Starting again from the beginning!

9 miles was an ultra!!!!!!

ah man you beat me to it!

I really do think if you just dropped 1 or 2 runs then you would find double figures easier, you already put away waaaaaaaay more miles a week than I do!

Hello everyone, up at 5am this morning for a lovely 3 ½ mile easy run. I’m really focused on sticking at this early morning running lark. Have printed myself a new running schedule (again) which takes me up to the Honiton Hippo 7 miler on the 14th April.

Gammineez, you’re spot on, it’s great to just get out there.

Grendel, a run in the double figures must surely be on the cards over the next few weeks? That mileage total is awesome, good for you.

B2B, this weather people are getting sucks. It must be very frustrating for people.

2013 – 41.01

JR - Yeah its a real pain! It wouldn't be so bad if it was just snow but its the ice thats the major problem. I just cant risk the potential injury. I have loads of trails around me but I have to get to them over crazy glazed pathways! I'm thinking of maybe just walking to get some miles in!

Walking would be good B2B - I remeber once in snowy weather just going out for a 2 and half hour walk - dressed in warm coats etc, walking boots ankle weights etc just to get some miles in - I don't know what your strategy will be for the ultra but I am sure that brisk walking would be be an ideal part of training during the icly snowy weather.

JR you have written your goal down now so we will hold you to it!!!!!

4 times 1000 metres done this morning felt very tired, with warm up and warm down it came to to just over 5 miles - so happy with that -

Will possibly leave the double figure run until the clocks go back and the mornings are lighter - but I will do it!!!

Gammineez - Well done! I cant do mornings im a night runner, I like to end my day on a run

I thought about Yaktrax but im not sure how they would work with sandals?!? Ive considered maybe getting some Tabi boots and combining those with the sandals.

May just have to walk a lot instead! Heavy boots and long walks....not the ideal thing but miles are miles! I wont be running the whole of the ultra anyway so I guess getting used to walking wont be such a bad thing. 

In total agreement B2B miles are miles, it might be a good idea to do that sometimes - just go out for a long walk - quite a good way to recover from the pounding (no I don't!!!!)  but then I don't do mega miles!!!

Gammineez - well done on getting out - it does get easier and of course you have done your run for the day now and you can sit back and feel smug!!!!

Yeah true! Right walking it is then! I have been walking to work the last couple of days, its only a mile but its got me in the mood for a stroll.

Might head out on wednesday as im going to my parents tonight.

That colour blindness link that was put on here to check my blog with got me thinking......my dad recently discovered he has mild Dyslexia (why would it be spelt like that!?!?) after some testing at work I think it was. He has found out that by using a yellow filter that he can now read things a lot clearer and without headaches. You can buy the sheets to go over the screen but they are not exactly cheap, personally I think this is extortion so again it got my mind going.

There has to be a way to change an internet browser to a default colour right?

RIGHT!!

I love being a nerd ha ha ha! Well maybe not so much a nerd but inquisitive!

If anyone needs help with this just let me know! Failing that have a quick google around!

(ok it was on the treadmill)

It is with a heavy heart that I have to tell you Grendel.......I did it again! 

New 5k PB is now...wait! I just want to make sure I don't miss type this as I cant quite believe it myself......2.......3.....5.....5!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I.....er.....well.....pffft! don't really know where that came from but I like it!

2013 - 76.36

Hi all,

Some good runs put in by everyone despite the trying conditions. B2B, awesome time. Just had another steady 'comeback' run of 2.5 miles and no calf problems. Whisper it, I might be back to fitness.

Yet another big dump of snow due tomorrow here in the frozen north but its good for business with all the skiers staying here. My wife and I seem to be fitting our runs around the snow quite well, but its getting a bit dull just having a choice of just 2 runs at present.

Sad day yesterday with a walker being found dead on the hills. The guys from the local mountain rescue centre (which is next door to us) were the ones who found him. With 5 other guys spending the night outside in what were blizzard conditions, it could have been much worse.

The mountains here can be brutal. In the last 3 weeks it has snowed every day and we have also had a top wind speed of 135mph on the top of Cairngorm mountain. Temperatures on top of the mountains below -40 are not unknown. We must be getting used to the cold, Mrs HRHB said it was warm on her run today. When she checked the thermometer it showed zero degrees.

To slightly paraphrase Lennon and McCartney - it was 30 years ago today - I went to a Valentines Dance and got very drunk, falling over very drunk - and I made a boast - of course I could run a half marathon in 3 weeks time (Brentwood) - I did, 3 weeks training, a trip to casualty with a swollen knee - and off me and a mate went - 1 hour:56 minutes later I finished - so my life changed and everything I went on to do from then started with copious amounts of Abbott Ale and Valentines Day!!!! 

20 times a minute done this morning into a howling gale coming in off the sea - happy days.

HRHB - wow that's really sad. That sounds like crazy conditions!

Grendel - So where is the report of the half being your anniversary and all that?! 

No running for me at the mo but I did wake up to find it had rained all night and got rid of the snow!! GAME ON!!

W2B (wife to be) is away this weekend so its play time on the trails!  Gonna try and go big this weekend and get really stuck in!

Hello everyone, hope all is well with you all and the miles are clocking up nicely.

Have not had chance to do much of anything at the moment, massive restructure to the library service = comulsory redundancies = staff team needing lots of support = very long work days. Not a time to put myself first really and even though I know a good run would probably clear some of the crap out of my head, I don't seem to be able to fight mental exhaustion as much as I can physical exhaustion and have been shying away from getting trainers on for nearly two weeks. 10k race four weeks this Sunday and as much as I am happy to just compete in it for now there is the demon sitting on my shoulder reminding me of my pb for distance (47 36). Free weekend coming up and plan is to do circuits on Saturday morning and then a steady of about 7 miles on Sunday around local resevoir. Permission to all to give me verbal roasting if I don't report doing as planned - sometimes it's what i need so please feel free.

Finished Scott Jurek's book and haven't eaten meat for nearly three weeks now - has it improved my running? Well I'll never know if I don't get my lazy x!@# out there!

Belated well dones to B2B for new 5k pb. Keen to hear on how your 'long one' goes this weekend, good luck with it.

Hi all,

time for a bit of self publicity, hope you don't mind. 

I have been working on a new website for the last month (not much else to do in the middle of a Socttish Winter) and I hope you will take a look at it. It's far from complete, but it is coming along well. www.hrm-reviews.com is a site on heart rate monitors, with links so you can buy them using your own Amazon account. The Amazon prices are exactly the same as you would get normally, but I get a bit of commission to help make the effort worth while.

If anyone of you has a heart rate monitor and would like to write a review that would be great. I'm happy just for any feedback and maybe a like or follow on the Facebook, Twitter or Google+ pages I have also set up would help to get the ball rolling. With so many sites around these days the search engines want to see activity,  so I have to go begging.

B2B would you like to exchange a link with your blog, Google loves links between sites.

Thanks and hope you don't mind me doing this.

Sometimes Lulusmum life gets in the way and missing runs is unavoidable (it is why I go out when the family are still in bed (well apart from my son) - I wouldn't worry about the time of your 10K either - just getting out and doing a race may be the incentive you need to get out and run - I am a long way off any of my PBs but have stopped worrying about that (I am so far off there is no point) - you may find getting out helps the mental exhaustion just having some 'me' time too.

I had a look at the website HRHB but I don't use a heartrate monitor so can't really comment.

5 miles done this morning, left calf worryingly tight but loosened up over the course of the run. Longer run tomorrow ( I have in my head what I am doing but won't publicise it in case it goes wrong)

Thanks Lulumum and my PB was set on no meat  I find that I run easier on days without meat, sounds odd I know. Your times may not change much but it will feel easier and lighter. I think there is a lot of science behind it. For me its easier to think of it in a hunter gatherer way.

"Hunting" starts when my system is void of meat and I must track it down.

When "hunting" I eat what is available, fruit, seeds, things that are light and easy to  digest as I have to be ready to hunt my "prey" at anytime.

Once I have caught my "prey" (finished my long run) I can then consume my meat and get down to resting and digesting my kill.

2 days later the meat is digested and the "hunting" begins again with smaller targets at first, building up to the main kill at the end of the week.

Strange way of describing it I know but it works for me and is logical in my mind!

So I am not a vegetarian, I just choose to be meat free until after my long run when my body has time to concentrate solely on digestion and repairs.

The weekend may still see me eat veg but usually I will eat some meat or fish as well.....I like it!

HRHB - sure thing! now how the hell do I do that? ha ha ha The site looks great!

Ive never used a heart rate monitor but would happily direct people to your page in exchange for a nod at mine!

Good luck with the run gammineez - you posted it here so now you are commited -

Went out for an easy 9, I realised after 2 it wasn't really on today, so thinking I could manage another 2 or 3, I pushed on, when I finally got to 5, I turned and headed home, retracing some of my route. 9.13 miles completed, later, Pizzahut, followed by champagne this evening ( a belated valentines evening - which is why I did the longer run today - will run tomorrow but will keep it shorter) 

Happy weekend all. 

ha ha ha Gammineez they just go without saying! Its like mandatory kit!

Not this time! Good luck for sunday!

Grendel - Nice one on another 9!! Way to go! The other 0.87 isn't that far!  

COOORRRR pizza and champagne! High life eh?!

Hunting done for today!

Tough, tough, tough but got it done! Not only hit a major wall at 10 today I think I actually started to help build it!

Walked it off for the next mile chomping away on my home made clif bar then it was back to the task at hand.

Met up with my brother in law who had run 12 miles to meet me, I was close to 14 at this point and very glad for the company! Headed off for another 6 to finish me off at 20 for the day, we then said our goodbyes and off he went back home to finish up a 30!!!! All in a days work eh?!

Right now to grab some grub and a coffee, nowhere near as elegant as Grendel but needs must!

2013 - 96.36