AnnaTheApple - The life of a girl who loves apples and running

September 16, 2015September 16, 2015

Rants and Raves #19

I have more Raves than Rants for this post – wahay 🙂 Though this week has been somewhat trying for several reasons it’s good to find the positive things!

Rave: parkrun tourism! I love it. And the best part is I still haven’t completed all the ones in my area. I’ve still got Queen Elizabeth Country Park (ridiculously hilly), Eastleigh and Havant nearby. And in October I’m going to North Wales to see my grandparents and since my last visit they now have the Conwy parkrun which is just down the road from them. Happy days.

Rave: As I mentioned previously I was really cautious last week about running due to my shin niggle. I did Spin on the Sunday before last and really enjoyed it. The music was good, the routine wasn’t overly complicated but it was tough. Annoyingly on weekdays Spin classes start at 6.30am which is when I need to leave the gym. I’d be late for work so can never make them. I decided to do my own spinning session instead last week instead of running. The thought of using the elliptical/cardio machine made my soul weep so I looked online and found a playlist and workout for a 45 minute spin session.

I found a website HERE which not only tells you the music to use but also what you should be doing during the songs. It sounded really similar to what I did on Sunday so I downloaded the songs and wrote on a piece of paper the instructions:

Adapted from http://www.thebikecafe.com/2013/03/30/work-hard-play-hard-mix-60-minutes/

It was no joke! But it also kept me going. Mentally I have to work really hard to stay on a machine for longer than 15 minutes so this was amazing. All I had to do was just follow the instructions and get through the songs.

I must have looked like a right weirdo on a solo spin bike jumping off the saddle, doing hovers and push ups…but you gotta do what you gotta do!

Rant: I’m going to Iceland next week – well at least I hope I am. I somehow managed to put my passport in the washing machine and only realised once the cycle was finished. To this day I honestly have no idea how it ended up in there. Obviously I put it in there but how and why I literally don’t know. It looks very wrinkled and battered but it’s more the chip that I’m concerned about. I bit the bullet and applied for a new one (£72!!!!!!!!). What an expensive and ridiculous mistake of which I only have myself to blame. Or Alfie. Yes, I think it was Alfie.

And further to that holiday-related rant…the good friend I was going with can’t make it anymore. This is devastating as we were both really excited. I text around to my friends but none of them could come (can’t blame them, it’s very last minute and they’d need to pay my other friend the cost of flights etc.).

I’ll still go though! I need to get away to somewhere completely different for a bit and if it’s on my own, then so be it. I don’t mind being alone and think I can do a good bit of introspection out there. And take numerous selfies of course 😉 Well this is all providing my passport is back in time obviously…

Rave: I love Hello Fresh…and not just their food. I love that they send me a decent sturdy cardboard box with all the ingredients in which is so very helpful as I need boxes to pack.

I’ve actually started packing in earnest now as I have a potential date for the move. To be honest I don’t have a huge amount of stuff to put into boxes as a lot of it’s quite easy to just put into a small van (which I’ll hire for a weekend). The stuff I’m really dreading is the kitchen stuff, but I’ll do that really closer to the time because I’m too lazy I need to eat.

Rant: Unfortunately the date I’ve been given for the move is the day I go to Iceland but I should be able to push it back a week. Unfortunately that means it’ll be the weekend of the Bournemouth marathon. *Sighs*. My plan is to take the Friday off beforehand and do all the heavy lifting and packing into the van then. And Saturday try not to exert too much effort unpacking or sorting…and then on Sunday, well, God knows! I just need to get the hard stuff done Friday. I don’t care if things are higglydepiggly for a week or so. I can always stay at my parent’s as well. I won’t be alone doing it either so I’m sure it will be fiiiiiiine. Right??

Rave: Probably a contributing factor to my dodgy shin buuuuut I had a great track session two weeks ago. Technically we were meant to do Yasso 800s (or “Yassoo’s” as my friend calls them…said friend also calls nuuns “nuns”) but the guy who was going to instruct us couldn’t make it so we ad libbed a bit. We only did 5x 800m and had a 1:30minute break between (you’re supposed to do 8-10 and have the same length of time rest between each as it takes to run).

Having never done 800s before we just sort of played it by ear. Surprisingly my pace was really even for each one. It was tough but not lung -ustlingly tough as 200s are (God I hate those) – definitely more endurance focused. Now I know Yasso 800s are supposed to be predictors for your marathon time but I can categorically say I won’t be getting (or aiming for) a 3:05 marathon (insert crying laughing emoji). I only did five Yassos and I’m pretty sure I couldn’t have done anymore at that consistent pace! But it was a good workout regardless and gives me the hunger to try the workout properly another time.

Rave: I was emailed by the guys at Simply Supplements about their new voucher page offering deals and discounts. I haven’t received anything to promote this but I do like the company so thought I’d share. Check it out HERE.

And finally…this made me chuckle finding my Jamie Oliver mask. (It reminded me of Mary finding her Queen mask when she was sorting through stuff).

It was from my Hen do. My friends got it for me as I have a ~~strange~~ adoration for Jamie Oliver… *shouts and waves madly* JAMIE, I’M SINGLE AGAIN!!!!

Have you ever moved house before?

Do you enjoy Spinning?

Do you keep sentimental and old items? I’ve gone through a huge purge (as you can imagine) of stuff that I no longer need or no longer seems relevant to me anymore. Very cathartic I can tell you.

September 14, 2015September 14, 2015

Back in the game

Morning, morning. I am pleased to say that I am back in the marathon running game!

OK to be fair (and I imagine you’re used to this now if you’re a long-time reader) I was probably being my usual paranoid runner self about my shin…which actually worked in my favour as I was very cautious and didn’t do my 16 miler long run, nor my Tuesday run. So by Thursday my shin had calmed down hugely and felt absolutely fine. I think the moral of the story for me is not to go crazy with calf raises and tighten up my calf. Oh, and rest is best!

This meant I could join in with a club-organised long run at the weekend, happy days! A few of us decided to make things interesting by doing 17 miles and then doing a parkrun to top it up to 20 miles. The appeal was a faster finish long run, a nice way to break up an otherwise laborious load of miles and also to get in some parkrun tourism. Most of us had never been to Winchester parkrun (which is about 30 minutes away) so it was quite nice to do something different.

The downside, however, was realising that to get the miles in before parkrun meant a very early start. 5.15am alarm for Saturday morning… ooof. This meant Friday night was technically a school night with sensible food and an early night. I made sure to lay my things out the night before ready to make it easy in the morning.

Decided to wear my Steve Way “Don’t Be Sh*T” top to get me in the zone 😉

I slept so badly as I kept panicking about my alarm and just generally feeling nervous about the run. I woke up at 4.30am and was pleased that I had another 45 minutes to sleep. But then a while later I jolted awake thinking I’d missed my alarm. Well, my alarm was going off all right but it was on silent!! I was so lucky that it was only 5.20am. All thoughts of how tired I felt were gone as I leapt out of bed and got ready in a panic thinking I’d be late. I ate a Trek (Original Oat) protein bar as I walked Alfiea fter I got dressed. Probably not a great idea as it was so crumbly and it was so dark outside I was getting it everywhere. I had the world’s smallest coffee and was good to go! Despite my late getting up, I arrived at the local train station before everyone else. The plan was to leave our cars there, run to Winchester, eat something, then get the train back to our cars.

The beginning crew ready to run

We were going to meet another friend, Matt, half way there as he thought it best to not run the entire 20 miles as he was recovering from the dreaded plantar fasciitis, and then we’d meet another friend, Kate, at the parkrun as she was running a half marathon the next day. The route was lovely! All along Itchen River and a fair bit off the main road – which is such a relief when running so many miles. Though it did rain on and off, it was a lovely temperature. I really enjoyed chatting away to the guys as we ran – the time flew by. I do like doing long runs on my own when I zone out and listen to podcasts, but there is something truly enjoyable about running with others, especially for such a long way. Long runs can get very lonely. We made it to Winchester parkrun with about five minutes to spare which was cutting it close. I didn’t want to have to run again after the parkrun and was about 0.5 away from 17 miles so did a lap around the course just before we started. This helped minimise the break between the two runs as well.

Winchester parkrun is very flat and is basically three laps around a field – though apparently we did a slight variation of the usual course doing a weird diagonal run across a field. My first mile was a bit panicked and rushed because after they finished the briefing I thought we’d be starting somewhere else but the guy just said “get ready, go!” and I realised I was quite far at the back and had to do a lot of over-taking and dodging around people. I did have a chuckle though when I saw a man who was running with a dog get yanked back as the dog decided to do his business there and then come what may. The guy had to stop and pick up the poo…a parkrun poo, tee hee.

The second lap was tough. My legs felt very heavy and it just felt hard. My pace dropped and I felt myself flagging. The third mile was easier because I knew it was the last, but my legs (understandably) still felt tired. I got 23:29 which I was over the moon with though. But it did make me think long and hard about what I could achieve at Bournemouth. I just don’t feel mentally ready to push the pace at that marathon and I don’t think my training as been as good as Liverpool had been. I also don’t feel the hunger to get a faster time like I did with Liverpool and I really don’t want to put pressure on myself and potentially have a horrible experience.

We all agreed that it was a tough parkrun because of the miles beforehand but were really proud of ourselves. And though Kate didn’t run the 20 miles, she still smashed out a great parkrun and got first lady! So we all felt pretty chuffed.

(Ave. pace 8:37min/miles)

Then it was off to Whetherspoons for breakfast. We all sort of stumbled there slowly and collapsed at a table. Most of us had a fry-up. I went for the large fry-up but subbed my hash browns for more bacon (a superior swap I think).

It was delicious! I also ordered a diet coke, a glass of water and a coffee. Hitting all bases.

We got a lift back with Kate which was great as well. I’m so pleased how well the run went. It was definitely the confident boost I needed for the marathon. Though I ran Cheddar Gorge marathon recently, it was still a good few weeks past now and having missed last week’s long run I was feeling a little worried. But during the 20 miles I felt strong and like I could have gone on and on. The pace was slower than my usual long run which is probably a good thing as 20 miles at my usual pace would probably make the next few weeks hard in terms of recovering and being fresh. Though I’m happy I got to pick the pace up at the end to push through.

After getting back I had this mad surge of energy. Instead of usually feeling exhausted I was on fire with housework, walking Alfie and getting stuff done. Though I didn’t feel hungry again until 4pm! (To be fair, that breakfast was HUGE so I’m not surprised).

The next day I decided to have a rest day. My legs felt good, no niggles or twinges, but I felt a general sense of tiredness. Remembering how injury-prone I am and that I’m not the fastest at recovering, I thought it best to forgo any exercise other than some lovely long walks with Alfie. <– Can we just marvel out how sensible that sentence is for me. I’ve come a long way!

Later on I saw Ben’s mum again this weekend for afternoon tea. We were meant to do afternoon tea last weekend but we left it too late so we decided to try again. We headed to a place I’ve been before but not for a while, Lilly’s in Wickham.

We both went for a slice of red velvet cake, a fruit scone with jam and cream and I had ham and onion marmalade sandwiches.

It was divine. Though I do prefer to have crusts on my sandwiches they were very dainty!

So all in all, a pretty good weekend. Cake and running – things are back to my kind of normal 😉 And now time to taper!

How was your weekend?

What’s your ideal long run? A training run at a race, running solo, running with others?

Crust or no crusts on your sandwiches?

September 10, 2015September 18, 2020

New Rules of Lifting for Women – Stage 1

I thought I’d do a post covering how I’ve found the New Rules of Lifting for Women as I’ve just completed Stage 1.

Just rolling back before I started this, I was still doing lots of strength work in the gym. I’d found lots of good stuff on RunnersWorld, Kinetic Revolution and other random places. At the start of the year I was focused on getting my heart rate up while also strengthening my body. I was running three times a week low mileage and needed something else to give me that sweaty heart pumping boost. The workouts I did were a combination of HIIT and strength, but ultimately leaning more towards cardio.

That said, I did strengthen my body during this time. I came back from injury stronger and in a better mindset to get running again and training in earnest for the Liverpool marathon. I can, hand on heart, say my knees and hips (which I had problems with last year) haven’t bugged me once this year. My tight IT band grief is a distant memory as my glutes have come into action with my running and I feel strong. My only one bug bear this year is my shin/calf that occasionally likes to niggle (and haunt my dreams with thoughts of stress fractures…).

When my running increased I couldn’t maintain the same enthusiasm at the gym and found myself a bit confused as to what I should be doing. I then found out about the New Rules of Lifting for Women and it caught my interest. I bought the book, read it, agreed with so many of the concepts and points made and decided to start the training plan (not the nutritional plan though – I don’t follow diets/eating plans in books. Just not my thing).

I was surprised at how simple the plan seemed. There are several “Stages”, each lasting 4-8 weeks depending how often you train (I tend to do three sessions a week depending on what my running was doing), and each stage would have two different workouts.

The book doesn’t tell you how much to lift but it does tell you how many reps and sets and the rest in between. The number of reps was vastly different to what I was doing before. Whereas before I’d be squatting 30 times, this specified 15, decreasing as the weeks went on until eventually eight. The point being that the weight you choose should be tough for those limited reps.

Stage 1

I really enjoyed both the routines. Yes it got samey doing the same two workouts, but at 5.30am going into the gym with a no-nonsense plan I was familiar with was fabulous.

Workout A: Squats, press-ups, seated rows, step ups, prone jackknifes
Workout B: Deadlifts, dumbbell shoulder presses, wide-grip lateral pull-downs, lunges, Swiss ball crunches

I won’t go into all the weights I lifted but just to give you an idea…in January I was squatting 20kg (for around 30 reps). I can now squat 50kg for eight squats. And proper full, deep squats. That might not sound amazing to all those warrior lifters out there, but to me this is huge! And I know I can continue to increase.

The progress I was able to make and the confidence it gave me was fantastic. I stepped away from my ‘safe area’ in the gym and moved into the ‘male section’. There would have been no way I could have lifted a barbell to my shoulders to squat if I hadn’t have used the squat rack.

I’m also hugely pleased with the progress I’ve made to my deadlifts. Again, similar numbers to my squats.

What I also enjoyed was that it made me work on my upper body. In my family we seem to be blessed with naturally toned arms (check out the picture of my sister in previous posts – she hasn’t worked out in years *cough* so may say ever…and yet her arms are lovely and toned) so I would always neglect my upper body as I didn’t “need” to do it. But after Cheddar Gorge marathon and the next day my arms ached it further verified that your upper body is really important in running for maintaining good form and helping you push up hills.

I still included some of my ‘essential’ running-specific moves as well – but increased the weights and decreased the reps (things like single leg squats/deadlifts, Russian twists, box jumps, etc.). Since January my single-leg squat has gone from bodyweight to 20kg!

Not the most happy of faces so early in the gym!

Results: There’s a big fear of “omg bulking up” when women lift weights. I can safely say I haven’t bulked up at all. I have more defined muscles, yes, but I’m not the hulk (or at last, I don’t think I am!). I feel stronger when I run and have a better “kick” at the end. And the proof is in the pudding: I’ve been injury-free for the entire year (TOUCH WOOD, TOUCH WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!).

Who says girls can’t lift?

What’s next? Stage 2! New workouts and moves to get to grips with (no pun intended). I’m keen to continue with increasing my strength on the squat and deadlift moves as well so will probably go back to them frequently. They’re perfect full body moves that compliment any type of fitness. Though looking at Stage 2 workouts the deadlift move is going to be ‘upgraded’ so that works nicely.

All in all, I’m hugely impressed with NRLW and hope to continue the stages until the end. Obviously my running is the priority so the workouts will always come second best, but the time it takes to get through the stages doesn’t bother me. It just gives me a good focus on how to further strengthen my body to be a good marathon runner.

Do you lift weights?

How do you remain injury-free for running?

Do you like to do the same thing at the gym or do you mix it up?

September 9, 2015September 9, 2015

What I’ve been eating lately

As I mentioned in a previous post, I’m changing the way I eat to incorporate more calories first and foremost and more fat. My aim is to gain a bit of weight and go from there. I like to think of it as aiming to achieve my “Warrior Body”.

What do I mean by that? Basically I want a body that is healthy, fit and strong. Though I don’t necessarily feel unhealthy or particularly weak (I may look small, but I’m feisty!) I know that I’m not entirely functioning the way I should be and I’m definitely not refuelling properly after running.

I used My Fitness Pal to track a typical weekday’s worth of food on a day I run, including all my snacks and meals (I’m a creature of habit and in general only my dinner and snacks change – I know, I know, I’m so boring). Since becoming more healthy and in a friendly place with food I haven’t tracked calories or macros. I eat what I want and when I’m hungry. Generally this was quite healthy, leaving my cake indulgences and meals out for the weekend. I was quite shocked that my calories were far less than I thought – not even taking into account that I was also running. I was even more shocked that I barely ate any fat.

This was a huge eye opener. I don’t want to become dependent on My Fitness Pal or become obsessed with numbers and macros but for the moment it’s a really useful tool to help me see the areas I need to improve on, especially when I’ve been running.

Breakfast:

Breakfast for me will always be porridge (oatmeal). I’ve had this breakfast for years and just find nothing else really fills me up quite the same. And the process of making it is so simple in the morning with minimal faff. This is oats, chia seeds and semi-skimmed goat’s milk. Originally I had unsweetened almond milk which I loved, but it was low in calories, protein and fat. I switched to semi-skimmed cow’s milk but after a few of you pointed out cow’s milk wasn’t that good an option because of the acidity levels I found goat’s milk might be a better after doing some research.

It tastes almost identical to cow’s milk, though the smell does confuse me as it smells slightly of goat’s cheese (I imagine goat’s cheese actually just smells of goat’s milk, but I’ve never had the milk before!).

Lunch:

This hasn’t changed a great deal because I really enjoy my lunch and again it’s easy to make and very cheap. I have a tuna salad, home-popped popcorn (with salt & pepper) and full-fat Greek yogurt with berries. I used to have 0% fat Greek yogurt. Why have I never done this before? Full-fat is vastly better than 0% in taste and texture. So creamy and delicious! Lots of protein and fat.

Snacks:

The afternoon is where I tend to do most of my snacking as the time period lunch and dinner is so long. I used to have two ‘light’ Babybels, some pistachio nuts or something from my Graze box. Now I have two full-fat cheddar Babybels and a handful of pistachios.

It’s funny though because before I’d be needing a snack, but now not so much and these snacks tend to really fill me up. Both the cheese and the nuts provide good healthy fats, protein, calcium and antioxidants.

A bit later on I’ll have a banana and a handful of almonds. Originally I had an apple and a banana but seen as how I’ll have apples later in the evening and almonds are more calorie and nutrient rich I’ve switched. This is not a good swap in my eyes. I much prefer the apple. I could have both but I’m honestly feeling fairly full by this point!

If I’m running straight from work (usually 4-6 miles) I’ll make sure I have a post-run snack. Usually I would have held on until I got home – which by the time I’ve driven home and walked Alfie and then made dinner it could be past 8pm which is more than two hours later.

I’ve picked up a few of the Upbeat drinks (I did a review on them a while ago) which help keep me topped up until I get something proper. I’ve also recently just bought some soy protein powder to be more cost effective (and not from cow’s milk).

Dinner:

Dinner I think previously was fine. I get my meals from Hello Fresh (again, here’s my review – and a referral code if you want £20 off –> ZVUM4A) and they’re very balanced and filling, always around 500-700 calories. Nothing really has changed there apart from consistently eating half an avocado alongside it. This can be a bit of a random combination sometimes but needs must! Good source of healthy fats and a boost of calories within quite a small amount of food.

Basically I’m squeezing in calories and healthy fats where I can! I won’t continue this forever as it’s expensive and very filling!

Paprika pork and butter bean stew, roasted new potatoes and peppers with veg

When I’m not munching on Hello Fresh (it serves six of my weekly meals) I’ll try and still aim for food that will cover my bases. As I’ve said many times, tinned salmon is a great source of healthy fats and is delicious in salads and omelettes. I also do a lot of roasting vegetables (and fry everything) in coconut oil.

If you’ve never tried roasted vegetables with coconut oil, get to it as it is seriously good.

When I was at my parent’s house the other weekend they gave me a pork tenderloin that they couldn’t eat (a Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference one no less!). So I fried it in coconut oil with some red onion, then got some full-fat cream cheese, mustard powder and paprika and made a delicious sauce to go with it. Alongside that I roasted some sweet potato wedges and served with broccoli (good calcium source).

It absolutely rocked my world.

Evening snacks:

I still have my couple of apples for dessert and a packet of Snack a Jacks with a hot chocolate. These things I cannot give up. They’re my creature comforts. This is purely about enjoyment and habit!

Overall:

The changes have made a good impact to my calories for the day and especially my fat levels. What’s also interesting is that my satiety levels are better after meals. It’s not that I used to be hungry in between meals per se, it’s just that I’d be more ‘ready’ for my snacks. Whereas now I need to remind myself to have my snacks as I’m not really hungry when it comes to dinner.

I can’t say much progress has really be made this early in the game. Shockingly I haven’t ballooned to a beach ball yet 😉 The hard parts are still to come with my long run days…

I’m a realist and know that the likelihood is that things aren’t likely to, er, get going while I’m marathon training. But every little helps at this stage and once the marathon gets done I can drop the long runs and focus more on nourishing my body without overly stressing it. But hey, who knows I could fall over with a stress fracture before then anyway! 😉

(I’m being light hearted because I find this subject quite daunting. I don’t mean to offend anyone with being facetious).

Tips

If you’re in a similar boat or need to refuel better but struggle with the sheer volume of eating more, then aim for calorie dense foods like peanut butter (I’m not personally a fan – shocking I know), nuts, avocados, oils (such an easy way to increase calories that you barely notice), full-fat cheese and protein powder. Drinking your calories is a hell of a lot easier than eating as well – especially after long runs when you really don’t fancy it. Basically, blend up a slice of cake and drink it… I am of course joking (but seriously need to try this) but blending up nuts, protein powder and peanut butter are really easy ways of getting more nutrients into your body without making your stomach feel uncomfortable and bloated.

Do you struggle to refuel your body after exercise?

What are your fail-safe healthy choices for snacks?

Do you eat enough fat?

September 7, 2015September 7, 2015

Not panicking

Here we go again. The weather is definitely on the change. The morning’s are not distinctly cooler and autumn is swooping in fast.

My weekend was a mixed bag really. Just rolling back to the start of the week I decided to book myself a sports massage with my normal physio as I could feel my shin/calf was a bit niggly. I ran on Tuesday night and it felt fine during the run but after doing some track work on Thursday night, it was definitely more grumpy. Luckily my massage was booked for Friday as I was working from home so it was nicely timed.

The physio wasn’t too concerned. She said it was just getting a bit inflamed which was causing the tightness. It’s annoying because I’ve managed to avoid all other injuries by strengthening my body; no IT band issues anymore, no knee issues, hip issues, groin issues etc. All of which have consistently plagued me in the past. After strengthening my body (specifically my glutes) I haven’t had any twinges, tightness or anything. The issue I’ve been consistently having with my shin/calf though I don’t know what to do about. I wondered if it was because I had weak calves and over the past few weeks have been doing lots of calf raises (single leg on the stairs).

After talking to my physio though she reckons that’s unnecessary and probably compounding my issue further. She said my calf (the one I’ve really focused on) feels very tight and this is probably making things worse when I run. Looking back it does seem to make sense as it has only got more niggly the more strength work I did. The likelihood is that it’s a biometrical issues caused by my flat feet (*sighs*) which gets aggravated when I do lots of mileage, but usually isn’t anything that comes to much (I do get a very slight similar issue in the other leg, but it never comes to anything). However adding in my quite enthusiastic calf raises most days (yep, I’m that keen) has just sparked it off. Thankfully though she’s given me some good exercises to work on my flat feet to strengthen my arches to try and stop this happening in the future. All about the toe-grabs 😉

And because I am such a paranoid runner and terrified of stress fractures I asked if it could be or was close to being a stress fracture (I know how ridiculous this sounds…especially as there was no actual pain). She knows my neuroticism and all but laughed at me. She ultrasounded my entire shin and calf area to reduce any inflammation and reassured me that if I had a stress fracture then the pain of the ultrasound would have been severe. The fact that I felt nothing proved I didn’t have one. Well, that’s something!

After that very long explanation, I ran parkrun on Saturday because I wanted to do it and because I wanted to know in my mind how bad it was. It didn’t feel amazing but no pain, just discomfort and, well, niggliness. It was very tender from the massage as well which probably didn’t help. I shouldn’t have run (my physio advised against it…yes I know, I’m ridiculous) but mentally I needed to know. It wasn’t any worse afterwards…

It was the first time in ages that I was cold before we started. I say cold, more chilly really. Nothing like as bad as it gets in the depths of winter when you dread taking your coat off to line-up.

The rest of the day was, again, sorting more house stuff out. Specifically the loft and shed. Everywhere else is pretty much sorted in terms of streamlining my stuff, separating bits and pieces between Ben and me and throwing out/giving away/selling junk. Just the loft and shed are a beomoth of crap and full of stuff that “we might use later”.

The next day I’d planned 16 miles but on the advice of my physio I cancelled it. I’m probably going to take the rest of the week off just to be safe. For once I’m not panicking. Obviously I don’t want to DNS Bournemouth but I don’t think it’ll come to that if I’m sensible. Thankfully this isn’t an injury, but it could become one. A week off now means things can resume again without issue (FINGERS CROSSED). I think I’m mainly not that stressed about Bournemouth because I have no goals apart from to just finish it. Getting close to my previous times would be nice but I want to enjoy the marathon and not rinse myself and stress out. I just love marathons and want to continue my streak of having another good one in terms of enjoyment.

So I ended up in the gym on Sunday morning. I didn’t set an alarm but woke up at 7.30am and realised I could make the 8.30am Spin class. Ultimately having someone yell at you to workout is so much easier than motivating yourself I find (if it’s not running that is).

I haven’t been to Spin in ages and was dreading it. But you know what, I really enjoyed it. The instructor was fantastic and played some great music. The sprints were hard but I found myself really going for it. Good workout indeed!

I wanted to exercise for around the same time I’d have been running for to maintain some sort of endurance (and sanity) so went on the elliptical machine, the rower and then followed by the stepper. I find it so hard to motivate myself or keep myself interested which is why I machine hopped (I tried to keep the breaks minimal when hopping between).

Less time than I would have been running but higher intensity I suppose. No way near as fun as a long run (and calorie stats and HR are so dull in comparison to having minutes per mile splits and elevation charts…) but it is what it is!

The rest of the day was spent having a long walk and chat with a close friend with Alfie. The weather was beautiful and it was lovely. Not much else to report sadly. Like I said, a bit of a mixed bag. I’m not stressing about my calf but I am bummed I can’t run…for the moment. But I have a far more positive outlook 🙂

Also, I’ve just started watching the Hannibal TV series. I was a bit reluctant as it looked a bit gory and scary for me but I liked the sound of the premise and the two guys in it are quite dishy (in a weird way). I AM HOOKED. It is rather grisly but it’s quite enthralling.

What have you gotten up to this weekend?

What TV shows are you hooked on right now? Do you have a particular genre you go for?

Calf raises: yes or no??