgh 10km - 1hour 7mins 07sec

Another race. Another Medal.

This had potential to be a really great run. The atmosphere was amazing and there were about 10,000 runners. It reminded me of the City to Surf in Australia. However, there were loads of problems.

First, the number of people meant that the place was rammed. The runner never actually began until the top of the mound so we walked for ages. Then at the bottom of the mound there was a bottle neck at the National Gallery so we were actually reduced to waiting for people to squeeze through. On that narrow path along Princes St Gardens people were already walking and instead of keeping to the side they were walking in pairs and threes... WIDTH-WISE! Morons.

As the race went on this was a running theme (no pun intended) - people stopping infront of you without moving to the side. This meant a lot of side stepping and dodging. At one point I had to avoid a line of real tubsters who were walking around Arthur's Seat with t-shirts on which had "Running for *someone*" written on the back. Running???? Bollocks! They were simply there as obstacles for actual runners. I think it's admirable for "fun-runners" to do these things for charity but there should be some sort of etiquette for when people walk like "Keep Left" or "walk on the outside of the corner" etc.

Anyway, I beat my last time despite this... not by much but I still beat it so I'm happy. Here are some results...

Finishers.... 7817

Fastest - 0:28:13
Slowest - 2:01:02

Simon - 1:12:08 position 7157
Me - 1:07:07 position 6535
Isla - 0:52:18 position 2337
Sara - 0:49:03 position 1468
Cathy - 0:47:02 position 554

Dunfermline Half Marathon next week.

PS - couldn't find Natasha's result but she says that she did it in about 59mins I think.

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 54min 38sec

This was definitely a jog as opposed to a run. My legs felt ok but my right knee is giving me a bit of gip especially when I run on a left hand slope. Also my shoes are feeling tight over the bridge of the MTPJs and my left big toe joint is really sore. The laces are practically undone and still it's sore. Perhaps I'll put my triathlon laces on them.

Anyway, Edinburgh 10km next week and Dunfermline half marathon the week after. Hopefully they'll both go ok.

Balfron 10km - 1 hour 7mins 30 sec.

One word....TOUGH!

This was really difficult. Firstly I'd not run for 10 days and secondly the route was up and down and up and down. It was bloody relentless. There was nothing to be done but to put the head down, listen to the tunes, and get to the end.

I did this with Tash and Simon and although I'm glad we all finished, I'm really worried about the Dunfermline Half Marathon as I don't know if I could have run any further today. Had a great sprint finish though so was please about that.

Our times...

Tash - 59min 59sec
Me - 67min 30 sec
Simon - 76min 50sec

Edinburgh 10km next weekend.

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 48min 20sec

I am desparate to run something faster than 10km/h so today I went out into the freezing fog of Edinburgh and really tried to push it.

Unsurprisingly my feet were aching within a few minutes and the more I lengthened my stride the more painful they became. Rubbish. So with that handicap I still tried to push on through and get a good time. Of course I was aiming for 45mins or less which will be a major accomplishment this year and towards the end of the run I felt that my pace was fast enough that I stood a chance of getting that time. However, I forgot how slow the start of the run was and when I looked at the stopwatch I couldn't help being pissed off with the time - even though it's the fastest I've run this route so far - 9.3km/h

Next time I do this short run I'm going to try for 9.5km/h. At the Balfron 10km I'll hopefully be able to eek out the remaining 0.5km/h and come in under 1 hour. That said I'm screwed for the Edinburgh 10km as there's about a million hills. Pure Pish.

Simon's Meadows Loops - 13.1km - 1:32:33

Ran down to the Meadows today to meet Simon for a run. Tried to really run flat out on the way there but my feet were hurting loads and I did the 2.7km stretch in 17min 18sec which worked out a 9.4km/h which, although the fastest pace I've run to date, was still slow and only over a short distance. Also it means there is very little chance of me doing a 10km race this year in under 1 hour which is one of my goals.

Anyway, we ended up doing 4 laps of the Meadows before I peeled off and ran back up Polworth Terrace to the flat. The overall speed was only 8.5km/h and I'm getting quite disheartened with how little that's changed over the last few months. I'm definitely putting in the miles but I just can't seem to increase the speed. Perhaps I need to incorporate different exercise too e.g. spin classes or Fart-lek. Just don't know if I can be arsed though and that's a real problems.

Also, shifting a few pounds wouldn't hurt... easier said than done when you've got a fridge full of Easter chocolate!

First Run Post Half Marathon - partially timed.

To some extent I've been dreading running again since the half marathon and the last 2 mornings that I've tried to get up and do something about that, there's been a smidgin of rain and hint of wind and that's been enough to make me go back to bed.

However, Stuart's been angling at doing some exercise for ages now and to be honest I've been putting it off as he's too fast at most things and training with him scares me. That said I agreed to go on a run with him today and the plan was he would head over to my flat and we would run from there to Arthurs Seat, round the Seat and then up to his in Braidshill.

It was too fast... and certainly too fast for my first run post-half.

My split time by the pool was 28:09 (over a minute faster than my PB at that point) and the split at the second pass of the pool was 1:12:13 (a massive 4 mins faster pace than my PB).

I was pretty spent by that point and my legs and ankles were really beginning to hurt. We ran/walk the remaining 4.5km back to Stuart's which had some horrible hills. I drank 3 pints of water when I got to his and that was a first. I've not felt that thirsty for ages and I drank far less at the end of the half.

Following a very welcome lift back to the flat I had one of the best showers ever and even now I still feel washed out. I'm happy about the times and that sort of training is what I need to improve my half marathon times and help give me a good time in the 10km races I'm doing.

By the end of the season I'd like to be able to run 10km in under an hour and get 2:15 or less for my half marathons. I think a sub 2 hour time might have to be reserved for next year!

Edinburgh Half Marathon - 2hours 28min 21sec

One down.... 3 to go!

So that's the Edinburgh Half out the way and how was it I hear you ask? Tough. There's no doubt about that and although I'm glad it's over I'm really happy that I did it.

Anyway, it started over at Meadowbank Stadium and as with all these things it took a while to get going. It was really cold so everyone was crammed inside the stadium instead of going out to the track. Eventually, the call went out that the race was due to start so we traipsed out into the grounds and froze for 20mins before eventually the croud started moving.

All to soon, the start line was upon us and with a click of the stopwatch and pre-emptive salute to the camera we were off. Within minutes Matt had opened his stride and left Arfon and myself in his wake - we wouldn't see him again until the switch-back when he must have been about a mile and a half infront of me.

By the 3 mile stage I was feeling good - bored actually. Arfon was falling behind slightly and so I was stuck with nothing but my ipod and my shoes. Till this point I'd overtaken nobody and everyone else seemed to be running faster than me including 7 army blokes that had massive packs on there back (and it would take another 2 miles before I could drop them). I grabbed a quick glup of water from the water station and threw some over my head - cause that's what they do on the telly - and squirted some glucose gel into my mouth. It actually tasted not bad. Not sure if it helped any but I felt better for eating it.

I didn't see any more mile markers for ages until I reached the Racetrack at Musselburgh. A bit of a teast that - being able to see the finish but realising you're only just over half way there as the 7 mile marker drifts by. From there till the return leg was a test of mind over matter. It was soooo tough running away from the start line knowing that I would have to run all that way back again. What made it worse was that I passed Isla's mate, Sara, and then Matt who we already on the home stretch. Matt and I had a comedy relay lucozade baton swap which made me chuckle for 100 metres or so which was light relief. About half a mile later I wished that I hadn't given Matt my remaining lucozade!!!

Soon after that I was doubling back towards the Racetrack and I couldn't be happier. It definitely put a spring in my step but unfortunately it seemed to have the same effect on everyone and the girl I'd been using as a pace maker also picked up her pace. Shortly after that I saw Arfon and we had a "high five" for encouragement.

The remainder of the race became a bit of a blur. Lots of people were walking although numbers overall seemed a bit thin on the ground. I was really disturbed by the number of folk who were doing the run/walk thing and despite running the whole way I couldn't catch some of the walkers. I guess my running pace is so slow that these freaks can out-walk me. I remember grabbing another bottle of water at about the 11 or 12 mile mark but I felt sick drinking it so just chucked it over my head and this time it made sense.

Soon the finish line was in sight for the second time and this time it wasn't a tease. I'd already done some mental arithmatic earlier on and knew that if I'd been consistant with my pace then I was going to come in under the time I wanted so seeing the line spurred me on to eek out the last bits of stamina and chop off a few more seconds.

As I approached I saw Isla and KP cheering me on and got in an opportune "high five" for the camera before putting on a pathetic final sprint over the line. Matt was waiting for me with a grin and after some well deserved juice we got a hold of our medals, bananas and t-shirts. All in all I felt good. Legs were not bad and no signs of cramp and my joints felt (and still feel) fine. Could I have run further... not sure about that but I'm happy I completed the race, running all the way with a smile on my face at the finish and surely that's the main goal of any race?

Here's the details of the race...

Applicants - 4700
Finishers (within 3 hours) - 2469

______Position___Category Position___Time
Matt:___2107_______801_________2:12:09
Zain:___2371_______848_________2:28:21
Arfon:__2431_______861_________2:41:55

Next time we've got times to beat so I guess there's nothing for it but to get back out on the road again... but not till Wednesday.

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 50mon 44sec

This is the last run before the half marathon and it was supposed to be a short easy run... supposed to be!

Started off far too fast and that chest pain came on within seconds and lasted for a good 7 mins or so. Then my right foot started hurting and didn't really improve at all. Slowing down helped a bit but it was still there niggling away in my shoe. Before the run I checked the laces were nice and loose so I can't blame that.

I ran too quickly up Laurison Place and by the time I was on Potter Row I was out of breath and that really slowed me down round the meadows. The up hill part of the meadows were terrible because of that. Also by the time I got to Bruntsfield I had no kick for the down hill or the finish.

Happy about the time but perhaps as my last run before the race I should have taken it easier. I'm now petrified that the marathon is going to be a massive mixture of agony, tears and humiliation.

4 Days to go. Oh dear.

Random Long Route - 17.3km - 2hours 2min 28sec

This is the last long run before the Half Marathon next week. Perhaps it should have been longer. Still have doubts about added on an extra 4km on the day but fingers crossed that atmosphere and adrenaline will get me to the finish line.

Knee was good during run but pain in head of right 5th MT again which is a bit of a worry. Hopefully it'll be better by the race. Speed was better too 8.47km/h. At this rate I should complete the race in about 2hours 28mins. That would be incredible. As I said before - Under 2:45 I'll be happy, under 2:30 I'd be ecstatic.

Pentland Hills Hike - 10.2km

Did this hill walk today http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=2667979 as I've been meaning to get myself up there for ages. It was pretty nice and I took quite a few pics which is always good. Don't know that it really counts as training but to some extent it is exercise and thus gets a mention!!!

Long Arthur's Seat Loop - 15km - 1hour 47min 10sec

Got up at 5am yesterday to do this. Talk about dedication.

It was quite hard as the weather was colder than I expected but at least it wasn't raining and there was not much wind. I really went for it and it was worth it as I managed to knock almost 5 mins off my fastest time. Although I'm sure I could have gone further I was glad when I reached the end as my right knee was agony (for the first time) and my left achilles was beginning to ache - both of which would get worse over the course of the day.

Anyway, at least that's another long run in the bag and I'm looking forward to seeing how I'll do over 21km - hopefully with no hills.

Bridge Cycle - 53km - untimed

Went for a leisurely cycle this morning down to Leith to meet Simon then we headed out to Silverknowes and Crammond then through South Queensferry and finally over the Forth Road Bridge.

We stopped for about 10 seconds on the North Side of the Bridge and when I asked Simon if he wanted to go further he said, "Nope, I've had my fill of Fife already!" Class.

Cruised back through the various cycle paths in the North side of Edinburgh before heading back soon. Very nice morning without any urgency... but a few hills thrown in for a laugh.

Run to Meadowbank from the Lister - 3km

Just a jog.

Was at the Lister on Wednesday in town so took my running stuff and ran down to the stadium after that for badminton at 6pm. Nice warm up. Took my old shoes though as I didn't want to wear my new running shoes to play badminton and surprise surprise my feet were agony in about 5 mins. I guess I've proved once and for all that they should no longer be used for running.

Gym Cycle - 40 mins

A wee stint in the gym on the way home from work on Tuesday. Certainly worth doing but no replacement for the real thing so I guess it's about time that I get the road bike serviced.

Very sweaty and smelly in there.

Random Route - 17.3km - 2hour 14mins 18sec

Well I don't really know what the plan was supposed to be this morning but as I ran round the north side of Aruthur's Seat I realised that I couldn't be bothered doing the up hill part so I just continued on towards Meadowbank Stadium.

After running over the Bridges and round the town I ended up in the familiar territory of the Meadows and made a token effort to add a bit of extra distance by heading all the way down Morningside road before cutting back towards Collington Rd.

Soon I was home. I really took my time today and the only real goal was to run more than 15km... which I did. However, when I saw the time I couldn't help being a bit disappointed. It worked out at 7.73km per hour which means the half marathon would take me 2 hours and 42 secs (ish).

In saying that, I put down 2 hours 45min for my expected finish time so anything less than that will make me happy. I would be ecstatic if I managed to get less then 2 hours 30mins but I guess we'll see in 3 weeks.

One other good thing is that today I felt that I could manage another couple of kms... I don't know about another 4km though!

Long Arthurs Seat Loop - 15km - 1hour 51min 35sec

Faster again today.

Shoes felt quite good after the first few minutes of tightness but no foot pain like before so I'm happy I bought them! Dry today and less windy and overall the run felt relatively straight forward. However, a particularly upbeat song came on the iPod while I was half way up the seat and I started sprinting which was the dumbest thing ever.

After about 50m I was so out of puff that I thought I was going to puke and ended up running so slowly that I could have walked it faster. Sometimes I wonder about the benefits of not stopping. Perhaps sometimes it would be better to walk. It might even improve my overall time as I guess I'd also be getting a rest.

Don't really want to go down that route but still...

Long Arthur's Loop - 15km - 1hour 52mins 8sec

The weather was shit today but there was no choice but to get out on the road. I awoke to a snow storm and driving winds this morning whic was disheartening to say the least.

Unfortunately, although I've already run 3 times this week the've all been 7.5km runs and that means I was missing a long run. Given that the first half marathon is only 4 weeks away I really had no option but to go for it.

Thankfully there was a bit of a break in the snow and the sun came out for a bit of it. The new trainers felt good even thought they were a bit tight to begin with. I wasn't sure about doing the full 15km with the new shoes on but they performed well and I even managed to knock 5 mins off my time despite the wind and the snow.

Worryingly, I was quite spent again at the end and I still think that I don't have 21km in my legs for the half. I guess I'm going to have to spend the next 4 weeks increasing the distance a bit although I don't know if I've got the time or the inclination. Perhaps if I start putting in 2 long runs and 2 short runs on alternate days that might be enought...

We'll see.

New Shoes

On the shelf...

In the bag...

On the feet...

Big improvement...

Brooks Beasts... Love 'em!

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 49min 35sec

Read it and weep!

I really went hard today and it felt like it was going to be a better time. Thankfully it was and more importantly... it was sub-50 which I've been trying to get for ages. In fairness my times have been so far above that time that I thought it would be a few more weeks before I made it under the 50 mark.

What's also good is that I knocked about 3 mins off my best time so all in all a significant improvement.

The down side though (cause there's always a down side) is that my legs are now really sore. I'm supposed to be doing a long run at some point this weekend but I'm worried that I'll be too sore after todays effort (and the fact that I've already run 3 times this week).

On the plus side - weirdo chest pain thingy was much less today - about 2 mins and feet were much less sore but still causing a problem. Still unsure about the whole new shoe thing but perhaps a trip to the shop with my shoes is merited so the pros can check em out and decide if I need new ones (which I'm sure they will).

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 56min 7sec

Tried to take it slow today but I still had the sore feet thing going on. It was really icy as well and in all honesty my heart wasn't in it. I actually got up at 5am to do a 15km run but it was still snowing so went back to bed until 6am then did the shorter run.

During the Meadows part I got over taken on the hill by FIVE people. First 2 old folk that looked like they were going really slow but I still couldn't catch them. Then I got beasted by 2 girls but they thankfully started walking about 100m later on and I was able to run past them. Finally a guy who looked like a proper runner soared passed me at Holy Corner.

I actually thought that the time I got was going to be longer so I'm kinda happy about that especially with all the ice on the deck. However, the foot pain is really beginning to frustrate me and I'm still getting that odd chest pain. That's coming on more frequently and usually starts at the beginning of the run before fading. The most annoying thing is that it's been there for a couple of years now and although I'm sure it's muscular, it just doesn't seem to be going anywhere.

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 52min 58sec

A wee bit faster again but feet were agony for the first half. I don't know what's going on? Maybe I'm needing new shoes and I'll have to bit the bullet. Perhaps it'll wait till March's pay cheque!!!

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 53mins 5sec

Not a bad time. Felt I had quite a bit more to give so I reckon that I should be able to get a sub-50 time soon. Fingers crossed.

Long Arthurs Seat Loop - 15km - 1hour 57min 1sec

Faster again today.

Seemed really good to begin with and the legs were good for most of the way round. However, on the last km or so I really felt out of steam. Once I got to my street I new running on vapour. There is no way that I could have eeked out any more metres once I was at the end.

I can only put it down to the fact that I've run 37.5km in 5 days. Perhaps I've not had enought rest in between these runs but I'm getting worried about the close proximity of the first half marathon. I hope I don't fall into that trap of injuring myself prior to the race and then being unable to compete.

Wanna squeeze in one more 15km run before the end of the week though. Perhaps I'll do it on Saturday which gives me 3 days rest.

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 1hour 8 sec

Took this really easy today since it was only 48 hours since my long run on Saturday. Felt really good and my legs were fine. Cruised round the course without much difficulty and appart from my right foot aching slightly everything was fine. However, it wasn't till I reached the end of the run that I realised why it things felt so good...

...my time was horrifically slow. I'd not even call it a run today - more of a jog. I guess time on the feet is more important than anything else so every run is a good one.

Afterall, it's better than not running!

Long Arthur's Seat Loop - 15km - 2hours 0mins

VERY windy today.

Glad I got this out the way but it felt really difficult. I think it had something to do with the wind and it blew into my face the whole way home. Feet felt ok but my legs began to run out of steam towards the end. Last time I felt I could have gone a few more kms but this time I was spent by the time I reached the flat.

On the plus side. I chopped 5 mins off my time and I'm pleased with that. As long as that trend continues I'll be happy. 6 weeks tomorrow till the first race!

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 52min 06sec

Hey hey!!! Much better run this morning. In fact it's the fastest that I've ever done this run. Still only about 8.7km/h but I'm pretty happy with my feet. The right one was still a bit sore but I'd taken some voltarol before hand and slathered arnica cream on my feet a while before the run and it seemed to make all the difference.

MUST do a long run the weekend as I've just realised that I've only got 6 weeks until the first Half Marathon. Kinda dreading it but at least it will give me a good kick up the arse for the other ones I'm doing this year.

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 58mins 25sec

Dreadful!

Appauling!

I don't really know what else to say about it. It was shit yesterday. My feet hurt the whole way round and I was almost forced to walk (but I didn't thankfully). I've no idea what was going on but it felt like plantar faciitis. Feet still hurt when I walk and I'm worried about the next time I run. I'm supposed to be going again tomorrow morning but I don't know if my feet are up to it.

Maybe it's time for some new shoes?

Meadow's Run - 7.5km - 52min 53secs

Well this felt a lot faster than normal. Instead of jogging I tried to run some of it. The first half was ok but later it got shit and I ended up jogging at lowest pace. My right achilles sucked again and the sole of my left foot was wank but I got over them both and pushed on.

The end result was a pain free cruise to the end of the run as I managed to turn up the speed at the end which is probably the only reason that I managed to beat my last time on this run by over 2 mins.

Plan next is to do the 15km run again in under 2 hours.

We'll see!!!

Leith Path Run - 10km - 1hour 15mins

Simon talked me into coming down to Leith today to run along the maze of paths down there.

I was up for it but to be honest I should have brought a pair of ice skates instead of trainers as there some much of the slippy stuff that we probably ended up running double the distance if you included all the side-ways action.

Anyway, glad I went. It felt quite easy and again it was non-stop. Simon said it was 15 mins faster than when he ran it last time so I was please about that.

Long Arthur's Seat Loop - 15km - 2hours 5mins

Well I decided to do a proper long run today. I've been putting it off for ages but today I just got up and went.

Headed out on Gilsland then Collington and onto Strathearn Rd. Up to the Commie Pool and then round the seat and back with a wee extra bit of a loop round Polworth and Ashley to finish. I went really, REALLY slowly but the aim was not time but the fact that I could do the distance without stopping... and I did.

At the 2007 Sydney City to Surf I crawled my way round a cramp-ridden 14km course with the sun beating down bringing with it 28C temps and it was awful. I never thought I'd ever run that distance again... but today I did... and then some.

Actually it wasn't too bad and I think that I had a few more kms left in the legs. That's good news for the upcoming half marathons. Fingers crossed they go as well as todays run - or better.

Gym Running - 6.35km - 45mins

It's been snowing a lot recently so my only options to run at the moment are to either goto the gym or buy snow shoes to run in.

I went for the former. I have to say that I'm really hating the machine and finding it so boring. It's difficult to keep going for more than about 10 mins. Threw in a bit of fart-lek at the end but it was still dull.

Must get on the road again - day off tomorrow so snow allowing I'll hit the tarmac.

Gym Cycling - 45 mins

As is sounds.

Need to get more time on the "actual" bike prior to any triathlons that are coming up. Had a chat to Simon today and he's got a few triathlons that he wants to do. They're not that far in the future and so there's perhaps a bit too much training to do!

Not to mention the swim training?!?! Where's that gone?

Arthur's Seat Run - 5.3km - 37min 37secs

Did this run again yesterday morning with Arfon. He's getting better and had to slow up about 3 times so that I could catch up with him. He was trying for a sub-35 time but we ended up getting 37:37 and I have to say I am happy. That's the fastest time so far and I was happy. I reckon I could to sub-35 in about 2 or 3 weeks.

We'll see.

Catch Up Summary - Dec 08 to Jan 09

Hey Guys,

I’ve been really bad with this blog and not written anything for 2 months! Actually, that’s not specifically true as I have written stuff elsewhere – in my “running log” which my sister bought me as a present last year (but which I’ve never used – until now).

Anyway, here’s a summary of what I’ve been up to…

29th Dec 08 - Arthur's Seat Run / 5.2km / 39min 40secs
This was a relatively easy run today and had a good downhill section. I did it with Simon and we only had to stop once on the uphill. Faster time too than the last time we did it.

30th Dec 08 - Arthur's Seat Run / 5.2km / 40min 10secs
Very frosty run today with Arfon and quite slow on the uphill as Arfon had calf agony and had to stop 3 times. Slower also on the down hill due to the frost.

1st Jan 09 - River Ness Run / 5km / Untimed Run
This is a very nice run and I previously did my fastest 5km time on this (around 28mins I think) last time I was up visiting Matt and Kristin. Today was mind over matter though as we'd had quite a big night as it was New Year's Eve and only gone to bed at 3am. I started the run at 8am and I'm sure I was in the middle of being both hungover and still drunk. Thankfully, I took the camera with me and managed to take quite a few snaps which broke up with run.

Very slow but very, very enjoyable and a good start to the New Year.

4th Jan 09 - Arthur's Seat Run / 5.2km / 38min 13secs
Solo run today where I really tried to get a good time. Arfon had done it the day before in 37min and 46secs but alas I was unable to get under the elusive 38 minutes. It felt very tough and my feet were sore and my right achilles tendon was playing up as it has tended to do recently.

Didn't take the iPod and unfortunately got the song "It's not what you do but the way that you do it" stuck in my head which was the correct tempo for the run but very, very annoying.

5th Jan 09 - Running Machine / 5km / 35min 02secs
This was a confusingly difficult run in the gym today. I don't know why. I was only running at 8.7km/h on zero gradient and still I struggled. Sole of my left foot became sore but my left ankle/foot was fine. Need more music for running as I'm getting a bit bored of what's on the iPod.

13th Jan 09 - Uni/Meadow/Morningside Run / 10km / 1hour 22mins 4secs
This was a totally confusing run. Originally, I had planned to run round the Meadows and then back to the flat. As I'm not from Edinburgh it's very easy to get lost... and I did. I ran up past the University then found the Meadows then ended up in Bruntsfield and then Morningside. Next I ended up on Collinton Road heading out towards the Bypass. Finally, I found my way back to Polworth Terrace and then to the flat.

The time was dreadful but it was incredibly icy and I found myself sliding about the pavements and roads. HOWEVER, I did the whole thing without stopping and although the time for 10km was awful (7.3km/h) the fact I didn't stop is a major achievement.

15th Jan 09 - EICC/Meadows Run / 8km / 57min 31secs
Ran down to the EICC to meet Arfon who had figured out that from his flat round the Meadows is a perfect 5km. Unfortunately, I had already run almost 2km by the time I met him so when we started to run together he spent a lot of time slowing down in order for me to keep up. My left sole was hurting again and I really struggled to keep up with him but the speed was much faster than my run on the 13th (8.4km/h).

At the end of the Meadows he trotted home and I still had to run up to Bruntsfield and then home. Glad it was over when I got to the flat!

25th Jan 09 - Meadows Loop / 8.2km / 1hour 2min 39secs
This was actually an OK run and I was surprised that I could run for that length of time without stopping having spent the last week on holiday in Les Arcs. Perhaps it was the altitude training but to be honest I didn't ride perticularly hard all week due to a mixture of conditions and abilities - and although I took my running stuff, I didn't run once. Shame on me.

Incidently, the Chris Hoy Half Marathon confirmation arrived while I was away and that's spurred me on to be more dedicated. There's no bailing out now!

26th Jan 09 - Bruntsfield/Morningside Run / 6.1km / 44min 50secs
This run was really just a challenge to see if I could do 2 runs in 2 days. This was quite a short one and I took an easy pace but there was loads of hills and was more concerned with doing it non-stop than the time taken. Only 8.1km/h but hey?

Need to get the distance up though now as the first half marathon I'm doing is in April and it's almost February! Yikes.

Anyway, that's the summary to date. All running you'll note but the bike still needs to go to the shop for a service and swimming?!?! well that's self explanatory.