Good pain vs bad pain

Hello. It's been a while since I last posted but I'm very happy to say my recovery from injury is progressing very well.  After months of only being able to manage the odd 3-4 miles or so of running, and keeping it all pretty flat and uneventful (and yet still having a fair amount of post-run discomfort on occasion) it's brilliant to be able to be a bit more adventurous with my routes.  The photos above are from a 7.5 miler round the trails of Holyrood Park on Monday 14th.  Lots of water about, and some of the trails were deep with it so I got cold, wet feet.  My efforts to skirt the worst of the flooding by staying to the sides meant I also got some nice bramble scratches all over my shins (still there 2 weeks later too.)

I did a similar route this Monday (21st), but tacked on a loop of the Meadows instead of one of the Holyrood loops, really just to add in another area I've not run in for several months and to ensure the overall distance was up to 8.5 miles.

Over the past 2 weeks, as well as the 'long runs' (well, long for me at the moment) I've also managed a few shorter recovery runs, at least one gym trip each week and quite a lot of hiking, mostly in the Pentlands.

The hiking is an important part of my schedule for getting back to something like the level of fitness I had a year or so back.  My theory is that it means I'm still using the same muscle groups, but putting less stress on my musculo-skeletal system (back, leg joints, pelvis) and also increasing the time spent on my feet, which I think will help as I build the mileage back up.  Plus, being a bit of a country boy at heart I love hill-walking and escaping the city.

On Friday, Shona and I went for a 2 hour walk from Swanston village up to Allermuir hill and looping back round (before lunch and cake at Swanston Golf club - shhhhh).  Saturday I was at the gym for some stationary bike and cross-trainer action.  Sunday I rested, then Monday was the 8.5 mile run. (Like many runs I've done lately - the furthest I've run in months...)

After my longer run on Monday I was already feeling the effect a little on my leg muscles, but wanted to make the most of a day off and some good weather yesterday to hit the hills and get a walk in. I started out from Flotterstone just after 10am, with beautiful blue skies, and headed straight up Turnhouse hill along the ridge.  Did Turnhouse, Carnethy, Scald Law, East Kip, West Kip, and then back down to the Howe and along the road past Glencorse Reservoir back to the car. I was walking for just short of 4 hours without stopping, and my hamstrings were pretty sore for the last two climbs (those of you that know the Pentlands will know the Kips are not the biggest hills there, but they're steep little buggers even if they are short).   For the final mile or two back along the road my feet were beginning to ache too.

Back at the office today and largely desk-bound, and this evening my leg muscles are tight and feeling the pain of the training over the past week or two.  Which brings me to the title of this blog post.  This is GOOD pain.

I don't think it's masochistic to say that there is something deeply satisfying about the muscle pain you get from training that is helping you get fitter, and that you have earned in some way.  Contrast this with the BAD pain that I had back in September/October last year where some days every step I took was painful, and it was just a discomfort to be tolerated as best I could.  It's not something that was earned, or could be attributed to a hard workout, overdoing it, or pulling something with an awkward movement.  It was just bloody annoying and uncomfortable!

I know of a number of people whose medical conditions mean they are constantly managing this kind of pain - and may always do so.  I admire their patience and resilience more than I can express.

Thankfully my experience has been a temporary one and I'm feeling ever more optimistic that I will leave it behind me and get back to full fitness.  And I hope that when I'm feeling the pain towards the end of a hard race - like in the last few miles of the Berlin marathon in September all being well - I will be able to draw strength from my experience and think how lucky I am to be able to feel 'good' pain like this that comes from being fit and able to challenge your body, and instead of letting it weigh on me, just appreciate it for what it represents, smile to myself, and run on.

Spring in my step

Beautiful morning for a run today. I think it was in to double degrees C for the first time in months and having to squint into bright sun too meant it felt like Spring was not so far away as we've all been thinking lately.  I'm not going to lie, last Monday morning after my 5 miles around Holyrood Park on the Sunday, I needed 15 minutes stretching and a couple of paracetamol to get back to feeling 'at ease'. The difference this week, though, is that it didn't get worse over the next few days, it recovered and I managed a good gym outing on Wednesday night too.

I was aiming to do 5 miles again this Sunday, but on a flatter route this time as I knew I'd be on my bike later and didn't want to over-do it.  So I headed round to Fishwives causeway, then the full length of the prom at Portobello, before heading home past the golf course and through Figgate Park.

Unbelievable how many people were out and about running, on their bikes, or even playing rugby on the beach like the young Portobello hornets below.  Great to see so many people out enjoying themselves and not giving up on their resolutions yet!

Anyway, we'll see how everything feels tomorrow morning but today it felt really good to be out. I can't pretend my back felt 100%, but these things are never certain.  I reckon if you asked 100 club runners at the start of a race how they were feeling, 85 of them would tell you about their current niggle and why they're not sure how they'll do.  I've been told by various physios, chiropractors and so on that I'm good at pinpointing where I'm having trouble and explaining the nature of it, but it's still difficult to know precisely what the story is with any real confidence when you've had an injury like mine and you're trying to come back.  Is it vertebrae and irritated nerves (i.e. the original issue)? Is it muscles or ligaments that are out of practice, or that you're using in a different way now you've been 're-aligned'?  Or even, is it in your mind because you're paranoid about every little twinge you think might be there?

It's a slow business, and it's difficult to stay optimistic all the time about future prospects, but today I was just grateful to be out, running easy and enjoying the sunshine and the scenery.  Can't say fairer than that.

Onwards and upwards I say - here's to more good runs and spring sunshine over the coming months!

Done run/ run done

Well the 5-miler went well. Actually clocked 5.24 miles, but who's counting?  It was a real pleasure to get back to Holyrood Park after having done nothing but the 3 or 4 miles around my house, Figgate Park and the Prom for months now.  And I am a lucky boy because it was stunning in the snow and the sunshine. A few pictures below:

Love the line of swans and the sun shining through behind the ruined chapel here

So next step is waiting to find out whether my wife's shifts allow me to go to the races I want to over next couple of months....

And I have another couple of challenge ideas/suggestions - Movember and (separately) some kind of arctic half-marathon...?!  Plus one I definitely like the sound of, which is a Cumbrian 3-peaks taking in Scafell Pike, Helvellyn and Scadell.  Keep them coming please!

Road to recovery - planning races

Hi-de-hi.

All going well, been out for a couple of runs and gym trips this past week and although still getting the odd niggle and tightness in my lower back I'm essentially staying the right side of injury. So planning to step up the training, and plan my Spring schedule.  Starting with a 5 mile run today, 1 mile longer than anything I've done since August 2010!

Also looking at races to do in next few months.  There are loads of superb races.  I'm not ready to enter a 10-miler or half-marathon until I've successfully upped the miles in training, so lucky there are loads of mid-distance races in Edinburgh and surrounding areas.  (But if you do fancy either of these distances, Lasswade 10m is very hilly but one of my all-time favourite road races, and I also rate the Alloa half-marathon)

So I would definitely like to do the KB5, the Gartmorn 6 trail race, and either the Cupar 5m or the Falkirk "Round the Houses" 10K which both fall on the same weekend.

In terms of longer term plans, I'm very happy to see that the Edinburgh to St Andrews bike challenge (67 miles) and the 7 Hills of Edinburgh race fall on consecutive weekends in June rather than the same weekend like last year, so I aim to do both!

Anyway, let's get today's training run out the way first.

Up and running...

Well I've started! 

On New Year's Day I started off by doing Edinburgh parkrun. For those of you who don't know about parkrun.... you should.  It's a brilliant concept. A free, timed 5K race that's on every week in various locations up and down the land.  It was the first time I've been able to race for 5 months and it was GREAT to be back properly running with other people. When I last ran it back in August I managed just short of 20 minutes.  I figured I'd be somewhere between 25 and 30 minutes this time, given lack of fitness and not yet being 100% free from injury.  So I was delighted to manage 23.08. (And the course is 87 metres longer than it used to be, having been remeasured recently...) 

So a good start to the year.  But the next challenge of the day was going to be even tougher.  It was the first event in my '11 in 2011' plans for the year.... The Loony Dook at South Queensferry...

Was delighted to see the car thermometer say it was 2°C as we parked up about a mile's walk from the town (closest we could get) and it was that familiar feeling of nervousness tinged with excitement that you get at the big races as the family and I walked to where the procession started.  I'm sure the temperature dropped another degree or two as we dropped down in to the main street, and I left it as long as possible before removing my outer layers and getting into my t-shirt and shorts to join the crowd.

It was still a long wait... My feet had been cold while I was wearing socks and shoes, standing around in flip flops for 10 minutes and they were absolutely frozen.  Basically I couldn't feel my toes at all except for a kind of vague soreness. It was good to get moving when the time finally came for the procession to begin.  I was also pleased to see a friendly face - a friend from work, Craig, who'd signed up a day or two before on a whim.  Basically anything to distract me from the cold and the rising trepidation about what lay ahead at the end of the procession!

We were quite far back in the crowd and we kind of got stalled towards the end of the town as we hit the crowd of spectators and the first dookers started to head back while we were still trying to make our way down.  There was a huge number of people about to watch the event, and there must have been several hundred fellow mentalists also taking the lunge.

I'm told by my wife that when I finally made my way down the steps to the beach, I had a look of genuine fear rather than excitement on my face, which doesn't surprise me!  Was glad to have Craig there too as we posed for a photo from his wife and then waded in to the water.  Our plan was simple - get in, get under, get back out again.  (Some people were literally just getting their feet wet, but we reckon it only counts if you go under).  I'm not sure how it was possible for the water to feel even colder than we were anyway (but I believe it's something to do with specific heat capacities and the fact that water is a better conductor than air).  So didn't want to hang around, just walked in as quickly as possible.  There's a line of RNLI men stopping you going too far in to the water, and when we were in to about thigh deep, Craig decided there was no time like the present anyway and on the count of three we dropped down. It wasn't really deep enough and I went in to neck deep first. It was, as expected, extremely cold, but not so bad once I was under. Final step then was to duck my head under, which I duly did. A quick splash about after, and then I was perfectly happy to head back out..!

Another quick photo call for my sister in law and I went to grab the hot drink I had just found out was on offer for all dookers.  My feet were colder than they've ever been in my life, and a part of me was genuinely worried I might be doing myself permanent damage, stupid as that might sound.

My wife had brought my change of clothes down to the beach for me, but it was surprisingly difficult to get dressed again when I couldn't feel anything below my knees.  There was a great party atmosphere going on (my kids were dancing to the ceilidh band with their cousins) and the rational part of my mind knew that there'd never been any stories of anyone losing toes to frostbite after doing the loony dook so I surely wouldn't be the first!

After the dook. Hot drink and ceilidh band provided. I know my feet are there cos I can see them - can't feel 'em but...  

I gradually started to get some feeling back and we made our way back to the car and on to my in-laws for a large dram and some New Year's Day roast beef and yorkshire pudding, which was *exactly* what the doctor ordered!

So what next? Well, flights are now booked for Berlin marathon in September, which is pretty damn exciting. I need to get a few more running races done over the coming months to ensure my body is holding together ok and I can manage the distance.

Plans also coming together for bike journey (Anyone fancy cycling from Edinburgh to Aberdeen over two days in August?)

Still need a few more challenges, so keep the ideas coming.  Thanks for your support.

Sponsor me here:

www.justgiving.com/sandy2011-care

www.justgiving.com/sandy2011-sickkids

Loony Eleven

G'day

On January 1st 2011, I will join a few hundred other nutters to go in the Firth of Forth to start the year.  It's called the Loony Dook.

Couple of reasons - first, it'll give me a way to make use of the additional blubber I've laid down over the past few months while I've been injured and unable to run as usual.

Second, it's the start of a year of fundraising.  I plan to do 11 different 'challenges' in 2011.  Confirmed so far, injury permitting, are the Loony Dook, 12 munros in 3 days in early May, the 7 Hills of Edinburgh race in June and the Berlin marathon in September.   I also plan to climb Ben Nevis at some point and do a long cycle somewhere.  Other suggestions I've had so far are to run a race in fancy dress and to skydive, abseil or wing-walk. (These last suggestions from someone who knows how I feel about heights and presumably thinks that's amusing...) Happy to hear any other suggestions anyone has, and I'll update any confirmed events as and when I can.

In the mean time, here's the links if you think any of this is worthy of a contribution to one of the causes I'm supporting:

For Ward 1 of the Royal Hospital for Sick Children:
www.justgiving.com/sandy2011-sickkids

And for Care International:
www.justgiving.com/sandy2011-care

Really appreciate any support you can give. I'll post Loony Dook pictures as soon as I've thawed! Thanks.

Best reads of 2010

Time for another list....  Like most of you I expect (!) I like to keep a record of all the books I read.  I've only averaged about 2 books a month this year, which is a bit below par, but there have been some crackers in there.  Here's my top 10:

1. Mercy Among the Children - David Adams Richards
2. Weekend - William McIlvanney
3. The Sopranos - Alan Warner
4. Amsterdam - Ian McEwan
5. The Perks of Being a Wallflower - Steven Chbosky
6. Feet in the Clouds (A Tale of Fell Running and Obsession) - Richard Askwith
7. The Burnt Out Town of Miracles - Roy Jacobsen
8. Romanno Bridge - Andrew Greig
9. Invisible - Paul Auster
10. The Graveyard Book - Neil Gaiman

Two most disappointing reads of 2010:
1. On the Road - Jack Kerouac
2. Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon

Reading's a very personal thing, so I expect I've just dissed someone's favourite, and commended something someone else thought was rubbish. Happy to explain myself if required!  As well as the book I've given top place, which was a brilliant find, I was most pleased by finally getting round to reading the McEwan, Warner and McIlvanney books, all of which were worth the wait.

I'm also really enjoying Alone in Berlin by Hans Fallada just now, but don't think I'll quite have it finished before the end of the year.  Otherwise it might well have broken the top 10...  Got a huge pile of books ready and waiting for me in 2011 for once I finish it, I'm sure there'll be more highs and lows awaiting me.

If anyone else wants to post a top 10, 5, 3 or even 1 book that they've read in the past year I'd be interested to see it!