Last weekend was quite the busy one.
Through work, I was signed up to do Rough Runner 10k as Team Wiggle. Rough Runner is an obstacle course run where there are about 10 obstacles for the 10k and you basically just run to each one. You don’t have to do them if you don’t want to (one of our team members had a bad shoulder so avoided a few of them) and there are no penalties (like in Spartan for example where you have to do burpees).
The one we were doing was located somewhere near Bristol (I’m hazy with where exactly). Kyle, a fellow Wiggler Steph and I drove up together in the delightful downpour and got there for 9.30am. We met up with the other team members (also found out one of the girls had only just woken up and would therefore not be joining…lol) and then cowered under one of the sponsor tents as much out of the rain and cold as we could.
I was not really feeling it if I’m honest. I hate being cold. Probably more than I hate being hungry – and this is saying something. I think it goes cold, hunger, tiredness in order of what I detest the most. I could feel myself being quite grumpy and just wanted to either go home or get started. I was wearing leggings (I tend to for obstacle course runs just as a bit of protection as you always end up clambering around on the floor) but just a vest top. It was supposed to be about 18 degrees and while it didn’t feel that cold, the wind and rain made that temperature really hard to believe.
Eventually we went into a tent and watched a safety video. As we came out again into the open and headed to do the warm-up we were pleasantly surprised that the rain had stopped and it actually felt quite nice. The warm-up itself was quite amusing as Kyle got randomly picked and had to run round and high-five everyone in our wave (a good-70 people) and then our wave was named Team Kyle (throughout the actual run quite a few people remembered this and shouted “go team Kyle!” which was quite funny).
The obstacles weren’t ridiculously difficult (like Tough Mudder which you’d probably need a good amount of strength and training and your team’s help) but it did require a good balance and generally being a bit lighter helped… I managed to fare quite well on the obstacles (I’ve done it before so I had that advantage too) but for some of the taller chaps on the team (*cough* Kyle) it was a bit tough. I did find it immensely amusing that I managed to do the ring swings (like monkey bars but basically dangling rings – think Gladiators) and two very muscly heavy-set guys failed miserably. It was a moment of female pride I must say 😉
It was good fun in the end, especially as the sun soon came out.
Kyle and I then headed to meet up with my Bristolian friends, Kate and Jay, for an epic refuel. A giant Lebanese meat platter in a lovely place called Lona Grill House.
So much food and yet we managed to make quite the dent! Then we headed home quite tired and quite full. It was lovely to see them both, as always, and to catch up.
Sunday morning I reluctantly (really reluctantly) got up and headed out for a long run. There’s nothing like hearing the rain and wind battering against the window to make you really not want to run. But I was determined not to be a wuss. It wasn’t that cold (14 degrees?) and I’d run in rain before. Come on now, Anna.
I put on a t-shirt, shorts and compression socks and headed out to do 16 miles. Straight away I was soaked and the wind was quite strong. I was immediately cold. My hands were freezing. After the first mile I still wasn’t warm. I seriously contemplated heading back home to put on a long sleeve top and getting my gloves. But I couldn’t be bothered. The thought of getting home, taking off my wet trainers, going upstairs etc etc. Urgh just get on with the run. The quicker I plough on the sooner I finish.
I was truly miserable running. The first part of the run (1-3 miles) is along the main road and I got tired of dodging out of the way of puddles and cars splashing me. I was soaked through so really this was pointless effort. My legs felt heavy, I felt drained and I was fully grumpy. I really debated just going home. My mum had said to me just before I left that I was mad going out and that she’d pick me up if I needed to at any time. That was a strong temptation in my mind.
I decided I had a six mile route I could easily do as a loop to get home. But as I got to the point I would turn back home I decided to just push on a bit further. I was now running along the coast and happily the wind was behind me, pushing me along. OK this was a bit better.
“How about 10 miles?” I bargained with myself. OK 10 miles is a good run. But as I got to that point where I’d turn home I decided to just woman up and do the damn run. I was out there and might as well. But I would do 15 miles instead of adding the little extra bit on to get my 16. That was a decent compromise that weirdly lightened my mind to the run. Now I was at the point of no return. Just get home. Just get home.
I felt like I crawled towards the end of the run. Literally like my feet wouldn’t move faster. Bless my mum, she made me a lovely cup of tea straight away. I felt a bit emotionally spent weirdly as the whole run had felt like one big negotiation with myself. I had an amazing hot shower and felt miles better, but fairly exhausted. Just drained. It was not a good run at all! Nothing like the amazing long run from the weekend before. I’ve got to remember how much these things add up. I’m not a machine and almost 20 miles will take it out of me for the week!
But the rest of the day was lovely. I chilled watching Beauty and the Beast (the live action version, which I’ve never seen) and enjoyed a huge roast dinner and a slice of an amazing homemade chocolate cake.
It was delicious! Chocolate buttercream, chocolate sponge, Matchsticks and Cadbury’s Chocolate Fingers round the edge.
I felt nicely topped up. The memory of the terrible long run was washed from my mind. Nothing like cake and good company to help 😉
What’;s your favourite roast dinner?
If you had to be cold, tired or hungry which would you choose?
Do you run when it’s raining?
After discussing it with my team mates I decided I’d run another leg unofficially just to top up my miles. I added up three legs but it came to almost 20 miles and I wasn’t sure I was up for that long a run. I decided instead I’d run with Mike on his leg (leg 2) and then carry on for my leg after, giving me about 14 miles. Then I’d try and do another shorter run later in the day when I got back (urgh).
We had a few teams entered for the relay and a few guys doing the full marathon – so we were amongst very friendly company.
The race starts in Salisbury and we parked up on a residential street just opposite the school. Several people followed suit and soon the road was quite full of cars. This probably wasn’t an entirely desirable situation for the residents but I imagine many, like us, wouldn’t be hanging around because we’d need to drive to the next relay point – and any marathon supporters would need to drive to the finish in Winchester (it’s a point to point course).
Alan, our first relay guy, got himself ready to go and the rest of us milled about putting our numbers on and joking around. A photographer came over to me and asked if I was part of the HERC and I said yes. He then asked if a bunch of the male HERC members could pick me up and hold me for a photo. Riiiiiight. I was quickly hoisted up and had a very bizarre photo taken. In efforts to keep the balance, this was quickly replicated with another member – a larger male runner. It was quite amusing.
We then headed outside to cheer on the marathoners and the first relayers. It was beautiful and sunny, albeit chilly, and surrounding us was beautiful hilly scenery and fields. It was lovely.
So we cheered the first runners and marathoners off and then headed quickly back to our cars to drive to the next point – just over 10k away (I obviously didn’t do any of the navigating or driving because that’s far too much adulting required).
Relay races always feel like such an adventure in this respect. Everyone rushing about trying to get to the next point on time and all the while knowing your runner is out there steadily heading that way.
We got to the next point and I had a quick wee before waiting with Mike to see the first runners come through. This was Mike’s leg and I was merely going to be joining him – he would set the pace and I was happy with that. I wasn’t looking to break any records (nor was he). Just a nice scenic amble of just over 10k.
Alan headed through in just over 51 minutes (very respectable considering how hilly the course is) and Mike took the chip from him (which could be strapped onto his wrist) and we both headed off. The course was mostly off-road and undulating/hilly. But there were minimal cars, it was well sign-posted and the smiling cheering marshals were frequent enough for us not to get lost and push us on. There were lots of aid stations as well full of squash, water, cakes and nibbles. The temperature was perfect for running – a bit nippy in the shade at the start but lovely in the sunshine without being too hot.
Mike and I chatted away when the hills weren’t too strenuous and I started to ponder what I’d do about my run. I felt very comfortable running… the miles were ticking by easily. I could take my run nice and easy and then maybe, just maybe I could keep pushing until the end? Wouldn’t that be easier than having to tack some more miles on later in the day. I mean, we’d have to wait for Keith, our number four runner, anyway so it made sense to use the time wisely rather than schedule it in later. I decided to judge how I felt during my run, which I knew would be the hilliest of all the sections. If I needed to stop after that then fine. But I also knew Keith’s leg was the shortest (just under 10k) and not as hilly.
As we got to about 100m from the relay hand-over point (the sign posts were nice and clear for the handovers which made it a very seamless transition), Mike suddenly put in a sprint. I was not prepared for this and had to sprint with him to keep up – after all he would be handing over to me!! I grabbed the wrist-strap from him and as we got to the point I headed off and he stopped. Lots of our club were there and they cheered me on.
After a mile I switched my Aftershokz headphones on and listened to some very chilled music on a low volume. It was just nice to have some background noise while I zoned out. It was one of those runs where you think of nothing and everything. I took in the beautiful scenery and found myself running a bit faster. It was a good running day!
After a mile or so of my lap suddenly there was an influx of runners who appeared coming round the corner. Like over a hundred runners joining the run! It shocked me – were two races merging on one day? Then I remembered that the half marathon was also happening and this must be where they started. They all looked super fresh of course. It was a little frustrating to suddenly have to weave through a lot of people and I felt like a bit of dick at times but eventually I got to a position where I could be “one with the flow” rather than dodging my way through.
And yes the hills were tough. On one significant one I decided to walk – as a lot of others had too. I saw a friend of mine, Ben, from Lords Hill and we chatted as we slogged on up. He had done the cross country earlier that morning (he too was after more miles for a long run) so we were both taking it relatively easy. That said, his easy was not my easy!
As I got to the handover point I knew I was going to carry on. I felt strong and I felt good. I ran over to Keith and handed him the relay arm strap thing and told him I was running on but not to wait for me. I didn’t want him to hold himself back (and ultimately our team!) because I’d decided I wanted more miles and couldn’t keep up.
There were two quite sneaky and painful hills at the end and then finally someone shouted it was about 500 yards to go – not that I had the foggiest what a yard looked like really. But surely that meant reasonably close?
Thank you 
I was so pleased to have gotten almost 20 miles done and dusted. And it hadn’t felt like a super long run. Being joining by different people and the undulating course helped break up the monotony. I was glad to have a guzzle of water at the end, pick up my medal and t-shirt (which fitted perfectly! Actual female small sizes yay!). Then I joined my team to celebrate.
Keith had finished just ahead of me so thankfully they didn’t have to wait too long for me. We came 5th out of the mix relay teams which isn’t shabby at all! Our overall time was 3:30:42. This is a great time! I don’t think any of us would have been able to have run the entire marathon in that time!
The winning team did it in sub-3 hours which was insane – a solid 42 minutes ahead of us (can I also say, a full female team as well!).
Then we cheered on a few more of the other HERC team members coming in (and other runners of course) before deciding to head off home. Whew! I was so so glad not to have to run again and that I’d gotten it done all at once. Last solid long run before New York dunzo!
This was a fantastic race – I fully recommend. Friendly, scenic and well organised!
We ran 5 miles and it was lovely. We bumped into the Stubbington Green Runners doing their evening run which nice – everyone smiling and saying hi.
Most of the runs I really enjoy won’t increase my speed and won’t help me beat my PB’s but I always finish smiling and remembering why I love running.
We ran round Farlington Marshes. The weather was great and it was nice to get out of the office for some fresh air and some chat with people I don’t get to see much in the office.
But then on Saturday my run was less than stellar. I squeezed my long run in as I had plans on Sunday. I ran 8 miles to Lee-On-Solent parkrun, then parkrun, then four miles home again. And it felt like such a slog.
I mean I guess running 8.5 miles the day before hadn’t helped but jeeeeze it was tough.
parkrun did make me laugh though as while we were running I got so confused. I kept looking at my watch and wondering how I’d suddenly gotten a lot slower. My watch said 9:08 but I didn’t feel like I was running at that effort. It felt far too tough for what should ordinarily feel a bit easier for me. And I was getting slower! 9:09 now… what was happening?
I was happy to negative split and do a sprint finish at the end (such a decent stretch for it at Lee). I didn’t hang around too long as I had places to be so plodded my way home at what felt like such an awful slog. I realise my paces aren’t really a “plod” but it definitely felt that way!
And when I finished I felt overwhelming tired. Like I could literally lie down and sleep straight away. I had to have a 45 minute nap later in the day! I imagine it’s because I haven’t really dropped my mileage down since the marathon and I’m still going full steam ahead. I’m on dodgy territory I know and should be cautious.
Happily though I felt a lot better the next day after a solid night sleep and phenomenal Sunday lunch. Rest, nutrition and good company definitely help!
So good. Roast beef and roast pork (with crackling)… Sunday lunch goals right there.
Another irksome outcome of the marathon was that my right ankle was quite swollen. When I took my trainer and compression sock off after getting home it was a ridiculous size. I poked, prodded and moved about on it and it felt fine. I definitely hadn’t gone over on it during the race. I then remembered I had a bite on it the other day. The swelling was all around that. My mum mentioned that it might be due to the fact that I’d been wearing my compression sock all day and that probably hadn’t helped the bite situation. It looked terrible! Thankfully after a couple of days the swelling went down and I’m just left with a little bite mark now. But how weird, wouldn’t have had a clue that that could have happened. During the race itself I hadn’t noticed a thing.
I was strangely glad to be going into work the next day it must be said. We had our sweepstakes Bake Off happening so I knew they’d definitely be cake. Happily the baker had brought in some crazy good rocky road (literally one of my favourite ‘cake’ things).
So by 11 o ‘clock I had a chunk of rocky road, a brownie and a good slice of a five tiered chocolate cake to tide me over. Not to mention one of my colleagues had brought back Hershey’s chocolates from the States after his visit.
I was well and truly making up for my calorie deficit from the day before 😉
I don’t really believe in eating stupidly after a big race – at this point after 15 marathons my body is pretty used to running. But I do believe in enjoying yourself a little bit. I mean, to be fair, I hardly ever need an excuse to eat cake but I did feel like it was just that little bit less difficult in terms of sweet tolerance! I had a good appetite going on – the runger was STRONG.
I was back running Tuesday. Nice and gentle I did 10k at lunch. I felt a bit tired but in general my legs felt fine. No niggles. Whoop whoop!
So now with about six weeks until New York I’m not going to go ham on the training just yet. I’m enjoying running and it’s feeling good so I’m going to (hopefully) stay around 30-40 miles a week, though closer to 30 for the moment. I’m also loving the gym and doing regular circuit classes. It feels like my whole time working hard at the gym on my own for years has been training to then smash these circuit classes and see what I can do.
I really do enjoy the classes. It helps to not have to think about what I’m going to do, and it’s nice to feel a bit competitive and try and work hard in a class. And they are HARD. I mean, to be fair, you get what you put in them so I always try to push myself on the weights I use, the number of reps I can get in and how hard I can push. And it’s nice have an instructor there to help with technique and form.
It was very peaceful. I listened to a podcast which embarrassingly actually made me laugh a lot out-loud as I was running (a review of the new Nun film… “quiet, quiet, NUN” is basically how the film goes apparently).The temperature was perfect for a long run. Started chilly and then I felt fine.
The nice thing about these sorts of runs is that because you have a destination to get to it doesn’t feel like too much of a slog. You’re running with a purpose to get somewhere, rather than just a loop.
I did have the dreaded Portsdown Hill to go up though, which I knew would be a bit of a grind. It lasted for a delightful two miles but the views at the top were worth it. You can see straight over to Portsmouth (some might say that’s not a great view but ehhh).
I did have to take a lot of care though (selfie taking aside…) as there wasn’t a consistent pavement along the road and the cars do come quite quickly down. But thankfully they all gave me a lot of space and didn’t make me throw myself into the ditch.
When I got to the top of Portsdown Hill it then became more of a gentle decline which was nice for the legs! As I ran down the other side to Havant I then had to start whipping my phone out for directions. There weren’t too many roads to turn down so it wasn’t a stretch on my ability to follow directions. I passed a little girl riding her bike in full princess regalia and her dad and her both clapped me on as I ran passed which was quite nice.
Then I finally arrived at Staunton Country Park, which is where Havant parkrun is located. As you get closer to a parkrun around Saturday morning more and more runners start appearing, which is always comforting when you’re trying to find your way! Just follow the Lycra.
Kyle was already there which was nice. He’d also packed me a water which I fully appreciated! Lots of brownie points 😉
I had about ten minutes to stand and chat before making my way to the start. I really wasn’t looking forward to this. I was feeling quite tired and I knew this parkrun was a tough one. One mini loop, then two big loops with a steep decline and a fair amount of undulation all on rocky trail. Okaaaay.
We got going and my legs loosened up again after the standing around and I instantly felt a wave of tiredness. Ahh three miles really wasn’t that long…but then actually, it was in reality to my now very tired legs.
Photo credit: Martyn Garvey
Photo credit: Martyn Garvey
I found my footing and managed to sprint to the finish. Ooooof that was tough. 
My time was 24:04 and I felt every single second of it!
I finished and sat down, glad to finally stop and chill.
It was nice to get another parkrun ticked off, even if it was a challenging one. There aren’t many nearby anymore that I haven’t done… except the Medina one on the Isle of Wight but that’ll take a bit of organising in order to get a ferry across. I foresee a day-trip in the future…
I mean, the epitome of cool right there yes? I’ve actually never properly been on the back of a motorbike so this was quite the adventure. I was a teeeeeny bit scared when we hit the motorway I have to admit. It was such a crazy experience being in the “open” going so fast (well, not silly fast but fast enough!). Kyle’s a safe driver though and I relaxed as the journey carried on.
…And also persuaded Kyle to share some fried chicken maple pancakes with me.
The chicken pancakes were in the ‘savoury’ section of the menu but they were far from it! They were very sweet. The chicken was delicious and crunchy and the thick pancakes were fluffy and dense. SO good but very very sweet.
The fry-up, of course, was delicious too. A very happy Anna!
It was a lovely afternoon and definitely needed after all the food! We actually did quite a bit of walking that day as we headed down the beach to walk the dogs as well.
Gotta get out while the weather is still nice!
I had the chicken wings to start (let’s ignore they were a sharing starter)
But balanced this with a lovely chicken and feta salad. All in the name of balance, eh?
A solid day’s running, walking and eating! I was feeling good for the New Forest 10k the next day. On to that in another post!