Tuesday trot

Wednesday, June 28, 2006
5km | Easy Week 6 of 11 Since Saturday I have spent morning and night icing, stretching and popping pills to fix my achilles niggle. I had decided yesterday that I should spend the week spinning instead of running but walking home last night it felt OK so I decided to go for a slow run after dinner. Whilst I had to stop and stretch a few times it felt pretty good and I got through it without too much dramas. Having said that I did have a few stiff muscles in other parts of my old ever falling apart body that restricted my movement every now and then. These other niggles will need my attention over the next few days as well. Still, I remain confident that I will be able to make Striders on Saturday for a spin around Olympic Park. Mood: --->

Heartbreaker

Monday, June 26, 2006
16.5km | Easy Week 6 of 11 I met Dawn Runner & Blkbox bright and early on Saturday for our C2S training run. This week we decided to run out towards Vaucluse including Heartbreak Hill. It seemed to be the walking wounded, Blkbox has had a tummy bug all week, Dawn Runner hadn't been doing much lately and was missing some serious mojo and I was still wheezing and coughing a bit and also hadn't been doing much of late. We worked our way up along Centennial Park and down to Edgecliff and along New South Head Road to Rose Bay. There we stood at the foot of Heartbreak Hill and ambled up. This is where Blkbox's tummy bug caught up with him so with him cramping a bit we had a stop/start affair going up the hill. I didn't find it all that bad but admit that I was sucking in the big ones by the time I reached the top. From Vaucluse we took the downhill route to Rose Bay and then up to Bellevue Hill. Here the cramps haunted Blkbox again so we took it pretty easy through Bondi and back down the Queens Park. Heading up Birrell Street past Waverley College, I noticed my right calf complaining a bit and stopped and stretched. It seems that whatever stretching I did at that point stuffed my achilles because I am now limping about (groan). Hopefully this achilles strain will sort itself out with ice, massage and voltaren quickly so that I can do a few runs this week leading up to Striders on the weekend. It's funny how I overcome one problem and then another one presents itself promptly just to keep life interesting. Mood: --->

Bondi bumble

Wednesday, June 21, 2006
10km | Easy Week 5 of 11 After the usual nighttime kid wrangling, I didn't get out the door until well after 9.00pm last night. My mojo has somewhat returned but a tummy full of spaghetti boscaiola all but nullified that. After my over heating experience on Sunday I just ran in a singlet and felt far more comfortable this time around. I headed down to Bondi Beach via the Junction and Bondi Road. You'd think that there had been a evacuation down at Bondi as I seemed to be the only one down there. Even the die hard kids on the skateboard rink had abandoned the beach for a warmer alternative. I ran it slow but probably picked up the pace a little on the homeward leg. My chest is feeling much better (I still have a residual dry cough every now and then) and I'm feeling that my fitness is returning slowly. Things should be back to normal by this time next week I hope. Mood: --->

Sunday run

Monday, June 19, 2006
7km | Easy Week 4 of 11 I didn't get out the door until just before 6.00pm. A combination of family commitments and lack of mojo had me procrastinating big time. My head cold has left me and what remains is a just occasional dry cough. I ran in a long sleeve dri-fit and soon got really hot. By the time I got to Aussie Stadium I had my shirt off tied around my waist. I must have looked pretty stupid to the motorists in Moore Park Road running shirtless in the dark in 5 degrees. I wasn't cold so that was the main thing. I started feeling tired about the time I got to Centennial Park so I decided to bail out and cut the last 3km from the 10km loop. I didn't mind. The only thing that I could think about was how much I missed running. Mood: --->

Easing my way back ..

Wednesday, June 14, 2006
5km | Easy Week 4 of 11 Still feeling weak and certainly missing a whole heap of mojo, I ventured out for a lazy 5km. The cold night air didn't help my cough, which is certainly better but not althogether gone. Mood: --->

Back from the brink

Monday, June 12, 2006
3km | Easy Week 4 of 11 Feeling weak and still effected by the nasty lurgy, I ventured out for a few KMs on the grass. Not problems except that I got very tired very quickly. I will take it slowly this week and feel my way back into it. Mood: --->

Under orders

Thursday, June 08, 2006
Week 3 of 11 Well my cough from last week is now officially bronchitis. I have been told that if i run this week I could risk getting pneumonia. So how about a little run I asked ? Don't be a fool. A walk ? Nope. Spinning ? Not even that. Not happy Jan. Mood: --->

Opera House Run

Monday, June 05, 2006
16.72km | LSD Week 2 of 11 I met CooRunners BlkBox, Sydney Gal & Dawn Runner at the Darley Road gates of Centennial Park bright and early. The heavy rain from the night before had petered out and the cloud cover kept the temperature to double figures. This made perfect running weather. We ran the same route as a week or two ago; through Centennial Park and then down to the city via Oxford Street, then down to the harbour, Farm Cove, Woolloomooloo and then back to the park via Randwick Race Course. Last time we ran this route my GPS measured it at bang on 15km, but Google Earth plotted it at 16.72km this morning. I think it was overcast last time we ran so GPS drop outs may play a part in the discrepancy. Who knows which is correct ? We all ran at a comfortable pace and reached the Opera House in about 40 minutes I think. I felt very tight in the calves and hammies again and had to stop and stretch once or twice to loosen up. By the time we got to Anzac Parade my calves were complaining a fair bit as was Dawn Runner's ankle. Blkbox suggested that Dawn Runner walk for a spell so Sydney Gal and I headed back to Centennial Park solo. We even ramped it up a notch or two for the last Km. I finished feeling OK but admittedly was hobbling around most of Saturday afternoon with stiff and sore muscles. Note: More stretching required Marty ! Mood: --->

Bondi run

Friday, June 02, 2006
9.5km | easy Week 2 of 11 Yes I'm still coughing. Interestingly, my cough goes away when I run. So the quickish run down to Bondi and back last night felt pretty good. I did feel tightness in the hammies and calves at times, but that was remedied with some intermittent stretching. Bondi was really beautiful. The cold kept the walkers/tourists away, so apart from the kids in the skateboard park, the boardwalk and surrounds were all mine. Now that my niggles from April have subsided, I'm thinking I will head down to the sand next week for a play. I think I need more sand running to work on my core strength. ======================= FAT FRIDAY ! Weight @ 01/01/06: 83.0kg Weight last week: 75.6kg Weight this week: 75.7kg Comment: Hey ! Not my fault. You know how it is: Feed a cold, starve a fever. ;-) ======================= Mood: --->

Wednesday winge

Thursday, June 01, 2006
6.5km | easy Week 2 of 11 I adore my kids, yet in the winter they test my love as they turn into indiscriminate disease carrying vectors. Leaving me to sniffle and cough through most of early winter. They seem to throw a cold in 48 hours, whereas Dad is forced to endure the symptoms for a week at a time. Next winter will be different:-
  • All children will be required to be hosed down with military grade antibacterial solution before close contact with their Father can be permitted.
  • Night time book reading shall be conducted only under the Get Smart designed cone of silence or by web cam.
  • Good night kisses shall be banned and blown kisses may only be permitted if the child is wearing a properly adjusted surgical mask.
  • All clothes, bed sheets and towels used by the child shall be promptly incinerated after single use.
I did run last night by the way. Easy run. No niggles to report. So I'm feeling good from the chest down. Right now I'm not exactly feeling well enough to race at Striders Lane Cove. So I'm thinking I might tag along with Blkbox on his Saturday amble instead. Mood: --->