30 Years of Running Marathons
30 Years of Running Marathons
Heartache to Triumph: Rediscovering the Joy of Running at the Reading Green Park 10K
Have you ever wondered how a simple activity like running could transform your life? Join me on an emotional journey as I recount how the Reading Green Park 10k rekindled my passion for running after facing a series of personal hardships in 2017, including the heartbreaking loss of my nan. Discover the power of community and support, as a Facebook group of fellow runners gave me the encouragement I needed to lace up my shoes again. Listen as I share the heartwarming story of meeting key members like George and Helen, who became pivotal in my journey to find motivation and purpose in running once more.
This episode isn't just about triumphs; it's a raw and honest look at the struggles and obstacles faced along the way. From pre-race jitters, strategic planning, and pacing challenges to dealing with injuries like shin splints and gout, I reveal the gruelling realities of pushing through physical and mental barriers. Experience the highs and lows of racing in extreme heat and the camaraderie that emerges among runners. Hear about the evolution of race technology and the unchanging spirit of the running community that binds us together.
Looking ahead, we delve into the strategy and preparation involved in tackling multiple races in one weekend. From aiming for a personal best at a park run to the unique demands of a hilly evening 10k, this episode is packed with insights on balancing recovery, pacing, and nutrition. Whether you're a seasoned runner or new to the sport, you'll find motivation and encouragement in the celebration of resilience and joy found in running. Join me as we reflect on past races, share upcoming challenges, and celebrate the unbreakable spirit of the running community.
Thanks for listening. Keep on running.
The race is on. The race is on, so let's get straight into this episode of 30 years of running marathons. Today, as I'm recording this, it's currently Wednesday afternoon and I'm still recovering from my 10k race that I ran on Sunday. It's quite an emotional race for me. Back in 2017, I actually ran it and it was the race that got me back into running. Back in 2017, I actually ran it and it was the race that got me back into running.
Speaker 1:Previously, a few months before I'd lost, my nan almost became homeless. Family left me. I was literally left with nothing and I just didn't want to run anymore. My nan was my biggest fan of my running and she was always there for me. She always loved to see my medals and, you know, once she passed away away, I thought what was the point of running anymore. I just sort of lost all motivation, even though eventually it was the running that helped me get over her death.
Speaker 1:But I joined this Facebook group and it was very, even though it's not a running group per se. They're very much into running and just running and fitness generally and all about getting out of your comfort zone, and you were asked there to introduce yourself. I introduced myself and I literally let it all split out. I just basically said everything about what had happened, how my nan had died, how I lost my home, how my family left me, how I was left literally with nothing. And, of course, course, I didn't expect to actually meet anybody from the group. You know, I'd never say this face to face to anybody, but what actually happened was the the guy actually ran the group. He saw my introduction and he actually responded. And actually a lot of members responded to this and I, you know, I said I didn't want to run it run anymore because, you know, my nan wasn't there to see my medals. And they said, well, look, you know you carry on running. It's what your nan would have wanted and you know you can show your medals to us, post your medals to us, you know. Post photos of the medals you can see.
Speaker 1:Anyway, there was this race coming up called the Reading Green Park 10k. I lost my nan, uh, back in October October and this race was in April the following year, in 2017. So I'm thinking, okay, 10k is not too far, because obviously I'd been running all leading up to my nan's death, but afterwards I just completely stopped, I just completely lost my mojo. It was just like I had more important things to worry about, how I was going to survive, and I'll be honest with you, I couldn't see how I could live without my nan. I did it, I just didn't want to continue. That's the bare honesty I'm laying out to you. I just didn't want to continue, um, and if I hadn't joined this Facebook group and got the support that I had, goodness knows what would happen to me. Um, but I mean, they were a lifesaver and and I never used Facebook before, it wasn't one of the things that I was into. So, to get this great response from this group of people and you hear a lot of bad things about, you know, social media and about different types of groups and that but you know, and I was expecting some sort of horrible comments Every single comment was positive and they already felt for me and because I had nothing or nobody, I felt a real connection anyway. So, basically, what happened was there was this race coming up in April Green Park, redden 10k, not far from where I live and some members from the group were going. More specifically, georgie runs a group. He was going to be a pacemaker there. So I'm thinking, okay, you know, I could actually, you know, go and meet some members from the group and that would give me the motivation to run it.
Speaker 1:I was still very sceptical, I was very nervous For a start. I'd have to get on a train and I'd been on a train for years and I'd get very claustrophobic and all this was coming out of my comfort zone. And I'd get very claustrophobic and all this was coming out of my comfort zone. But you know, I put my big boy pants on and I just literally got on the train and I went there. But you know, I'm a very shy type of person too. You know, as he's saying, you should never, you know, meet strangers off the internet. So you know what the heck was I doing? You know, this is just not the normal thing you do, meeting strangers off the internet. But you know, I was desperate at this point and I didn't. I went with the assumption that, well, I probably won't even meet them at this race because there was going to be so many runners there I wouldn't even see them there.
Speaker 1:I get there early to the race and straight away I recognize George, who runs the group. I mean, you could not fail to miss him A colossal, gigantic guy, you know, muscly, well-built, really fit, six foot something tall. You know, just always the person I aspired to be myself. You know a little old me, who's not quite that tall and not particularly muscular, but always loved his running. Not particularly muscular, but always loved his running. But yeah, looking up at this guy who to me, you know, was very charismatic and a giant of a man and I was too shy to go up to him, I saw him in the background there. But then I saw a lovely lady there called Helen, who always posted a lot in the group and I recognised her because she wore glasses and because she posted so much. I recognised her. So I'm thinking, okay, maybe I can go up to her. I mean, I was still very frightened to go up to her, but I went up to her and and introduced myself straight away she knew who I was.
Speaker 1:And then, at the corner of my house I saw this giant of a man, george, come over to me and I'm like, oh no. And straight away he remembered my post, came up to me, shook my hand, was very supportive. I felt a bit embarrassed because I'd, you know, splurged my guts out on this post about how I lost my nan and everything else and I didn't want to go running anymore. And it's very personal thing I had said and I was embarrassed. Now, you know, it's one of those moments where you post something, sometimes when you're drunk, and you regret it afterwards. I mean, I wasn't drunk at the time, but I posted this and it was very personal because I didn't expect to meet anybody.
Speaker 1:But no, he was very sympathetic and he was going to be pacing 45 minutes, which I'm thinking, ok, maybe I can do 45 minutes Not so much, sure, nowadays, but you know, seven years ago, in 2017, because I'd done a lot of running all throughout leading up to my nan's death, even though I'd trained for a while, I think, yeah, I can do 45 minutes and I wanted to run with him. So that's what happened. I started on the line with him. I remember he did the warm-up as well, so he did the warm-up all front of the runners and that, and I had my photograph taken with him and some other members of the group. And then we lined up and I was right on his shoulder as a lot of runs were, because, you know, 45 minutes is a good time.
Speaker 1:A lot of people were trying to break 45 minutes and it was finally we'd see it. I mean, it was a. It was a fairly warm day, not I'll tell you what, not as warm as it was this Sunday, but it was a fairly warm day and I felt really good. Obviously it was emotional for me, but I was trying to be professional because I was trying to think well, I'll do this for my nan, because, even though she's not there to see the medal, I had banked on, obviously, posting it in the group. You know that I'd met George and the others and I others and I had run this race, uh, just after my nan had died, and I was hoping I'd get a lot of support. You know, so far, the group being very sympathetic to me and not not one nasty comment, which to me was a surprise, because you're a lot about, uh, people can be so nasty to you on the internet, but no, this, this group was lovely, full of positivity, so that's what I was banking on. So anyway, back to the race.
Speaker 1:I was running fairly well, the Red and Green Park 10K. It's about six miles and it's off-road. It's all closed roads, well, basically all closed roads around Green Park, which is a business park and also fairly rural as well, and it was fine. It's back to about three miles, three and a half to four miles, where you started going up over the motorway, so it's a slight incline. If you listen to my previous episodes, you know I do not like hills, hills of any kind. A lot of people say these weren't hills, they were just inclines. But no, I don't like them.
Speaker 1:And I was struggling to keep up and there was this desperation in me because I didn't want to let my nan down, didn't want to let myself down, and I didn't want to let my nan down. I didn't want to let myself down and I didn't want to let George down. George and Helen were there and more specifically George because I was running with him. So I was so worried about lessening him down that I just, with all my might, I tried to hang on to him, but eventually I gave up when we came up to about the fourth mark. So we're just over halfway through and I just can't keep up. So then I'm thinking, okay, damage limitation, just just try and do as well as you can give 110, that's all you can ask for. I mean, in the end it didn't turn out too bad. I mean, I came in at 46 minutes, which you know. If I'd got that this Sunday, I would have been more than happy with um, and I'll tell you what I did get in a minute, but you know, 46 minutes. Anyway.
Speaker 1:I think I was talking to Helen afterwards and all due respect to George he came over to me and he said you know well, I think his first words were what happened to you, because I've been on his shoulder all that time and I said to him I said look, george. I said I'm fine till I get to the hills. You know, it was about three and a half, four miles and we were going up that incline not not really a hill, but to me it's a hill and I just, I just couldn't keep up with you, um, but he still congratulated me because you knew what emotional race it was for me. I did feel emotional because it's the first race, uh, since my nan had died, and my last race listen to my previous episodes, you'll know my last race. My nan stayed alive just enough to see the final medal, and that was the winter half marathon which I do every year, and she literally died the day after I ran the winter half marathon and at the time I thought, well, I'll leave it there, I'm not gonna. You know, I respect my. Now I'm not gonna run any more races and this is the end of an era, you know. I just I'll just get on.
Speaker 1:And obviously I had more important things to worry about, you know, finding a place to live, job, et cetera, just getting back on my feet. But of course it was running which literally did get me back on my feet, both physically and mentally. But yeah, at the time I thought that was it. I didn't want to continue with life. It was just one of those things. Running was way down on the priorities and I just thought it'd be a nice end, just leave it there. Now it's on my last medal, that was it, and I didn't want to tarnish that.
Speaker 1:But then when I posted in this group and they said come back and start running again and it was literally both the Facebook group, the and start running again, and it was literally both the Facebook group, the people in the group and my running and the fact that I did this race, and I didn't feel too bad afterwards because I thought, you know, nan would be looking down, she'd be proud that I'm back on my feet and you know that that race was for her and it wasn't emotional for me. I mean, I stayed professional during the race and I ran as fast as I could, didn't quite get the time I for me. I mean, I stayed professional during the race and I ran as fast as I could, didn't quite get the time I wanted and I felt I let George down because I felt it had been such a nice thing to do my first race after my nan had died and to be running with George and to cross the line with George in 45 minutes. But you know it wasn't to be. But you know, full credit to the man first time he had met me. You know, and there's a, there's about 5 000 in this group. Okay, they're not, you know, they're not all active in the group, um, you know. But but for him to come over, um, and congratulate me and realize what an emotional race it was for me, you know, I just, I just felt so wanted again, I felt that connection that now my nan had left me, that you know there was someone still in my corner and it wasn't the end of the world and I would come through this. You know, the only way would be up from here, and indeed it was, because I went to many more races with the members of the group, but it was this first race that really got me back into running and two years later I ran it again.
Speaker 1:So in 2019 which was a stellar year for me, which you'll probably hear on one of my other episodes how good that year was for me 2019 I actually went back. I don't think there were any members of group, I don't think George was pacing that year, but I went, I went back and I actually did 44 minutes. I mean, yeah, it's 44 minutes 40 seconds. So to get under that 45 minutes, which I wanted and also beat an ex-colleague that I saw, um, which was nice because we basically got on and I think he was pacing 45 minutes, but I came in just under him. I remember being way ahead of him on the, on the home straight, and that was a PB. And, yeah, if I remember right, there was one other, uh, a member of the group who was there with me, I remember, and we had our photographs taken and, because it was a, it was a PB, I had my photograph taken with a PB sign and yeah, I mean I've still got photographs of that and it was a great race for me.
Speaker 1:You know it was unfinished business for me. Even though George wasn't there, I came back and I proved to myself I'm sure that I can actually get 45 minutes. So I was really happy with that. But this year I knew it would be different. There wasn't members of the group going. In fact, the group's not been as active as it has been. Like everything, you know, times change, obviously. This was seven years ago when I first joined. Times change, people move on, everything evolves.
Speaker 1:But you know, it was a race that I wanted to do again because it's we listened to my previous episodes. You know I've been a bit injured and I was injured. I've had shin splints and then in the last few days before the race I've had gout in my foot which I thought was going to flare up and would stop me from running completely. But because it was 10k, it's a distance that I think I can feasibly do even without much training. It's not like a half marathon or a marathon. You know, I'm not foolish in that respect. You need a minimum amount of training for that, and I'll be doing a lot of park runs as well. So park runs on saturday morning which are 5k, so there was no way I was going to get 45 minutes I. I just knew, you know, I just didn't have the speed in me. Go my my previous times on my training records on strava I I'm averaging just over a nine minute mile a pace. I work in miles rather than kilometers, but you know, 10k is just over six miles, about 6.2, 6.3 miles, and in fact this is just one of a couple of 10Ks that I'm doing in these sort of couple of weeks and this is the fastest out of the two. But boy, boy did I struggle on Sunday.
Speaker 1:I mean, everything went to plan. Well, I say everything went to plan. I got the train. Train was delayed but I allowed myself more than enough time to get there and I got in plenty of time that I could just relax. But already it was going to start to be a warm day. You could feel it in the air. I mean the racing started till 10 30 and I think I got there about eight, a good good over two hours before, and it's a beautiful surroundings and I was sat there by the lake and I actually got chatting to a lovely guy and I couldn't believe how old he was.
Speaker 1:He told me how old he was doing some some stretching the band. It was like a like a big rubber band between his legs just to keep his him loose. More specificity, to work his glutes, which are basically your buttocks, and they're the powerhouses of of when you run, they're the ones that give you all the power when you're running. And I just commented on it and he said, oh, he said yeah, you can use it after me if you want. And we got chatting about different races and he had run this before he'd run, you know, marathons. And when he told me he was 72, I was like, really, you can't be 72. And he said yeah, he said I'm 72 and I said we look very fit for 72. He said well, it's running that keeps me that way. And I think to myself, wow, I hope I'm still running at 72 and I hope I'm still as fit as you. I mean I don't know what time he was going to do, but I mean you look pretty fit, I mean. And we sat there discussing for ages before we had to eventually, you know, disrobe and get ready for the race, and there was quite a few people there, um, I mean not thousands, but a good few hundred, and it's only a small space there at the start. That's what I love about the races.
Speaker 1:You go to these races and you just get chatting to strangers because you know runners. We all have one thing in common the camaraderie. We're all in this together and you get chatting to these other runners and you hear about their race experiences and some, like myself, have been running for years. I mean he, he, like me, had been running for years and he remembers the olden days when there was none of this technology like Strava and Garmin. That was sportful. Nowadays it literally was. You know, he remembers, like me.
Speaker 1:I remember I used to get the runners world magazine there. It was a free training log in there and he used to write everything down. And he remembers me where he had to guess how far you were running the distance. There was none on these watches that would record your distance, your speed. You literally had to guess it. I was lucky because as a kid, when I first started, there was two fields across the road from me and you went across those two fields. Everybody knew it was a mile, so it's quite easy for me to work out at least one mile and go up there and back. You know that's two miles and then you used to go along the high street and that would be another mile. So you get to know these points.
Speaker 1:But yeah, it's very different and we are sport for technology nowadays to to record everything from our heartbeats, our pulse, um, our sleep, at the speed we do, the elevation of our runs, and we all record it on on things like strava and garmin, and life is so much easier. And, of course, when that packs up and that we're like, well, you know, if it's not on garmin, it's not, you're not on your strava, did you actually run it? We're so reliant on technology. But you know, I it's not on Garmin, it's not. You're not on your Strava, did you actually run? It was so reliant on technology. But you know, I'm not complaining because technology is great, it's a great record of your running it and it can help your run as well.
Speaker 1:But it's great to meet someone else who who remembers those days, because obviously there was a lot of youngsters there as well and you know a lot of young ladies, a lot of young guys and they'll have been brought up on watches nowadays that do everything. They record everything every little single minute of your life, from when you sleep, from when you get up, your activities, everything, and they're so reliant on that and obviously they don't realize how lucky they are. But also, you know, I don't begrudge that because I love the fact when it was so simple, you didn't have the technology, you just wrote everything down. In some ways. I wish we'd go back to that, you know, because sometimes we can be too reliant on technology. But you know, that's another story.
Speaker 1:Anyway, yeah, so we chatted for ages and went to just robe and go, anyway, yeah, so we, we chatted for ages and went to just robe and and go and um, yeah, there weren't many toilets there before the start, but, um, you know, being a guy, you'd always find the old bush but they had like urinals and um, so, yeah, another aspect of being a guy, you have urinals, so a lot of it that the main toilets is queues for, but the urinals you can always get to as a guy. So, um, and you always get that panicky feeling before race. You need to go more than you you really need to, but obviously, you know you've been hydrating a lot, so I drank a full bottle of lucas, a sport, before I started and I was trying to keep hydrated. I also drank a coffee in between change of trains and that. So by now I was desperate to go.
Speaker 1:But then, just as I get onto the start line, I get this urge to go again and I'm like, no, it's all in my mind, forget about it. Because by the time I went to the start line I couldn't believe how busy it was. And I'm just looking out for the paces because I don't want to be as far back as an hour or more than an hour. I wanted to get up to the 55, so I had to push my way through the crowds. Lucky, because I'm quite small, I can squeeze through the crowds and then you see the 55 banner there. Well, it's like a flag to have out the back. So I'm seeing the 55, and the 55 is very close to the 50, because obviously this is 10K. So like a marathon or half marathon, the pace is going to be spread out more. So I'm thinking I don't want to go too near to the 50. I reckon I is going to be spread out more, something. I don't want to go too near to the 50. I'm reckoning I can do 55.
Speaker 1:I remember putting down, because I always ask you when you enter these races, how fast do you think you're going to do it? I put down like 54 minutes. There's no way I was going to do like 45 minutes but 54. You're averaging sort of about nine minute marlin. And bear in mind, most of my training runs have just been over, like 9, 13 a mile, 9, 30 a mile, but of course that's in training runs and you always do it quicker when you're in a race because you you've got the other runners around you that are pushing you. You've got the crowds, not so much in this. I mean you've got the crowds at the start but it's literally around closed roads and it's spread out, so you don't really get the crowds. But you've got the adrenaline in the race day. You know this is a one-off, you know it's now and never. It's not just another training run.
Speaker 1:So I'm thinking, yeah, I can maybe push it down to nine minute mile. Certainly under nine minute mile I wasn't doing that sort of pace. I mean I was on 5k but this is like double the amount. So and my tactics were literally my tactics were always have a race plan before you start my race plan was. I was saying it to the runner that I met and he sort of agreed to me that you know, you talk about these negative splits where you do the first half not too fast, um, and then you do the second half quicker. But you know, even if it a 10K, I know that I'm always going to slow down the second half. So I said to him I'm probably going to look at the mindset of thinking of just as a 5K, do three miles pretty quick, just about halfway mark, and then I'll slow down on the second half. You know, get up to four or five and then try and really push on that final mile. And that's my tactic. So 54 minutes I've been really happy with and then maybe 55, 56 an hour.
Speaker 1:If I was really struggling and at one point I was thinking maybe it was now because the night before my my legs were really achy, especially my right leg. But it was a case of what's known as paranoia, which paranoia is a generic term. More specifically, people talk about when they're be trained for a marathon and then you taper so you cut all your training down. The last week hardly do any running, carbo loading, stuffing up carbohydrates. You feel sluggish and slow and you feel you're losing all this fitness because you're not doing the running and you get your stuff in your face and this is where you start to panic. And even on 10k races like this, the shorter races, um, I was thinking, yes, I've lost my fitness because I hadn't been done much training.
Speaker 1:But you also get paranoia also includes these niggles and pains that you get. You get phantom niggles and pains. And speaking to the runner that I met the race, exactly the same thing. So I wasn't the only one. Everybody's insane, but everybody's getting these niggles and pains. But you know, I've had injuries before. You know torn meniscus in my knee, baker cyst and gout and any slight niggle I sort of worry about. And, like the guy I met there, he said he never knows what's going to happen until you get on to the start line.
Speaker 1:I wasn't sure because I hadn't run for a couple of days how I was going to be and I'd worked the previous day, a long day, previous day, no breaks or anything. So I was really. I was quite tired. I had a good night's sleep, but I was a bit worried about how I was going to run and it's usually after the first mile. I can tell it usually takes me a few miles to warm up. You know I'd probably be warmed up by the by the end of the race, but anyway, I got on start line with the 55 minute pacer and there was loads of runners around me a little bit back from the start line and I was just trying to stretch and we're going for the usual announcements.
Speaker 1:And then there's always this urge to tie up my shoelaces again and again, and often sometimes I tie them too tight. And then when I've tied them too tight which I've done in previous races you start getting pains up your legs. And so I'm thinking resist the urge to keep doing them up. They're tight enough. You know, worst case scenario if they, if they, you have to stop. Do them up, do them up, but don't do them too tight.
Speaker 1:But there's all this. You know this sense of you get all this anxiety when you're on the line there, you just want the hooter to go and for you to go off. And then, when the hooter does go off, this is this is anti-climax, because you know we're a few yards behind the actual start line and so you just start walking up to the start line. Then you start running a bit, but then you know you don't want to go too fast because you're not even actually at the start line yet. And then when you get to start line, the first thing obviously you do is I've got the, the timing mat, something. If start line is, you don't start your watch until you get to the, the actual timing mat, and then you start your watch and I just want to make sure I I got that more or less spot on and then I was off in the first mile.
Speaker 1:Even after all these years, the first mile, I don't know. I just find it so hard to judge, because you want to be going fast enough. You don't want to play, you know, you don't want to be playing too much of catch up, but at the same time the golden rule is the first mile don't want to go off too quickly. There was no excuse for me because they were. You know, there were runners around me, runners in front of me. You know there wasn't too much space in the road in front of me, so I didn't have to go too fast and we said that it was slightly downhill.
Speaker 1:But like I'm looking at my watch every few seconds and I still find it very hard to tell, because the nearest mark you're going to get for a mile is when you get to the first mile, I think. Or maybe it's the first count, I'm not sure. But obviously my watch is telling me when I'm caught a mile, halfway through, half mile through, but my watch doesn't click till average pace until after the first mile, so it's alternating and how fast it reckons you're going. But you know, I'm looking at halfway mark and I'm like, okay, this, this is looking OK Because I was in such a, you know, I just felt so good and I got in such good rhythm. It's very hard to slow down once I got going and at the same time, the back of my mind I'm thinking well, maybe I'll keep up the whole race like this because I don't feel out of breath.
Speaker 1:But I had set targets in my mind, what I needed to do, and the targets were anywhere between eight and a half minutes to nine minute. Marlin would get me my target or 54 minutes. That's all I had to do. It's not rocket science and surely that'd be quite easy to achieve. You know, got this technology nowadays, the watch. Just look at my watch. You know I'm not running naked, so to speak. So why can't I adhere to it? I just don't get it. And after all these years that is my Achilles heel, so to speak I just can't do it.
Speaker 1:And to cross the first mile in seven minutes 53 seconds, yeah, if I was going for the 45 minutes I was going for a few years ago, that might be the case, but I hadn't even done that in training. Even my part runs I was like averaging 826 a pace. I don't think I even did one mile under that. So this was going way too quickly. But I felt good. So I'm thinking, okay, maybe I can hang on. That gives me a bit in the bank for the next section. Bear in mind, the first mile was downhill and we were going to hit some hills. So the second mile was a bit better because the second mile was like 8.29. And I'm like, okay, I've got this back on an even keel. 8.29, really about half eight and a half minutes. That's going to be good. I'm going to get the 54 minutes. So I'm thinking, okay, I'm back on a steady pace now, that's good.
Speaker 1:And then the third mile I was still on track pace. Now that's good. And then the third mile I was still on track. It was eight minutes 58. Okay, I slowed down a bit, but maybe this was a conscious effort to slow down. To slow down to that. Remember I was looking between eight and a half minutes to nine minute marlin. So to get just under 858. And if I'd gone maybe up to nine and a half I I'd still been like 56 minutes, so to get just under nine. I was still on track. This was good and in fact, the halfway point to be looking at the 5k which I normally run on a Saturday on a park run. It was approximately maybe just a couple of seconds slower than my fastest time this year for the park run, so that was really good pace. That's what I said to my fellow runner. I'm going to do it like a normal 5k now, of course.
Speaker 1:Now I had to hang on for the next 5k and this was where the problem came in, because not only had the sun come out, it was really hot. I think we're on track for the hottest day of the year here in the uk. Not only was it really hot, I think we're talking up in the 70s Fahrenheit and the sun was shining down. There was no shade on this cause and I was wearing my special t-shirt which is supposed to divert the sweat away and cool you down, okay, but I wasn't wearing a hat, so the sun was like really shining on my face. No sun lotion, nothing. I knew I was going to get burnt, but that was east of my problems, but I was sweating like anything and I was starting to really fit and I had to hang on for another just over three miles. This is where the problem came in, because the fourth mile okay, the fourth mile wasn't too bad, it was 9, 11.
Speaker 1:But the second half of the course it was quite hilly and there was more hills than I remembered. I only remembered the incline over the motorway. But we went over the motorway, I think, a couple of times and there was inclines, and the first point of the course, I think, was three and a half miles. You turn around four and then we came down a little slope. But then I remember this one section, and I think it was the fourth to the fifth. All I could see was this long stretch of road in front of me before we turned back over the motorway and it was just. I could just see all the runners in front and you could just see this baking hot road in front of you, runners in front of you, and I'm like I'd worked out roughly because I knew roughly the the course route and I'm thinking we've got to turn over the motorway there.
Speaker 1:That's the furthest point of the course, which I think is about the four, four mile mark, and it just seemed to stretch out forever and I just I just couldn't keep the pace up and I was really struggling. I was really getting out of breath. I mean, some people were walking this is only a 10k. You don't see many people walking on the 10k race and I was really struggling and I was like I don't know if I can keep going. I was like this felt more like a marathon to me and I guess it was just that depressing sight of seeing all the runners in front of me, how far I had to go before I even reached the furthest part of the course and turn around, and it was like I just completely lost all confidence in my running and the time that I was going to get. I was thinking I've lost it now I've just got to try and keep moving and don't worry so much about the time, but don't look too far in front of you and of course eventually I got to the motorway and then that was an uphill section.
Speaker 1:So, coming around to the fifth mile, I've now gone down to like nine minutes 29 seconds for that mile. So going from the nine just under nine for the third to the fifth, to 929, you know, 32 seconds down and that's a good. Before that, after the fourth mile, which is 911, 18 seconds down, you know, wheels are really starting to come off now and I was really struggling, and you know that was the fifth mile. So I'm thinking, ok, it's just one mile to go, but of course technically it's not, because a 10K isn't six miles. A 10K is 6.2. Well, in this case it turned out to be even longer, but I was banking on the fact, no, it's 6.2. But I was also banking on the fact that don't even think about being 6.2.
Speaker 1:Think of this as the last mile and, as point two, think this is the last mark and, as I always said, the last mile is the longest mark. It always seems to take the longest, I guess because you're anxious to finish, you're tired and it just seems that much longer. But in this case it really did, because the sun was out now. It was its strongest it had been all day so far and I could see looking at other runners they were really struggling too in the heat and I was just trying to push for that sixth mile because I knew the last.
Speaker 1:I knew the last mile of the section from five to six you're turning back on yourself, so we've gone around in a loop, but then, last bit, we're coming back on yourself, so we've gone around in a loop, but then the last bit, we're coming back onto the first bit of the section that we ran out. So the first mile that we've run out to is also the last mile that we come back on and there's more civilization there, so there's more crowds and more spectators and obviously we're all spread out more as runners because we're just all struggling now and there's not so many happy faces now as we're. Even though it's the last miles, we're coming into it. But the support was great, um, and it's the support that kept me going. You know, cheers from the crowd what crowds of world were great.
Speaker 1:But I knew there were two mini roundabouts on the last section and my goal was obviously get to the first round. Because I got to the first roundabout, I think, oh no, I've still got another roundabout, mini roundabout, to go by. Bear in mind it's all close road, so all I've got to do is worry about running. But I still couldn't see the finish line from here, and I think I've still got another roundabout to go. The crowds were cheering me on, but I was really struggling and though I normally do struggle in the last mile not normally as bad as this, especially for a 10K and yeah, I still couldn't see the finish line.
Speaker 1:All I knew is it was a straight long road, but this road was literally baking in the heat and I was struggling, and you could tell by my time, because that sixth mile was 9 minutes 33. So every mile on the second half had been getting slower and slower. I mean, in the big context of things, I probably would have been happy with every mile being about 9.33, because of the lack of training I'd done. But because I was en route for 54 minutes, at the halfway mark, I was a bit disappointed. Disappointed, I guess, because I could struggle there. Minutes at the halfway mark, I was a bit disappointed. Disappointed, I guess, because I could struggle. There was more hills than I remember, um, and that caught me out. I don't, I don't remember that, unless they've changed scores, but I don't think they have. But there was certainly more hills and, of course, once we reached the six mile mark, it wasn't over. There was that extra bit, which, a bit which I've forgotten about and, as I say, it's 6.2. But look at my watch, at the end actually turned out to be 6.3, but and it was the final section and normally I put a sprint on.
Speaker 1:I always like to finish with a sprint, but I just, I just didn't have anything left in the tank and I was really struggling as it got nearer and nearer. You know people cheering me on, there was no one overtaking me and I was thinking, okay, there's runners in front of me, maybe I can push it now I can see the finish line. And of course I'm not looking at the time because the time's irrelevant on the on the gantry above me, because I started, you know, a few minutes later than than what that time was. I'm just. But I'm not even looking at my watch because I know I'm way out of my time, I'm not going to hit 54 minutes and now I'm just struggling so much I just want the hole to open up for me to go down it because I just felt absolutely dreadful and it was really hard to get a sprint.
Speaker 1:I eventually did manage a sprint, not as fast as I normally do, so I sprinted across the line and I always say sprint through the line, not to the line, um, and obviously I'm remembering to obviously stop my watchings across the line. But I'm sprinting through the line, nearly bumping into a cameraman at the back back of the, the finish line there, and I just want to collapse. But of course I know if I, if I, if I collapse, someone's going to come over to me and try and pull me up. You know they want you clear the finish line in that. But I'm staggering to one side, I'm looking to the heavens, kissing the cross around my neck which my nan had given to me, and just looking to the heavens and know, you know, nan had got me through this.
Speaker 1:But, um, I was just all over the place. I literally went from one side of the road to the other behind the finish line there. Um, I, just, I just literally wanted to sit down. Well, first of all I wanted to find some shade, but that wasn't possible. Get some water. I got some water. Volunteer handed me some water that went all over my head. I got my medal then as quickly as I could. I went around the back of the finishing line and there was some shade. There was a tree there on the bank there, I think, by the way, I just literally collapsed. Um, there was another runner there and he had all sympathy for me. He was doing the same thing. He said it was a hot one and I just literally couldn't speak. I was just on my back.
Speaker 1:I never felt so tired after a 10k race. Never has a 10k race taken out me so much. I know a 10k is a quick race. As I say, it's not my favorite race because you're going so much quicker than maybe half or a full. And, okay, you finish it, you get your medal. But maybe there's not so much kudos as doing a half or a full marathon. And I looked at the medal and the medal was lovely. Um, I've had better, but um, it was still another medal and it was another race. And I guess you're wondering what time I did. Well, actually the time wasn't too bad. In the grand scheme of things, it was still in the 55 minute bracket. It's actually 55 minutes 50 seconds. So at the end of the day I was happy with that.
Speaker 1:Um, 54 minutes was what I'm aiming for, but I say when the heat came out and affected a lot of people, actually when, when you know, with that heat I don't normally don't mind running in the heat, but we've not had much heat to training here in the uk lately and in fact it was the hottest day of the year so far, so it was a a real struggle. So bear in mind the heat, not much training, you know. 54 minutes, I got 55, 50. It's under the 56 in the 55 range, certainly better now. More importantly, my legs were fine. There was no gout, there was no pains in my legs, that was all fine. And when you do your race analysis afterwards I certainly look back at that first mile, which I've always told you not to do the first mile too quick. And of course I did that under eight minutes, which is, you know, being the seven minute range is ridiculous when I've not done that before and that probably took its toll as well as the heat. But looking in the grand scheme of things, 54 is what I put down on my entry when I did 55 or 55, 50 without heat. I'm pleased with that.
Speaker 1:And I say I wasn't the only one suffering from the young lady came over and joined us under the tree and she, she was really suffering too. And everybody mentioned the heat. It took me a long while to get up from that shady bit. I know how to get up eventually, because I don't want my legs seizing up, but yeah, I'd never felt so drained, and that's what the heat can do to you. And luckily this year they didn't actually have a um. I remember in previous years I've had a little van there selling um, um alcoholic drinks like cider and beer. That they didn't this year, which was probably a good thing, because it probably would have made matters worse for me, because all I wanted was was water, um, and I quickly actually well, not quickly I managed to stagger around to the bag drop and I knew I had a bottle of Lucas-Ace Sport in there and I just drank that and it was just a relief.
Speaker 1:I just sat there with all the others, took my shoes and socks off and sat there with all the other runners just contemplating what I'd done. I mean, now it's nice to enjoy the heat, you know, once you've finished. And then I started to get a bit hungry which I don't normally get hungry after races and I think, well, I suspect the burger van is going to be an absolute cue there, but actually there wasn't and a nice quarter pound of chili burger and it went down so good. I was absolutely starving. I said I'm not normally hungry after races, but now, once I recovered, it was great and I just sat there and I knew that my train wasn't going to go, for it's probably about an hour before the train went, so I knew I had plenty of time to relax and it's going to be like a 10, 15 minute walk to the train station anyway, so I knew there was no point in rushing, so I just sat there and enjoyed the atmosphere and it was great atmosphere.
Speaker 1:You know, when you do finish and you've got a nice sunny day and that, and people getting the photographs taken. And, of course, I posted to the group, like I did on the previous couple of races that I'd done when I first joined the group and a couple of years ago when I got my PB. And I posted to the group about how you know those seven years ago, back in 2017, when this race changed everything, and how you know, I met George and Helen and I got a remarkable response. You know George himself, you know I think very he's too kind, actually saying I'd been an inspiration for the group and others and many other people posted their comments and they said what a lovely, positive post it was. And sometimes I cannot be the most positive of people, but after a run like that I was really happy and they loved my photo, they loved the medal, they loved seeing me there and I got something like I say the group has not been very active lately, but I got something like about 80 likes and a great response, loads of comments, so that made my day. I was really happy with that.
Speaker 1:So, all in all, it was a. You know it was a good. It was a good run and, as I say, as I said before, you know any run that you can do is always a bonus. You know it doesn't really matter what the time okay, we're all competitive at the end of the day. You know it's all about camaraderie and you know completing it is no mean feat, okay. Okay, it's not a half marathon, not a marathon, but any race you complete, you know it's an achievement. And you know there was a terrible sight I saw along the side of the road which one guy had collapsed. I mean, he was conscious but he had collapsed and it was obviously the effects of the heat. You know medics were looking after him, but that is a you know. That goes to show that you should never take finishing any race for granted. It could have happened to me.
Speaker 1:You know the heat gets to you and, as I said before, some of these things are out of your control. I can't control the weather and, as I've said before, some of these things are out of your control. I can't control the weather. You know, I'd rather have that than it be rainy and windy. But sometimes you have to adapt yourself during the race because of the weather. For example, I know, you know I'm certainly not going to get 45 minutes, but even you know 54 minutes, that goes out the window as well, because you know, and now a factor has come into it now, a factor that you can't control, like the heat, and if you're not used to running the heat like certainly here in the uk we don't get a lot of these hot races then it's, you know it's gonna gonna pull you back. You're not, you're gonna feel the effects of it and you are gonna slow down in the second half of the race. It going to take it out of you.
Speaker 1:But I think I did all that I could. I can only give 110 percent, give you all, and that's why I left nothing out there and that's why you know I came across the line and struggled afterwards. But I'd rather do that than having not given him all. You know, and for that, those 55 minutes, 50 seconds, nothing else mattered. And that's what I love about running races. Nothing else matters. And sometimes when you get more of a struggle like that, I enjoy even more, because even at the time I didn't particularly enjoy it. It's just. It just takes you out of yourself and you're thinking of nothing else. Nothing else in the world matters. For those 55 minutes, 50 seconds, nothing else matters apart from getting through the race and then sense of achievement you have afterwards is runners high. You really do get a runner's high and sometimes you get a bit below a few days afterwards.
Speaker 1:But I have to say that the next day on, on the monday I wasn't actually working on monday, but the next day felt like I'd run a marathon. I mean I was like, wow, this has been the toughest 10k I've done and, yeah, I've got the toughest one coming up. Um, it's wednesday today, wednesday afternoon, and this saturday and this will be a first for me this saturday I'm going to be running the clifton 10k, which is run around a lovely country estate, um, but I knew it was hilly. But I've been looking at it now and there's these steps you have to run up and apparently it's a two lapper and you have to go up these steps and it looks something like the 39 steps. It could even be more than that, I don't know, but you have to run up these steps. You have to go up them twice.
Speaker 1:So, whereas this was a a flat one on closed roads, this is quite a unique race. It's sort of like part trail they call it part trail, part road, part a bit of everything. It stands out as being unique, so any times go out the window. So I did 55 minutes, 50 for this. Goodness knows this. This could be an hour.
Speaker 1:I'm gonna say it's wednesday today and I still haven't been for a run since sunday when I did the race. I'm looking at getting up at the crack of dawn tomorrow and doing a. Well, I don't want to do too much because you know what I'm like once I get going, once I get out there, it'd be like just do a two mile or three mile before I know I'll be doing six miles, even ten miles. And bear in mind I'm racing on Saturday. I don't you know any. Any run I do now not not really going to benefit me. I'm legs feel fine at the moment so I I feel okay. I think I've recovered now and that's why I made sure I'm fully recovered because I say any any anyone I do now is not going to benefit me fitness wise for the race on Saturday. But what's unique about this race, especially for me, is I'm not an evening runner. You know I'll get up four in the morning, go running at half five in the morning and that's fine, get it over and done with. I'm not working on Saturday so I've got all day to relax, either either relax or get stressed out about it. So it starts at 7 15 so hopefully I'll be finished by quarter past eight. An hour there to relax afterwards, you know, might be home by half nine, who knows. But it's gonna be a tough race but it's.
Speaker 1:It's the second in the series. I did the Beaconsfield trail run, I think that was back in in april and that was a 5k trail run and that that was run off-road, um country estate type race as well. And then this is the second in the race and then the third, which I always do, which is local to me, the burnham beach, is half marathon. You get all three and all the medals. They, they actually fit together and that's why I wanted to do this. They say, oh, you've got two years to get all three of them, three of the medals. But heck, no, life's too short. Who knows where we're going to be, you know, the next couple of years. So I'm like getting it all over and done with.
Speaker 1:And I've seen this race advertised before. Normally they run it in January, at the beginning of the year, and obviously the conditions there can be quite different. You know, it can be cold, it could be icy, it could be snowy, it could be anything. So, even though it's running the evening, hopefully, hopefully I say hopefully, hopefully it'll be a little bit bit cooler, as it's in the evening rather than in the heat of the day. Um, so that'd be one good thing. I mean, I just hope it's not. I don't think it's going to, but I just hope, you know, as long as it's not rainy, not too cold, not windy, you know, not like I'm asking for much, but I don't mind it being. You know, I can't see it being as hot as on Sunday because, as I say, that was and you're running through most to midday, so it's more or less when the heat of the day is coming, so hopefully it will cool off by quarter past seven. Having said that, who knows, in the UK we get some funny weather. It changes from day to day, hour to hour, minute to minute. But, as I say, I think it's going to be dry. So as long as it's dry, that's fine.
Speaker 1:My main concern about this is I can't really think about times, I don, but you know 55, 50 for that race and I've just done, and that that was a fast flat course, okay, some hills and that, but this has got some gigantic incline, especially when I've been looking online at those steps and you've got to go up and then twice, um, and it's going to be a trail as well and it's going to be in the evening. So no, I'm not working, I'm. I always get tired by that time of the evening. It's not my, my real chance. I mean what I'll probably do is on the Saturday. In fact I'm thinking of doing a double whammy, which I know this sounds daft, but I'm thinking, you know, in for a penny, in for a pound. Okay, I'm working on on Friday, but I finished quite early now on Saturday morning at nine o'clock is when the normal park run, my local park run, is ran and that's a 5k and I haven't done one for a while.
Speaker 1:So as I'm off, I'm thinking, well, maybe I'll do that half nine to half, I'll finish by 10. Sorry starts, let me get this right. So it starts at nine, I'll be finished by half nine and then I'll probably go back. You know, have a coffee afterwards, go back home about 10 or so and normally I don't have breakfast before and so probably at 11 I normally have something like toasted sandwiches or something to eat. So I'm thinking maybe, as I've got the obviously the 10k later on the day, maybe about 11, I can maybe have a pasta dish full of carbohydrates, give me the energy and then, if I need something, a little snack before I go. That will probably be about three or four o'clock, as long as I have three hours beforehand, because I just can't run when my stomach's full so I need to give myself probably at least three hours.
Speaker 1:So by four, yeah, four, four o'clock, that's three and a quarter hours at least by four o'clock a snack, and then obviously do the race, and then, time I come in the evening, maybe have something later on a snack, but yeah, so that'd be two races in a day, although technically park runs on a race, but be a 5k in the morning and the 10k in the evening. And I'm thinking, why not you only live once? And and okay, it's gonna be quite tiring, but I know I'm not gonna get a fast time anyway in the 10k in the evening. And I'm thinking, why not you only live once, and, and, okay, it's gonna be quite tiring, but I know I'm not gonna get a fast time anyway in the 10k in the evening. You know it's gonna be more of a challenge. So I don't think, you know, the 5k in the morning is gonna tire me out.
Speaker 1:And also, I think it's the first park run of the month, um, this Saturday. Yes, I think it is, and that's when they have pacemakers. So maybe I'll try and do my fastest time of the year. Go with a pacemaker. I think my fastest time is just over 26 minutes. So if I could get maybe go with the 26 pacer, maybe get to start in 26 minutes, that would give me the confidence anyway to go for, obviously, the 10k race later on and that would hopefully improve my speed for later on in the day. And you know, I've still got about seven what seven, you know? Over nine hours, um, yeah, about about nine hours uh, recovery after the park run, so that that should give me plenty of time.
Speaker 1:Obviously, if I can do a really fast time it'll give me the boost to go and do the 10k later on the day and it'd be nice to have done both, because I don't always get saturdays off. So to do the park run, which I haven't run for a while and I say I think is pacemaker, wait, get my teeth in pacemaker week this week so I could be running along with a pacemaker name for aim for that 26-minute mark, which would be a nice confident booster, and then do 10k and then that would be a good weekend's work of running. So yeah, I think I'm going to do that. I think I can handle it. It will certainly help my endurance and stamina for the races I've got later on in the year, like the half marathon and the marathon. So that's my plan for this weekend anyway. So be some work later on today, and then tomorrow or Friday working, and then Saturday morning I'll do the park run, then do the evening race and then I've got Sunday off. So you know I can always recover on the Sunday. So that's my plans anyway.
Speaker 1:So, as I say, I've had a good 10K race on the Sunday. So that's my plans anyway. So, as I say, I've had a good 10k race on on the Sunday just gone, and I say very emotional race for me, uh say, one that I did all those years ago when there was, all you know, everything was lost, there was all despair. But, as I say, I joined this Facebook group, I got back into running, I ran it again two years later, got the PB, and it's a race that I'll always go back to. Even though, as I say, 10k isn't my favorite race, it's a race that always will have a place in my heart and, um, I'll go back to it and it's certainly an enjoyable race, and it is it. You know, you get a lot of real runners there and, um, it's a lovely atmosphere and you know, okay, I begrudge the heat because it was a bit too hot, but it was lovely afterwards and rather that than it being rainy, and, as I say, I think, um, saturday is going to be good. I know saturday morning, put apart run, it's going to be nice. I think now we'll go on into the evening, so we'll see how it goes. Anyway, I'm looking forward to it.
Speaker 1:As I'm just resting at the moment, tomorrow early morning I should go for a run. I say I'll just try. I've got to because I haven't run for a while. Once I get out there, I know I could easily go for five, ten miles, but I don't want to completely ruin my chances of doing a nice fast park run and obviously also, uh, for the 10k. You know, if I'm going to do two in a day like that, 5k and the 10k, then I don't want to be doing a 10 miler tomorrow. So I'm thinking three miles back to the old place where I used to live, maybe four, five, see, then I'm, then I'm already edging up to six miles, but probably no three to my old place. I could four, I reckon five at the most. I don't need to do any more than five, and then friday off and then do the park run, which is the 5k, and then do the 10k, the race later on.
Speaker 1:And I say this 10k, I think I'm going to completely forget about time. Obviously I will be looking at my, my watch and obviously try and learn from my mistakes from this last 10k and not go out too fast on the first mile. But you know, I'm not thinking of 40, certainly not 45 minutes, or even 54 minutes, if I can break under the hour. Um, I think that will be a good time actually, because it's it's a real hilly course, very picturesque course, I think, around the clifton estate. It's going to be very, very beautiful uh to run and a nice summer run. So I think I think it'll be an enjoyable run, uh, in the sense that you know, pleasant surroundings, very scenic, you know, enjoyable from that point of view, but also very tough.
Speaker 1:But when you get these tough races, you know you, you can't compare one to the other, time wise. So I should do the park run in the morning, go with the pacemaker, try and get a fast time for that, set me up for this 10k later on the day, do the 10k and just go out and enjoy it. You know, as I say, every race you can do. It's an absolute bonus because so many people can't run. You know, I've been injured so many times myself and sometimes when you're injured you think, oh, I just love to do a race and be able to do any time. You know, I'm competitive all the time. I want to go quicker and quicker. When I am injured I have to slow down and I'm like, oh no, please just just get me back, let's do any time I'll be happy with. So that's my thinking on this.
Speaker 1:Anyway, I'm going to sign off now, but I'll be doing the park run this saturday morning. Hopefully I'm going to try and go for the 26 minutes fastest time this year. And then I've got this lovely Clifton 10k race in the evening on the Saturday and then on Sunday or Monday I should be able to let you know what happened, certainly in the next episode. You will know how I fared. I'll probably be pretty tired on the Sunday, so you might not hear maybe till Monday or Tuesday. But I'll certainly let you know what happens. But fingers crossed for me touch wood, fingers crossed. It should be a fastest park run on Saturday and then a good 10k on the evening on Saturday. Yeah, it should be a fun weekend, so I'll let you know how it goes on the next episode of 30 years of running marathons. Thank you.
