Saturday, January 12, 2008
First 30 Mile Week!!
Well, this week is my first 30 mile week! I have decided to include walking, when part of the training, as I want to build up that walking as well as the running.
As well as the steady 10 miles on Monday, I walked/ ran 4 1/2 miles Tuesday; Wednesday was back to Body Toning class, and she had made it harder- I actually felt it on my legs! Still, this is no bad thing! I ran there and back, plus round the village 4 miles approx, with a pack containing a pair of shoes, keys/ purse/ phone, and two 1 litre water bottles filled with water- it is amazing how much water actually weighs you down!
Thursday I intended going to the gym, but developed a headache which just got worse during the day. I had visions of it developing into the sickness thingy currently doing the rounds, so just walked the 3 miles to have my eyebrows waxed and tinted (ouch- extreme torture!!) I ended up going to bed at 8:30pm and woke up at 2:30pm with a really banging head. My befuddled brain suggested I might be dehydrated, so I drank loads of water and popped a couple of paracetamol, and luckily it had gone by 6am. I was annoyed at missing the gym, but I guess I have to listen to my body sometimes when it's demanding rest, as it's so easy to get obsessed! (Most of my mates think I already am...)
Friday was a rest (and cimema and eat out) day, but still felt tired this morning, so decided on a 12 mile run/ walk with the same pack as Wednesday but with fleece, gloves and camera as well as the shoes and water. It was a route from John Merril's book 'Long Circular Walks in Charnwood Forest', and started at the top car park at Beacon Hill. It was a lovely sunny day but cold, conditions under foot were quite boggy and slippery at times but I tried to persuade myself it was similar to running through fine sand.
The start was all easy downhill to the bottom car park and road, then some climbing to Woodhouse Eaves. The route twisted through a large golf course, before a long, steep and squelchy climb up to Bradgate Park. The suggested route took the path right round the edge of the park to Newtown Linford, but I added another steep climb up to the memorial before dropping down. Hadn't suffered enough obviously!
There are some lovely thatched cottages in Newtown Linford, but I dread to think how much they would cost! The next part of the route I'd done before, on the 33 mile Charnwood Challenge. The photo below was taken here, you can see how much the stream is swollen. Note the mud!
Near Newtown Linford
A bit of road walking took me to Ulverscroft Priory, skirting round a farm before another long and wet ascent.
I got a bit lost after here; I crossed a road and found the footpath markings, but the book advised me to keep to the left of the fields after this and I just couldn't find any way through into the next field. I followed a farm track all the way to a dead end at the farm, then turned and went downhill the other way, but nothing. So finally, cursing to myself, I went back to the last known marker and noticed a stile to the top of the field to my right- obviously the route kept to the right of the field not the left!! I reckon I must have added 1/2 mile on! I had started to have a couple of twinges from my right knee too, which wasn't good news.
There was a bit more climbing to the view point below;
Beacon Hill
I set off down a muddy track, and veered right, back towards Beacon Hill, dropping down through a large squelchy field. After this the footpath passed through a field with two large horses in, and things got a bit fraught! One horse just watched me go past, but the other was very excitable, and repeatedly charged at me at full gallop, before wheeling away at the last minute, bucking and kicking its heels in the general direction of my head. Now I am not scared of horses, but this was quite intimidating, as I really didn't fancy a kick in the head and strange horses aren't predictable. Plus it was big!! I kept to the edge of the field, and walked slowly, but as I ventured across to the stile it followed me very closely, ears flat back, which was a sign that he was definately not au fait with my prescence!
I leapt over the stile, half expecting to be knocked sprawling to the mud at any second, landed in the next field, heaved a great sigh of relief, only to see there was another exciteable horse charging towards me! Luckily it wasn't quite so lairy as the first one, but I just climbed out over the fence at the corner of the field as it was stood right in front of the stile and I felt disinclined to ask it to move. I am not quite sure of the best thing to do in this situation but it was quite scary! Be interesting to know if anyone else has had problems on that path!
It was all uphill to the car, and I walked the last bit of the last ascent. Took me around 3 hours 20 minutes, however my knee is a bit sore I am hoping I have just twisted it... hoping to get to the gym tomorrow although the knee will have to dictate what I do when I'm there.
As well as the steady 10 miles on Monday, I walked/ ran 4 1/2 miles Tuesday; Wednesday was back to Body Toning class, and she had made it harder- I actually felt it on my legs! Still, this is no bad thing! I ran there and back, plus round the village 4 miles approx, with a pack containing a pair of shoes, keys/ purse/ phone, and two 1 litre water bottles filled with water- it is amazing how much water actually weighs you down!
Thursday I intended going to the gym, but developed a headache which just got worse during the day. I had visions of it developing into the sickness thingy currently doing the rounds, so just walked the 3 miles to have my eyebrows waxed and tinted (ouch- extreme torture!!) I ended up going to bed at 8:30pm and woke up at 2:30pm with a really banging head. My befuddled brain suggested I might be dehydrated, so I drank loads of water and popped a couple of paracetamol, and luckily it had gone by 6am. I was annoyed at missing the gym, but I guess I have to listen to my body sometimes when it's demanding rest, as it's so easy to get obsessed! (Most of my mates think I already am...)
Friday was a rest (and cimema and eat out) day, but still felt tired this morning, so decided on a 12 mile run/ walk with the same pack as Wednesday but with fleece, gloves and camera as well as the shoes and water. It was a route from John Merril's book 'Long Circular Walks in Charnwood Forest', and started at the top car park at Beacon Hill. It was a lovely sunny day but cold, conditions under foot were quite boggy and slippery at times but I tried to persuade myself it was similar to running through fine sand.
The start was all easy downhill to the bottom car park and road, then some climbing to Woodhouse Eaves. The route twisted through a large golf course, before a long, steep and squelchy climb up to Bradgate Park. The suggested route took the path right round the edge of the park to Newtown Linford, but I added another steep climb up to the memorial before dropping down. Hadn't suffered enough obviously!
There are some lovely thatched cottages in Newtown Linford, but I dread to think how much they would cost! The next part of the route I'd done before, on the 33 mile Charnwood Challenge. The photo below was taken here, you can see how much the stream is swollen. Note the mud!
Near Newtown LinfordA bit of road walking took me to Ulverscroft Priory, skirting round a farm before another long and wet ascent.
I got a bit lost after here; I crossed a road and found the footpath markings, but the book advised me to keep to the left of the fields after this and I just couldn't find any way through into the next field. I followed a farm track all the way to a dead end at the farm, then turned and went downhill the other way, but nothing. So finally, cursing to myself, I went back to the last known marker and noticed a stile to the top of the field to my right- obviously the route kept to the right of the field not the left!! I reckon I must have added 1/2 mile on! I had started to have a couple of twinges from my right knee too, which wasn't good news.
There was a bit more climbing to the view point below;
Beacon HillI set off down a muddy track, and veered right, back towards Beacon Hill, dropping down through a large squelchy field. After this the footpath passed through a field with two large horses in, and things got a bit fraught! One horse just watched me go past, but the other was very excitable, and repeatedly charged at me at full gallop, before wheeling away at the last minute, bucking and kicking its heels in the general direction of my head. Now I am not scared of horses, but this was quite intimidating, as I really didn't fancy a kick in the head and strange horses aren't predictable. Plus it was big!! I kept to the edge of the field, and walked slowly, but as I ventured across to the stile it followed me very closely, ears flat back, which was a sign that he was definately not au fait with my prescence!
I leapt over the stile, half expecting to be knocked sprawling to the mud at any second, landed in the next field, heaved a great sigh of relief, only to see there was another exciteable horse charging towards me! Luckily it wasn't quite so lairy as the first one, but I just climbed out over the fence at the corner of the field as it was stood right in front of the stile and I felt disinclined to ask it to move. I am not quite sure of the best thing to do in this situation but it was quite scary! Be interesting to know if anyone else has had problems on that path!
It was all uphill to the car, and I walked the last bit of the last ascent. Took me around 3 hours 20 minutes, however my knee is a bit sore I am hoping I have just twisted it... hoping to get to the gym tomorrow although the knee will have to dictate what I do when I'm there.
Labels: John Merrill, walking
