Well I haven’t done one of these posts in a while and I certainly have an abundance of rants stored up in me…but I’ll try and keep it balanced.
Rave: I’ve mentioned a few times about how my Garmin heart rate monitor strap rubs when I wear it. This is highly annoying considering it cost around £50 (separate from the actual watch). I don’t really do heart rate training with all the different zones but, like most runners, I love having all the stats from a run (oh the graphs! Oh the numbers! So much information!). It’s also handy to keep an eye on my heart rate when I’m doing a long run to make sure I’m not pushing too hard. But anyway the strap rubbed my chest and was quite painful, meaning I couldn’t wear it. Very frustrating considering I was able to wear my Polar HR strap when I went to the gym with no issues. I did try putting the actual HR bit on the Polar strap but it kept pinging off…so I did some Googling and found a way to overcome the chafe.
Plasters! I found this out from the legendry running tech reviewer DC Rainmaker so I’m hugely grateful to him. I’ve had no issues since! The article is HERE. I’m stat happy once again 😀
Rant: Windy running. I don’t mind running when it’s cold, or wet, or really hot, or even in snow…but wind? Wind just sucks your soul and drains your energy like nothing else. I ran 17 miles on Sunday and it felt like I was being slapped by a wall of sea water as I ran along the coast. I ran past another runner and we looked at each other like “why are we out in this?!”. When I got home I then had to contend with the dread Post-Run Hair: 
Luckily it didn’t take too long to comb through. Short-haired people and (the majority of) men, you are lucky!
Despite the hair issues, the run went well thankfully though my pace was all over the place despite trying to keep it consistent. Though I wanted the final mile to be faster so I could see how it felt on tired legs. It was tough!
And after last Sunday’s fun Southampton half running with a bunch of friends, this run was lonely and hard work. I’m wondering if I can tempt anyone to join me on my 18 miler in two weeks time – or at least part of it…It seems everyone else’s marathons have finished so there’s a severe lack of long run runners on Sundays now.
Rave: Kangaroo burgers at my friend’s BBQ. A local farm shop sells the most amazing meat and BBQ fodder that I couldn’t resist buying kangaroo burgers and some equally delicious red Thai chicken burgers.
Kangaroo burger
Kangaroo is a bit gamey and a bit beefy but very nice! The BBQ was on the Bank holiday Monday and was good fun, though slightly chillier than I had anticipated (I wore shorts: mistake). And two of my very talented friends baked cakes which were delicious. Homemade for the win every time.
How pretty is that cupcake on the right?? My friend Louise is so good at baking!
Rant: Headaches after my long runs. It doesn’t happen every time, but occasionally I’ll get an awful headache that just persists regardless of what I do. I drink a big 500ml of nuun after my run and drink through the day but I don’t drink on the actual run so maybe that’s it? I also try not to drink too much before running because I hate needing the loo half way through. Re-fuelling with lots of sugary cakes is probably not the best thing either. I know I need to be more sensible but all I want is cake when I do a long run! I feel like I’ve earnt it you know??
Another afternoon tea session with my parents on Sunday – The Tea Room in Lee-on-Solent
Rave: Being in the paper! A lovely reader Tweeted me to say they saw me in their local paper. I was over the moon (so was my mum).
Our moment of fame!
The picture above the photo of my running friends and me is of another Hedge End Runner who ran both the Southampton 10k and the Southampton half (same day!) in a Cookie Monster outfit to raise money for charity – what a legend!
Rant: Being forced out of the communal gym area because one of the personal trainers wants to use it for his customers’ boot camp session. Now I wouldn’t mind so much if it was a proper scheduled class run by the actual gym and is pinned up on the board like the other classes (so I was aware), but this is his freelance work and so he really has no monopoly over the gym space. It’s rude and unfair. He pushed out another girl, three guys and me – we were not amused.
Rave: My mum gave me her spare hot sleeve for my hair straighteners so they can cool safely after I’ve used them (my mum is the type of woman who buys two of everything, just in case).
It’s so useful! It means I don’t have to worry about the hot irons leaving marks anywhere or Alfie finding them (find it HERE – not an affiliated link, just if you’re interested!).
What are your recent rants and raves?
Do you get headaches after working out? Any tips?
Do you wear a heart rate monitor when working out?
Hi I think the lack of fluid during the long runs may be part of the reason for headaches, due to dehydration. There are lots of debates and calculations about how much water people need during exercise and it will be very individual, but I reckon somewhere about 250-500ml/hour is needed depending on weather, how hard you’re exercising etc. So if you’re out for 17 miles, that’s a fair amount of fluid you’re potentially missing out on. I usually do loops to pick up a drink at my house, or bring some change to buy a drink, as can’t be bothered with a hydration belt. If you don’t want to drink on the run, then you could compensate by drinking the extra volume of liquid when you get in. Might not work, but worth a try if the headaches are bad.
I think you’re right. It was cooler and wet so I didn’t feel like I needed a drink but I probably could have done with a little now and again. For my 18 miler I have coming up I’m going to do what I did before on my other 17 miler and leave a bottle somewhere. Better safe than sorry!
Thanks Kate!
AnnaTheApple recently posted…Top tips for a gluten free birthday
I’m with you in the respect of having multiple rants waiting to spring forth! I’ll probably leave mine bubbling under the surface, because otherwise I’ll spam your comments section with hundreds of them…
I was thinking about your headaches and I wondered whether your shoulders and/or back ever feel tight when you run? Personally I hunch my shoulders up very badly and sometimes get migraines from that. You might not even be aware that they’re tight, and perhaps something like a massage every so often might help?
I don’t tend to bother with heart rate monitors any more…I love the data, and like you I’m certainly a numbers-motivated person, but it frustrates me that my heart rate is always so low. It doesn’t look as though I’m working at all, and that’s because my musculoskeletal issues prevent me from running at anywhere near my cardiovascular capacity. Unless I’m near 6:xx minute miles, I’m not out of breath, but the rest of my body just won’t operate at that speed any more. I still get my cardio challenge through spinning, but sadly not from running.
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I sometimes get headaches after very strenuous runs. When I first starting training for my first half marathon, I was wiped out for the whole of the day after a long run with headaches and tiredness! I’ve combated it since by drinking lots of water the day before. That way I don’t need the loo on the run and I can re-hydrate afterwards too and it usually works quite well.
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That’s a good idea! Yeah I guess it could be my body just getting used to the longer distances – it is quite a shock to the system!
AnnaTheApple recently posted…Top tips for a gluten free birthday
I saw the cookie monster before I even got to the bridge, on the other side- he was so speedy! He was interviewed before the start and he was aiming for very fast times (40 something 10k I think)- but of course we could not look him up after as w didn’t know his name!
Nice work on your long run- you need people training for Edinburgh or something, I am sure that is at the end of May. Love the look of that cake.
I get headaches after long runs sometimes, I think mainly it is when I don’t eat as soon as I finish. I do try to have some nuts or something right away, but sometimes I don’t fancy anything and want a shower, and then by the time I have washed my hair and got dressed and wiped down the shower and made some breakfast it could be an hour later. But also it can be to do with how you hold your head- the wind whips my ponytail which smacks around my head, so that can bring one on too.
Yay for being in the paper! Andy’s grandparents were going to save us the paper (they were very excited we might be in it, just for the times) but then it turned out only the half marathon was in there, not the 10k.
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His name is Carlo and he got a sub 43 minute time – he was right at the front to begin with and apparently all the front runners were like “what is he doing??” which I think is brilliant! He then paced a bunch of my running club to a sub 2 hour half – what a legend!
Yeah I don’t eat straight away either. I need to get myself together and have a shower before I can think about food, like you. It’s tough!
I probably should eat better food on long run days but I do just love having that treat!
AnnaTheApple recently posted…Top tips for a gluten free birthday
So, that’s real kangaroo?! Not just the name of the burger? I didn’t know people ate kangaroo!
And LOL at your hair… ha sorry! Mine always looks terrible after I run in the rain. I used to get headaches after my long runs. Have you tried salt pills? Those help me quite a bit. And I also make sure that I drink a LOT of water when I finish (along with some Nuun) and I think that always does the trick. It always helps me to relax for a few minutes when I get back. I used to get home from a long run, shower, eat and we’d be out for the rest of the day and my body would be so mad. Now I try to shower and eat, and give myself to sit and recover. It seems to help!
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Yep it’s 100% kangaroo. They’re apparently a bit of a nuisance in Australia – which is crazy! Apparently in the UK you can also buy and eat giraffe meat. Weird!
I think there’s definitely some sort of electrolyte/hydration issue going on for me during my long runs that I need to sort. Thanks for the tips!
I’ve only once got a headache after a run and it was after my first marathon in Dublin where I drank vita coco throughout, but later realised although rich in potassium was missing a lot of the other electrolytes. I add Viridians sports electrolyte fix to my water now whenever I run over 8/9 miles and it works perfectly.
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That’s interesting about the coconut water. Might have a look at the Viridians mix, thanks 🙂
I did laugh at your hair pic! Sorry! 😛 I try and plait mine or put it in a cap if it’s super windy out. This week has been ridiculous for wind. I’ve felt the car pulling across the road every day on the way into work.
You don’t drink at all on your runs? Not even your long runs? I always have a bottle with me and usually have to make sure I don’t drink too much.
I once left my hair straighteners on when I went to work back when I was 18 and housesitting for someone. The straighteners burnt a big hole in their carpet and I panic and check and recheck I’ve turned them off every time I use them now.
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Well if it’s warm I might take water but so far I haven’t needed it. I do take a £1 with me in my pocket in case I really do need something (I call it my running pound and make sure I never spend it on anything else). But thinking about it it probably would be a good idea to take on some liquid – clearly I need it!