Shin troubles

So this is my first post for a little while as I´ve been resting for the past ten days or so to try to get rid of these pesky shin splints in preparation for the start of my challenge in a few days.
I´ve laid off the high-impact exercise and kept massaging my right shin - which was fairly painful for a few days after I last ran - with ice and taking ibruprofen to reduce the inflamation.
I was a little bit worried about it, but I´d better be prepared for an injury or two in the coming year.
I know that running every day isn´t necessarily good for the body, but hopefully the positive effects on my body will outweigh the negatives.
Anyway, I´m all kitted out with various running gear and now a shiny new shin support, so all ready and raring to go on Monday.
Who knows what kind of supports I´ll be sporting this time next year. Fingers crossed the joints and muscles strengthen up and hold out for me.

Race For Life - (almost) made it in 30 minutes

This morning was Race For Life time and the weather was lovely in Ilkley.
I managed to drag my (very hungover) friend Emma to the park to join all the other ladies all dressed in pink for 10.30am. Which was a victory in itself.
Then we set off, around East Holmes Field, down Denton Road, up to Nell Bank and back again.
I did another non-stop run, which I was quite pleased with. I was aiming to finish within 30 mins, but missed my target by a whole 19 seconds. Ah well.
Emma made it back in 34 mins - quite an achievement after a whole bottle of sparkling wine and a very late night.
The weather was so nice I even got a little bit sunburned. Oops! Another lesson learned.
Here's the proof I made it:

I ran three miles non-stop!

Woohoo! Well it might be a small achievement for other people, but it's quite a big deal for me.

According to MapMyRun, I ran 3.12 miles in 29 mins. And most importantly, I didn't stop! Not once!

Maybe it's my magic new running shoes, or maybe I'm just improving.

I've been going out a bit on my own (without my boyfriend Andy, who has been helping me with the motivation) and I'm finding that going at my own pace with just my iPod for company is really helping me to keep going.

I'm still having trouble with the shin splints in one leg (not helped by the fact I fell down the stairs today while staring at my phone on my way out to run!) but I have given it a few days' rest and it feels a little easier now. The new trainers should see it right.

I've been on a few runs since I last blogged. I went down to Ilkley with my friend Emma ahead of the Race For Life and we ran about three miles along the river - a really nice short route to bear in mind for the future.

We saw some lovely little piglets, which broke our stride a bit!

Here they are:

We also had to tackle the stepping stones. Needless to say we didn't run that bit. It wasn't too scary, but I wouldn't fancy it if the river was much higher!

I've also been out on a run along the Stray in Harrogate. Lots of runners about and a very civilised place to put in a few miles.

Race For Life in two days... Fingers crossed for a sub-half hour time and another non-stop run.

My new running shoes!

I've got some new trainers!

Well it's about time actually, because I'm starting to get blisters and shin splints while making do with my old gym trainers (which look nice but are very unsuitable for a dedicated athlete like me!)

The old ones were giving me blisters on the ends of my toes (see this lovely pic below!) - but I'm going to have to look after these little tootsies if they're going to last me the year!

So we've been to SportsShoes Unlimited (or SportsShoes.com) in Bradford (which is going to shut down next month, unfortunately) and bought a lovely pair of trainers. They're silver and purple ones to me, but for anyone who's interested in further detail they're Brooks Lady Adrenaline GTS 11 Running Shoes. Yes, that was 'Lady'. Perfect for me, ey?

Anyway, I did a little run on the treadmill in the shop and the man told me I overpronate (initially strike the ground on the outside of my heel but roll my foot too far the other way before bouncing off on my toes, putting strain on all the wrong bits in my ankles and knees) so I needed some trainers with support in the arch to help me stop that happening.

Afterwards we took the trainers to Nandos and soon I'll be taking them out on the road... stay tuned!

My Challenge: The Rules

Well tomorrow is June 1st, so that means it's not long at all until my one-year challenge starts.
So here are the rules:

• I have to run every day from June 25, 2012, until June 25, 2013 - my 29th birthday.
• I have to run at least one mile per day.
• I have to run 1,000 miles in the year - 2.75 miles a day, almost 20 miles a week.

I've had this in my mind for a good five months or so, but I haven't told many people - mostly in case I realised I was a complete hopeless case once I actually got my trainers on and started running.

But as it turns out I can put one foot in front of the other ok, so that's a start.

As you might know it's all in aid of charity - so you can be sure I'll be one the sponsorship trail very soon. I'm in the process of sorting out an online giving account, so I'll be posting the details here as soon as I can.

Anyway, this is my challenge blog and I'll be posting here each day about my run and putting up a picture or even a video if I see anything interesting. I'll also be posting my running total (!) so we can all see whether I'm on track for my target.

On the road with MapMyRun

Well I guess it wouldn't be too ideal for everyone to just take my word for it that I'm running every day, as far as I say.

So I've been having a go at using MapMyRun - an online tool for mapping and recording your runs.
I've got the MapMyRun app on my iPhone, which records my movements while I'm out and times each run so I can see my statistics when I'm done.

While I feel better and fitter with each run, being able to run further each time without stopping, it's encouraging to see the evidence on screen at the end of my runs.

The app seems fairly accurate, as far as I can tell. The same routes come out the same distance etc. Plus I haven't exactly got the funds to invest in a fancy Garmin Forerunner gadget at the moment, so I'll have to make do.

I had my first glitch after my run yesterday. As I pressed save, all sweaty and red-faced from my run in the sun, the MapMyRun app flaked out on me! It said "unable to save route" then "unable to save workout". Grr! Obviously not a fan of hot weather either.
Ah well. I did a few screen grabs to prove it anyway.

The statistics say I'm not making massive leaps in my improvement, but a little at a time is what I'm aiming for. I'm secretly hoping to magically morph into Liz McColgan by next week, but I guess feeling able to run a few metres more each time is an achievement of sorts.

This is my best run so far... don't laugh, it's really good for me. And I'm getting better all the time. Yey!