10k: Bring on the heat!

Well, goodness, it's been a while since I bothered to blog, isn't it... Ahem...

Normally such an absence means that I have done no running and am hiding in shame. But, no! Not this time. No, indeed, it's been non-stop action on that front. Sadly.

First of all, there was another 5k (not exactly faster than the first).

Then there was a 10k - rather flat, quite sunny (too hot!) and a season's best time! For reasons that escape me, frankly, as everyone else runs more slowly in the heat. Hey, ho, guess I'm just weird (shock!).

Then I took myself to New York (as you do) for another 10k, round the charming (yawn) Prospect Park in Brooklyn (twice). In the heat (a rather lovely 75 or so deg F). And in no way flat. Which, obviously, resulted in a personal best time for 10k "running"!! I don't even... This running tosh makes less than no sense.

Finally, today I wandered off for another 5k, which was at least faster than the previous efforts, but was still a reassuringly bumbling around at the back sort of time. Admittedly, the time is gun time rather than chip time (I was faster than that, according to Garmin), but I can't get too excited about that - it always has been and so comparatively, all of a sudden, I'm "running" faster. And there's limited jowalking going on too!

Frankly, after all this excitement, I am quite ready for a lie down... An extended lie down, in fact... But The Proclaimers Challenge requires one more run from me... Just one...

Onwards!

:o)

Stats, Today
Running time/distance: 33 mins 19 secs, 5k (out along the seafront and back, no wind today)


Stats, Sunday 20th Sept
Running time/distance: 1 hr 6 mins 29 secs, 10k (a new personal best!)


Stats, Sunday 13th Sept
Running time/distance: 1 hr 9 mins 2 secs, 10k (flat and sunny round Stirling)


Stats, Saturday 12th Sept
Running time/distance: 34 mins 10 secs, 5k (out along the seafront and back)

5K: Promenade to the rear

Today I joined the Parkrun experience. A strange thing to do of a Saturday morning (get up early, drive out to a random location, join a group of (again) serious runners (looking for PBs, no less) and... Jog!!), but necessary. One does not hit 500 miles distance through visualisation alone, sadly...

This 5K was along a promenade (which everyone said as often as possible because, well, promenade. It's a cool word... Fact!) which is lovely and scenic (look! Running water!) and at the same time has a slight drawback. Ah, yes, my old friend - wind. Coastal locations are all very nice (and I do like them) but they're always featuring some feature involving the movement of large amounts of air. If it's not a light breeze, it's a strong headwind or a blooming strong crosswind or a howling gale. Never a calm moment, by the sea...

The fastest times set on Wednesday (a similarly flat terrain, but wooded and thus sheltered) was in the region of 15 minutes (15 minutes!! I know! There are large numbers of people out there who could finish 10K in the time it takes me to lumber around 5K! Madness...); the fastest time set today was in the region of 17 minutes. I am putting that down to wind resistance, and assume that it is also why my time was about 2 minutes slower than on Wednesday. This thinking works for me, and so it must therefore be accurate and true. No arguments from the back, please.

Also, I have now discovered that my 5K finish time is about 44.96% of my age- and gender-graded world record time... Not that I'm sure what that means - although I'm fairly clear that a higher percentage would be better. Still, gives me a completely meaningless number to aim for now, doesn't it...??

:o)

Stats, Today
Running time/distance: 34 mins 13 secs, 5k (out along the seafront and back into a headwind)

5K: Transcending around

I hate running laps. I hate running laps more than I hate just running. It's the knowledge that the end is in sight but you have to run past it again (and again) in order to get there. It's the fact that when you're half-way round lap one you know that you'll have to force yourself to do everything you've just done again. It's the fact that you're never really any closer to where you're going until the final lap - if you can force yourself to get there.

Plus, tonight, I discovered another reason to hate running laps. It's called being lapped. I was, in fact, lapped so many times tonight (it was a 3-loop run) that as I passed over the finish line for the end of my second lap half the field were finishing their third... And it was a small field... Inspiring stuff! *sigh* Mind you, there were a whole 2 people who finished after me, and so it wasn't necessarily all bad...!

Tonight's run was all about self-transcendence (apparently) with the aim being to and transcend yourself and find out why runners are smilers.

A couple of hours on from completing my first official 5k, I am still awaiting the transcendence, never mind discovering why runners are smilers. I remain hopeful that the promised status/information will soon, um, appear, but if anyone has any pointers, please do let me know...

:o)

Stats, Today
Running time/distance: 32 mins 28 secs, 5k (round and round and round again)