Warm-weather training, Portugal 2017

For the last 16 years I’ve been fortunate to be able to escape some of the British winter weather with a stint of warm-weather training in Monte Gordo, Portugal.  This year was no exception and I’ve just returned from a fabulous three weeks there with my coach, Les.  I have to say, though, that the weather wasn’t always sunshine and blue skies – we had our fair share of rain, gale force winds and chilly temperatures and at one point it was warmer back in the UK!  It did pick up for our final week, though, with wall to wall sunshine and temperatures in the mid-20s.  Monte Gordo is a great place to train, with numerous trails to run on through pine woods and across salt pans and a variety of roads – flat or hilly. 

 

Trails through the pine woods, Monte Gordo

 

Trails across the salt pans, Castro Marim - the sky wasn't always blue!

 

As well as all this there is an all-weather track just down the road at Vila Real de Santo Antonio, which also has a short indoor track and weight training facilities.  Athletes from all over Europe train there and it's a great motivator to see others out training.  It also so happened that a group of my Leamington C&AC club mates were there for a few days’ training during our first week, too, and it was great to have some training partners for one of my sessions.

 

Training with my Leamington C&AC club mates

 

As we've now been back to Monte Gordo so many times it feels almost like going 'home' and we can slot straight into things as soon as we arrive.  We rent an apartment for the three weeks, which gives us much more space and flexibility than a hotel.  So many people in the town now recognise us and it's like meeting old friends - everyone is so friendly.  Even the local butcher remembered us and kept giving us freebies whenever we went to buy our meat – I think we ended up with two chorizo sausages, a chicken breast (“good for soup”!) and a chunk of pork, as well as an instruction to “pay me tomorrow” when I didn’t have the right change! 

 



On yer bike Les!

We also always go to the same place for Les to hire a bike so that he can cycle with me on my runs.  Angela Pestana at Rent-a-Bike is excellent - her bikes are very good and she always makes sure Les has a good mountain bike so he can cycle the trails with me (plus a comfy saddle for the amount of miles he has to cycle!!)  And he managed to only fall off once!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Les with his bike outside Angela's bike hire and the "Freebie Butcher's" shop

 

Over the years we’ve sussed out where the best running routes are.  There are a number of trails through the pine woods around Monte Gordo and Aldeia Nova or across the salt pans by Castro Marim. 

 

The trails by Monte Gordo

Salt pans near Castro Marim (with Flamingoes in the background!)

 

For road runs there are routes out into the hills beyond the motorway to the north of Monte Gordo, or flatter routes for quality tempo work.  A favourite of mine for tempo runs is the palm tree lined boulevard through Altura, which is also well used by the Portuguese race walkers.

 

Plenty of hilly road running routes
 

Altura - one of my favourite places for long road intervals and tempo runs

 

My long runs are generally done on the Ecovia do Litoral – a long distance path / cycle route which stretches along the whole length of the Algarve coast.  It comprises a variety of surfaces, some trail, some road and even a stretch of boardwalk and is perfect for long runs.  The only problem can sometimes be the wind – on one of my long runs I spent the first 15 miles battling into a relentless gale!  It was great with the wind behind me on the way back though! 



The Ecovia by the salt pans near Tavira

 

The Ecovia near Tavira


 

Crossing the Ribeira do Almagem near Tavira
 

The boardwalk through Cabanas

 

Much of my quality work is done on the roads / trails, but I did use the track at Vila Real for one session of 400m reps. as well as the gym for my strength / core work. 

 

Track session at Vila Real

Working hard in the gym!!

 

In addition to all this the beach in Monte Gordo is great for easy recovery runs.  There’s really no shortage of variety for runs and fantastic scenery.  The beach is also perfect for a post-run recovery 'ice bath' - standing in the sea for 10 minutes in March is definitely not warm!  You do have to watch out for jellyfish though!

 

The beach at Monte Gordo

Ice baths in the sea, but you need to watch out for jellyfish!

 

Blue skies!

It's fantastic to be able to run with a bright blue sky overhead (well, usually) and not be weighed down with several layers of kit, gloves and hat.  However, the climate is just one of the many benefits of warm-weather training.  One of the main benefits for me is to be able to get away and concentrate purely on running and recovery, without having to fit it in around my job and everyday life.  With so much time it can be easy to get carried away and over-train, but I made sure I had plenty of recovery time – after all, that’s where the training benefits come from. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cliff top walk near Benagil

We spent a lovely day taking a leisurely walk along the cliffs near Benagil, with some beach time too.  We also spent some time pursuing our other interests of birding and photography, and spent a fab. day birding with June from Algarve Birders in the Alentejo area.  I also reckoned that with over 300 miles of running during my three weeks I deserved the occasional coffee with pastel de nata, or glass of wine with my evening meal!

 

We were really chuffed to see Bee-eaters near Tavira

Enjoying a coffee and pastel de nata ...

... and a lovely meal (and sangria!) at a great beach restaurant

 

All in all it was a very successful and enjoyable three weeks.  It's not just the climate and way of life that I love, although admittedly they are a big part, but it's also the smaller things - fresh oranges and strawberries that taste so much better than they do from the supermarket at home; al fresco breakfasts and lunches on our apartment balcony; fresh fish (especially tuna steak) and sampling the local cuisine.  My training in my build-up to running for England in the Anglo-Celtic Plate 100km in May went really well.  I seemed to recover well from my sessions and long runs, thanks in no small part to CurraNZ (and standing in the sea, of course!)  I'm back at home now, but at least the sun is shining here, at least for a short while anyway!  Can’t wait to go back to Portugal though – I just love it there!

 

On the trails near Monte Gordo

 

Finally, a big thanks to Les for all his guidance, support on the bike with drinks and gels, and for taking all the brilliant photos of me running!

 

Thanks for everything Les

 

And a few more photos to finish ... ...

 

 

Running on the cobbles through Monte Gordo

Alongside the Guadiana River - Portugal on the left, Spain on the right

 

And some more of the trails around Monte Gordo, Castro Marim and Tavira ... ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

The year so far: England selection!

I can’t believe we’re almost a quarter of the way through the year already!  I’m pleased to say, though, that so far I’ve enjoyed a spell of good, consistent training (hope this hasn’t jinxed it!).  I’ve been steadily building my mileage and already have a total of well over 750 miles under my belt this year.

 



On home turf

Back in January I ran a couple of fairly low key races.  The Warwickshire Cross-Country Championships were possibly my last ever cross-country race (I find cross-country way too short these days!)  It was fitting, therefore, that they were held at Newbold Comyn, my ‘home’ course and where I ran my cross-country debut back in 1986!  I decided to run in the Senior age group rather than the Masters in order to help my club, Leamington C&AC, finish a Senior team - and we were delighted to win team bronze.  It was brilliant to end on a high, with a team medal with my Leamington team-mates.

Jumping in muddy puddles

Team bronze!

Back on the roads

A week later I was back on my preferred road surface in the Not the Roman IX 12k race near Stratford-on-Avon.  Being a local race this was the eighth time I’d run it; having won it on all of my previous seven attempts as well as holding the course record.  This year I finished 3^rd female, somewhat spoiling my winning record, but I was happy enough, knowing I wasn’t in top shape due to the niggles I’d had last year.

 

After NTRIX I concentrated on a good block of training and building up the distance of my long runs.  I also do a weekly track session with a great group at Leamington C&AC, overseen by my coach, Les.  It’s my favourite session of the week – the only time I train in company with others and there is a fantastic camaraderie and encouragement within the group.  The key during these high mileage weeks is recovery (especially as my body isn’t as young as it used to be!) and I’ve recently started using CurraNZ - a blackcurrant extract supplement - which seems to be really beneficial and effective at warding off DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness).

 https://healthcurrancy.co.uk/pages/sport-recovery

I also use Blue Active Gel Muscle & Joint Rub and am indebted to Les for the twice-a-week massages.  On top of this are monthly maintenance visits to my physio.  It can be pretty hard fitting all the hours of training, recovery, physio, strength exercises etc. into a 30-hour working week as a Landscape Architect, but it’s what I want to do and I’m committed to getting the best out of myself. 

 

There are lots of privileges and opportunities that come with being a successful athlete and I was lucky enough to experience one recently.  I was invited to the launch event of the cycling Women’s Tour, Warwickshire stage.  The event brought together Warwickshire sportswomen from a wide variety of sports and was a great celebration of women’s sport in general, and especially in Warwickshire.  It was really inspiring listening to GB cyclist Ciara Horne and chatting with so many other girls about their own sports and training etc.

Promoting women's sport in Warwickshire

I didn’t race again until the beginning of March when I ran in the BHF Warwick half-marathon.  The plan was just to use this as a quality training run, following a 28-miler the previous day.  I ended up running a bit faster than Les and I had intended, but I felt really easy and comfortable.  Pouring rain before the start was a bit dispiriting, but luckily it seemed to ease a bit during the race and I really enjoyed running without the pressure of flat-out racing.  I was able to chat to a few people and give some encouragement to my club-mates.  I even had time to take in the scenery and spotted the first lambs I've seen this Spring!  The course passes near to my house, on roads that I regularly train on, which is a great advantage when it comes to racing – especially on this occasion when I knew the best line to take through a massive puddle / flood covering the whole width of the road!

And then came the highlight of my year so far.  In mid-February I had received an email from the England Athletics selectors to say that I was being considered for the England team for the Anglo-Celtic Plate 100km in May.  This is an annual competition between England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, which this year is being held in conjunction with the British Championships.  There was a caveat to my selection though – I needed to “prove my fitness” as, due to injury, I hadn’t run an ultra since 2015. 

En route to 50km

Les and I looked for suitable races and, with a lack of 50km races, approached the Raceways Event Management team who were putting on their Spring Shakespeare races, ranging from 5km to the marathon.  They were extremely helpful and accommodating and agreed I could start with the 5km / 10km runners and run 10 laps of the 5km route, which would give me an officially timed 50km.  And so it was that I found myself running round and round a rather featureless, open, windswept, flat-as-a-pancake disused airfield!  But I really enjoyed it!  The marshals out on course and at the drinks station were so enthusiastic in cheering the runners on, even by the time I was on my 10^th lap!  The course consists of ‘out & back’ stretches along the old runways, which means a lot of sharp corners, but also means there are always other runners nearby, going in one direction or the other, and it was great to exchange a few “well done”s as I passed people.  My finishing time of 3:42:13 was comfortably inside the time the selectors had set me, but I had an anxious few days wait before I received confirmation that YES, I was in the team!  I’m extremely proud and honoured to have the chance to represent my country again.  My time places me top of the UK 50km rankings so far this year (although it’s nearly half an hour slower than the British Record I set back in 2010!)  For those interested in stats my 5km splits were: 22:18, 22:31, 22:38, 22:18, 22:39, 22:18, 22:15, 21:56, 22:00, 21:20.  I’d like to say a massive thank you to the Raceways team – my selection wouldn’t have been possible without their support and they were full of encouragement for me both during and after the race.  I’ve run several of their races now and they’re always extremely well organised:
http://www.raceways.eu/site/

Round and round an old airfield!

 

Crossing the finish line - job done!

So now it’s down to some hard training to prepare for May 21^st.  A double dose of CurraNZ meant I was out running again the day after the 50km time-trial, and doing a hard track session three days later.  For me the key is training smart and trying to stay injury-free, so fingers crossed for that!

2016 - Re-learning how to run!

So as 2016 draws to a close it’s time to reflect on another year’s running and racing – my 30^th year of competitive running.  To be honest 2016 was rather frustrating as I seemed to spend the whole year taking one step forward and two steps back.  The year got off to a particularly bad start when, just two weeks in, I developed a recurrence of the high hamstring tendinopathy that I’ve had on and off for the last couple of years.  An MRI scan revealed that this had caused a third stress reaction in my pelvis (ischial tuberosity).  So there I was yet again – absolutely NO exercise whatsoever, as anything that used my hamstring would delay or prevent healing.  Obviously I was gutted at not being able to run and totally fed up that this had happened for a third time.  All the races I’d planned on doing gradually came and went, including the British Championship 100k in Perth, Scotland, which I’d set my sights on running in March.  I did go to Perth with my coach, Les, as he had another athlete running and we went as her support crew.   At first I was very dubious about watching a race that I was desperate to run in, but in actual fact I really enjoyed crewing for Mel and found it was a really positive experience to be on “the other side” at a race.  It made me appreciate even more just how much Les does for me when he’s supporting me.

As mentally tough as the injury was, I just had to try and accept it and make sure I was disciplined about resting it and doing everything I could to help it heal.  Luckily I’m the sort of person who is never at a loose end, so I had plenty of other things to fill my time, which is so important during times like this.  Eventually, after three months of complete inactivity, I took my first tentative steps back “running” again.  Of course I’d lost a huge amount of fitness, and had put on several kilograms of weight, but I was overjoyed to be able to run even just a short way, however slow it was.  I very gradually built up the distance over the next few weeks and by the middle of June was up to an hour of easy running.  It wasn’t all plain sailing and I was still feeling my hamstring and getting pain in my hip, but with the advice of my brilliant physio Mark Buckingham I was able to manage it enough to be able to run. 

Then, in the middle of June, disaster struck again!  I was out for an easy run on the canal towpath when my foot caught a piece of stone and sent me flying.  Badly grazed and bruised knees and elbows meant another few days rest / easy runs.  Luckily things weren’t quite as bad as they could have been and at the beginning of July I managed my first race of the year – a 3000m track race for my club in the Midland League!  3000m is far too short and fast for me anyway these days, but with my lack of fitness this one was even worse and I struggled round finishing last but one!  But just by turning up and running I picked up some valuable points for my club, Leamington C&AC, which is what League meetings are all about. 

After this things started to pick up – the length of my runs moved into double figures and I began to introduce some slightly faster paced sessions.  At the beginning of August, on my 45^th birthday (and in a new Masters age group!), I ran the 18 mile option of the Railway Ultra near Ironbridge.  I felt really good at first, but by 11 miles I really started to struggle – my legs were like lead weights and I had to find every ounce of mental strength to keep going.  I thought this was just down to my lack of fitness, but over the next few days I developed a cold, which then transpired to be a chest infection, resulting in a course of antibiotics and more time off running!  I didn’t know it at the time, but this run would end up being my longest run of the year!

At the beginning of September I gradually eased myself back into training again and ran the Kenilworth Half-Marathon purely as a training run.  I knew I was nowhere near fit and deliberately started somewhere buried in the middle of the pack, rather than at the front, which was in itself a novel experience!  A couple of weeks later things started to fall into place again.  I had my first attempt at a one-hour track race (round and round a 400m athletics track) and managed to set a new British W45 Age Record of 14172 metres.  A week later I was helping my club out again, this time in the Midland Road Relays, although at just 4.3km the race was over before I’d even got going! 

A month after Kenilworth I accepted an elite place in the BUPA Great Birmingham Run and found myself appearing on Channel 5 TV as I lined up on the start alongside the likes of Sonia Samuels, Elizeba Cherono, Andy Vernon and Chris Thompson.  I ran 5 minutes quicker than I’d run at Kenilworth, which was really encouraging and I felt things were going in the right direction at last.  The following month, in November, I ran another half-marathon at Dorney Lake near Eton and exceeded all my expectations finishing as first female and recording my fastest half-marathon time for three years.  I was feeling really motivated and positive after this.  I thought that I was finally getting somewhere and my training was starting to pay off, and I was really enthusiastic to get stuck into even harder training.

Throughout all these months of trying to return to fitness I’ve been working closely with my physio, Mark Buckingham, to try and address all the possible causes of the hamstring tendinopathy.  I’ve looked at Vitamin D and bone density and I’ve been working really hard in the gym doing the hamstring strengthening exercises that Mark has given me.  In the last two or three months, once I’d built my hamstring strength up, we’ve been looking at tweaking my gait to try and recruit the ‘lazy’ muscles in my glutes and take some of the load off my hamstrings.  Basically, I’m re-learning how to run!  I’ve known for many years that my glutes don’t fire as they should and I’ve tried to address this at various times, seemingly without much success.  However, I’ve made a really concerted effort this time and I feel that I might just possibly be making some progress.  It takes a lot of concentration while running, and a little bit of help from Kinesio tape, but I’m determined to keep working at it.  At the end of the day I’m not looking to completely change the way I run as I don’t think that will ever happen, but if I can make just a small percentage of difference to my gait I’m hoping it will help.  My hamstring tendinopathy still isn’t 100% better and I’m still experiencing some discomfort in the area, but I’m hoping that we can manage it enough to allow me to run and to prevent another stress reaction.

The risk of trying to change my running style was always going to be injury elsewhere as a result of other muscles and tendons being asked to work differently.  Sure enough this proved to be the case when I developed very sore calves, with a small tear in the right one, after the Dorney Lake race.   So guess what, more time off running!  The positive high I’d felt straight after the race soon turned to despair as I realised that my hard-earned fitness was slipping away again.  I had three weeks of rest / minimal training and a visit to Mark who confirmed the tear had healed and the soreness I was still feeling was scar tissue.  We both agreed, however, that the risk of picking up other injuries was one worth taking in my quest to try and get my glutes working.

My final race of 2016 was the Christmas Cracker 20k at Moreton Morrell.  I’d been really looking forward to it – the same race last year had been my 100^th road race win and I was hoping to retain my ‘title’ and at least run somewhere close to my 2015 time.  Sadly, with all the missed training from the calf tear I managed neither, although in the circumstances 3^rd lady wasn’t bad!

 

 

Another disappointment during 2016 was not being selected for the GB team for the World 100k Champs. in Spain.  I was one of only two GB female athletes to have achieved the qualifying standard, but I wasn’t selected, presumably because the selectors decided I wouldn’t be fit enough after my hamstring injury.  Often selections are made based on an athlete ‘proving their fitness’, but sadly I wasn’t given this opportunity on this occasion.  However, in hindsight I think it was probably a blessing in disguise.  With all the setbacks throughout the year I would have struggled to be at full fitness and would not have done myself justice in the race.  I would have had my work cut out trying to get enough long runs in and cramming them in would have been asking for trouble in itself.  As it happens I’ve been able to take my return to fitness slowly and steadily and have been able to give plenty of time to addressing my hamstring strength and changing my gait. 

Whilst 2016 has been frustrating I’m trying to take the positives and look forward to building on them in 2017.  My total mileage for this year is only 1,616 miles, which is a long way short of usual, but it could have been worse and I’m grateful that I have at least been able to do some running.  I did manage my fastest half-marathon for three years, set a British Age One-Hour Track Record and I feel I’m making progress with my hamstring and glute strength.  I experienced a race as a ‘support crew’ (which was hopefully of assistance to Mel, and Les too!) and I have some fabulous training partners at Leamington where I’m really enjoying our weekly track sessions, overseen by Les of course.  I’d like to thank all of “Team Les” for their support and encouragement, both for my successes and when things aren’t going so well – it really means a lot to me. 

 

Also a massive thank you to Les for putting up with me for 30 years and still setting my training schedules, overseeing my sessions, supporting me at races, massaging, coming to physio appointments and generally looking after me.  He is my star and I couldn’t do it without him.  I’m also indebted to Mizuno for their continued support with fantastic shoes and kit and to The Warwickshire for the use of their gym.  Strength and conditioning is an integral part of my training, but the gym has been particularly invaluable for my specific hamstring strengthening work.  A huge thank you must go to my brilliant physio Mark (even though his treatments can be torture!) and particularly for his patience when I’m struggling to explain exactly which bits hurt.  And finally a big thank you to my friends and family for being so understanding when my training and racing has to come first.  Athletes need a good team around them and I’m extremely lucky and grateful to have all these wonderful people supporting me.  Whilst the latest setbacks this year have already scuppered my plans for the early part of 2017 I’m sure that there will be more races, fun and enjoyment to come.  One thing is for sure, my commitment and desire for training and racing is still as strong as ever. 

Here’s to 2017 – I hope it’s a happy, healthy and successful one for you all.

Great Birmingham Run 2016

When my request for an elite place in the Great Birmingham Run half-marathon was accepted I felt really excited and privileged to be lining up alongside other international, world class athletes at the very front of around 20,000 other runners.  I was looking forward to really pushing myself and seeing how much (if at all!) my fitness had improved since the Kenilworth Half-marathon six weeks before. 

 

 

My enthusiasm on the day, however, was at first rather dampened by the pouring rain (and having to drag myself out of bed at 6.30am on a dark Sunday morning)!  I was soaked through before I’d even got to the elite athletes’ area by the start, let alone done my warm up!  Miraculously, though, it stopped raining about 30 minutes before the start, and the sun even made an appearance.

 

 

 

 

I lined up alongside the other elites and my tactical start-line positioning paid off (behind Sonia Samuels and Andy Vernon) as I managed to make an appearance on the Channel 5 TV coverage!  The claxon sounded and we were off, heading along the dual carriageway towards Moor Street Station and Selfridges.  I couldn’t help thinking about all the times I’ve been Christmas shopping in Birmingham when this road is full of buses and cars – it was rather surreal to be running right down the middle of it!

Getting ready to start (left); with Almensch Belete and eventual race winner Elizeba Cherono (right)

 

The route took us out to the south of the city, to Bourneville (I didn’t spot Cadbury’s World, which was probably a good thing), before heading back again, through Edgbaston Cricket Ground and round Cannon Hill Park, before finishing on Broad Street by Centenary Square.  There was a notorious hill which was brutal, lasting for over a mile from just before the 11-mile point and just seeming to go on for ever and ever.  But this wasn’t the only hill - there were numerous others, especially just after the start, at about 3.5 miles and around the 5 mile point.  In fact, the whole of the first half seemed to be mostly uphill!

Deep in concentration?!

 

Despite my pre-race enthusiasm to really push myself, I found it hard going and was having constant battles in my head, trying to push out the negative thoughts with positive ones.  My legs were feeling really heavy, but I kept trying to convince myself I was feeling light and strong – it didn’t work!  My lowest point was when Nell McAndrew passed me somewhere between 7 and 8 miles!  I managed to stay with her round Edgbaston Cricket Ground and Cannon Hill Park, but she pulled away on ‘the’ hill and I couldn’t get back to her.  She eventually finished exactly 30 seconds in front of me - I’m not sure I’ll live that down!  I did manage to make a second TV appearance though, as I can be spotted in the background while Nell is doing her post-race interview! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sprint finish with my Leamington C&AC club mate (he won!)

 

I can’t be too disappointed with my run, especially considering my current state of fitness post-injury.  I was 22^nd in the women’s race, over 5 minutes faster than I ran at Kenilworth (1:27:59), but most satisfying was that I won my age category!  It was great to be part of a big-race atmosphere again, with runners of all ages, sizes and abilities pounding the streets for their own personal goals and achievements.  That’s the beauty of running.

Finisher's medal, personalised number and wristband telling me I'm an elite athlete - apparently!
 

 Many thanks to Les Barnett for the photos.

Another false start!

I’m beginning to wonder whether I’ll ever get back to anything even remotely resembling the runner I used to be!  To be able to have even a few months consistent training under my belt would be a good start!  Since resuming running back in April, after my hamstring injury, it just seems to have been one thing after another to scupper my progress!  First of all it was a nasty fall on the canal towpath back in June (you can read all about that in my last blog post), then a sacroiliac joint problem and now it’s a chest infection that’s been hanging around for the best part of a month and resulted in a course of antibiotics. 

In hindsight I think I was going down with the chest infection when I ran the 18 mile version of the Railway Ultra at the beginning of August, although I didn’t realise it at the time.  I really struggled with the last 5 or 6 miles of the race – my legs ached and felt like lead weights and I felt I was running on empty.  At the time I put it down to the fact it was my longest run since January.  I wasn’t really prepared for the race, having missed yet more training the week before due to the sacroiliac joint problem, and I was only intending to run it as a steady training run. 

I’d done the full 36 mile version last year and, although the multiple out and back course can get a bit tedious, especially with the rough stony path (which seemed to be even more pot-holed this year), it’s a very scenic route on a disused railway line along the River Severn near Ironbridge.

This year it had the added bonus of being on my birthday (and a new Masters age-group one to boot), so we made a long weekend of it and took in the sights of Ironbridge too. 

It also meant I earned the second part of my finishers’ medal – a train carriage to go with the engine I won last year! 

I should have realised, however, that the last few miles felt even harder than they should have done, even allowing for my untrained state and lack of fitness.  To cut a long story short, I developed what I thought at first to be just an ordinary cold, but was later diagnosed by my GP as a chest infection, resulting in the best part of two weeks’ missed training.  It’s extremely frustrating that every time I feel I’m making some progress something else happens to thwart it.  I feel like I’m taking one step forward and two steps back!

Anyway, having finished the course of antibiotics I decided that as I’d already entered the Kenilworth Half-marathon I might as well give it a go.  I managed to squeeze in 4 or 5 days of light running leading up to the race, but this really only served to wreck my quads before I’d even started the race!  I knew I wasn’t going to be competitive at the front end of the race, or anywhere near my course record of 77:37, so I started somewhere in the middle of the pack, which was quite a novel experience for me!  I had a bit of a panic whilst we stood there waiting for the off, thinking “I shouldn’t be this far back!” but then reminded myself of my pre-race plan – to start steadily and try to pick up in the last 4 miles if I had anything left in my legs.  It felt a bit strange having to walk a short way before crossing the start line and being able to get running, but I have to say I quite enjoyed experiencing a race from a bit further back, with no pressure. 

 

I had a bit of banter with some of the other local runners as we ran round, and I tried to offer some encouragement to my Leamington C&AC club mates when I passed them.  The Kenilworth Half is always a great race – very well organised with plenty of friendly marshals who always offer a lot of encouragement to all the runners (and plenty of yummy cakes at the finish too!).  I always seem to have a fair bit of local support out on the course too; as I live within a stone’s throw of the route there are always people I know out the course cheering the runners on.  Living on the doorstep also means I know the course like the back of my hand – I run most of it week in, week out, as part of my tempo runs, so I know exactly where the hills are and every twist, turn and pothole in the road!  I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or not!  My race went pretty much to plan, although the hills smashed my quads even more and meant I couldn’t push the last few miles quite as hard as I would have liked.  However, I did seem to be picking people off for the majority of the race and ended up 9^th female, and 3^rd W45, in what was my slowest ever half-marathon (1:33:26)!  But that was still faster than my coach, Les, was expecting and, to be honest, after the year I’ve had so far I was relishing just being there and competing in my first road race since last December!  I think I ran the whole race with a permanent smile (apart from maybe the last hill!) as I was just so happy to be out racing on the roads again.

 

A close encounter with the canal towpath!

Hmmm, well that wasn't quite what I'd planned as part of my comeback from injury - another injury!  What had started out as an easy Sunday morning run last weekend ended up as anything but.  I was bowling along quite steadily on a stretch of towpath that I've run on thousands of times over the last 30 years with absolutely no problem at all.  All of a sudden, about 2 miles into the run, my toe caught a piece of rock / concrete protruding from the path and the next thing I knew I was flat on my face!  I'd fallen quite heavily on the rather unforgiving gravely surface and, inevitably, ended up with bloodied hands, elbows, knees, thighs and tummy (well, if I will wear a crop top!).  A combination of pain and shock, or perhaps a slight bang to my head, then caused me to pass out!  Luckily a few passers by stopped to help and check I was OK, which was really kind of them.  I did have to have a little chuckle to myself, though, when one lady, who I'd just passed minutes before, said "I saw your legs sticking out across the path but thought you'd just stopped for a rest"!  Little did she know that I have, in the past, run 62 miles without stopping for a rest!  She then went on to say "you're the lady who wins everything aren't you - I recognise you from the paper"!  I found that rather amusing too!  Anyway, I eventually staggered to my feet and managed to hobble / walk / jog the 2 miles back home and then spent the next hour or so picking bits of gravel out of my wounds!

So the upshot of this little mishap is a very sore knee, which I hope is just bruising and nothing more serious, and a slight setback to my attempt at returning to fitness.  Luckily it hasn't come at a crucial time and I guess that I've been relatively lucky regarding trips and falls during my 30 years of running (in fact I can't actually remember any), so in all honesty I was probably due one!  After a couple of days off I'm now back doing some very easy, short runs and have even faced my demons and run on the same stretch of towpath again!  Providing my knee is just bruised, and nothing more, it may even have been a blessing in disguise - stopping me from trying to do too much too soon in my in build-up from the hamstring / stress reaction injury.

 

So with my running being less intensive at the moment I've had more time for other things, including taking part in some events to help promote the Aviva Women's Cycle Tour, prior to it passing through Warwickshire on its second stage.  It was fantastic to see top class international women's sport on my doorstep.  I was also very honoured and privileged when, a few weeks ago, I was invited back to my old school, Stratford Grammar School for Girls, as guest speaker at their Sports Awards evening.  It was a fabulous evening and I thoroughly enjoyed presenting so many girls with awards for their achievements in such a wide variety of sports; and it's great that their achievements have been given the recognition they deserve.  It's clear from the awards I presented that there are some extremely talented sportswomen at the school, but it's also fantastic that all the girls have the opportunity to participate in a wide variety of sports, at all levels.  I hope, too, that my speech might just have inspired them in some small way - the fact that I went from an average runner to Great Britain international by having dreams and ambitions and working towards them with hard work, dedication, commitment, patience and perseverance.  I told them there are many opportunities out there waiting for them, and I hope they take them and get as much fun, fulfilment and satisfaction as I have had from my own running career. 

 

From my own point of view, I was delighted to have had the opportunity to 'give something back' to the school where, really, my athletics career began with huge encouragement from Miss Lawton, my PE teacher at the time.  It was while there that I first had the opportunity to try the 800m and 1500m, and found that I enjoyed those events and was better at them than sprints, jumps and definitely throws!  So I then joined Leamington C&AC and haven't looked back since!  Then, when I was in the sixth-form, I started a lunchtime cross-country running club as up until then we didn't do cross-country at school.  I'd started running cross-country for the club, really enjoyed it, and wanted to do schools events too!  We went on to win medals in the Warwickshire Schools Cross-country Championships and I'm really happy to say that my legacy is still going strong.  The school still competes successfully at cross-country races nearly 30 years later.

 

So that's about all at the moment really.  I guess it's a case of seeing how my knee is over the next few days and trying to steadily build back up to the hour's running that I'd got to just before the towpath incident.  With regard to the hamstring tendinopathy / stress reaction, I don't feel I'm completely out of the woods with that yet as I'm still getting some pain / achiness, but am following my physio's advice and working closely with him both in terms of building the running up and specific hamstring strength exercises.  I'm also working on addressing a strength imbalance between my right and left legs.  So I guess it's a case of 'watch this space' for further progress updates!