Final few weeks

Just under 2 weeks now until Manchester Marathon.  Its been a mixed bag of training this time around.  I missed a chunk of training in January with the flu virus which did set things back slightly.  Ultimately it meant that when I did my half marathon race last weekend I wasn't able to ease down even slightly.  I  normally do a half around 4-5 weeks before a marathon and normally I run well and it gives me confidence.

This time around though I had my longest run and a track session all within 4 days before the race.  Not ideal.  Although I don't normally taper as such before a half in a marathon build I would usually have an easier week than this.  I think in hindsight I would have lowered my expectations on race day but I stupidly thought I'd still be able to run a moderately good time!  

It was evident after a couple of miles into the race that I wasn't going to be particularly fast or in the position I would like to be finishing in.  I didn't quite expect to run quite as slow as I did though.

I've since bounced back in training and its now just down to how I am on the day.

Miami Half Marathon

To be honest this race was a pain in the arse before I even got there!  Back in October I sent off an entry for an elite or sub elite place.  It was the same form and you put your time down and then they would let you know if you were in.  I knew my time wasn't quite good enough for an elite place but was easily a sub elite.  To cut a long story short after not hearing from them then resending my form, getting confirmation of receipt of form it then gets to January and I still don't know if I'm in the race.  I chase yet again and get told that I'm not in the race as my time isn't quick enough for an elite place.  I was livid as the race was now only 2 weeks away and I'd been chasing for a month to find out.  I had to pass it over to my husband to deal with as I was getting very angry by now.  The response then was that I could have a free entry as a sub elite - why oh why could you not have just said that in the beginning - useless organiser!

On a plus side we were going out there for Dan to run his first ever marathon, business conference and a holiday!  Got to fly upper class with Virgin too which was lovely!  Flew out Thursday and decided to stay on UK time as the race was a 6am start!  Feeling good on Friday then Saturday morning I wake and my whole body is aching and my head is stuffy.  Great.  Went for a jog and felt better for it.  2 hours later and I feel like crap and back to bed.  At this point I really don't know what I'm going to do about the race.

I wake on Sunday morning and feel not much different.  I decide that as Dan's going down to do the marathon anyway that I'll start the half and do as a steady run.  

(As a side note this bad organisation for elites was still in evidence as we were walked from the hotel to a point that was supposed to be near the start.  No toilets for us.  Then when we are walked to the actual start line its mayhem getting there.  Then there is 1 toilet by the start for us - so good that)!

I managed about 6 miles and feeling not great but okay.  More disappointed to be running in a race and only running steady.  I get to around 9 miles and I'm suddenly so cold and dizzy.  I just keep thinking it will be so much easier to just jog to the finish than to drop out and have the hassle of getting back.  Another mile and I really can't carry on.  I pull out and then it is a real hassle to get back especially when feeling so rough.  

To top it off with this bad organisation I get to the elite area by the finish to collect my kit to find that my leggins have been lost.  Basically the woman taking our kit on the line didn't have a bag so it looks like she just dropped them.  

I did manage to get back to my apartment, shower and back to about 400m to go to cheer Dan coming in for his marathon.  He did so well - 3hr 39 for his debut which was considerably faster than either of us were expecting him to do.  Not bad for a swimmer and all down to my excellent coaching!

Its not often I have such bad things to say about a race.  Sometimes there are minor irritations like lack of toilets but when the race is done you've pretty much forgotten about them.  From an elite (or sub elite point of view) this is not a race I would ever do again or recommend.  I think for a normal entry you would be fine though.  It would help really if elite co-ordinators of these races were former athletes of elite/sub elite level to know what an athlete needs.  Most races do get this right!


I then had 3 days of lying in bed in a hotel in Fort Lauderdale with flu.  Luckily Dan had his conference so I wasn't missing any holiday time!  We then went on to have a great holiday travelling Florida - Everglades (alligators), Key West (polydactyl cats and dolphins), Cape Canaveral (rockets)!

La Rochelle Marathon

I arrived in La Rochelle on Thursday morning so a couple of days to relax before the big race on Sunday.  Weather was quite mild and hardly any wind but a quick look at the forecast and it looked like the wind would be picking up on Saturday and Sunday.  Not what I want at all.  Rain or even snow I can cope with but strong winds and the prospects of running a fast time are not likely.

Race day morning comes around quickly and I awake early and its still dark out!  I head out for a very slow warm up jog at 8am and it is quite windy!  I meet up with my coach before the race and along with Dan he gives me some reassurance that I'm in good shape and to run a tactical race due to the weather.

I'm quite nervous (although apparently I seemed relaxed)!  The main reason I'm nervous is that my achilles is still not 100% right.  It flared up about 5 weeks ago but luckily settled quickly although I'm always aware of it niggling at me.  More than anything I don't want to be dropping out of this race with an injury.  

The race starts and I haven't started right on the line.  There are several girls ahead of me but I use this to my advantage.  2 Ethiopian girls go off and then I gradually overtake the other girls in the first kilometre.  I think I'm in 3rd place but not 100% sure.  At 3.3k we join up with the men from the other start line.  I luckily find myself in quite a big group which is just what I was hoping for.  I'm feeling good and at the moment time checking every kilometre just to make sure and all is good!  We get to 10k slightly ahead of my target (but only but about 10s) and I'm still with the group.  I see Dan here who shouts out that I am in 3rd.  I can't quite believe it because if I can hold this position this will be my best ever finish here - there's along way to go though so mustn't get ahead of myself.

I get to half way with the same group of men but we've slightly lost some time.  Now I'm slightly over my target time by about 20s.  This is fine though.  I think the wind was probably taking its toll on the guys leading the group.  By the time we got to 30k the wind had picked up quite a lot and then we had a short downfall of torrential rain - luckily not for long though.  By now the group had started to disintegrate.  I was running with a couple of guys but had no group to hide behind now.  

I got to around 34k when a spectator shouted out that I was catching up to 2nd place!  This came as a big surprise to me!  At this point I then had a young lad running with me (I think he was probably running the 2nd leg of the duo) and he saw her and pointed and got me to run behind him and lead me to catch her up.  I caught her at 35k and was on such a high.  I took my final gel at 36k and then picked the pace up.  I dropped my helper (which was disappointing) and just spent the last 6k running with a big smile on my face.  

It was such a good feeling turning that final bend into the straight being in 2nd place.  I'm so happy with where I finished and it was beyond my dreams to finish in 2nd here.  I am disappointed with my time as it was 50s slower than my pb when I was hoping to knock several minutes off my pb.  Finishing 2nd was a good consolation though.  

I spent the next day thinking over about how I might have run it better but I honestly can't think of how I could have.  Apparently, the group I was with was the best place to be as further ahead there were just 1s and 2s of people.  Tactically I ran it right and there is nothing more I could have done so I'm happy with that!

Recent Races

A few weeks ago I had the Cardiff Half Marathon which was also the British Champs.  After running really well at the Lake Vyrnwy Half after several weeks of hard training and feeling like there was a fair bit more to give, I was looking forward to this one and had high hopes of a good pb.  

A week before I was out running and my right glute and hamstring started to tighten up.  I managed to get an appointment on Monday morning (after it was still very tight on Monday mornings run) with my sports masseur.  I opted to miss my second run to try and let it settle.  I did a longish run on Tuesday morning and it was fine until the last 20 minutes when it really tightened up again, so back to my masseur and a physio appointment on Wednesday.  I then gave Thursday's track session a miss.  By the time the race came around it had settled but it was on my mind.  

I started off at a good pace and decided I wouldn't keep time checking and felt like I was holding the pace.  I mostly ran with another girl and apart from a bit of a bad patch mostly down to a loss of concentration I then picked off a few girls in the last couple of kilometres.  I crossed the line in 13th (10th Brit) but really disappointed with my time.  It was 1 min 30 slower than at Lake Vyrnwy.  I probably had my tight hamstring in my mind as although I wanted to do well it wasn't at the cost of ending up injured and risking my marathon which is my main aim next month.  I also think that perhaps I took it for granted I would get a pb after my last half!  

I had decided on one more race before I do my marathon now.  A nice local 10k race which Dan was timing anyway.  My hamstring had still been causing me problems in the lead up but nowhere near as bad as it had been.  I ran really within myself and finished 1st.  What was really pleasing was that a few athletes I've been coaching did really well too.  Liz finished 2nd and Carol who I'm just about to start coaching finished 3rd with Rob finishing just behind them in a solid run.  I also got a lovely bouquet of flowers from Paul Burrell (yes - the former butler to Lady Di) as he has a local flower shop!!

A few weeks of hard training now before I start easing back for my marathon!

Triathletes - Why You Need an End of Season Break

So the triathlon season is at an end now for most people racing in the UK.  You've trained hard all year and then raced hard too.  If you've had a good season you are probably on a high and still keen to keep going.  If on the other hand it hasn't gone so well you are probably analysing what you could do better and also keen to keep going.

This will be the worst thing you can do!  Either way, you both physically and mentally need a break.  It doesn't have to be long, just enough to re-charge the batteries. 

5 reasons why it is important that you do take some time out at the end of your season:

• Will help prevent getting injured at a later date;
• Will help prevent illnesses and fatigue;
• Your body needs to adapt to the hard work and it does this when you recover/rest;
• Make time for your family and friends who you may have neglected over the summer;
• Starting afresh will give you a renewed energy when you start back.

I would advise taking at least 1 week off training completely but preferably 2.  Then spend 2-3 weeks of doing short light swims, bikes and runs which very gradually build over these coming weeks.  You will then be ready at the end of this to start your base conditioning winter work.

Happy resting!

Cardiff 10k and Lake Vyrnwy Half

A week ago I ran in the Cardiff 10k where I was representing the North of England in an Inter Countries race.  After a busy few days including travelling to and from Anglesey helping Dan out with setting up the tracking for the Ring O' Fire endurance race, my cat needing an overnight stop at the vets to remove what turned out to be a tick, plus probably my hardest training week since I've returned from injury, I arrived in Cardiff not quite as fresh as I would usually like to be for a race!  

For once I adopted a relaxed attitude of what will be will be!  For anyone that know's me well you will know how unusual that is for me as I'm normally full of nerves and putting pressure on myself.  I started near to the front along with the other girls to get a good start.  I didn't let myself start too fast though and didn't get carried away with some of the girls who probably went off a bit too quick.  About 2km in I went past a couple of girls who had gone off way too fast.  I then settled in and actually felt good.  From 5km onwards I picked up the pace and managed to pass about 5 or 6 girls.  I was really pleased to finish in what turned out to be my second fastest 10k ever!  I'm so happy that my fitness has returned and I'm up to speed quicker than I thought.

Monday morning I felt tired but managed a slow morning plod and what felt like an even slower evening plod!  By Tuesday's long run I actually felt quite good.  Thursday was a hard 5k paced track session where I just about made my target times but it was very hard going.  So not an easy training week then into Lake Vyrnwy Half Marathon on the Sunday.

I went to this race really wanting more than anything to win but not sure how I was going to feel after yet another hard week of training.  Before the race someone asked what time I was hoping for and I replied that I'd like to get close to my pb (77.03).  I wasn't really sure that was possible.  I wasn't too fussed about my time as I'd rather win today with a slow time than not win but get a pb.  Of course, both would be nice but I'm not greedy!

The race started and I went off fairly steady and controlled.  My thinking was that if there were any fast girls they would think it was slow and go past me then I would be able to track them!  As it was no one went past me so I picked it up to the pace I felt good with.  

This is the second time I've done this race (was 2nd last year) and I do love this course.  Its slightly uphill for the first mile, you get to the dam and turn left and there are lots of spectators there (I think they put on a bus for them).  You then run around the lake although you don't get many views as there are lots of trees!  Its fairly quiet but every so often there are some spectators cheering you on which is great.  I ran with a man for about 5k but time checked and although I felt really comfortable the pace was just slightly quicker than I was happy with so I had to let him go.  From this point I pretty much ran on my own, occasionally picking off another runner.  

2 men went past me in the last 5/6k and if it had been another girl I could definitely have found something but I was starting to get tightness in my lower back and into my glutes.  I didn't feel at the time it was worth the effort and potential damage to muscle to stay with them.  A full loop of the lake done and back to the dam and the cheering was amazing. I felt great being in 1st place with 1 mile to go which was mostly down hill.  

I didn't look at my watch at this point but in hind site I wish I had as I might have found a bit extra to get a possible pb.  As it was I finished in 1st which was my aim and in a time that was just 9s outside of my pb!  I was so happy.  Another good race after hard training.  

Gluten

I'm writing this post to share my experience and maybe it will help someone.

For the last 12-15 years I have suffered with stomach/bowel problems that mainly manifest when running.  It has also caused problems when I have been swimming too.  

The problems I have had are quite common to many runners I have spoken to over the years and that is the need to go to the toilet whilst out running (and I'm not just talking about needing a quick wee because you drank too much water before)!  Most of the time I can go up to 3 or 4 times before I leave the house and think I've emptied my bowels now surely I will be ok but pretty much every run resorts in me having to find a bush.  Most of my runs I have driven out or gone to places where I know I can find somewhere to go.  

10 years ago the problem was getting to me so I went to the doctors and they said it was IBS.  Now, I'm not ok with this as a diagnosis as IBS is so general and refers to many different issues from constipation and bloating to diarrhoea.  I wanted a more specific diagnosis and a way forward to deal with this problem.  The one thing I asked them at the time was "is it a food allergy/intolerance?"   I was told it absolutely wasn't.  I had tests to eliminate things like bowel cancer and I saw a specialist who said he'd vaguely heard of athletes having problems like this and he would look into it.  Of course I heard nothing back from him.

Over the years I just put up with it.  For my long runs I drive out to places where I know I can go and my shorter runs from home I do some out and backs by my house in case I have to nip back which does happen a lot. 

Then 18 months ago I started working with a sports nutritionist.  The main change I made to my diet was cutting out normal bread - his reasoning was the high sugars in both white and brown bread.  I then included more protein and veg with every meal and less sugars.  I replaced normal bread with rye bread.  The only times I was now eating any type of bread was at breakfast where I would have boiled or scrambled eggs with avocado or spinach on rye bread.  Lunch time I no longer ate any type of bread at all and would eat jacket potatoes, pasta or similar. 

Over a few months my problems got a little bit better.  They didn't go away but it definitely wasn't happening as often.

Then this year I spoke to my nutritionist about this and wondered about a gluten intolerance.  He suggested I read a book called Wheat Belly and try and do 30 days without any gluten at all.  So for June this year I did this.  It was quite hard to start with as I really had to plan what I was going to eat.  It meant a lot of preparation in advance too.  Gluten/wheat is in many things that us athletes think we need for energy like pasta and bread.  I now found myself eating a lot of potatoes!  I made a big batch of hash browns that I then froze so I could eat them for breakfast (only take 15 mins to cook from frozen) which I would have as usual with my eggs.  I then eat jacket potatoes (sweet or normal) or quinoa for lunch and then again at dinner carbs include either potatoes or rice mostly.  

Within about 10 days into 30 days gluten free I was finding that I wasn't needing toilet stops on my runs.  This was great but I didn't rule out that this could just be a coincidence or in my head.  Doing the 30 days of gluten free was definitely hard to do to start with but by the end I had gotten into a routine of the types of food to eat and any preparation in advance I needed to do.  There were times I didn't want to keep going with it as it seemed like a lot of hassle.  I'm so glad I did as for that time I had no stomach issues.  

Once the 30 days were up I found I was now in a good routine and didn't actually want to go back to my old eating ways.  I thought I would miss bread but found I really didn't.  The only thing I missed was pizza.  I have now found that lots of places do a gluten free pizza, although admittedly the bases aren't quite as good as a normal pizza base!  

When I was doing the 30 days gluten free I was very strict but now I am gluten free but not 100% strict with it.  I do have the occasional biscuit and when cooking a chili I add an oxo cube for example.  I have found for me that tiny amounts of wheat/gluten don't upset my stomach but large amounts do which I recently put to the test.

At the weekend we travelled up to Scotland for a wedding.  I intended to make myself a quinoa salad to eat for lunch on the way but completely forgot.  At lunchtime we stopped at a service station and was limited to what was available.  I opted for a toasted panini and accepted that there may be consequences.  The next morning I went out to do a run session.  Part way into my second effort and I had intense stomach pains and once again found myself having to stop and look for a bush.  The following 3 days I had a bad stomach every time I went out running.  Now I knew for sure that this was definitely down to being intolerant to gluten.  I had thought that maybe it wasn't really this and perhaps I was just eating better on the whole or it was in my head.  This is the first time I have really put it to the test and just shows what one sandwich does to me.  

I wish I had found this out years ago as it has caused me a lot of distress over the years and races that I've pulled out of with pains and issues.  I am quite annoyed that I went to the doctors a lot over the course of a couple of years around 2005-2007 and they just fobbed me off telling me to just take immodium before I run.  I was reluctant to be gluten free to start with as I know it seems like I'm jumping on the band wagon with a few high profile athletes going gluten free.  

The advice I have to anyone out there who has stomach problems as I had when running or doing other sport is to give the 30 days gluten free a try to start with and see if it makes a difference.  It is really important though that if you do train for endurance sport you find carbohydrates that you can replace your breads and pasta with.  I spent a week just looking at my options and writing out daily food menus before starting this.  Going into it with no plan will either see you relapsing back to bread/pasta etc or depleting yourself and not having the energy to train.