They say….

that no man is an island. I am not, however, a man and I quite fancy island living.

My Horoscope for the day
Capricorn
Capricorns aren’t emotionally outgoing (you don’t say), usually showing their feelings through practical action. But bottling up emotions is counter-productive this week, so make an effort to share what’s going on inside Capricorn castle.

Fear not I have no intention of sharing what’s going on inside Capricorn castle, the draw bridge is up and there are crocodiles in the moat

My sincere apologies to The Age astronomer.

Spring into Shape - the day after
According to the official results I was the 17th female and the 5th female in my age category of 30-39

That is pretty cool, I am usually content with a top 20 finish for my age category because it tends to be a pretty competitive age bracket so to end up in top 5 makes me pretty happy.

I do like the fun runs as I can get up the pointy end and it is a confidence booster before the last round of the AV winter series next week when I get shunted back to the blunt end This doesn’t bother me by the way, I am perfectly content going out there at AV events to run my own race and be part of the team. This is what people need to realise about AV, it is inclusive and supportive regardless of what level you compete at, it just looks a little scary from the outside, but really, it isn’t.

It is going to be a light running week for me this week due to some work commitments, probably not a bad thing and not something I am going to get bent out of shape about. Brace yourselves, I am planning on going to the pool tomorrow because I am not allowed to do speedwork on the track yet instead of doing an easy run tomorrow I will go to the pool instead and do an intense 30 minute interval session. I’ll do 2 sets of 15 by 45 seconds hard and 15 seconds easy, this is one I have made up myself and it is pretty full on if done properly.

Then Wednesday it is run leading and then nothing until The Tan relay’s on Saturday morning because I will be in Sydney Thursday and Friday. No time for a run on Thursday as I have to go out for dinner with colleagues and no running on Friday because it is the day before the race, Sunday I will play by ear depending on how I pull up. Guess I’ll just chalk this up as my “easy” week, if a 35Km a week runner can have an easy week.

Yay!

I was sitting here trying to come up with a creative title, Yay! sums it up the best though.

Received a text from Jay while I was preparing my toast letting me know she had decided to come along and run the 4Km as well. Considering the ominous clouds and Jay’s legendary aversion to rain I was very impressed to turn up at Alexander Gardens and find her waiting there. Moreover she had a great run and was rightfully pleased with herself, three cheers for the return from injury girls today.

After pinning on my race number I braved the cold, stripped to my shorts and singlet and dumped my gear in the clothing tent then trotted off for a short warm up and some strides. I let the legs roll over for an easy 1Km or so, had a few runners who were not racing wish me luck which I thought was sweet then I did some strides on the grass. As I was finishing up there I ran (not literally) into Ash from my training group, he was also doing the 4Km and it was cool to catch up after being away from Tuesday nights for so long. Having just checked the preliminary results I can see he came 5th so well done!

Just prior to start time I also caught up with Andrew who was foxing and claiming to only be there to run 5 minutes Kms, yeah right Mr 18 minutes well done to you too!

On the start line the catch ups continued as I saw Kerri and her sister also ready for a 4Km hit out.

30 seconds to go and the nerves were starting to kick in. Continuing my determination to not race with pacing assistance I was not wearing the footpod that goes with my running watch, I did have the HRM on but was only displaying lap time and over all time.

My legs felt fine so I decided to go out at a good pace but as I had not run fast on a paved surface since April and have done no speedwork I was not going to give it 100%, just to play it safe.

So when Andrew cruised past me doing what I thought would be his stated 5 minute Kms I figured I was sitting at just over that pace and was happy to open with that and speed up over the second half. Based on that assumption you can imagine my surprise when I went through the first Km in 4:26 and was feeling comfortable

I am sure you are itching for me to just get to the point, so I will

18:17 which is a very solid personal average (thanks Ewen) 27 seconds slower than PB and 22 seconds faster than PW

Splits
4:26
4:49 (think I had a mini crisis of confidence here after a great opening Km)
4:30
4:32

The Preliminary results are up and at the moment I am 9th female, however there were a few gaps in the results so I may slip, if I end up in the top 10 for my age category I am happy, 2 minutes 9 seconds separated me from the 1st chick.

Over the course of the race I targeted a few girls ahead of me, I do this to keep my mind off things, in the last 800 metres I caught my last target coming up the hill next to the Transport Bar, I rule that little hill I have run it countless times. The final 300 metres were pretty generous because they were down hill, I really wanted to open up but held it back, again just not wanting to hammer my legs down a paved hill. The finish was a bit funny though because you had to turn left at a right angle about 20 metres out, very odd and very annoying because it mucks up your rhythm. I was steadily overtaking a guy over the last 100 metres but he kicked out at the end to beat me by .05 of a second, guess he just didn’t want to be beaten by a girl. I am surprised at how comfortably I ran today, I pushed the pace but it wasn’t flat out, I felt great right to the finish.

But here is the best news!!!

NO finish line dry retching, it was on my mind but it didn’t happen! I was engaging my self in constant positive self chat along the way, especially the last Km, even trying to trick myself that it was a 5Km race. I am not sure what the difference was but it was nice not to finish a race with my hand over my mouth and everyone getting out of my way.

You know, despite the company of the ever wonderful Jo I had some pretty dark days there in the pool. Some afternoons when I was doing it on my own I would sit in the change room feeling very despondent and it took every ounce of will power I had to drag myself into the pool for my workout, wondering if it was all worth it.

My advice to anyone who is injured and out for a couple of months, get in the pool and deal with it, it works and your discipline will be rewarded, had I done nothing for 3 months I doubt I would have run as well or as comfortably today.

Oh yeah, finished with a cool down lap of The Tan before heading home for my Weet-Bix.

PS - I wore my new Saucony Grid Tangents today, took a risk on them even though they have no Kms in them yet. They are a light weight trainer (255gm) not a racing flat, but I don’t wear true flats to race in anyway. I was very impressed with them, great cushioning and support for a light shoe and very comfortable, considering I picked them up for $65 I am very pleased.

Settle Petal

It is entirely possible that sometimes I panic a wee bit too much.

Yes there is some tenderness on my left leg, above the ankle, but on closer inspection today there is also a bruise on the exact spot. Nice one Em, it is not unusual for me to get the odd bruise after a massage and quite a bit of work was done on that particular spot on Thursday. Chalk that one up to another over reaction

That is just the frustrating aspect of injury, there are no definites and for someone who likes to deal in certainties it has been a difficult couple of months.

I still erred on the side of caution and took a rest day today, despite being desperate for a short run to clear the cobwebs. I think at this stage of the game I should chuck in a rest day before and after a hard session or a race, just to be sure.

I am looking forward to tomorrow though, I’ll do a warm up and some strides and then just play the 4Km by ear, I’ll go out hard and see what my body wants to give me. Feeling a tad moody this weekend though so I’ll opt for a quiet prep and hopefully see if there is anyone to catch up with afterwards. Pretty confident I won’t disgrace myself too badly, certainly not in PB shape but don’t think I am in PW shape either.

I spent quite a bit of time today organising my photo folder on my laptop, I seem to have amassed quite a few over the last year. Have only taken a handful with the new camera so far……

The Gymea Lillies in Birrarung Marr are in flower at the moment, they really are the most spectacular plant, I think they look quite primeval.

This giant lego man made from milk crates popped up on the wall near where I park my car each day.

Here is where I start most of my runs, it’s pretty awful isn’t it It’s a park in Melbourne called Birrarung Marr, it used to be Batman Ave where the trams ran up Swan Street into the city. Years ago when I lived in Richmond I used to ride my bike up that way every day on my way to work. The Elm trees were always there, they just build the park right over the road and the tram tracks. I’ll be running up there tomorrow for the last 1.5Km of the race (though not that exact spot, we take a detour)

And this is for all you folks running on October 7th, whether is be the Marathon, Half, 10Km or 5.5Km, we will all have to run up the William Barak (sp) bridge in the final 1.5Km or so

I love my new camera.

A bit wobbly today

Time – 53:52
Distance – 9.8Km
Avg Pace – 5:29
Avg HR – 82%

I ran before work today, getting started at about 6:15. The conditions were perfect and on the way in I was contemplating running a good portion of the Melbourne Marathon 10Km route as I have entered this event. I park at Federation Square which is about 1Km from the start line.

I just wasn’t feeling the love this morning though and ended up just running up to The Tan, doing a lap and a bit and heading back to my car. A combination of a pretty hard massage last night and a shit nights sleep (rare for me) and I was feeling unco and couldn’t find my rhythm, my average HR was also too high for what is usually a very easy pace for me.

Whatever, not every run is perfect and the omen is good for Sunday because I usually have a cracker of a run after a crap one. In hindsight I should have cut it short but I think somehow fate was on my side after what happened when I got to work.

I hit the change room and was mucking about laying out my clothes and doing some stretches when the evacuation alarm went off. I am a fire warden but heading up to my floor was out of the question as people were already leaving as the upper floors were already evacuating, we had done enough drills and I was sure anyone already at work on my floor would be fine.

I spent about 20 minutes shivering on the footpath in my shorts, fortunately I did have a running jacket on, before I realised it was the real deal and decided to camp out in a café for a while and have my morning coffee.

2 hours, a flat white, long macchiato, toast and jam and The Age later and we were allowed back in the building. So if I had have cut my run short and got to work a bit earlier I would have been IN the shower when the alarms when off, now that would have been a right old spot of bother.

I was planning on an easy 20 minute run tomorrow morning as I would normally do this the day before a race, but right now I don’t think I will. After a pretty good week last week I am feeling a tad insecure about things this week, kind of like I have been doing too well. I am particularly conscious of my left leg as the injury was worse there, I had the definite hot spot around the middle of my shin and a lump now where the bone has healed (granted this is rapidly diminishing). However I also have persistent tightness in my left shin, just above my ankle joint on the inside. It is quite tender today but I think that is due to last nights massage, it has not bothered me when I am running and I have mentioned it to the Doctor and she is not concerned. Having said all that it is still something that worries me, I guess it is just a legacy of the injury and it will settle with time. Because I am still massaging it myself every night and I pretty in tune with what feels right and am encouraged by the fact that I can’t fell any swelling and the shin feels nice and smooth, not all nasty and corrugated like it did a few months ago.

I guess I am a bit tired and emotional today and feeling a little hyper sensitive. My recovery has been cautious, measured and positive, I am just having a day of insecurity and need to be told every thing will be OK

Now to far more exciting matters, my sister is getting married next March and I am her Maid of Honour, she does not mind what dress I wear as long as it is black. I have a short list but this little number from SABA is currently top of the list.

And No, this is not me

About as deep as a puddle

A rather odd phenomenon (that really is an annoying word to spell) that can be observed amongst those of us of the fairer sex is that when we spend too much time together we have a habit of synching up our cycles.

I experienced this in high school with my best mate and now that I have been sitting next to a colleague for almost 4 years we have also realised that dual visits to the charity chocolate box peak markedly at the same time every month, not to mention the feral moods and heightened level of bitchy conversation on the morning coffee run.

Which lead me to ponder last week, in one of my many daily bouts of staring out the window and day dreaming, on the rather frightening implications of this natural wonder on the conditions inside women’s prisons

Could you imagine a couple of hundred hardened female criminals all experiencing PMT at the same time! Be very afraid of any women wanting to know if the orange overalls make her bum look big or if the fluro lights wash out her complexion, JUST SAY NO, don’t make eye contact and back away slowly, for added protection extend your hand and offer a Snickers.

I can just see the head warden down at the local 7-11, terrified and shaking, “quick, we need 100 family sized blocks of Cadbury’s Dairy Milk, all the Magnums you have there in the freezer and while you are at it chuck all those tins of Pringles as well, and for pity’s sake HURRY UP, I’ve left Fred back there on his own with just a packet of fun sized Milky Ways”

I really need to stop daydreaming, the most appalling drivel pops into my mind.

Some people would use the time to solve complex ethical conundrums (butter or margarine), contemplate their place in the universe (not too close to the hot bit but not too far away either, just right really) or at least try to design a better mousetrap (get a cat).

Instead I am either thinking about Craig Mottram’s legs or wondering what happens in Women’s prisons if they all get PMT at the same time.

And my poor mother worked her fingers to the bone to send me private school

For shame

I am not running today, ‘tis a rest day and I have a massage right after work.

Because I don’t have enough…

..pairs of running shorts

I bought 2 new pairs today. I am starting to get all dizzy about summer and I was in Rebel to buy socks because I left mine home today. Somehow I ended up in the running clothes section and I bought the cutest pairs of Asics and New Balance shorts, they are super light weight and perfect for summer training and racing, there isn’t much to them but they were both very comfy. Even though I am carrying a couple of extra Kgs I could still get into my usual size and for some reason as I am able to run more and more I am feeling better about myself and am happy to wear short shorts again.

I took some happy snaps today but I am short on time so will have to upload them on the weekend.

Today’s run was as the 5Km group run leader
Distance - 5.8Km
Time - 34:08
Avg Pace - 5:53
Avg HR - 72%

Love you and leave you, Spicks and Specs is on now.

Say Cheese

Time - 42:45
Dist - 8Km
Avg Pace - 5:20
Avg HR - 80%

Great conditions for a run this afternoon, because I started work early I got my run started at 230pm, the rain held off and it was lovely and cool. I cruised pretty comfortably and did about 5 strides on the grass towards the end.

I had planned on running before work today, but owing to the fact that my Sydney colleague was suffering from his usual post long weekend “flu” I had to fill in for some early morning UAT (that’s User Acceptance Testing). I don’t have any drama’s with this at all, anyone who knows me knows that I am more than happy to put my hand up to help out when it is needed, also the early start meant I knocked off nice and early too. I am just peeved at the constant calling in sick on a Monday that seems to happen. Especially after I dragged myself to work twice last week with monster cramps when I really would have been better off home with codeine and a hot water bottle, but I am the only Melbourne rep and was required in deck in case APEC caused any issues in Sydney.

I needed to be at work for a 6am start, I drove myself as usual but could not use my usual car park as they don’t open until 6am, luckily there was a 24 hour car park opposite. Seems though that 530am is considered too early for early bird and it ended up costing me $43 instead of $12, I’ll be claiming that on expenses!

Then at the office I get into an argument with security. I am supposed to have 24 by 7 access to by building and have been in at odd hours plenty of times before, but a few months ago I needed a new card and somehow my access was mucked up. I couldn’t get in the main door at 5:45am so I buzzed security and they said I couldn’t get in until 6am. I pleaded my case and said I needed to get my PC logged on by 6am and could someone come let me in and escort me to my floor, after all in 15 minutes I would be considered “authorised”.

Sorry, out of the question I said “you are happy to let me stand out here in the dark for 15 minutes on my own?”, apparently I had nothing to worry about, they could see me on CCTV, gee that made me feel better. The lazy bastards just couldn’t be bothered getting off their fat arses to let me in that was all, my level of confidence that they would help me if someone started to hassle me was not high.

Sheesh, great start to the day, stupid car park people not validating me for early bird parking because I was too early and stupid lazy security guards. Nothing pisses me off more than rigid people who refuse to bend the rules, I bend the rules every day, I am definitely a let’s look at his from all angles person, not a what does it say in the rule book person.

I ended up buying myself a digital camera today. I got myself a nice bargain as they were running out stock to make way for a new model, the only difference being that the new one comes with a choice of case colours. For the sake of saving $115 I am more than happy to go with the standard metallic blue case that was on offer. I got an Olympus because my last camera (a museum piece point and shoot that took, gasp, FILM) was also Olympus and it served me well for years without a hassle. Because I am a total clutz I got one that is shock proof, it can be dropped (I will drop it), waterproof to 10 metres and crush proof to 100Kg (for when I inevitably put it in my pocket and sit on it), here ’tis.

Problem is I have no patience for manuals and the like and am a bit tired so I’ll have a play with it tomorrow when I am more on the ball and figure out how it works, I have never owned a digital camera before, I am sure it is no harder than using a mobile phone.

Get ready for a more picturesque Emruns from now on

Self Belief

After running 3 consecutive days for the first time since late April today was most definitely a rest day. I was very nervous this morning taking those first few steps out of bed, part of me was expecting that old familiar pain to come back, thankfully it didn’t. I was equally cautious on the walk from the car park to the office, in the early days of my injury this was a slow painful walk as my legs woke up to the day, especially when I was walking up stairs, again, thankfully no problems.

I am enjoying learning to run within myself, I have been a slave to the footpod since I started using it in late 2005. It is a great tool and I wouldn’t be without it, I love being able to know instantly how far I ran, my heart rate info and average pace etc, however it can also have a negative impact. Being able to see real time how far you have gone and what pace you are on can crush you further if you are having a crap day, encourage poor training habits (oh, better grind out and extra 300 mtres or 1.5Km to round out the distance) or invoke disbelief in your ability (wow, I am running that pace, I am not good enough to sustain that better slow down).

The footpod is here to stay but I have changed the way I use it. I no longer have it set to display real time distance and pace, it is now set to show heart rate, stopwatch and time of day. Therefore when I ran yesterday it was purely on feel, had I been looking at the real time pace it would have become an obsession and taken over the workout. I’d have thought “Yikes, that is way too fast, I can’t sustain that better adjust my pace”, instead I just went for it, backing off if I was labouring too hard and picking up again when I felt good. For a very brief moment there yesterday I even felt a return of my blessed running on clouds feeling when it all just feels so perfect and I know I am hitting the pace perfectly

I am learning to believe what I am capable of, trust the feedback I am getting from my body and to run in the moment.

Late last year I had already decided that the footpod was not going to be used in races so I could learn to self pace, unfortunately I just haven’t had much of a chance to race since then , but letting go of it in training has been a great decision as well. This is why there are no more round figures in my running log, because I am running to time or a planned route in my head, the distance will be what it will be.

Alot of people tried to soothe me when I was first injured with platitudes along the lines of “you will come back stronger”, “you will learn from this”, “it will make you a better runner”. At the time I was pretty grumpy about the whole thing and just didn’t want to know about it.

Guess what

I am coming back stronger
I have learned from the experience
It has made me a better (and smarter) runner

With a new approach to training and a new philosophy I have a renewed enthusiasm and a self belief that I didn’t possess 6 months ago.

Why would I believe that I can’t run 10Km in 42 minutes or 21.1 in 90 minutes?

Who says I can’t?

Why can’t I?

Of course I bloody can!

I have the drive and the will to train.

If you believe that something is impossible then of course it is.

If you believe something is impossible then you have defeated yourself before you have even started.

I believe in myself.

And that is all that matters to me.

Think I must have had a “seen the light” moment today

I am not even going to proof read this post, let the stream of consciousness stand as is

Nailed it!

It’s all Running Today
Time - 30 minutes
Dist - 6.4Km
Avg Pace - 4:42
Avg HR - Forgot my monitor today

The AV half marathon was on this morning and the day started super early with me getting out of bed at about 5:45, call me strange but I love this time of day, especially at the moment with the sun coming up early. I got my breakfast picnic stuff ready then straightened my hair because I decided I would wear it down for a change, then only 2 people noticed

I picked Jo up and drove to Richmond, parking near a club mates house, catching her on the way out we walked down to the start line together. It was an absolutely stunning morning, the sun was shining and the Yarra River looked like glass. I had a quick chat with some team mates, grabbed one of our runners special drinks to hand to her during the race, then gathered the walking wounded and found a space on the sidelines to spread out the picnic blankets.

We had a great little group there with Sam, Jo, Sara and Mick from my club, we cracked the champagne, got stuck into the snacks and sat back to enjoy the race. We marveled at Lee Troop as he literally came gliding by us, he looked totally at ease and made absolutely no noise on the road as he ran. I almost dropped the ball immediately as my charge ran up and I forgot her special drink bottle so was extra diligent from then on, though I did have a small argument with an official who didn’t want me standing near the people handing out water.

Also pretty sure I saw John of JRuns fame out there, but he wizzed by so quick I missed him, then got caught up in festivities and didn’t catch him again. Most definitely saw Steve as he cruised to a comfortable PB, well done mate

My team mates were very well behaved, which is more than I can say for those unruly Coburg and Knox runners who saw fit to chuck cups of water at us

My legs were itching though, I wanted so badly to be out there having a run too, I miss HMs.

My own run this afternoon was bloody brilliant though, a real confidence booster. I decided on a 30 minute hard run, my legs felt fine so the plan was to go hard and play it by ear, it was beyond tempo run pace it was pretty much time trial, just to see how badly my speed had degenerated.

Turns out things aren’t so bad after all -
1km - 4:44
2km - 4:46 (9:20)
3Km - 4:30 (13:50)
4Km - 4:42 (18:32)
5Km - 4:52 (23:24)
6Km - 4:48 (28:13)
400mtre - 1:50 (30:02)

Don’t get me wrong, it fecking hurt, I wasn’t out there cruising it, but I was stoked to see the final results. I didn’t have my watch set to show pace so I was running purely on feel, I honestly though that the pace was going to be more like 4:55 to 5:00.

I was starting to feel very nervous about the Spring into Shape 4Km next week, thinking I’d be lucky to finish in 20 minutes. Now it looks like I will be able to run somewhere halfway between my worst 4km (18:40) and my best (17:40).

So despite the fact that I was the human garbage bin today and pretty much inhaled food all day I am feeling pretty damn chuffed with myself after the run I just had

I finished this week with 5 runs, 2 consecutive days a rest then 3 consecutive days and 36.5Km all up.

Feeling like a real runner again.

Now the damn Ausrun Forum has been down all weekend, I can’t play with my imaginary friends.

30K, wow

Running
This really is the most perfect time of the year

Time - 62 minutes
Distance - 10.4Km
Avg Pace - 5:58
Avg HR - 74%

I did my long run for the week today, 62 minutes leading the 10Km group in and around Jells Park for Start to Finish. There was a 7Km group and we all stuck together for the first section before the 10Km group split off for another 3Km. I ended up with 4 people and everyone was around the same pace so we were able to finish the run as a group. Sue from the forum was able to come along today so it was great to catch up and have a natter while we were running.

Jells is one of my favourite places to run because the terrain is varied, there are a few hills and even though the park is slap bang in the middle of suburbia you can almost believe you are out in the country somewhere, if you ignore the great big electricity pylons

For once I wasn’t whingeing about being cold, even though it was only about 11 degrees at 830 this morning we were standing in the sun and you just knew it was going to be a beautiful day.

Now I am pretty confident that I am going to be able to have a little run tomorrow afternoon as well. I have been on 4 days a week for 2 weeks now and think I can manage 5 days this week, this also means 2 consecutive days, a rest and then 3 consecutive days. All my running this week has been very easy and gentle so tomorrow I am aiming for a 30 minute session only but I will run it Fartlek style as I need to start introducing some speedier sessions. This will also give me around the 36Km I was aiming for this week. I expect that as long as I am feeling fine that next week will be a repeat of this week in workout style and distance.

Frivolity
I was in Dick Smith today and almost bought a digital camera but I held back. It is pretty nifty though, it was really tiny and thin and would be easy enough to even take on a run if I was out somewhere scenic and wanted to take some snaps. I don’t own a digital camera and it is on sale for another 2 weeks so I’ll have a think about it.

Well, I have a big day tomorrow, up at the crack of a sparrows to pick Jo up on the way to the AV Half Marathon in Burnley. I was really looking forward to this one, with a good winter season behind me I was optimistic that I would be getting my sub 100 minute HM goal, especially as it is a pretty flat course. Still, not to be, that goal will have to wait until next year. So to console ourselves Jo and I have planned a bit of a Champagne breakfast, along with Sara and anyone else who is sidelined on the day is welcome to join in. I bought myself some dinky little bottles of bubbly and some flouro straws, as well as some cheese and dips.

After that I am visiting a friend in the afternoon who recently had her third baby I know 3, who has that many these days? I tell her that she is making up for me. I am such a slack arse friend though, she had the baby 2 weeks ago and I only spoke to her on Thursday when she rang me, I know, bad bad bad, I am not good with this baby stuff.

Oh yeah, seems I have almost clocked up 30,000 hits to the blog, who the heck reads this???

I have been waiting patiently for a Vladimir Putin sunbaking on Bondi Beach glamour shot, doesn’t seem to have materialised yet

Then again the dude used to be KGB, perhaps I should stop poking fun before, hang on, there is a knock on the door………………………….