Running - AnnaTheApple

October 21, 2015

Current injury status

Yep so I’m still injured. I really only have myself to blame for this as I consciously made the decision to finish the Bournemouth marathon, despite being in pain.

At around 16 miles I chose to carry on despite my race now becoming a run, stop, stretch, walk repeat affair. I was in pain – not a niggle, not a discomfort – genuine pain, to the point that I had to stop running and walk the entire last two miles as the pain was far too much.

Having suffered with the dreaded IT band injury before I’m well aware of the timelines of these sort of things. Last year I took off a total of six weeks – though not all of those weeks were because of the injury. I decided to not start running again until I was mentally ready, not just physically ready, because I was fed up of the continuous injury cycle. I’m pretty sure it was four weeks though before I was entirely pain-free and discomfort-free.

My current injury is pretty much following the same pattern. I remember feeling the same pain, even two weeks later. What’s frustrating is that towards the beginning and middle of last week it was really improving, but then a sharp trapped-nerve like pain began sporadically when I walked (I remember this pain as similar to last year around the same time as well). I haven’t tried running and I’ve kept away from cardio apart from a few bursts on the bike… I wonder if that might have niggled it further but it genuinely felt fine during and after. So I’m just holding my nerve and not panicking as I know I could be in for two more weeks of not running.

I had some swelling after the marathon which has gone down a lot, but there’s still a slight puffiness to the area where the IT band joins in the knee. Basically I just need to get rid of the last inflammation and keep stretching it.

Gym-wise I can carry on with what I was doing which I’m glad about. Squats and deadlifts feel absolutely fine, though I’ve gone down a few Kgs in weight for the squats to be cautious. And I’m avoiding anything like the elliptical machine or stepper to avoid unnecessarily aggregating things.

I know I’m going to lose running fitness but I’m not bothered. Yep that’s 100% truthful. This year I achieved more than I thought I would and I had no real goals for after Bournemouth anyway (until next year anyway). Perhaps my only annoyance is that there’s a 10 mile in a few weeks time that I would have liked to have raced as I’ve never had a good 10 miler but I’ve conceded defeat. Taking that out of the equation also takes off any pressure to try and start running too soon.

Really though it’s the mental side of things I’m struggling with. The need to get outside and just run. To feel the freedom of outside, the fresh air and the mental freshness I get when I run. And I miss the social side of training runs with my club and running at parkrun. Of course I can still volunteer at parkrun but it’s not the same. You’re on the sidelines watching everyone do what you’d love to be doing. But the weeks will pass and my leg will heal.

What went wrong? Well, I don’t think you can ever know for sure but it was probably down to not following simple injury-prevention strategies. I’m so angry at myself. I was so smug about going to the gym and strength training that I forgot the other side of things as well. I’m an injury-prone runner and can’t neglect the basics of stretching and foam rolling.

I can’t remember the last time I foam rolled before the injury. I used to be really good at it. Sure for some people they don’t need to do it, but for me I know I do. I need to do everything I can to lessen the impact of running on my body. And going to the gym and lifting heavy weights and then running on tight and sore muscles is stupid for me. Other people can get away with these things, but I certainly can’t.

It’s funny because though I’ve been running properly (I don’t count my treadmill years) for over three years now and I’m still learning lessons. I just hope that I can stop making such simple mistakes in the future. For now though I’ll continue to go to the gym and enjoying my strength training, trying not to focus on how much I’d just love to run right now.

Do you foam roll regularly?

What exercise mistakes have you made in the past?

What injuries have you suffered?

October 14, 2015September 17, 2020

Rants and Raves #21

I’m still being sensible and not running. I have another Physio appointment on Friday (ahh the joys of working from home and having a disposable income that I spend only on myself…). I’m hoping I can run on Saturday for parkrun but I’m not sure. It does feel better but I don’t want to have a period of stop-start running and prolonging the issue. Anyway, onto some rants and raves!

Rant: The new Disney Paris Half Marathon opened for entries yesterday. It sounds really cool and it’s obviously an easier option for us Brits than the Orlando ones across the pond…BUT they’re being rather cheeky about it. At the moment you can only enter it if you also book their Disney resort hotel, which makes it over £300. They’re only releasing the non-hotel entries in January. I mean come on, that’s ridiculous. They’re might not even be places left at that point.

I’m not tempted by the race I must say (I would be by a marathon but not for a half. I want to do the Orlando Disney marathon at some point), but I do think this is really sneaky and a bit unfair. It’s forcing people to purchase a bundle and spending a lot more. Not very ‘fairy tail racing’ if you ask me.

Rave: (This is just my opinion – no affiliation!) I’m signed up to Fabletics (yes, I’m a sucker), which means I need to ‘Skip the Month’ if I don’t want to pay the 40 quid every month that my ‘VIP status’ requires. However, I always have a little mosey before I do this…just in case.

Though I kind of disagree with this system of potentially forcing you to pay money every month (though it does go towards clothes, it’s not like it just disappears and you get good discounts on all the items) I’m a big fan of the Fabletics gear. I’ve not had a single item from there that hasn’t fit me or I’ve regretted buying. I’ve had a pair of capris, hair bands, a hat, sports bras, shorts, tops…all of really good quality. I can’t fault them. And I love the styles they have.

I recently bought the Fenway Vest (which I’d been lusting over since Claire showed hers off).

It’s really lightweight but lovely and warm. It’s nice and casual so perfect for going to parkrun in or popping down the shops. Or wearing around the house when I’m slobbing about a bit.

I also bought the Katana Longsleeve Tee which is perfect for running when the weather gets colder. It has little ventilation holes in the arms and back.

The Kemi Bra which is a ‘low impact’ sports bra so perfect for the gym (it’s so comfortable and has removable cups for that added extra). I adore the bright colour and pattern.

And finally the Orchard Tank which is great for the gym but also running (in summer anyway) as it’s got all the holes in it. I’m really pleased, and to be honest it wasn’t that expensive. Considering the prices of Nike or Adidas…or Lululemon (jeeze, remortgage the house why don’t I) I think I did well!

Rant: On the subject of workout clothes…it always amuses and confuses me what guys think is appropriate gym wear (I say “guys” because invariably it is the men, but women are not guiltless either). OK it is stupidly early in the morning when I go and, let’s be honest, who the hell cares what other people wear? But a guy was literally wearing a full-on painters/decorating outfit. It was like he’d come straight from work (which would be odd considering the time). He had paint all over his white overalls and was just casually lifting weights. As you do.

Another guy was wearing an entire velour tracksuit in lime green – I’m not making this up I promise you. Though you can always spot the runners…with their specialised kit on, as if they got lost on their run and ended up in the gym instead.

Rave: I spotted this in Tesco and decided to give it a go. I’m always concerned that my running and gym gear never gets the proper wash it probably needs and this was quite cheap.

I’m not saying I stink, but it’s nice to have a washing liquid (supposedly) aimed for sports kit. Plus they say you shouldn’t wash your sports stuff with your normal stuff…sweat transference or something 😉 I’ve never had an issue (though saying that, who’s going to tell me I smell? Now I’m panicking…) but I’ll give this a go.

Rant: I still haven’t moved. And I’m still sitting on a beanbag trying to eat dinner each night. What a sad image, eh! I’m too cool for school (just by saying that sentence eliminates me from the Cool Group). Anyway, Alfie has been a bit unsettled by the lack of sofas and furniture. He’s been lying on his blanket on the floor…despite having a bed!! A bed he has never used in the three years we’ve had the house. I think he then overheard me telling my mum I was going to get rid of it before I moved because he suddenly decided to start using it. Or it might be because I moved it closer to my beanbag…

Ahh what a mummy’s boy.

Rave: I’m still really enjoying listening to audio books on my walks with Alfie and when I make dinner. I’m currently listening to Me Before You and it’s really good. I wasn’t certain I’d enjoy it as it’s a tough subject matter, but it’s honestly such a lovely and realistic story. I fully recommend. I’ve just Googled it and, unsurprisingly it’s going to become a film. I just hope it doesn’t lose it’s very British charm and become Americanised. Absolutely nothing against Americans or American movies, it’s just this has so much Britishness in it it would spoil it to lose that.

Rant: The night before I left for Iceland I was casually watching TV when a GIANT spider ran over to me – I swear it ran AT me (with menace in its many eyes).

I’ve never moved so fast in my life I can tell you. I evacuated the lounge ASAP. Alfie, my resident spider-eater, wasn’t there because he was at my parent’s house as I was flying the next morning. So I barricaded the door as I was genuinely scared it would come and find me.

When I came back from Iceland I waited until Alfie was back before venturing into the lounge (yes, really). But I haven’t seen the spider since. I sit on my little beanbag every night in genuine fear that the spider is going to reappear and come for me. If I stop blogging…you know why.

What book are you reading currently?

Will you watch a film of a book you enjoyed?

Spiders: fear and flee, leave be, or find and kill?

October 7, 2015

A few reflections – and I’m strangely OK!

So my marathon didn’t go how I wanted it to, obviously. And still a few days later I’m paying the price.

It’s very similar to what I had last year with my IT band – except the other leg. It’s funny because I re-read an old post of the fateful last run before I took time off around Christmas and it was almost identical to what happened in the marathon (so handy having these blog posts to refer to!). That took me around 4-6 weeks to come back to running. My expectations are firmly set. I’d rather think worst case then I can be pleasantly surprised if it’s not that bad.

Am I about to fall into a well of despair and go all dark and shady on you? No. I’m surprisingly OK about the whole thing. Oh yeah it fully sucks, don’t get me wrong. I’d love to be moaning about a few post-marathon aches and debating when my first run will be, instead of limping along pathetically feeling pain walking up and down stairs. But getting upset about it won’t solve anything and I’ve achieved so much this year that it would be almost greedy to want more and more. I’m an injury-prone runner, this is something that is bound to keep happening to me not matter how many squats and deadlifts I do.

I knew I was needing a break from running anyway as I was drawing close to the marathon. Running was feeling harder and I was feeling tired. I think I’ve done a lot recently and this injury has come at the best time (if ever there is a good time to have an injury!). I’d have liked to have voluntarily taken a break, obviously, but hey ho!

That said, I have wondered what exactly what went wrong at the marathon. I have literally had no knee pain at all this year. My IT band hasn’t felt uncomfortable or twingey. My runs before the marathon felt fine. I was more concerned about my shin than anything (which by the way, is absolutely fine!). I’d stopped foam rolling and stretching as religiously as I used to and I know my quads (and probably my IT bands I suppose) were tightish so that might not have helped.

I think the main reason could be the trainers I wore. With the house moving chaos my trainers have gotten all mixed up. The day before the marathon I was debating which to wear. My new ASICS have been great during training but I wondered how they’d fair in a full marathon. I knew (from Strava – very handy) that I wore my Mizunos for the Cheddar Gorge marathon and they felt fine so I thought I’d go for them. Unfortunately I have two pairs of identical Mizunos (whhhhhy don’t I just get rid of old trainers?!) and mistakenly picked up the old ones that I’d retired. It’s funny because I remember looking at them in Bournemouth and realising they were a lot cleaner than the ones that had run Cheddar Gorge…bugger. This is the only thing I can think of. I’m a runner who needs support in their trainers and my old Mizunos are definitely past their best.

I’m seeing my physio Friday (ahh, haven’t seen him in a while!) and I’m expecting him to say no running for at least two weeks, and then reassess. Icing has been my friend (I wish I was talking about the cake variety…).

Monday morning I used my commute well – and my Hello Fresh ice packs! (An idea I got from Mary).

Speaking of icing, I forgot to mention in my recap about how after the marathon a few of us trundled into the see in just our socks. It was freeeeeezing, but it was good fun and fantastic after such a long run (plus walk!). Though a wave did splash against me, causing me to get a wet bum. Nice. I wish I’d gotten a photo but, like I said, my phone was dead.

Anyway, for the moment I’m feeling like a rest is a good idea. This week I’m doing nothing, even the gym (not that I could do anything other than upper body and core right now). Getting good nutrition and a good night sleep each night are my priority.

The latest Marathon Talk podcast with the interview with Dr. Kirk Parsley about the importance of sleep has only further highlighted that the best thing I can do right now is make sure I get a good night sleep to help with the recovery process. Getting up at 5am to hobble round the gym is not going to help!

My only one annoyance is parkrun. I was doing so well to go so consistently and I’m second on the female points table. *Sighs* but I’m not going to risk anything. I’ll volunteer this week and be a bit grumpy 😉

What are your priorities when you’re injured? Nutrition? Sleep? Cross-training?

How much sleep do you get each night?

How much sleep do think is best for you?

October 6, 2015October 28, 2016

Bournemouth marathon

This was my fifth marathon and safe to say my worst. I think I’ve been very lucky so far to have had some truly great marathon experiences. I’ve felt strong, without injury and run past all those poor people at the end who were stopping, stretching and limping. Spoiler alert: I was one of those people at Bournemouth. I suppose my streak of good marathons had to end at some point and having a bad one only makes me want another good one so much more. I finished, thankfully, but it was through a lot of pain and determination.

**All photos are from various friends: Gary Trendel, Louise Larkum Bond, Karen’s family, my dad, Debbie Hampton – I’m very grateful, thank you!**

I got up at 6.30am, got dressed and ready, made my porridge and coffee and hit the road with my dad. We picked up my running club friend, Mike, and headed on our merry way. Parking wasn’t free but not extoritionate and was close to the main race HQ so it was fairly easy-going at the start (there were portable loos and proper loos without majorly long queues). So many people from my club were there, either supporting or running one of the many races Bournemouth Marathon Festival put on (5k, 10k, half, marathon). My previous marathons have all been pretty much on my own, without a lot of people from the club, so it felt lovely to have so many people to chat to, talk about goals with and just mill about with.

I was glad to have my dad there as well. He’s now seen all but one of my marathons and still loves to support.

I had no real time goals for this marathon. I’m happy enough with Liverpool’s PB to leave that be and knew my training hadn’t been as good, so I was vaguely aiming for a 3:45-3:30 time, closer 3:30 if I felt strong at the end. Quite a few of us were aiming for those times so we started together.

My friend Karen was running her first ever marathon and her training hadn’t been ideal due to illnesses and generally being a busy mum, but she was aiming for sub 3:45 for a GFA (she’s a sub 19 5k runner so it wasn’t unrealistic).

We took the start nice and easy and got into a good rhythm. The course is great because you come back on yourself quite a few times which means you can see lots of people lots of times, either in front of you or behind – and it’s a great one for supporters. With a lot of the club doing the marathon it meant a lot of cheers and support. I was feeling comfortable and we chatted away (to the point that one of the marshals on the bike kept laughing at us as we were apparently always talking when he saw us – and a fellow runner also said he wanted to stick with us our conversations were so entertaining!!).

Bournemouth is not a flat marathon. It has gentle long inclines and if there’s a wind it can be quite brutal as it’s along the seafront. However, the gentle breeze was a welcome relief from the hot sun that was beating down.

We were keeping a consistent pace and the miles seemed to fly by. At mile 6 I had a MuleBar gel (salted caramel flavour – I did a review HERE). This flavour absolutely rocked my world. Possibly the best thing I ate all day. It literally tasted like liquid caramel. I would gladly have that as a snack!

But around mile 7 or 8 my left leg (vague knee area) started to twinge ever so slightly. I ignored it because it wasn’t painful, just an awareness. As the miles ticked away though it started to niggle more. I tried not to panic and continued on.

As we got to mile 12 we both started to struggle: Karen with the heat and me with my knee. Around mile 12 there was a steep hill and we both agreed to walk it. My knee had progressed to a definite niggle. I stopped and stretched to see if that helped. My quads had been tight all week, I put it down to that.

I kept smiling for the cameras, waving to supporters, saying thank you to marshals, but the whole time a raging panic and debate was happening in my head. Karen had a quick loo stop and I stopped and stretched again – and got caught on camera by a friend in the club and I thought I’d have a moment of fun…

I tried to stay positive. I ran on, knowing Karen would catch me up as I could foresee more stopping and stretching ahead. I started to wonder how much this marathon meant to me. I could pull out and have a DNF and not make this niggle into a full-blown injury, or I could struggle on and get another marathon ticked off with the knowledge that I had no other big races until next year.

I pushed on. I saw my dad at mile 14 and collected a gel from him (Clif Double Expresso – very nice, but quite thick and sticky; definitely need water with this one). I quickly told him my knee was bad and I was having a tough time. His face fell and he wished me luck. Chatting with Karen helped us both take our minds off our own personal hell. What frustrated me most was that I felt strong and capable, it was simply my leg that was in pain.

At mile 18 we got to the next significant hill and we walked again. We were both rather demoralised. We kept doing the maths to see how badly this would affect Karen’s 3:45 aim (though her maths was significantly better than mine! I was useless).

I imagine this photo is probably before half-way

For the next few miles we were run-walking. I was too far away now to quit – as in, I’d have to walk back anyway so I might as well carry on. A lovely girl randomly called to me hello and said she was a blog reader. I can’t tell you how much that meant to me in my dark marathon moment. She was steaming along nicely and it brightened me up significantly. Thank you, Jenn! 🙂 She did very well I believe.

My pattern became: stop and stretch (which was absolutely pointless, as you can probably tell) and then run to catch Karen up. I suddenly found running at a brisk pace helped my leg and the pain wasn’t so bad. I decided to try running faster to see if that helped. I said to Karen that it was highly likely I’d break and she’d catch me up. Being lovely, she told me to go on. For a brief mile I was suddenly OK. This is going to sound bonkers but I started to sing to myself to keep me going (quietly, though a few people noticed and I said I had to do something to keep me going and they chuckled knowingly). The pain was still there, but less so. I suddenly had a bit of confidence spark inside me.

But then that moment ended (that was mile 22) and I was walking again. Stretching was making things worse. Karen caught me up. I tried to keep with her but it wasn’t happening. I told her to go on (oh how the tables change so quickly in a marathon!) and I started the long walk to the finish.

(Side note: Karen finished in a fantastic time of 3:53ish which is amazing considering her training and her struggles).

Those miles took bloody ages. You forget how far a mile really is when you’re running. I walked with some other injured souls and we lamented at our failed attempts. One guy had attempted to break 3 hours and his hamstring tear had returned it seemed. He said he thought he’d be OK as the bruising had gone down a week ago (!!). Jeeze, there’s always someone worse I suppose! He made a brief comment about how he was despairing not finishing in under 4 hours. I shrugged. At this point, I just wanted to finish it. Timing was now irrelevant.

Despite my dark time the support around me was fantastic. People could see I was in pain and cheered me on gently, in that “it’ll be over soon” kind of way. Marshals checked I was OK and consoled me a bit as I walked past. I couldn’t run any more. The pain was too much. Someone cheered me right up by yelling “come on, Miss Abs!”. Take the compliments when you can!! I sat down briefly on the wall and had a quiet word with myself, willing myself not to cry.

My FlipBelt was amazing by the way. Definitely using that again – no bouncing, held everything in place, no rubbing – two gels and a phone snuggly fit in there nicely. But my phone was dead. I have no idea how as I didn’t use it at all during the marathon! I must have left something on I suppose. Consequently I couldn’t ring my dad. As the time ticked past 3:45, 3:50, 4 hours I knew my dad would be worried. But there was nothing I could do but keep on walking. It’s a long stretch, the last few miles, and you can see the finish area the whole time. I just kept it in my sight and kept on walking, determined to get my medal.

As I got (finally) to mile 26 there became a lot more support and either side of the course people were cheering and lined up.

I felt myself welling up as people saw my pain and cheered me on. I grimly tried to smile at them and felt the tears just keep coming. This only made them cheer me on more. I saw my club ahead, put on a brave face, wiped the tears away and thought “sod this melodrama, just bloody finish”.

I barely registered crossing the line because, to be honest, I still had to keep walking. It wasn’t like I was running to stop. I still had to walk to find my dad. I felt like a fraud. But at the same time, I did it. I finished. Thank god.

The medal is amazing. It’s huge! My official time was 4:11:19, which isn’t bad at all I know. Yes it’s 30-40 minutes slower than I intended but these things happen. When people talk about awful marathons I can be fully part of that club now.

And, what absolutely made my day, was meeting Martin Yelling (again)! I was that annoying fan girl though, gushing “I’m a Marathon Talk listener!”. He did a sort of nervous “yay” but really meaning “please don’t be a stalker”. He was lovely, and can I just say, quite dishy in the flesh.

Anyway despite it being a terrible marathon, I don’t regret it. The race was fantastic, the support amazing, the course…challenging, and the marshals brilliant. My one regret is not being able to enjoy those last few miles and run strong through that fantastic support.

Great goodie bag afterwards. Fantastic technical t-shirt and snacks (and an iron supplement thing).

I think I made the right decision to carry on. Yes I’ve buggered myself now and I’m officially an injured runner again, but I have nothing else to prove or achieve for this year. I know I can rest up and come back strong for Boston (finger’s crossed). I just need to be patient.

Plus, it’s an ideal time to take a break for my own personal health and the busyness of my impending (though still date-less) move.

What’s been your worst ever race?

What would make you DNF at a race? Would you have continued on if you were me?

If you use them, what’s your favourite gel?

October 1, 2015

Reykjavik, Iceland – part 1

I’ve never been on holiday on my own so I was quite nervous when my friend sadly had to bail out at the last minute of our trip to Iceland. Instead of just cancelling it though I thought I’d still go and enjoy myself. It would be an “experience” and a good time to get away from it all. I’m so glad I did go because I had a fantastic time. Though I was alone, I was never lonely.

I’d planned to do my usual tradition of going to Jamie’s Italian for a big dirty fry-up before flying but was aghast to find that Gatwick South Terminal didn’t have one. Despite this, I was spoilt for choice and almost went to Nando’s (I know, I know, I’m obsessed) but in the interest of trying something different I chose WonderTree as it seemed quite unusual and had a good menu. I ordered the ‘Woodstock’ with a side of bacon and sausages (because I’d been craving them).

Poached eggs, avocado, hummus, roasted cherry tomatoes, labneh cheese, za’atar, baked potato wedges and basil-parsley oil

Very tasty. It did feel weird sat there on my own but I enjoyed people watching and reading my Kindle (“My Sister’s Secret“- very good).

I arrived in Keflavik airport after an easy three-hour flight and got a transfer to the Blue Lagoon en route to Reykjavik where I would be staying. I really recommend this as it’s half-way there so you don’t need to waste time during your holiday to drive back out there. I used FlyBus which was great.

The Blue Lagoon was really something else. I changed into my swimming gear and did the mad “omg it’s so cold out here” dash from the lovely warm building into the water.

It was fantastic. I waded around (it’s fairly shallow, but enough so you can submerge your body) and just relaxed. It was cold and windy outside but deliciously hot in the water. It’s probably hot tub warm, though I found an area which was SUPER hot (it’s clearly marked as a hotter area so there’s no danger of accidentally going there). There’s also an area where you can put the white silica mud on your face and body. Lots of fun, though I did get my arm stuck when I foolishly tried to fish some out without using the special ‘stick thing’. It was one of those panicked moments where I tried to pretend it wasn’t stuck so no one would notice but at the same time try to desperately free myself.

A few tips if you ever plan on going there:

Take a towel, your swim gear and flip-flops with you (you can upgrade your ticket to include a towel, bathrobe and slippers but it’s over £7/10$).
DON’T get your hair wet as the water is so full of minerals it will dry it out (I read this beforehand luckily).
I took my waterproof iPhone cover so I could take photos easily without worry.
Be prepared for naked bodies in the changing room. Europeans are quite “free”. There are changing rooms but only a small number.
They have shower gel and a strong conditioner there (if you did get your hair wet).

Then I showered and got dressed (naked bodies ahoy!) and got my transfer to my AirBnB in Reykjavik. At this point I was beyond hungry as I hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast (which was around 10am). By the time I got to my accommodation it was almost 7pm and I was HANGRY. I won’t lie, the choice of restaurant was more on “what’s closest” than any other value. But it was a great choice! (And TripAdvisor is so handy to do a very quick check). It was a restaurant called Meze which was Turkish/Mediterranean style.

I wanted to try to eat as much Icelandic food, and different food, as I could on the holiday. I also decided fairly early on not to worry about cost (to an extent obviously!) or about being particularly healthy. This holiday was about relaxing in every sense of the word.

I had a cheese platter (halloumi, feta and mozzarella) to start, followed by a lamb shish kebab for main and a melt-in-the-middle chocolate cake for pudding. OK so Turkish food isn’t exactly Icelandic food, but I was keen to try the lamb as it’s well-known that Icelandic sheep graze relatively freely and are hormone-free, meaning the meat is of fantastic quality and the animals had a happy life.

But I will stress that Iceland is not a cheap place at all. An average three-course meal was around £35/$54. To get a main course cheaper than £15 was rare.

The next day I’d planned to do a three-four mile run. Sadly there are no parkruns in Iceland, though I can attest to some fabulous locations where they could easily have them!

I scientifically tested how cold it was outside by sticking my hand out the window. It wasn’t too bad so went with shorts but wore a long-sleeved top (which later felt far too warm). I had a very vague idea of where to run as I’d Googled some routes beforehand, but I knew I wanted to get to the Hallgrimskirkja church as it looked so awe-inspiring.

Running so early in the morning (well, 7am) meant the streets were clear and there was no one around to get in my photos. It was very calm and peaceful, probably because they all went to bed about 5am judging by the sounds outside my flat. Reykjavik is also surprisingly hilly as you come away from the coast edge!

As I had a kitchen in the AirBnB I decided to save money (and time) by buying oats and milk and making porridge in the morning. I love my breakfast so I didn’t mind. It also meant I could sleep a bit more.

My plans for my first day was going on a tour of the Golden Circle. I used the tour company Iceland Horizon, which were fantastic. I was in a mini-bus with about 10 other people and our tour guide was both interesting and funny. I met a Portuguese girl and a Canadian guy around my age who were both solo travellers as well so we instantly bonded.

The Golden Circle consists of the national park, Þingvellir, the waterfall Gullfoss, and the geysirs Geysir and Strokkur on the valley of Haukadalur. We also saw the Faxafoss waterfall too.

L-R: the national park, a glacier in the distance near the Gullfoss waterfall, the Gullfoss, a geysir

The tour was great as the guide told us lots about Iceland and the areas we were visiting. I found the random facts the most interesting, such as most of the larger trees in Iceland come from Aspen (apparently a well-known joke in Iceland is that if you get lost in a forest, just stand up, as all the Icelandic trees are tiny. Incidentally a lot of teenagers will earn money over the summer planting trees). In the national park you can see the connecting points for two tectonic plates, the Mid-Atlantic ridge and the North American plate.

L-R: The thermally active geyser, the small Faxafoss waterfall, the tectonic plate ridge

We had enough time to look around the different sites and half-way to grab some lunch from a little restaurant en route. I had the Icelandic speciality, “meat soup”. The meat was lamb and it was amazing.

I’d dressed appropriately for the weather so I wasn’t cold but I was very wind-swept so the hot soup was much appreciated. If you’re planning on doing this tour, wear sturdy boots as there’s lots of walking and a mini-mountain you can climb (I saw a girl in Converses struggling…). The weather in Iceland is extremely changeable. One moment it can be sunny and bright, then the next clouds have come over and it tips it down. Be prepared for all weathers!

My two companions were good fun to be with and it was nice to turn around to someone and say “this is amazing”. And to take photos of each other as well. There’s only so much a selfie can achieve 😉

The tour was pretty much all day and I definitely felt like I got my money’s worth. I saw so much! I have so many photos it’s ridiculous. I had a lovely cheeky nap on the way back to Reykjavic to rejuvenate myself a bit.

I was fully ready for dinner after getting back and tidying myself up a bit (oh my hair…). I’d done a bit of research before coming to Iceland for some good restaurants but in the end I decided to walk down the main street, Laugavegur, to see what took my fancy. It’s quite tricky when you’re on own as you have no one to discuss with what you fancy eating! I literally could go anywhere I fancied which was both amazing and overwhelming. I knew I wanted something quite big though as I was hungry and was chuffed to find a fish buffet restaurant called Restaurant Reykjavik. It was quite expensive, but for all you can eat fresh and local fish I was swayed! And it looked very posh inside.

I literally tried everything. There was smoked salmon, cooked salmon, herring in several different sauces, pickled fish, ceviche, marinated fish, salted cod, fish stew, shellfish, soup, salad, vegetables, potatoes…so much food!! And randomly a leg of lamb that the chef would calves for you with a delicious red wine sauce.

Again I sat with my Kindle and thoroughly enjoyed myself. Of course there was a pudding buffet as well, and it would have been rude not to have tried some…I had blondies, rhubarb and oat cake and mango cheesecake. Yep I was stuffed!

I was a little concerned how my stomach would react to all this food as I had planned to run 13 miles the next morning (my last long run before the marathon). Because my tour the next day wasn’t until 1pm I could have a luxurious lie-in and a late breakfast. Thankfully I actually felt pretty good the next morning. I woke up naturally before my alarm (which had been set to 8am) and got ready to go.

I was initially nervous about running 13 miles in a new city but because I’d already done one run and lots of walking about I vaguely knew the area. I could run along the coastline quite easily and keep the sight of the church constantly in view which I knew was near where I was staying. Very handy!

I felt really good on this run. I listened to a podcast and just zoned out. I felt strong running and didn’t really think about my pace too much, except when I started going too fast. Near the coast it was very flat but it was a bit breezy. The weather was beautiful so I was pleased to whip out my MarathonTalk t-shirt from last year’s Run Camp.

I did get a bit concerned as I got to 8-9 miles and found myself quite far out from the church. I started wondering what I’d do if I hit 13 miles so far from my accommodation. Could I ask someone for a lift? Icelandic people seem so friendly (I could almost hear my mother screaming at me as I though this…). Not a good move I suppose! Anyway in the end it was a perfect 13.1 miles. I have no idea how I managed such a perfect route without properly planning. Especially as I have the worst sense of direction.

Have you ever been on holiday on your own?

Do you enjoy running around new cities? I found it such a great way to get my bearings and see the sights!