Back To The Routine

After a problem with my psoas muscle and a dodgy neck I am about ready to start running again. One of the great frustrations about exercising is that the body aches and pains that follow you around suddenly become more serious - you might hobble about on a twisted ankle, but it would be foolish to run on it. If, like me, you find that running in the morning is a great way to set you up for the day, then not being able to do it can lead to extreme grumpiness and more. I've noticed that in the last two weeks I've been much more liable to feeling low and depressed than I do usually, and I'm sure not exercising is the reason. 


Still, I saw my personal trainer yesterday and established that I can get back into a routine. I've been doing some horrid exercises to strengthen my glutes which will hopefully stop my legs over working and sort out some of my problems. 


The next stage now is to figure out some short term goals - 10km and half marathons that can challenge me either with different terrain (hills, cough) or speed. 

Running To The Beat

I know most serious running enthusiasts look down on those who jog with headphones on. If you go and watch the London Marathon you'll notice that the majority of the club and fast amateurs who finish in under 3.30 are entirely bereft of any musical encouragement, but once you get to the 4+hr lot they've almost all got an MP3 player with them. 


I'm not sure how the divide between musical and non musical runners came about, and I switch between camps depending on where I'm running, what I'm running for and who I'm running with. I also imagine distance might come into play over the next 6 months. I'm fine running a half marathon with just myself for company, but I imagine the 24th mile might be easier to complete with a little high tempo, high quality pop. For training I assume it will be essential to create the BEST PLAYLIST IN THE WORLD EVER, but for the actual race day the downside would be not hearing the crowds who line the way, so I'm not sure if an ipod would come with me on the day.


The only absolute in my shaky regime is that I cannot run on a machine without music. If I'm outside, the weather is behaving itself and I'm in a good mood then I'm often quite happy to set off with no soundtrack. It's fun take in the noise of the city as it wakes up. If I'm running in the evening however, music helps to shut out the tourist conversations and after work bitches you hear as you run alongside the hoardes outside Green Park station. 


This is a trusted running playlist that has served me well over the last year, but I'm always on the lookout for new inspiration. Most recently Robyn's Body Talk Pt 1. Fabulous for a run around the park. 

What are your running songs? Any suggestions appreciated...

The Marathon Challenge

On the 17th of April 2011 I will be running the London Marathon. According to the website that means I have 5 months, 29 days and 19 hours to prepare. 


I like running, but I'm a lazy runner. My half marathon time hovers around the 2:18 mark - making me a plodder. If I got my butt in gear and cranked up the effort I guess I could do a sub 2 hours. We'll see if that happens or not. 


For my last half marathon last week I only managed 5 training runs in the month preceding it, which was piss poor and made the run a bit more uncomfortable than it should have been. This blog will hopefully motivate me so that the same thing doesn't happen for the Marathon, because even I can see that winging 26 odd miles would be a rather stupid thing to do. 


I'll let you know how I get on. Wish me luck!