Garmin Envy !

Is Garmin envy the same as Penis envy ? Probably....Ive got a serious case, not helped by my recent close shave with free Garmin........yes thats right...free...I was at a bbq when my
brother-in-law pipes up........"oh yeah your a runner, my uncle gave me a garmin but i dont run..want it ?".....

Needless to say i nearly choked on my sausage as he brought it out...a lovely watch...a heart rate strap...a USB....I was crying at this point....then i got it home and realised it was a Forerunner 50..no satellite......god Im naive..and ungrateful for my fantastic brother in law...but Im left still yearning for a satellite-driven split but not prepared to commit the marital self-harm of spending that much ...:(

Pub2Pub 12kms Race Report

What a venue for a run, from Long Reef to The Newport Arms in the most beautiful spot in the world, Sydney's Northern Beaches.

The course was shortened to 12kms due to the fact that the lagoon broke its banks and cut off the normal 1km beach start....me and 2 Warriors set off hard and fast along the first flat 6kms...Im pretty sure we ran 4.8's all the way......its so good to have other people you know to help push the pace... then came the roller coaster hills of Warriewood where they took off in front of me.

I kept saying "run your own race" to myself, something Id planned for, which really worked wonders...no panicked running, no exasperation.....just a steady hard confident slog until the next flat where i strided out again......then came 2kms up Newport Hill...not too bad... and a 500 meter semi-sprint to the end..61.55mins over 12kms...placed 853/4000.....

Im absolutely stoked by this, my fastest race over this distance and all achieved by keeping things steady, running my own race and slugging it slowly on hills and hard of the flat......just what I needed after City2Surf...last years time was 82mins..

A special congratulations to my 2 running partners who both ran under 60 mins.....incredible effort!

How Hard Are You ?

Im reading a book about fell-running in England at the moment, a sport that goes back a few centuries and puts us hobby-runners to shame...... the most famous race in the Bob Graham, a circuit of 42 fells in the English Lake District, including the 3,000-foot (910 m) peaks of Skiddaw, Helvellyn, Scafell and Scafell Pike........yes you read that right.....no more whingeing about a 200m ascent on a road run....the aim of the race is not to win, but just to make it....

I recommend this book highly, the author's a fell runner himself and goes to great lengths to document the incredible athletic ability of these heroic runners who have quietly and humbly dedicated themselves to this incredibly challenging sport.......

Here's uphill

Here what the crazy downhill looks like

100kgs AT Last

This month marks a 16 month anniversary since I started running and the first time Ive looked at the scales and seen the number 100KG......1400 kms and 20KGS lost, it's been a hell of a journey........this is my goal weight so Im pretty pleased to finally get here

Ive been thinking alot about what my future goals will be and how I want to run in the next year or so; here's what Ive come up with.

1. Keep running 4 times a week no matter what
2. Make sure they include one long, one short and fast, one intervals and one recovery
3. Avoid injuring myself again by keeping the intervals 400 metres or longer
4. Do a marathon next year (probably Blackmore's)
5. Get into the front group in City2surf
6. Keep my weight stable
7. Keep doing negative splits
8. Run my own races not other peoples
9. Run solo every now to support 8
10. Run in one cross country event

Flying Again

Its hard to predict why you sometimes feel sluggish when running and sometimes you feel like your flying...after a sluggish City2Surf Ive run 2 7km runs and felt fantastic on both....Ive been thinking about the City2Surf run and learning quite abit due to the disappointment. Firstly, Im definitely taking it all to seriously....if its not fun whats the point and I will never run well if Im strung out. Secondly, I need to relax more when running and feel what my body wants to do....including start more slowly and build up to speed. Thirdly I need to worry less about whether my legs will hold out on long runs....I pushed myself alot in the last 2 runs and I found Im alot stronger than I think I am. Fourthly, I need to get my breathing right, less laboured.

So with every disappointment comes a lesson..........chill out, listen to my body and enjoy it more!

If You Need Inspiration Try David Goggins

What the Point of Running ?

Been reading a few running blogs and came across a pretty impressive (and popular) blog ca;;ed Show No Weakness. In his post from March he says some things that I really needed to hear

Nine times out of ten, you are alone. Alone in your mind, alone at your desk, alone in your wants and needs. People are not going to understand your goals because they have separate goals. It's not easy to do things alone. You must deviate from the crowd. This is why it is easier to go for a run with people. It's much easier when you know that someone is out there suffering with you. You can't look over and see that when you are suffering alone. But let me tell you... you are alone. You are alone when you cross the finish line, you are alone when you do extra miles, you are alone when you don't get the promotion at work. You are alone. When you can learn to deal with being alone and not depend on the support of others, you become a stronger human being. I have always been alone in the things I've done. You have to expect failure, if you don't when I comes your way, you will not be able to get back up.

I have read countless blogs, articles, and talked to several people who don't think I really hate doing the things I do. And to be blunt about it... It pisses me off. I have never taken the easy way. I have had to fail several times before I succeed at something, and sometimes it was at no fault of my own. But I run, bike, all of the above because I hate it. By hating it and doing it I grow

This guy seems like a bit of a hardnut but it speaks to the fact that i often run worse on my own than in a group. In my mind these statements go to the heart of running, especially when we are hating it. This is why its a metaphor for life, we only really grow through pain whether its in running or anything else

City2Surf 2010:The Brain Vs Heartbreak Hill!!

6AM this morning and 20 or so Westleigh Warriors piled into 3 cars to take on the crowds and hills of the City2Surf 14km race.........freezing start at around 8 C but warmed up very quickly to around 17 or 18 by the end...

Here's a good video of the start

I started the race feeling very strong with little weaving in and out in the Green Group....hit the 4km mark at a pace of about 5.2km/min which i felt very happy with, kept this up right to the base of Heartbreak Hill, a 2km ascent......things slowed pretty severely then.....the feeling I have when I am running well is one of my brain being in charge of my body but as the hill finished lots of negative thoughts started coming in, ones that let me justify a slower pace than I had planned for.....by the time i hit 10kms i was running a 5.4.....from my finish time of 76.55 things must have deteriorated further from there to about a 5.5 or 5.6.......I really stopped thinking strategy and all my energy went to coping with the slog to the finish.............my finish time put me at a 5.49 pace...slower than I normally run 14kms but there were alot more hills than many of our routes...

This is how much the end hurt...

Looking back on it now Ive got some perspective, i was certainly disappointed at the end...my time last year though was 89mins and there is now a clear goal to get under 75 for 2011......

The Warriors all made it, special mention to one who kicked ass with 67 mins and to those running for the first time....the trip back took a whopping 3 and a half hours but to my delight my family was sitting down eating Lasagna when i got back and i had a piece the size of a small car....oh yeah..and four chocolate biscuits and some chips.....oh yeah..and some nuts, a Powerade....a coffee...

Two weeks now to the Pub2Pub 13kms race......last years time was 82......this year I aim to get under 70....a pace of 5.38...Ill live to fight again !

City2Surf: 3 Days To Go

Three days to go until the 80,000 strong 14km Sydney City2Surf! Im getting excited, not just because of the atmosphere, but because Im in the Green group away from all the prams and walkers...Im publicly declaring that Im going for a time under 75mins....72 if all the conditions are in my favour but I think 75 is more realistic given the crowds........I bought myself a little toy to take with me....Adidas Seenheiser earphones....they sound great, fit like a glove and have a clip for your shirt collar that means they dont pull if you keep your Shuffle on your shorts..

But what about the music ?

Here's ten of the songs i have picked..

1. Dont Tread on me: Metallica

2. Bombs Over Bagdad: Outkast

3. Bonkers: Dizzee Rascal

4. Animal: Mike Snow

5. Bowing Bowing: Jean Luc Ponty

6. Pump Up the Jam: Techtronic

7. Jungle is Massive: MC Vapor

8. Tears Dont Fall: Bullet for My Valentine

9. Back in Black: ACDC

10. The Gods Made Heavy Metal: Manowar (check those dudes)

Good luck Westleigh Warriors!!!!

John Mellencamp is God ! Whats Your Guilty Pleasure Running Music ?

Ok, I might be risking my life with this post, its certainly my guilty pleasure but I ran the other day to a complete Mellencamp playlist to great effect....I nearly stopped to dance to "Cherry Bomb"!!! I smiled through "Pink Houses" and hit the hill to "Jack and Diane"..the man's a fucking genius !!

Try him out, guaranteed PB!