Coming back from Paris was rather fraught. The fundamental cause was my stupidity (something that streaks through most of my activities). We had flown to Charles de Gaulle airport with Easyjet, paid no attention to the terminal and just caught a taxi to North Paris. Going back we had no idea which terminal we needed but thought there were only two and that Air France dominated 1 so that 2 was the most likely.
When we got off the train there was no guidance, no information point, no list of airlines - nothing but arrows to 2a, b,c,d,e etc. We picked one of those at random and found an information desk where we were told we needed terminal 3 and that there was a bus, which we caught. It stopped outside a building and we walked through the doors only to find a dark deserted concrete space, with no signs of life or even any signs to show us where we were. We were frustrated and baffled. Eventually we found someone to ask and were pointed in the direction of an unmarked walkway to the terminal.
The point of this anecdote is not to wallow in my own helplessness; it is to show the value of good signage. It is something as ancillary to the main activity, that might seem unimportant. When it is done well we don't even notice it. However when it absent or badly designed it messes up movement and makes things difficult, even unusable.
I began to think of the equivalents in running - the unconsidered activities that are not counted as training, not even noticed but actually have importance for your performance. For me they would include commuting. Home to station, station to work I am active in a way that is not be included in any training diary but over the years gives me a base. For others it could be any activity that involves regular walking, standing or lifting.
This base is at a deeper level than base training - it is the substrate below it. The more active you are the better you can build. But there are other areas that could be worked on. Posture is a good example. I am terrible - I sit slumped in front of a computer most of the day. I should be holding myself better so that my spine is properly aligned so that when I run everything is straight and square and the forces are evenly dispersed.
These are unconsidered things but they allow you to be in good shape for your training, allow things to move more freely – a bit like good signage.
Reason No. 13 for running: It is built on the whole of your life.
Saturday, February 26, 2005
Tuesday, February 22, 2005
Some problems with cross training
Wonderful though off road cycling can be there is sometimes a downside. After my latest ride my bike looked like this:
And I looked a bit like this picture of Fran Cotton:
When I got home I received a pitying look, questions about my sanity and a request to not spread mud everywhere (the last was impossible). Things were so bad the post-ride beer had been skipped - something previously unknown.
That said the challenge to keep going was quite exhilarating (I only lost it twice, when there was just no traction between muddy tyre and slippy surface). It was also harder work than running - the wheels just got sucked into the clay. I think it must have increased the strength in my quads quite amazingly.
No cold bath nonsense after such a ride.
And I looked a bit like this picture of Fran Cotton:
When I got home I received a pitying look, questions about my sanity and a request to not spread mud everywhere (the last was impossible). Things were so bad the post-ride beer had been skipped - something previously unknown.
That said the challenge to keep going was quite exhilarating (I only lost it twice, when there was just no traction between muddy tyre and slippy surface). It was also harder work than running - the wheels just got sucked into the clay. I think it must have increased the strength in my quads quite amazingly.
No cold bath nonsense after such a ride.
Thursday, February 17, 2005
Depression and running
One of my favourite columns in Salon is the personal advice given by Cary Tennis. People write in with all sorts of issues and sometimes he gives advice and some times he just ruminates of the subject, mostly he does both. This article is about someone who feels empty and overwhelmed because he has not lived up to his own expectations. His early promise has dissipated and he feels hopeless and depressed. The commentary by Tennis is heartfelt and perceptive; you sometimes have to fail, let things go and then rebuild.
I had a number of thoughts about the article at first I started to relate it to running.(Surely I am not showing signs of obsession). I thought about how hard it is to admit failure and readjust your programme. I have done that this year with my target for a spring marathon. I was so far behind schedule because of injury and I knew I could not catch-up but a lttle voice was always saying: go on you might make it, you never know, you have to try. I was torn and disappointed but when I made the decision to let go everything become simpler and more hopeful. I swear that my leg started to feel much better when I stopped worrying about it.
After that I started to think about running and depression and how it (or any similar physical activity) could help with this sort of low-key depression (i.e. a grinding, wearying despair).
I am sure that it works far more completely that just a chemical reaction caused by a surge of endorphins (though there is nothing wrong with that). It can help restore a sense of achievement and self worth, something that the correspondent had completely lost.
Everything else in your life might be in a state of chaos and collapse but when you run things are simple and ordered. You can always check your achievements, whether it is speed, distance or time and you know what you can do. You can prove that you are getting better. When everything else is failing you know you can run - and when you do run nothing else is important.
It might only be a little thing and it certainly is not enough - but it is something.
There might be a problem when your running has hit a plateau and you can no longer see improvement and don't think you are as fast enough. This in itself could cause despair. But it might not - it should not; because running is honest and it forces you to know your limits and there can be no pretence. You are forced to be realistic about your capabilities and plan within them. It is possible that this acceptance might be transferred to other aspects of your life and by doing so break down unrelenting greyness and start to deal with things a bit at a time. It is possible - but by no means inevitable.
Perhaps the most likely effect is the simple and direct one. It makes you stronger and that strength can be used to tackle the central problems.
Even if running does none of the above it still offers temporary relief by taking you away from things. That is still something.
It is interesting that Cary Tennis suggested that the person should take up writing – that is what he does. I started thinking about running - that is what I do. Perhaps we all have see other people's problems through our own lens.
Reason No. 12 for running: It might give you some strength
I had a number of thoughts about the article at first I started to relate it to running.(Surely I am not showing signs of obsession). I thought about how hard it is to admit failure and readjust your programme. I have done that this year with my target for a spring marathon. I was so far behind schedule because of injury and I knew I could not catch-up but a lttle voice was always saying: go on you might make it, you never know, you have to try. I was torn and disappointed but when I made the decision to let go everything become simpler and more hopeful. I swear that my leg started to feel much better when I stopped worrying about it.
After that I started to think about running and depression and how it (or any similar physical activity) could help with this sort of low-key depression (i.e. a grinding, wearying despair).
I am sure that it works far more completely that just a chemical reaction caused by a surge of endorphins (though there is nothing wrong with that). It can help restore a sense of achievement and self worth, something that the correspondent had completely lost.
Everything else in your life might be in a state of chaos and collapse but when you run things are simple and ordered. You can always check your achievements, whether it is speed, distance or time and you know what you can do. You can prove that you are getting better. When everything else is failing you know you can run - and when you do run nothing else is important.
It might only be a little thing and it certainly is not enough - but it is something.
There might be a problem when your running has hit a plateau and you can no longer see improvement and don't think you are as fast enough. This in itself could cause despair. But it might not - it should not; because running is honest and it forces you to know your limits and there can be no pretence. You are forced to be realistic about your capabilities and plan within them. It is possible that this acceptance might be transferred to other aspects of your life and by doing so break down unrelenting greyness and start to deal with things a bit at a time. It is possible - but by no means inevitable.
Perhaps the most likely effect is the simple and direct one. It makes you stronger and that strength can be used to tackle the central problems.
Even if running does none of the above it still offers temporary relief by taking you away from things. That is still something.
It is interesting that Cary Tennis suggested that the person should take up writing – that is what he does. I started thinking about running - that is what I do. Perhaps we all have see other people's problems through our own lens.
Reason No. 12 for running: It might give you some strength
Monday, February 14, 2005
Cross channel training
Jeff Galloway very instant that long training runs should be done slowly, at least 2 min/mi below marathon pace. He states that you get exactly the same amount of endurance training whatever the speed; all that matters is that you do the miles. So it is better to take your time and be easier on yourself. In fact he gives no lower speed limit.
However I am not sure that my activities for the past few days can be counted towards any form of cross training. I have been to Paris to visit my daughter and spent most of the time walking around the sights. It is true that I have been on my feet for long periods of the day, but it has only been at wandering pace – the urban shuffle that I actually find more tiring than running.
In all conscience I don’t think I can put anything other than a big round zero in my training diary. However the time has had other beneficial effects such as the feeling of well being that comes with eating good food and the lift in spirits that comes from looking at good art.
My daughter is doing something that I can only admire – taking a year out from work to learn French and understand the culture. She has fallen in love with the city and I think she is going to have some problems when she decides to resume her career. But that is in the future and who knows what will happen. At the moment she is having an adventure that all that matters.
She still runs. She chugs around a local park most mornings. The spur of the moment decision we made to run the Great North Run has changed our behaviour and we continue to be a family that runs together, separately.
However I am not sure that my activities for the past few days can be counted towards any form of cross training. I have been to Paris to visit my daughter and spent most of the time walking around the sights. It is true that I have been on my feet for long periods of the day, but it has only been at wandering pace – the urban shuffle that I actually find more tiring than running.
In all conscience I don’t think I can put anything other than a big round zero in my training diary. However the time has had other beneficial effects such as the feeling of well being that comes with eating good food and the lift in spirits that comes from looking at good art.
My daughter is doing something that I can only admire – taking a year out from work to learn French and understand the culture. She has fallen in love with the city and I think she is going to have some problems when she decides to resume her career. But that is in the future and who knows what will happen. At the moment she is having an adventure that all that matters.
She still runs. She chugs around a local park most mornings. The spur of the moment decision we made to run the Great North Run has changed our behaviour and we continue to be a family that runs together, separately.
Tuesday, February 08, 2005
Thinking of injuries
As injury is the main thing on my mind at the moment, I thought I would reproduce some words of encouragement from Joe Henderson. It helps to think that in the scheme of things running injuries are minor.
Injuries can be good for you. The bigger they are, the better they can be -- if the pain eventually lets up and lets you run again.
I'd go so far as to say that you don't truly become a runner until you've endured an injury. You don't fully appreciate running until you've almost lost it.
My first big injury was good for me. After suffering with it for a year, I turned to longer and slower running -- which led to long and fast racing that lasted from the mid-1960s to the early '70s.
-- They are likely, if not inevitable. Almost everyone who runs gets hurt eventually, and almost everyone gets better soon.
-- They are minor. Seldom do these injuries interfere with normal life, or require a doctor's help, or extensive and expensive care.
-- They are self-inflicted. Usually they result not from "accidents" but from the Big Four mistakes -- running too far, too fast, too soon, too often.
-- They are self-treatable. Usually they respond quickly to simple adjustments in training type and amount.
-- They allow activity. If it isn't reduced running, then it can be an agreeable alternative.
It's best to develop a long memory, so you never forget the worst of days. This adds to your appreciation of days that are back to normal.What you missed most was getting out for the little everyday runs, the fillers. They're the ones not worth bragging about because their length and pace would impress no runner. Getting down to the little efforts, you now see, is at least as important as getting up for the big ones.
Sunday, February 06, 2005
Injury time
There have been no posts for a few days due to a computer meltdown. Somehow Windows managed to completely garble itself and in the end would not open at all. I have just spent most of the weekend repairing it and then uninstalling and reinstalling drivers and some programs, Now that is all finished life can resume again - except for one very important detail - the running.
Now I might have given the impression that this blog is written by a runner. It is not. It is written by an injured runner - a completely different sort of being. Injured runners are full of envy and frustration and tend to feel rather stupid because they know that mostly their injury was caused by lack of proper care (well at least this one does). The depths of my stupidity are rather frightening and I am embarrassed to admit to them but have to, if only to show what happens when you break almost all of the golden rules.
Mistakes of the Amateur part 1 - Getting injured
Rule No 1 - Do not change what works
I have always been forefoot striker, wearing cushioned shoes and running mostly off road, with very little hill work. This has been good and I have felt easy and relaxed doing this. However I have a tendency to tinker with things. I became quite interested in the threads on POSE (mainly because it seemed to be quite similar to my native style) and the idea that to run this way properly you needed to be as close to barefoot as possible. I thus followed a wave of enthusiasm for Puma H Streets and bought a pair of shoes that are no more that a soft mesh top stuck onto a thin strip of rubber. I took them for a jog round the park and found their lightness entertaining.
I had also been thinking that the lack of hills in my training was a weakness. At Abingdon I had no strength in the last 5 miles and I thought this was not only due to too few training miles but also to a lack of hill work.
Rule No 2 - Introduce change gradually.
OK I did give the shoes a short break-in but their arrival coincided with the plan to change the training, so the next run was a long, on a hilly route and all on pavements. So 3 things were changed at once breaking the scientific rule of of only changing one variable at a time.
The run felt fine but there was a problem running down some rather steep slopes. My usual way is to go floppy and run heel first. With these unpadded shoes I did not feel like doing this and ended up putting tremendous strain on my calves.
Rule 3 - Listen to your body
Although this is obvious I was in a state of denial. When I felt a little pain in my left shin I still went for the planned 45 minutes at steady pace (albeit on the flat). I thought that the way I ran should have been protected me against injury (thinking that is classified under the heading of pathetic fallacy) and that the twinges would be run off and amount to nothing. The first part was almost right but as soon as I stopped I knew that the left leg was a bit of a mess and I could not deny a classic case of shin splints.
Mistakes of the Amateur part 2 - Impatience
Rule 4 - come back gradually
I rested for a couple of weeks and things felt OK, not fully normal but OK. Instead of trying to build up my mileage gradually. I went straight back into my schedule as if nothing had happened. After a rather tough long run I knew this was an error. The result was a bit more rest and then a period of managing the running - just doing what I could. But all the time the twinges never fully went away.
Rule 5 - Don't make the same mistake twice
I then had flu and did not run for two weeks. This had two consequences. The first was that my leg felt quite a lot better because of lack of use. The second was that I was increasingly anxious about my lack of training. My plan was to run the Lochaber marathon and be in as good a shape as possible. But the running had been messed up and I felt out of condition. I felt I had to get back as quickly as possible. As a result I repeated my error and ran too far too fast and now my shin is still hurting.
Mistakes of the Amateur part 3 - Consequences
You cannot lie to your body - it does not understand the wordsyou use to try to convince yourself. If it is hurt and you tell it is not it will reply with a shrug and say 'suit yourself, play your own games but I will not be party to your delusions'. My state of denial only made things worse so I now have to be realistic.
The Lochaber marathon was a big thing for me - it was one of my targets for the year, something I wanted to do feeling that I had prepared properly. Now I know that this is impossible. There is no way I can put in the necessary miles. I now have a new strategy: rest for a couple of weeks, cross training, and then getting back very gradually ( 3 miles 3 times a weeks and the upwards only when I think everything is fine). The long term is more important than one race and I want to make sure that I do not blow up and then give up.
I think that the essence o f running is continuity - and I have to find a way to maintain that. On Friday (when i made the decision to give up on Lochaber) I was incredibly low about quitting. However over the weekend I have come to believe that I am being positive - I am committing myself to the long term.
Reason No 11 for running: One race doesn't matter
Now I might have given the impression that this blog is written by a runner. It is not. It is written by an injured runner - a completely different sort of being. Injured runners are full of envy and frustration and tend to feel rather stupid because they know that mostly their injury was caused by lack of proper care (well at least this one does). The depths of my stupidity are rather frightening and I am embarrassed to admit to them but have to, if only to show what happens when you break almost all of the golden rules.
Mistakes of the Amateur part 1 - Getting injured
Rule No 1 - Do not change what works
I have always been forefoot striker, wearing cushioned shoes and running mostly off road, with very little hill work. This has been good and I have felt easy and relaxed doing this. However I have a tendency to tinker with things. I became quite interested in the threads on POSE (mainly because it seemed to be quite similar to my native style) and the idea that to run this way properly you needed to be as close to barefoot as possible. I thus followed a wave of enthusiasm for Puma H Streets and bought a pair of shoes that are no more that a soft mesh top stuck onto a thin strip of rubber. I took them for a jog round the park and found their lightness entertaining.
I had also been thinking that the lack of hills in my training was a weakness. At Abingdon I had no strength in the last 5 miles and I thought this was not only due to too few training miles but also to a lack of hill work.
Rule No 2 - Introduce change gradually.
OK I did give the shoes a short break-in but their arrival coincided with the plan to change the training, so the next run was a long, on a hilly route and all on pavements. So 3 things were changed at once breaking the scientific rule of of only changing one variable at a time.
The run felt fine but there was a problem running down some rather steep slopes. My usual way is to go floppy and run heel first. With these unpadded shoes I did not feel like doing this and ended up putting tremendous strain on my calves.
Rule 3 - Listen to your body
Although this is obvious I was in a state of denial. When I felt a little pain in my left shin I still went for the planned 45 minutes at steady pace (albeit on the flat). I thought that the way I ran should have been protected me against injury (thinking that is classified under the heading of pathetic fallacy) and that the twinges would be run off and amount to nothing. The first part was almost right but as soon as I stopped I knew that the left leg was a bit of a mess and I could not deny a classic case of shin splints.
Mistakes of the Amateur part 2 - Impatience
Rule 4 - come back gradually
I rested for a couple of weeks and things felt OK, not fully normal but OK. Instead of trying to build up my mileage gradually. I went straight back into my schedule as if nothing had happened. After a rather tough long run I knew this was an error. The result was a bit more rest and then a period of managing the running - just doing what I could. But all the time the twinges never fully went away.
Rule 5 - Don't make the same mistake twice
I then had flu and did not run for two weeks. This had two consequences. The first was that my leg felt quite a lot better because of lack of use. The second was that I was increasingly anxious about my lack of training. My plan was to run the Lochaber marathon and be in as good a shape as possible. But the running had been messed up and I felt out of condition. I felt I had to get back as quickly as possible. As a result I repeated my error and ran too far too fast and now my shin is still hurting.
Mistakes of the Amateur part 3 - Consequences
You cannot lie to your body - it does not understand the wordsyou use to try to convince yourself. If it is hurt and you tell it is not it will reply with a shrug and say 'suit yourself, play your own games but I will not be party to your delusions'. My state of denial only made things worse so I now have to be realistic.
The Lochaber marathon was a big thing for me - it was one of my targets for the year, something I wanted to do feeling that I had prepared properly. Now I know that this is impossible. There is no way I can put in the necessary miles. I now have a new strategy: rest for a couple of weeks, cross training, and then getting back very gradually ( 3 miles 3 times a weeks and the upwards only when I think everything is fine). The long term is more important than one race and I want to make sure that I do not blow up and then give up.
I think that the essence o f running is continuity - and I have to find a way to maintain that. On Friday (when i made the decision to give up on Lochaber) I was incredibly low about quitting. However over the weekend I have come to believe that I am being positive - I am committing myself to the long term.
Reason No 11 for running: One race doesn't matter
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