When you get around to reading Candide in English you will then understand what I mean when I say: "to do a half marathon by September would require you to have an incredibly Panglossian view of the world. " Posted by GELDY
Thanks very much for all the kind words and well done messages.
I haven't been able to reply due to being up in Scotland, which by the way was an awesome holiday.
I had to come back a few days earlier than scheduled due to circumstances out of my control (sigh) but I got to spend 4 full days there enjoyed every minute of it.
I loved the people, the scenery, the chilled out vibe in the sleepy little town I was staying in, basically everything was perfect for 4 days.
Apart from it being full of Rangers fans.
I enjoyed it so much I've come home and immediately started looking at places to rent in the area.
Anyone fancy sharing a grind cottage? hehe.
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I've arranged to go through to the Sanctuary on Wednesday of next week to hand over the offline donation I received from TK, and the money I 'won' on DTD night.
So i'll leave the page up until then.
So far we have raised £560.68 + £91.75 gift aid...
A total of £652.43.
Absolutely amazing result.
If I'd been offered half of that as my total before I started I'd have snap called.
Thank you so much to my most recent donator, Larson7 aka Henrik for nudging it up a little further.
Much appreciated mah mannnnnnnnnnnn
Thank you so much to everyone who has helped me out, both with donations but arguably more importantly with encouragement and support over the last 18 months. xxxxxxxx
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Time to be honest now, and look at my new years goals that haven't gone so well.
2 stand out.
Reading
and Poker.
I haven't put anywhere near enough effort in to either.
I got 3/4 of the way through my first book within a month, but I gave up on it.
That's really poor I know.
I wonder if I'm going down the wrong line by insisting on chosing fiction rather than giving non fiction stuff a try.
Does anyone have any reccomendations for like inspirational books?
Maybe books that make you think about life a little differently, thought provoking books? Books that make the mind really buzz and appreciate what everything is all about?
I fancy giving something like that a go.
You never know it might help me with my poker.....
Which I'm going to have yet another crack at (starting yesterday).
Poker has been my only source of income for like 8 years.
Which explains why I'm skint
It is still, even now, a significant part of my income.
Poker is what you make it, isn't it. And on the theme of being honest and real, I've failed big time repetatively to invest the time and effort to make it anything more than a pleasant side income.
Luckily my cost of living and lifestyle (what lifestyle, right?) has allowed me to get away with it, and also to save up alot of money so that I'm in a very healthy financial situation heading into the next chapter of my life, the "new start" phase.
But I have some time now to really really commit and bolster that position before going out into the big wide world on my own, for the first time in 6/7 years I have dreams and ambitions and the motivation to get up and out and live a life.
I'm hoping that all spurs me on to finally cracking this mind f****k of a card game.
It's definitely not a long term thing, but it's what I have for now. Along with a few other lines of income it's a great spot for me to really dedicate my life to the game for a short period, as I've dedicated my life to running over the last 9 months.
I shall not make any specific book recommendations after my last epic fail
Generally I enjoy (auto)biographies - pick someone you know/like/admire/are intrigued by/would like to know more about their journey.
Can double up with your stated aim if you looking for an inspriational/motivational story too.
Always check the reviews to see if it is well written though. I can't bring myself to finish reading Freddie Flintoffs book even though the guy is a ledge and I am featured in it.
Oh now I am fished in, one recommendation with a poker theme would be Victoria Coren, for richer for poorer. I suspect you are too young to be of the Late Night Poker generation but even so, it's a fantastically well written account from a young girl wanting to be cool and join in her brothers poker games to LNP to her first EPT win and beyond.
Mr Channing features quite alot, and as much as I enjoyed the background into the famous LNP names, Hendon mob etc, she paints some colourful pctures of the incredible characters from the casinos such as "Riverboat Ray".
So September on the poker table was a weshout. Predictably.
I mentioned I had to return from Scotland early due to personal circumstances, well I loved the trip so much I decided to go back up for a week just a few days after returning home.
So that really killed all grind momentum.
Well it didn't because I didn't have any going but i'll go with that.
What little poker I did play at least ended well, being up about 90 quid overall.
Minus £35 for my first (and maybe last) proper live casino poker tournament.
God it's boring isnt it?
I guess it is what you make it, but I just didn't enjoy it at all.
I also felt like a massive fish despite being surrounded by whales. That was abit weird.
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So the above is a load of cr @p so why am i posting.
Well yesterday i made another spur of the moment decision to enter another half marathon on the 30th October.
I then followed this decision up by downing 8 pints and eating £13 worth of chinese takeaway to myself.
So I need to get some focus back over the next 3/4 weeks to make sure I'm in shape to take on the run again.
This diary and the support of the readers in it has always helped me with that.
So as of midday today, 100% focus and discipline shall return (i would say 'starting now' but I'm finishing a sausage and egg butty).
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Poker is a thing this month too.
5 days in, and i've had a pretty incredible start.
Never had a run good period like it.
So I hope to maintain that and report some proper numbers at the end of October for once.
:-O for the 8 pints and chinese Hope other than that there has been some coninuance of the fitness regime since the first half marathon? Posted by Phantom66
Morning Phantz!
Well, kinda.
The 3/4 days between Scotland trips I was going abit nuts, running twice, sometimes 3 times a day, and swimming too.
Then during the second week up in Scotland I went for a leisurely swim and did one very relaxed run, but also ate alot of rubbish.
Since returning home this time last week I've done one 5k run where I unofficially took 24 seconds off my PB, and finally got myself through to Halfords and bought a bike which I've used properly once for a 20 mile ride.
My weight since returning from Scotland has fluctuated between 14st 6 and 15st 4 (the morning after the chinese/beer night before)
I'd hope that after a week of training (starting as soon as I click 'submit' here) i'll be back somehwhere around the level of fitness I hit pre the last race.
The circumstances surrounding the last run were all about mental, I'm hoping to enjoy this one alot more as the pressure will be off
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I was wondering, will things like interval training/incline training/sprint sets etc be just as effective for training for long distance races as say for example a 10 mile run would be?
Of course I need to get the mileage in my legs again, but I'd like to mix it up abit.
Welcome back JJ. You are a grown up, relatively thick-skinned, & seem to welcome constructive comments, so...... 8 pints of what? Not beer, one hopes. I feel a bit avuncular, or like an interfering parent, but, well, you know..... Posted by Tikay10
What a great word
Yes, it was beer.
Well Lager.
Carling.
Extra Cold
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I'm hearing ya.
If I'm honest, it was a rough September. It had some good times but lots of low ones.
Yesterday I'd arranged in advance to go out for a game of snooker/darts, and felt like I knew I was going to go ott.
That's part of the reason I booked the half marathon yesterday morning. To make sure I got the focus back afterwards.
I've also got a 'night race' 10k lined up on the 18th November back up in lovely Scotland which I'm really looking forward to.
I don't think there's a problem, I wont be having another alcoholic beverage until 19th November at the earliest.
If I have one between now and then, maybe there is.
Maybe my next challenge in here is to try and dispell the myth that there's no such thing as a recovered alcoholic .
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This mornings run was bl 00 dy hard work.
Trying to pace my 5ks more evenly, previously the 2nd half had been much much quicker than the first.
The last 2 times I've gone 7.1 mph for mile one, 7.2mph for mile 2, and 7.3mph for mile 3.
Which I'd guess is somehwere near perfect?
However it's very very tough a long way out.
And I don't seem to have the legs to get below 25 mins.
It'll be a great feeling if and when I eventually do.
"I don't think there's a problem, I wont be having another alcoholic beverage until 19th November at the earliest.
If I have one between now and then, maybe there is."
I am snookering/darting tomorrow night! DOH.
8 pints max I promise!
I know it's very close to the half marathon (30th October) to be taking 2 days off training, but having done a relatively quick 10 mile run a few days ago and felt good about it, I'm taking a chance as I think I can just about get away with it.
No chinese this time though, and from Monday 17th the grind really begins.
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On to the positives, I visited my doctor yesterday for the first checkup in a few months.
I asked if I could come off the depression pills. I don't think they've had any positive impact on my fatigue issue at all, but they may have helped in other areas to improve my motivation and general life.
One of the side effects of the pills ironically is tiredness.
So there's a chance that they may even be masking any improvement that I might have seen due to the big exercise and diet changes I've made. I've been on them all year, throughout the weightloss etc.
I'm excited to get off them and see how I feel, I'll be going from 40mg pills as of yesterday to done within 1 month.
Fingers Crossed.
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I mentioned briefly above the Worksop half marathon on the 30thOctober*******.
After that I've booked 5 nights back up in the Scottish borders to relax and have a mini blow out.
I'm back home for 10 days after that before returning again on the weekend of the 19th to stay with Donald and his girlfriend Mel, who will be running the Glentress 10k night run with me.
Having trained a little with her last time I was up, I know a 10k will be a massive challenge for Mel but she's already into her training and determined to get over the finish line.
She's trying to raise a little dosh for under-privalidged kids in her area in the process, if you'd like to take a look the information is here:
I'm massively looking forward to that run, it's set in the beautiful scottish countryside and ran at night, I expect it to be an awesome experience. I'll be running within myself alongside mel for the run, trying to encourage her and keep her going until the end. Hopefully she can make it!
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Poker continues to go well.
Bit of a blip the last few days.
I donated blood for the first time ever on Thursday and it knocked me back abit, felt pretty lethargic and more tired than usual.
I probably shouldn't have played but positive tilt got the better of me.
Good on you for making your first ever blood donation. It leaves you low on iron for a few days, so a bit of fatigue is normal. Excercise can be a bit harder than usual too. You'll soon get back to normal, but donations are best avoided in the run-up to a race. Good luck with dropping the pills, I hope that works out well.
I'm delighted to see you've kept up the running and signed-up for another half marathon already. Now you've got a good base of training to build on and some experience over the distance I won't be at all surprised if you take a big chunk off your PB on the 30th.
Your current Parkrun 5K PB of 25-57 suggests you have the ability to run a sub 2 hour half marathon (Google 'race time predictor'). Maybe consider a sub 2 hour half, or something similar, as a long-term goal to work towards. I've got absolutely no doubt you can do it if you keep up the training.
Incorporating speedwork into your training will definitely help improve your times over longer distances. Start with gentle fartlek at first. You'll find tons of free advice online, google 'speedwork for beginners'. Each week my 5 runs are made up of 2 at a steady relaxed pace, an easy pace long-run, a threshold run, and a speedwork session. I vary the speedwork each week, it could be short sharp sprints on the flat, longer intervals, hill sprints, or fartlek.
I'm still improving at 50yo, 2.5 years after I returned to running. I've just run back-to-back half marathon PBs at Bridgwater and Cardiff without targetting either race in training or tapering properly. I'm running in the Great West Run this Sunday, it's another half marathon, but I'm not expecting yet another PB because it's a hillier course.
I'm super-excited about taking on the full marathon distance in New York, which is only 3 weeks away now. It has been my main focus all year. I'm going into it with one goal only; to enjoy the occasion. No time goals at all. Though I do want to run all 26.2 miles if possible, no walking breaks. I've already entered the Greater Manchester Marathon in April 2017 (no luck in the London ballot). I'll allow myself to go after a time in that one.
great read Dohhh. The last time i had a good read of your diary it was all drink and takeaways. It just shows what people are capable off when they piut their minds to it.
Its also inspired me have a go at running which i,m gonna start today on a treadmill at the gym.
As for the tablets. I was on those myself for a good while, but never thought they did any good , but everyones different.
There was an excellent series on the BBC recently called "the doctor who gave up drugs" (it will be available on iplayer). It shows the benfits of excersise over various prescription meds which are mainly peddled out by the big drug companies who are making billions of them.
Good on you for making your first ever blood donation. It leaves you low on iron for a few days, so a bit of fatigue is normal. Excercise can be a bit harder than usual too. You'll soon get back to normal, but donations are best avoided in the run-up to a race. Good luck with dropping the pills, I hope that works out well. I'm delighted to see you've kept up the running and signed-up for another half marathon already. Now you've got a good base of training to build on and some experience over the distance I won't be at all surprised if you take a big chunk off your PB on the 30th. Your current Parkrun 5K PB of 25-57 suggests you have the ability to run a sub 2 hour half marathon (Google 'race time predictor'). Maybe consider a sub 2 hour half, or something similar, as a long-term goal to work towards. I've got absolutely no doubt you can do it if you keep up the training. Incorporating speedwork into your training will definitely help improve your times over longer distances. Start with gentle fartlek at first. You'll find tons of free advice online, google 'speedwork for beginners'. Each week my 5 runs are made up of 2 at a steady relaxed pace, an easy pace long-run, a threshold run, and a speedwork session. I vary the speedwork each week, it could be short sharp sprints on the flat, longer intervals, hill sprints, or fartlek. I'm still improving at 50yo, 2.5 years after I returned to running. I've just run back-to-back half marathon PBs at Bridgwater and Cardiff without targetting either race in training or tapering properly. I'm running in the Great West Run this Sunday, it's another half marathon, but I'm not expecting yet another PB because it's a hillier course. I'm super-excited about taking on the full marathon distance in New York, which is only 3 weeks away now. It has been my main focus all year. I'm going into it with one goal only; to enjoy the occasion. No time goals at all. Though I do want to run all 26.2 miles if possible, no walking breaks. I've already entered the Greater Manchester Marathon in April 2017 (no luck in the London ballot). I'll allow myself to go after a time in that one. Posted by GaryQQQ
Thanks as always for the advice Gary, I really appreciate the time you put in to write these and help me out.
Yes all the information is out there, but there's so much of it that it's often confusing as to what stuff to follow. So as you know a fair bit about my bacckground in running I always value your advice as it feels somehwhat specific to myself.
So thank you, and best of luck with all the upcoming challenges. It's awesome that you're still improving at the age of 50, It means I have 20 years of improvement ahead of me at least if I stick at it.
Maybe 1 day I will win a park run!!!!
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Talking of which....
After a 6 week haiatus, I made my comeback over the 5k distance.
It was the first time I'd ran in the same 'race' as my brother (26), who has done abit of runninng in the past.
He's much more naturally fit than I am, but he told me he's only just recently started back training for a 10k and his current PB before today was only a minute or so faster than mine, so I fancied my chances of giving him a race.
I was actually really nervous, the old man brought the pup down to watch.
I decided to start behind him, and at first I was really worried becasue he went off like a tracer bullet. There's no way I could go with him and stand any chance of completing the run nevermind beating him, so I had to hold back and rely on him slowing down.
After the first lap I was 35 seconds behind him according to the official time keeper (my dad).
After the 2nd lap, I had got the gap down to 12 seconds.
By the end of the third and final lap, I lost out by 7 seconds.
I got really close to him at one point but he had enough to kick away from me.
On the plus side, I took over a whole minute off my 5k PB, which I am really really pleased with.
It's been pointed out a few times to me that when people tell me I've helped or inspired them to try and imrpove in whatever way, it's really quite a huge compliment.
So I'm really pleased to hear you're giving the old treadmill a go.
Try and get out there running in the woods or countryside too, it's alot more fun and doesn't feel like as much of a slog as the treader does.
Best of luck pal.
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Darts tonight.
Last time we went I won a final leg decider, in a race to 10 I beat my Dad 10-9, with my bro lagging behind on 4.
Hoping to retain my title to make up for the crushing defeat on the running track this morning.
Jeez, another massive improvement, a whole minute off a 5K PB is huge. Sounds like it was a great race, you'll take him down another day. Use that as a motivator in training. Image surging past your brother when you do training runs with a fast finish. You have years of improvement and some very good times in your future if you want it.
Running is often described as addictive. Quite rightly in my opinion. I've definitely got an addictive personality type and I don't mind admitting it. But let's face it, if you're going to get addicted to something running is probably one of the best options out there.
There are similarities to poker too. The addictive element already mentioned. You need a competitive streak. Natural ability is a plus, but it can only take you so far, you have to be prepared to put in the work too. The harder you work on your poker/running the better your long-term results.
Darts tonight. Last time we went I won a final leg decider, in a race to 10 I beat my Dad 10-9, with my bro lagging behind on 4. Hoping to retain my title to make up for the crushing defeat on the running track this morning. Have a great Satdi xxxxxx Posted by DOHHHHHHH
In Response to Re: "Sit & DOHHHHHHH Diary" : http://imgur.com/a/ywB93 I believe the term is SHIP IT. vamos. --- Failed on the chiense avoidance mission though. I just couldn't resist it's too nice. Going to aim to burn off 6,000 calories this week on the app to balance it. --- Gary (and anyone else) what's your park run PB? Posted by DOHHHHHHH
I've never participated in a parkrun, I can't, I work until midday every Saturday.
My fastest recent 5K according to Strava is 22-45, which was recorded during a half-marathon. After recovering from the full marathon, which is now only 19 days away, I might run a flat-out 5K just to see what I can do. I reckon I could take a minute or more off the 22-45.
In my 20s I ran a 10k in 36-17. Parkrun didn't exist in those days and 5K races were almost never held, but I must have been in sub-18 minute shape.
Comments
Sometimes I love to be proved wrong.
Thanks.
Thanks very much for all the kind words and well done messages.
Alfies Angels, Run For Your Life Series 2, BBC Wales
I'd hope that after a week of training (starting as soon as I click 'submit' here) i'll be back somehwhere around the level of fitness I hit pre the last race.
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Welcome back JJ.
You are a grown up, relatively thick-skinned, & seem to welcome constructive comments, so......
8 pints of what? Not beer, one hopes.
I feel a bit avuncular, or like an interfering parent, but, well, you know.....
Yes, it was beer.
Carling.
Extra Cold
I am snookering/darting tomorrow night! DOH.
I'm delighted to see you've kept up the running and signed-up for another half marathon already. Now you've got a good base of training to build on and some experience over the distance I won't be at all surprised if you take a big chunk off your PB on the 30th.
Incorporating speedwork into your training will definitely help improve your times over longer distances. Start with gentle fartlek at first. You'll find tons of free advice online, google 'speedwork for beginners'. Each week my 5 runs are made up of 2 at a steady relaxed pace, an easy pace long-run, a threshold run, and a speedwork session. I vary the speedwork each week, it could be short sharp sprints on the flat, longer intervals, hill sprints, or fartlek.
I'm super-excited about taking on the full marathon distance in New York, which is only 3 weeks away now. It has been my main focus all year. I'm going into it with one goal only; to enjoy the occasion. No time goals at all. Though I do want to run all 26.2 miles if possible, no walking breaks. I've already entered the Greater Manchester Marathon in April 2017 (no luck in the London ballot). I'll allow myself to go after a time in that one.
Its also inspired me have a go at running which i,m gonna start today on a treadmill at the gym.
As for the tablets. I was on those myself for a good while, but never thought they did any good , but everyones different.
There was an excellent series on the BBC recently called "the doctor who gave up drugs" (it will be available on iplayer). It shows the benfits of excersise over various prescription meds which are mainly peddled out by the big drug companies who are making billions of them.
Look forward to following your progreess
MP
After the 2nd lap, I had got the gap down to 12 seconds.
By the end of the third and final lap, I lost out by 7 seconds.
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Have a great Satdi xxxxxx
vamos.
My fastest recent 5K according to Strava is 22-45, which was recorded during a half-marathon. After recovering from the full marathon, which is now only 19 days away, I might run a flat-out 5K just to see what I can do. I reckon I could take a minute or more off the 22-45.
In my 20s I ran a 10k in 36-17. Parkrun didn't exist in those days and 5K races were almost never held, but I must have been in sub-18 minute shape.