Ooh. Entries have opened for the 2012 Canberra Marathon. Already. I’m sorely tempted to shell out for my entry fee now so I’ve got the race locked in for next April.
Also, I’ll probably get a nice low bib number as well. Does that actually matter? Nah.
Interesting to me is that the race was $99 this year, and next year it’s going to be $109. Is there going to be more included? More amenities? Better quality medals? More of those deliciously awesome gels they provided this year? Is this prompted solely by inflation? I DON’T KNOW.
I haven’t really run this week at all. But I did do my long run on the weekend, and I swear I’m going to start getting my act together during the week. Soon-ish.
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Sunday, November 6, 2011
This is my Race Face
Okay, not so much my Race Face as my early morning Saturday face, where I haven’t showered or prettied myself up. Pre-run. Scary, huh? This is as candid as I get. I took a post run photo but it seems to have vanished. Which is a good thing.
As may become evident, I just got an iPhone 4s and I’m so overwhelmed by the novelty of a shiny awesome phone with a camera that I tend to take a lot of pictures. So, I apologise in advance.
I ran on Saturday, despite being for the most part unwilling to drag myself from my comfortable bed at 6am to spend half an hour dousing myself in sunscreen before hitting the road. I’m very sun-smart, most of the time. Even though sunscreen makes my face sting and my eyes swell up and inexplicably causes me to come home covered in tiny dead flying bugs. The bitches just love me. Maybe it’s because sunscreen makes me sweat like crazy. Sometimes I feel like the essence of Summer is purely the smell of sunscreen. Or Golden Gaytimes. Gotta love a Golden Gaytime.
I didn’t know if I was going to be able to cope with the distance, given that I’ve been so slack of late with the whole running malarkey, but I managed to run 14k in a pretty respectable time (at least respectable in my middling standards) of about one and a half hours. No personal best, but it’s just a training run. As the weather hasn’t really heated up as of yet, I’m starting to dread the longer runs to come through November and December in the lead-up to my race in January. I’ll get to experience the joy of a 4am alarm on a Saturday morning once more.
I can hardly wait.
I’ve given up on the MarathonGuru training plan. It’s just not realistic. Add to which, they sent me an email this week (or at least I think it was them, I can’t find the email now) to tell me that my free trial was coming up and I’d need to pay in order to keep my membership of the site. Naturally, I thought “Get stuffed” and stopped logging in. I know I can train for this event by myself anyway. I don’t need those losers.
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Flailing ineffectually!
So I’m following this MarathonGuru training plan in the lead-up to the Cadbury Half in January. Thoughts so far? It’s pretty hardcore. Not the distances or the expected speeds, because they’re fairly average so far. It’s just the training load in general. It’s asking me to run five times this week. A combo of short runs, speed sessions, long slow runs, and I’m sure there’ll be hill repeats coming up, maybe even some fartlek. It kinda makes sense given the time goal I’m aiming for, but I’m really not used to running so often. I’m too lazy for this sort of discipline. Especially at this time of year.
We were actually discussing this at my dance class this morning. As it gets closer to the end of the year, people just feel more tired. It’s not the heat, so much. Heat is good for the muscles. You just feel a bit more blah. It’s interesting to get the perspective of others on this. At least I’m not the only one.
So anyways, I went for a 10k stagger yesterday. The weather was gorgeous. Overcast, occasionally spitting a bit of cold rain. It wasn’t full-on bucketing down, which I felt was a little bit of a shame, but it wasn’t windy. I enjoyed it. I approached the water fountain and this old lady in a bright pink see-through plastic raincoat starts laughing. “Ahahaha!” She says. “You’re thirsty!”
I wasn’t quite sure what to say in response to that.
We were actually discussing this at my dance class this morning. As it gets closer to the end of the year, people just feel more tired. It’s not the heat, so much. Heat is good for the muscles. You just feel a bit more blah. It’s interesting to get the perspective of others on this. At least I’m not the only one.
So anyways, I went for a 10k stagger yesterday. The weather was gorgeous. Overcast, occasionally spitting a bit of cold rain. It wasn’t full-on bucketing down, which I felt was a little bit of a shame, but it wasn’t windy. I enjoyed it. I approached the water fountain and this old lady in a bright pink see-through plastic raincoat starts laughing. “Ahahaha!” She says. “You’re thirsty!”
I wasn’t quite sure what to say in response to that.
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Variation on a theme: You make me feel like dancin'!
When I signed up for the Cadbury Half Marathon, one of the interesting bonuses on the website was a link to a free interactive training program at MarathonGuru, which helps you to train for a particular time, and adjusts your predicted time based upon the progress you’re making in the training runs. I don’t know how good the results are going to be, but I’m giving it a shot.
Today, it’s 11 weeks away from the race. The training plan also started today, and being the good starter that I am (let’s not mention the ‘mediocre finisher’ aspect at this point. I’m working on it) I went out there and dutifully ran the 6km that was expected of me. Perhaps a little faster than the program told me to run. At this point, my predicted finish time for the half is 2 hours and about 4 minutes. Which would be pretty awesome. Those numbers will probably get a little skewed as time goes on.
I’ve also booked my flights and accommodation for the trip. So it’s definitely happening now. I’m about a grand poorer than I was this morning. Hoping it’s going to be worth it.
I haven’t really been running (apart from faffing around on the treadmill at the gym. I don’t really consider that running) for the last week or two, but I’m happy to get back into it. I’ve been a little preoccupied with other things, fitness-wise. Mostly Zumba. I know I’ve mentioned before that I got my instructor certification for Zumba Fitness back in January, and on Friday night, I finally had the opportunity to teach my first class. I realised that you sweat so much more when you’re teaching, because you have to give so much more energy to get the class to follow you. I tried to steer clear of the cardio-heavy songs, but I was still completely exhausted afterward. I’m teaching next Friday night’s class as well. Then, I’m done for the time being. I have a race coming up, and as fun as it was to teach, it was also unnatural and terrifying to me.
Today, it’s 11 weeks away from the race. The training plan also started today, and being the good starter that I am (let’s not mention the ‘mediocre finisher’ aspect at this point. I’m working on it) I went out there and dutifully ran the 6km that was expected of me. Perhaps a little faster than the program told me to run. At this point, my predicted finish time for the half is 2 hours and about 4 minutes. Which would be pretty awesome. Those numbers will probably get a little skewed as time goes on.
I’ve also booked my flights and accommodation for the trip. So it’s definitely happening now. I’m about a grand poorer than I was this morning. Hoping it’s going to be worth it.
I haven’t really been running (apart from faffing around on the treadmill at the gym. I don’t really consider that running) for the last week or two, but I’m happy to get back into it. I’ve been a little preoccupied with other things, fitness-wise. Mostly Zumba. I know I’ve mentioned before that I got my instructor certification for Zumba Fitness back in January, and on Friday night, I finally had the opportunity to teach my first class. I realised that you sweat so much more when you’re teaching, because you have to give so much more energy to get the class to follow you. I tried to steer clear of the cardio-heavy songs, but I was still completely exhausted afterward. I’m teaching next Friday night’s class as well. Then, I’m done for the time being. I have a race coming up, and as fun as it was to teach, it was also unnatural and terrifying to me.
Monday, October 10, 2011
I'm being chased by bees! Halp!
One thing I love about long weekends is how long they are. Wow, that sentence was remarkably redundant. I’ve missed the point I was trying to make, somehow. So anyway, long weekends are great, aren’t they? I’ve been feeling odd today. Jumpy. Energetic. Kinda distracted. I just can’t concentrate on anything. So I went for a run at about midday, just chucked my Garmin on a charge (it was flat) and did the same with my iPod touch because I can’t find my Nano. Then I just ran.
Ridiculously fast, it would seem. I went ten kilometres, and all in under an hour. I didn’t feel like I was running at race pace, just running. So maybe I am getting faster after all. My theory is that I was going faster to try to keep myself focused, in some subconscious way. Whatever, it worked. Feeling good, folks. Apart from, well... there were a few things.
Children on freaking bicycles, and those stupid scooter things. What goes through their minds? Oh, there’s a girl running in this direction. She seems to be wearing a skirt. How strange. Maybe I should stay on the same side of the path that I have previously found quite suitable for my purposes up until now. Maybe... No. I’m going to swerve onto her side of the path. And just stop. Because I am a douchebag.
I didn’t want to say this, but children are such dickheads when they want to be. I’m not talking about teenagers here. No. I’m talking four year olds, six year olds. Maybe a few of them were seven or eight. Every single one of them singlemindedly determined to make me run straight into them and topple ass over tit. Who would be the bad guy in this scenario? That’s right. I would be. How dare I knock over little Ethan on his brand new razor scooter that he got for his fifth birthday? I’m some sort of monster. Why couldn’t I just run on the grass and leave the path for these assholes and their asshole children?
</rant>
Yeah, running in the park at midday was fun, but a little more crowded with inconsiderate dicks than usual.
And that’s not to mention the bees.
I’m going to mention the bees now.
Across the road from my apartment building is the CIT Bruce campus. They’ve been doing it up, prettifying the joint, with cool educational TAFE-y things like greenhouses. Agriculture stuff. And, unfortunately, a big long row of beehives. You wouldn’t think it’d be a problem to have that many beehives right next to the fence, would you?
I think the bees went out for walkies this morning. I was running along, adjusting my iPod because I’d already heard the podcast that it was playing. And then I saw a bee. I was all like ‘agh! bee!’ and I ran a bit faster to outrun the bee. In doing so, I ran right into A GIANT MOTHERFRICKIN SWARM OF BEES. I’m talking dozens of the little bastards. Maybe a hundred. Maybe two hundred. A whole lotta bees. They don’t like people running through their midst. Especially people who are in the process of freaking out because they just ran into a swarm of bees. So yeah. The bees chased me. I may have yelped, I wouldn’t say I screamed, but I’ll accept that there could have been a yelp there. I ran out onto the road to escape the bees. A car almost hit me. I think I had a pretty good excuse. I hope the guy saw the bees and didn’t just think I was an asshole runner who ignores road rules.
I don’t like bees.
But I didn’t get stung, so it’s all good.
Ridiculously fast, it would seem. I went ten kilometres, and all in under an hour. I didn’t feel like I was running at race pace, just running. So maybe I am getting faster after all. My theory is that I was going faster to try to keep myself focused, in some subconscious way. Whatever, it worked. Feeling good, folks. Apart from, well... there were a few things.
Children on freaking bicycles, and those stupid scooter things. What goes through their minds? Oh, there’s a girl running in this direction. She seems to be wearing a skirt. How strange. Maybe I should stay on the same side of the path that I have previously found quite suitable for my purposes up until now. Maybe... No. I’m going to swerve onto her side of the path. And just stop. Because I am a douchebag.
I didn’t want to say this, but children are such dickheads when they want to be. I’m not talking about teenagers here. No. I’m talking four year olds, six year olds. Maybe a few of them were seven or eight. Every single one of them singlemindedly determined to make me run straight into them and topple ass over tit. Who would be the bad guy in this scenario? That’s right. I would be. How dare I knock over little Ethan on his brand new razor scooter that he got for his fifth birthday? I’m some sort of monster. Why couldn’t I just run on the grass and leave the path for these assholes and their asshole children?
</rant>
Yeah, running in the park at midday was fun, but a little more crowded with inconsiderate dicks than usual.
And that’s not to mention the bees.
I’m going to mention the bees now.
Across the road from my apartment building is the CIT Bruce campus. They’ve been doing it up, prettifying the joint, with cool educational TAFE-y things like greenhouses. Agriculture stuff. And, unfortunately, a big long row of beehives. You wouldn’t think it’d be a problem to have that many beehives right next to the fence, would you?
I think the bees went out for walkies this morning. I was running along, adjusting my iPod because I’d already heard the podcast that it was playing. And then I saw a bee. I was all like ‘agh! bee!’ and I ran a bit faster to outrun the bee. In doing so, I ran right into A GIANT MOTHERFRICKIN SWARM OF BEES. I’m talking dozens of the little bastards. Maybe a hundred. Maybe two hundred. A whole lotta bees. They don’t like people running through their midst. Especially people who are in the process of freaking out because they just ran into a swarm of bees. So yeah. The bees chased me. I may have yelped, I wouldn’t say I screamed, but I’ll accept that there could have been a yelp there. I ran out onto the road to escape the bees. A car almost hit me. I think I had a pretty good excuse. I hope the guy saw the bees and didn’t just think I was an asshole runner who ignores road rules.
I don’t like bees.
But I didn’t get stung, so it’s all good.
Friday, October 7, 2011
A more updatey update
I ran a Sri Chimnoy 10k on Monday. A great way to spend a public holiday, and I got a good workout. I showed up at the start about an hour before the race was going to happen, which was only a problem because it was FRIGGING FREEZING. I thought I was going to lose a thumb from frostbite. I didn’t, but I thought I might.
I’m not tough or hardcore. I ran in a tank top in the end, but with gloves on. I think my hands have bad circulation, because my arms are usually fine when my hands are screaming in pain from the cold.
Finished in a time of about 60 minutes, 12 seconds. Not bad.
Now, I’ve been looking into what I want to do next, race-wise. I have decided to do this:
The 2012 Cadbury Half Marathon!!!
It’s such a sweet deal. You get race entry at a discounted rate if you sign up with irun.org.au, which is free. When you finish, they give you a medal (which I always like. I should take a photo of my medal board), a t-shirt, a goody bag that just has to contain chocolate (amiright?) and a free bbq at the finish. And then you get a year’s subscription to R4YL magazine. And there’s a training program. And it’s in Tasmania. I’ve never been to Tasmania. Anyways, I just registered. I got the leave approved at work. Now I’ve just got to book the accommodation. I’ll probably spend like a week there and see all the sights. Assuming there are sights, aren’t there?
I’m not tough or hardcore. I ran in a tank top in the end, but with gloves on. I think my hands have bad circulation, because my arms are usually fine when my hands are screaming in pain from the cold.
Finished in a time of about 60 minutes, 12 seconds. Not bad.
Now, I’ve been looking into what I want to do next, race-wise. I have decided to do this:
The 2012 Cadbury Half Marathon!!!
It’s such a sweet deal. You get race entry at a discounted rate if you sign up with irun.org.au, which is free. When you finish, they give you a medal (which I always like. I should take a photo of my medal board), a t-shirt, a goody bag that just has to contain chocolate (amiright?) and a free bbq at the finish. And then you get a year’s subscription to R4YL magazine. And there’s a training program. And it’s in Tasmania. I’ve never been to Tasmania. Anyways, I just registered. I got the leave approved at work. Now I’ve just got to book the accommodation. I’ll probably spend like a week there and see all the sights. Assuming there are sights, aren’t there?
Monday, October 3, 2011
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Looking toward... Something. A half?
Friday morning, I got up bright and early. Wait, scratch the ‘bright’. Emphasise the ‘early’. I somehow managed to bludgeon myself into some semblance of consciousness and get out on the road at 6:15. Saw the massive plume of smoke coming from the Mitchell chemical fire thing. I was glad I was running in the other direction. Then I plodded all the way to work.
The distance was about 17.5 km in the end. I think I may have mis-plotted the route I was going to take. Also, got a little lost in around Yarralumla Bay. Nothing too devastating.
I was absolutely starving all day at work. Gorged on cake and associated goodies at the Divisional morning tea. Then ate two massive chicken tacos for lunch. Then, if I wasn’t tired enough, I went to a Les Mills Body Balance class after work. Then, a Zumba class. Came home and completely crashed.
I feel like doing a half marathon sometime soon. I think I’m up for it. Can’t seem to find any appropriate races in the Coolrunning calendar though. Maybe the Mount Majura two peaks run in October? Both peaks is 20 km. But it is mountain running. Might be a little too hardcore for me. Hmm. I’ll have to think about this.
The distance was about 17.5 km in the end. I think I may have mis-plotted the route I was going to take. Also, got a little lost in around Yarralumla Bay. Nothing too devastating.
I was absolutely starving all day at work. Gorged on cake and associated goodies at the Divisional morning tea. Then ate two massive chicken tacos for lunch. Then, if I wasn’t tired enough, I went to a Les Mills Body Balance class after work. Then, a Zumba class. Came home and completely crashed.
I feel like doing a half marathon sometime soon. I think I’m up for it. Can’t seem to find any appropriate races in the Coolrunning calendar though. Maybe the Mount Majura two peaks run in October? Both peaks is 20 km. But it is mountain running. Might be a little too hardcore for me. Hmm. I’ll have to think about this.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Past triumphs, and future challenges
So yeah. I ran the Canberra Times 10km fun run in a Little Red Riding Hood Outfit. Observe.
The watermark is because I’m too cheap to buy my race photos.
Here is my outfit in all its glory prior to the race. Note the sexy chicky I’m standing next to. She’s awesome.
This isn’t going to be a really pic-heavy post. Nor is it going to be very content-heavy, so I apologise in advance.
I guess I just need something to run toward, so to speak. Goals are awesome. I have no goals. I need goals, at least in the interim before I start training for the Canberra Marathon next year.
I haven’t mentioned that yet, have I? Yeah. I’m doing the marathon again. I think the five months or so since my first mara has caused me to forget how much agony I was in. Maybe it’s the same as people who just keep on having children. Pain + Time = Amnesia. Or something.
The Canberra Times Fun Run was easy. Very easy. Too easy? I don’t know. I was just having so much fun. I’ve never run that far with someone before. We chatted the whole way, and it seemed like the shortest 10k of my life. Next time, I’m just going to have to push myself just that little bit more. Aim for a PB. Get in the zone.
Anyway, tomorrow is the Cancer Council National Walk to Work Day. I decided, just for the heck of it, I was going to run to work. It’s only 16 kilometres from Bruce to Woden. The only thing that bothers me is having to get up at 5am so I can get on the road nice and early. I will be running in standard running attire. I’m going to save the dresses for special occasions.
The watermark is because I’m too cheap to buy my race photos.
Here is my outfit in all its glory prior to the race. Note the sexy chicky I’m standing next to. She’s awesome.
This isn’t going to be a really pic-heavy post. Nor is it going to be very content-heavy, so I apologise in advance.
I guess I just need something to run toward, so to speak. Goals are awesome. I have no goals. I need goals, at least in the interim before I start training for the Canberra Marathon next year.
I haven’t mentioned that yet, have I? Yeah. I’m doing the marathon again. I think the five months or so since my first mara has caused me to forget how much agony I was in. Maybe it’s the same as people who just keep on having children. Pain + Time = Amnesia. Or something.
The Canberra Times Fun Run was easy. Very easy. Too easy? I don’t know. I was just having so much fun. I’ve never run that far with someone before. We chatted the whole way, and it seemed like the shortest 10k of my life. Next time, I’m just going to have to push myself just that little bit more. Aim for a PB. Get in the zone.
Anyway, tomorrow is the Cancer Council National Walk to Work Day. I decided, just for the heck of it, I was going to run to work. It’s only 16 kilometres from Bruce to Woden. The only thing that bothers me is having to get up at 5am so I can get on the road nice and early. I will be running in standard running attire. I’m going to save the dresses for special occasions.
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Special delivery!
I just walked to Jamison to pick up a package that the lovely courier folks didn’t even bother to try to deliver this morning. It usually happens, no big deal, but I was hoping they wouldn’t force me to come back and get it tomorrow, because I knew it was at the damn post office. They gave it to me, after a small amount of bickering over the fact that I don’t have any ID with my address on it. Like, seriously? Just because I stumble over my street name. I’ll have you know that the post office were the ones who told me I was using the wrong address in the first place. I’m just trying to do the right thing, and surprise surprise, I’m the one who gets punished.
What was I saying?
Oh yeah, the package.
I just got my outfit for the Canberra Times 10k, and it exceeds my every expectation. Don’t worry, photos will be coming. I’ll suffice it to say that I decided to dress as little red riding hood, in the understanding that these outfits tend to be flimsy and badly constructed, thus having a white peasant blouse top to the dress (as in all the dirndl-style outfits) would be ever so slightly indelicate when I get sweaty or, as is likely to happen in a race, I pour water all over myself.
My dress is red, and short, and it has black lacy frills at the neck and white puffy sleeves and white lace on the hem. It’s shiny, and red, and plaid. It has a velveteen cape with black lace. I’ve made the command decision not to wear the little shiny black vinyl waist cincher, as I just don’t want to run in it and the outfit looks a lot more appropriate without it. I was initially concerned about the propriety of this kind of outfit to begin with, but seriously people, I’m going to be wearing basically a full running outfit underneath the dress. Shorts, full sports bra. All I need to buy now is a white lacy petticoat to make the skirt all puffy, and a little basket to carry. I can put goodies in my basket.
If I really get into it I can run past people, screaming pleas for a little help, a little direction.
“DO YOU KNOW THE WAY TO GRANDMA’S HOUSE? I’M LOST HERE, PEOPLE.”
In lieu of photos of myself wearing the outfit, as it just isn’t finished yet, here is a photo of the costume as worn by someone who is a great deal sexier than I am.
What was I saying?
Oh yeah, the package.
I just got my outfit for the Canberra Times 10k, and it exceeds my every expectation. Don’t worry, photos will be coming. I’ll suffice it to say that I decided to dress as little red riding hood, in the understanding that these outfits tend to be flimsy and badly constructed, thus having a white peasant blouse top to the dress (as in all the dirndl-style outfits) would be ever so slightly indelicate when I get sweaty or, as is likely to happen in a race, I pour water all over myself.
My dress is red, and short, and it has black lacy frills at the neck and white puffy sleeves and white lace on the hem. It’s shiny, and red, and plaid. It has a velveteen cape with black lace. I’ve made the command decision not to wear the little shiny black vinyl waist cincher, as I just don’t want to run in it and the outfit looks a lot more appropriate without it. I was initially concerned about the propriety of this kind of outfit to begin with, but seriously people, I’m going to be wearing basically a full running outfit underneath the dress. Shorts, full sports bra. All I need to buy now is a white lacy petticoat to make the skirt all puffy, and a little basket to carry. I can put goodies in my basket.
If I really get into it I can run past people, screaming pleas for a little help, a little direction.
“DO YOU KNOW THE WAY TO GRANDMA’S HOUSE? I’M LOST HERE, PEOPLE.”
In lieu of photos of myself wearing the outfit, as it just isn’t finished yet, here is a photo of the costume as worn by someone who is a great deal sexier than I am.
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