Filed under: Pulse8, gym, running | Tags: gym, Pulse8, running, treadmill
Missed British Military Fitness yesterday as I was feeling a bit under the weather, but felt sufficiently better to go back to the gym today. Ran for 45 minutes on the treadmill, but didn’t get an accurate distance because I paused it part-way through to talk to an instructor (“oooh” she said “are you back into the swing of things?” – code for “haven’t seen you for a while”). Can’t imagine it was more than a standard 7.5km – averaging out at 10km or 6 miles per hour – but after Sunday I was just glad to be still standing at the end of it. No further tantrums either.
Treadmill gets bad press among runners, but I quite like it sometimes for the following reasons:
- It’s warm in the gym.
- And dry.
- The people-watching possibilities are almost endless. Spotted this morning: super-fit young lady running at 17.9km/hour – I thought she was going to go pinging off the back and across the gym; man on exercise bike wearing combats, cap, hoodie (with hood up) cycling with his arms folded; man singing to himself on the treadmill; man jabbering away on his mobile while half-heartedly lifting dumbells with the other hand.
- I stretch properly afterwards.
- The showers are lovely.
- I always gym it in the morning, and am way more productive at work that day.
Occasionally I forget to take my trousers, which is rather inconvenient, but all in all it’s a good start to the day. Off to spinning tomorrow…
Filed under: British Military Fitness | Tags: British Military Fitness, gym, mud
I’m feeling rather British, so I’ll start with a weather update. Although windy this morning, it was fairly fine. Though obviously one lady hadn’t demisted her windscreen sufficiently on the way to work, because she pulled out in front of me on a bend, forcing to do the best emergency stop I’ve done since passing my driving test 14 years ago. Luckily there was nobody behind me, otherwise they would have ploughed straight into the back of my pretty little Mini and made me cry.
As the day wore on, the weather got progressively worse and it started raining “stair rods” as my Dad would say. And basically didn’t stop all afternoon. Now, when I signed up for British Military Fitness classes, I had thought about the oncoming winter and worried a little bit about it being cold in December. For some reason, I hadn’t given a thought to the possibility of rain. As I pulled on my BMF jogging bottoms (£6 from Sainsbury’s – give me a seriously baggy arse, but are perfectly adequate for doing sit-ups in a field), I was wondering if I could talk them out of my three-month minimum commitment.
When I got there, everyone else looked like how I felt, and we stood shivering around Steve’s car while he took the register. But soon enough, we were jogging across to one of the football pitches where we did a bit of a warm-up before splitting into pairs. Starting on one of the goal lines, the first person would run to the other end of the pitch and back again, while the second one did sit-ups, press-ups, lunges, or whatever, then we’d swap over. By the time we got to leapfrogging over our partners then scrabbling back through their legs, I’d completely forgotten it was raining and was covered from head to foot in mud.
After a very short break, we were split into two teams and had to relay run around some flashing markers (it’s obviously pitch black by this time) while the rest of the team did burpees. My team won, and got to dish out a penalty to the other team – 10 exploding star jumps – though they got us back on the second round with seven jumping lunges. On each leg. For the third game, we had to maintain the nasty plank position during the course of the relay. I was the penultimate runner, neck and neck with a green on the other team. I sprinted off, running as fast as my little legs could carry me, reached the marker, turned slightly too sharply, slipped and hit the deck smack on my left buttock. Very cool.
One of the lovely things about the class is that everyone’s really friendly, which makes a change from the bitchiness in the changing rooms at the gym. There was a new girl doing her trial session, and although she gasped, “I didn’t think it would be this hard,” to me at one point half-way up the pitch, and I thought her back might give way when I leapfrogged over her, she appeared to enjoy it and made all the right noises about coming back again on Wednesday.
My joggers are in the washing machine along with every other item I was wearing, so I’ll be there too with bells on. Dirt is good.
Filed under: gym, healthy eating, running | Tags: gym, healthy eating, running, spinning
No really, it is. Not a drop of alcohol has passed my lips since about 2.30am on Friday morning. Pretty impressive for a weekend. Exercise-wise, after my session at the gym on Monday, I did my five-mile Twyford/Dinton run yesterday and a spinning class plus a few weights this morning. And I’m on a bit of a health kick to get my digestive system back on track after my holiday. Not to mention trying to shift a few pounds that crept on when I wasn’t looking. :-/
Filed under: 10k, Commando Challenge, gym, running, weight training | Tags: 10k, Commando Challenge, gym, running, weight training
Abstained from alcohol last night, had a healthy vegetable pasta meal and was in bed by 10pm last night.
Went to the gym this morning and ran 10k/6 miles in 60 mins. I rarely run at any other speed – and I’m good at pacing other people, as long as they run 10-minute miles! At some point, I’ll do some proper work to increase my speed over shorter distances.
Right now, I need to build up my strength, particularly in my upper body in preparation for Commando Challenge. So I did about 25 minutes of weights in the circuit training area. I did two sets of 12 then 8 reps, increasing the weight for the second set. Each machine has 12 weight settings,and I’ve noted below for my own records what I did on each machine. I’ll be trying to increase the weight level in the run up to the Challenge.
| Sets | Reps | Weight | |
| Tricep press | 2 | 12-8 | 5-6 |
| Ab crunch | 2 | 12-8 | 5-6 |
| Biceps curl | 2 | 12-8 | 5-6 |
| Seated row | 2 | 12-8 | 5-6 |
| Seated leg curl | 2 | 12-8 | 6-7 |
| Lat pulldown | 2 | 12-8 | 5-6 |
| Shoulder press | 2 | 12-8 | 5-6 |
| Squat | 2 | 12-8 | 5-6 |
| Chest press | 2 | 12-8 | 5-6 |
| Leg extension | 2 | 12-8 | 6-7 |
Just thinking about doing some work that needs completing by Monday 
But getting distracted by the Paralympics. Top marks to the BBC for screening three hours of coverage at peak-time on a Saturday even after the football season has started. Terrific to see the GB team remain in second place, having already secured as many Golds as we did in Athens (35).
Filed under: Commando Challenge, Nottingham Half Marathon, Pulse8, bottoms, gym, running | Tags: Commando Challenge, gym, healthy eating, running
My positive thinking at the beginning of the week resulted in a 5-mile/50min run on Tuesday morning, my first day back at work for two and a half weeks. And – erm – that’s it.
On Tuesday I got home a smidgen before midnight after client drinks in Londonium and went to bed without having any dinner.
Wednesday afternoon I was back on the train for a client meeting in Waterloo, followed by birthday drinks with a very old (as in long-standing, rather than ancient) friend. I was fairly restrained and left at 9.15, but it still tool me over two hours to get home again.
Thursday saw me in Newbury first thing, then back onto First Crap Western for another client event in the Capital, from which I was unable to escape until 2.30am this morning.
I’m not a very nice person without at least seven hours’ sleep per night, so I’m suffering. There’s also half a stone of Italian cheese nestling around my bottom that needs shifting, and of course I haven’t eaten properly all week.
So the Nottingham Half is an impossible quest, and I’m pulling out of an event for the first time without a proper illness/injury excuse. I’ve still got a press release to sort out before I leave the office tonight, then it’s home for a nice wholesome home-cooked meal featuring lots of vegetables before bath and bed, then to the gym in the morning. I shall repeat that process twice before I return to work on Monday.
There’s no way I’m going to be allowed to duck out of Commando Challenge on 12 October. The t-shirts are being designed, our sponsorship page goes live next week and certain members of the team are inordinately excited about our adventure in the West Country. Onwards and forwards…
Filed under: 10k, Bupa Great Capital Run, Nike Human Race, Nottingham Half Marathon, gym, half marathon training, running | Tags: 10k, gym, Nike Human Race, Nottingham Half Marathon, running
A belated race report, as I went on holiday about four hours after completing the race last Sunday.
The good bits:
- Well organised, well publicised event by Nike. They might not make great running shoes, but they sure as hell know how to run and market an event.
- Great start inside Wembley Stadium after set by Moby, swift baggage drop-off and pick-up and plenty of loos.
- Not one, but two, lovely freebie dri-fit tops – a short-sleeved red one that we all ran in, and a long-sleeved white one to keep warm in after the event. Well worth the £30 entry fee. And they’re actually fitted for girls – wooo-hooo. Watch and learn all you other race organisers. Us ladies do not want another massive, square-fit cotton number that would work better as a (deeply unsexy) nightshirt.
The not-so-good bits
- Running with a dodgy tummy after tapas the night before. I blame that for the lame time – 1.00.14 (according to my text from Nike just minutes after I crossed the line).
- Moby’s warm-up act, Pendulum. Atrocious.
- The late start. I’m not a fan of evening running, though that’s just my personal choice. But there was also a very long wait – in the region of two and a half hours – between arriving at the stadium and starting the race.
- The rather uninspiring route around Wembley on a slightly chilly, very wet and dark evening.
That all sounds a bit negative, but I would definitely do the race again. I’d hope for less waiting around next time, nicer weather and – erm – a rather more solid feeling in my tummy.
Been on hols for a week, and put in a couple of runs – around the four and six-mile mark. It was a bit warm, and I don’t feel even vaguely ready for the Nottingham half marathon in six days’ time. That’s crept up on me, I can tell you. Despite my resolve as I travelled home earlier today to eat properly and run every day this week, I’m going to struggle with three events in London over the next three evenings. It’s going to take self-discipline that I’m not sure I have to resist the lure of naughty food and wine so I can still make my dates with the gym…
Filed under: 10k, Nike Human Race, Pulse8, gym, running | Tags: 10k, gym, Nike Human Race, Pulse8, running
Congratulations to the GB team for bringing home 19 gold medals out of a total of 47. What a fantastic boost to the 2012 team, and a thorough “up yours” to all of the people moaning about how much money the Games will cost us. Isn’t it all worth it? I’m not a big sport spectator, but I’ve really enjoyed watching the achievements of the GB team alongside the other faces of 2008 – notably Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps. Let’s hope our disabled athletes share similar success as they complete their final preparations before the Paralympics start on 6 September. I hope the BBC gives them the coverage they too deserve.
My own training has muddled along during the course of August – though it’s been hard to get in my three/four weekday sessions over the last couple of weeks because of work commitments (on holiday now for two weeks, whoop whoop!)
But I haven’t done toooo badly. Here’s the rundown:
- Sunday, 3 August – Run around Hampstead Heath (45 mins/4.4 miles)
- Tuesday, 5 August – Circuit training + treadmill run (10 mins/1.82km)
- Wednesday, 6 August – Spinning (on X-bikes with virtual reality screen. Liable to cause motion sickness)
- Thursday, 7 August – Treadmill run (45 mins/7.77km)
- Sunday, 10 August – Bike ride with Dad and chums (32 miles)
- Tuesday, 12 August – Circuit training + treadmill run (15 mins/2.82km)
- Wednesday, 13 August – Spinning
- Saturday, 16 August – Run around Twyford/Dinton Pastures (60 mins/5.57 miles)
- Tuesday, 19 August – Circuit training + treadmill run (15 mins/2.63km)
- Thursday, 21 August – Treadmill run (35 mins/6.23km)
Also managed to get in a couple of good walks in the Brecon Beacons this weekend. I could feel my glutes starting to gripe a bit by the end of day two anyway.
Five days until the next event: the Nike Human Race, a 10k starting at Wembley Stadium. Unusually it’s an evening run, with music from Moby and others before we set off. This is what I’ll be wearing…alongside thousands of other runners.
Lemming top
I won’t be going for gold of course. Happy just to jog along with the crowds. First though, I’m off to Runners World in Rayners Lane to get a pair of shoes that fit. My feet hate me at the moment, as I keep forcing them into a pair of Asics that have never been quite right.
Just flicked on the telly-box to watch the news, only to find Trinny and Susannah convincing some nice ladies to wobble their bottoms around on national TV. What possesses people to go on these shows and allow the nation to view their cellulite? I have enough trouble stripping off in the gym changing rooms, but then again there are plenty of girls standing around stark bollock naked and slowly rubbing moisturising lotion into bits I really don’t need to see.
On the flip side, T&S have the same effect on me as that other terrifying TV presenter twosome – Kim and Aggy. I suddenly realise that my bum isn’t nearly as big or dimply as those on display, and my flat isn’t as dirty. I think I’ll just have another bit of chocolate and watch the dust accumulating. It’s better than the telly-box.
Filed under: gym, music to run to, podwogging, running | Tags: gym, music to run to, podwogging, running
I’ve discovered podwogging, defined by a man named Jim Webster as:
The act of walking and/or jogging in time to music played on a portable MP3 player
This was an accidental discovery. Some time ago, I found myself bouncing along happily to a track I wouldn’t normally listen to for pleasure: Eminem’s Lose Yourself. I was running in total harmony with the beat, and found myself upping my normal pace a notch to keep time. Somewhat shamefully, I will also admit publicly to a penchant for Kenny Loggins’ Footloose when on the treadmill. I did a bit of Googling to find out the rhythm (measured in beats per minute or BPM) of these tracks and – you guessed it – found they are very similar: Eminem comes in at 171 BPM and Kenny racks up 174. Hmm, I thought, there must be something in this.
Others have done far more scientific research than me. This chart could prove to be useful to work out your ideal BPM for running comfortably and pushing yourself a bit harder. According to that chart, I need to find some tracks around the 160 BPM mark to maintain a consistent nine-minute mile pace, adding in a few 170 BPM tracks to help me speed up.
JamGlue is handy for finding out the BPM for popular music. There are downloadable tools available for scanning tracks yourself of course, but I haven’t managed to find one that works with iTunes on Windows. Maybe I’ll have to get a Mac after all…
It’s worth pointing out that there are other tracks that I absolutely adore running to, that don’t fit the Jogwogging theory. Last week, running the third race in the Finch Coasters Woodland 5 Series, I hit the bottom of a hill (which was actually more like a ladder made of tree roots, it was so steep) when the Faithless track Insomnia filled my eardrums. I more or less bounded up the hill, dead in time with the beat of the music. That track measures 127 on the BPM scale – but it was just perfect for that hill at that particular moment in time. I’ve also discovered that it is also a particularly good tune for zoning out on the treadmill, to the point where I’m almost completely unaware of what’s going on in the gym around me.
So it’s good not to get too obsessed with the BPM thing then.
An hour’s worth of exercise, five days a week. Which makes my 45 minutes of circuits at the gym this morning a bit of a waste of time on the weight-loss front. Bugger.
