Marathon Des Sables or bust

Change of plans

2011-05-28T07:18:00.001+01:00

I have today had to make a final choice with ref to me attending the 2012 MDS and there was a lot of things I had to take in to account although only one thing actually swayed my choice.

I have spent the last 3 years trying to lose weight, I did lose 6 stone taking me down to 24 stone but even with my training over the last 4 months I have put 2 stone back on which is slowing my training down more and more.

The last thing I want is to get out there and end up coming home after one day, therefore I have decided to cancel 2012, I have re-applied for 2013 and I am now on the waitlist, there is no doubt in my mind I will be doing it but I need to know that I am safe doing it.I am taking the final choice open to me and that is having a Gastric Sleeve, briefly this is where they cut off the back of my stomach leaving me with just a tube for a stomach rather than a sack.

I have avoided this for 2 years but I truly now have no other options

I still have every intention of becoming an Ultra Marathon man and will continue with my blog "sorry you will still have to put up with me".

Hopefully you all agree this is the best choice.

Grizzly 2011...

2011-03-17T19:33:00.003Z

The Day started with a big fry up at our fantastic B&B which was on old farm house just outside of Seaton, and I am glad I had a good breakfast because I don't think I would have finished this one with out some food.

There is no mistake that so far this is the toughest physical thing I have done in 42 years, we were sooooo lucky with the weather, it was just stunning, the sun came out, it was warm like a early summers day, one thing that did let the event down at the start was lack of loos, they were expecting 2500 people and they had one public toilet, we were queuing outside of it for 20 mins, then I got inside and they were still queuing, I gave up in the end!

Me and the wife decided just to head to the start line on the sea front in the hope I wont need the loo later, I was then very pleasantly surprised to see the owner of the farm we stayed at had comes to the sea front to cheer me on, that was a fantastic touch.

The race started just after 10:30, I had already opted to do the 9 miles rather than the 20 and I am glad I did, we headed out past the start line

shortly after we turned down on to the pebble beach, now we have probably all walked on a steep pebble beach before and never thought much of it, running on it was a completely different story, we all hit it running but almost all slowed to a walk, this was really tough, with in minutes I was out of breath, we did about 1/2 a mile on the beach before turning at the end and running back up the promenade and back through the start line.

Then came the first of the hills, most of you know I have trained at the south downs, they seemed like some slight slopes compared to these, I reached the top of the first one thinking "ok tough but manageable, sadly I was almost last at this point (Start as you mean to go on Lol)

Just after it levelled out we then started running again but and we went down the other side of the hill in to "Beer" whilst here I was advised by the Marshals to take it easy as I was coming up to the "Bitch"???? I thought at first this was going to be a bossy marshal but it wasn't, it was the start of the various attempts they made to try and kill me with the hills from Hell

This one a 1/3 footpath, I didn't do too bad, had to stop for air a bit on the way up but eventually reached the top, again it levelled out slightly and we ran through a holiday park on to a big grass slope, again tough and I really was last at this point although I could see a few in front of me, at the top you could look back and see the beach and start point, then I realised we had only done 2.5 miles "ouch"

After running over the cliff hills and down the other side I had caught and passed a few people, this made me very happy as I really didn't want to be last again, I was told at the bottom of this steep stony muddy hill we split on the beach and the Cubs start the return journey, great I thought, until I then realised we had to do another beach, I really didn't like the stony beach.

After the long slog on the beach I noticed people going up the side of a cliff, then I realised this is where I was going, by now I was really heating up even though I had my heat management top on, this cliff climb was amazing, this was the tester, I truly didn't think I was going to make it up here, about two thirds of the way up I had a little bit of a break down, I couldn't breath and I had a few small tears as I thought this was the end!!

Some how I managed to keep going, and eventually some time later I reached the top, this really was a cliff climb, I don't think I have done a path as tough as this before, and it was ruddy dangerous, one slip and you've had it.

as this was now the return route we cleared the top of the first hill and I amazed myself at getting enough energy to start jogging down the hill although this came to a rapid halt as I thought I was going to throw up, now one point I haven't mentioned here is that I had a guardian angel follow me all the way around, "Kay" one of the last runner marshals had stayed with me the entire way pushing me on, I know for a fact with out her and the other last runner marshals "Bridget, Jane & Emma" I would have given up at 5 miles as I truly didn't think I could face one of the beaches again, it was here I mentioned to Kay that at the top of the cliff climb they should have an aid station as I thought I was feeling ill as I was dehydrated, amazingly Kay then took my empty water bottle and ran on to the next Aid station to get some water for me, I can't thank these women enough!

Down another hill and through Beer again, talking of which as I rounded a corner a guy was walking along with a tray of beers, I tried to grab one but was advised against it Lol.

We then came to some more steps and the last big uphill, this really hurt now, I truly had used everything I had, or so I thought, on the downhill I managed a bit more of a Jog, by this time the front runners of the full Grizzly were flying past me as though I was going the other way!!! HOW
It was then again on the bloody beach, the final stretch, again the crowds were amazing, I wish I could thank them all personally, then some one popped up on the beach, I thought it was another Marshal but it turned up to be Cazz, I was over the moon to see her pushing me on.

we then reached the slope back up to the promenade and a run to the finish. I crossed the line exhausted beyond belief but I made it and literally fell in to my wife's arms.

I have run 10 miles across the south downs and happily train around Chobham but I really was not ready for this, scenery was amazing, Marshals were outstanding, they could not have been better but to hear crowds of people at the finish line, not chanting "come on" but chanting my name, as I approached the finish the guy on the Tannoy asked every one to cheer me on and said "Come on every one, you can see that Terry is not a natural runner so lets all cheer him in.

After regaining a bit of energy it was then a long uncomfortable drive home, I am still in a lot of pain but it is now onward and upward, I think Silverstone organisers could learn a lot from the people that organised the "GRIZZLY".
I would like to thank the 4 lady marshals that pulled me through this but I would especially like to thank my wife who gives me constant encouragement

Ups and downs!

2010-10-23T19:15:00.002+01:00

I managed to scrape another day off on wednesday so I managed to get down to the South downs for a couple of hours, I must have the luck of the devil on my side at the moment, although it was a little brisk it was very sunny again and after a couple of miles it warmed up and I stripped down to my T Shirt.

I had planned on a 6 mile route today but I was enjoying myself so carried on to 8 miles, it was a little tougher and a little slower that my last run as there were more hills and a couple of them were very very tough.

This is the altitude chart from last week, the only really major hill was in the middle

This is this weeks chart, more hills and all around 200 - 300 feet each "ouch"

It kind of went like this.

Hill 1 up: oooh a nice gentle climb.
Hill 1 down: cool a very nice down hill.

Hill 2 up: blimey this is a long climb.
Hill 2 down: Oh crap that other hill looks like of a bit of a climb!

Hill 3 up: Huff Puff, wow that was a bit of a steep one!!!
Hill 3 down: errm path splits, no way markers, damn got to guess, hope I don't get this wrong it is a long way down!

Hill 4 up: should I give this one a miss??? nah sod it I can only have a heart attack!
Hill 4 down: Weeeeeeee oh crud slow down tell, slip slip trip phew made it.

Return journey.

Hill 3 up: sh*t I don't think I am going to get up this, how the hell do I get back to my car!
Hill 3 down: Jesussssss hope I can stop at the bottom!

Hill 2 up: I really must asses why I want to do hill climbs!!
Hill 2 down: now this one a like, long gentle down hill.

Hill 1 up: this is just not F**king funny, who's bloody bright idea was this!!!
Hill 1 down: Mind that rock, ouch was that a stick, oooh me ankle, damn leaves, Yeaaaay I can see me car!!!
This was one of the hills I had to go over, it was a lot bigger than it looks

Although it was tough it was great fun, I think I upset 4 old blokes, they were shooting pheasant and stopped as I walked by, as you know I love my animals, one of them nodded, waved and said hello, I basically responded by saying "hope you trip and blow your f**king head off!! don't quite think he knew how to take that, sorry but I cant stand any form of hunting.

I did meet one old couple, the old girl said "fabulous" I said "yes it is a lovely day" she then said "I was referring to you, I have been walking this route now for 27 years and haven't seen any one your size running on it before, well done" I nearly said "blimey it is taking you a long time to complete it" but instead I just thanked her, made my day.

Back down there next week on a different section, not suffering this time although I do keep getting a cramp in the bottom of me right calf.

Hope every one is well, I am now going to try and catch up on a few blogs.

Tel

A short story: A late summers day on the south downs way.

2010-10-23T18:58:00.003+01:00

It was around midday, the late summer sun was burning through a clear blue sky, the autumn leaves were starting to fall and the browns and the greens created a kaleidoscope of colour against the back drop of tantalising deep blue sea.

After setting off from the still and serenely quiet hidden car park I headed east along a dusty country road with pheasants darting in and out of the bushes, every so often one of them surprised me by jumping out directly in front of me that scuttling back in to the bushes, disappearing as though they were never there!

After climbing the first gentle but surprisingly long hill I found my pulse had increased nicely and my legs were nice and relaxed, I crested the hill to see more hills rolling along as though it was the backbone of some giant worm, weaving in and out of the valleys and farmers fields, I picked up the pace a little and had a gentle jog trying not to over pace to early.

Whilst running with my head set on all I knew was the music keeping me away from realising that something was missing, it was at this point I stopped dead wondrously trying to work out what was wrong, I stopped my music to help me get a train of thought and took my earpieces out, it was as I stood alone in this glorious sun I realised what was wrong, I had been listening to my music not realising that with out it the only sound around was the wind blowing through the trees, the rustle of leaves blowing down the track and the occasional call of the pheasants in the fields, I though to myself it was a shame that I could record this nothingness and sit in a quiet room with my eyes closed and the recording playing in the back ground.

I recorded the scene the best I could by taking a picture, Keeping my headphones off for a while I drove one listening only to the sound of my breathing and my footsteps brushing through the fine stones, a few miles in and some rather wonderful scenery I started to realise the south downs has some rather punishing hills, whilst I was feeling comfortable on the flats and down slopes It was starting to tell on my legs that I am not used to running on hills so this was beginning to slow me down, I didn't really mind as I want out to beat any records.

At 3.1 miles in I reached a road and a split in the path, I noticed a small sign on a post that showed the usual south downs markers so I headed off down a wonderfully shrouded leafy path, whilst the was very steep my mind was not on my down hill running but on the bewildering amount of bright oranges and fiery browns that scattered the floor, clearly autumn was truly on the way as the trees were now like giant skeletal creature waving too and fro, at the bottom of this never ending slope I found a small park with a glimmering pond and a Childs playground, I took a seat for a short time to recuperate and take on some water, I checked the Garmonster and could see that I had completed 4 miles so far, with the fact that I had to take the return course I decided this would be far enough for the moment.

After this rest bite of watching the ducks and other foul on the pond I set of back up the never ending hill, whilst on my journey back to the sky's I realised just how steep this hill was but considering the royal carpet of leaves scattered across the trail it was not that slipy, about half way us I slowed to what must have seemed like I was frozen in time, a small female pheasant walked out about 3 foot in front of me, when it noticed me with my chest heaving as though I was inflating a life raft, it stopped, stood and stared at me, whilst exchanging glances the funny little bird cooed a couple of times, the sound was reminiscent of a pigeon, then it gently strolled off down the path from where I came.

All this seamed to go on for a while but in reality it was just for a few seconds, I again started dragging my rather old feeling carcass further on up the hill, when reaching the top where the path split I realised that I had taken a wrong turn and didn't actually need to go down the hill, I didn't really mind this as I found it very invigorating.

Travelling along the return path I came across two trail walkers who were kind enough to say hello, they asked how far I had gone, I glanced at the Garmonster and it showed 6.3 miles, "wow" I Said, I had no idea I had already reached this distance and I still felt quite relaxed, worn out but very relaxed, it seamed like all my stresses had gone from me for the day, they asked if I was training for anything so I took a brief moment to explain what the Marathon des sables was and that I was training for this, as usual they seamed very surprised at what I was aiming to do and wished me luck, I thanked them and made off.

Reaching the final 1/4 of a mile I passed a group of cyclists all struggling to go up the hill that I was enjoying running down, each one of them in turn gave me a polite nod and I reciprocated this with with a slight nod, by this point I was feeling a little tired and found I didn't want to gesture to extensively as it put me off balance whilst running on the cobbley track.

I rounded the corner to see my car in the car park looking like a oasis with the heat shimmering off the ground in gentle waves, I was glad to reach my boot so that I could site for a while, the sun was giving a surprising amount of heat at this point and I was feeling quite overheated so I took the large bottle of water I had and poured it generously over my head and neck, I then sat facing the sun and ate my small bowl of pasta that I bought with me, eventually I returned to my car and set off for the journey home, tired, happy, slightly battered but over all feeling confident in myself, maybe this was due to me just doing 8 miles across this intoxicatingly beautiful countryside, I think on the south coast there is not much that could hold a candle to this route.

Anticipating to soon return...

The end.

Don't ask why, just felt like doing it, sorry if it went on.

Tel

A Grizzly run!!

2010-09-28T14:05:00.002+01:00

Nope not one I have done recently, hell I would be grateful for a grizzly run at the moment, any run will do me but as I am still unwell (don't know why as none of the doctors or hospitals can work it out) I am not able to run, any way I digress!

I have just signed up for the "Grizzly" run, this is a 20 mile event down on the Dorset coast, not your normal road or trail run, this is as the title states a bit of a tough one as it is trail, mud, grass, road and even water run.

http://www.axevalleyrunners.org.uk/races/grizzly.htm

I could have opted for the Cub run but hey why would I want to go and do something sensible like that, just 10 miles, sheesh that would be way to easy!

At this moment in time I have 6 months to train to run/walk 20 miles let alone multi terrain, I am not going to sound cocky and say I will make it as at this moment in time I have absolutely no idea if I will, all I do know that if I don't try I will have no idea of what I will be capable of when the MDS comes around and things get tough, I need to know how my body and mind will react.

For some strange reason I am really looking forward to this, no idea why as I hate the cold and this is in March and the web page states "you will get wet" Oh joy!

Wish me luck.

Tel

A suport crew's story

2010-09-15T17:31:00.015+01:00

I was asked to be part of a 3 man support crew for a friend of mine "Matt Heart", this is the story of how and what we did on the South downs way Ultra!

The journey and challenge started off right at the beginning of me picking Matt up, Unfortunately the car we hired was a tad small and we had a lot of stuff, we eventually squeezed it all in and headed off, to say that the car was also very underpowered would be a huge understatement, when pulling away from junctions on the motorways I found myself having to draft trucks just to get some speed up, some times this was tougher than it sounded as they pulled away quicker than me, this was a surprise as the car was a 2009 Vauxhall Insignia!

We then had to traverse the largest car park in the world, better known as the M25, we eventually reached the camp site around 18:30 and started to set up the tent or as one of the other crew put it "the Hilton" Whilst we did that the others inflated the airbeds and got the BBQ going.

Although a little breezy it was a very humid night, as Matt said on his blog, we forgot his bag of race food so took a very pleasant walk about a mile down the sea front to a shop and bought a few bits and pieces, we then made it back to the Hilton and after sitting around for a while chatting we hit the sack, unfortunately for me my nice new sleeping bag was still a little on the small side so I opened it out like a Duvet and it did a great Job.

The next morning we got up and squashed and squeezed everything back in to the car, Matt checked out his kit We then made our way to where the start line would be, we hung around for a while whilst they set up and gradually more and more runners and crew turned up, it was surprising how many were doing it solo including a lady by the name of Anna Finn, she holds various records including a world record for the 10/10 ultra which is 10 marathons in 10 days.

I also finally got to meet 2 guys of the MDS forum I belong to, Mike & Sharky were very friendly and I hope to be able to run an ultra with them both at some time in the future

Bruce & Mark showing Matt the way.

Matt, Mike & Sharky.

I had my camera ready to go to video the start of the race and waiting for the count down starting from 10 seconds, unfortunately they started from 5 and I only just caught Matt heading off, we watched for a few seconds as they disappeared in to the rain then we disappeared in to the dry warm car Lol.

There were 8 official check points but I also added a further 30 meet points where we can cheer Matt on, these turned out to be great, we meet him on the first one at the top of the Seven sisters and gave all the runners going by a cheer, at first they kind of thought we were just a bunch of weirdoes but as they then met us at the following check points they realised we were crew and seemed very pleased to see us.

It was fantastic just how fast the clouds and mist came and went and I could see how the hills could be dangerous if you didn't take care.

Almost the same shot a few minutes later

Anna Finn leading lady

We then made our way to the second Meet point at the Seven sisters country park, here I had to buy and ice-cream to get some change for the car park, I didn't enjoy it one bit ;0) whilst waiting in the car park for them to turn up we found some of the local wildlife.

Gradually they all started coming down through the hills, Matt was looking very very fresh even though he had just done 10 miles across some very big hills

Then he crossed the very busy road and was once again gone, we jumped back in to the gerbil powered mean machine and headed off to the next meet point, this was atop of one of the very high hills, hear we felt the full force of the winds for the first time and some rather damp conditions, at this point even we donned our waterproof tops, as we had no real idea of how long Matt would be we had to entertain ourselves which we seemed to do with out a problem..

Eventually the front runners started flying through and very impressive they were to, they certainly were going at a cracking pace, a short time later Matt came through and he was still looking very strong

We stayed for a little while longer and ushered through a few more runners through and then made our way to the 1st actual check point, here we met a few of the other crews waiting for their runners, when Matt came through he stopped briefly for a top up of water and snacks, Sharky and Mike came through at this point and all 3 of them headed off for the next stage.

We actually skipped the next Meet point as we needed to go to a shop to pick up supplies, we went down to Brighton and popped in to a Sainsbury's, once we got what we needed we pushed on to the next Meet Point, this was again at the top of one of the rather large hills, here we met a lot of people on bikes doing the London to Brighton bike ride, as this was at the top of a hill they were getting to the top and were literally falling off their bikes as they were exhausted, a group of them asked what we were doing and when we told them that we were crewing for runners doing 103 miles they were just amazed "at them not us".

When they eventually reached us I asked if they would mind me joining them for a few miles, they were happy with this and off we went, I was over the moon as it was driving me insane watching every one run by, I did tell them that if I was struggling and they were out pacing me they should carry on with out me as I didn't want to hold them up, we were going at what I though was a cracking pace and eventually started struggling, I was just in awe how they were running along chatting with each other as though they were strolling down a high st, Mike dropped back a little and tried to chat with me but unfortunately I had enough trouble breathing let alone chatting, I was well outside my comfort zone.

After what seemed like an age they started to pull a little ahead of me, at one point after crossing a busy dual carriageway they rounded a corner and I lost site of them, then after a few seconds I went around the corner to find we had reached a check point, I was over the moon as they didn't get that far ahead of me.

I then found out that I had been doing a pace of 10.5 min miles, this is my usual sprint training speed in the Gym so I was absolutely ecstatic to find I had but beaten my personal best for a 5k, not only beaten it but absolutely smashed it, I cant say the exact time but I know it was under 36 mins, any way enough of me, back to the main man Matt, again we topped him up and he waited a while for Mike & Sharky to change in to dry clothes, then off they went in to the distance, I would have loved to have joined them.

The next meet point found us at the top of the Devils Dyke, this was quite an impressive valley that they came around the top of, I went about 100yds down the track in the hope of running and recording them on the run, unfortunately the batteries on the camera died.

We moved on to the next Meet point which finds them back down at road level, here we met a couple of the runners coming from a different direction, we then found out they took a wrong turn and got lost, we pointed them in the right direction, a short time later the guys turned up where we again topped their waters up and they had some Pepperami's. it was at this point the Matt & Mike looked a little worn out which was no real surprise considering they had done about 40 odd miles.

It was also getting dark now so off they went in to the night and we headed off to the next meet point, even we were feeling a little tired now so we could sympathise with the runners, it is truly phenomenal what the human body can do.

We next met them on a very dark country road at the top of the next hill, it was becoming clear that something was not right but we topped them up again and off they went, from here we went to the next official check points about 8 miles away, when we got there we managed to get a cup of tea from the marshals whilst waiting for Matt, a short time later Mike & Sharky turned up with no Matt, we asked after him and they advised us he was having some real issues with sickness.

We all headed back up the track to him and found him in a bad way, we got him to the Marshals tent and managed to get some water and soup inside him, we also borrowed some nuuns (electrolytes) from Mike & Sharky and gave it to Matt in the hope that this may settle his tummy, Matt was at this point thinking of pulling out but I felt if he did he would be disappointed so I convinced him to go to the next check point which he did, I also decided to go along with him, we trudged for about 3 miles through the dark over the hill and met with Bruce and Mark at which point Mark took the reins and me and Bruce made our way to the next check point.

This was outside in a pub garden, there were quite a few people here as it was where they could get a Baked potato and Beans, Mike and Sharky turned up not long after us, they had been doing a 9 min mile just to ensure they reached this point before it closed, this was just crazy considering they had just run 56 miles.

The cut off time was Midnight which came and went and no sign of Matt and 2 other runners, at 12:30 they closed the check point which meant Matt did not quite make it, this was for the best as he had not recovered as we hoped he would, the marshals also called the other 2 missing people only to find they had become lost and were around 5 miles south of the check point so they went off to rescue them.

Matt managed to get some food in him and so did we as they let us also have a baked spud, we then had a problem as we were not booked in to the camp site until the next day, we decided to stay in the car over night which was not easy considering the size of us and all that equipment, subsequently I managed to get around 30 mins sleep, Bruce woke up to a bit of a panic as I was slumped forward with my head buried face first in to my pillow and he thought I had done something a little drastic Lol.

About 06:00 came around and we made our way to the camp site near the finish line, when we arrived we quickly got the tent up and started breakfast, a very nice lady from another caravan came over and offered us all a cup of coffee as she had heard about our night.

I spent most of it laying on my airbed in the sun whilst the others went for a walk, we then got the BBQ and some Beers out and then Bruce got some Bubbly out that was to celebrate Matt's achievements and although he did not make the finish it was still a fantastic achievement.
That night we all hit the sack quite early however in the middle of the night the car alarm went off, I jumped out of the tent (well kind of stumbled really) turned the alarm off and at this point noticed that the battery was dead!!

Subsequently we asked around to see if any one could give us a jump start which the farmer did with his tractor, the owners of this camp site were with out a doubt the best!

we then packed up and headed off home to get the hire car back, after dropping Matt and the others home I picked my car up and took the long journey home back to London, I did expect to pass out at this point but amazingly I stayed up for a while scanning through the pics of the event and looking back at how much fun this was, I have told the organisers that if I am not working when they do it next year I will help them and I am planning to have a go at this myself in 2013 if it is still running, I have also decided to try and do some training runs down their.

Thanks to Matt for allowing me to be part of this, I wouldn't have missed it for the world, my first true look in to the ultra world and can see why I want to do it, the comradeship is just fantastic.

Tel

2010-08-17T08:33:00.004+01:00

Today is my day off and as I am going out with my family today and I really didn't fancy a 02:00 Gym session I got up and headed off to Chobham.

06:00 Little apprehensive as it was raining and I don't have any wet gear so was concerned that it may get really heavy, in the end it stopped raining which was a bit of luck.

It was only supposed to be a easy 3k this morning so I didn't go flying around it, the funny thing is I found myself holding myself back because I wanted to go quicker.

It was surprisingly pleasant at this time of the morning, no dogs, horses or other runner to show me up, still not found any snakes yet which is a shame, I found out a couple of days ago that there are also wild lizards which is cool.

Couple of picks of Chobham at this time of the morning.

I adjusted the route this morning to give me a fairly short but steep ascent back to the car park and I never managed to run all the way up it as it was realy getting the heart and lungs pounding.

Mapped it out when I got home and it was just over 3k at around 35min which isn't bad as I stopped a couple of times to take pics and attend the call of nature.

On the Animal front I was offered a 2yr old Husky bitch that needed urgent re homing, now I have wanted a husky since I was a kid, I think they are the most beautiful dog alive today, whilst pondering the idea my wife was giving me the evil eye but as much as I would have loved it I had to decline.

This was down to me already having two dogs so no more room and they love to live outside, normally they don't get on with cats or birds so I would have had a problem, one thing I could have done is take it running as they love to run, little upset about this but maybe one day, I haven't had one before now as I simply couldn't afford to buy one.

Weight now 156.4k
Target weight 101k

Tel

595 days to go: Back in training

2010-08-13T11:45:00.001+01:00

..This morning was my first day back at the Gym for 3 week, I did do some running at Chobham and even a little in the new forest in the first week but I then decided as I was on annual leave I would take a break from the running front, I also broke away from my diet.

I have now paid the price for this, today was really tough in the Gym, I did about 1.5k at a 12 min mile and was really heating up and struggling so I slowed it to a walk, put the dreadmill on a 15º incline and did about 10 mins, then put it back down and did another 1.5k, I was really overheating at this point even though there is aircon in the gym.

I then moved on to the bike and was going for about 10 mins and felt dizzy and nauseous, I though I may be overdoing it slightly as I was so hot and my HR was 183bpm, I stopped, got off and walked over to the floor exercise area, on the way I still felt dizzy and my hands were swelling and little tingly so for the next few mins I lay on the floor and had my feet on a Swiss ball, I have heard of this before but for the life of me cant remember what causes it so I feel a Google coming on!

After resting I did some core muscle exercises as I have decided to really hit this area now, after about 20 mins I then moved on to some strength training on the legs.

1hr 30 mins total.

I have now taken to adding walks to my day at work again to try and help with my training and weight loss, I found a great trail down the road from my office which is a damn site nicer than pounding the roads.

My goal for the year is to be able to run a complete 10 miles non stop at around 12 min miles, also I want to lose at least another 4 stone which will be tough but is possible just as long as I can stick with my diet and train, this I am finding tough as I just cant take enough carbs in.

Fingers crossed!

I am really pleased to see I have a few followers now, thanks for this every one, hope I can keep you all interested, Chaco man thanks for your comments, much appreciated, they all help as motivation.

Take care all

Tel

Just call me flash!

2010-07-16T10:17:00.002+01:00

Today was my speed work day, I have grown to enjoy this even though it does smash the hell out of my shins, going by the calculations 3x body weight = pressure on legs, that would mean 72 stones (457k) almost 1/2 a ton, I am amazed my legs don't just shatter!

Any way I digress, I had a 20 min session, it went like this:
100m x 11 min mile
100m x 9.5 min mile
100m x 8.7 min mile
100m x 8 min mile
100m x 7.4 min mile
100m x 6.85 min mile x?? cant remember how many times I repeated this.

I got down to my last 5 mins and did a similar thing in reverse, I was dead chuffed with this, I know they were only short spurts with a 100m walk breaks in between but that is with out a doubt the quickest I have run in my adult years.

On a serious note I am going to have to watch the shin as it is quite sore now, I cant ice it immediately after as I go straight to work, I suppose I could get a small freezer bag and take some ice packs with me, Mmmmm food for thought.

Don't know if any one else had a look at the Badwater link but it has re-invigorated my want to do it, there is one fantastic English guy on there they call "Death Valley Jack" this was his 12th time he has done this event plus all sorts of other ultras, he is now 75 years old, he may be slow but he is amazing, I only hope I am as capable as him when I am 75.

Tel

A good run

2010-07-15T09:48:00.002+01:00

..One of my friends from Real Buzz posted a question today asking what defines a "Good" run, to be honest I think a good run is defined many different ways depending on what you are seeking out of your running, some of us run to increase our pace and win races, others run to compete in Marathons but only to complete it and not break any records, some of us do it just for the fun of running because we enjoy the solitude and to get us out and see new sights.

Up until this week I was doing it with the aim of competing in running a few ultra races but this changed due to me having a spur of the moment run at Chobham the other day, I know I have trained at Chobham before but these were planned sessions, this one was purely off the cuff, I also changed my route slightly, this added a very steep downhill section through the brush and fern, it was a little slipy so I had the challenge of not ending up on arse.

It wasn't a fast pace run, it was a gentle pace just taking in the time, it was raining and even that didn't bother me, my finish was up quite a steep gravel hill section which got the heart rate going, when I stopped I could feel the pulse racing through a vane in the back of my neck, the echo pounding through my head and I loved the feeling, it was quite euphoric.

I got home and felt superb, it was at this point I realised what a good run was, I have every intention on doing this again and I clearly am more suited to trail running rather than road running which is a surprise considering my size, I am not exactly a gazelle.

A lot of you out there are training hard to win events but my advice is, take the occasional spur of the moment run, some where you have not run before in an environment you would not normally run in, don't plan it, just wake up one morning and say to yourself "I think I will do it differently today" I think and hope you would be pleasantly surprised, no guarantee but if it doesn't pan out then try it again but in a different environment and see if that helps.

The main thing is, remember to enjoy it.

Tel

Dream come true

2010-06-24T19:43:00.003+01:00

Yesterday I finally managed to do something that I dreamt of being able to do back when I first started training, I managed to run home from work, I did take the shortest of 3 routes at 10 miles.

I was doubly pleased as I generally held the pace I intended doing and considering it was 27 deg in the sun I didn't get too dehydrated, I was however again struggling with my back, with what I thought was my sciatica but today I found out it was nothing to do with it and I have another trapped bloody nerve Grrrrrr

This one is causing a very painful burning sensation right through both quad groups, the only way I seem to be able to abay it for a while is to stop and site down for about 5 mins.

Any way I made it home in one piece and plan to do this again, I am choosing my last day at work so that I can leave my car at home and get a lift in to work.

I am hoping I reach a point where I can run in and out of work.

The other interesting thing is for the first time after my long run I have no blisters and I can still walk Lol.

Just 2 feet

2010-06-15T21:20:00.009+01:00

....And a back pack holding some sandwiches, strapping bandages, spare T Shirt, Spare socks, and a spare pare of trainers! Yes it was my second attempt of my Marathon walk, please remember this was not a test of how fast I could do it, but to see if I could do it! I headed out at 05:00 as I had ever intention of getting back early enough to get in the pool, as usual I started out with a quick video, sorry if it is a bit cheesy.

This time rather than be dropped 26 miles away I decided to make my own way, the plan was to walk down to the Thames at Hampton Crt and head west toward Cheartsy where I finished last time, As I was wearing my trainers this time I thought I wouldn't have any issues, it seems I was wrong, 3 miles in and in the same area as last time I started to get a hot spot so had to apply some strapping this was the first time I tried this.

Shortly after sorting my feet out I reached the Thames and the real start to the walk One of the first things I found was this, absolutely amazing.

I have found that whilst on these walks I find all sorts of things, I could believe it when I found this straw type beach bar in the back of some ones garden.

Not sure what type of Bird this was but it was very unusual.

About 10 miles in and I came across a bit of a road bloc, literaly!!!
For some reason the path was closed, unfortunately it would mean quite a diversion back and around to get past this so I took a short break to sort my heal out as it was getting sore so I had to get a bit more strapping out, unfortunately to do this I had to remove the blister first, the next pic may not be for you if you have just eaten.

Once this was resolved I never had any more issues with my feet, my back however was another story! Any way I decided to head back towards Hampton crt then decide from there where to go, there were lots of ducks & geese and lots of babies.

I also came across this black swan, not very often you see one of these.

The next picture was a bit of a weird one, the sun was shining through the tree and I thought this looked like a frog, the said a face but I just cant see it.

Any way, after about 16 miles I was having real issues with my back, by now I had lost the feeling in my thighs because of my back, Finally mile 18 came around just as I was passing Hampton Crt

Then I just couldn't believe it, Snow!!!!

Only kidding, it was the blossom out of the trees. Close to about as far as could go and I found this stag trying to pull a branch out of a tree

I was having real issues by now as I hadn't had any water for the last 4 miles and the next chance of getting some was another 2 miles away and it was getting bloody hot.

Any way, even Gorky the Garmin had shut down on me I finally managed just over 26.2 very painful miles.

I got home and jumped in the pool then tucked in to a tub of Haggendas and a bottle of wine to celebrate.

I truly never realised that 26 miles was so tough!

Even the birds were asleep!!

2010-05-30T07:59:00.001+01:00

At least the ones in the trees were, there were a couple of new faces in the Gym that seemed to be getting the blokes attention Lol

Yes it was my one o'clock long run this morning on the SUPER dreadmill, I call it the SUPER dreadmill because I usual use the same one every day but a few days ago I used a different one and was doing some sprint work and I think my weight pounding on it broke it Lol, any way all generally went well except for one very annoying problem, I got 45 mins in and found my self with a desperate need to go for a number 2 then I came back and started again and the about another 45 mins in I had to go again, this really threw the session out as I found it tough to get back in to it.

Any way I did about 8 miles again but instead of 2hrs I did it in 1hr 50min which is still very slow as it was a run walk but I have reduced the walking a little, hopefully soon I can stop the walking and increase the running pace.

Only a few days left before my second attempt at my Marathon walk, keeping my fingers crossed that nothing goes wrong this time.

Not sure if any one else is doing it but I am currently tracking Keith L on his "Comrades" Ultra, he is doing well by the look of it.

Race Start 05:30:14
Race time so far 02:27:52
Over all position 2948
Distance done 26.77 Km
Average speed 5.52 (not sure how accurate that is as I think this is way faster than the pace he was looking for)

Go Keith go.

Have a good weekend all.

Tel

First 26.2 miler

2010-05-13T12:45:00.002+01:00

As you all know I had a little secret for today, lets start this off with a short introduction.

Yep my secret was that I was going to do a 26.2 mile training walk along the Thames footpath, I have never ever done this distance yet and I needed to know If I could do it.

It started off realy well, possibly to well as I decided to have a little run even though this was only supposed to be a simple walk, hence the reason why I had my walking boots and back pack weighing 4.8 kilo, this was packed with some sanwiches, energy sweets and my 2ltr water bladder

The little run could have been a little bit of a bad idea as I was wearing walking boots!

I tood plenty of pics so lets see a few of them.

Some of the houses were simply amazing, I have never seen anything like some of them, I am completely in the wrong job!!

Came across these weird mile markers.

It seems they are to do with a cycle network.

Found a couple of swans nesting

Flower pot man in a bush

Passing Windsor race course

First signs of Windsor

6 Miles in and crossing Windsor bridge

Just as I was leaving the Windsor area I came across a load of horses and an arena, there were two women holding a couple of horses, I asked them what was happening and they explained it was the Royal Windsor horse show, I ask if I could take a pic of them but they told me that I could only take a pic of one of them, I asked why and was told that the other one was the Queens horse so I took just the one pic.

I then went on top of the bridge and took one any way, sorry Queeny.

The one on the right was the Queens.

It was shortly after this that I found my feet really struggling which was annoying as I had loads of energy, I carried on and ended up reaching a point where the path moved from the river and on to the road.

Then back in to the wild a little later.

I thought I would give a little update at 9 miles.

The houses were just more and more amazing.

The I found something really weird, it was a huge owl at the end of someone's garden, it was called Digby

I eventually reached 13 miles as I crossed Staines bridge in to stains where I popped in to a shop and bought a couple of mars bars and an isotonic drink, then I found a statue which was the last pic I took, things went a little bad from here and the only thing after this was a simple video.

and so the story ends

Well actualy not quite, after getting home and the wife helping fix my feet I checked the Garmin and it was actualy 17.8 miles so not so bad after all!

2010-05-04T08:52:00.000+01:00

"Dear Terry Smith,
Thank you for entering the ballot for the 2011 Virgin London Marathon"

So all I need to do now is wait with fingers crossed.

Wish me luck
Tel

Last few weeks

2010-05-03T08:51:00.001+01:00

...The last few weeks have not been brilliant as I have had a couple of injuries preventing me from doing training, I had a ankle injury from a previous training walk and then I slipped down the stairs at home putting my back out, I have managed to get back to training but sadly I have put 2k back on during this time.

Yesterday I managed to do 12.6k on the dreadmill but I was aiming for 16k, I was doing OK in the first hour but my ankle then started getting very sore so I had to walk most of the next hour.

The during the day me and my family went in to London and spent the day at the Natural history museum so I can count this as more time on my feet Lol.

I am planning something a bit mammoth on the 11th May "the day after my birthday" this is not only a way of celebrating that I am still alive but also I need to know what it is like to do 26.2 miles as the furthest I have ever done is 19 miles and I was 15 at the time, my plan is for my wife to drop me off at Maidenhead and I will be following the Thames Path back to Hampton court which is 26.48 miles where I will again meet the wife to go home.

This will be a completely new experience for me, I am estimating around 8 - 9 hrs as I am not planning on pushing to hard as I have no idea of how tough it will be.

I will be taking my Garmin but although they quote 10hr battery life I will be very surprised if it does last that long, I have my list for the back pack for food, snacks and fluids so providing the weather is dry there should not be a problem, if it is raining I will not be doing it as I don't have any waterproofs.

Wish me luck

Tel

Updates and injury's

2010-04-28T15:38:00.004+01:00

Time for an update, sadly not much of one, due to an injury to my ankle I was off running for around 3 weeks then just as I was about to go for a run I slipped down the stairs and hurt my back, this meant another week off, I am now looking at getting back to it next Monday.

I still find it very strange that 2 years ago I smoked and was at my peak weight of 30 stones and would have dreaded walking any where let alone go for a run, now I get agitated not being able to go for a run, it is the strangest feeling wanting to put yourself under stress whilst training all for the buzz you get out of it at the end.

I now have some new trainers that I can use to do some trail running.

I was also lucky enough to have been given a rather flash cross trainer, it is very tough compared to the one in the Gym, I managed 10 mins on it before I was knackered Lol.

I have decided that it is time that I knew what 26 miles felt like so I am planning on doing a 26 mile walk along the Thames from Maidenhead back to Hampton court, I can only estimate that this will take me around 8 hrs, I am not bothered about running any of it for the moment as I really just need to know what it feels like if I am going to do this for 6 days back to back across a desert.

You can see my route here http://www.realbuzz.com/mapyourpassion/?item=341279

I also just bought a 2 litre bladder pack for my INOV8 back pack and a sleeping bag for the MDS (don't laugh to hard at the pics), the bladder pack should come in handy on my marathon walk.

Well done to every one that just completed the London Marathon, I will be applying again for next years race.

Take care all

Tel

Not getting enough......

2010-03-31T10:46:00.002+01:00

I have decided I am not getting enough so I have decided I am going to get it more often, from now on I am only going to not get it one day a week because I just don't feel satisfied with what I am getting.

I will however mix it up a little, I think I will stick to my current running plan but then on days I am not running I am going to do pure strength training, I know this may sound as though I am overdoing it but I am feeling very fidgety and just do not think I am burning enough calories, on my running days I burn around 1200 cal's which is every other day and on my long run I do about 1500+, on my days off I am still consuming calories but not burning them as I sit in a bloody office all day.

I have told myself that if I start feeling drained I will just stop for a few days.

I am still having issues with my hamstring and I am hoping that it will eventually heal with out the need for me to take some time off, the same goes for my Shin and calf as this is all on my left leg.

I really could do with a sports massage but unless the local butchers know how to do it then it will have to wait as the pennies are scarce still.

On the sponsorship front, I may have another company who may be adding my story to their web page but this is still very unconfirmed, I have found a number of companies that stated, get a page set up and we will help and then seem to forget.

Outside of that I am feeling healthy and strong (apart from just pulling a massive yawn and pulling a muscle in my back) Lol.

I came across another weirdo in the gym yesterday, there I was running away on the treadmill when a man came through the security gates, ran across the gym floor then did two cartwheels and left again, I have absolutely no idea why.

Sad to say my only real issue is still causing me grief and I still haven't broken the 150k barrier, hopefully the extra training may help, I must admit my diet is poor at the moment, one of my weakness is cheese and my wife was at the cash and carry the other day and bought me a very large bag of grated cheese, now I have no choice but to eat it so that it doesn't go off, I do not waste food ever so I am not prepared to throw it away.

Hoping to get some new trainers next pay day as mine are just about worn out, I am looking at some NB749 as they are good on road and trail, I tried a pair on and they were very comfy.

For those who are on their way out to this years MDS, good luck to you all and I pray you all cross the finish line and return safely.

Sorry the posts are not overly interesting at the moment, things are just a little slow so for those that made it to the end, thank you Lol.

Take care all

Tel

http://www.justgiving.com/MarathonDesSablesorbust

10k Training run

2010-03-21T07:55:00.003Z

... Well today was the big day, the longest and furthest I have Run/Walked since Silverstone last March, I was very apprehensive as the longest I had done so far was about 7k, now I know there is not much difference between 7 & 10 but if you put that in perspective it is like a ultra runner going from 70 - 100 miles (I wish I hadn't used that idea now as it makes my run look miniscule)

Any way moving on, up at 02:00, realised I had no porridge and no Muesli left so had to resort to some of my sons Rice Crispies, out of the door for 02:30, in the Gym for 02:45, nearly locked my keys in the locker as they were in my coat which I put in the locker (reminder to myself, get a combi lock)

Out to the Treadmill, suddenly I remembered what my longest run had been and how much that hurt, now I am doing 10k with a dodgy Hamstring and shin, I used my Tuba grip (that I bought for my calf problem) as compression sock's, I am glad I did because they worked a treat, I have now decided I am going to buy some compression socks, they make an amazing difference.

Starter with some light stretches and then set off on my travels, it is like being in the twilight zone when using the treadmill, my thoughts wander all over the place, I am having real issues focusing, as planned I was doing a 4r - 1w ratio which generally worked well.

I reached the 5k mark and then had to turn the treadmill off and start again as the stupid things only go to 60mins, I would have liked to do a 11 - 12min mile giving me a time around 1hr 12min but realistically I knew it would be around 1hr 30min, at the 5k mark the realisation hit in that I now had to do it all over again and I was already getting some twinges from the Hamstring.

I pushed on and with the aid of some very impressive "Jelly Belly" jelly beans from the states I reached the 9k mark, the one thing I noticed at this point that I was struggling no more now than I was at 5k so I seemed to reach a peak and just kept it going.

The next thing I know the 10k was reached and I was really glad to stop the machine, it was sooooo mind numbingly dull, I checked my heart rate 3 times during the run, 30mins, 60 mins and at the end 1hr 28mins I was amazed to see that it had stayed around 177bpm which surprised me, I was hoping it would have been lower.

there was 2 thing that helped me through this, the Tuba Grip and the energy beans that the wife bought, they were amazing on the only energy replacement I have found that you could feel the effect with, I intend to buy more of these.

The one thing that I also learnt was through the whole of the run I was clock watching waiting for the time to elapse, this makes things worse as it makes the time drag, I have tried covering the timer up but I then get anxious to see if I have been going as long as I feel I have so end up having a look, if I am going to be a ultra runner I need to find a way around this, if any one has any hints please let me know.

Overall I am very pleased and smiling, I would have liked a better time but I know that will gradually come, no blisters although my middle toe is sore on the tip of each toe, probably because it is the longest and rubs the most..

At least I know I could enter some 10k events (not yet though) and hopefully gradually increase the pace, I would like to reach about 1hr 10mins but this will take a while yet.

Tel

http://www.justgiving.com/MarathonDesSablesorbust

Positive week

2010-03-14T07:41:00.003Z

Well this has been quite a positive week for me, two outside runs, a 3 mile walk with the wife and dogs and today my first 60 mins on the treadmill this year, I was hoping to do a constant 60 mins but unfortunately it was just not meant to be, I reached 30 mins and thought I was going to collapse so I then broke it down to 4 min run and 1 min walk until I hit 60 mins, I think it was 6.8k which wasn't to bad.
Also I lost another 1.7kg this week, this I was doubly happy about as I have only had a couple of my fat pills this week so hopefully I can break away from them soon, I have another 2.6kg to go before breaking the 150kg barrier, this however is still great as it is the lowest weight I have been since starting my diet 2 years ago so smiles all round.
I am seriously thinking about doing 2 min runs during my lunch breaks to increase my training, I am just concerned about over doing it considering I am still on a very low calorie intake, something for me to think about.

I have attached some of the shots of me training at Chobham common, sorry about the sound, unfortunatly shot from my phone and picking up a lot of wind noise.

I hope every one is having a great weekend.
Take care

Tel

http://www.justgiving.com/MarathonDesSablesorbust

MacMillan Cancer Relief Fund

2010-02-23T07:11:00.003Z

.. Hi All, I would just like to let every one know that I have now set up my Justgiving pages and I will be raising funds for the MacMillan Cancer Relief fund the MacMillan fund is very close to home for me due to My sister in law having terminal cancer and my father almost died of cancer 2 years ago.

The work that the helpers do is absolutely fantastic and at the same time extremely sad because every story will end in sadness for some one no matter how much they help people in their last moments.

Even if you dont know me or what my goals are I ask if you can help them by giving what you can, it is a difficult time for us all at the moment but even the smallest amount will help.
Many thanks in advance to any one who can help, if you would like any further detail about what I am doing prior to sponsoring me please feel free to drop me a message.

Regards
Terry
http://www.justgiving.com/MarathonDesSablesorbust

Its been a while

2010-02-18T15:35:00.000Z

Sorry it has been a while AGAIN, any way lets give you all an update.

Over the last few weeks my training really has started coming together and I am managing for the first time to follow a good set out training plan, it is tough but then it wouldn't be worth doing if it wasn't, my weight loss has also started again, sadly not the way I would like as I am very very hungry but it seems to be the only way for me to keep losing the weight, all I can hope is once I start running some serious distances I can eat what I like.

I have now decided on a sponsor, I will be trying to raise funds for the MacMillan Cancer support organisation, for those that don't know, they help guide people and support people who are dying from cancer to try and make their final bit of life that little bit happier, I chose this as my sister in-law is currently in that situation and my father almost died from cancer, these are amazing people and do some fantastic work, once I get my sponsorship page set up I will let you all know.

I am also now putting together corporate sponsor packages as I have realised that I will not be able to raise the funds directly with out some corporate backing, I am really hoping to be able to dedicate myself to just one company, a friend of mine also asked me if I am used to public speaking which gave me the horrible thought that I have never done this and have nothing put together so I am now putting together a speech.

I am hoping to attend the Dovedale Dipper in August which is 16 miles cross country, a friend is gradually pulling me in to enter more walking/running event to help for the MDS in the hope of doing the Bullock Smithy next year which is 50 + miles.

I don't have much more than that for the time being, I hope you are all well and you are all reaching your training targets.

Tel

http://www.macmillan.org.uk/Home.aspx

Becoming a Ultra Marathon Runner.
http://www.realbuzz.com/blogs/u/eclipse/becoming-an-ultra-marathon-runner/

http://www.darbaroud.com/index_uk.php

http://www.themds.co.uk/forums/index.php

Dream of running

2009-10-20T13:41:00.006+01:00

I know that most of my waking hours are spent dreaming about being able to run great distances with out feeling really tiered but for the first time recently I have even been dreaming about it.

I have would imagine that my daily thoughts have seeped in to my subconscious, I know that I have years to go before I will ever be able to reach this goal but just dreaming about it has put me on a real high, I suppose you have to ask if it is just me being weird?

The dream is me just running and running and running on a road with no apparent goal or destination in mind and no idea where I am, it is peaceful with very little noise, it is not to warm but not cold, my body is feeling rested and at ease, my breathing is smooth and flowing with the faint breeze as it passes over my body.

I am not over weight but I am still at my current age and all I seem to be able to think about is just running further and being at peace.

Not sure if any one else has had a similar dream but I would be curious, I wonder if I will ever be able to re-create this dream in real life and will I feel very sad if I don't?

Maybe these dreams all mean absolutely nothing but what is the point of living if you cant have dreams, all I hope is that I dream it again, I haven't felt this relaxed in years.

Happy dreaming everyone.

Fitness & Sickness

2009-10-19T13:23:00.006+01:00

Hi all, I hope you are all well, sadly I haven't been and it is again highlighting to me just how much more I get ill and pick up bugs since taking up the fitness game to when I used to be a couch potato and was unfit!!

Normally (Pre Training) I almost never got ill, no colds, no coughs, no viruses no injures at all apart from my back issues, I think it was years in between visits to the docs and never off work due to a cold, now you could ask is this because I had a fantastic immune system or was it because I never left the house to pick up any illnesses from others, take my recent issues, I am now just getting over the worst viral chest infection that I have ever had, it put me in bed for 3 days, and I mean in bed!

All I could do is lay and watch TV (well episodes of Andromeda, well 30 of them to be precise and a few films) this illness seems to have come on from me being a spectator at the recent GER

When I left I was fine and yet a day after I came back I was bed ridden, I found out after that Kim who was running also picked up the bug, lucky for her I don't think that it hit her as hard.

I have read that your immune system becomes a little weaker when training which is very strange, you would think that as you are getting fitter your body's immune system would improve.

The really annoying thing is that as I am still a long long way from anything resembling peak fitness my body does seem to lose its fitness level very fast when I stop training, if I end up not training for a week I can take a couple of weeks to get back to where I was so I do find this very frustrating and disheartening, it is during these times that I have to find ways to convince myself to get back in to training and not just give up thinking this is all a fools dream.

Such a time occurred this morning, I was hoping to get back to training tomorrow but to be honest it is a little early so I will give it until Thursday.

I hope every one Else's training for the MDS or other ultras is going well, feel free to drop me a link to your blog and I can have a look at it and may be even tag it to mine for others to find.

Tel

One happy little blogger

2009-10-10T10:44:00.002+01:00

Finally some light at the end of the tunnel, after around 18 months of hard training and horrible dieting my doctor two weeks ago prescribed "Orlistat", this is a tablet that helps aid weight loss by blocking fat enzymes being absorbed into the body.

In 14 days I have lost 7 kilo, this is more weight than I have lost in 18 months so understandably I ecstatic, hopefully now with my training and these tablets I should start seeing some very beneficial weight loss.

Holly
Many thanks for commenting on my last post, I wish you the best of luck for 2011, can I ask what part of the states you come from, I have only every been to Florida but me and my family love it out there and are desperate to move to the states but sadly we cant as they wont let us in Lol.

There are some great races in the states, have you done many?

Sorry for being nosey, just interested, never doubt that you may not do it or you simply wont, if you get a place you must have a positive mind and decide where you want to finish and I am certain with this attitude you will reach your goal.

More to come on the weight loss front as it happens.

Tel

2009-09-28T16:59:00.015+01:00

Well today was the planned 4 mile hike around Chobham Common, I was looking forward to this as it was going to be the first of my training sessions on the common, the weather was just about perfect, not to hot and not to cold.

I was a little apprehensive about wearing my brand new hiking boots as I could have ended up with blisters but to be honest, I never suffered any hot spots until the last 1/2 mile.

Well, we got there around 11:20, I had my Garmin with me and had pre programmed a rout in to it, basically just a pace really, tried to activate it but it all went wrong so gave up with that program and used the quick programme setting, once sorted me and Buddy (the dog) set off on our adventures.

I have already started naming some of the sections on the route, firstly we started with "4 mile hill" not because it is 4 miles but it was the start of my first 4 mile hike, as you leave the car park you head off down a fairly steep hill, I then reached the cross section which heads off in 4 different ways, After crossing under the motorway, sadly the motorway runs through the centre of the common but although very noisy it didn't detract from the pleasure of being out there.
I headed off to the top of one of the hills and took this little bit of footage to show the motorway.

After this little stop we headed off down the other side of the hill in to the wilderness, I chose to follow the horse track rather than the foot trail as it was sandy and would help simulate walking the desert Lol, we were at about 1.5 miles in and Buddy was already panting, I didn't bother bringing any water as I didn't think we would need it, I wont make that mistake again.

After crossing a small road the track went down another hill that I now call fern gully for the obvious reason, it was smothered in ferns, At 2.5 miles in we met a woman on a horse.

we stopped and had a little chat, I asked her if she knew how big the common was, she said that she can ride around the outer paths in about 4 hours, now if she does it on a horse in 4 hrs, if would take me longer so it must be a fair distance.
After a pleasant chat I headed off again and followed the route she recommended, this basically took me around the opposite side of where I came down, it also took me over a very steep hill and at 3 miles in the legs were getting a little tired, I also realised at this point that I will not be doing this in Jeans again, they are too heavy and not flexible enough and they caused a little chaffing in the nether regions

Now you may all be wondering what the mushrooms are all about in the tile, well as I was heading back along the route I found a number of mushrooms, I had never seen these in wild before and thought they were stunning, I also found one that was a little worse for wear.

I didn't pick any although we did find a sign after saying that you can pick 1k each, I would rather see them growing thanks.
As I reached the 3.5 mile mark I found this nice long stick and used it as a walking pole which helped for a while, then my shoulder stared aching sound I gave up on that idea Lol.

We eventually reached back to the car park and to my astonishment I had actually not done 4 miles, I had done 5.5 miles woohoo I was well pleased with that.
The pace was not rapid as it took me dead on 2 hours but I did have a few stops to chat with people and take some pics, all in all I really enjoyed it and look forward to my next one, not sure if buddy will ever forgive me and may run and hide when ever I pick the lead up.
The below is the chart showing my elevations, not sure how accurate it is but it came from the Garmin.

Now the really funny thing is I used to 4x4 off roading and ramblers and off roaders never really saw eye to eye and I always used to see them out carrying huge back packs and maps and I thought they were raving loons, why walk when you can do the same route in a nice big truck, well today I found out why, because you miss sooooooo much.
I especially liked walking through the trees as a large group of bright green parakeets flew between them.

MDS here I come Lol

Tel

Sign of ignorance

2009-09-15T13:44:00.002+01:00

My apologies to those that have posted comments on my Blog and I appear to have been rude not to have responded, unfortunately I missed a section which meant I have not been receiving alerts when people comment.

The training is going reasonably well at the moment, I am working on increasing my speed a little at the moment to enable me to run between a 1o & 12 min long distance miles, I would love to reach the 9 min mile mark but I am only able to do this for minutes at the moment but hopefully with time this will happen.

Steph, I am glad you like the pic with you on it, I was so pleased to see you and Rach finish this year, shame you both cant join me in 2012.

Faun
Thanks for your suggestions, I have already read a few books and I have a couple of vids about the MDS and also "Running on the sun" which is about the Badwater ultra which is my end goal.

I will have a look for the book by Christopher McDougall, I do need to set some short term goals as I think this may be one of my problems at the moment, I have nothing to aim for so when the training drops off a little I don't panic.

I think my first short term goal will be to complete my local 5k in 30 mins which will be 19mins quicker the my only other entry, then I will get a couple of 10k in and then a couple of half's and 1 full marathon, from there I will have to step it up a gear to do a couple of 50 milers or I wont be ready in time.

I will keep you all updated as I go, I will aim for Christmas for the 5k.

Tel

Its been a while!

2009-08-22T16:51:00.003+01:00

Wow I didn't realise just how long it had been since my last post, you guys are not going to know how I made it to the MDS if I don't keep regular updates.

Life has been a little strange over the last few months, the diet has gone to rat shit, I tried and tried for months and no matter what I did I couldn't lose any weight, training 5 days per week and keeping the calories below 2000 but nothing changed, I guess the last straw was when I had a blood test to check my Thyroids and it came back normal, most people would be grateful for this but I was gutted as I just cant work out what else I can do.

I am now back up to 28 stone (180Kg), I am still training although I was following a set plan but as of Monday I will be raising this again to 4 or 5 days per week, I am also going to try a weight watchers diet, I don't have much to lose at the end of the day (well not quite true, I have 14 stones to lose Lol)

Under 3 years to go now and to be honest I still have no idea where I am going to get the funds to pay for it but I am not giving up, one way or another I will be doing this, even if it kills me!

I will be trying to post on a regular basis from now, even if it is just to say how I am feeling, the lows and the highs.

Good luck to any one else that is training for the MDS, see you there.

Tel

Losing the Faith!!

2009-06-16T13:55:00.001+01:00

Today was a wake up call for me!

I was at work when one of my colleagues mentioned that I have said anything about the MDS recently, it suddenly dawned on me that I hadn’t thought about it for over a month, this came as a shock because normally it is all I talk about.

I realise that it is not until 2012 and I will not talk about it constantly for 3 years, I was concerned that I hadn’t even thought about it, I found that thinking about it keeps me pushing forward with my training.

I have to have a goal in my mind or I am easily distracted, that may seem weird but that is who I am.

Now I have realised that I had lost my faith a little this should be enough to put me back on track, I have set up my desk with all sorts of MDS reminders so no matter what I do I cant easily forget again.

If on the slim chance any one does read this blog, please feel free to place a comment about if and when you may have lost your faith/mojo and what you did to get it back.

Tel

Two weeks off

2009-05-18T13:27:00.004+01:00

Yep I have just had two weeks off from life, I did sweet bugger all for the last couple of weeks and by god it did me good, unfortunately this did not help my training as it has put me further and further behind, no change at all to my weight so I am still only doing strength work and cross trainer to try and lose some weight, hopefully I can then start running again.

Not much more to update at this stage other than to say that hopefully this break was just what I needed to get my training back on the rails.

I am planning more walks on my days off to try and help.

with a bit of luck my next update will be about how well my training is going.

Tel

Should I give up???????????

2009-05-03T14:13:00.004+01:00

Not bloody likely!!!!

Things still not going too well, still cant do much running at the moment due to my weight smashing the crap out of my knees.

I am still doing the Gym 5 times a week spending about 1hr working on the cross trainer, stomach, back and leg muscles.

Weight loss is not changing, don't know why, I have spoken to numerous people to find out and they have no idea, I really need to find a decent sports doctor who understands my needs and goals but sadly I have only found 1 near me and they said that I live out of their area.

I need to lose 13 stones in at least 16 months or all of this will not go how I had hoped.

Other than that not much happening, only 1057 days left, not that I am counting Lol

First few years

2009-04-21T12:12:00.003+01:00

The first few years of this blog may be a little on the quiet side as I will only be doing some very basic training and working at losing 13 stones, I have also reduced my running to once a week and spend the rest of my time training on the cross trainer and exercise bike, I finish my training off with strengthening my core.

The reason I took this avenue is because my right knee and ankle have been suffering badly, the knee is very probably "Bakers Cyst" which is where the liquid in the sack that sits in the knee joint, squeezes out through the back of the joint causing a golf ball size swelling, this causes restriction in movement, I should really go to the doctor but sadly I wouldn't trust my doctor to check to see if I had a cold.

I train 5 times a week in the Gym at the moment, once my running takes shape and I lose weight I will start heading back out in to the wilds to train.

For any one who is thinking of doing the MDS and don't just want to walk the whole distance but does want to get a good finish time and also if you have never done any training, my recommendation is do not start of by just running, no matter who you are you will need to walk at some point so get plenty of long distance walks, if you can try training with walking poles, even better find a Nordic training group.

If you do not add walking to your training sessions I personally think you will either fail or at least struggle greatly, this of course will make all your hard work worthless.

You may also want to add some cross trainer work as this will help when it comes to the sand dunes.

Through advice of people on the MDS web site I am picking up some very valuable training tips, one of which is to do at least one back to back training session involving 5 half marathons, this will help give an idea of how your body will or will not cope with training with out recovery days.

At some point next year I am planning on doing this in the New Forrest and I am hoping a few other people may be joining me.

If any one reading this has any useful training tips please feel free to post them in the comments section or even email them to me and I will post them for others to read.

Have great training sessions

Tel

MDS Personal login

2009-04-10T09:01:00.004+01:00

I have now received my personal log in for the MDS competitors private area so I am now a VIP Lol, not a lot on there really, just a place to log your personal details such a blood group etc, talking of which I will need to find this as I haven't got a clue!

Training sadly not going well over the last week, I have a cold and still have Knee & Ankle issues from the Silverstone Half.

My plan is from Sunday to work out with the cross trainer and bike for a couple of weeks to get things working again then run from there.

I am also planing to get some good distance walking on my days off and during lunch breaks to get used to the walking side of things.

Tel

MDS addiction

2009-04-04T04:22:00.000+01:00

04/04/09

Funny thing about the MDS, I have been fascinated for the last few months about the race and look at every bit of information I have been able to find but this last week as been one of the most enjoyable (if not a little stressful) that I have had so far.

This is all due to the fact that I have a number of friends out there who have just completed one of the most testing MDS events to date, sadly the weather really caused them problems from day one and amazingly it was not because it was to hot, just the opposite, the poor buggers had torrential rain from the day they got there causing floods and very dangerous conditions some of which were quick sand and fast flowing rivers.

Due to the weather they lost the first day, the race organisers planned to make this up by adding distances to other days, sadly this made little difference as the final day was also dropped as the final encampment was to dangerous due to the water still laying in the sand and mud.

All this crap weather did not dampen their spirits as much as would be expected, they all still gave it their best and ran some of the toughest days that have ever been set up on the MDS, the longest day was around 91 kilometers making this the longest single day in MDS history.

I have for the last week been riveted to the news updates on the Darbaroud web site, checking out all of the fantastic pictures and videos, considering this race could have been called of due to the weather I think every one did a great job especially the race organisers, I can only hope this does not happen in 2012!!!

Training update
Things not going to well at the moment, suffered a knee and ankle injury from my Half Marathon so it is just strength training at the moment.

If you are currently unable to see any pictures I can only apologise I am looking in to this!

And so it begins

2009-04-01T03:52:00.000+01:00

Like all stories there is a beginning and a end, my beginning started just over twelve months ago when I had my fast approaching 40Th Birthday, I like many others never believed that this would have any impact on how my life ran its course, how wrong I was!!

40 years old, 6.4" & 29 stones, rapidly approaching being a disabled mass of self destruction, something hit my like a freight train, I stopped smoking, started losing weight & in May 2008 took the very drastic step of taking up running.

Why running? to be honest I have no idea, it is the one thing I have hated my whole life, I was never any good at it, I could have taken up cycling, much less impact on the old body but no I decided I would run.

Jumped in feet first and decided I would do the London Marathon, I had no idea at the time that you cant just enter and get a place so came back down to earth with a very hard bump, panicking slightly I asked myself where else I could go?

As my running was not going very well I decided to take professional advice and hired a personal trainer who specialised in running, he was great and took me in 8 months from not being able to run 10yards to being able to run a half marathon (well I walked most of it but I still finished)

A lot has happened in the last 9 months including me looking at some very high level goals, 1 of which is to not only compete in the MDS but to be able to come in with a decent time.

I have already invested and will be investing much much more time in training for this and turning a 29 stone blob in to a 14 stone lean mean running machine.

At the beginning of this post I stated everything has a beginning and a end, well to the end of my story, I am currently on the reserv list for the 2012 MDS but I am confident that I will get a place, I am making a lot of friends that are already ultra runners and others like me who are training to become one, I now find myself asking the question "is this the end or just the beginning"?

Wish me luck.

Tel