Week 3 – Berlin to Chicago training
Posted on June 6, 2018 Leave a Comment
After feeling great with my Week 1 and Week 2 training , this week turned out to be a disaster.
So what was the plan for this week?
Monday – 28.05.2018 – 5 miles easy run
Tuesday – 29.05.2018 – Cross training
Wednesday – 30.05.2018 – Track training
Thursday – 31.05.2018 – 4 miles easy run
Friday – 01.06.2018 – Rest
Saturday – 02.06.2018 – 6 miles long run
Sunday – 03.06.2018 – Cross training or Rest
28.05.2018 – Monday
5 miles easy run
Today was a Bank holiday, which meant I didn’t need to go to work. Yayy. But decided to wake up early and do my run first thing in the morning, so I won’t get too busy and ran out of time.
During my run I’ve only met with 2 people,I assume the rest of the town was still fast asleep at 6.30am.
Even thou it was early morning I felt good about my run. I’ve managed to keep a constant pace all the way around.
29.05.2018 – 03.06.2018
The rest of the week spent ill. On monday night I started to feel really bad, first shivering and a really weird chest pain. Spent all night feeling cold and then feeling boiling hot. In the morning checked my temperature and it turned out to be 37.9 celcius, so I really didn’t feel well. By Wednesday evening I’ve developed a nasty cough. I’ve decided not to train at all, because one I didn’t feel good at all, and also didn’t want my symptoms to get any worse, or end up in the hospital.
I hoping I’ll be better soon and can continue my training with Week 4.
Love,
Week 2 – Berlin to Chicago training
Posted on May 27, 2018 Leave a Comment
After feeling really positive about my Week 1 training, I was really looking forward to Week 2. I know if I put all the training in, I’ll be able to reach my goals and maybe even more.
All this week I’ve tried to go for my runs around mid day – 1pm. I knew if I go any later, then there’s a chance I won’t go at all. Also I’ve decided to do all my long runs early mornings, so on saturday I went out at 6.30am.
So what was the plan for this week?
Monday – 21.05.2018 – 5 miles easy run
Tuesday – 22.05.2018 – Cross training
Wednesday – 23.05.2018 – Track training
Thursday – 24.05.2018 – 4 miles easy run
Friday – 25.05.2018 – Rest
Saturday – 26.05.2018 – 8 miles long run
Sunday – 27.05.2018 – Cross training or Rest
I knew at the beginning of the week that I will need to swap over my thursday – friday sessions. I had a doctor’s appointment with my plantar fasciitis. Got an X-ray appointment, so will see what they say next week. Hopefully nothing bad.
I still don’t really plan my exact running routes, so a few times this week I managed to get lost. But have to say still really enjoying the sessions.
Also just realised that my Garmin Fenix 5 is a really smart watch. I’ve added all my future training in the calendar, so on the day I just need to press Run – and it comes up with the correct traninig session. I don’t even need to check my watch during, i still do , just to make sure my pace is not too off.
21.05.2018 – Monday
5 miles easy run
I’ve tried to run the same 5 mile route as I’ve done it a week ago. Not too sure why, but I felt good really good about it. probably because I had a great long run in the past saturday, or probably because I realised that my run/walk/run plan is the way forward.
Because last week I was circling around the pond a few times at the end, today I’ve decided to go for a slightly different way. Which meant I’ve ended up in a business park, and then next to a busy main road. went through stingy nettles, and other different plants, but other than this the run was enjoyable.
Probably went out a bit too fast, because the first km was 7.10mins, but managed to keep all of them well under 8 mins. So was pleased with it. Some of them was a bit longer, whilst others shorter, but this is totally due to waiting by traffic lights and zebra crossings.
22.05.2018 – Tuesday
Cross training
I’ve decided they west way to cross train is to sit on my turbo and cycle for an hour. I was already half way watching Spiderman Homecoming, so the second half went more quickly. I’m getting better with this cycling malarkey as well. I’m felling pretty confident that I won’t have many issues with my Ironman next year. It was a hard but good decision the defer from this year to next.
23.05.2018 – Wednesday
Track training
If it Wednesday it only could mean one thing: Track training. To be honest I still find these the hardest. Because in my normal session I can easily ‘ jeff ‘ when I do track sessions I can’t do it all. I can easily ‘ jeff ‘ the warm up and cool down part, but not the important ‘ speed ‘ session part. otherwise it wouldn’t work. So today I had to do the below:
2 mile easy warm up
2x 1/2mile (800m) repeats ( 2 mins recovery between )
1 mile easy cool down
As I said earlier we don’t have any proper tracks in Andover, I mean I haven’t found any. So I started my warm up with a good pace, 7.17mins/ km and 7.23mins/km. To me it’s a really good speed. Hopefully I’ll be able to keep this up for longer and longer distances.
I was a bit worried about the ‘ speed ‘ part, I didn’t really believe in myself that I’m capable to run 1/2 miles fast without stopping. but I just kept thinking about the end game, I can do anything for Half a mile, will have a 2mins break after, can sit in a cool bath after, it will all worth it at the end, the pain is temporary. So I really pushed myself in these speedy parts.
The first Half a mile (800m ) was going on and on and on, I really thought I never get to the end of it. To my surprise it took me 4.29 mins which is a 5.39mins/km pace, I really felt tired after this, but I knew I can’t give up this easily, so instead of sitting down to catch my breath for the 2mins break, I’ve decided to just walk it. I thought if I sit down I won’t get up again. Then I’ve found myself at the beginning of the second Half a mile speed session, I did feel a bit slower this time, but I still gave all I could. Second time I’ve got around in 4.46mins which is a 5.56mins/km pace. I was 17 seconds slower, but I’m still pleased with it. I really run as fast as I could, and this was all I had this day.
After this I had a 1 mile long cool down, and I really took this easy. I mean I didn’t have much speed left in me. But overall I felt good about this session. I know already that I will struggle with these more than with my long and steady runs. But also know it that I need these sessions to get better and much faster.
Finally my charity t-shirt arrived.
24.05.2018 – Thursday
Rest day due to doctors appointment
25.05.2018 – Friday
4 miles easy run
Most days I only work part-time hours, 6am – 10am. But today was different, I had to stay in till 2pm due to a meeting. So my 1pm planned run was way out of the window.
By the time I got home it was 3pm but I know I had to change and get out to do my session.
To my total surprise this session felt really good. Not too sure why, I was totally knackered from work, walked just over 10000 steps already at work. But did have loads of energy for this run. I don’t really like running this late, because the school is just finished and loads of people were around. I like running when no-one is around, and noone sees me.
My pace for this session was 7.26mins/km. Went out a bit fast again, because the first km ended up being 7.02mins/km. but the 4th one turned out to be an 8.02mins/km. I need to try to be more consistent, otherwise I can burn out easier. It’s easier to be said then done, because my last km ended up being 7.05 , ohh dear me. But it feels great , that I do have in my the speed. Would be great to have a constant 7.05mins/kms, but I’m not there yet.
26.05.2018 – Saturday
8 miles long run
Saturday could mean only one thing, Long run time 🙂 This week I had to run 8 miles, I woke up at 6am, ate my porridge and I was out on the door by 6.30am. I knew that I need to go out early otherwise I won’t do it later on.
Have to say the whole run went pretty well. My pace was really consistent, 7.33 – 7.23 – 7.27 – 7.21 ect.
When I got back to the town centre my planned route was cordoned off, loads of police car and ambulance. Tried to go through the little park next to it, but police tape was everywhere. I knew something serious had to happen. It turned out that they found a body in the river. This threw me off a bit, but then I thought I’ll run for that lady, because she can’t do anything anymore. Poor her.
Seen loads of runners, walkers and dog walkers. To my surprise everyone was really friendly and said “Hi” to me.
I haven’t taken any water with me, but took a few gels, and decided to consume them after every 2.5miles, not too sure if they worked or not. But when I ate them I felt I got more energy.
My slowest km was done in 8.05 mins, but this was the one when I bumped into the police. But to my biggest surprise my 12th km was completed in 6.40mins. I really don’t have any idea how I managed to do this fast, i had a few kms just above 7mins, but this one turned out to be way below 7mins. Hopefully one day my normal pace will be in and around the 6mins mark. But till then I’ll work extra hard.
I’ve finished this session with a 7.28mins/km pace.
If you look through all sessions this week I was able to stay in the 7.20-7.30mins marks. Onwards and upwards from this, I’m already looking forward to Week 3 🙂
Love,
Week 1 – Berlin to Chicago training
Posted on May 20, 2018 Leave a Comment
As I said in my previous post, I’ve hired a running coach. If you haven’t read that click HERE to read it now.
I was really excited about my training plan, I didn’t really know what to expect, or anything. But everyone I spoke with they highly recommended Denise and her coaching plans.
I’ve officially started my training on the 14th of May. The plan itself is an 18 week-long plan to Berlin and the 3 more weeks to Chicago.
My weekly plan follows the below schedule:
- Monday : Easy paced run
- Tuesday: Cross training ( I’ll alternate between, swimming, cycling and the cross training machine )
- Wednesday: Track training ( to get faster )
- Thursday: Easy paced run
- Friday: Rest day
- Saturday: Long run
- Sunday: Cross training or rest day
It looks a lot, and definitely after completing week 1 it feels a lot, but I know if I stick to the plan I’ll get the results I really want. I really want to break 6hrs in Berlin and the Chicago as well. I’ll put all the training in I can, and also will try to eat a bit healthier. Probably if I lose some weight that will help me to get faster as well.
Every sunday I’ll write a post about how I got along with my training during the week. you can find them all under the Training tab.
Also every now and then , maybe every 4th week I’ll make a post about comparing my pace with Week 1, so you and I all can see if I improved at all or not, if I did then you’ll see by how much.
14.05.2018. Monday
REST DAY
15.05.2018 Tuesday
Easy paced 5 mile run
This run didn’t feel easy at all. Not too sure why, but I was struggling with it from the beginning. Probalby it didn’t help that I went out when the sun was really hot and didn’t take any water with me. I usually run later or first thing in the morning. But this day I couldn’t go any earlier. Usually my running pace is around 8.10mins/ km but this time i was almost a full minute slower.
If you click on the images below, you can see all of them in full size.
16.05.2018 Wednesday
Track training.
Since I started running I haven’t done ay kind of speed workout. Or you can call it Track training. Unfortunately I haven’t found any running tracks around me, so I decided to run around the local pond.
The plan I had to do was:
2 mile easy warm up
4x 1/4mile repeats ( 2 mins recovery between )
1 mile easy cool down
I wasn’t too sure how fast am I supposed to run when I do the 1/4mile (400m) intervals, so I gave it all my best. As you can see from the splits below, that the first one was completed in 3:05mins, second one in 2:53mins, third one in 2:42mins and the last one was in 2:36mins. To my surprise I managed to get them done faster and faster. At least now I have some kind of idea how fast am I supposed to do them later on. Also I had no idea what am I supposed to do in the 2mins rest period, so I just kept slowly walking. Since then I’ve spoken with Denise and I can just stop in the rest periods.
I have to say I’m really pleased with this workout. I’m really far to be a fast runner, but sooner or later I’ll get there 🙂
Look at those splits 🙂
17.05.2018 Thursday
Easy paced 3 mile run
have to be honest I couldn’t do this workout. After work I had to sort out my citizenship application and totally ran out of time 🙁
18.05.2018 Friday
Rest day
18.05.2018 Saturday
Long run – 7 miles
After totally failing my run on Tuesday, and feeling bad about myself, I’ve decided to give “jeffing” another go. I love jeffing, but then some people keep calling me a walker, and not a runner. Yeah I know well that I’m not running all the distance but when I “jeff” I am much much faster . So I decided to “jeff” all 7 miles on saturday.
Running vs. Jeffing 
😲😲
😍
😬
Tuesday vs. Saturday.
When I “jeff “ I run 1mins and then walk 30secs.
For me it sounds totally unbelievable that I can be this much faster if I take regular walk breaks.
Look at my average pace , 9.03mins/km when I give my best in continuous running and compare it with my 7.25mins/km when I ran-walk.
How is it possible ?! Well to me it doesn’t matter , I think I’ll stick with my jeffing. And don’t listen to others who’s keep telling me I shouldn’t do races if I can’t ran it continuously.
And now lets see my Saturday run compared with my Tuesday run:
As you can see, when I ‘ jeff ‘ my splits are more even and definitely much faster. I love the 60:30 ratio , mainly because I can run fast for 60 seconds, and then the 30seconds recovery is more than enough. I get my heart rate down and cath up my breath. Then off I go again with the run.
20.05.2018 Sunday
Cross training or Rest day
Because I couldn’t do the training on thursday I decided I do need to do today’s cross training. Jumped on my bike and cycled on the turbo for an hour.
Week 1 is done and only 17 more weeks to go 🙂
Love,
Berlin to Chicago = I’ve hired a running coach
Posted on May 3, 2018 2 Comments
In the last few months I’ve spent loads and loads of times to decided what to do with my upcoming marathon training plans. It wouldn’t have been that hard if I have to train for once race, but no I need to train for 2 of them . Berlin is on the 16th of September, and then chicago is on the 7th of October.
I’ve read through loads of websites, and books. Some suggested treat the first race as a practice long run and give my absolute best in the second one. Some suggested I should treat them individually. Other plans said I should give my 100% at the first one and just enjoy the second one.
So it’s all totally different and totally confusing.
For London and New York I’ve followed the MY ASICS plan. It was a nice and simple plan, and easy to follow and totally free. You can use it on a computer, or download the iPhone / Android app.
It follows a really simple plan: Go out and run the distance, mostly with the same pace, sometimes slower other times faster. So no complicated hill sessions, fartlek sessions or other ones.
It did work because in London I’ve got around in 06:57:31 and in New York I’ve got around in 06:32:14.
As you can see I’ve improved 25 minutes in the second race.
But as I said earlier I have to run 2 marathons within 3 weeks. When I signed up for them ( via charity ) I really thought it’s the best idea ever. Then I’ve realised I wont have 6 months between them , so I really need to push my training. Definitely can’t be lazy.
I’ve asked in multiple Facebook groups if anyone recommend any good running coaches.
This is how I’ve found Denise 🙂 She’s based in Chicago, but everyone who’s done her Group or “Virtual” marathon coaching plan highly recommended her.
Coach Denise, Marathon Whisperer
Just a few awesome facts about her:
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Certified Running Coach-Road Runners Club of America
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Certified USATF Coach Level 1
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91 X Marathoner| 23 X Chicago Marathons |28 X Boston Qualifier
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Co-Founder Girls on the Run-Chicago
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RunCierge™ Run My City Tours
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Abbott World Marathon Majors Six Star Finisher
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2 X Wisconsin Ironman Finisher
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Abbott World Marathon Majors Ambassador
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3 X 50 mile Ultra Marathon Finisher
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1 X 100 Mile Ultra Marathon Finisher
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200+ races completed
As you can see she’s completed loads of Marathons and 2 Ironman as well.
Becasuse I’m a slow runner, I was really worried that I won’t find any coach who caters for slower runners. But I was totally wrong. She does training plans for slow runners.
As soon as I heard that I knew that I will use her services to help me to get to Berlin and then the finish in Chicago.
I haven’t received my plan yet, so I can’t really say much about it. But I know that it will starts on the 15th of May, and if I have any questions I can email her.
She also just run Boston and London with a few of her trainees and I can’t wait to meet with her in Chicago.
When I’ve signed up with her I’ve told her that my main aim is to get finally below the 6hrs mark, and she said she will make sure it will happen.
As soon as I have more information about my plan and it’s structure I’ll give you all an update.
You can find more information about her HERE and she also offers 1-2-1 personal coaching and group coaching as well. I’ve opted for the Virtual one, because I don’t live in Chicago 🙁
Love,
My day with Kathrine Switzer
Posted on April 23, 2018 Leave a Comment
As I was telling you all in my last post I had an awesome big surprise for you.
There’s an online running community called ” adidas Runners London “. A few weeks ago they told us that Kathrine Switzer will attend their Saturday Morning Ladies running session. Had to sign up via Facebook and then a few days later I was notified that I got a spot and be able to attend to the Q&A and running session with her.
When I first started running I came across with her. At first I had no idea who was she, and what did she do. After I’ve looked into her and purchased her books I realised what did she do. If you not familiar with her story , you can read it below briefly:
1967 Boston Marathon After her coach insisted a marathon was too far to run for a "fragile woman", Switzer trained for and completed the 1967 Boston Marathon under entry number 261 with the Syracuse Harriers athletic club.It was another five years before women were officially allowed to compete. Her finishing time of approximately 4 hours and 20 minutes was nearly an hour behind the first female finisher, Bobbi Gibb, who ran unregistered.She registered under the gender-neutral "K. V. Switzer", which she said was not done to mislead the officials. She stated she had long used "K. V. Switzer" to sign the articles she wrote for her university paper. She also stated that her name had been misspelled on her birth certificate, so she often used her initials to avoid confusion. Photographs of race official Jock Semple attempting to rip Switzer's number off were widespread in the media. Switzer was issued a number through an "oversight" in the entry screening process, and was treated as an interloper when the error was discovered. Semple attempted to physically remove her from the race while shouting, "Get the hell out of my race and give me those numbers!" Switzer's boyfriend, Tom Miller, a 235-pound ex-All American football player and nationally ranked hammer thrower who was running with her, shoved Semple aside and sent him flying to the pavement, allowing her to proceed.Photographs taken of the incident made world headlines. Afterward, Boston Athletic Association director Will Cloney was asked his opinion of Switzer competing in the race. Cloney said, "Women can't run in the Marathon because the rules forbid it. Unless we have rules, society will be in chaos. I don't make the rules, but I try to carry them out. We have no space in the Marathon for any unauthorized person, even a man. If that girl were my daughter, I would spank her." Because of her run, the AAU barred women from all competitions with male runners, with violators losing the right to compete in any races. Switzer, with other women runners, tried to convince the Boston Athletic Association to allow women to participate in the marathon. Finally, in 1972, women were officially allowed to run the Boston Marathon for the first time. According to Switzer, she understood the gravity of her participation and accomplishment: "I knew if I quit, nobody would ever believe that women had the capability to run 26-plus miles. If I quit, everybody would say it was a publicity stunt. If I quit, it would set women’s sports back, way back, instead of forward. If I quit, I’d never run Boston. If I quit, Jock Semple and all those like him would win. My fear and humiliation turned to anger." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kathrine_Switzer https://kathrineswitzer.com
I’ve started my day early, had to leave Andover by 7.30am to get to London and then walk to the Adidas studio. I didn’t want to be late, because the email said no late comers. I had one chance to get there so I left really early.
When I got up to London I knew that this day will be great. Sunshine, and incredibly hot weather, no clouds on the sky.
Had to make my way into the Adidas Studio in Brick Lane. At first I’ve walked past but 2nd time I found it. By the time I’ve got to the studio a few ladies were already there. A few of us were first comers, but most of them knew each other from their other running sessions.
Kathrine turned up just after 10.30am. She was so casual and friendly. I didn’t really know what to expect, because she’s totally famous but she was friendly, chatty and just lovely.
I went to speak with her, and she sounded really positive. Told her about my marathon goals, and she said I’m totally awesome to try to achieve something like that. Also told me to keep continue no matter what happens, think about my achievements when I feel down or struggle. And totally ignore the naysayers, they just there because the jealous about my running journey and achiements. Also been told that I’m totally awesome because I’m raising funds for all the charities I’m running for ( MACS, Prostate cancer UK and Team Paws Chicago ) .
After the photos the Q&A started. My phone was playing up so didn’t managed to record the first few minutes, but got almost 20 minutes of footage 🙂
the interview is totally wort watching it, tells you everything about how she managed to run Boston, why is it important that women keep running, and she also gives a few tips about running 🙂 She also told us what ” 261 ” means, so do watch the video.
After the Q&A we headed out for a planned 10k run. Which turned into a shorter 5k run at the end. To my total surprise Karthine stayed with the back of the pack runners. This is felt great. Most of you know I’m not a fast runner, so my 5ks are around 35minutes, so was a bit worried I’ll be last. But who doesn’t want to be last if Kathrine is there with you. She told me that the speed is not important, as long as I enjoy my runs and completing my distances. 5 of us stayed at the back including Kathrine and the rest of us took off and we lost sight of them after a few minutes. We stopped a few times to chat and she had selfies with all of us.
As you can see below we did stop multiple times, because the elapsed time was almost 50 mins, but the run itself was only 37:40. But it was totally worth it.
Waiting to cross the road
Stopped for photos a lot. Who doesn’t want a photo with her and the Tower bridge?
When we got back to the studio we had a few different food to snack on and also healthy hand-made juices.
Also just before I left I’ve got given a special Adidas Runners London t-shirt, now I will forever remember the day when I’m wearing that t-shirt. 
I had a totally awesome day. I never in my life thought I will meet with her, but now it happened I can’t me any happier. I really hope I will see her in Boston next year so can tell her how I managed to do my marathons.
Also just want to say that this event was totally free, didn’t have to pay ” meet & greet ” fees, photo fees, food and drink fees. I can’t even remember if I ever got anything for free in London before lol .
Kathrine also completed the London marathon on the Sunday, and her impressive finish time was 4:44:49 , which is totally hardcore because she was running in the 70+ age category. I hope I will be as great as her or close to her time when I’ll be 70+.
I’m forever grateful that I had the opportunity to meet with her and talked with her.
Good luck Kathrine for the future 🙂
Love,
London Marathon 2018 – Expo
Posted on April 20, 2018 Leave a Comment
Have to start with the most important thing, this year I’m not running the London Marathon 🙁 Didn’t have any luck on the ballot, and couldn’t afford the charity place again. I really wanting to concentrate my Berlin and Chicago charities this year.
So probably now you are wondering why am I writing a blog post about it. there are 2 reasons we went to the Expo. The first one is that last year my other half couldn’t come with me due to not being given a day off from work 🙁 Secondly I wanted to do some shopping, getting some bargains and loads of freebies.
We went up on the Opening day which was Wednesday the 18th of April. Wanted to go up early so we don’t need to queue a lot and there’s more chance to get items in my size.
The Expo was in the same place as last year, ExCel London. You can really easily get there from central London.
Hello London
We got there just around 12pm and it was open from 11am, so wasn’t many people there at all.
Our first stop was the Abbott stand, I really wanted to leave some inspirational notes on the wall for fellow 6 Star runners.
They also had the 6 star medal on display and it turns out over 150 people will reach their goal in London and become an Abbott World Marathon Majors 6 Star Finisher. So awesome 🙂
How cool is this? I can’t wait to get mine in Boston next year.Whilst I was there I been offered to try myself out on the gigantic treadmill. For the ladies we had to keep up Paula Radcliffe’s WR marathon pace, which is 11.61 miles per hours. They challenge was to try and complete 400 metres in her pace. It was so much fun. Definitely worth a try 🙂
See below the video my trying the challenge 🙂
After this we went into the exhibitor area. This year was the first when New Balance was the clothing sponsor. I haven’t bought anything there, because I would of felt weird wearing a race gear when I’m not even running it.
But we got loads of freebies from New Balance, see the photo at the end of this post.
After this stand we looked around everywhere till we found the OOFOS stand. As most of you know I’m suffering a really bad Plantar Fasciitis since January. i’ve heard and read so much great stuff about OOFOS so I had to try them on. They not cheap , £50 a pair of flip flops but I had to try them on. As soon as I put it on, my pain totally disappeared. It gave my arch an incredible support, and was so snug I felt great straight away. I never thought that a pair of flip flops can do that. After that I knew that I will need to buy this, I can’t leave it behind.
My first pair of OOFOS, but not the last
They are sooooo comfy
Since Wednesday I am wearing this all the time, well when i’m not at work. And you won’t going to believe me but my pain is not there anymore. I still feel a bit stiff in the mornings, but after work and running I have no pain at all ! I need to look into if they sell fully black shoes, because then I will buy a pair for work.
As I said earlier I will show you a photo of all the goodies we collected 🙂 The only Item we paid for it was the Feetures socks for me.
In my next blog post I will tell you more about my training plan for Berlin / Chicago. Also will have an awesome announcement about my upcoming training run in London. I cant wait to share with you who’s that famous person I’m going to spend my morning running with. So stay tuned 🙂
Love,
Jeffing? Feffing? Effing?
Posted on April 7, 2018 2 Comments
I’m part of a lot of running groups on Facebook. Mainly to get motivation and also to use them to get advice if I needed. They are mainly English groups but there’s 2 Hungarian as well.
In the last few weeks I’ve noticed that loads of runners ( mainly in the Hungarian groups) saying it’s really embarrassing that they can’t run continuously. Even on shorter distances eg. 3-5k. Whenever this subject comes up in an English group I always recommend ” Jeffing” but when this comes up in a Hungarian group I keep myself quiet.
Many months ago I suggested someone to try ” Jeffing” because she was struggling with running and could not keep her pace up and she wanted to attempt a 5k race.
Well my suggestion wasn’t welcomed well at all. According to them if someone can’t run continuously the race distance then they don’t belong to the start line.
I’m totally disagree with that ! Everyone is totally entitled to attend any races they wish to do.
So whats this ” Jeffing ” about? The proper name for it is The Jeff Galloway Method. Which basicly is run / walk / run method or you could use the world ” interval” running. In 1974 Jeff was teaching runners of different abilities to achieve their distance goal using the run / walk / run method.
The below is from Jeff’s website : http://www.jeffgalloway.com/training/run-walk/
The Galloway Run Walk Run method • A smart way to run – by giving you congnitive control over each workout. • Allows you to carry on all of your life activities – even after long runs • Motivates beginners to get off of the couch and run • Bestows running joy to non-stop runners who had given up • Helps improve finish times in all races • Gives all runners control over fatigue • Delivers all of the running enhancements without exhaustion or pain
I’ve started ” jeffing” just under a year ago and I haven’t looked back. At first I did not believe the method at all. I couldn’t really understand how is it possible to be faster if I walk some part of the races? but have to say it does work 🙂 It doesn’t make me as tired, I hardly have any muscle aches on the next day and I can run much longer.
To start it you’ll need to get an interval timer. First I tried it on my phone, but my phone battery given up at the longer races. So decided to try the timer Jeff recommends, it’s called Gymboss Minimax and its roughly £27 from ebay , it works with a AAA battery and incredibly easy to set up.
Green Gymboss Minimax
I figured out the best intervals for my training is the 1minute run and 30second walks. Also its better to start ” Jeffing ” from the beginning of the race, otherwise your body will be tired and you wont see the benefits of ” Jeffing”.
Whenever I ” Jeff ” a race or park runs I give a hand signal to the runners behind me, so they will know I’m planning to stop. Also its great to just stick either on to the left or right side of the road.
You can check out my hand signal in my New York video below, it will be at 08:13secs 🙂
Let me get back to my own experience with some running stats.
London Marathon : 06:57:31
I’ve tried to run the whole race from start to finish, but unfortunately I’ve burnt out by mile 15ish. When I’ve done my training I focused on running, haven’t even thought about walking. Why should I walk in a marathon??
New York Marathon – 6 months later : 06:32:14
I have ” jeffed” this race from the start till the finish line. Was really hard not to sprint off at the beginning or just run, but I knew that I’ve done all my training following ” jeffing” so I knew I had to try my best to follow it. As you can see I’ve beat my time by 25 whole minutes! This includes stopping after mile 11 because twisted and dislocated my knee and needed to see the medics. But after that i went back to do my 1min run and 30 secs walk ratio again and finished the race strong.
Can you spot my Gymboss? It came with me to the far US of A as well. It comes with a clip so you will be able to clip on your running top.
Probably you are wondering how is it possible to recover in your walk breaks? I can’t really explain, but it does work. Probably its all goes back to the heart rate, in your walk parts your heart rate goes back to almost normal, so when you start to run again you are not burning out as quickly, also your core body temperature will get lower again as well.
When I will start my marathon training for Berlin and Chicago I will definitely follow the ” run / walk / run ” method again.
Flying high with my Gymboss 🙂
I really wish I could just shake off a full marathon without stopping, but there’s absolutely no chance for that haha. I’m running for fun, taking selfies and making videos. So this ” jeffing ” clearly works for me 🙂 And as you can see above I’ve got a 25mins marathon PB with ” jeffing”. have to say I’m proud of my achievement so far. If someone thinks I’m not a runner well that’s their opinion.
I don’t have anything against fast non stop runners, but there are loads and loads of people out there who’s scared of longer distances or they not believe in themselves. So they have the option to try out the ‘ run – walk – run ” method and they’ll be able to complete their dream races as well 🙂
So go on and try ” Jeffing” you have absolutely nothing to lose. On Jeff’s website there is a calculator which helps you to find out your ideal run-walk ratio. Look for the Magic Mile section.
If you have any questions regarding ” Jeffing ” please comment below or send me an email and I’m happy to answer 🙂
Love,
Diagnosis – Plantar Fasciitis
Posted on April 5, 2018 2 Comments
I’ve spent all my bank holiday weekend worrying about my Podiatry appointment which was booked in for Tuesday ( 04. April ).
But lets start it from the beginning. Since january I had a really bad foot pain. First I thought that maybe I’ve done too much exercises, Which woulnd’t have been a surprise because of my ironman training schedule. Had a few weeks rest and it got better. Went back to training and the pain came back, but this time it was even much worse. So I knew I had to do something about it.
Few weeks ago I was chatting with my colleague and she asked me if I pay into the Transport Benelovment Fund. I do pay into that since I’ve started my job at the railways. It’s only £1/ week and they cover loads and loads of treatments. Turns out they cover Podiatry and physiotherapy services up to £250/year/treatment. Since I started my job I never had to use them so I totally forgot it. So all thanks to her I’ll be able to get free treatments 🙂
I’ve contacted with loads of podiatrist and physiotherapist and straight away told them that I’m 90% sure that I have plantar fasciitis. At the end I’ve booked an appointment with a local podiatrist, called Anton Podiatry, and it runs by a lovely lady called Teresa .
I never seen a podiatrist before so I really had no clue what to expect. I was asked to bring my running shoes with me and also my everyday shoes. She had loads of questions before she started the assessment. i said to her that I’ve torn my ankle ligaments in February 2017 but my foot pain only started in January this year. She also asked how much do i run currently and whats my job is.
After all these questions she started a process called ” Biomechanical Assessment “.
The foot needs to be flexible enough to absorb the shock of hitting the ground but firm enough not to collapse. Your foot and ankle is highly complex, containing 28 bones, 214 ligaments and 38 muscles. They have to take your weight multiple times a day and are subsequently prone to over-use conditions and other types of injury.
Most sports injuries seen in Podiatry Clinics are due to over-use. This can be as a result of increasing training too quickly, poor foot and leg function, weak muscles, poor footwear choices etc.
A Biomechanics Assessment looks at your whole lower limb function, identifies what is hurting and then puts an appropriate plan in place to manage and ultimately resolve your symptoms.
The Assessment involves looking at your gait (how you walk) in particular, as not many people get injured standing still! It is that dynamic movement that shows where the muscle imbalance may be or if too much load is passing through certain structures in your foot or leg.
Biomechanics is not just Sports Injuries!! Biomechanics is applicable to everybody.
Had to walk up and down in the corridor bare footed, then I’ve sat down and she asked me to relax my foot so she can move the around. Than stood on the ground lift one foot up and then the other ect.
The diagnosis was confirmed and it is Plantar Fasciitis 🙁
it turns out my ankle hasn’t really healed well since I’ve torn the ligaments last year. My whole foot is really tight and when I had to stand on it she seen loads of wobble. Also when I was walking up and down , she said she clearly seen that my left ankle is wobble way too much. Which means it’s not as strong as my right one. And because of that my whole foot is under constant stress. which causing the plantar fascia ligament to be incredibly tight. She said I came to see her in a good time, because if it gets too tight it can easily tear then I will need to have an operation.
So it’s not a good diagnosis at all, but at least it has been confirmed.
I’ve a special insoles for my shoes and i need to wear them everywhere, I also need to tape up my foot every single day. Also she gave me a few leaflets with different kind of stretches which I will need to do 3 times a day. After any kind of exercise I will need to Ice my foot for at least 10-15mins. Will need to get a proper foam roller as well.
Special insoles
The “Orange” one is for my bad foot.
Luckily I have loads of tape, left over from my ankle and knee taping.
Will need to go and see her again on the 9th of May and see how I’m getting on.
She said I should see improvements after about 9-10 weeks and if everything goes well a full recovery within 6months.
Also advised me not to run anything further than 15k at the moment, well before the 9th of May and we will re asses my options after that.
She said if I follow her plan and advise I shouldn’t have any problem running the Berlin and Chicago mararthon later this year.
At least I’m starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel and I’m on the way to get better 🙂
Love,
How are we getting to Berlin?
Posted on April 1, 2018 2 Comments
When I’ve got my charity place for the Berlin Marathon I’ve managed to book a really good hotel via booking.com. The hotel is a 3 star hotel and it’s called Astrid am Kurfürstendamm. I’ve tried to book a hotel close to the start/ finish line so we won’t need to travel too much. According to Google this hotel is only 30 mins away from the start if we walk, or only 20 mins if we taking the train.
From the Hotel to the Start
This hotel has 3 stars and it comes with free breakfast as well. at least we are going to save some money on food 🙂
Since I know that we are going I was keeping an eye on the flight prices. But to my surprise all prices are already over £160 / person, even with the cheapest airline.
At this point I started to wonder what other options we have to get there. I really don’t want to drive, because it’s expensive and takes way too long.
Then I realised what if we go with a train? I work for the railways, I like trains, I’m lucky to get great discounts and also its just over 9hours on the train. No hustle, no troubles, just a chilled out journey.
I was a bit worried that my other half will shoot my train plans off, but to my surprise he said yes. He’s words were ” This will be great fun “. Well he could have been sarcastic, who knows haha.
Now it’s time to start the planning. The one thing I was sure that we will need to use the Eurostar to get to the Continent. but had absolutely zero clue if its Paris or Brussels or anything else.
After a quick search I’ve found our perfect route:
London – Brussels Midi – Köln Hbf (Cologne) – Berlin Hbf
- 06:13am London St Pancras International, UK – 9.22am Brussels Midi , Belgium
- 10:25am Brussels Midi , Belgium – 12:15pm Köln Hbf (Cologne), Germany
- 12:48pm Köln Hbf (Cologne ), Germany – 17:07pm Berlin Hbf (tief), Germany
The London to Brussels route will be on the Eurostar, and the Brussels – Cologne – Berlin part will be on the DB ICE trains.
London St Pancras International to Brussels Midi – Eurostar e320
Brussels to Köln Hbf (Cologne) – DB ICE 15 ( 406 )
Köln Hbf (Cologne) to Berlin Hbf (tief) – DB ICE 559 ( 402 )
The journey is not the fastest, but we’ll be on a comfortable trains, and check out the beautiful scenery. I never had a train journey like this before, but I do looking forward to it.
On the way back be taking the same route, and same trains.
The price break down for this whole journey is £313 for the hotel and £138 for the trains. This train fare already including our discounts, without that it would of been £460.
The subtotal will be £451. Which is way better than the original price with the really expensive flights.
Love,
Crushed dreams – deferral IM UK
Posted on March 31, 2018 1 Comment
This wasn’t an easy decision to make, and I was the only one who had to make it.
Due to not being able to give my 100% at trainings, because of my really painful heel ( read about it more here Plantar Fasciitis ) I had to defer from this years Ironman UK event 🙁
Since January I’ve run twice, the furthest I’ve attempted to run was 13.1miles but that was with loads of struggle. After 6miles I was walking, just walked to get to the finish.
I’m someone who always give 110%, no matter what I do. Personal life. running or at work. If I can’t give my best I feel bad about it.
Probalby I could have started the race in Bolton, and get around in 16:59:59. But that’s not the point. That’s not my aim. I can’t start an Ironman race if I only can swim and bike, but cant run. If I’d completed the race I would have wanted to go back next year to give my 110%.
So a few days ago I’ve filled out the deferring request on the IM UK website, and got my confirmation a few days later. Luckily when I signed up before the 29th of October 2017, so I was able to defer my entry to 2018. Otherwise I would have lost the £400 entry fee, and that’s a lot of money to lose.
I keep continue my swimming and cycling in the mean time and hopefully in a few months time I can slowly start some kind of running.
Till then off to see my physio a few times a week and hoping for a quick recovery.
Love,