Plodding On

​After a cracking two runs this week I thought it was high time that I actually get this Blog posted.  It has been in an unfinished state and in constant flux for a few months now in which time I have continued to just plod on running, building my base now to around 3 runs and 15 miles each week.  Since my last post in May I have managed to rack up 310 miles running and 103 miles out and about walking.

The main delay in posting this time around was due to the wait for the London Marathon 2016 ballot results to come out.  I entered it on some kind of whim earlier in the year to hopefully provide me with some direction concerning my next running goal.

Luckily, I was unsuccessful in the ballot, I say luckily because as the weeks came and went, the dread of undertaking months of marathon training and actually running 26.2 miles started to dawn on me.  Nevertheless, it has been a successful process as it has helped me to decide on the future direction of my running in that I will be sticking with distances of 13.1 miles and less that I know I can reasonably achieve and enjoy without the need to massively alter my running schedule.

I still need a goal, something to aim for to help keep me motivated and for the time being that will be my continued weight loss down to my target weight/shape.  I say shape because I'm reasonably happy as to how my weight loss is progressing coupled with a sustained effort of watching my intake but, now I would also like to loose the last of my spare tires.  This is currently being helped by some cross training routines with a Kettle Bell although this has slipped a little in the last couple of weeks.

I’d also like to continue improving my overall fitness and to that end I'm currently considering investing in a Heart Rate Monitor (HRM) of some kind that should help me determine what zone I'm in and/or need to be in depending on what I am trying to achieve in a particular session.

Heart Rate Zones

When I decide on my training plan, probably in the lead up to a Half Marathon next year, I will ensure that it includes a degree of interval training as plodding runs can get a little boring, especially as I seem to be exhausting all available running routes in the vicinity.  Music on tap using Spotify helps as does the local running club although as winter approaches, the club is less appealing as they are confined to the dark streets of Yeovil and I don’t really want to pick up a repeat ankle injury as I did around this time last year.

Bakewell, Peak District, Aug 10

This post also broadly marks the 5 year anniversary since I decided to and actually started running back in August 2010.  I'm certainly fitter and leaner than I was then but there's still more to do as I’d still like to reach my target of comfortably fitting into 34” size trousers; a feat that I have never been able to achieve in my adult years.

Martinstown, Nr Dorchester, May 15

In terms of the future of this Blog, I'd like to continue its development to include insights from my other interests such as walking and photography which I see are complimentary activities to running; all relaxing and enjoyable in different ways. 

Fleet Lagoon, Chesil Beach, Oct 15

In terms of running gear changes since May, I have changed my shoes; moving from the ASICS GT 2000 2 to the Brooks Adrenaline GTS 2013 variant although the jury is still out as to whether the latter are any better.  I still haven't got the fit quite right and at the moment after about 60 miles or so I'm leaning towards a return to ASICS for my next pair although I hope to get at least a few hundred more miles out of these Brooks.  I am currently trying out the Runkeeper app on my runs as opposed to Endomondo as the former seems to provide for free a lot more motivational information, functionality and better end of run summaries.

I'm hoping with the next post, that I would have decided on a HRM and will be in a position to provide some comments based on my experience with it.  I'm also hoping that what ever gadget I buy to fulfil this HRM functionality will also help provide me with some more direction on what I should be focusing on in each run to help me improve my overall performance and personal bests in future races.