Goodbye 2013!!!!!!

Been neglecting my blog recently (again), just been too damn busy!

What's happened since last blog?

As I said, been a tad side tracked with external influences! Work is manic as always, now I've put myself through a college course to get myself some much needed qualifications!
I'm doing a full time course on top of my full time job, doesn't leave much time for anything else!! Don't even have much time for my gorgeous girlfriend or my mates!

So as I say good bye to 2013, I reflect back on an interesting year full of highs and lows, new challenges taken and beaten and attempts to improve my career dashed at the final hurdle!

I now put this promise to the web, to spend more time with those I love and to strive to improve myself, at work and home and to hone my running skills further.

I look upon 2014 with high hopes..........

Bad blogger

Haven't been a good blogger lately, unfortunately the non-digital world has taken over my time!

Still, I am continuing my quest for the next challenge. Debating triathlons and contemplating the next ultramarathon!

I've also buggered my neck! Obsolutely no idea how but it kills! Had to visit the chiroprator to get cracked back into place, a strange experience to say the least!!

Anyway I hopefully won't be out of action for long! Bring on the trails in the sunshine! My vibrams are calling!

Eat and run.........an ultra

It's been a few days since my ultramarathon, so I thought I'd let you in on a few insights I've learn......the hard way.
As I prepared for my first ultra I read many blogs, articles and asked the opinions of others. This in mind I bought a few supplies ready to take on the hills of the peak district.

As you see I thought carbs, carbs and more carbs! Actually this thought process turned out to be on the nose,  however what I did not for see was the amount which is supplied by the runs organisers. As I ran I refuelled more with the food on offer than the stuff I bought beforehand.  However, Jelly babies!! Never ate as many jelly babies in my life! They gave me the boosts I needed at times of low blood sugar and when I felt down.

Some of my running mates!!!

Other than the jelly babies,  I only ate one of the "mule" bars and the rest I'm slowly going through as part of my recovery snacks!

So far recovery is going well. I'm starting to be able to walk about now without moaning in pain at every step and I'm feeling more myself. So the prognosis looks good. I'll be up and running again in no time.

St Albans Half Marathon

Last weekend my mates and I took part in the St Albans half marathon! A very nice route was given to us, all on road but the route took us through residential areas and out into the sticks........and past the m1!

I was expecting it to be just a bit of training route for my ultramarathon next week,  however because I was running it with my mates.......I got caught up in the race and went a bit run happy!

The route surprised me a little, wasn't expecting hills because St Albans is quite flat! As I was running my training route now as a race I thought sod it and opened up down the hills! Now I don't know about the rest of you but I'm not a big fan of seeing a mile marker every single mile!!! I do sort of like to be surprised at how far I've gone!

And so after 1:51:31 I streaked past the finish line and a guy who appeared yo be a having a nasty moment or trying to gurn his way past the finish line!

Anyway, this time next week I will be running my Ultramarathon........wish me luck!!

The final countdown

2 weeks from now, I will probably be a broken man!

2 weeks from now I will be either finished with or still struggling to complete my first ultramarathon!

I am running from Manchester to Sheffield along the trans pennine raising money for cancer research uk.

My training has been going pretty well and I'm really starting to look forward to the challenge ahead of me!

So at 6:45 in 2 weeks time I will be donning my vibram spyridons and starting the 66 mile slog!

If anyone reading this would like to donate: www.justgiving.com/runbarefootdave

After I have finished this challenge of the fool, I will be on here to update the world (or the few of you that read this) on how things went!!

Wish me luck!

Monsoon running

Decided to do a pre-ultra run to my mates house and back. Would have been a good 30 round trip by my estimates........best made plans rarely go right huh!

As I was leaving, the heavens opened.......and never closed again! I know there was point where you just can't get wetter, I'm just not sure I've ever experianced it running!!!!!!
My route was simple enough, aim for my mates house and hit the canal towpath till I reach it. Unfortunately building work was to put a spanner in my plan, I was diverted to Tring and had to run up a big ass hill I had not expected. I blitzed it though, guess I'm fitter than I thought.

To keep me hydrated and energised I trial ran an idea of mine, fill my camel bac with a concotion of 2 litres of squash with 1 Tablespoon of sugar and a teaspoon of salt. The result was lucozade sport for a fraction of the price! This kept me going along with chocolate brownie made by my mates girl friend and the thought "surely this rain can't get worse"...............how wrong can I be??!

Around the 15 mile mark, the slight opening within the heavens cracked open fully, and a downpour like no other hit me in the face! It was at this point when I started brushing up against the "wall" all runners hit. It was also around this point I doubted my commitment to finish the full route. So when I slammed face first into the wall around mile 17 I decided that once I made it to my mates, I would be calling it a day.
However the were still 3 mile between me and a cuppa tea, so I literally talked myself into carrying on. If anyone else was around they would have seen a guy soaked to the skin, a camel bac under his jacket (giving me a hump quasimodo would have been proud of), wearing "those wierd toe shoe things" and yelling to himself to run!! What a sight I must have looked!!

Finally after just under the 4 hour mark, I arrived at my friends flat, looked down at my garmin watch and was surprised to see I'd run just under 20 miles! My estimsted run route was off by a good ten miles if I'd continued! Cursed rain!

Moral of this story? Make sure you are suitably well stocked to run a homemade ultra! And don't run a homemade ultra in monsoon conditions!!!!!

Ultra Nutter!

Okay......what has happened since we last spoke? 

Well, I seemed to have lost my marbles somewhat! Entered myself into my first Ultra!! Its a little crazy considering I have never even done a marathon!
Saying that my first run was hellrunner so I don't do these things by halves eh!

Anyhow, its the end of this month and I feel slightly prepared for it, still have a month to cram last min training in though!!

Bring on the 66 miles (100Km) of Transpennine joy, and I'll be running in my fivefingers!

Looong time no blog!

Been a while since I clicked on my blogger app, I thought I'd let you know what's been happening!!

Even though no blogs have passed through this fair app to say otherwise, I am still running........and thanks to some training I'm doing it efficiently!
When I got my first pair of Five Fingers, a course was offered to me. For a price a more efficient, evolutionary style of running was within my grasp! However like a fool I said maybe! So after claiming some PPI back and having some money to burn I thought, what the hell?

What you do is run relaxed and a more upright natural posture using an almost pilates approach with your core. Relax your legs and using little steps and many of them help you almost glide across the floor! Relaxing your arms and back, letting the "counter rotating" of your body power your legs.

Its kinda hard to describe the physics of it on here, you'll have to trust me!

http://www.ten-point.co.uk/

Five Fingers? Cold feet? Sorted!!

While running in Vibram Five fingers is liberating and feels better than running in trainers.......you do get cold toes!

Found a solution though!!

Angora sole inserts!

They stay warm even when wet!!!!

Problem sorted!!!

Yesterdays run!

Yesterday we had some random lovely sun shine! So decided to go for a nice long run!

Went up to the Ashridge Monument and commenced my normal run (pausing for a little photo opp!

As you can see, fantastic weather for a run! Went all the way down to invinghoe beacon but instead of turning around and heading back, I felt pretty good to attempt the 16 mile round trip of the Ashridge boundary trail.

Map in hand and the wonder of the trail markers left by the lovely people of the national trust I headed off towards the hills. 

However as with all best made plans, things went wrong! I must have missed a marker or something, ended up running a couple of miles in the wrong direction!!! Mood heading downward I followed my map back towards the trail. Saw loads of deer on the way and found myself back at the monument, figured that someone up there didn't want me to do the full 16 miles so I stuck with completing a nice 8.72 mile route.

Satisfaction achieved!!

Five Fingers down!!!!!!!!!

My poor Vibram Five fingers took a beating last weekend entering the Hellrunner, hell down south!

My personal damage healed pretty quickly. Its only taken a few days for my calves to recover and my left foot is fine now!

However..............my vibrams............have ripped!!!!
Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!
2 Months they've lasted! Gutted!

Ok as you see the tear isn't too bad! However its still bad! I love my shoes!!

God bless my textiles lessons in my middle school days! I can sew, they fore the damage has been sorted!

Time will tell, going for a run after work tomorrow. Hopefully the sewing will hold, watch this space!

Hellrunner!

Yesterday I, with a couple of thousand others, ran the 10 to 12 miles of Hellrunner - Hell Down

I did the same run 2 years ago, however this year I think route has been changed and is now a lot harder!!!! Not only because i was wearing my vibrams!

Me and my mates completed it within the 2 hour limit!! I think that's not bad!
More pics to come!

Been a while.......

Been away a little recently, blogger was sadly not on my mind.

Few things have been going on, been injured which annoyed the hell out of me, been a bit on the busy side of things at work and the world spins on.

Got hellrunner down south this weekend which I've actually trained for this time! Did it 2 years ago and managed a time of about 1 hour 55 mins! Hope to do better this time! Running in my vibram five fingers! Wish me luck!

Aghh knees!

First the calves now the gosh darn cursed knees!
Legs......running would be so much easier without them!!

So I'm gonna have to make do with using a gym membership that I haven't used for several months! Oh joy!!

Busy busy busy!!

Tough old week this one! Only half way through! Today I had several people in my face screaming at me and others around me! When did mob mentality become the norm??!

Anyway, tomorrow is a beautiful day off and to celebrate I'm back in the Fivefingers! Been giving them a miss recently due to road running, back on the trails tomorrow! Whoo hoo!!

Run to make myself feel better

Yesterday got some bad news. So today I went for a little jog today.....that turned into a near 7 mile run! Funny how you get lost within the rhythm!

Curse you Calf Muscles!!!

Last week I ran my favourite route in my favourite shoes using my new favourite running form........and paid the price!! Friday morning my calf Muscles on both legs were in so much pain I could barely walk without limping like an old man! Add the fact that on my run I missed judged where a rather large stone was and hit it right on my heel!! Ouch is not the word! So I've rested the whole weekend.

Training continues in the new week! I will conquer the half mile in my vibrams before Hellrunner!

Trail lovin'

I love running trails!

I'm lucky enough to live within the Chiltern hills in England which, other than being stupidly expensive to live in, has gorgeous countryside and some wicked trails.

One of which me and my mate run. Its a nice 6 mile route with nice scenery and more importantly its varied! Steady, hard and slow slopes followed by killer vertical climbs!

Next run planned for Friday. Gonna try for a long random trot through the country side.

Gotta also say.....the vibrams are performing beyond my wildest dreams!! Wicked!!

Five finger fun!!

Went for a run with my mate this morning and broke out the Vibrams!

Well I noticed a difference from the start! I felt quicker and more agile!
I was able to almost bounce from obstacle to obstacle with an ease that would be unheard of in normal shoes!!!

I was concerned my early attempt of five finger running would result in injury, but no injury!!! The only problem I have is slightly sore toes!

Countdown to Vibram!

Today I ran a new 6 mile route off and on road, a pretty good route!
Went through fields and along a river in the middle of nowhere. Apart from a fairly iffy moment involving a herd of peed off looking cows the route was great! Cleaned up my form nicely and it was painless!

I believe it may be time to break out the vibrams! Friday is D-day!! Just a short trip around the block is my plan.
This way I don't kill my calves lol!