Long time no blog but going to blog my 2017 race series first stop North Tyneside 10k 2017

Hello everybody, 

Dont think i have blogged since GNR 2015 

Been toying with this idea for a little while so going to give it a go OH YOUR STILL READING GOOD!

I have seen lots of my friends posting online race reports so i have decided to follow suit not original i know. This year i have quite a few races and i thought it would be a good idea to blog throughout the series. 

April already and my racing 2017 has only just started, that being said i have currently done 177 miles out of my 450 yearly target for this year (thinking i set the bar a little too low on that one) way more at this point last year anyway. Had a fantastic winter training season and spring seems to be following suit with new PBS galore in 1 mile, 2 miles, 5k and now 10k (8 miles and 10 miles to boot too) 

So lets get started with an account of today before i completely lose it from my brain

Race 1 2017 North Tyneside 10k Sunday 16th April 2017 Happy Easter 

Mixed feelings going into this one following 2 days prior representing my running club at the Good Friday Relays and achieving a new 1 mile and 2 mile record in the process (9:52 and 20:52 respectively) and having one of the best days ever in the process and doing the best for my club with my teammates Gillian Smith and Kay Black proving that even beginners group can take part in the relays but back to the task in hand.

back to the mixed feelings as was also running for the third day in a row having yesterday guide run at parkrun for the first time so wasn't really sure how my legs were going to respond. 

So the day started with me waking up too early with mixed emotions and self doubt wondering with the improvements i have been making lately leading to the new PBS could see me getting a new 10k PB whilst not trying to put too much pressure on myself. I pulled myself together and got ready proudly wearing my Tyne Bridge Harrier vest and promising myself after fridays achievement that i would try my very very best.

9am: Me and mum get dropped off at the start, my legs already thinking about refusing and chat to various people that i have met thanks to running and shortly after gather together with my Tyne Bridge Harrier teammates for a team photo, time then seems to pass relatively quickly up to a point with friends coming over to give me support convincing myself i can do this 

A good club friend Debbie Wardle suggests we go for a warm up before a last minute loo visit so thats what we did, it seemed to tell my legs your doing something anyway.

After a bit more standing around for what seemed like forever we were called to the start to gather for the race starting by this point i just wanted to get away and see what happened with my course PB being 1:23:53 and 10K PB being 1:16:51 set in November at Memorial 10k race on the town moor having beaten previous PB of 1:19:04 at Manchester 10k 2016. I knew in my mind if i could as least beat last years time i would be happy.

All too soon the race was underway, didnt take me too long to get over start line from the middle of the back where i was standing with Alison Harris and Helen Blades from Tyne Bridge Harriers.

Mile 1- 10:14

Started steady didn't want to push off too hard in mile 1 as knew what was to come this year each part of the course unlike last year so just settled into a slower rhythm encouraging friends as the passed me made my way steadily down the hall down to the North Shields fish quay not letting myself go flying into others as we were still tightly packed at this point carried on steadily until we went onto the Fish Quay which is wear mile 1 ended. 

I didnt check what my mile split was at this point but mile 1 completed in 10:14 

Mile 2- 11:41

Just going onto the Quayside path, by this point was listening to some of my friends training for a marathon chatting just behind me before they passed. I was going steady along the Quayside whilst trying to plan my priory hill strategy and how i was going to take it, Had a bit of a panic as knew if i pushed too hard up the first incline that my goal of not stopping on priory hill would not be achieved but started gently running up the start of the climb up from the quayside and this ended mile 2 in a split of 11:41

Mile 3- 12:07 

My aim: not to end up walking on priory hill having done a practice with TBH at the end of December 2016 12 times up and down the thing 

I knew there would be an army of TBH members not running today supporting at the top of the hill and i couldn't be seen walking up it so at the top of the first incline before the main priory hill after a brief walking break i plucked up the courage and took the hill slow and steady until near the top where i saw Kay Black, my physio and fellow Tyne Bridge Harrier Sophie Marr and a few other club members and their encouragement made me power up the final part of the hill, i could tell they looked impressed and i was ecstatically happy that i met my aim and did the hill non stop. 

I then tried to pull myself together and carry on strongly but the effort had me feeling a little queasy tried to put this out of my end took a breath and recovered down the hill that followed i then felt a little better and mile 3 ended at a steady split of 12:07 when that included a big hill i was impressed.

Mile 4- 12:20

Following the coastline i am guessing i hit 5k in about 35 minutes but felt as if i was slowing so an overall pb might be slipping out of reach but not totally over. 

3.5 miles another wave of nausea hit me so i had a quick walk at this point assessing the situation and pretty much feeling that i really don't want to be sick during a race and that i was slipping a bit so decided to slow pace for a little while, then some girls from a this girl can group offered me some sweets and i am glad i said yes as then felt better.

Mile 5- 12:31

I could see St Marys Lighthouse in the distance as i took this mile steady whilst talking to the girls who gave me the sweets before they went off ahead a quick time check and i worked out you know what a 10k PB is not out of reach but its going to involve hard work but i regained focus

Tyne Bridge Harriers cheerers  Michelle Moat and Kathryn Stevenson were there with signs which brought me huge encouragement and was fantastic to see support

Mile 6- 11:35

Arrived at Whitley Bay Promenade where a parkrun Buddy John Mccargill then spurred me on i knew sub  1:16:51 was still on but if the worst came to worst i would get course record sub 1:23:53 but i decided to push along for it as knew supporters would be on the final stretch.

true to my word saw Karen Jeff from choir and many club mates on the way from their own race pushing me onto the finish i still had energy and i increased my pace and told myself its now or never and began to realise the time i had left it was getting more and more possible to achieve 

The final 0.2

Without looking at my watch i increased pace as could see the finish and my friends and family watching i really went for it. 

Took a look at my watch and it said 

1:13:11 I had to look twice 

I CAME AND SAW AND I CONQUERED

not only had i smashed last years time by 10 minutes 40 seconds i achieved a 3 minute 41 second PB and i couldn't be more thankful to my friends for believing in me.  

Until the next race happy running. 

Great North Run 2015 first time runners experience.

So as some of you will be aware i used to not be able to run for a bus  so why did i challenge myself and sign up for a half marathon??

I needed a new challenge after all if i didnt try i would never know. Prior to this year i had done a couple of 5k race for lifes and a great north 5k and the national lottery 5 miles round the olympic park.

Before january 2015 running was not natural to me done a few parkruns but could never get breathing right.

Jantastic saw me with weekly goals to set to motivate me running twice a week. As i built up my running i began to do longer stretches without stopping and my breathing was improving along with fitness.

With this in mind i signed up for the Blaydon Race, Great North 10k and Great Newham 10k which i used as training events for my first Great North Run.

After 10k i built up my mileage weekly by a further mile a week in training for GNR getting up to 10 miles.

GREAT NORTH RUN DAY

after running every week since January the day finally arrived for my first GNR

Heres my experience.

Arrived 9am to get position in the pens to soak up the atmosphere (and the roasting sun it seems).

As 10.40 approached i did get a wave of sickness which i managed to get rid of and calm myself down.

After 34 minutes of moving towards the start we were off. I set off at a comfortable pace knowing the distance ahead of me and within the first 300 metres i saw somebody from parkrun cheering me on at side of road which spurred me on. Entered underpass to the tune of oggy oggy oggy i ended up joining in a couple of times but conserved myself. Before i knew it i was out the tunnel and at 1 mile (11 min mile i am shocked) slowed pace a little as i approached the tyne bridge and huge level of support high fived a few people. My 2nd mile pace had slowed a little to conserve myself.

After 2 miles as i reached uphill from tyne bridge i decided to walk  to park lane roundabout knowing it would conserve energy which i could save for felling bypass. My first 2 miles were already faster than what i did in training i began to feel it was too good to be true and paniced could i do 11 more miles.

Felling bypass downhill stretch got me going with support from debbie an old colleague and parkrun friend jocasta along the way. I knew jocasta was on fir a good time as she ran past and was determined to get to parkrun distance without stopping for a break.  After the bypass i began to slow again as i approached mile 3(still faster than training) grabbed some jelly babies someone was giving thankyou

Mile 4 from gateshead stadium was an uphill struggle decided to walk it to conserve energy but graham with his karaoke machine singing got me running a little till i lost him. As i approached heworth roundabout at 4 miles i was looking for a few friends who were waiting there supporting me. Didnt spot barry but spotted john lesley and natalie who had travelled from leicestershire for the great north 5k the day before. Stopped for a quick photo and to thank them. Thankfully mile 4 split wasnt as slow as i thought.

From mile 4 to 7 i maintained my 15 minute mile pace(give or take) seeing another old work colleague at side of road waiting for husband clive to pass.

Reached the half way point and boy i have never been so glad to see ICE POPS  by this point it was 18c and so hot. Thankyou to people with ice pops it got me moving to complete 7th mile at 15 minute ish pace.

Mile 8 well this is where the wheels cane off much like in training my pace slowed but i planned to walk up john reid road knowing that at water station i would meet a friendly face in tanni grey thompson year after year she gives her support and water out to thousands. After a quick chat and photo i was off again. Passing through next shower station to cool off.

Then began to see ambulances and worried for people ahead of me it was hot out there. Seen a few people getting treatment on course prior to this.

Mile 9 i began to see hope and the trails of a missed red arrow display in the distance. Belief knowing 4 miles to go and i could do this. This belief improved my pace for mile 10 i think the boost zone helped too jelly babies and biscuits handed out along the way. Music for me to get into a little rhytm. Then i saw rygby world cup volunteer kirsty on the blood bikes cheering point.

Now for mile 11 my slowest mile i had just done 10 miles in 2.30 the same time as my previous training run i was happy and new my 3.30 goal was still possible.

So mile 11 my calf went like in training previously releived it didnt happen earlier no way was i giving up. My feet began to stick to the ground from oranges that had been sucked by athletes before me and it was uphill walked it knowing i had a downhill to come. More ambulances i moved to the side.

My pace improved i began to see the sea 12 miles was approaching and the steep downhill stretch that i knew would take me there. The marsden pub i let the hill carry me down knowing i had this a quick glance at watch and i knew 3.30 was still possible but felt it slip away as i was on about 3h10 at this point.  Did stretches of running and walking got talking to others to encorage them walked till i got uphill before the last stretch flattened out. I still couldnt see the finish so kept plodding on run walking  more of the latter decided i was going to run the last 200 metres. 400 metres to go i began to see the end 3h30 still visible but was losing time ao has to work for it. Decided what funnel to go in and ran the last 200 metres.

Then couldnt believe i had crossed the line.

I saw the man in the chicken suit who started just behind me and kept bumping into him on route then he went ahead and i kept finding him again (wish i knew his name) he was being interviewed as i crossed the line. He gave me a hug after i finished but then i lost him :(

UPDATE thanks to FB i have been put in contact with guy in chicken suit

The support along the way was incredible couldnt have done it without the jelly babies hose pipes and biscuits and ice pops along the way.

I may have sunburn and saw legs and feet but

I would do it again in a heartbeat if i got a place.

Thanks for reading (if you are still awake)

FINISH TIME 3:27:30 beat my 3:30 target by 2 and a half minutes

From the couch to on the road to Blaydon

Twas the 9th of june on a sunny (very sunny) summers afternoon ahead of my very first Blaydon Race.

I still cant believe i am typing this no really!!

This time last year i could barely run for a bus without getting out of breath.

A motivational running tool called Jantastic came along which motivated me to start running again twice a week from january. I gradually built mu distance up and decided to enter the blaydon race in february when entries opened.

Since then i havent looked back i gradually increased the distance i could run non stop in training for the event gradually improving my pace. In training i have got up to doing 10k non stop on my weekly runs and have gone from hating running to quite enjoying it.

Hope all my friends from parkrun taking part in the blaydon race have a great time.

I will be soaking up the atmosphere trying to run it non stop and hoping to hit my sub 80 target this is slow i know.

But i am out there beating the person on the couch. My old self.

#thisgirlcan

All good things must come to an end

Happy Halloween dear reader

I missed the trick or treaters for the first time in years by being taken out for a meal tonight, to be honest I don’t think we would have got many this year anyway. It is nice sometimes to have a break from normal routine.

So the end of October is here which means blogtober is complete and I have made it to the end of a story that I started and stuck with something until the end. October has flown so quickly I feel its been eventful, had its high and lows, its not really the end of the story I think I may do the occasional blog but for now a little break.

I hope you have enjoyed what I have had to write and not found it too boring at times, its hard to find something to say over a long period of time, I have the blog ideas in my mind but when I come to write it down I stumble and lose track. I feel like a firework that started off strong and just fizzled out. 

That said I have enjoyed the experience and glad I took part, proud of myself and proved I can do it who would have thought this time last year that I would take part.

If anybody has any questions just fire away.

Over and out

Claire x

The penultimate chapter

Like a good book a month of blogtober must begin to come to an end, penultimate chapters tend to start bringing a conclusion to a story.

Although my month of blogging will end tomorrow I am pleased I stuck with it, fair enough some of my blogs may have been better than others but I stuck with it and was determined not to miss a day even through the hardest times. 

I don’t think I am going to stop blogging forever, I think I will do the occasional blog but not leave the blog as long as my last gap maybe does that sound like a plan? Depends what others think too, I appreciate the support people have given for my blogs this month it means a lot.

I can’t believe tomorrow is the last day of October wheres the year going hows it November already when It really seems like 2 minutes ago that I was seeing the new year in with family at home.

The book of my life story never really end they just move into a new chapter, exciting as it may be at times, some chapters may not be as good you never know.

And a random fact for you:

Things I like doing in my spare time

Listening to Music

Watching TV

Watching Youtube videos

General procrastinating

The final stretch

Is here dear reader, can you believe its nearly the end of #blogtober as it were its really flown, I hope people have enjoyed the blogs thanks to friends who have let me know what they think so far.

I am sorry there hasn’t been much content I feel this week. Life totally changed in our neighbourhood at the weekend and I am still shocked at events. You know those times where you think was it just a dream? And you can’t believe what happened…..That. Not going to go into detail what happened on my blog.

Sometimes when things happen I need to take a step back and appreciate more of life.