[LionelNashe]

OK. Going to try this again now.

A bit of background: I'm 35 years old, 6ft 5, 14 stone. Oh, and male, not a freakishly tall woman. You would think that long legs would help, but I found progress very slow when I tried jogging in the past. It took me two months to be able to do 5k without walking breaks, and the time never got much below 30 minutes.

I see a cardiologist once a year for a small electrical anomaly in my heart that's never given me any issues. I take blood pressure meds for an unrelated reason, but doctors have told me there's no reason I can't exercise. In the back of my mind though I wonder if any of this is holding me back, mentally or physically.

I have a plan to help me get started and stay motivated: I'll put it down here so that the Internet can keep me honest.

I work near the Naas Rd in Dublin 12 and I live in the city centre. I'm going to leave work in the evening and head for the Luas, and run beside the tracks. Like Superman racing alongside the train in the first Superman movie, but, ehm, incredibly slowly.

I'm only going to make it to the first or second stop, and then I'll hop on the next Luas and continue homewards. Eventually though I should be able to extend the distance. Each stop on the line will be a milestone of improvement. If I ever get to be able to jog the whole distance, it will be approximately 10k. I have set out the route here

Not in work tomorrow, so might start this on Thursday.

[catweazle]

Good luck Lionel, certainly one of the more unusual ways of monitoring running progress

Are we going to have the ipod music of choice listed as well this year?

[LionelNashe]

Originally Posted by catweazle

Good luck Lionel, certainly one of the more unusual ways of monitoring running progress

Are we going to have the ipod music of choice listed as well this year?

Ha, no. Instead I'm going to provide lists of my favourite breakfast cereals. The same list, each post.

[LionelNashe]

Day 1: 3.2km / 21 mins, from the office to the Luas stop at Bluebell.

[LionelNashe]

Day 2: Same again, 3.2km to the Bluebell Luas stop in 21 minutes.

My legs took a few days to recover after Thursday. Hopefully that was just because it was the first time out. The plan now is to do this on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and only increase the distance gradually.

[LionelNashe]

Day 3: 3.9km to the Black Horse Luas stop, 27 minutes, but with a few short walking breaks.

Had a backpack today with a pair of shoes and a light jacket in it. I'll use that as my excuse for the slower pace.

I wonder is it a coincidence that 4 of the stops on the line have colours in them - Red Cow, Bluebell, Black Horse, Golden Bridge. These 4 colours are also on an archery target. Just though I'd mention it in case you're ever in a pub quiz.

[LionelNashe]

Day 4: 3.9km to the Black Horse Luas stop, 26 minutes, no walking breaks.

Avoided starting off too fast today so no need for walking breaks.

[LionelNashe]

Day 5: 3.9km to the Black Horse Luas stop, 25 minutes; about 4 short walking breaks.

[LionelNashe]

Day 6: was last Wednesday. Took a half day from work because I was heading down to Dingle and jogged to BlackHorse Luas stop with a full backpack. Plenty of walking. I was in a very distracted state. My mind was racing from rushing to finish work early. I have been reading something in the meantime about meditation during everyday activities, and being mindful of breathing, so I will try this next time.

Day 7: was Friday morning. Jogged for 10 minutes downhill to a beach near the house in Dingle. Spent a couple of minutes looking at the waves and then tried to jog back again. The return trip was 50% walking. Uphill is very hard on the calves.

Day 8: was Saturday morning. Same as Friday, more or less. 2km downhill to the town, and then attempted to jog back, but the uphill was as much walking as jogging.

Today, Monday, my left thigh hurts when I lift my foot off the ground. This evening its less noticeable though. Will give it a rest until Wednesday.

[LionelNashe]

Day 9: 3.9km to the Black Horse Luas stop, 24 minutes, no walking breaks. Light backpack.

Didn't run last week due to various things cropping during the evenings. Tonight felt much easier though for some reason. No tightness in the calves, no overheating & breathing was ok. Just plodded along like a metronome for the whole distance.

[LionelNashe]

Day 10: 3.9km to the Black Horse Luas stop, 25 minutes, a few micro-walking breaks. I could feel it in my legs more than on Monday.

[thirstywork2]

Well done on starting up the training log again and a great idea to build up luas stops.
I think though you will need to start varying your runs soon as you might get stale.
Also try run on the grass once a week if you can.
Have you set yourself any short term and long term targets?

[LionelNashe]

Originally Posted by thirstywork2

Well done on starting up the training log again and a great idea to build up luas stops.
I think though you will need to start varying your runs soon as you might get stale.
Also try run on the grass once a week if you can.
Have you set yourself any short term and long term targets?

Thanks Thirsty, I'll think about the grass alright. My short term target and my long term target are the same; to be able to run the 10k home from work 3 or 4 days a week. If I'm able to increase the distance by 10% per week I should be doing that by the end of May. Once I can do that I'll be happy.

Cycled in and out of work today, seen as the buses were disrupted and the traffic was light. Will probably not do anything the next couple of days and then do the St. Patrick's 5k run on Sunday.

[LionelNashe]

Day 11: St Patrick's 5k run, no walking breaks, 31:25. Used a Garmin 305 to keep an eye on my pace. It was a beautiful day, like last year.

Next out on Tuesday or Wednesday evening, will add another Luas stop.

[LionelNashe]

Day 12: 4.5km to the Drimnagh Luas station, 29 minutes. A couple of micro-walking breaks because I had a slight ache in my right calf. I will try stretching properly next time.