Day 62: Under the weather. Boo.

RUN: 2.0 miles

I've felt really rubbish ever since my run last night.
I don't know why, I just felt achey all over and a very tired. And I keep getting a big headache.

So even though I needed to do a couple of longer runs this weekend, I just did two measley miles. Ah well, It really didn't feel like a good idea to go any further, so that's that. Hope it comes right soon. I haven't got time in my life for any illness.

Here's all the info on my measley two miles

Day 61: Tackling Five Rise Locks

RUN: 4.0 miles

Tonight I was at my friend Lucy's house in Bingley for tea, so I ran from there and did a few miles on the canal, past Five Rise Locks. It's a bit of a climb up past the locks, but the rest of the towpath route is obviously very flat, so I can't complain.

Here's me coming back down past the locks. I did four miles tonight, which is a big improvement on the past two days, so quite pleased with that. Will have to do a couple of decent runs this weekend to get back on target.

Here's my canal run route and info

Day 60: Splitting headache, another short run

RUN: 1.4 miles

I had a horrible headache this afternoon/evening. It was even verging on migraine territory and I started to feel really sick, so I went for a quick run before full-on migraine kicked in, because I wouldn't even be able to move at all then.
I did intend to go just one mile, but there were loads of people about and I didn't fancy turning round and running back past them all, so I just carried on round the block (the shortish route) and made it 1.4 miles. The run eased my headache slightly, actually. An early night is on the cards for me.
Should really have gone further tonight to be on target for this week, but I did not fancy heading out for a big one with a migraine threatening. Ah well, I'll put in a big effort tomorrow.

Today's route and information here

Day 59: Number crunching on a 'rest' day

RUN: 1.1 miles

Today I decided to take it easy and have a 'rest' day - a one-mile run down the road and back.
So I'm up to 125.5 miles now. If I was up to pace from the beginning - ie, did my 20 miles average each week, I should be up to 161 miles by now. So I'm 36 miles - or 22% behind schedule.
I think this is ok, actually. I'm not worried just yet. Once I get into the proper marathon training (after Christmas) I will be hopefully clocking up the miles like nobody's business, so steadily does it for now. I can't be Paula Radcliffe overnight.
Speaking of her, she has just had an operation - a bone graft on an 18-year-old fracture!
Perhaps I don't want to be Paula Radcliffe at the moment after all!

Twit pic from @paulajradcliffe. Yeesh!

Here's today's route map and info

Day 58: Two miles after the rain

RUN: 2.0 miles

This evening was very wet. I sat in my flat listening to the rain and eventually plucked up the will to go out for a few miles during a gap in the downpours.
It was a good run and two miles felt really easy. But I wasn't the only one going out after the rain...

Snails galore. Crunchy, crunchy under foot. Yuk! So these little guys posed for a pic rather than getting squished.
Here's my route and info

Day 57: Bird's eye view of another four-miler

RUN: 4.0 miles

Today me and my boyfriend went out to put in four miles to get the week off to a good start.
Hopefully I'll manage to meet my 20-mile target, or even beat it this week. Fingers crossed.

I've found a cool little tool on MapMyRun. It shows a 'fly-over' of the route you've done.
I think you need to have Google Earth on your computer to see it, but here it is anyway.

It makes me feel like I've run really far. I guess four miles is pretty far, really.
If you haven't got Google Maps, but you want to know what I'm on about, click here for a video of the video.

Here's my route info and map from today. Very pleased with another four miles.

Day 56: I met my first weekly target!

RUN: 4.3 miles

Today I ran from White Cross, Guiseley, to the JCT600 roundabout Yeadon.
That means this is the first week (Week Eight) that I have met my 20-mile target. Hooray!
My legs are feeling quite good now, so I'm glad to be finally up to speed.

Here's a fascinating photo of the roundabout. Not the most scenic destination ever.

This is tonight's four-mile route map and info

Day 55: Same tarn route, different running buddy

RUN: 3.4 miles

Today I was back at Yeadon Tarn with my boyfriend Andy, and we set out to do about five miles. Well the actual distance was quite a bit less than that - today was a bad running day for me. My legs felt heavy and it was boiling!

Here's me and Andy running along

The other day (Day 51) I did this same route with Amy and managed just fine - I was tired but could have managed another lap or so. Today the same thing was really tough. I guess you have to take the rough with the smooth, bad days with the good. Luckily it clouded over a bit towards the end, but it was still roasting.

Having a little rest under the trees before the last lap

Here's our route and info for today's tarn run

Day 54: A little run and a little news

RUN: 1.0 miles

After having said I'm not going to be lazy, I was running short on time this morning, and going to the cinema after work tonight, so I had no choice but to squeeze in a quick one-miler. I'm on track to meet my target of 20+ miles this week, so I'm quite happy with that.
I know I could have probably got moving earlier and gone a bit further, but all the best laid plans...

Anyway, speaking of plans, I have a small bit of news... (say it quietly) I've signed up for a marathon.
Yes I must be mad. Watch this space for more on this.

Here's the proof! Yikes!

Here's the info etc on the old one-miler from today

Day 53: Just one lap - changing my lazy ways

RUN: 2.0 miles

Well today I did just one lap of the route I did last night.
I have been working 10-7 shifts this week, which gives me a little time to run in the morning if I get a wriggle on, which is good if I've got things planned in the evening - but I'd rather not work shifts at all to be honest. It would be much easier to get into a running (and blogging) routine if I had a 'normal' job. Ah well.
So I'm a busy bee trying to fit in all this working and running, eating and sleeping, and trying to remind my friends and family (and my boyfriend) what I look like once in a while. So I'm feeling a bit guilty about my lack of daily blogging recently. I'm not even sure who reads this - but assuming that somebody does I'll try harder from now on to blog each day when I can possibly find time.
Speaking of people reading my blog, a few people have asked me how to leave comments. You don't have to sign in to anything to comment on my blog posts.

• Just click on the yellow title at the top of this blog entry (Day 53... etc)
• Write something in the white box at the bottom.
• Where it says 'comment as' at the bottom, select 'Name/URL'.
• Put your name in the 'name' part, and you can leave the URL bit blank.
• Click the 'continue' button.
• Click the 'publish' button (Is that clear, Gran?)

So if you want to leave me a comment, that would be lovely. If not, I'll carry on talking to myself!

Here's today's route and info

Day 52: Four miles and a new book

RUN: 4.1 miles

I downloaded another book tonight - psychological thriller The Other Half Lives by Sophie Hannah, a very good (and local) writer.

This one is unabridged, unlike the last one, which had a bit of an abrupt ending. Still quite good though.
So I've got six and a half hours of listening to do.

I did my two-lap, four-mile route tonight, which I'm quite pleased with. The legs are feeling fine and four miles seemed to come quite easily. I think I'll try to step it up to five miles soon - maybe at the weekend.

Here's the maps and graphs of my lovely two laps

Day 51: Tarn trip with a running buddy

RUN: 3.4 miles

It was a lovely, warm and sunny summer evening, so a trip to Yeadon Tarn was on the cards.
I was joined by the lovely Amy Casey for three laps of the tarn plus a bit of an extra loop.
It was great to have someone to run with and to chat to on the way round (when I wasn't too out of breath). We did well, clocking up 3.4 miles. Hopefully Amy will come with me again soon, and maybe we can even work up to an extra lap!
There were plenty of other people out enjoying the weather at the tarn - families, dog walkers, runners, fishermen and even quite a few people sailing (from the sailing club).

The weather is on the TV as I type, and  the weatherman says there is some 'wild' weather on its way. All wet and windy from tomorrow, so it's good we made the most of the good weather while it lasted.

Here's our route and information

Day 50: Feeling hot, hot, hot!

RUN: 2.0 miles

This morning I went out on an early run because I'm busy this evening.
When I say early, I mean pre-9am, so not really that early.
Even though it was first thing in the morning it was really warm and stuffy - even just two miles felt like a bit of a slog.
I want to go on a longer run tomorrow, so will have to leave myself more time than I did today. All this running and stuff takes a LOT of time.

Here's my route - round High Royds and back up the main road.

Day 49: 100 miles done! Woohoo!

RUN: 3.4 miles

I knew I had 3.2 miles to do to get to my first century, so I was determined to reach my milestone today, despite being short on time... again!
So I went down to the canal. There were plenty of people out and about getting active on the canal -perhaps inspired by the Olympics.
There were a few fishermen (not that that's an Olympic sport!), loads of runners, lots of walkers, even more cyclists... and even a woman hula-hooping beside her narrowboat. Not an Olympic sport either, but if it was this lady might be in Team GB. She was going for at least 25 minutes... she was still at it when I passed her on the way back. I might have to dust off my own hoop soon!
One American couple even challenged me to a race. I won - they were on a narrowboat.
The thing I like about running on the canal is that there's usually something or other going on to keep you entertained. There are also plenty of people about, and it makes stopping totally out of the question while someone can see you running along! Which is all of the time.
Here's my route and information. I miscalculated my distance on the towpath so I had to do a little loop on the main road too.

I needed to go to the supermarket quick-smart after my run, so having not iced my legs after my last two runs I needed to ice-and-go. Here's my solution involving tubigrips, icepads and wide-leg jeans!...

Day 48: Running under the influence

RUN: 1.6 miles

Well having to squeeze in supermarket shopping, cake-making and birthday partying today made my run a bit of a late affair.
After a couple of glasses of wine at Una's (Andy's mum) lovely birthday barbecue, I must admit running was not so appealing. But I did manage to go out for a respectable, if not ideal, 1.6 miles.

Here's my route - just up the main road and back, I'm afraid.

Day 47: Healing hands on my legs

RUN: 1.1 miles

After a very busy few days I've been a bit neglectful towards my legs.
No icing, no taping, just a couple of quick, short runs, having been veery short on time.
So my shins and calves must have been relieved when my friend - physiotherapist-in-training Amy Casey - got her hands on them.
She made suggestions on what I can do to ease the shin splints further and how I should be stretching and reassured me about the weird dints in my shin. She also massaged my muscles, working on a few knots in my calf. Hopefully I'll be able to get rid of the knots with some enthusiastic stretching and some more massaging.
Amy was impressed with the improvement in the dorsiflexion (I think that's right) in my left leg.
Here she is massaging my shins - Thank you, Amy!

It's surprising how getting to know how your body actually works changes the way you feel about it and makes you want to look after it a lot more.

Here's the info on my woefully short run for today

Day 45: Running and reading - chapter two

RUN: 2.0 miles

I ran just another couple of miles today, listening to more of my audio book.
The story is drawing me in now, so I'm rethinking my comments of yesterday. Listening to a story really does serve to take my mind off the running. I found today that the five-minute announcements from the MapMyRun lady seem to come surprisingly quickly when I'm lost in the story of Emma and Dexter and their strange non-love affair in One Day. So I just keep on going, and thoughts of tiredness don;t seem to enter my brain so easily.
Anyhow, a two-mile lap of High Royds tonight. Hundreds of rabbits were there, as well as hundreds of flies getting my mouth and eyes. Great.
Only another eight miles to go until I've done my first 100 - yey!
Here's my route etc for tonight.

Day 44: Running and reading (sort of)...

RUN: 2.1 miles

...Well more like being read to actually. For today's run I decided to experiment with my choice of audio motivation, rather than the usual iPod shuffle. I downloaded an audio book (One Day by David Nicholls) and put it on the iPod for my run.

I'm not convinced that running to books is the way to go, but I think I'll stick with it for the rest of this book. I've got another two hours 15 mins to go, so it will last me a good few runs.
On the positive side, it help to alleviate the boredom of running. It can't be denied that jogging is often a battle against the boredom rather than the body. So a book being read to you does give you something to focus on and takes the mind off any negative thoughts (ie I want to stop).
However, normally it's just me and the pavement and my thoughts, mind wandering, thinking things through, thinking of anything and everything. But if you let your mind wander while listening to a story, you obviously end up missing bits. Also, when the MapMyRun lady reads out my time and pace etc every five minutes through my headphones, my book gets faded down and I miss another bit of the story.

I'll let you know how the 'reading' goes, but tonight I just did a couple of miles. I'm trying to strike a balance between doing enough miles and not 'overdoing it'. So just 2.1 tonight - here's the map and info.