AnnaTheApple - AnnaTheApple

October 14, 2016September 17, 2020

Milestone Pod Review

I love stats. I’m all about facts and figures, graphs and tables and #allthedata. It’s one of the fun parts about running: wearing my Garmin and then downloading the run when I’m finished and seeing all the figures.

Yes it’s nice to be disconnected once in a while and have a “naked” run without any gadgets or tracking system…buuuuut that’s a rarity for me. I don’t feel chained to my Garmin or anything as ridiculous as that and if I forgot my watch I wouldn’t not run, but personally I much prefer to track how it went, even if I don’t look at my watch while I’m running.

So when I got the opportunity to review the Milestone Pod I was very excited. It’s a new little gadget and not actually available just yet in the UK (it is in the States, *sighs* they always get the good stuff over there…) but it will be soon.

What is it? Basically it’s a very small, well, pod that you attach to one of your trainers and it records certain data from your run, which you can then upload to an app on your phone.

It tracks the mileage that your trainers do, doesn’t require a GPS so can work indoors as well as outdoors and (and this is what excited me the most) records gait and performance metrics.

So you view your pace, cadence, foot strike, ground contact, stride length, etc.

I mean, seriously how cool is that?? It definitely provides an interesting insight into your run. My running form is something I’m always looking to improve so this gives me some good feedback and some pointers for things I need to work. I take the heel strike thing with a pinch of salt though as I’m not bothered about heel striking but more about where my foot is actually landing (basically, whether I’m over-striding or whether my foot is landing beneath my body). But it’s still very cool!

The rate of impact is an interesting metric and the website provides some good information as to what this really means:

“...think of Silly Putty. If you slowly stretch out the Silly Putty, it will not break right away because it has time to deal with your pulling force (low rate of impact). If you quickly yank it apart, the Silly Putty will snap because it has no time to deal with your pulling force (high rate of impact).” Source

As an injury prone runner (I’m sure I say this in every post as if you’re not aware of the thousands of injuries I seem to acquire every year), this is really informative. It’s made me keen to work on some running drills (which my club do before speed training) and put the strength training I do in the gym into better action while I’m actually out running.

The pod is very easy to get working and set-up (even a numpty like me can do it!). It uses a battery similar to a watch so it doesn’t need charging and is easy to replace when it eventually does go flat. What I will say though is be very careful you’ve attached it carefully and properly to your shoe so it doesn’t fall off. This has happened to me during a run!

I’m all about the gadgets and stats as I said so if that’s something you’re interested in too then this is definitely for you. I love stuff like this and I love that there’s a whole app full of metrics and graphs that I can just peruse and geek out over. And, importantly, aim to consciously work on while I’m actually running. So keep your eyes peeled for it’s launch on Amazon in a few weeks!

Do you like getting lots of data from your runs/workouts?

How do you track your workouts?

Have you ever had your running gait analysed?

**Full Disclaimer: I was sent the Milestone Pod for free in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own honest ones.**

October 12, 2016

Post Marathon: time off and what’s next

I’m still riding the happy wave of Chester Marathon. I’m so pleased with how it went and it’s given me a bit of a boost with what I could achieve going forward, which is of course onwards to another marathon.I’m not massively eager to bash out a ridiculously fast time or try and beat my PB (which was still around 4 minutes faster than Chester) but I’d quite like to do another really focused training segment where I include some actual workouts, like tempos, intervals and hill sessions, rather than the very relaxed running I was doing this time around. Though mentally it was nice to run without any real pace aims or targets, I really enjoy the process of seeing my paces get faster and just feeling more confident in my running.

My next marathon is Tokyo at the end of February [insert scared emoji]. I signed up with a tour company a while ago as I knew I wanted to do it at some point and I really have nothing stopping me doing it. Of course it’s ridiculously expensive to do it this way but I get a guaranteed entry (which is good because Tokyo is very, very hard to get into through the ballot, like London), flights, accommodation near the marathon start, transfer to and from the airport, some meals and I’m with other runners and a guide to help us get about. Seen as how I can get lost pretty much anywhere, I think this is probably the wisest approach in such a culturally different foreign country!

I think my parents (and my friends) are quite concerned about me getting lost there. Me too, me too. My dad jokingly said he’d put a tracker on my phone to make sure he knew where I was…though actually I don’t think he was joking. So being in a group of people and basically handheld through the process is perfect for me! Originally I was going to go with a fellow Marathon Major enthusiast but he selfishly bailed on me – apparently Boston is more important *cough cough* 😉

So Tokyo is the aim and, as ever, not a given because of my injury proneness. And unlike Boston, if I did get injured I wouldn’t still go as the trip is purely for the marathon with a bunch of other marathoners so how fun would that be if I couldn’t run? But anyway that’s a long way away at the moment.

For now I’m enjoying a bit of time off of running and gym-work. I don’t think I’ve had a week off from the gym for a long, long time so it was a nice reset for me during my week away. But don’t get me wrong though, I was looking forward to getting back into it! I do love going to the gym and having my normal routine.

In terms of running, I have no races in the plan apart from the Gosport Half Marathon (I sign up every year as it’s literally around where my parents live and the past three times I’ve been unable to do it due to injury. I almost didn’t sign up for fear of cursing myself), 10k near Christmas just for fun (I say “fun”, 10ks are never fun for me) and an obstacle course race thing with my friends in a few weeks but that’s not really running. I might take another week off of running or do the odd plodding about. I haven’t really made my mind up. My calf needed a bit of time post-marathon to feel happy again and it’s basically fine now but I don’t want to jump back into anything too soon. I’m also keen to address why I keep having this calf/shin issue. I’ve managed to get rid of all other issues (*touch wood*) but can never fully stop this when my mileage gets higher so I might have a gait analysis done.

But basically October is a chill month for me. November will ideally be when I’ll gradually build the mileage up again for Tokyo. Then it’ll be all go again! I also have a place at the London Marathon next year (Good For Age) but it’ll depend on Tokyo whether I do it or whether I defer.It’s all a bit fuzzy right now and nothing is ever set in stone for me.
But I feel very content and happy right now just bumbling along without a plan. This will change soon I’m sure as I start getting itchy feet…

What are your racing plans?

Do you like to follow a training plan or go off piste from time to time?

Have you had a gait analysis done before?

October 11, 2016October 11, 2016

Newcastle parkrun Review

I have another parkrun review for you today. This time brought to you from one of my running friends, Michelle, who, by the way, is RIDICULOUSLY speedy. We’re talking 3:15 marathoner, sub 19 minute 5k’er, sub 40 min 10k’er… I could go on, but basically any distance she can smash. She’s also very modest about it as well 🙂 And she’s kindly done a review of the Newcastle parkrun. Though I’m all for some parkrun tourism, Newcastle is a little bit tricky for me to get to living on the South Coast. Happily she’s studying to be a doctor ‘up North’ (brainy and speedy). So, without further ado, onto Michelle’s review…

That’s Michelle in the green t-shirt storming along

Location: Newcastle parkrun is found on Town Moor, an area of common just outside of the city centre. Apparently it is larger than New York’s Central Park and also Hyde Park and Hampstead Heath combined! On the corner of Town Moor is Exhibition Park which has a small lake, children’s play area and café. Other than a few hills and lots of green space there isn’t much in the way of scenery but this means it is easy to spot the runners towards the front and towards the back. It’s easy to find and if you get lost once your near there are always plenty of people heading that way!

Parking: Town Moor itself doesn’t have a dedicated car park however there are plenty of pay & display places to park which are only a very short walk away! For on road parking I would suggest Claremont Road, Clayton Road and Brandling Park Road. There is also a large pay & display on Claremont Road which costs £1.30 for an hour. Be careful as a lot of the surrounding roads are permit parking!

The best and easiest way to get to Newcastle parkrun is on public transport! Jesmond metro station is probably the closest at about a 5-minute walk from the start but Haymarket and West Jesmond metro stations are also about a 10-minute walk from the start. There are plenty of buses stop along Great North Road, Claremont Road and Haymarket bus station.

Amenities: Unfortunately, there are no toilets at Newcastle parkrun unless you buy something in the café in Exhibition Park to get a code. The café itself though is great! It serves hot drinks, snacks, breakfasts, sandwiches, homemade food, cakes and Dalinos ice cream (some amazing flavours!). You also get 10% student and OAP discount 😉

Course: The course itself is one big loop along the paths which cross the moor and along the outside of it.

Source

You start close to Exhibition Park and then head onto the main path which crosses the moor. The first turn is a right hander shortly after passing through the first (of 3) gates to run alongside the moor on the footpath of Grandstand Road. After 250m you turn right again through gate 2 and back onto the moor. The next section is on gravel paths (whereas the rest of the course is tarmac paths) and can be a bit muddy in the rain! You head back across the moor towards the top of exhibition park before a left turn towards the eastern edge of the moor. From here you run in a ‘u’ shape before turning left back onto tarmac paths and through the final gate. This is the only point on the course where you pass other runners who are about to head onto the ‘u’ shaped section. The final stretch takes you to a crossroads where you turn left onto the main path across the moor you joined shortly after starting and then left again back towards the start line. The finish line is 100m further on and after a slight right turn just past the start. All the gates are held open for you by marshals but running single file is required as they aren’t the widest of gates!

Oh there is one final thing…during the summer months you share the moor with cows! Yes, you read that correctly! There are cows that live on the moor.They are generally very friendly and will move out the way for runners but just watch where you’re putting your feet!

Elevation: Overall the course is pretty flat. As you head towards the first gate it is a slight incline but there are definitely no hills on the course.

Over the whole course the elevation gain is just 19m. This means that it can be a very fast one…although with Town Moor being very exposed any amount of wind can be a battle!

Number of participants: Being a city parkrun it is a big, busy one! The record attendance is 701 with average attendance being over 600! Despite this number of participants there are never really any problems. The design of the course means you’re not going to collide with other runners and the parkrun volunteers have developed a multiple finish funnel system to ensure finishing and getting your token is a smooth process. With this number of participants it means there is a wide range of times, from the quickest finishing in around 16 minutes and the slowest just under 50 minutes, so everyone is more than welcome! The course is ideal for runners with buggies due to it being mostly tarmac and dogs are also welcome on short leads.

Other: On the 2^nd Saturday of every month Newcastle parkrun hosts a paced run with volunteers pacing times from around 19 minutes up to about 40 minutes.

Pretty much every week there are volunteers there taking photos at different points on the course which are available on their Facebook page!

Due to the moor being very exposed and well it being in the north east the course does get very icy (and sometimes snowy) in the winter. This does mean it can get cancelled at short notice but this is always well publicised on Facebook and Twitter so I recommend checking before you head out!

Town Moor is also home to a Junior parkrun on a Sunday morning!

Have you ever been to Newcastle parkrun?

Would you prefer hilly and no wind, or flat and windy?

Wildlife and livestock on your runs, are you fan?

October 10, 2016

Post Marathon

I’ve had such a blissful week off but now it’s back to reality. It was exactly what I needed. A whole week of no gym and no running post marathon.

After I finished the marathon I was walking along on cloud nine. I was just so flabbergasted at what I’d achieved. I genuinely hadn’t expected it to go as well as it did so I was fairly chuffed and surprised with myself.

As we headed out of the race village we spotted the area where the winners of the horse races go (the race village was situated in the Chester Racecourse). It did look cordoned off from the public…but the gate was slightly ajar and I couldn’t help but quickly grab a few amusing photos.As we snuck out of the area a few fellow runners noticed the ideal photo spot and trickled through. We felt a bit naughty but hey ho, it’s got to be done!

As food is obviously a crucial factor in any post-marathon experience 😉 I’d previously hunted a good spot online for lunch earlier that week. This saved us having to walk around Chester hunting while I slowly become more and more hangry. We had a bit of time to kill as I’d sensibly booked the table for 2pm which would give me some time to feel a bit more normal post marathon. For me it goes something like this: ooof don’t show me any food… bleurgh food… can’t eat a single thing… I can’t even look at a cake right now… SHOW ME ALL THE FOOD… I NEED FEEDING. The switch-over happens very quickly 😉

The restaurant was a Turkish restaurant called Meze. It was an ideal spot for me because it was all about the meat but it was actually fairly healthy so it was ideal for my parents, who are trying to lose weight. It had lots of options like grilled meats, hummus, vegetarian plates, salads and rice so it was a good all-rounder. I went for the mixed grill and it was divine.Very handy that as I got a bit chilly I had this lovely long-sleeved technical t-shirt to put on! The restaurant was really nice and the service was fantastic. The chef even sent over a freebie little plate for us to try – it was some sort of Turkish-style salsa creation. Very tasty.
After eating, we wandered around Chester and had a look at the Cathedral. The bells were going and the sun was shining so it was perfect.After we got back to the cottage and I’d showered, we headed to the hot tub. Honestly I had been dreaming about this moment. And it was FABULOUS.Well it would have been fabulous had I not dramatically face-planted into the to tub when I got in. I slipped, fell forwards and then knocked my shin on the side. It wasn’t quite the graceful dip I was hoping to achieve and it was rather painful. I now have the most ridiculous bruises on my shin *sighs*. But the bottle of Prosecco we shared helped!

If I could do this after every marathon I definitely would (sit in a hot tub, not the falling in part). Bruised shin aside, I didn’t actually ache that much. I remember after my first few marathons every step was tough, though my calf was definitely feeling unhappy and niggly.

The rest of the week was very low key and chilled. I woke naturally most mornings between 7am and 8am, had a leisurely breakfast in the cottage (the ease of having self-catering accommodation) and then we’d set off to explore nearby places, such as Ludlow.And Powis Castle, which was just beautiful.It was full of peacocks as well, wandering about all casually. The grounds were beautiful and we had a lovely cup of tea in the cafe (isn’t that what National Trust locations are all about??)Over the week I ate lots of good food of course. Nothing crazily outrageous. Just a few scones here or there, some hearty sandwiches and a few puddings.
I did lots of walking and it was just so blissful. We were very lucky with the weather we had as well. Lots of sunshine, albeit a chill in the air indicating that autumn is very much en route.One of my favourite days was going on a 5 mile hike with my granddad around Longnor.

We did this on the Tuesday and it was a perfect way to stretch the legs a bit after the marathon. Though during the steepest sections I could definitely tell I’d run 26.2 miles!

It took just over three hours and was fairly hard going but we survived. Not too shabby for an almost 83 year old and a post-marathoner, eh? Both my grandparents are in fantastic shape – heading off for bike rides and long walks.

It was, as always, lovely spending time with my grandparents and my family. It was just nice to switch off, sleep lots and rest. I ate whatever I fancied and reset myself basically. On the last day we went back to Chester before heading to pick up the dogs from my other granddad who lives in Stoke and we had a lovely time shopping and then a gorgeous meal at The Botanist.I had literally a basket of chicken wings which weren’t amazing but tasty nonetheless (bit too overdone) – though the presentation was amusing. But the showstoppers were the main and pudding. I had a deli board for my main which you could pick lots of different things to have. I went for a baked Camembert with fig syrup, rollmops, honey glazed ham hummus and a fougasse bread (yes, the same as in the Bake Off!). It was delicious.

But the pudding… oh the pudding. It was the perfect end to such a fantastic holiday. A baked cookie with toffee ice cream and salted caramel sauce.I died and went to heaven. GLORIOUSLY tasty.

Though it’s sad it’s over, I feel very happy and content now I’m back. Exactly how you should do after a good holiday 🙂

What do you like to do after a big race or marathon?

What’s your favourite type of bread?

Have you been hiking anywhere interesting?

October 6, 2016December 31, 2019

Chester Marathon 2016

If there’s one thing I know about marathons it’s that it never gets easier.

I suppose after the first one you’ve completed there is a sense of reassurance that you can actually do the distance and not combust after mile 18, but it is never easy. And, at least for me, I’m never going into without feeling nervous and terrified.

On the morning of the marathon I got up at 6am, got dressed, had a quick black coffee and made my porridge to take with me in the car.

My parents were driving me there and then supporting me. So at 6.30am we piled into the car and headed to Chester, which was about 1.5 hours away from where we were staying in the cottage. Thankfully a quick petrol station stop allowed the necessary pre-race toilet requirement to be achieved (whew – runners, you know what I mean!) and we arrived at Chester at 8am, the time that the Chester Racecourse car park closes. This didn’t matter as my parents were just dropping me off and then heading off to find breakfast and mile 15ish to wait for me. However, we were very lucky as the road closures were literally happening around us at that point (we didn’t realise the roads to and from the racecourse would be closed. Normal well-organised people might, bt us chancers? Noooo).

The temperature was very nippy and I was thankful for having a charity shop purchased fleece to keep me warm.

The race village was quite cool being in the racecourse. There were several tented areas full of things to buy and the bag drop area but I headed out to the main grass area to get into the loo queue because really what else can you do when you have about 45 minutes to kill before a race?

The grass was wet and my trainers were annoyingly getting a bit soggy. I noticed several people had blue plastic shoe covers on their trainers to keep them dry and wondered where they got them from. But I wasn’t bothered enough to hunt them out for myself. A loo visit was more important! There didn’t seem to be a huge number of mobile loos it must be said but I was able to go twice so I can’t complain! No bad loo experiences so that’s always a plus!

Eventually we were called to the start. I felt really nervous. For me, a marathon is never a proper marathon unless I have some sort of ailment to worry about beforehand and in true Anna-style I was worried about my calf. It had been feeling very tight and a bit, dare I say, niggly during the week. I felt it a bit at parkrun the day before…In normal circumstances a week off would have probably put it to bed but not possible when race day is that week! But anyway we started and it just felt a bit tight so I tried to ignore it.

The first mile is run partly on grass as you come out of the racecourse and then onto the roads of Chester. There were quite a few clusters of small crowds and local running clubs who cheered us on. It was a lovely atmosphere. I remember distinctly how easy that first mile felt and thinking how it would later contrast with the final mile…

I hadn’t really got a strict pace plan. I decided to see what felt comfortable and go with that – as long as it wasn’t under 8min/miles as that would be silly considering my training. I stuck pretty consistently to 8-8:10min/miles and felt very relaxed, if not a little bored after we came out of the main city (which happened fairly quickly). Don’t get me wrong though, the Chester Marathon course is beautiful. So scenic. The first bit through the city was cool because of all the old walls, the Tudor-style buildings and the Chester Cathedral that you run past.

To take my mind of the monotony I listened in to other’s conversations around me and checked out what people were wearing. One man amusingly had some sort of race finisher’s t-shirt that for some reason, amongst all the other writing, had the word “Male” printed largely at the bottom. I wondered why!?

As we got deeper into the countryside I decided I just had to take a photo. I was wearing my Flipbelt so my phone (and my gels) were easy to get out.

It was just perfect. Or at least it would have been had the sun not been shining directly in our eyes for about 90% of the first 10 miles! I envied those who were wearing sunglasses.

But that blue sky! The temperature was still fairly cool, especially in the shade, so it really was perfect running temperature. The course was not entirely flat, with a few undulations here and there but nothing major.

So the first 10k went by fairly uneventfully. I chatted to a guy who was running the same pace as me (his 14th marathon) and we had roughly the same time goals, though he was more keen to get closer to 3:30 whereas I was more generally 3:30-3:45. I know it sounds a bit off but I didn’t really want to chat too much. I was happy to just sink inside my brain and not think for a bit rather than make conversation but we stayed in the same pace range and it was nice to have his company there even if we didn’t chat a huge amount.

We ran over a mat at 10k so I knew my parents would know how I was doing on the tracker thing. My first main milestone was 8 miles as this was when I was to have my first gel. My watch was already out from the mile markers annoyingly so I made sure to wait until the actual 8 mile mark rather than my watch (because I’m neurotic like that). The gel was an SIS Red Berry with caffeine flavoured one which I hadn’t had before. I’ve had SIS gels before but not this particular flavour. I’ve never had an issue with gels before and I’ve tried quite a few and thankfully this was fine. Though the flavour was DISGUSTING. So pleased I have an entire pack of them at home…

At 10 miles I was grateful to final allow myself to listen to a podcast (the BBC 5 Live Film Review). The pace was still consistently around 8 min/miles and though the country side was beautiful I was a bit bored. The podcast really helped though as I lost myself in that until 13 miles, when I had my next gel. Oh the excitement! 😉

After my gel (one I’d picked up from an aid station – a High5 IsoGel – very liquidy) I started to look forward to seeing my parents. As I got to 13 miles I realised my parents wouldn’t be at 15 as it was a weird part of the course that goes off and does a big square before turning back towards the city at mile 15. So mile 13 and 15 are practically next to each other if that makes sense.

At this point you can see the super speedy people running back towards you as they’ve already done the square – I saw the sub-3 pacer storming along and realised that the square would take about 30-40 minutes. It was nice to see the other runners coming towards you so that amused me for a while.

As I got to 16 miles, around a small village called Holt, I spotted a crowd of people and scanned them to see if my parents were there. They were! I was so pleased to see them!

I went a bit crazy cheering and waving much to the delight of the spectators. I think they must have thought I was mental!

Then I was off again. My next milestone was 18 miles for my final gel. This time it was a Honey Stinger Acai and Pomegranate flavoured one which was a bit thicker but so tasty; fruity and sweet.

There were so nasty short inclines around this point that were actually quite tough.

I tried to ignore how tired my legs were and just get them done. The nice decline afterwards wasn’t entirely welcome either because that still works the muscles pounding downhill!

As I got to mile 20 I wondered if I had anything in me to boost up the speed for the last 10k. I didn’t feel I did and wondered if this was the difference between doing speed work during marathon training and not…But I decided to put on my “let’s get going” playlist and see what happened.

Well, it certainly helped boost me along! I thought to myself, just get to 23 miles and then it’s just a parkrun. It definitely helped. When I finally reached 23 miles I was smiling and feeling good and shouted to a marshal it was just a parkrun to go and he laughed and said I looked too happy.

There was a nasty hill around 23-24 miles but I could smell the finish line and just pushed on. I started overtaking people and several people cheered me on, one guy yelled with a lovely Northern accent, “You go, girl!”. I don’t know what happened but suddenly I was flying. The crowds of supporters got bigger and I kept a smile on my face and they cheered me through. I just kept passing people and it was such a buzz. We ran alongside the River Dee and loads of people were having lunch or coffee in little cafes alongside the river or standing and cheering and it really helped keep my momentum going. One more mile, the quicker I do it the quicker I can stop. The finish was in sight, we were now back on the grass of the race course and I just needed to get to the end. And I was done!

I checked my watch and couldn’t believe it: 3:28:22. Sub 3:30! My A Goal! I also couldn’t believe how I managed to pull out a sub 7 minute last mile. Over a minute faster than my first mile and about 100 times harder!

I got my medal, a foil blanket, a technical t-shirt (very nice) and a goodie bag and then spotted my parents who were waving madly to me. Ahh so nice to see them so quickly after finishing!

I was on cloud nine 🙂

My calf was a bit grumpy, I won’t lie, but otherwise I was feeling fantastic. The sun was shining and I was over the moon with how consistently I ran and how much speed I was able to pick up in the last 10k. It just felt fantastic running past all those people and hearing the crowds. I’ll never forget it.

Right, I’ll leave it there as this post is already far too long. Chester Marathon is a fantastic marathon and I’m so glad I did it. It was well organised, well supported, scenic and just a joy to run. Top marks!

Have you ever done Chester Marathon before?

What kind of course do you prefer: countryside, city, etc.?

How many gels (if any) do you take during a marathon and what’s your favourite?