Wk 14, Day 6. No park run for me :-( But Mo Farah was there!

My back was killing again this morning, so much so I had to crawl on my hands and knees to the bathroom! No park run for me then. Mo Farah ran in the park with his wife this morning! I did'nt know who he was until hubby told me. He was upset to have missed him. As I am writing this hubby has gone out for an hour long run  locally and I'm jealous. I think these two weeks are a test of my resilience.
I really don't want to give in and stop running all together. I won't though because I actually like it! I like the beginning when I am dressed up and ready to go out with my bouncy trainers on - they kind of make you feel bouncy and give you the energy and motivation to go out. Then I love the end of the run - the feeling of achievement, the sweat, the hot skin, the stretching and then the best bit - the cool shower -all that is worth the run. The run itself I could take or leave - I often battle with myself to carry on. Having French lessons to listen to is helping because it gives me something to concentrate on other than wanting to walk,. Of course I have to do the run to get to the best bit at the end plus it all burns 100's of calories! This week I've hardly burned any :-( Monday mornings weigh in will tell the damage.

Exercise - none
Food - difficult to count calories as we were out for lunch (again!)
Breakfast
2 slices toast (small wholemeal loaf) Flora light
Tea
Lunch (in a pub)
carrot and coriander soup
cod, mash potato and green beans
chocolate brownie and ice cream
Glass of wine
Glass of lemonade
Dinner
Vodka and orange juice
Steak
Jacket potato

Wk 14, D5. Friday

Friday
My back surprisingly felt better this morning. Still a bit stiff but much better all the same. I ran to the station in 16.45 minutes. My runkeeper app seems to be a bit slow on starting my activity so it only tracked 2 km. It took 0.21km to get it's act together! I could have stood outside the front door like a muppet for 5 minutes while I waited for the stats screen to come on but I was eager to get going. I hope it starts properly for tomorrows parkrun.
I should have done a fartlek today but I didn't want to jinx the back thing. I also didn't want to make my legs too stiff for tomorrow morning. So the fartlek will have to be postponed until next week or I may actually do it on Sunday.

Exercise station run = 170 calories
Food = difficult to say as the evening meal was in a restaurant
Breakfast
2 slices toast with flora light (medium slice from a small loaf)
Tea
Lunch
200g Baked beans on 2 slices of toast
Yoghurt
Tea
Afternoon
Tea
2 thin biscuits
Dinner
2 cosmopolitans and a few glasses of wine!
rice and chicken

Week 14, D 4 - Hurty back :-(

Thursday
My back was killing this morning. I struggled to put my socks on! Still, I had to get the car so I walked it, wincing all the way. My day was busy with clients. Standing is better for my back than sitting. I got a recommendation for a physio in the next town so I may give her a ring tomorrow. Trouble is my back kills in the morning but by the time my body has moved around a bit it eases up almost completely during the day. Now and again I get a sharp pain from the bottom of my back down through to the top of my left thigh, which stops me in my tracks. Picking stuff up off the floor is not easy either. I know its a trapped nerve. But I will get it seen to. I'm just not very good at making appointments and seeing doctors and the like. Quite often by the time I get to the appointment I'm better anyway.
Since coming back from Holiday I haven't got myself organised with food in the house so I need to do a big shop this weekend and get more organised. Next week will be a better week for exercise and eating.

Exercise - station walk burning 150 calories
Food -  1546 calories
Breakfast
2 slices toast with flora light
Tea
Lunch
Pesto pasta
Yoghurt
Dinner
sausages
couscous
wine

Week 14, D3. Furthest distance

Wednesday
Its my 9th wedding anniversary today :-)
I ran my longest ever run at 5.77km or 3.58 miles. The first half was quite hard going and quite sluggish, but the second half (probably because it was on the way back) was better. My body really feels the lack of exercise recently. I am hoping to getting back to spring like steps soon. I plan my fartlek on Friday and my 5k parkrun on Saturday. I don't hold out much hope for breaking my pb on Saturday but its the run that counts for me really, not the time.
It's impossible to count the calories today because we went out for dinner. It was a posh one which involved "foam" on my rump steak!

Exercise - 5.77km run =454 calories!
Food
Breakfast
1 oatibix with milk
Tea
Lunch
nectarine
Banana
Greek yoghurt
Dinner
2 small glasses wine
1 glass champagne
Chicken terrine
Rump steak
Cherry tart
Coffee
Chocolates

Wk 14, D2. Tuesday

Tuesday. I decided to run to the station this morning. I was due to do my long run today of 5.75km  or 3.57 miles. But because I had to cancel all my clients last week I am really busy this week. I have to postpone the run until Wednesday. The morning run was OK. I didn't break any records, my back still jars a bit with each foot strike but it's getting better. To be honest I'm getting a bit bored of this now. I really want to get back into running again properly. I hope this break isn't going to set me back. I'm glad I'm not training for a 10k or anything like that though.

Exercise - Station run  - 180 Calories (note the difference in calories between the walk yesterday of 128 cals)
Food - 1343 cals
Breakfast
2 slices toast with flora light
Lunch
2 sausages
1 slice bread
Yoghurt
Dinner
Canelloni
Apple
2 lindt truffle balls

Week 14, D1. Learning French

Monday morning. I walked the station walk this morning as my back is still a bit sore. I am doing all the exercises and stretches given to me by the physio when I last did this to my back by raking the lawn!
I have decided after my embarrassing lack of French to relearn it for next year. Hubby's French is very good. He chats away to the neighbours and some acquaintances in the village while I just stand there with a glass of wine in my hand looking dumb. It was Bastille day while we were there this time and we went to the village celebrations which involved a lot of wine, bread, pate, beans and cheese - delicious! It also meant people would come up to me speaking in French - fast. A good few years ago I knew a bit of French but now it seems to have slipped away. So now I have ditched Lady Ga Ga for Michel Thomas. I started it on Sundays run. I was concerned that without music I wouldn't keep up the pace but listening to French actually makes the time go by quicker! So now I am running and learning French - who knows what's next....

Exercise - station walk - 128 calories
Food - 1523 Calories
Breakfast
2 slices toast with honey
Tea
Lunch
Chicken sandwich
Greek yoghurt with pomegranate seeds and a nectarine
Tea
Dinner
Tortilla
Pasta salad
Potato salad
Couscous
2 lindt truffle balls

Week 13, Result and Reflection

I lost 3.1lbs this week! Which brings my total so far up to 13.13lbs!!!!!!! That's 1oz off a stone! Damn that 1oz! It will happen next week that's for sure.
So, last week was an unusual one for me because I was struck down with tonsillitis for the week. I did my fastest ever station run on Monday morning and then a temperature of 102 hit me and that was it. Clients cancelled, no running and barely any eating. I have a weeks supply of penicillin which will take me through to Friday so no drinking for me this week either.
Really, there is not a lot to reflect on. I did a 5k run on Sunday morning but had to take it slowly because my lower back is in erratic spasms at the moment. I need to see a physio. I was really pleased with all my running on holiday, and the pay off with the station run on Monday morning, so it has been a very disappointing week. I was getting a bit edgy towards the end due to the lack of running, so I was pleased to have gone out on Sunday, even though I didn't break any records. This week, I intend to (if my back will allow me) get back to fitness peak so I can get a pb on the parkrun on Saturday. Keep your fingers crossed for me and send me positive back thoughts please :-)

Week 13, days 5,6 +7

So, I eventually went to the docs and got a weeks worth of penicillin which is good for 2 reasons. 1) it will make me better and 2) I wont be able to drink for another 7 days! Lets face it I drank like a fish for two weeks solidly whilst on holiday and I think my liver needs a well earned rest!
I still wasn't up for running on Friday or Saturday. Friday night we had dinner out. Saturday, we somehow managed to have breakfast, lunch and dinner out! On Sunday we had lunch out which was well earned because I went for a 5k run in the morning. My back still hurts so I will have to seek the advice of a physiotherapist next week, so my run was a slow one, but I did it all the same. To be honest I was getting a bit desperate to run, having not done any kind of exercise or work all week I was going a bit stir crazy at home. So, back pain or not I was going to run this morning. I'm glad I did. I don't seem to have lost any fitness or enthusiasm for running and it gave me a boost. I really want to get back into the routine I started on holiday of 3 runs a week - 1 long run adding 250 metres on each week, 1 x 30 minute fartleck -  running for one minute fast then walking for 2 minutes and my 5k park run on Saturday mornings.
Calorie counting up the meals out is going to be a bit of a chore so I have no calories for you just yet for the 3 days but here is the diary anyway.
Friday
Breakfast
oatibix and milk
Tea
Lunch
houmous
1 slice bread
Dinner
Roast chicken
spoonful of potatoes
mini magnum
2 lindor chocolates
Saturday
Breakfast
Tea
Pain au raisin
Lunch
tomato and chickpea soup and bread
Tea
Dinner
vegetable gnocchi
fruit juice
Sunday
Exercise - 8.7 km (5.4 miles) run and walk = 558 calories burned
Lunch  at giraffe
Giraffe Mezze plate
Giddy Giraffe smoothie
Peach
Afternoon
mini magnum
Dinner
chicken
couscous
salad

Week 13, D 4 - Melted chocolate hurts

Well the temperature is back to normal, so from experience the tonsils should start to calm down now. I am expecting them to be back to normal certainly by Sunday.
My back, however has flared up again and was quite painful during certain movements such as sitting and getting up - especially on something low like the loo. Bending to put cat food in the bowl was a challenge so they ended up finding their dry food all over the kitchen floor! I tried to make myself useful by finishing the washing from our holiday but that involves a lot of bending as well.
I tried an appointment with the doctor but they were "fully booked unless it was an emergency". Don't people with emergencies go to hospital anymore? Sorry, the posts this week are not very inspiring. It will all get back to normal next week I hope. My appetite hasn't come back yet - probably because it's is so painful to swallow even water! I thought I would treat myself and bought some chocolate buttons. Even melted chocolate in the mouth hurts to swallow! I  let hubby eat the rest of the packet, which is unheard of in my house!!

Food - 607 calories
2 slices wholemeal toast with flora light spread
125g pot of benecol fruit yoghurt
tea
150g cottage pie
A slice each of pineapple and cococnut
1 chunk mango
1/2 packet chocolate buttons

Week 13, Day 3 - Still ill

Well nothing much has happened this week. My temperature is still high at 99.6 F. Although I have not been to the docs I know it's tonsillitis as I used to get it all the time 20 odd years ago when I used to be a smoker and a real party goer.
I have had to cancel all my clients this week. Not good when you are self employed and just been away for two weeks anyway!
I don't think I will make the parkrun on Saturday either as I haven't done any running this week apart from 16 minutes on Monday morning.
One good thing is that I have had no appetite really. Yesterday at about 3pm I decided I must eat something and so had a sandwich which was very painful to swallow. Hubby bought home some Lemsip and a cottage pie ready meal which I had a spoonful of. It was nice and much easier to swallow. I think Lemsip numbs your throat a bit.

Food - 600 calories
2 sausages
2 slices of bread
spoonful of cottage pie
slither of pineapple
slither of coconut

Week 13, Days 1+ 2. Struck down

Although I managed to do my fastest ever station run on Monday morning, my back became increasingly sore throughout the day. I didn't get much sleep on Monday night either because I started to develop swollen glands in my throat and it hurt to swallow, so on Tuesday I took hubby to the station because I needed to sleep more so was going to go back to bed once I dropped him off. Throughout the day my throat and back got worse and I developed a tingly shivery sensation over my back and stomach. By the time I finished work I felt really ill. I took my temperature last night and yep, it was 102. I have tonsillitis!
That's the running on hold for this week I think, although I hope I will be better by Saturday for the park run. I ate hardly anything yesterday too.

Monday
Exercise - station run burning 196 calories
Food  - 1419 calories
Breakfast
2 oatibix with milk
banana
Lunch
peanut butter sandwich
Banana
Tea
Afternoon
pack of chocolate buttons
apple
Dinner
2 chicken drumsticks
handful of grapes
Yoghurt

Tuesday
exercise - none
food - 458 calories
Breakfast
Banana
Tea
Lunch
Peanut butter on toast
Yoghurt
Tea
Dinner
Lemsip!

Weeks 11 and 12, Results and reflection- I went on holiday,so here is two weeks of stuff to tell you

Hi, thanks for looking in on me while I was away. I have just come back from a wonderful two weeks away with 5 nights in Barcelona and 10 nights in the Loire Valley in France. I had a little access to the internet in Barcelona but none at all in France, hence the lack of posting. But I am back now so here goes......

I did not continue with mynetdiary calorie counting while I was on holiday because that's just not on at all. Anyway, it's impossible/embarrassing/guilt ridden to guess the calories in tapas, cocktails, cheese boards, mousse au chocolate (delicious!), steak frites and carafes of wine! I left the calorie counting behind so as to enjoy my holiday and the delights of both places but, I am pleased to say, I did continue with my running.

Having hubby with me for every run was a real boost to the motivation. I discussed with him the training I wanted to do and my goals. After my success of yet another pb on my parkrun the Saturday morning, before we flew to Barcelona, I wanted to up my 5k distance. So I am going to do one long run a week adding 250 meters each time, one fartlek style and one 5k
Run 1, for my first holiday run was a long one at 5.25k along the sea front in the searing heat, sweating buckets, but managed it. Running along the Barcelona seafront is really quite beautiful.
Run 2 was in France and fartlek style. I didn't have a route set out but we were in the middle of farmland and miles of vineyards so it wasn't going to be too difficult to run in. I started with a 1 minute walk and then a 1 minute fast run. After 3 of those my lungs were fit to burst so Hubby suggested I take a 2 minute walk between the runs. This worked much better for me and we were out for just over 30 minutes - back in time for breakfast.
Run 3 was one that hubby does every day when we are in France to the next village. Before this holiday, he would run the 5k there and I would pick him up in the car and drive back. As we had no-one to pick us up he took the car there, ran back, then ran there again with me. If you're following this you'll work out that he ran 10k. Some of this route included slight hills which I have not run before so it was a challenge to do. My lungs coped very well but I really felt it in my thighs. It's a nice feeling, to feel like you have really worked your muscles.
Run 4 was another long one. I wanted to tag on 250 metres to each long run so I ran for 5.5k. We took another route, some of which was up hill again - more so than last time, but the views of the vineyards and farmhouses and seas of yellow sunflowers was worth it. I struggled at one point and had to walk for a minute but I then picked up the pace and carried on.
Run 5 was due to be a fartlek again but I had slept awkwardly or something so my back was very uncomfortable. With each step of the run my back jarred, walking was fine, so I tried to slow jog instead but when you have a bad back it seems to take all your energy away. I walked back to the house while hubby went off on his run. I did a lot of stretching for my back over the next few days until we arrived home yesterday (Sunday).
I would have gone out for a run once we got home but actually didn't realise how tired we were so caught up on The Apprentice (brilliant), the last episode of Luther (very brilliant) and the first episode of the new Torchwood (which has gone all American. Dr Pratt from E.R is in it :-))
Anyway. I digress. So, this morning was my weigh in (dreading it) and my first station run for two weeks. My back is a little better from all the stretching. My station run was the fastest time ever!!!!!!! 16.30 minutes!! I am very pleased with that indeed! I want to get it down to 15 minutes eventually. It started at 25 minutes about 4 months ago :-))
Also, my weigh in was nowhere near as bad as I though it would be. I only put on 11oz! I was expecting 2 or 3 lbs so I am really pleased with that too.
So back to the blogging, back to mynetdiary and I need to find some hills to run.

My posting may be a bit erratic, temporarily, due to intermittent internet use. Posting will be back to normal asap. 

xxx

Sunday 3rd July
I did my 5k park run on Saturday in another record time of 37.52 minutes!!! That's 1.15 minutes faster than last week! Woo hoo :-))

Tuesday 5th July
Just managed a 5.25k run in the searing heat. But it was ok. I probably could have done a bit more but should take it slowly really. I don't want to injure myself or burn out before I hit my goals!

Wednesday 6th July
What is it with Ra Ra skirts and big headphones? I've seen a few of those today. Are we slowly returning to the 80's? I've done a lot of walking today but no running. Travelling a lot tomorrow so my next run is on Friday.

Wk 10, D5. Lazy Friday

Sorry there's not a lot to say today. I didn't do the station run this morning. I didn't have a run to do. I over did the calories by about 300 but that's no biggie as I under did them earlier in the week. Tomorrow I have my 3rd 5k run so watch this space....

Exercise  - none recorded but I did mow the lawn ;-)
Food - 1700 calories
Breakfast
50g shreddies with 120g 1% milk
Tea
Lunch
2 boiled eggs
3 ryvitas
80g reduced fat houmous
Apple
Tea
Afternoon
Banana
20g almonds
Tea
Dinner
2 slices whole wheat toast with peanut butter
2 glasses red wine

Wk10, D4. My new training regime

I walked the station run this morning because I had a run to do today. After much deliberation I decided to start from the beginning with Getrunning - Couch to 5k again, although this time, a bit faster. I wanted to slow jog the walks and run the runs.

The training session for today was 8 x 1 minute runs with 1 1/2/ minutes walks/jogs between and a 5 minute warm up and cool down walk either end. I walked the warm up, then burst into a run so much I was completely puffed at the end of the first minute! I slowed to a very slow jog and breathed deeply, contained myself and tried the next run a bit slower. I was still puffed and had to walk half  of the next 1 1/2 minutes. I found it very difficult to control how fast to go. I thought the run part should be significantly different to my slow jog but doing it that way was very, very hard going. Still, I covered 2.18 miles/3.5 km over 28.5 minutes.
I have mentioned before that my husband is a runner so, over dinner, I discussed with him the best thing to do. My goal is to get my 5k time down from 40 minutes to 30 minutes. I researched on the internet earlier in the day but the advice seems to be split between running further than 5k and the speed will come or running the 5k but practising it faster. I know that if all I do is practice faster then I would probably give up all together. I don't do difficult!
We have decided that I will continue with three runs a week, the third being the 5k parkrun on Saturday mornings. So, on Tuesday I will run further than 5k increasing the distance by 10% each week but jogging slowly, then on Thursdays I will do fartlek style but walk the walks instead of jogging them and run the runs fast and do this for 30 minutes. Sounds good to me. Now I have a plan I am much happier about my training. I must admit since finishing the C25K programme I feel I have been flailing about in the water with regards to what to do next. I can see how people just stop running.
Oh and I haven't got used to runmeter. I will try it again, but I have a history  with runkeeper on the computer and don't want to lose it. Looks like I will stick with runkeeper from now on though.

Exercise - 642 calories
Food - 1595 calories
Breakfast
2 oatibix with 160 ml 1% milk
Lunch (on the run so a bit odd)
105g grilled chicken
Apple
150g 0% fat Greek yoghurt with 125g banana
Tea
Afternoon
2 slim biscuits (caramelised style you get in a restaurant)
Tea
Dinner - restaurant
11g pretzels
Chicken salad
3 glasses of wine (oops)
Cappuccino