10ktober
Going sort of okay. I am now 9 days in and I am on course. It's tough though and I will certainly not be keeping up these distance beyond October. Yesterday I felt dreadful during the run. My legs were so heavy. Today's was much better and I think that the problem yesterday was that I didn't have enough rest between the interval sessions that finished at 7pm on Tuesday and my 10k run that started at 10:30am on Wednesday. When I reached 10.01km yesterday I stopped dead and walked the rest of the way home I was so tired. Today I ran the same route and ran all the way. I actually messed up a bit and forgot to start my Garmin! I have used MapMyRun to calculate that I turned on the Garmin 1.42km into the run so I have amended the distance on Garmin Connect (it's relevant for 10ktober). Technology, eh? I am totally this guy....
But I don't do selfies. Well not DURING a run anyway. Start line, yeah, of course.
10ktober is a great idea though and I am really happy that some others have been inspired to try 5ktober. Kata managed to round up some volunteers to take part and I think most of them have kept it up. Kata has certainly kept it up even running in 23c heat in Hungary! Well done!!!
Since October started it's like someone flicked a switch and now it's winter. Last day of September was nice and warm, first day of October was like winter on Neptune. I am not sure whether it is lucky or unlucky that I decided to start 10ktober. It's unlucky because now I need to run 10k every day in the cold and wet. But maybe it's lucky that I have the extra motivation needed to get me out there and KEEP me out there.
Linlithgow 10k
There is a gap in this blog which I think it is now time to address. What happened to the last of the M9 series races, the Linlithgow 10k? Well the charity ball that we were at the night before got a bit out of hand and we may have been drinking whisky in the flat at 3am. I woke up at 12:20 the following afternoon and the Linlithgow 10k was at 2pm. Even if by some miracle I was able to run 10k given the state that I was in, I was definitely in no condition to drive to Linlithgow so I went back to sleep and woke up again at 4pm. I am disappointed because I was was looking forward to it and it might be the last 10k race of the year for me, but it's my own fault so there you go. I ran around Inverlieth Park at about 4:30pm to keep the running run going - it was hard. We did have a great time at the ball and also we looked pretty awesome so that is at least some comfort!
Not the Linlithgow 10k
Music
I like to listen to music or podcasts when I got on runs. I know some people are against it, they say that it disengages you from your run, and I've even heard comments like "runners don't listen to music, joggers do". Well that's just nonsense. I don't run to be engaged in my run or to be a runner, I run because it makes me happy. And listening to music or podcasts makes me happy. What works best for me is any music that puts me in a good mood (makes sense), not particularly music of 180 bpm or whatever. Today I listened to Urban Hymns by The Verve. Not classic running music but I love it and it helps keep me up when otherwise I might be feeling sorry for myself. And when 'Lucky Man' came on I am sure I did get a bit more bounce in my step! The last song, 'Come On' has the best ending to a song (and therefore album) ever in my opinion. By the way, the best definition of the difference between jogging and running that I have ever heard, is that if you can talk at the same time then you are jogging! :-D
On the topic of music, I mentioned in the blog a while back that I got new earphones and that they were great. Well I did and they are. I got a pair of BlueAnt Pump earphones.
They look a bit like hearing aids from the 1980s.
They are not the smallest or most aesthetically pleasing earphones in the world, but they are comfortable, they don't fall out when your ears get sweaty (this can be a big problem), and the sound quality is perfectly good.
My previous pair were Jaybird Bluebud X. They looked absolutely amazing, and the sound quality was fantastic......when they were in your ears and playing music.
Earphones of The Devil
The main problem with these were that they wouldn't stay in my ears. This was only the MAIN problem. They are marketed for running and they come with various sizes of equally ineffective and uncomfortable ear grip thingies and buds. No combination of bud or grippy thingies would keep these damn thinks in my ears. My runs would be, pace, pace, pace, push earphone back in, pace pace pace, push other earphone bac...no wait now the first one is coming out again, pace, pace, push earphone....argh! The other problem was that the control was on the side of the cable and when it rained (this is a problem in Edinburgh) it would start going mental and either phoning the last person you phoned, or skipping tracks, or powering off, or whatever it felt like. And they cost a fortune. Total waste of money. Avoid.
Most Runningist Year Ever
Yeah it's going good. I am on day 126 now and have clocked up just under 930km in that time. I am much fitter and stronger than when I started, I am receiving lots of compliments and have been called inspirational by Kata and also by people that I barely know. That's really nice. Physically it's not really been a big problem, but I have found that this has been a test of will power and perseverance. To be honest that's what I expected. Well I expected it to be harder physically, but I also expected that the mental aspect would be the toughest and so it has proven. It's good because the decision is made and I don't need to decide if I am going to run today. Tiredness, bad weather, or laziness is no excuse and in fact are not even considered. The decision has been made - I am running today - I just need to do it. This challenge was the best idea I ever had.
I don't know who Jules Renard is but he makes a good point.
