Walk on the wild side

It was a lovely day today, so when I finished work I decided to walk home, instead of getting the bus. This is actually a really nice walk, most of the way, even if I did have to tresspass on someone's drive. They had big signs saying not a public highway etc etc. However I reckon that if you have a drive that is at least three quarters of a mile long, and links up so perfectly between where I am and where I want to be, you can't really complain, especially as it links up with a footpath.

It was nice walking through the fields, with all the butterflys about, and random nervy dogs with brown eyebrows coming over to say hello. Then I got to Playing Place, and got an icecream from the spar shop. Then is was the loooong hill down past a primary school. This is the biggest pain when I cycle into work, as it is fairly steep, and is a mile and a half long (I have measured it), but it isn't so bad walking down, and great fun going down on a bike.

The last hill I had to get up before I got to town was really nasty, and was the only bit where there wasn't a nice cooling breeze. Got overtaken by a guy in a pickup, who took a suspiciously short stop in a layby halfway up. I suspect a sneaky line before getting home, but I may just have a suspicious mind.

Took my life in my hands crossing the dual carriageway, then down the street to home, and realised I didn't have my camera handy to take a pic of the fibreglass cow at the top of the road. I'll have to remember to take a picture before it, inevitably, gets some drunk bods deciding to go cow tipping on friday night.

Will do some pressups and situps later, if I get round to it.

Juneathon stats - day 24
walking: 4.5 miles (in 70 minutes)

We can work it out

Argh, nearly there though, 7 days to go. I'm finding the blogging more difficult than the actual exercise though.

Except on Thursdays, for some reason Thursday seems to be the hardest day of the week. Again I have been slack on the running, I'm going to have to drag myself out this week and bounce my sorry carcass round to block. Obviously you'll guess from this that I failed again on Thursday, I'll have to do better, and maybe manage to do something extra to make up for it.

Doing the situps and pressups every other day isn't a problem, although week 3 of the programs seems to be being a bit of a toughie. I cracked out the weights at the weekend, because I was buzzing around like a blue arsed fly trying to sort some things out, and it was a lovely day on Sunday so I spent the afternoon sitting in a beer garden, talking bollocks.

I saw something a couple of you may be interested in on Saturday. The Grauniad has a creative writing competition for a reader to get an unpublished short story in their fiction issue in August. Max 2000 words. If I can get the words out of my head onto the paper I'll be giving it a go.

Juneathon stats - days 19-22
situps: 331
pressups:142
curls:156 (6x12 reps @10kg on Sat, 7x12 reps @10kg on Sun)
a few other bits and pieces like walking and a stuff that barely count

I Can't Stand Up (For Falling Down)

Feeling a bit run down and rubbish really, I blame the lurgy. did the situps exhaustion test though, should have managed more than I did really. Only just managed to get them in on the right day though, sat down after work to listen to the radio, and woke up a couple of hours later, still feeling crap and knackered.

I've been a bit slack on the running though, I need to drag my lazy ass out and round the block a few more times soon.

Still getting through the Carr book steadily, should be finished soon.

Juneathon stats - day 16
situps: 52

All fall down

I've been a bit rubbish lately, but obviously I haven't been the only one. On Thursday I was feeling really rubbish, especially as I hadn't managed to keep anything down for most of the day, and the day before. I did manage to force myself to do some squats, with weights, before I came over all funny.

Friday, unfortunately, I had to go in to work whatever, still feeling a bit rough, but better than I had. It was a lovely day, so I went for a walk after I finished. I meant to walk over to my Aunt's, so I could blag a cup of tea before catching the bus. I got slightly lost though, and ended up doubling the distance I had to walk before I got my nice cup of tea. Bah, it's not like I grew up round here and spent most of my time in the summer arsing around in these fields and footpaths.

Friday night, ran into a couple of mates, and decided to kill what was left of the lurgy with alcohol, Saturday, broken, completely and utterly broken, couldn't even manage 2 pressups, let alone anything more energetic. The lurgy was dead though, which was nice. I think I ought to count it as a juneathon fail though.

Managed to do the slightly postponed bit of the pressups and situps on sunday, and discovered that the lurgy has left me with pulled abs, which made it less fun.

And finally, did the pressup exhaustion test thing today, 19, significantly more than the paltry number I managed in the first test, yay!

Juneathon stats - days 11-15
pressups: 51
situps: 81
walking: 4 miles
squats (10kg dumbell in each hand): 20

No, not now

At home ill today, as I was up half the night with mystery stomach lurgy. I'm not sure who gave me this particular bug, but I know it has been doing the rounds, and when I figure out who the typhoid mary is I shall shun them heartlessly. Needless to say, unless a treadmill miraculously appears, the run I had planned on doing today, to make up for yesterday's lameness, isn't going to happen. I don't really want to be wandering too far from the bathroom.

sit ups and press ups were done though, despite feeling miserable and achy (from the bug, not from all this exercise type stuff). I'm also working my way through the Allen Carr book, not too quickly, I suspect the impact of the book might be blunted if I read it cover to cover in a couple of hours, rather than reading it more slowly and letting bits sink in.

It was a bit of a struggle finding an appropriate title from my music collection. I'm sure someone has guessed that I have been culling post titles from song titles for the last few days. Because I am lazy, and it is easier than think up something original myself, basically.

Juneathon stats - day 10
situps: 75
pressups: 30

The Tears of my Tracks

I was a bit crap today, I meant to go out for a run this morning before going into work but I overslept, which was a bit of a pain. Then when I got back from work I meant to get out a bit later. Somehow I got caught up in doing things, then I had something to eat, and thought "Oo, I better wait for a bit before going out", so I picked up the random copy of The Cruel Sea I had discovered in one fo my bookshelves. I'll read that for a bit, thinks I, and go out later. A few hours later, and having finished the book, I look out the window and its dark and windy and 'orrible. Damn.

On the other hand I did do a very brisk walk from work to the bus stop, which is a bit over a mile away, so I suppose that'll have to do for today. Making up for it tomorrow will be the plan, I'll remember to set the alarm this time.

The other petty annoyance of the day, I discover that, without notifying me in any way, iTunes has changed its podcast settings and has sent all of the back episodes of Phill and Phil's Perfect 10 (funny, but filthy at times) and the News Quiz into oblivion. Very annoying, at least it hadn't got round to blitzing the umpteen episode of Answer Me This (also very funny) as well.

Juneathon stats - day 9
walk: 1 and a bit miles, rubbish really

Hangin' Round

A bit of a lazy day today, hung my, functional and not at all dorky, cycling kit up to dry, faffed about on the internet, and finished China Miéville's new book, which is really good.

I also had a quick look at the website of the local running club, which is horrible, like something out of the mid 90's. There is a 10k in August at a local national trust place, which I might enter if I am feeling especially brave and/or stupid, and if I think I can run that far. There is also a half-marathon held in town in September, and a marathon (and a half) being held at Eden in October. I might be daft but I'm not completely mental though, so I'll give them a miss.

I got off my arse and did situps and pressups, gave the squats a miss though,as I'm planning on doing some running tomorrow before, or after, I go into work.

Juneathon stats - day 8
Situps: 55
pressups: 25

Bicycling to Afghanistan

Not really, just out to Idless Woods. That is the view across the valley, just outside of town. It is a bit overcast and drizzly at times, but fairly pleasant. I cut the ride a bit short, unfortunately, as I obviously need to do a bit of fettling with the gears and things, as it has been a couple of months since I have been using the bike much*.

A few mysteries. Why is it that the more expensive a bike is the more fettling you do to keep it all running smoothly? Not that I mind, I quite like building and fettling bikes. How come, since I last got out on my bike, my saddle has changed from being a lovely comfy perch to being a granite shouldered baroque instrument of torture? Most importantly, where did all that blood on my pedal come from? I found out the answer to that one after, in the shower, I had scraped the back of my calf on something.

Gratifyingly enough I have obviously made some fitness gains, as I was able to keep my speed up nicely, and some of the hills weren't too much trouble. Using some different leg muscles from the ones you use for running was good too. They are a little out of condition though, I obviously need to do some more cycling.

Shocking news I heard on the Beeb's sunday morning cooking program, Jaffa Cakes don't count as one of your 5-a-day! Does this mean Apple Turnovers don't count either?

Another piccie, I keep my camera on the strap of my backpack, so I tend to take a few photos when I go out cycling. This is the hill up to my place, and it is steeper than it looks.


*Work, life and indolence kept getting in the way.

Juneathon stats - day 7
Cycling: 5 miles (30 stoppy starty minutes)

Indiscipline

Woke up this morning nice and early, fully intending to get out and run for a bit. Unfortunately my legs felt so heavy and dead, and the weather was so manky out that I couldn't be bothered and stayed in bed. In the spirit of Juneathon I hereby declare my walk into town to the bookshop, to get the Alan Carr book, was exercise. I feel this is no more spurious than certain people's missions down the offie.

I might crack out the weights a bit later, if I am feeling energetic, but my legs are definitely feeling all those squats I did yesterday. Running, and/or cycling tomorrow though.

update- Dug out the weights and did a bit with them too. Felling less like a fraud now.

Juneathon stats - day 6
Walking: not very far, to be honest, maybe half a mile.
weights: 65 curls (5-10kg) each arm, 130 total.

We're All Mad Here

Got round to my planned juneathon bit for today, while half listening to the news on the radio, which encouraged me not to dawdle, otherwise I would have inadvertently ended up listening to The Archers.

That would have been awful, largely because it is the only soap type thing that I'm not completely immune to. I can resist getting drawn into the unremitting misery of Eastenders, the northern bleakness of Corrie etc etc.The bloody awful twee knowing mock yokel tripe that is the Archers has a disturbing tendency to draw me in.

Unrelatedly, following (vaguely) on from jog-blog's drooling over the pink Pashley, I discovered (6 months late, but there you go) that On-One's designer Brant Richards has moved on and started up a new vehicle for his idiosyncratic mountain bike designs, Ragley. I have an On-One Scandal, which is lovely, and his new designs look great, too. The Blue Pig especially looks like a lovely frame, a proper hooligan bike made of steel. I am experiencing serious bike lust, as I currently have a sub-optimal number of bikes*.

The most important discovery I made today, however, was figuring out how to make the shower run cold without fiddling with all the setting knobs. Now I can have a nice refreshing cold shower without arsing around with the temperature knob. As a bonus this means I won't get shouted at for leaving the shower on cold for the next person to discover. Not that I will necessarily stop doing that, just for fun, on occasion.

Juneathon stats - day 5
situps: 50
pressups: 24
squats: 108!

*There is a simple formula for the optimal number of bikes, which any keen cyclist knows, but will seldom admit to. it is x+1 (where x is the number of bikes currently owned).

Constant Craving

Another morning wobble, this time round a different route, with less downhill bits, and my legs are less hurty as a result. They are still a bit sore, from the last time I tried running downhill, but they have recovered better. I'm feeling the unaccustomed exertions of Juneathon a bit, I was a bit tired and achey when I decided to haul myself out of bed and get out for a run.

Went out a bit later than usual, and it was bin day, so the foxes had been out in force, making the place look untidy. I saw a few more people, and a cat shall henceforth refer to as Bin Cat, because he was sat on a bin, demanding attention from all who passed.

I even saw the first other runner I have seen since I began my peregrinations. She overtook me while I was about to end one of my walking breaks, she didn't even say hello or anything, either. I wonder if I run as strangely as she does, kicking her feet well out to the side as she ran, I guess I probably do, but I can't see myself, so I don't particularly care.

Mr Blue Sky again proved to be a good uplifting track to run to, even if it isn't as ridiculously cheerful and bouncy as Mushaboom, but I was walking back down the hill when that came on and wasn't even remotely tempted to break out into a run. Bin Cat demanded, and got, another stroke as I came back past too. Dopey animal, I bet he was there waiting for the bin men.

In less good news, I have caved on the ciggy front, but I have managed to cut down to about 5 a day, and I fully intend to cut that down to nothing before the end of the month. I think I might have to get that Alan Carr book though. Just stopping is harder than I thought, unfortunately.

Better get off my arse and head out to the Polling Station in a minute, remember to vote folks, else the BNP scum might get some people elected.

Tunes -
ELO
Four Tet
Nerina Pallot

Juneathon stats - day 4
run: 17 minutes (I'll figure out and post the distance later)

Hot hot heat

Oops, forgot to blog, bad me.

Anyway, still hot down here, which is nice for lazing around in the sun, if you like that kind of thing.

Bit of a boring day otherwise, read a bit, complained about the heat, dodged low flying buzzards, wandered around feeling dog tired due to insomnia, and completely failing to get around to writing this post until, technically, a day late.

I also found the 200 squats programme on the web, so I'm going to try working that into the juneathon stuff I am doing as well. Did the initial test thing this morning while waiting for the kettle to boil, and actually managed a respectable number, which is a bit of a surprise given the pathetic amount of situps and pressups I managed.
While I was bobbing up and down I wondered why, when pressups and situps are manly grr exercises, squats seem a bit ridiculous. I blame it on the film industry, Kenneth Williams and Barbara Windsor.

Ho hum, now I am going to try and get some sleep, and then try and get up and out for a run beofre it gets too hot tomorrow.

Juneathon stats - day 3
pressups: 17
situps: 50
squats: 40

Day 2 of Juneathon - Still at it

Up early for a run. The weather was lovely, nice and cool and still and sunny. Now I'd normally have wimped out of it, because my legs are still a bit sore, but, it being juneathon, I persevered, manfully.

Did my normal route in reverse, just for a bit of variety mainly, but also as a bit of an experiment on running down hills, see blog passim*. I'm definitely going to have to modify my route a bit, and lengthening it probably wouldn't hurt, given I managed the loop in 18 minutes, while walking gingerly downhill, wincing, for much of the last part of it. Oh how I envy you south eastern types with your nice flat countryside.

Something I am liking about running early in the morning is how quiet it is, virtually no-one seems to be around. Apart from the occasional car, the only person I saw today was a random sat on the bench on the corner just up from home. Why he wasn't still in bed is a mystery, as he was still there when I got back.

In other news, I could really do with a ciggy.

*No I don't know exactly what it means, but they use it in Private Eye constantly.

Tunes -
Feist
Editors

Juneathon stats -
run: 1.3 miles

Juneathon 3 - day 1

Ho hum, didn't get out on a run for the first day of juneathon, my shins are still a bit sore. I did come up with a plan though.

The plan, subject to jiggling about etc, is simple. Mon/Wed/Fri do the 100 pushups program. Tue/Thu/Sat run. Sun Ride. Some of these might be swapped about as I feel like it, if I am feeling especially energetic I might go for a run or a ride as well as doing some pressups.

So today I did day 1 of week one of the 100 pushups thing. I hate press ups.

Also, I haven't had a single cigarette since last night, so lets see how long I last until I cave and head down to the shops for some baccy.

[Edit] Looking at various and sundry others and feeling a bit lazy, I'm doing situps on the pressup days as well

Juneathon stats -
Pushups: 12
Situps: 30

Rather lovely early morning run, with the sun just coming over the top of the hills. Nice and still and cool, with no-one really around. There was even a bit more progress, which is slightly surprising seeing as I haven't really been out running for nearly a week. This wasn't purely laziness, although that was definitely a factor. Every time I went and started to go out for a bimble my shins would start bitching at me nearly as soon as I started. I figured it might be a cunning plan to let them rest for a bit before I went out again, and lo, it worked.
My shins are only hurting like they were towards the end of the run, still annoying, but nothing like as bad.

Having somehow managed to marginally improved my fitness enough that I not only no longer feel like I am dieing 5 minutes into a bimble, but also don't have random aches and whinging from my legs etc, I think I might have some idea why I am getting these pains in my shins.

Hills, they are the problem, specifically running down them. I'm sure there is some fancy biomechanical name for it, but essentially I am a lummox, and when I run downhill my foot is acting as a brake when it lands and is putting even more stress through my ankles and shins than normal. This is a little bit of a problem, because hills are pretty much unavoidable down here, and the particular downhill section where the pains are starting is approximately a third of the route I am using at the moment. I suppose I'll have to figure a modification to the route so that I can do the uphill bit (which is fine) and the level(ish) bit for longer and then just walk back down the hill as a warmdown or something (oo, hark at me, sounding like I know what I am doing).

Alternatively I could just try and learn how to run downhill without bollocksing my legs up, but that's crazy talk.

As for Juneathon, I think I'll give it a go, what with it being the law and everything, apparently. I have been meaning to get out on the, very shiny if I say so myself, mountain bike, even if it obviously isn't anything like as cool as jogblog's Raleigh Shopper.

Boring post

Went out for a run yesterday at O god awful in the morning, just after it had stopped raining. Did OK, kept to the 1min run, 2 min walk schedule a lot better than I have been. Didn't see anything much amusing, just a surprising amount of traffic for that time in the morning.

My shins killed all day yesterday, but are feeling a lot better today, so hopefully they are getting used to running a little bit more.

That is all.

The price of progress

Ouchy ouch ouch ouch. Sore legs, particularly the shin, but there was actually some progress it seems. I am actually running a whole minute (woo!) without looking at my watch every 10 seconds for the 30 seconds to see when I can stop. Admittedly I am still slightly stretching the walk sections longer than I should.

If I had gone to a posh school there'd be an imaginary sports master going "Keep up K, you are cheating no one but yourself". I went to a comp though, and the PE teachers were either stupid or bastards. They loved cross country though, and probably put at least 10 years worth of pupils off running for life.

At least twice a term, 4 times in summer, everyone had to do a cross-country run around to school. The course was a 3 mile loop through the playing fields and woods, and in the winter it was mud and slop and filth and always windy (always a headwind, naturally). Hated it, each and every time.

On a completely unrelated note, whay are the spods who appear in toothpaste ads so insufferably smug looking? Is it a requirement or an old charter or something?

Feeling lazy

Ho hum, meant to get out for a run today, but kind of didn't get round to it, tomorrow definitely though. On the other hand, I ended up feeling lazy and fidgety (how do you spell fidgety anyway?). Bimbling around poking through blog archives I found links to the 100 pressups and 200 situps plans (on Running From 30).

Now I have always been really rubbish at press ups, so it might be a good thing to try, and its something to do if I am being rubbish and unmovitated, or feeling sore, like today. All it needs is a bit of time and some clear space. Clear space is always a problem though, as I'm not the tidiest person in the world, I don't have a great deal of space anyway, and I'm a fan of stratigraphic filing. On the other hand it isn't actually a great hardship to have to move a couple of piles of stuff to get enough space. If I don't get bored with the it I might even take part in Juneathon, as if I tried running every day at the moment it would probably kill me.

Music makes everything better

It really does, got hold of a diddy little iPod shuffle the other day, at £30 they are a bargain, and whacked some tunes on it. Then I went out for another run today, same route, same pathetic run:walk ratio, and the same unspecified aches and pains as long dormant muscles are shocked into some kind of activity for the first time in ages. Didn't see anything amusing particularly, not even the random blokes carrying random doors I saw last time out. The music made it seem to go faster though.

Tune that I really have to wonder what I was thinking when I loaded it onto the iPod, Nerina Pallot - Heartattack, tunethat actually made me pick my feet up towards the end, despite it being pure 70's cheese, ELO - Mr Blue Sky. It would have been even better if it was actually sunny, but it was grey and muggy and a bit unpleasant, though not too hot, fortunately.

My world is pain and suffering

Well, not really, it wasn't that bad, pathetically slow, and more walking than actual running involved, but never mind, its a start. It does seem at the moment that any pleasure or satisfaction involved is the same kind as you get from bashing your head against a wall. Hopefully that'll change as my fitness improves. I did the 20 minutes I was aiming for, which I'm happy about.

The good thing is that nothing hurts too much. I got a slightly tight calf, but that'll be from not stretching quite enough. My shins were slightly sore while I was out doing it, and the outside of my feet ached a bit. That'll just be the shock to the system of trying to run further than the bus stop, I hope. The shoes were nice and comfy, which was nice, my old footie shorts chafed a bit though, which wasn't so fun.

Of course this can all be used as an excuse for some new shiny things, yay! A watch with a stopwatch, or maybe one of those nike+ sportband things would be nice, it is surprisingly hard to read an analogue watch while trying to run. I definitely need to get an iPod shuffle, Gramsci, my big iPod, is a bit too big to take out running, and running to the accompaniment of the national asthmatic association's marching band is kind of tedious, I want my choons! Of course, if Garmin or anyone want to give me one of their spiffy training aids I'd be happy to right nice things about it.

Decisions, plans and random livestock

Right, going out on the firstest leg of torture tomorrow morning, decided on a route and everything. I don't know how far it is, but at a rough guess it is a little more that one and a half miles. I figure if it isn't far enough of a loop to do 20 minutes of run-walk I can always tack a bit on, and if it is too far I can stop attempting to run at 20 mins, have a quick breather, then gently stroll home. If anyone has any recommendations for sites that will work out the distances, using google maps trickery or whatever, I would be most grateful.

On the plus side the route I plan is nice and quiet, and mostly on pavement. The downside is that the first half (roughly) is all up hill, followed by a short level bit, and then downhill all the way home. This being Cornwall hills will feature frequently. To the best of my knowledge there are only 2 significant stretches of flat and straight road in Cornwall, and one of those is the Tamar bridge.

On the slightly strange front, I found myself bottle feeding lambs at work today, which I'd never done before. Not complaining, as they are very cute and fluffy, and I'm sure they'll taste lovely with roast peppers and cous-cous, but not exactly a task many other programmers have to put on their timesheets. 12:00-12:10 feeding orphaned ovines?


As promised, pictures of piglets, these are Kuni kunis, and they weren't terribly old when I took the photo. I would have more pictures of them, but they quickly cease to be incredibly cute, and become a bit of a fixture when they are getting underfoot, literally, all day. Miniature piggy houdinis, every last one of them.

Yay, yet another running blog

So then. Inspired, in the loosest sense of the word, by Jog Blog, and the rest, often funny posts on life, running, and sundry livestock, I have decided to blog about my feeble attempts at moving faster than walking pace for any significant distance.

I suppose, as seems to be the way of these things, I ought to tell anyone who stumbles across this a little bit about myself. I am 32, I'm definitely out of shape, which is a major reason for starting running. I smoke too much, and really ought to get around to stopping. Other things I enjoy are Whitewater Kayaking, which I don't get to do enough of, cycling, reading, and music (lots of it, and a strange and eclectic selection, apparently).
I work on a farm in sunny Cornwall, as a software developer (yeah go figure).

I was thinking about starting running anyway, but sat watching the London Marathon this time round I thought "I actually want to do that someday, as being a programmer for a small software company just isn't bringing enough pain and suffering into my life". Then thinks I "how about next year?", then I went down the pub.

Now, in what I suspect may well become a bit of a recurring theme here, provided I remember to update this, after a bevvy or two I suggest to my mate Si that we enter nexxt year's London Marathon, and get "Yeah, that's a really good idea, it'll give me a reason to get fit and lose some weight, enter me as well", or words to that effect, as a response. So I do.

A pair a shiny new trainers, and what looks like a useful book, later and I am nearly ready to start reminding myself why I have never liked running much.