Runners Feet without the running

To the untrained eye the picture above may look like a fairly normal pair of feet.

It has however, just occurred to me as I was painting my nails (what do you think of the shade..) that for the first time in months I have a fully grown big toenail on both feet. Hooray!

Now this is both a happy and sad occasion. Happy because I am now not totally embarrassed by my trotters, I was forced to avoid the peeptoe trend of summer footwear, but sad because having fully grown nails, signifies one thing.

I am not running enough.

Nail loss seems to be a guarantee for me when I am completing long distance runs, it doesn't seem to matter what type of trainers I wear.

My first nail was lost during training for my first half marathon in 2006 and it is always the same nail that falls off. Big toe, left foot, if you really want to know.

Of course a toe without a nail isn’t aesthetically pleasing, my friends frequently remind me how gross my feet are when I am without said nail.

I have to agree with them, but then I have to admit that there is a certain sense of achievement that comes with losing a nail. It is like my own personal pedometer letting me know that I have been clocking up the miles.

And yes, I know I have ridiculously small little toes. I can't help it.

Run to The Beat Half Marathon: Sunday 26th September

On Sunday I took part in the Run to The Beat half marathon and managed a fairly respectable time of 1hr. 54 minutes. Not too shabby considering my training had screeched to a halt due to work commitments and I had events on the Friday and Saturday before race day on Sunday.

I was actually quite surprised by my time as I didn’t enjoy the race at all.

No, it wasn't because I had a few drinks the night before or the fact that I didn't get enough sleep. I'll admit both can’t have helped matters.

Motivation was low on the day because of the complete lack of atmosphere. From the ‘crowd’, from the runners from the musicians.

Now maybe I have just become a running snob. After completing the London Marathon in April and having participated in the Great North and Great South runs perhaps I have been spoilt.

I loved every minute of the marathon, the swelling of noise from the crowd, constant encouragement from other runners, my friends and family interspersed at different points around the course, it was a brilliant day.

This was not the case for Run to The Beat. Firstly there was definitely a distinct lack of beat. I had not taken an Ipod thinking the whole point of the race was the motivational impact of music and from the map it looked like there would be music at every mile. This was certainly not the case, at many ‘stages’ I arrived to find the band adjusting their equipment or seemingly taking an extended break. Rubbish.

There was no beat to run to for the majority of the race.

The next problem was the distinct lack of supporters. Those that were in
attendance simply stared on, offering no words of encouragement or cheers.

I felt deflated and this feeling was compounded by the absence of any camaraderie between the runners. No joking, no laughing none of the banter I had experienced in other races.

The course was surprisingly hilly, there were several steep climbs but at least these were all over with by the halfway point. The mile markers seemed to be missing from mile 8 and the 750 metre mark and there seemed, at the time, nothing worse than not knowing how far you have left, from a pacing perspective if nothing else.

The last criticism of the race I will make is this, plastic cups of water are not suitable drinking vessels for runners.

It is almost impossible to drink in this manner without spilling it down yourself and everyone around you. At least the sight of runners trying to steady the cups whilst running, sloshing water around and finally giving up in frustration provided a little light relief.

Well I had a chuckle anyway.

All in all, not a race I will be rushing to take part in again.

Goal Setting for success

I managed to finish the marathon, collected my medal and had a celebratory meal with the family. It was all rather lovely.

Then I did nothing, literally. Just look at the lack of blog posts.

Apart from a few attempts at heading to the gym and a bit of yoga my physical exertion peaked at ripping off my next piece of a baguette.

With the start of summer well on its way after months of saying no to events I began to say yes to everything. I was attending birthday drinks, Saturday nights drink, before work drinks (I work in the evenings!) and generally anytime drinks.

My social life was off the scale but my body was suffering. After a rather boozy trip to Marbella I decided I had to stop and get back to training.

I have signed up for a half marathon in September and joined a gym using the benefit of corporate membership with work.

So far so good. Goal setting for success

It did get me thinking thought about casual exercise and the people who neglect their physical health for the majority of the year only to try a bikini body blitz two weeks before their holiday.

Whilst I have been a regular gym go-er for over five years I train better when I have focus and focus comes from having a goal.

These goals need to be specific.

Most people who visit the gym want to lose weight, tone up or get fitter but these ‘goals’ are so vague it is easy to forget them.

Specific goals such as working towards an ideal weight and training for a race provide the perfect platform to a better you.

It is well worth taking a bit of time out to look at your diary and identifying what you can work towards.

A wedding in October, a holiday in December, whatever the event by being mindful of it when training will help to maintain your focus and increase the effectiveness of your training time.

Plus once you reach your goal and feel fabulous, try to remember that feeling of achievement and make sure you plan your next goal.

Otherwise, like me, you could spend all that time and effort training hard for months to simply let it slip in a matter of weeks.

Update

The lack of blogging has been down to nothing but my own laziness and preoccupation with other projects. After successfully completing the marathon, and having some time off post run I am now back training and hoping to write health and fitness related articles relevant to young females today.

Feeling the Heat

With less than two weeks to go to the marathon, I am starting to feel the pressure.

As the clock ticks down to the big day, I have been decreasing my mileage and will stop running completely a few days before the event.

It seems strange to be tapering down the runs, particularly when you have been working on the basis that more is better, but it is necessary to make sure I don't overtrain or cause injury.

I am nervous to say the least.

With the weather improving rapidly, I set off for my first run in shorts on Saturday, glad to be training in the sunshine.

It was a hot day, and by ten miles I was parched and sweating like crazy. Although initially pleased by the hot weather I realised how detrimental this can be to a run, particularly when you haven't taken on enough water.

At least i have covered all eventualities now, and feel prepared for whatever the weather on the big day.

Power Balance Bands, is it just hype?

Getting out of bed this morning was trying, my legs are heavy and tired.

We ran just over 21 miles yesterday, however despite the aches and pains and general stiffness post training run, I am amazed I don’t feel that bad.

Could it be down to the beach training, I undertook in Spain last week, the Lucozade gel that we used mid run, or could it be down to a rubber band I wore around my wrist?

I was given a Power Balance band to try out, and I am wondering if there really is something in it. The innocuous looking band, is very thin and has two holograms on the sides, to be honest it looks a bit like a charity awareness bracelet, like the yellow Livestrong ones.

One the website the makers claim:

POWER BALANCE’S Mylar Holographic Disk (the same substance used to keep static electricity from damaging electrical components) has been imbedded with an electrical frequency that restores your body’s electrical balance, promoting a free exchange of positive and negative ions and align your body’s energy pathways.


The high density disk acts much like a switch, resonating within your system and turning on your energy field while it clears the pathways so the electro-chemical exchange functions like the well-tuned generator it was designed to be.

When the static Power Balance Hologram comes in contact with your body’s energy field, it begins to resonate in accordance with each individual’s biological, creating a harmonic loop that optimizes your energy field and maintains maximum energy flow while clearing the pathways so the electro-chemical exchange functions like the well-tuned generator it was meant to be.

It claims to improve strength, flexibility and balance, but to be honest looking at it and its price tag of £24.99, I was extremely skeptical.

My previous long run, 18 miles was tough and ended in shoulder pain preventing me from running any further. Yesterday’s run was very different, even up to the final few metres we were still able to talk well and on a respiratory level, I felt quite fit. On a muscular level, my legs felt like dead weights but after the run, I did not feel the need to lie down for hours unable to function, I felt ok.

It is really hard to tell if the band had any impact or if the placebo effect gets you through it is a tough one to call.

I will most definitely be using the band again, and will compare it against a long run without it.

Power Balance have many celebrity endorsers including London Wasps and Shaquille O’Neal to name just two.

Rachel, a strength conditioning coach, PT and physio said : “I really dont know too much about the science behind it although I do know that I am heaps strong when I use it!”

It could be all in the mind but if it helps me get across the finish line, any faster or feeling stronger then I am definitely going to buy into it for now and wear the band on all training runs.

Getting it in the neck

It appears my body is not as resilient as I thought. First my knee, and now my shoulder and neck. After a week off after my 19 miles and feeling some tension and pain in my shoulder, it was disappointing to feel pain returning almost at the start of my subsequent long run yesterday.

My running partner Elen kindly offered to take my lucozade bottle but despite this act of kindness it did not abate the pain.

What started off as a dull ache built in to a sharp stabbing pain. I moved my hand around in different positions, lengthened my neck, pushed my shoulders down, but nothing seemed to stop the twinge.

I began to accept that this would be another painful and trying run, and started to wonder if I wasn’t as strong as I thought I was. Elen hasn’t had any problems apart from the general aches and pains of a long run, why is my body any different? Am i a complete hypochondriac?

During our third lap of Hyde park, the throbbing increased in intensity and despite the two of us still being able to maintain a conversation I knew my game was nearly up.

Almost four laps round and I had to give in to the pain, I wondered if it was physcological, but I don’t give up easily. I researched shoulder problems when running on the internet upon my return home and it amazing what rubbish it

A visit to the sports therapist and a very painful deep tissue massage later, and it appears that all my muscles, tendons and ligaments in my shoulders, arms and neck have been so tight that to be honest it isn’t so surprising I didn’t experience injuries sooner.

So fingers crossed with more stretching, ice, ibruprofen, and strength training, my shoulders and the rest of me should hold up.

If training was easy it wouldn’t be worth doing, and at least I am saving money and my liver, by not going out so much. So its not all bad is it.