My running journey

I often talk about running and it's time I blogged about my running journey.  Some of my friends will already know about this and others might be a bit surprised.

Reckoning most of my early running was out of desperation, not that I ever used to think of myself as being a runner.  For a brief time in my early twenties, I sometimes felt a bit lost in life, so I would go for a run in an old pair of trainers.  I would run a few miles, turn around to head home and then sprint as fast as I could.  Then as I was at my limit, I would force myself to go another 10 strides and even faster.  Then another 10, faster again, until finally I was panting uncontrollably and my heart was firing like a machine gun.  It felt so good.

Without knowing it, I had become a runner.

Roll forward to my mid 40s

Perhaps there's a theme forming here.  By now I had been working in the Probation Service and had been in the ranks of the management team for a few years.  A hit a stressful period at work and things were starting to get on top of me, so I went to see the HR manager.

Having explained to the HR manager how I was at my wits end, she kindly put forward a few suggestions.  Things like demotion, a sabbatical, unpaid leave, sick leave, reducing hours, sending me on a stress management course and so on.  While those were quite good suggestions, none of them quite hit the mark.

Also at this time I was putting on weight, I think I weighed 13st 8lbs at my heaviest.  So I decided to join a gym to lose weight and burn my stress away. At the gym I did a bit of everything but quickly found I enjoyed running on the treadmill.  However as soon as I got to like it, I had knee and ankle problems.  The solution was visiting a specialist running shop, a gait analysis, a proper pair of running shoes and BINGO!  I COULD RUN!  It felt so good.

Racing

After a while I decided to enter a 10k race, it seemed the obvious thing to do.  I remember my mother disapproving, flagging up all kinds of reasons why it was a bad idea for a man in his 40s.  I pressed on and thoroughly enjoyed it.  The actual "race" turned out to be a Britsh Heart Foundation fund raising event at Knebworth Park, Stevenage.  I think my time was about 55 minutes and I was pretty pleased, though not much of a race as such.  Later I managed to get my 10k time down to 45 minutes.
So next was a Half Marathon and this was at Bath. I have run a few Half's since, all with a time between 1hour 40-50mins which I was pleased with.

My favourite race is the Ridgeway Run, organised by Tring Running Club and I have run this a few times.  It is just under 10 miles and mostly off road.   As with many races, I latched onto someone ahead who had good form and was a bit faster - and I used them to drag me along out of my comfort zone.  Generally it works well for me.  One year I followed a tall, lanky man who was running well.  I was behind him most of the way apart from the last half mile when he shot ahead and lost me.  Afterwards I chatted to him and he explained he was in his 70s and, owing to being on a yacht for a few weeks beforehand, he was slower than normal.  I was amazed!  He, and others like him, are always an inspiration for me.

Like many runners, I suppose we like to have a go at a marathon, my first being when I was 50 or 51.  Again my mother was horrified, suggesting I would have some terrible injury.  So being stubborn, I ignored her and have now run a few marathons, each a little bit faster with my PB being 3hrs 50minutes.

Running alone

In spite of the rewarding buzz from racing others, I think my most significant runs have been on my own.  These could be training runs, or running just for the hell of it, or running to deal with the immense stress I have felt at times.

There were a few times when I had been so unhappy at work, I was at the verge of quitting but then "saved" by an incredible run.  Like those times in my early 20s, I would run and run as fast as I could, then push myself further so those problems melted away.  Some of my most memorable runs have been after work when I would stop off in a hilly area and run - I came to enjoy running up hills so much and managed to bag a few Strava segments.

Other times I would go for a run, feeling the burden of many problems. Even in those slower, longer runs, those problems would all be dealt with, one by one.  The miles would drift by, almost unnoticed as I mulled things over.  I found there was something so positive about running, often coming up with more imaginative solutions and ideas.  Those runs certainly helped me get things straight in my mind.  It is the amazing Runner's High I am talking about, the utterly amazing feeling you get after a good run - perhaps only runners will really understand this(?).

Apart from the mental health benefits, I became quite lean through running.  I quickly went from over 13st to 9st 7lbs and stayed like that for quite a few years.  I'm a little heavier now at just over 11st with a BMI of 23.

And these days

Having had a few health issues (kidneys), my running these days is less ambitious.  Mostly I run 2 or 3 miles every other day, with the occasional 7 or 8 mile run.  I thoroughly enjoy Parkruns for the social element and how it is such a marvellous way for all kinds of people to run, or walk, together on a Saturday morning.

I still dream of getting back to where I was in terms of running, or at least somewhere close.  I can only accept that the best is still to come; I just cannot accept that, at 58, I am inevitably heading downhill.  Perhaps that is the perpetual optimist in me, or perhaps the Type A personality surfacing a little?

In the cold light of day, I know I have run my fastest marathon.  Whether I have run my last marathon is a different matter altogether!

Blogging about running

On one of my other blogs (long retired) I used to talk a lot about running and had quite a following as it peaked at 20,000 page views a month.  I even used to get samples of clothing, coffee, energy gels and snack bars sent to me for reviewing on my blog.  All that, combined with running some decent times and some unforgettable runs, has seared itself on me forever.

While there is something so fantastic about the simplicity of running, it is also a complicated thing to do with so many different aspects - mental strength, personality, planning, being disciplined, nutrition, hydration, resting, sleeping, slow/fast runs, getting lost, falling over, injuries, shoes, clothing and the list goes on for miles.

All this adds up to be something so fascinating, so compelling, I hope and pray I will be a runner for many, many years to come.

Catching up with myself: health checks

Yet again time flies and blogging gets left behind.  So here's a quiet Sunday morning and my favourite time in the week.  My family are slumbering upstairs, I'm sitting at the dining room table having emptied the dishwasher from its overnight run, laid out everything we need for breakfast, brewed some (decaf) coffee and sitting down with my Mac.  Here goes.

Health checks

Left eye, July 2015

Right eye, July 2015

As you know I always like to make sure my body is in tip top condition.  I ensure I have an annual check at the Doctor's surgery covering blood pressure, cholesterol, liver function, kidney function, PSA levels and so on.  That's always okay.  At the dentist I quite often get caught with a little decay or something needing attention on an x-ray.  And then I go to the optician as well.

It is always interesting at the opticians as I can tell my eyes are deteriorating in terms of becoming longer sighted.  I still hate the time when I was told, in my mid forties "well you're middle-aged now, most people become long sited and need glasses.  You're no different".  So I have glasses for reading and using a computer - for that reason my employer kindly allows me to claim £15 for an annual test and £40 towards the cost of glasses.

This check up revealed I needed slightly stronger lenses owing to continuing to become more long sighted.  "This is all fairly routine" explains the optician every year.  She went onto explain that if I follow the normal pattern my long-sited vision will level out soon and not change too much of the rest of my life.  That sounds good as I do need my glasses more and more for anything under one metre and also to expect things to be in focus.

There are always two things which provide interest to the conversation.  Firstly she says "what lovely blood vessels you have at the back of your eyes Doug".  No sign of diabetes or anything like that.  You had better keep up your veggie diet and keep running.

Secondly she's always interested in the dark patch in my left eye.  Actually it is more textured in real life than the photo shows.  This is a Central Serous Retinopathy and this is a tiny leak causing the retina to bulge and this leads to distorted vision.  It has been there for many years and comes and goes a little.  It also features a little in my right eye, although considerably less.  Apparently there are further signs of this happening away from the centre of my vision but I'm less aware of this.  The long term effect of this is to deprive the retina with certain nutrients and my vision has become dull and the world appears as if viewed from a bit of grey, uneven glass.

On a positive note, my brain adapts and this is an example of our wonderfully designed bodies.  I tend to see more from my right eye, so I hope this eye doesn't deteriorate any further.

You might wonder what causes this.  Well, Central Serous Retinopathy is still a bit of a mystery to the medical profession.  It does appear to affect men more than women and the age group is generally 30 - 50 years.  Men who suffer from a Central Serous Retinopathy are often high achievers, high flyers.  Additionally they expect a lot of themselves and put themselves under a lot of pressure.  In other words these are Type A personality traits.  Now I am NOT a high flyer but I do expect a lot of myself.  I am, perhaps, my hardest critic and often known to give myself a hard time over some things.

As a release from this, I find so much solace in my faith (I'm a Christian) and of course running has a brilliant effect on me.  Although I became a runner about eight years ago and at a time of considerable stress, I do find this helps me deal with the challenges of life, especially my work.  Having faith and becoming a runner doesn't solve everything but they are brilliant ways of accepting situations and thinking them through.  I digress.

Back to health checks.  These are so important and I'm pleased those public health folk take it seriously and the Government fund it.  It always amazes me how some people spend far more time and money on maintaining their cars than their own bodies.  Cars are expensive things, sure.  Cars are also very transitory objects and unimportant in the great scheme of things - having a nice car won't allow you to live a minute longer or be a better person.  Taking the time and trouble to have regular health checks at the doctor, dentist and optician is a great way of spotting any problems as they emerge and as we should all know, early diagnosis is very important.  Also important are steps which can prevent illnesses in the first place.

So there you are.  Make sure you get a check-up once a year, especially if you are anywhere near the dreaded "middle age".

Related
Type A personality tag
Staying active in old age

Reasons to stop running?

Sometimes when I go for a run, it's tough starting off and tough for the first 20 minutes.  Occasionally I get tempted to cut my run short because I am too hot, cold, wet, miserable.....  That first 20 minutes is normally the toughest part of the run and I guess it goes to show we need to take time to get warmed up and for muscles to become loose and working well.

Today was no exception.  This was the fourth consecutive day that I have run and quite a leap from my two-runs-a-week routine during the summer.  My legs felt tired from the outset and I could feel a muscle in my left leg calf complaining a little.  By the time I had reached the second hill I was really aware of the nagging muscle and I suspected I knew which it was (having previously had it complain through over-use in the past).

And then, as if by magic, any feelings of discomfort simply melted away and I was running much better.  That remained the same for the rest of the run which lasted 1 hour, 10 minutes; I even sprinted the last 100 metres to our house and then jogged for a minute or two, just to 'cool down'.  It felt good.

I remembered I often have those thoughts and those temptations to cut a run short.  After all, why shouldn't I if it's tough going?  Nobody will think any the less of me if my run in the cold rain is only for 30 minutes instead of one hour.  And yet I would feel bad myself, probably giving myself a hard time and feeling I'd let myself down.  Even worse will have failed.

In actual fact, I cannot remember any time when I have turned back really early.  Sure there are times when I have taken a short-cut for some rational reason, but I have never turned back prematurely.  It's always a barrier that can be overcome and perhaps this is where self belief comes in, ushering away those strong traits of a Type A personality (although I would say I am "Type a" and not "Type A").  Just to go a step further, often the best runs are often the ones where there was a strong temptation to make it shorter than planned.

Must there be a link between the overall toughness of the run and the level of satisfaction at the end.  When I say "satisfaction" I really mean the euphroic sensation that comes from all those endorphins buzzing around inside my head - in other words the "Runner's High".  

• Do you ever struggle in the first mile or two?
• Turn back early?
• Do you have a Type A personality?

More on Type A Personality

I blogged about the term Type A personality in October 2010 (click here) in which I gave a few clues to the traits of a Type A personality person and who runs.  there was nothing particularly informed about that, just mere suggestions.  More recently I noticed Blogger Stats were indicating this post became popular for a while but I think it needs expanding on a little more.  

What is a Type A personality?

To be honest, I don't think their description reads well, especially as it was suggested that applied to me!  In general Type A people are workaholics, never satisfied, control freaks, irritable, hard to work with and tend to be poor at expressing their emotions (and 'bottle' them up instead).  It has also been said Type A's are more likely to have heart disease, high blood pressure and suffer stress badly.  

I was thinking that a health professional's suggestion that I was Type A  and my new-found competitive streak it all fitted together.  But it doesn't.

I still think Type A personalities can be great runners, probably amongst the best, if not the best.  They have to be single minded and relentless in their pursuit of being the best, possibly the world's best.  However, what is the point of that if the price they pay is high, or too high?  Does it matter?  Yes, of course it does.

I look at some of my former colleagues and mentally do some Type A spotting.  Not many around in the work place but those that are have done well but don't last long.  Those that I have known have never or seldom even made it to retirement  

And Type B?

These are the opposite.  More laid-back and easy going.  More sensitive and un-hurried, perhaps lacking drive and ambition.  More likely to enjoy things in life but the important thing is type B's can still, in my view, succeed.  Perhaps achieving success does also come at a price as it does for Type As.  And yet the price, the cost, is different.

And for Runners?  Type A or Type B personalities?

It goes without saying, most people will be a mixture of Type A and B together and this may shape their personality.  Some will be a little more Type A, or perhaps a little more Type B.  Type A's could be those ruthless athletes who are so driven they will succeed.  They'll be pushing and pushing themselves to win the race and hating themselves if they're beaten.  Type B's might be more of the fun run plodders, those that run as a socialble activity with friends where the purpose is different.

Where are you?

Having a rigid Type A or B choice may not be helpful.  Indeed psychologists have questioned the original thinking behind the traits that lead to the definition.  Perhaps nowadays it is better to have a softer, more gradual approach.  Why not have a sliding scale instead from, say, 0 for Type A to 10 for Type B and where would you put yourself?

Why not leave a comment?

Please leave a comment - why not say how you rate yourself on my 0 - 10 scale.  Please outline what kind of a runner you are (fun run jogger to hard core iron man).  Thanks in advance!

Rising above self doubt

There are times when I really doubt myself, in all kinds of ways.

I doubt my abilities as a husband, a father and a friend.  I doubt myself as a manager within one of the Ministry of Justice's arms and the criminal justice system as a whole.

I occasionally question what contribution I am making to the world we live in.  I also sometimes wonder if "today" is my last day, will I have done something worthwhile and be able to face my ultimate judgement with my head up or slumped down.  The answer was, yet again, very clear this morning.  The answer must be a clear YES.

When I go for a run I am faced with a number of cross roads where I could go either left or right.  The way I go dictates the nature and length of the run.  At the end of our driveway is the first of those cross roads.  I had a choice of going for a short 3 or 4 mile run.  This seemed tempting as, with the business of family life, I have only run 3 miles in the last week.  Could I seriously run much further this morning?  Surely I must have put on some weight?  All that scrummy unhealthy picnic food we had yesterday.  Maybe a shorter run is sensible.

No.  No way.  I set off for my favourite 7.5 mile hilly run.  It was, after all, the perfect morning.  It was early and quiet outside and soft sun drying off the overnight dew.  It was, I admit, hard going for the first mile and I even felt my left knee protest a bit.  I've never had any problems with my left knee so I decided to ignore that potential excuse to return home.  After a mile I get to the first hill which, for a few yards, is 1:5 but gradually levels off.  I ran up with ease and felt good.

Then as the miles rolled away I found myself enjoying my surroundings, something I have blogged about many times before.  Once I had reached the half way stage I come out on to an escarpment which has a fantastic view stretching for miles and miles.  I felt really good, although I wasn't going too quickly, more marathon pace (probably 9 or 10 minute/mile).  Coming back through the houses I started to feel the benefits, reassured that I could do this, not an Olympic performance but a straight forward run that I have done so many times before.

The question I ought to have is not whether I can do anything in particular.  Instead a question of what more can I do?  Not so much whether I'm good enough to be a this or that.  I am already those things but how good can I be at those things?   There is so much to do and yes, these can be accomplished.

So there I am.  This morning's run has helped me rise above those feelings of self doubt which can all-too-easily creep in.  We can all be assured it is within our grasp to push ourselves further towards our potential, no matter what that is.



Related:

Running to save my career
Wow - I feel great
What is the runner's high?
Reasons to run

This weeks' running schedule

Helpfully those supportive people organising the MK Marathon have published some training schedules on their website - I'm following the intermediate one.

With 15 weeks to go and feeling "on track" this is the schedule for the week ahead:

Monday - alternate 1 minute brisk run with 1 minute jog, for 40 minutes
Tuesday - rest
Wednesday - I hour 10 minutes at marathon pace  (9 minutes per mile)
Thursday - rest
Friday - 40 minutes at an easy pace
Saturday - 105 minutes at a relaxed pace (10 minutes per mile)

It goes without saying I am impatient with myself and always feel tempted to do more because I know I can do more and go a little faster than this.  That is just me, being a Type A kind of runner.  I must be patient, follow the schedule.  Well, more or less.  If I need a good fast blast of a run, I'm gonna do that regardless of the schedule.  I do, however, recognise the benefits of following a logical schedule to bring myself gradually up to the right distance and pace without injury or being prone to catching a cold, bug etc.

See also:

Type A runner / personality

Type A runner?

Asics Gel 1150 with X Socks

If someone can have a Type A personality, is it possible to be a Type A Runner?

Possible traits....

• In racing, am I in the first 20%, regardless of age?
• How do I compare with other veterans of my age?
• Be prepared to start well back in the pack and hang back for the first half and then "go for it"
• What's my running form like?
• I could have done better
• I'm not going to take energy gels any more to help me run faster
• My best is yet to come
• I'm just not satisfied
• I must train alone
• I must always have a future race in my diary