The next plan

This post has taken a while to write, it has been drafted a number of times.

When you train for a big event like a marathon afterwards you can feel a range of emotions as time passes, these are what I can up with in my head last night as I was lying in bed: relief-that you made it, euphoria-when you get your medal and what you've achieved sinks in, contentment-as you sit down for some food and maybe a beer, medal round your neck knowing you don't have to run for at least a few day, pain (I know not really an emotion!), satisfaction-that your race went to plan, pride-telling your friends and family about your day, and depression.

Depression can come about from the lack of no longer having an end goal, not feeling like you have anything to train for. You can fall into a habit of eating and drinking badly on the premise that you deserve to relax but this will no doubt make you feel worse. The post race blues.

I think the major way to dispel these blues (apart from eating healthily) is to plan your next challenge. During my run I remember thinking if i'm struggling now there is no way I can complete an ironman, however the day after we finished Michael Clease and I were already discussing which one we would do next and the possibility of a half ironman.

The reason i've taken so long to do this post is that I wanted to have my race schedule locked in and be able to write it down but it takes so long to think about. I am currently studying race calendars with idea of shelling out a few hundred dollars.

Our local run, the Sutho to Surf, is on in July and goes right past our little house so thats a must! Then there is the City 2 Surf, the huge Sydney fun run which usually attracts around 70,000 entries.
I'd like to do a couple of ocean swims but they won't be on again till Spring. 

I've been considering the Port Macquarie half ironman, its in October. That should give me enough time if I get my act together. I reckon I can do it, i've done the ocean swims in the past, i've done the 90km Sydney to Wollongong bike ride and obviously the marathons. But cost is a major issue! both entry and equipment. 
There is another in Forster in November but we have the wedding of Michael Cleases best just before which obviously isn't the best preparation. 
And then I think maybe I should do a couple of shorter races before hand but PM really is the beginning of the racing calendars.

Oh....do you see why it took so long to write! Maybe i'll just cure the blues by buying some new trainers  :)

Almonds Almonds, Almonds for me. Almonds Almonds make me happy

Michael Clease gets a little eczema. Recently we bought a book called the Healthy Skin diet, it contains advice for lots of different skin conditions and one thing they mentioned was dairy food being an eczema trigger. Actually loads of the things that Michael Clease likes are bad for it: dairy, chocolate, bacon, cheese, red meats and alcohol!!!
Over the last few months we have been trying to reduce his intake of them rather than completely cutting them out and he has noticed the difference.

We both tend to have at least one coffee a day and Michael Clease has been having soy milk in that. The health experts seem to be a little undecided about soy products at the moment. One thing does seem clear though is that with its popularity increasing more soy trees are needing to be planted and so rainforests are being destroyed to make room. I'm a believer in mixing thing up, I don't think Michael Clease should feel too guilty for having soy milk in one coffee a day and I don't think he should panic about his eczema when he has a little milk but still I decided to looked into alternatives.

Rice milk is on the supermarket shelves with the soy milk but i've heard that that contains very few nutrients. Another one I spotted was almond milk so we gave that a go and its not so bad. I had a browse online and it seems loads of people make their own and its really simple.

I've made it a few times now and its really good. The only thing is you probably should only keep it for about 4 days so you have to be organised if you want it on your breakfast every day!
Heres my receipe, its probably not the most professional or maybe even the nicest but I like it :)

• Take around two small handfulls of raw almonds
• Put them in a clear jar, cover with water and a lid and leave on the window sill for a day or two
• Empty the water, put the almonds in a blender and add about 1 cup of water
• Blend for a good few minutes. You should be able to judge the consistency, you want it a little thicker than milk, more creamy. Add more water if its too thick.
• Put a strainer over a bowl and more the almond/water combo in
• You should be able to leave it for 10minutes and a lot of the water will drain through. Then grab a spoon and smoosh (technical term!) it through the strainer. You can buy almond milk bags to use instead of strainers, i think it gives you a smoother finish but I'm not too fussed.
• Ta da you should have a bowl of beautiful almond milk. 

 I have seen people add dates and/or cinnamon to theirs, I guess this depends on what you will be using your almond milk for. I usually add ours to our porridge and that already has dates in so I don't worry. Dates are great through for some healthy sweetness.

You'll have all the almond pulp left over. I mix mine into our porridge but I did see one recipe where they add some chocolate chips and honey and ate it as a dessert!
By the way I have spotted the irony of putting the almond milk and almond pulp back together in the porridge, you kinda think why not just put almonds and water in your porridge but I promise it give the porridge a great creaminess this way!!

The final result, sorry for the poor quality and lack of 'step by step' shots!

Give it a go and let me know what you think.
xx

Great Ocean Road marathon 2013 - Race Report

We woke at 5am to kindly be taken to the airport by Michael Clease's brother for our 7am flight. The woman on the flight next to me was very irritating, she kept knocking me with her elbow, flipping pages of her book very loudly, texting!!! and was writing in three different diaries each slightly larger than the last! It sounds so petty now but when you are cramped in a little box its very frustrating.

When we landed it became clear that a lot of people were heading to the running festival. Lots of legging, trainers and I even heard one woman in the toilet talking about wee colour (as in trying to check it to make sure she was fully hydrated). 

We collected our hire car and set off. Michael Clease was keen to check out Bell beach, location of the surfing movie Point Break. We did briefly but it was cold and windy so we were quickly on our way. 

As we got onto the great ocean road we soon saw the amazing views that it is so famous for, rolling green hills, crumbling cliff edges and blue foamy shorelines. 

The day was cold with on/off showers and we checked a number of different weather websites praying that the conditions would improve for Sunday. 

Our accommodation, the Claerwen Retreat, was slightly out of Apollo Bay, up a windy, gravelly, hilly road but once we saw the amazing views I was happy to see we'd made a good choice. 

We decided to make dinnner in our room and have a very quiet evening. Michael Clease knocked up a quick pasta with sausages, veg and tomato sauce. Thanks to the early morning I was falling asleep at 9pm while watching Harry Potter. 

View from our room at Claerwen retreat, it really doesn't do it justice.

We woke at 5am for a second day in a row, dressed, ate some porridge and drove down to the coach collection for a 6:15am pickup. 

When entering online you could specify that you'd like a coach trip from the finish line in Apollo Bay to the start line in Lorne. There was I expecting one coach maybe three quarters full but with the help of the half marathoners there must have been about eight coaches waiting. 

We arrived at the start line at 7amish which I thought was a little early but by the time we'd been for a wee, drunk a Gatorade, pinned on our numbers, gone for another wee and put our bag in the bag van it was nearly time to start. 

Just before the start

We started slow, in training Michael Clease has been setting off quite fast and I was very conscious to take it easy and not get carried away as I have in past events. We decided to have our gels at every 10km and so the provided energy drink at every 5km. This strategy worked well and thanks to some new gels I have discovered called Torq I was actually looking forward to using them. There isn't much to say about the run, the uphills were quite tough, the downhills were very welcome. At around 30km I began to struggle but that is to be expected I think. We reached the marathon mark at 4:24, roughly a ten minute pb for me so I was chuffed. I think we saw Toadie from Neighbours which was pretty exciting for me! Michael Clease had a little banter with him.

Due to the location of the towns this marathon is a little different to most in that they give you a time for the marathon and then you have to continue to the finish line totalling 45km. I was originally worried that this would be a mental struggle and once I got to the marathon mark I would not have the motivation to keep running. This turned out not to be the case, I had mentally broken down the race into nine 5km portions which I think helped, and we crossed the finish line in 4:37. 

Originally we had planned to grab a beer and some food straight after but we really felt like going back to our room for a shower and a rest. 

Much to his reluctance and my encouragement Michael Clease showered his legs with cold water before the hot shower, I did the same after. I don't know if it was due to this or the beers after but we pulled up quite well the next day. 

I thoroughly enjoyed the race, it was really well organised, the views were spectacular, the crowd at the end was really great and I think having Michael Clease with me really gave me encouragement. I'd definitely do it again, maybe not next year due to the cost in getting and staying there but if you live near by its a must!

Now I am just waiting for the official photographs.

Chubby Katie.x

The thin end of the wedge

Well I am at the thin end of the wedge now in terms of my marathon training. 
I'm not sure that phrase is entirely suitable for me. I think in race terms it usually is used to describe the elite athletes rather than the middle of the roaders, the back of the packers but what I mean is I am in my taper and counting down the hours almost till the gun goes off.

Yesterday Michael Clease and I did our last training run. I've got to say I felt really good. It was only 10km but we managed to do it in a decent time and pretty much negative split.

In case you don't know what negative splitting is its when you do a race faster in the second half than the first. The logic being that most people go out too fast and then can't keep it up, if you negative split you have "saved enough in the tank" to power through to the finish line. Negative splitting means that you have paced yourself well, haven't been swept up the atmosphere and should finish feeling strong.

The last two marathons I have done I definitely haven't negatively splitted (splat?). If you've read my race report of the Sydney marathon you'll know I got carried away and started running with the sub 4hr group! This time I feel I have learnt so lessons, my strong run yesterday has left me feeling positive. All I have to do is make sure Michael Clease doesn't get carried away (I think he is a faster runner than me) and keep my fingers crossed that the forecast rain doesn't show itself till after midday!

I thought of a couple more tips recently. These are Chubby Katie tips rather than Real Buzz but they are really common sense. 

• Cut your toe nails/have a pedicure a week before the race.

Its a good idea to have neat short nails before the race, hopefully in an effort to keep as many of them as possible! Cutting them a week before hand means if you cut them a little close they shouldn't be sore on race day

• Tie your shoe laces well

Oh how I have made this mistake! Many a time i've had to re-tie my laces. Chances are they'll come undone at the start ruining your momentum. Theres a chance they might come undone nearer the end, by then bending down to tie then might create its own issues!

• Do a little warm up jog before you start

The main reason I do this is not for warming up but to make sure everything I am wearing is comfortable. As discussed in the last rules you shouldn't wear anything new but you might not have worn all your items together before. For example I will be wearing a running belt to carry gels, this sits at different positions round my waist depending on the shorts I am wearing. My hair is also sometimes an issue, doing a little job will ensure its fixed in place. I cannot stand bits of hair that keep falling into my face!!

Well thats it! One more day till the big day. I shall be sure to take lots of photos and give a full race report.

Chubby Katie.x

Marathon tips part 2

Ooh so I've just been looking at the posts that I started drafting and never finished. Back in April 2011!!! I wrote a marathon tips one and never finished maraton tips two. With less than a week to go before my next one it seemed like a good time to share it.
Just a reminder that I found these tips on www.realbuzz.com

• Resist the urge for a toilet break

Yes I reckon this is a good idea. Most the time it is just nerves making you think you need a wee or looking for a reason to take your mind off the race. You should also resist the urge to drink for the sake of it. If you have planned your nutrition and hydration well you should know exactly how much to drink. A trick I am trying this time is to hydrate a lot on the days leading up but then not too much on the day.

• Do a body scan during the race 

I've heard this before. Chrissie Wellington suggests doing it. Essentially you just cast you mind over each part of your body, make sure you aren't tensing, that you are relaxed and sticking to the form you have been practising.
I have tried this a few times on longer runs. Usually I will only remember ones but hey thats better than not doing it!
Start with your eyebrows and work all the way down to your little toe, if nothing else it should take your mind off giving up for a few minutes!

• Stick to what you know

Oh this is a biggy! Never do a run in any new clothing or with new nutrition that you haven't tried in training. If you've practised it or worn it there is less margin for error on race day. It can be tempting to treat yourself to something new and shiny with the aim to look your best for the big day but if after 10minutes your new shoes start rubbing you'll be kicking yourself.

• Watch your running step

This just means to watch where you are going. Look out for things like plastic cups, especially round drinks stations, gel packets and curbs. I feel over when I did the city to surf a few years ago. I got swept along with the rush, some guy was messing around in front of me and over I went. 
Try to stay out of the big crowds, don't hug the curbs too much and don't go faster than you have prepared for. 

• Talk to yourself while you run

This is an interesting one, one that I haven't really tried.  Usually its more like my body telling my brain "this this is crazy, you could easily stop, whats the point of putting me through this pain". I guess the trick is to tell yourself the opposite. "This is good for you, don't give up you've trained so hard, the pain is small compared to the disappointment you'll feel if you stop half way!"

• Enjoy the race!

Well this might be easier said than done. You've trained for this for ages so may as well enjoy it right! Really savour the highlights of the run, whether its running accross the harbour bridge, tower bridge or just the beautiful Great Ocean road scenery.

Compression digression

Oh my goodness! I have just looked up compression clothing on Wikipedia and it seems to know even less than I do. I especially liked this line:

In those situations, athletes wear compression shorts under the skirt so if they fall over and their skirts ride up, their underwear will not be exposed. 

Michael Clease has just purchased some some and I don't think this was his reasoning! (I shall endeavour to get a photo!)

Anyway I next went onto the Australian Sports commission website. It seems there hasn't been a lot of conclusive research into the benefits of compression wear but of course the manufactures are raving about it.
Compression wear is regularly used in hospitals and by frequent flyers to reduce the risk of blood clots in legs. Here are some of the potential benefits:

• enhancing blood circulation to peripheral limbs
• reducing blood lactate concentration during maximal exercise bouts
• enhancing warm-up via increases in skin temperature
• increasing vertical jump height
• improving repetitive jump power
• reducing muscle oscillation upon ground contact
• increasing torque generated about joints, improving performance and reducing the risk of injury, for example, assisting the eccentric action of the hamstring at the end of the swing phase in running
• enhancing recovery following strenuous exercise by aiding in the removal of blood lactate and improving subsequent exercise performance
• reducing the effects of delayed onset muscle soreness in the days following strenuous exercise
• increasing feelings of positive leg sensations both during and following strenuous exercise

For my birthday in September I received some 2XU leggings and I wore them after my second marathon in Sydney. I'm not sure if I recovered any quicker but I must say my legs felt much better when I put them on. I find the "reducing muscle oscillation" an interesting concept, my understanding is that the muscles don't move around as unnecessarily when they are hugged tight in these, or wobble factor as I like to refer to it.  When I put them on my legs felt much more secure and firmer. Its a strange thing to describe but it felt good!

The Aus sport website also sites positively influencing psychological factors which may well turn out to be the main benefit. Still I shall duly put them on after my third marathon on Sunday and be content in the fact that if nothing else the compression gives you a more purt bum!

Let me know if you have any compression garments and what you think.

CKx

For reference here is the Aus sport website: http://www.ausport.gov.au/sportscoachmag/sports_sciences/compression_garments_do_they_influence_athletic_performance_and_recovery

Homeward bound

I struggle to get enough mileage in (funny how I still call it mileage even though I train in kilometres!), often things come up on the weekend and it throws out your plan. When you have three hours allocated to that run it can be tricky to reschedule. That happened this weekend, Sure I maybe didn't try as hard as I could but things just kept getting in the way.

That's why I have started running home from work. I live around 24km from work and often in the past I have gotten off the train a few stops earlier and run the last 6 or so kms. Over the last few months Michael clease and I have been getting off half way and running 16km. Last week though we decided to run the whole way! It was tough, we hadn't eaten much since lunch, we were relying on water fountains, it was dark and we didn't have dinner till 9pm but the suckers for punishment that we are, we plan to do it again tomorrow.

We will go a little more prepaid through. I'll pack up some snacks for us to have through out the afternoon, I have a little head torch that'll I'll strap round my arm and i'll carry some water.

Wish me luck!

My bottle belt is similar to this but the bottles face downwards. I only had
three bottles  but lost one on a longer run one day so now i'm down to two :(

Hiatus over?

Well what a hiatus this has been. Over six months I have been away, after all the promises I made to blog twice a week, shame on me.

I am now back on the training wagon, and in theory on the blogging wagon.

I have just been to Bali, it was lovely but involved pretty much no exercise. The thing that did inspire me though was I finally got round to reading Chrissie Wellingtons autobiography.

As you will know if you've read my other blog posts I am a big fan of hers! She is obviously an amazing athlete and comes across as so down to earth. 

A while ago I came up with the theory (it may be a well know one but not one that I have read about) that people have different levels of addiction. Not just to drugs, alcohol and the usual things but it can occur in all areas of life, to work, to shopping, fast food. There are a number of athletes that I've come across who have been drug addicts and managed to turn their lives around to become ultra runners, essentially they seem to swap the addiction to an addiction to exercise.

Chrissy Wellington seems like one of these people, I think that’s what makes her so successful. Unfortunately I am not. I rarely have a need to go for a run. I enjoy it and often feel in the mood but if someone told me I couldn't run today I wouldn't break out into a cold sweat and get anxious. I guess its really a healthier way to be but it means I am unlikely to become a champion athlete.

But enough of my ramblings, in two weeks time I am running the Great Ocean road marathon. Its actually 45km which, although I can't find much saying so, means its an ultra marathon! Michael Clease has agreed to run this one with me which is very exciting and has made the training runs much more fun. 

Its apparently an "undulating" run but I've been reliably informed that the scenery acts as quite a distraction from the hills.

This weekend I plan to do my last over 30km run and then its onto taper. My alcohol intake has been limited and I'm eating fairly healthily. I'm feeling good and excited for the little trip away. 

Beautiful GOR http://www.victoria.visitorsbureau.com.au/