Tuesday 30th May
Exercise: 10km Run - Mullum Mullum Creek Trail
Wow, how cold was it this morning!! I'm so glad that I was wearing my gloves otherwise my fingers would have frozen! Took a while for the legs to get going as they were a bit stiff from Sunday's 1/2 and also from the Pilates I did on Saturday (especially the top of my hamstrings).
I didn't play Netball last night but did go down to watch the girls. We won too! Seems that because we have won the last few games we are now in the finals!! Not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing. Good because we are now a much better team, but bad because if we do well in the finals it may mean that we have to go up to the next comp, which means playing against better players! I'm going to give next week's game a miss too, just to make sure that my calf is healed properly.
It's funny how I can run in a straight line for 20 odd kilometres, but when it comes to playing Netball my calf really doesn't like it!
Michelle and I have had a bit of a chat in relation to what our goals are with our running. Michelle really wants to do well and get better times, with her ultimate goal of competing in the Melbourne Marathon.
I, on the other hand, really enjoy the social aspect of running and am not very competitive at all, so times and distances aren't that important to me.
Anyway after Sunday's run we've both come up with a new plan. I will still run with Michelle on our long Sunday runs, and we'll meet during the week for our shorter runs, but on a race day if there's a 10km event as well as a 1/2 marathon then I'll do the 10km and Michelle will do the 1/2. This way we can still both run together at the beginning, and Michelle can then carry on to finish the half. A win/win situation for both of us!
Alana's Quote: "Mummy I want to be a penguin!"
Sunday 28th May
Exercise: Sri Chinmoy 1/2 Marathon - Williamstown
Up early this morning to get to Michelle's place by 6.15am!! It had been raining overnight so I was keeping my fingers crossed that it has all passed by!
Got to Williamstown at 7am, so sat in the car and kept warm until about 7.30am when we ambled over to the start area. First port of call was getting in line for the loos. Best thing we did as the line had grown considerably by the time we emerged from them!!
Met up with TigerBoy who we didn't think would be there because of a very tough week, Chilliman & Stormbikes. There were also alot of CoolRunners there today and I'm now getting to know faces and names, which is great! Didn't actually get to speak to Beki or Emma before the start as we didn't have alot of time before the race began.
I was feeling quite good about the race today as I'd been much more focused on my food intake and liquid intake this week. No alcohol at all this week and hardly anything "bad" to eat.
We set off at a reasonable pace with music blaring in my ears from my MP3 player. At the 5km marker the MP3 player died....aaaghhhh!! Now what was I going to do?? Running without my music I could hear my breathing, the sound of my feet on the concrete, lots of thoughts going through my head, none of them good!!
Saw Emma running by. She was doing the 10km and hoping for a PB. Gave her a loud cheer. We saw TigerBoy doing it easy as always! Didn't see Beki or Rogo (who was pacing her). She was looking to do a 55min 10km.
We got to the 9km marker and I felt like crap. Michelle kept pushing the pace, and me being me, didn't want to slow her down at all. Unfortunately I got to the 12km marker and felt totally dejected with the whole thing. I tried to give Gav to her so that she could carry on and record her splits, but I don't think she understood that I didn't want to continue running. I really was going to stop when we got to the track at about the 13km mark.
We slowed the pace down and I felt alot better so I decided to keep going. Saw Stu Mac at his car, and he yelled some kind of encouragement (or rude remark, we couldn't actually hear what it was!!). Running up to the West Gate Bridge it felt as if the turnaround point would never come. I nearly gave up at this point too!! Really having negative thoughts now. Just put my head down and kept running.
We then had to run past the track again (which is where the finish line is!) and continue running down to the final turnaround point. Nearly got to me again...almost didn't continue. Can you see a trend emerging here!! Anyway I just kept thinking "only 3 more km's, only 2 more km's etc".
We finally got back to the track and someone put this little hill in the way just before we entered the final 1/2km....very nearly cried!! When we finally entered the track it was just such a relief.
Wonderful to hear the Ausrun & Coolrunning cheersquad as we ran by. I actually ran faster then than I had for the last 10km!!
Our time today was 2.03.33, which is no personal best but definitely not our worst. I want to apologise to Michelle for slowing the pace down yet again! Really need to concentrate on some speed work, strengthening my legs and getting my confidence back for running 1/2 marathons! I seem to have lost it somewhere. If anyone does manage to find it, can you please bring it back. You know where I can be found!!
We met up with the usual suspects after the race, but as lots of people had time constraints today there was little time for socialising. Managed to grab a couple of pancakes and rolled them up with Apple Crumble inside.....yummo!!
A couple of things to remember from today's run:
1. Don't do Pilates the day before a race (sore hips and upper quads).
2. Don't let Michelle go out too fast....
3. Use Gav as our pace setter next time.
4. Don't wear too many clothes (too warm today!).
5. Remember to charge the MP3 player before a race!
Alana's Quote: Walking past the Bottle Shop: "Mummy do you need Champagne?"
Saturday 27th May
Exercise: Weights (Back, Chest)& Pilates Class
Did my first ever Pilates class this morning. Not really sure what I was expecting but didn't realise that the class was going to be held with the lights OFF!! Yep, we did the whole class in the dark - weird I know!!
I've been told that my stomach may be a bit sore tomorrow as it was all based around the pelvic floor and making sure that it was pulled up the whole time. Took me a while to get the breathing thing. Not used to only breathing in for 1 second and then trying to breathe out for 3 seconds. I think I'd just got the hang of it by the end of the class!!
My back is a little bit sore due to my working in the garden this afternoon. Due to my lack of time (and laziness!!) the garden was overrun with weeds so I got out there and tried to make it look a bit more like a garden again!!
I bought a little gel tube for my toe. Will see how it goes tomorrow. I've decided to wear my old Hurricane 6's rather than the new ones to see if it makes a difference to my toe.
Weather forecast has changed for the worse!! They are now predicting showers in the morning and about 8 degrees, so it's definitely going to be winter attire!! I have to be at Michelle's place at 6.15am!! Think an early night is called for, so I'd better go get my stuff ready and hop into my nice cozy warm bed!!
See you all tomorrow! Looking forward to that Apple Pie!!
Friday May 26th
Exercise: 10km Run - Mullum Mullum Creek Trail
I was having the weirdest dream when the alarm woke me at 5.30am this morning. Won't go into any detail but let's just say that I was in the bathroom and an old irish lady was in there as well chatting about what was in the newspaper I was reading!! Anyone out there know anyting about interpreting dreams as I'd sure love to figure out what that one was all about!!
I'd forgotten what it was like to get up so early!! And it was so cold this morning (down to about 4 degrees!!). Where I live is in a gully so it was really foggy too. Wasn't too bad once I got to where Michelle and I meet, and the trail was fairly light, but I had no intentions of taking my jacket off this morning, even once I'd warmed up. Will have to consider what I'm going to wear on Sunday. It's supposed to be fine but if it's cold then I don't think I'll be donning shorts and t-shirt!! It'll be more like Skins, shorts, crop top bra, singlet, long-sleeve shirt and jacket, with gloves and hat!!
Calf is feeling tons better now, thank goodness. My only niggle now seems to be my fourth toe on my left foot. For some reason it is very painful once I've run a distance. I might end up going to a Podiatrist to see if there's some reason for it. I tried running on the balls of my feet this morning and it only aggravated the toe and made it hurt more. I'm going to buy those little toe sock bandaids that give a bit of cushioning and see if that makes a difference. I may even get out my new Hurricane 7's and give them a whirl to see if it's maybe my new Hurricane 6's that are causing the problem. I ran in my old 6's yesterday and I can't remember feeling any pain at all.
Alana's Quote: "I still love you Mum, even when you shout at me!"
Thursday 25th May
Exercise: 10km Run - Lunchtime North Croydon/Chirnside Park
Yay, my calf felt fine when I ran at lunch today. Michelle drove up and met me at work so we ran from there, via Fernwood for a quick loo stop!!
I wanted to run a fairly flat course, which is pretty difficult because of where I work, but we managed to do fairly flat apart from one hill which we just couldn't avoid. It was nice to get to the top and then turn around and run back down it again!!
Had a slight run in with the shower at work though. I got in, turned the water on and a huge fountain came out from where the shower head meets the arm, so I am now sitting here with rather wet hair. Must invest in a shower cap me thinks!!
I'm actually looking forward to running at Williamstown on Sunday. For some reason I have a really good feeling about it....no idea why either. I just hope that my better eating will do wonders for my running (we can only hope!!).
Alana's Quote: "Mummy can we catch a cloud and keep it inside?"
Wednesday 24th May
Calf Update!
Thankyou all for your concern about my calf (ba%*&rd thing that it is!!).
I have iced it, kept the compression bandage on and generally kept off it as much as I can and I'm happy to report that it feels much better today. There is still a really small pull when I tense it, but that may be because I've got the bandage done up too tightly, or because I wear 3 inch heels for work!!
I'm definitely going to run tomorrow to see how it feels. If there's any pain, then I'll stop....honest guv, I will!! Meeting Michelle for a lunch time run. I can't remember the last time that I ran during work time. Luckily we have showers where I work. I went and inspected them today just to make sure that they were clean, otherwise I would have met Michelle at the gym, which is just down the road, and used their showers instead!
We were talking about running the hills of Chirnside Park, but have decided to do a fairly flat course, and trust me there aren't too many of them around here, just so that I don't put too much pressure on the calf. If everything feels okey dokey, we're going to run on Friday morning as well!!
Whilst I was running the GOR, I was having some really negative thoughts. Definitely wasn't going to run any more 1/2 marathons, the full marathon in October was a no starter, and even Trailwalker 2007 was going to have to do without me!! It was really bad. Does anyone else ever have these negative feelings when the running isn't good?? Is it just me??
Happy to say that all thoughts of not running these races have disappeared and I'm back on track....well I would be if this stupid calf gets better soon!! My eating this week has been really good. My only small downfall is that as it gets colder I really have no urge to drink water. I keep a 2 litre bottle on my desk and it's getting harder and harder to drink a full bottle each day.
Alana's Quote:
Me: "Yes you are going to Aunty Kims on Friday"
Alana:"No Mum, that's just not going to happen!"
Monday 22nd May
Exercise: Netball Game
Can you hear me screaming yet???
Can't believe that I've pulled my calf again while playing Netball tonight. I was fine until nearly half time when this stupid girl from the other team hit me in the face and I tried to avoid her and moved awkwardly....aaaggghhhh!! Why is this happening to me??? NOT HAPPY!!!
I've now iced it, wrapped the compression bandage round the calf again and will not run until Thursday.
On a better note, I ate really well today. No chocolate, no junk, just good wholesome food and my protein shakes.
But my calf....aaaggghhhhh!!
At least the Williamstown Half will be flat....no pigging hills!! We may even get under 2 hours this time. And it looks like it's going to be a nice sunny day..Woohoo!!
Sunday 21st May
Exercise: Great Ocean Road Half Marathon
Well where do I start.....Woke up at 5am. Michelle and I got dressed and had some brekky before we headed out to run the 2.5km into town where the bus pick up was. A nice warm up too.
There were plenty of buses waiting to transport people down to Kennett River (awful memories of GTR still makes me shudder!!)and we jumped on a nice warm bus straight away. The atmosphere in the bus was really upbeat and there was lots of laughter and chatter as we made our way along the road that we were going to have to run back along. Seemed to take quite a long time to get there....not a good thought before we'd even gotten off the bus!!
We arrived in Kennett River with over an hour to wait for the start. Got our transponders and then headed over to the toilets which were in a camping ground on the other side of the road. As usual there was a huge queue for the ladies toilets, but we were told there was another toilet block at the other end of the camping ground so we hurried up there...no queues - yippee!! Didn't take long for word to spread though. The queue had grown dramatically by the time we emerged from the loos!
It was beautiful watching the sunrise, although there was a faint pink glow to the clouds (that's not good in my books....red sky in the morning etc etc!!). Eventually we were given the signal to get organised for the start. Still lots of joviality in the crowd. There were probably about 500 people there so it wasn't a huge race by any means. Suddenly the countdown was on....5, 4, 3, 2, 1....the gun went off!
First hill was fine, second hill not too bad either. The third hill killed me. Felt sick from then on (see further below for possible reasons). All I could do after that was try to keep going and not puke!! I did try to concentrate on the view, which was just breathtaking. Almost the whole way there was a fantastic rainbow spread from the horizon over to the hills. I drank some water, I had some gel at about 12km's, but I just couldn't shake this horrible feeling in my stomach. I had to walk a couple of the hills as I just didn't have enough energy to run up them.
I ended up telling Michelle to run on without me. She really didn't want to do it but I forced her to as I could tell that she was really doing it easy and I hated the thought that I was holding her back. Very reluctantly she carried on without me. I did think at one stage that I might just quit, but that's just not in my nature so I did a run/walk shuffle.
The weather was a pain in the arse. Just couldn't make up it's mind if it was going to rain or if it was going to be sunny so I was constantly taking off my jacket and then putting it back on again. Michelle had to do the same thing as she'd worn her Thumps and needed to keep them dry.
Evenutally saw the finish line and tried to make it look good by running the last km without walking (haha!).
The good news was that my calf was fine. No pain at all (thank goodness!!).
Afterwards we went back to the cabin that we'd been staying at and got changed, packed up the car and headed back to the finish line in time to see Clarkey cross the line after running his first marathon.
Now for a reflection of why I didn't do very well.
1. I drank too much alcohol on Saturday!!
2. I ate too much crap food on Friday night and Saturday!!
3. I did absolutely no exercise from Monday night onwards!
4. I ate very badly during the week!
5. I changed my normal eating plan on race morning!
6. Did I tell you that I drank too much alcohol??
7. I did not do enough hill training!
8. I don't feel that I took this race seriously enough!
Okay, I'm over it now. Have gotten past my little tantrum and am now concentrating on next week's 1/2 Marathon at Williamstown. This week I am going to eat well, hydrate lots, avoid alcohol and crap food, and get in my normal exercise plan!
See you all at Williamstown!
Friday 19th May
Well I'm now feeling a bit more optomistic that my calf may be okay for Sunday's 1/2 Marathon.
I did everything that I was advised to do. I've iced it all week. I've had a compression bandage wrapped around it all week. I've elevated it as often as I could. I've rubbed Nurofen Gel into it every morning and evening to reduce any inflammation. And I've rested. Have done no exercise whatsoever (my expanding waistline is testament to this!!).
So I have now packed my bags for my weekend away. I am going to stay at Apollo Bay with Michelle and her family. We're leaving tonight and will be returning after the race. Actually I think we're going to watch some of the marathon finishers first(Go Clarkey!!), then we'll be coming home.
I'm a little bit worried that my calf won't be up for the run. I'm crossing every finger and toe that with all the rest and recuperation, it should be all healed and work perfectly.
I'm taking my MP3 player with me. Even though Michelle can talk the head off a chicken, there may be times when the conversation grinds to a halt...probably while we're trying to get up those bloody hills!!
Oh yeah, it's going to rain!! Aaaaggghhhh!
Anyway, I'll post how the run went when I get home on Sunday.
Toodles!!
Alana's Quote: "Mum I think there's going to be a tornado!"
Monday 15th May
Exercise: Netball Game
Damn, damn, damn!! Why did it have to happen now!! Can you believe that I've hurt my calf playing Netball!!
I'm so angry. It happened about 5 minutes into the game. Pushed off and felt it pull straight away. Unfortunately we only had 7 players so I had to play the rest of the game. Have got home and am now icing it and stretching it lightly. But why now???? Why couldn't it have happened next week.....someone up there doesn't like me!!
Not sure what to do. Am going to rest it probably for the rest of the week. Might do a light run on Friday to see how it feels. Michelle also thought that maybe some cupping might help, so I'm going to ring up her cupping friend and see what she says. And I'm going to do the Great Ocean Road 1/2 marathon this weekend no matter what!! So there!!!
Alana's Quote: "Mum can I see how white your teeth are when you've finished brushing them?"
Me: "Here you go" showing her, after using my Whitening Toothpaste
Alana: "Gee, they're not very white are they!!"
Sunday 14th May
Exercise: 8km Run - Mothers Day Classic
Wasn't quite ready when Beki and Andy arrived at 6.30am to pick me up for the race. Had to shovel down the porridge at double quick pace!! Luckily I'd organised everything last night so I was happy that I hadn't forgotten anything!
I was also happy that by the time we got to the event it had stopped raining (phew!). Met up with EJM, Karina & Crissy, who were all running today. Stu also came along to cheer everyone on, and volunteered to be chief bag holder (well he had nothing else to do did he!). The Astroboy bag really suited him! Michelle, Marty and their brood of kids arrived too, so it was a good Ausrunner turnout.
We waved goodbye to Karina and Crissy who were doing the 4km run, and waited for our turn. As Michelle and I had done our long run yesterday, for us this was just a slow recovery run. We wern't looking to do any PB's, just keep the legs moving!
When our turn came, we all moved over to the start line and waited for the gun. Beki and EJM raced off as they were both looking for PB's. Michelle and I plodded up the Anderson Street hill, behind a huge wave of people. It probably took us about 4km to actually loosen up enough to pick up the pace a little bit. Second time up the hill was a little faster and the last couple of km we upped the pace a little more.
It was great to see the Ausrun cheersquad as we neared the finish line. Unofficial time was 50.19, but will wait and see what they have on the website when the official times are announced.
Congratulations to Beki and EJM for running PB's and also to Karina for her debut fun run. Thanks to Andy for driving this morning and being Chief Photographer.
We all raced back to the meeting point area where there were lots of chairs and tables set up. Out came the champagne and nibbles. A great morning with some great company. Hope there's more of these to come.
Alana's Quote: "Good luck Mum, hope you win a medal!"
Saturday 13th May
Exercise: 26km Run - Dandy Creek Trail
I had a really full day today. Had to go and get my hair highlighted and cut this morning, and as I was meeting Michelle at 2.30pm there wasn't any point going home as I was quite close to Jells Park. So I went up to the local shopping centre and bought myself one of those knee compression thingys that you pull up over your knee to give it some support. Thought it might help with my running a little bit.
Met up with Michelle and we started off on our maiden adventure on the other side of the Dandy Creek Trail. Within about 3km I had to take the compression support thing off as it was just too tight and I was finding it really hard to run. So I ran the rest of the way without it.
The trail on the other side is relatively flat and quite scenic. There is alot more concrete than on the east side of the trail though. The first 13km were fairly easy, although we did tend to run a bit faster than we wanted to without even realising it!! Had to keep checking our pace so that we could slow down if necessary. Once we'd turned and headed back the pace was a bit slower. Unfortunately at about the 20km mark I got a really bad pain in the toe next to my pinky. Had to stop, take off my shoe and give it a bit of a massage. Once we got going it was fine again.
Unfortunately it was about this time that my knee started to play up. It was quite painful getting going again, but once I was back into a rythmn it wasn't too bad. Had to stop once more and the same thing happened. Think I may need to get it checked out (sigh!!).
Once we'd finished our run, I drove back over to the chemist that I'd bought the compression support thing from and exchanged it for a more flexible one which has magnets in it!! Not really sure what the magnets do but it looked much more comfortable than the other one.
Then I headed for the supermarket to do the weekly food shopping. I really wasn't up for this as I was tired, my knee hurt and I wanted something to eat! One good thing to come out of shopping was that I found another knee support thing, made by Elastoplast, so I bought that too. Well you can never have enough knee support things you know!!
And I found out today that there is a Dan Murphy's in Boronia, so I popped in there and bought a couple of bottles of Bella at the discount price of $10.50!! How cheap is that! (for all you non Bella drinkers, it normally costs $17.00).
Friday 12th May
Exercise: 10km Run - Mullum Mullum Creek Trail
Michelle was allowed to come out and play this morning so I got another run in...yay!! I've been really lucky with the weather this week and it hasn't rained once whilst we've been running!
I've decided to buy one of those compression knee brace things. Might just trial it to see if it makes any difference to how my knee feels after a run. I'm just a little concerned that it's not getting enough support.
As Michelle and I are running in the Mothers Day Classic on Sunday, we've changed our long run to tomorrow instead. And we want to run a new course as we're getting very bored with running the same ones all the time so we're going to start at Jells Park and run down towards Carrum for a change.
Speaking of the Mothers Day run, we've got a large contingency of Ausrunner girls entering the race. Looks like we're going to be having a lovely after race celebrating involving quite a few glasses of champers, nibbles and munchies!! Just hope the rain holds off until then!
I had a look at the socks that I'm still soaking after the Puffing Billy Race...oh dear!! Don't think that they'll ever be white again!
Alana's Quote: "Mum where are you?" yelling from the couch in the lounge room.
Me: "I'm here Alana, what do you want?" in the kitchen
Alana: "I was looking for you!"
Thursday 11th May
Exercise: 10km Run - Mullum Mullum Creek Trail
Met Beki this morning for an easy run!! Yeah right....It felt easy, but was only a couple of minutes slower than our faster runs!! Beki also brought along a headlamp to try out. It fit over my cap very nicely and I couldn't even feel it was there. Unfortunately it didn't give off much light, so might have to look into getting a brighter one. (I should ask the guys I work with if they can rig one up for me seeing as I work for a company that sells LED lighting!!).
My knee still has a twinge, but not when I'm running. Nothing too bad though. Will probably rub some Nurofen Gel into it tonight and see how it feels tomorrow. I've got quite a few runs lined up over the next few days and I'd hate for it to do the dirty on me now!
Running in the Mothers Day Classic on Sunday. Should be a fun morning as all the Ausrun girls are meeting up and having a glass or five of champers after the race. Then I have to get home so that I can be pampered and loved by hubby and Alana....oh goody, more champers!!
Alana's Quote: Me: "Blah, Blah, Blah Alana"
Alana: "And I should hope so too Mummy!"
Wednesday 10th May
Exercise: 10km Run - Mullum Mullum Creek Trail
I was really looking forward to my run this morning as I haven't run since Sunday. Good fast run with Michelle, even jumping over all the puddles!! There was a huge downpour last night and I was crossing my fingers and toes that it wouldn't rain this morning. Luckily it didn't (phew!). My nice new clean trainers are sadly not nice, new or clean anymore!!
You might have noticed that I haven't really spoken much about what I am or am not eating at the moment. Well as usual I can't seem to decide how or what I want to eat, when I want to eat it and how much I want to eat!! Just don't seem to have the willpower or motivation to stick at any one thing. I seem to be doing a bit of everything. One day doing liquid intake, another day carb loading like crazy, and yet another trying to eat low fat....just can't seem to get it right!
I did a really stupid thing yesterday. I ate a whole tin of the new Wrigleys Eclipse Mints that are out now. Should have clicked when it said sugar free on the tin. My poor stomach. Won't do that again!
Alana's Quote: "But Mum I don't want to pick up my pyjamas off the floor"
Me: "Why not?"
Alana: "Because you do it so much better than me!"
Monday 8th May
Exercise: Netball Game
I've pulled up really well after yesterday's run, apart from a little niggle in my right knee. I'm going to have a day off tomorrow just to give it a break.
Netball....we killed the other team tonight. 34 to 5!! We've had two new girls join the team and they've really made a huge difference. The fact that they are taller than any of us already in the team helps alot too!! May even consider playing next season now if we keep all the team members that we've got.
My trainers have nearly dried out. Well, enough that I can now give them a good bang to get the worst of the mud off them. Will also need to give them a good wash to clean them up a bit.
Here's a photo that I took of them after the race (sorry about the quality)
I'm not sure if I'll ever get the socks back to being white, but they're in a bucket soaking as I type!
I got on the scales this morning and I've put back on all the weight that I'd lost last week. This is not unexpected due to what I've drunk and eaten over the weekend. However, I seem to be shrinking. My work trousers are now feeling very baggy and I have to keep hitching them up as they keep falling down on to my hips.
I don't understand how I can gain weight but lose inches...just doesn't compute! But I won't complain!
Alana's Quote: "Mummy you need to go on Biggest Loser 'cos your boobies are too big!"
Puffing Billy Race...The Aftermath
I thought I'd let you all know why I was so peed off with the transport arrangements after the race. I just couldn't let it go without having one more whinge!!
When Beki and I got to the finish line there was a very long queue. This was because there were people recording everybody's finishing times by hand. Nothing electronic about this race!! We must have stood in a queue for about 20 minutes at least. And as each minute ticked past we were getting colder and colder.
Once we'd finally got through, we walked up to the area where most people were hanging around, mostly waiting for the prizes to be done. I was getting real cold by that stage and just wanted to get on a bus and get back to Belgrave so I could put on some dry, warm clothes.
We found the queue for the buses and stood waiting for another 20 minutes to 1/2 hour before 2 buses arrived. As there were quite a lot of people in front of us there was no way we were going to get on either bus, but were very surprised and then angry to hear the bus driver say that these were the last 2 buses. What about all the people still waiting???
The official advised everyone that there was a train leaving in 10 minutes, so everyone turned around and proceeded to make their way to the train platform. There certainly was a train there, but it was already totally full and there is no way in hell that anyone else could have gotten on that train.
Just then another train pulled into the station so everyone left waiting on the platform jumped onto this one. After about 15 minutes, we heard when the train was going to leave....in another 45 minutes! We would have to sit on the train, cold and wet for another 45 minutes before it even made it's way back to Belgrave, which in itself was a 55 minute train ride! This was not happening to us....
So TigerBoy very nicely rang Mrs TB and asked her if she could drive up to Emerald Lake and pick us up, which she very nicely agreed to. So while we were waiting (it was going to take Mrs TB at least 30 minutes to get up the mountain), we wandered on down to the Cafe to grab a coffe and sit in the warmth. It was then highlighted that there were 6 of us and there was only enough room in the car for 4 people. So me and Beki volunteered to wait at the Cafe whilst everyone went back to Belgrave, then TigerBoy would jump in his car and drive back up to pick me and Beki up.
So we sat huddled next to this gas fire trying to dry out a little bit. Once we were a bit drier, we decided to start walking up to the gate to meet TigerBoy. He rang us just as we were near the gate to say that he was just leaving, so it was going to take him at least another 15 minutes to get up to us.
What else was there to do other than to keep walking!! We finally met TB at the roundabout right at the top of the hill and gratefully climbed into his warm car. We took off our soggy wet shoes and socks first....what a relief!! Then put on some nice dry ones...even better!!
We finally got to the pub around 2pm, 2 hours later than planned!! A few glasses of champers seemed to wipe away some of the bad memories of the morning, and having a few laughs with like minded people brought back the good memories!
Sunday 7th May
Exercise: 13.2km Run - Puffing Billy Train Race
Anybody that reads my blog regularly probably knows how much I hate running if it's cold, raining or both!! Well today it was doing everything it could possibly think of to make me not want to run this race!!
I'd had a pretty crap night's sleep last night due to the really strong winds outside, my daughter wanting to sleep in my bed due to her being scared, and generally just worrying about the race, so I wasn't in the best frame of mind when I got up at 6am to hear the rain still pounding on the roof.
TigerBoy picked me up at 6.50am and we headed over to Beki's place to pick her up. I'd looked at the weather map just before leaving and it did look as if the rain band was going to pass over before the race started (should have known better than to trust Melbourne weather!!).
We got to Belgrave with plenty of time to go and keep nice and warm in a cafe, have a lovely cup of Coffee and generally watch everyone arrive. We ventured out into the cold about 1/2 an hour before the race started. It had even stopped raining by then....see I toldy you all it was going to stop raining!!
Beki and I then stood around freezing our bits off until about 10 minutes before the race started, when we headed down to the start line. The heavens then proceeded to open up and we were all absolutely soaking wet....not a good start to the day!!
We ran up the first hill and for some reason it seemed alot easier than previously. Was it because of the new Skins we were wearing? Was it just because it was the start of the race, or was it because we just wanted to get to the finish line and get back to the pub??
Did really well until we got to the second hill. As Beki and I had already run this hill on Anzac Day we knew what was coming, so we tried to keep at an even pace, but did have to walk a couple of times just to catch our breath. Once at the top of the hill it was onwards and upwards to the next hill.
I think the downhill bits were a great relief to both of us, giving us the opportunity to catch our breath and actually have a quick chat before concentrating on the next uphill bit. (know how to keep Beki quiet now...take her on a few hill runs!!)
Saw the train coming when we got to the 10km mark and we both made a mad dash to get across the train tracks before the train, otherwise we would have had to stop and wait for it to cross.
The last 2km's was a mud bath, luckily it was a downhill mud bath and we couldn't not get absolutely covered in it. It was so slippery rounding the last bend before the final dash to the finish line. My trainers now weigh about 2kg more with all the mud attached to them!!
Of course it had stopped raining when we reached the finish line, but we really felt the cold once we'd stopped and cooled down.
Our time....77min 16seconds, missed beating the train by just over 1 minute....what a bummer!!
I'm so glad that I wore my skins. They were a great investment and kept my legs so warm while we were waiting for transport back to Belgrave (which is a totally different story and I'm mightily pissed off about it, but don't want to think about it any more!!).
We eventually made it to the Micawber Pub, where we met up with some other Cool Runners and Aus Runners. Enjoyed the warmth of the Coonara and the few glasses of Champers!!
I would like to do this race again, but next year I think we'll organise to have a car waiting at Emerald Lake with our clothes in it. Don't want to wait around in the cold for 2 hours like we did today!
Saturday 6th May
Exercise: 9.3km Run - Local Streets
Well I finally got out on my own for a run. It was a pretty boring one, just around the local streets, but there were some hills, so at least I gave the legs a little workout.
I've been out and bought some Skins today, so I'm now officially a part of the "Skins Club". Am yet to try them on, but I know that Beki's fit her and I've bought the same size, so there shouldn't be too many problems with them fitting. Once I've got them on though I might have to sleep in them as Beki said that they are a real bugger to get on, so once on I might just leave them on!! I also picked up 7 sachets of the Chocolate Gel that I use when doing my Long Run. Better to buy lots of them while you can find them is my motto!! There's no more left in the shop either!
The Great Train Race is tomorrow and I have to say that I'm actually looking forward to doing it, even though the weather forecast is for cold, wet and windy conditions. I think it might be because we are all meeting up at a pub afterwards and I can have a few glasses of champers (how sad is that!).
Whilst buying the skins today I got my hands on one of the new Garmin Forerunners. It was the 205 and it was lovely!! It was very comfortable on my wrist and the buttons were very easy to push too. Might have to look at a trade in sooner or later!
Alana's Quote: "Mum can we fly to the moon?"
Thursday 4th May
Exercise: 10km Run - Mullum Mullum Creek Trail
Another great run this morning. Met up with Beki at the usual haunt and proceeded to drag her through the whole 10km as I felt like doing a fast run (I was so up for this). My hat goes off to her for being able to still hold a conversation and keep up (not that she couldn't anyway!!).
I'm not sure why but whenever I run with Beki I always tend to run faster. I think it's probably because she is more conscious of her times, whereas I'm more about distance and I love that she is getting faster and faster....well done Beki!!
I'm not sure what to do about my run tomorrow. Once again I'm Billy no mates. Beki is going to rest and Michelle can't come out to play either. I suppose I have to ask myself if I'm motivated enough to get out of bed and run on my own??
And after that huge chocolate binge yesterday I've only put on 200gm (phew!!). I really couldn't justify eating anything more than some yoghurt last night, although a glass of champers would have gone down well!!
Alana's Quote: "Mum are you sure you're telling the truth??"
Wednesday 3rd May
Well I have some good news and some bad news!!
I may as well start with the bad news....okay, where do I start...
I ate some chocolate today - no wait for it - I ate a HUGE amount of chocolate today.
May as well list what I ate, are you ready for this??
Cherry Ripe
Bag of Licorice Allsorts
Bag of Orange Flavoured Chocolate Bullets
3 Mint Lindt Balls.
Took me about an hour all up to eat the lot!! God only knows what I was thinking when I bought it all. And it didn't even make me feel sick when it was all gone.
How bad is that!
So to the good news. The Cherry Ripe had a competition where you SMS whatever the code is inside the wrapper. So I did...and I won this!
Cadbury Competition
Need to do some serious thinking about my binge and the consequences. Have already spoken to Hubby and he's shed some light on a few things that may have triggered it.
To top it all off I didn't run today. My knee still has a bit of a twinge so I thought it best to have a day off. I need it to be right for Sunday so I'd better take care of it and utilise some of Stu Mac's tips (thanks Captain).
Tuesday 2nd May
Exercise: 10km Run - Mullum Mullum Creek Trail
I was so up for the run this morning. Not sure why, other than I'm not entirely sure when I'm going to be able to get out for my next run, so I felt like if I didn't do this one, I probably wouldn't get much running in before Sunday....which probably won't do me any good when I do actually run on Sunday.
Saying that, the run was a slow one this morning, maninly due, for me anyway, to the fact that my knee was still a little bit tender and also because I wanted to do a slow run.
Even though we did our long run on Sunday, I personally felt that it wasn't slow enough for me. Probably due to the fact that we had some faster runners in the pack and I wanted to at least keep them in sight, so I upped the pace of what Michelle and I normally do our slow run at.
I'm at home today due to Alana being unwell, so have time to catch up on all those housey things that I keep putting off...right, better get started on the ironing!!
Monday 1st May
Exercise: Netball Game
Another pretty good day food wise. I got on the scales this morning and I've put back on 200gm, which I think was because of the two slices of toast I had with some soup last night.
The knee is still a bit sore, but I didn't really notice it while playing Netball, which is a good sign I hope.
Oh yeah, we lost at Netball again!!
Alana's Quote: "Mum if I went into the Big Brother house, would you watch me on TV?"
