Category: Running

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Goals, aims and targets – 2018

2018 has arrived, so now it’s time set my goals, aims and targets for the next twelve months.

  • Run 10 Km in fewer minutes than my age in years. This one is my “biggie” for the year. Its doable, but by no means a given. Am targeting the Glastonbury 10K – conveniently after my birthday – but there are other events if I fail first time round. Will need to average 4 min 53 sec per Km – achievable on the flat, but on in an incline …
  • Run 400 Km. Nearly hit that total in 2017, should be able to do so on 2018, particularly given the goal above.
  • Swim 100 Km (3,000 lengths). An achievable, but not a given. If I swim regularly should be no problem. Swim at least once a week.
  • Spinning. Spin for a total of 2 days (48 hours)
  • Weight. I finished 2017 with a long term established weight of 12 stone 9, and I have allowed it to creep up over the Christmas period into the 13 stone bracket. Need to get that down. 12 stone 6 as my long term established weight is the goal.
  • Garden. Enjoy it! Less construction and landscaping required this year (but some still needed) Grow sunflowers and sweat peas (in addition to some basic veg)
  • My maths blog – keep blogging. Write a new post at least once per month, and write a minimum of 15 posts over the course of the year.
  • Sleep. A somewhat nebulous aim, but when I think about it, sleep – or perhaps I should say tiredness – is the thing I’d like to change most about my life this year. No target, but I shall aim to think about my sleep, my patterns and routines and what I can do to improve it/get more of it/reduce/manage my tiredness.
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2017 – How did I do?

So how did I do?

At the start of the year, here, I listed my goals, aims and targets for the year. 2016 now draws to a close – time to review how I did …

  • Run 300Km – a much lower target than I set myself last year, but not a target I met, completing 296 Km in 2016.  Should be do-able despite the demands on my time from other physical pursuits (swimming, spinning, referee-ing and who knows what for 2017) Smashed it. Ran 390 Km, running for 1 day 7 hours and 15 minutes. My only disappointment was I didn’t break the 400K mark. Was all set to do so, when on the Friday before Christmas, I tore/pulled/tweaked my hamstring refereeing and I haven’t been able to run since.
  • Run up the Tor. In the summer of 2016, when I was regularly running, I set myself this goal for 2017: to run from home to the tor, run all the way up the tor, and then run back again. This is a tough ask, particularly as I am not running as much as I did last year. Would be a real achievement to do so. If I don’t write it down, it wont happen.  Think I’ll have to target the summer hols to do it, if I’m going to do it. Not even close. Didn’t even contemplate this once during the year. Perhaps a goal to keep on the back burner?
  • Swim 150Km (4,500) lengths.  Toyed with putting in a higher total – I did 200Km, 6000 lengths in 2016, but don’t think I’ll be swimming as much this year as last, so have given myself a very achievable target to ensure that I do make it. Swam much less this year, probably falling into fourth place as activity of choice, after referring, running, and spinning. However, still managed to swim 2244 lengths – 74.8Km – over the course of 1 day, 4 hours and 15 mins.
  • Gardening: 2016 was all about the structure of the garden, this year I hope to focus more on the planting. So this year I want to: plant raspberry canes & rhubarb, grow and eat runner beans, peas, courgette and onions and grow some sweet peas and sunflowers. Raspberry canes and rhubarb planted, along with beans, peas & courgettes which were all grown and eaten. No sweet peas or sunflowers, though.  Need to make them a target for next year. Built the deck where the old summer house was, really enjoyed the garden this year: creating it, tending it and just sitting in it.
  • Refereeing – enter the promotion programme from Level 7 to Level 6.  Promotion year runs from March to Feb so won’t be able to clinch promotion in 2017, but hopefully will be a significant way down the track. Decided against entering the promotion scheme, it would have been difficult to have got in the required 20 Open Age games as I’m not normally available on Saturdays.  Refereed circa 60 games and 7 as Assistant Referee. Did a couple of cup finals.  Have continued to enjoy it, but not so sure I want to give up every term time Sunday to the whistle, have started to limit my availability.
  • Weight: before the Christmas excesses, I would say that my “normal” weight was 12 stone 7 (today its up around 12 stone 12).  I aim to be back at 12 stone 7 within 3 weeks and establish 12 stone 6 as my “normal” weight (normal weight: allows a swing of 3 lbs each way, so range between 12 3 and 12 9 following a festival of feasting) Weight has crept up, and needs to be kept in check.  Quoting my TwiXmas weight as 13 stone 0 and my long term weight in the last few months of the year was 12 stone 9.
  • My maths blog: this was an aim I failed last year, and want to rectify again.  Write at least twice a month on my maths blog – A Maths Teacher Writes Not bad – 15 posts this year, so not twice a month, but a good healthy number of posts.

Another successful year. Other key highlights from 2017 include:

  • Attending school reunion. Hard to believe it was 30 years since we left, was great to reconnect with so many from my formative years. A highlight of the year. Blogged about it here.
  • Sophie passed her driving test in March
  • Becky shut up shop, closing her dots and spots business in April
  • The silver Nissan Almera died, and we replaced it with the soft top Mini – our mid-life crisis car.
  • No mention of spinning in my targets for 2017, but I pushed the pedals for just shy of two days: 1 day 23 hours and 15 mins in the saddle, burning a total of 38,901 calories.
  • YOGA – took up yoga this year. One of the best things I have done in a long while. I’m far more supple than I was this time last year and, despite being a big cynic when I first took to the mat, I’m beginning to see the benefits of its relaxation and mindfulness. Meditate on that!
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Age of Consent – New Order

Track of the week 5/11/17

I’d like to think that I’d thought long and hard about this week’s TotW before deciding on this, but no, it’s just one of those happy coincidences.

I’ve been listening to this a lot this week and resolved to make it track of the week when I realised there was a certain synergy, what with it being Sophie’s 18th Birthday weekend, and reaching the age of consent.

I love the high tempo and energy of this track.  I’ve never seen a video for it, but in my head throughout the song we watch someone running – from what and to where we don’t know, but just an ever changing vista as our running runs through fields, urban landscapes, the beach – ever where and nowhere.

Have bought the track on iTunes and have added it to my running playlist – where will it take me?

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Major Milestones

Running shoes

Two major milestones met this week:

  • On Monday (28th Aug) I completed a cumulative 24 hours of running
  • Today (Sat 2 Sep) I completed a cumulative 300 Km of running

So, as of today, this year I have run 304 Km in 24 hours 41 mins, which equates to an average speed of 4 min 52 secs per Km.

Other stats of note – I hit a whole day (24 hours) of spinning on 14th July.

My swimming has been put on the back burner a bit – I haven’t swum since 22nd July (have spun twice a week, ref-ed twice a week and run either once or twice a week since then.)  Swimming stats are currently: 1656 lengths, or 55.2 Km, in 20 hours 44 mins.

Some interesting metrics – will be interesting to see when I hit these milestones next year, and to also compare my stats at the end of the Summer hols.

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New PB!

Pic of the week 11/6/17

I could have written this week about the election, how the Conservatives blew it with arrogance and turned a majority into a hung parliament.  I could have written a long discourse on what I thought the future might hold, and I was tempted to do so.

But then I hit the streets this morning and recorded a new personal best for 5K, 6K, 7K and 8K and that is far more impressive than Jeremy Corbyn’s meteoric rise to almost being in power.

Other than the last couple of hilly kilometers, I was pretty consistently hitting 4 mins 40 for each k, resulting in times of:

  • 5K 23min 20 sec
  • 6K 28 min 00 Sec
  • 7K 32 min 59 sec
  • 8K 37 min 55 sec

… new pb’s each one of them.

Chuffed!

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May Stats

Running shoes

Exercise Stats May ’17

May was a transitional month, seeing the football season come to a close, freeing up Sunday’s for running.  I did a fair bit of running in the month, but was surprised to see that May accounts for nearly a third of my miles run so far this year. I’m on course to hit my year’s target of 300Km run.

Swimming, however, is someway of my annual target of 150Km/4,500 lengths. Again, May has accounted for nearly a third of my swimming so far this year.

Spinning – missed one Friday evening class this month (Millfield football annual curry night), but made up by doing an extra class in half term.

Referee-ing – has now finished, but the first couple of weekends saw me officiate three times (all on cup finals) – one middle and two assistants.

Yoga – no stats for this, but have “yoga-ed” on three Wednesdays in the month, enjoying the the stretching and building core strength.

Running:

Ran 42.3 Km (Year: 144.82) Six runs

Swimming:

Swam 300 lengths/10Km (Year: 1038 lengths/34.6Km) Eight Swims

Spinning:

Calories: 2465 (Year: 13972) 4 Spins

Referee-ing:

1 Middle 2 Assistants

 

 

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8K Splits

Rather pleased with myself today – went for a run, my normal 7K loop with an extra K on the end by running the Elmhurst cycle.

Each KM split was sub 5 minutes, a first.

Did the 8Ks in 38:32, quite an impressive time.

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So that was the Easter Hols

Pic(s) of the week 23/4/17

So today sees the end of the Easter hols.

Its been a great few weeks, with fantastic weather – it may have rained one day in the first week (but I’m not sure) but other than that its been as dry as a bone and unseasonably warm and sunny – perfect for enjoying the garden.

And I have enjoyed the garden – building the new deck where the summer house was last year and doing some planting – a couple of hydrangeas in front of the deck, strawberries, raspberry canes (although most don’t seem to be showing any signs of life), courgettes, aubergines and squash (I think the cucumber fell victim to slugs last night) hostas  … all is starting to look good, although temperatures are set to plummet next week – hope everything survives.

The end of dots of spots, the end of an era.  Quite a bit of time was spent over at the unit, moving and clearing stuff and stock. Thursday was a bit of a manic day, but at last the shelves are empty. Still a few lose ends to tie up, but the business is now closed. Very proud of Becky and what she achieved over those 8+ years, and equally proud of the sensible and pragmatic way that she decided “enough was enough” and it was time to shut up shop.

The Mini! Swapped the big Nissan Almera Tino for a less practical convertible mini, but my, it looks good! who needs a big family car? Not us any more.

Exercise: Have kept myself fit – have done 5 games (4 middles, 1 line) including a cup semi final today, ran 39.5Km in 5 runs, spun 5 times (burning off 2,925 calories), but only swum once, a measly 30 lengths (1Km).

(Reasonably) looking forward to the start of term tomorrow – 5 weeks, then 4 weeks doesn’t seem too daunting, no football to organise week in, week out and nearly all of my classes working towards GCSE, AS or A Level exams – easy street ’till the long Summer holidays!

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Half Term

Pic of the week 19/2/17

So half term has been and gone. A contradictory week full of exercise and rest, of freezing cold and warm sunshine. The need for sleep was satiated, with lovely lie ins until at least 8.00 am each day.  Not sure how I’ll cope again with the 6.40 rises that start tomorrow.

And I’ve been active, doing something everyday:

Friday spinning, Saturday refereeing, Sunday playing football & swimming, Monday: run & swim, Tuesday spinning, Wednesday, a long swim (72 lengths, 1.5 miles), Thursday swim, 28 lengths (1 mile), Friday refereed at Yeovil Town U16 trial games & spinning, Saturday refereeing (OA), Sunday refereeing (U15)

In amongst all of that, on Thursday I found the time to do some tree surgery, taking a couple of high branches down from the tree by our compost bins.  I was at the full reach of my ladders and used a pole to strap a hand saw to to get extra reach for the upper most branch. A bit brutal, but needed doing.  Will be interesting to see the difference once we start getting some long sunny days.

Six weeks and counting ’til the next hols …

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I’m Jeff. I’m an addict.

Sophie theory test passPic of the week 5/2/17 – Sophie passed her driving test theory yesterday.

I’m Jeff, and I’m an addict.

I’ve suspected for a while, but confirmed my suspicions on Friday.

Late January/early February. Dark, gloomy days of the year. Through in a bit of man flu, still a couple of weeks to half term. Tough times.

Having not been the previous week (due to aforementioned man flu) I trudged down the hill on Friday evening for my spinning class. I worked hard, I sweated, my legs ached, but I came back buzzing. The endorphins were flowing, my mojo was back with a vengeance.

And then I realised – I’m an addict, an exercise addict. And that’s not a bad thing.

Today I’ve run 7K (set new PB for the year) and swam a Km this afternoon and I feel a whole lot better for it.

Exercise and music, the elixir of life.