nav[aria-label="Primary Navigation"] { padding: 0; & ul { list-style: none; width: 100%; display: flex; flex-direction: row; justify-content: start; align-items: start; gap: 30px; padding: 0; & li { margin: 0; } & ul li { list-style: none; } } }

Child Item

Pushing my boundaries and making my physio rich...

tHE vAGGABOND

So this is dangerous, as I'm doing this without reading anyone else's log so I could be doing it totally wrong! I will edit if needs be.

Background: 4 months ago I was over 20 stone and hardly able to walk up the stairs to my apartment. I got motivated and starting loosing weight via a radical change in my diet and also starting to go to gym. Im now 4 stone lighter, and things are going really well. My discovery of running has been a huge part of that success.

My weight loss was done with a brilliant weight loss club in town - <Snip> URL removed at mod request</Snip>

As part of going to gym I starting building my fitness slowly but surely. I started on cross trainer for 10 minutes and running for a couple of minutes, and basically using the 10% principal I built it up more and more each week.

When I was on holidays in west cork during summer, after I had started loosing weight I went for a run on the roads, in the middle of nowhere and found that I could do it, and that I loved it. I also found that people did not stop and look at this big lump running. Which was a big thing for me, psychologically.

So I started running around the block, just a single k or so to begin, and again I loved it. During the summer a mate was running the Adidas 10 mile thing in the park, I went up for a look. By a myracle I saw him, and started running with him, rain jacket, tracksuit, back pack and all. I ran the last 6k with him, which was the furthest I had ran at that point. While I was sweatting and wrecked, I knew I had more. That was a big step for me, as I knew I could do it, and I also saw with my own two eyes that the people in these races are regular folks of all shapes and sizes, not just stick insect size zero type people

Yesterday I ran my first ever road race, the rathfarnham 5k. I did that as I have grown up around there and i have seen it run in the past and always thought to myself I could never do that. I did it in 26.11 [official time was 26.17, but I was right at the back, so it took me 5 or 6 seconds to get over the start line. That was beyond my wildest dreams, as in my training runs I had not broken into the 28's yet, let alone the 26's

[that being said, I was utterly ruined at the end, I really gave it every single thing I had, but I guess that is what your meant to do in races!]. But I have never been so proud of myself to be honest, I had a big dirty grin on my face all day, indeed into today.

So as I begin to kick on to longer distances and doing more challenging runs I thought why not start one of these..

Next on the list for me:

Simon 5 Mile in Phoenix Park - Raised over €200, which while not going to win any awards is not a bad return for asking a few people once. I dont want to beg for money in these times when many people have it tough.

I]going away for 10 days in late October, in what will be quite a boozy/unhealthy affair, so leaving November free, to get back into shape

[/I

Aware 10k - December in the Park

Will most likely enter the jingle bells 5k - but only heard about it in flyer after race yesterday.

Need to find other 10k type races around the place into the new year. As if I dont have these things to aim for I could get lazy. These forums are solid gold for that, as thats how I heard about the rathfarnham one! So no worries there tbh.

Short term targets:
Im doing just over 20k a week now, so I want to move that up to 30k a week, and I think I could leave it around there for the winter tbh.

Need to find some more interesting runs! I live right in the middle of town, and at the weekend I run in Phoenix Park, but during the week I run up to the canal, and around it. Going to read around here and see if anyone else has any better ideas

Long term:
Clearly thinking about the longer distances, even the big M maybe. But need to loose a bit more weight first. Im in no rush at all. So Im sort of thinking of maybe the Dublin marathon in 12 months might be a fair goal..

I lived in London for 5 years and always went out to watch it, as it went quite close to where I lived at one stage. So I would LOVE to do the one over there, but maybe that could be my second one

Find more posts tagged with

Quick Links

Comments

career_move

tHE vAGGABOND wrote: »

From where I sit now, this [paelo] style of eating makes sense to me - not to say that in a couple of weeks I will agree with that anymore, hence looking into it for myself - not just reading one book and taking that at face value..

Ok.....just remember though cavemen are so last ice age

images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTptfyCxkytSnHVVNX1SzwS10z9a0Z_EnGQgiRl5LaVUkpsJWiTcQ

RayCun

tHE vAGGABOND wrote: »

Test for me will be getting planned/organised for work lunches!!

Work days are usually better for me than the weekends, because I can plan what I'll be eating. I bring a bag of apples, bananas, oatcakes, and soup in with me to work and that's my diet. This week I'll be bringing a load of cheese and ham in with me too. It's like having your gear ready before your run - getting organised is a bit of hassle, but its so much easier to follow through on a good decision already made.

tHE vAGGABOND

We have not been eating grains and carbs in anything like the processed nature and volumes and quantities we do now for 30,000 years. The fact folks cant excape from, is that the western world is getting fatter and less healthy. There are many reasons for that, eating processed crap [cos its generally cheap] is one of them IN MY OPINION!

Anyway, Im pretty up on these things having read many books on all kinds of food/nutrition on my weight loss adventure and afterwards as I just got interested in it - and therefore try different plans, programs for myself sometimes, generally for a month or so, to form my own opinion and to just make things interesting having to make new types of food or do without stuff and having to work around and thus educate myself [eg: on one of these things I discovered Quinoa, for example, never even having heard the name/word before, and I have that at least once a week now].

From where I sit now, this [paelo] style of eating makes sense to me - not to say that in a couple of weeks I will agree with that anymore, hence looking into it for myself - not just reading one book and taking that at face value..

career_move

tHE vAGGABOND wrote: »

My weakness foo wise was always bread and carbs! From a tiny age. My diet is not too bad these days, but still has too much rubbish (mainly in and around work) but the paelo concept makes a lot of sense to me.

So im going to give it a lash for a month and we will see from there! Test for me will be getting planned/organised for work lunches!!

Does it though? Does it really? Are you sure you're not just being brainwashed by the media. I mean, I'm reliably informed that people have been eating bread for around 30,000 and it doesn't make nutritional sense to exclude dairy products from your diet

tHE vAGGABOND

Mr Slow wrote: »

I can't imagine you'd see much in the way of results in one month, open to correction though!

Challenge for me here will be if I can do it and stick to it more so than "feel a better in only 14 days or your money back"

Mr Slow

tHE vAGGABOND wrote: »

So im going to give it a lash for a month and we will see from there! Test for me will be getting planned/organised for work lunches!!

I can't imagine you'd see much in the way of results in one month, open to correction though!

tHE vAGGABOND

My weakness foo wise was always bread and carbs! From a tiny age. My diet is not too bad these days, but still has too much rubbish (mainly in and around work) but the paelo concept makes a lot of sense to me.

So im going to give it a lash for a month and we will see from there! Test for me will be getting planned/organised for work lunches!!

RayCun

I've been kind of paleo for a couple of months now. OH went paleo, so dinner suddenly contains a lot more meat and less carbs, bread not allowed in the house, and I've been upping my protein intake (two eggs for breakfast these days, plus the muesli) Seem to be running okay on it, and getting seriously skinny.
Can't do the fasted running thing though, eating breakfast before I run fits my schedule too well.

Mr Slow

tHE vAGGABOND wrote: »

16.5k in 1.33 odd

I'm doing a month long experiment with a Paelo lifestyle; just for a change and to see how it works for me tbh.

Linked to that I had been reading about running on empty in a few blogs I was reading, where you do one or two longish runs a week in a fasted state [so run before you eat before breakfast & not having eaten anything for 12 hours - the theory being that you run into fat burning mode quicker, and get your body used to that and you become better at running into that mode; and no harm at all burning some extra fat in the process.

All just an experiment, and I think now is the time to do that, in the off season. It may all be rubbish, but I want to check it out.

I did that in training last year, no gels and even starved myself prior to my 16 with 10 at MP, there's merit to it but there's a direct link between carb depletion and the immune system, just be sure to recover properly from each session and get those carbs back into the body asap after your run.

tHE vAGGABOND

16.5k in 1.33 odd

I'm doing a month long experiment with a Paelo lifestyle; just for a change and to see how it works for me tbh.

Linked to that I had been reading about running on empty in a few blogs I was reading, where you do one or two longish runs a week in a fasted state [so run before you eat before breakfast & not having eaten anything for 12 hours - the theory being that you run into fat burning mode quicker, and get your body used to that and you become better at running into that mode; and no harm at all burning some extra fat in the process.

All just an experiment, and I think now is the time to do that, in the off season. It may all be rubbish, but I want to check it out.

tHE vAGGABOND

A total mess of a morning, in London for night and was going for run on Hamstead Heath.

Went wrong way from hotel first thing [Im blaming the dark], so ran around the [tiny] west heath - hill tastic and not the heath proper.
Also went wrong way home, so extended planned 45 mins odd of a run into 1 hour 20
iPhone died, due to listening to radio for US Election stuff, so was miles away from where I was supposed to be, and [briefly] had no idea how to get back. Not that google maps on iOS 6 would have been a wild amount of help :pac:

So about 13k in 1 Hour 20 Mins - crazy hilly and I imagine increased blood pressure in second half of run due to not being sure where the hell I was

tHE vAGGABOND

9.5k in 52 mins odd

An evening run, sweat out some of the booze from a great weekend in Prague and also first trip out since DCM! Also took the chance to break in my new toys, Pro Guide 5's - got them for a great price when I was in England last, but have not worn until now. They will be good "midweek miles" training shoes for the time being.

There is a work gang running the Race for Mark in the Dark next week, so I added my name down [sorta had to, being "the runner" in the office. But Im going to do it as a training run, doing something along the lines of 2 x 2M and then 2 x 1M with a brief rest in between - as I have done zero but run 2 marathons for 6 weeks or so, therefore zero point in racing it. Best to use it as a hard session, with Aware 10k in a few weeks the PB goal race.

tHE vAGGABOND

Off to Prague on a stag for weekend, ideal marathon recouperation!

No huge ill effects from Monday at all tbh

Mind has switched to aware 10k at start of December, and doing a month of good work to sneak a pb (pb from dunshaughlin 2011, I'm in much better shape now)

tHE vAGGABOND

Oh and my final fundraising total for Berlin is €1770, which is not bad at all for a few posts on various social networks and a few mails to work and nothing else - super happy with that

On note related to yesterday, legs a fraction achey, but not too bad at all, just ran up the stairs to get something before a work meeting, no drama at all - where normally I cant move for a week after a marathon [working from home, thinking I was going to be wrecked

]

tHE vAGGABOND

DCM 2012 done in 4 Hours 30!

Hugely enjoyable day out there, in what really was a perfect day for marathon running.

We had a great group right until within shouting distance of the finish, when some started to press on a bit and one or two start to suffer. But we were getting chat about of them right up to Roebuck Hill

As for me, aerobically I was fine though out the race, indeed the issue for me was slowing down and keeping to 10.17 per mile pace, but that was the gig. I have done very little since Berlin a month ago [a month ago today in fact] so while this pace was grand, my legs knew all about the fact I had just run a marathon by the end and they were just as sore as if I had raced it; respect the distance, regardless of what pace your doing it at.

A few beers afterwards and great to meet up with some folks and have a laugh

Another couple of weeks off, and then I will get back into it. During that time out I will figure out what one has to do in terms of training for Ultras, as I have gotten different advice up to this point so I will pick a direction and do it. I know one thing, as when I have pushed speed work too hard [or too soon?] and/or pushed weekly mileage high I have gotten injured, so I need to look at that seriously.

Im going to get my gait done again, and look to move to lighter runners, as a pound or two lighter really does make a difference and the Kayano's are mad heavy compared some of what people wear these days

Mr Slow

Good luck tomorrow, don't forget to charge your Garmin!

tHE vAGGABOND

lol brilliant stuff meno - so true

Last night just short of 8k, ran home from work, nice and easy - no garmin or anything.

Glad Im not racing the marathon, as my job has changed at work AND we are getting work done at home from a rubbish tradesman so its a bit mad at the moment, so if I had to combine that with taper madness and I would have to be committed to an asylum for the couple of weeks :pac:

Loving this month off of R&R, one too many pies I think tho - but "thankfully" some bastard tried to nick my bike and its wrecked, so I have spent the last 3 weeks walking to and from work [40 mins each way] - so "free" exercise

ultrapercy

menoscemo wrote: »

Reading this made me think of this video.
Especially the bit about getting the dart

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vuBw39uCT4Q

Class !!

menoscemo

tHE vAGGABOND wrote: »

At least the longer distance training will be good for burning fat [as I ditch the gels and follow the church of noakes!] and also force me to think about new and exciting routes to run, get the dart/a lift to x place and run home and thus keep things interesting rather than another 4 months doing the same laps of the park or routes up and down the canal [while I know there will be a bit of that!]

Reading this made me think of this video.
Especially the bit about getting the dart

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vuBw39uCT4Q

tHE vAGGABOND

No fear of me doing any midnight mountain runs tho - your just mad

Micilin Muc

Excellent news! Didn't see that coming!

tHE vAGGABOND

Oh BTW plan for early part of 2013 is Donadea 50k and Conn Ultra

I was walking to work one day last week and thinking about where I could do a marathon, and get under 3.30 and asked myself if I was really arsed for now tbh, go into another marathon of doing the same stuff bla di bla - and Im not. I know I can do it, and therefore I dont think there is a rush and I also know Im same style of training in the same places...

Decided I wanted to test myself on a new distance after Berlin and I still feel like that, do something which right now I ask myself if is possible for me and it was either a hard PB goal for 'sprint' type stuff for 5k or 10k or the longer distance and an ultra, and it was a no contest for me tbh as I thought about it and I made my mind up in seconds.

At least the longer distance training will be good for burning fat [as I ditch the gels and follow the church of noakes!] and also force me to think about new and exciting routes to run, get the dart/a lift to x place and run home and thus keep things interesting rather than another 4 months doing the same laps of the park or routes up and down the canal [while I know there will be a bit of that!]

Mr Slow

tHE vAGGABOND wrote: »

New log name

There are no boundaries J.

tHE vAGGABOND

New log name

tHE vAGGABOND

Pilates this morning - further showing me how weak I am

Ran there and back, super slow and easy, around 8k running in total I guess, no watches or pace monitoring at all. Feck that

tHE vAGGABOND

14.5k in 1.22 odd

Been resting big toe [how mad does that sound:cool:] and to a far lesser extent groin all week, in preparation for pacing duties next Monday. Also been really busy at work, and therefore been eating like I was still running 60 miles a week, oops :eek:

Supposed to be an easy Saturday morning run here, but got summoned home mid-way, so became some sort of progression run, with a slow start, faster middle and half marathon pace for last few K's home - so a great workout all in all

tHE vAGGABOND

Paris Marathon Registration Opening Soon. I'm not running the Paris Marathon next year, but if I were, I would be signing up this evening to get the lowest price.

Seriously recommend it as a race based on my experiences last year, they clearly corrected some issues other folks had with it in previous years

tHE vAGGABOND

Pilates this morning, a humbling experience in that while I may be fit I was still clumsy oaf, unable to do a large amount of the requested movements

I think signing up to a 6 or 8 week class may be in order

tHE vAGGABOND

15.5k in 1 Hour 25 Mins..

Nice and easy turn around the park, really nice morning for it. Good to get out there after a crazy week in work, its also great to go out for a run without a plan to follow or anything, just running for fun and pleasure :cool:

tHE vAGGABOND

Odd Day, first run since Berlin and my first double in ages!!!

Played 5 a side with lads from work, first soccer in about 6 years! Put on Garmin [of course the ****er works now!!!], out of interest, and it was 4k on the nose over 50 mins or so. Great fun, lots of sprinting, turning etc I enjoyed it but legs and groin less so

- what I [totally] lacked with my complete lack of footie talent, I made up for by being a lot fitter by everyone :pac:

Later, ran home..

6.5k in 40 mins, nice and easy. Groin a fraction stiff since the footie earlier, all the sprinting, turning etc in the soccer were a shock to the legs

With regards to what is next - entered a few shorter races for after DCM. No idea about next year yet, a few plans brewing, but nothing solid at all.