Robin Hood Half Marathon 2014 - 5kaday - A front row fluke or precision training?

Alarm gone off way too early. Gritty eyes. Can you run a half marathon on 4 and half hours sleep? Time to find out.

Arlo our 2 year old is with us in bed, Thomas the tank engine has just fallen in the ravine that is the space under the bed. I'm up to rescue him, it's important work. 

Now a shower and thinking about the complicated subject of a pre race breakfast. False start on the shower due to potty retrieval. After much deliberation I've gone for shredded wheat. Bite size (obvs) no reason, might even have something else. Yep, mini wheetabix as well. All about the small stuff. Coffee, because I can't function otherwise, oh and water, didn't drink enough yesterday at all.

Breakfast done and I'm  at the window waiting for taxi man. He arrives late but only by a few minutes. He tells of traffic  beyond measure towards the Embankment where the Race village and start line is. he takes me on  a short cut, its blocked as we will be running that way soon. we double back and join the huge line of cars all heading for the same event. the clock ticks on, its 9.17am race starts at 9.30 and the meter reads £21. right that's it, we agree £20 and I'm out and running, the start line must be half a mile from here, call it the warm up. I pass a girl walking, "might as well call it 14 miles!" i say as i rush passed trying to be clever. "28 miles for me" she retorts. all of a sudden i feel insignificant.

I'm at the race site, OK, Loo ...Blimey lines and lines of portaloos and lines and lines of runners waiting. i drop my bag in to the kit tent first and then return to loo queue. rushing off to the start looking for the blue pen area, really thirsty, need the loo again. i finally find the group I'm in and i duck in. hang on this cant be right I'm at the start line on the front row! i can see the 3.45 full marathon pacers flag, well if i stick with him I'm on for a 1.50 half marathon time. i chatted to "Fat Matt" (his name for himself) who had come over from Essex with his other half who was running the full marathon. He told me that only a few months ago he was 20 stone and then he lost 7 of them! The chatting helped my heart rate drop a bit and i no longer need a wee, the klaxon sounds and we are off. I'd already ran some to get there on time so I'm warmed up and at pace almost straight away, 5 minutes 30 seconds I'm looking for on the watch. i look after 30 seconds and its bang on.

The first few miles taking in the station, down passed Riverside Retail Park and on to the Boots site was great, lots of talking with a nice quick but light pace. the weather seemed just the right side of warm with no real wind (that's the weather not me!) and so i felt good. I noticed others around us talkers looking rough and hardly able to breath properly, feeling smug..... for now.....

Along route i saw a few faces i recognised both running and spectating, no one saw me so i had to shout them out. The first hill was up through the west gate of the university in Beeston and it was shallower and shorter than some I'd trained on so found it quite easy. The difficulty came when i grabbed my first bottle just before the Uni gates, they were flexible packaging and had a spout that i just could not get in to. I sensed the same was happening to others as there were lots of full packages discarded as well as H20 explosions as competitors squeezed the life out of the packaging trying to get a drop of water out of the spout only to find the bag splits open and drenches them and those in close proximity, give us normal bottles next time please, even a cup is better than that!

Reaching the top of the hill, under the arch and out in the open to the sound of 'The Script' - 'Superheroes' playing really loud, that got the adrenalin pumping for the long down hill.

Once around Highfields Lake and out on to the dual Carriageway of University Boulevard, this is the first place i start to feel my legs had done something more than 5km and then it kicked in... "STOP AND WALK" my brain starts to shout.... nope!

I decided to obey the call as we approached Abbey Bridge, a short hill but enough to stall progress, i walk, just for 20 seconds or so and as i reach the top I'm off again, feel refreshed. As we run around the traffic island at the bottom of the Bridge i see a small group of girls holding a sign that says "touch for Power", there was a blue and white flash painted on the cardboard sheet they were all holding and people were hitting it as they went by, i too was sucked in by its claims and quite frankly is was a lie, a scam. I jogged on with a smile on my face, the sign had done its job.

If the first half of the race was a community of runners, conversing, whooping and smiling, the second half was very much an individual challenge, most people looking inward and staring blankly at the road 10 feet in front. you could be forgiven for thinking that you were running a different race. i tried to make the best of it, mentally blogging as i went as a distraction. By now we were in to the 9th mile and my thighs were hurting and weak, while my toes felt like every step was a hammer blow. I run very much on the front foot and have done for a while, but now the only way to give my feet any sort of hope was to shift to a gentle 'heel strike' and surprisingly it helped a lot. I think the problem was although i have run every day since January and my legs are strong and well up for the challenge of 13.1 miles, my feet weren't, they were used to hitting the road 5000 times a day on the 5km runs. now they are being forced to do 21000 steps and were drafting a stern letter to their MP. The embankment again and I'm running down by the river, as i turn on to the track i see my son Josh, he completed the mini marathon with a friend and came in 80th, he has been waiting to see me and ran at the side of me for a bit, until his mate fell over that is. It was really nice to see him and meeting up with him couldn't have come at a better moment, i must have been travelling at quite a pace as he said he could hardly keep up. 

As i looked to my right i could see the lucky competitors running in the opposite direction on the road back to the finish line, the problem being that from my position i couldn't see at what point the turn was. All the while hoping it was close i spotted it, damn it it was miles away! i stopped and walked again, feeling despair as the tiny distance that felt like travelling to the moon had made me stop. What are you doing you nutter? so close now! i wind up again and reach the small patch of grass that leads to road. It felt running up hill in custard and it was only a few metres! 

On the tarmac now, and i hear sickening thud as a runner hits the floor next to me, his friends crowd over him calling for help, he reaches his arm up and in a way that was reminiscent of  a movie where a soldier is mortally wounded said "leave me here, you go on!" I'm sure he  must have finished with "Save yourselves". The crowds are louder here this being the final straight to the finish, I've saved nothing for the final sections but I'm speeding up, i check the watch, less than 5 mins per Km, then 4.30, now 4.... ow! i stop dead,  i swear I've been shot in the back of the left leg yet i didn't hear a gun! Cramp, it gets tighter, the lack of water because of these stupid flexible bag things has got the better of me, why now after nearly 13 miles?! I man rushes over and as i look up to speak to him i swear loud, i then notice lots of faces all looking this way with sorry expressions. "You OK mate?" "Yeah cramp, ill be OK I'll walk it off, its these stupid bottles!" i splutter through tight lips. "Here, have my water" he pushes his half drunk bottle at me, i take the lid off and drain it, i would have drunk that if it was his urine at that point i think. He asks me if he should walk with me but i refuse. As i walk away i turn and thank him and within 10 seconds I'm running with a limp. by the time i get to the grassy section that leads to the finish I'm OK and running without a problem, there is no way I'm walking or appearing to struggle in front of the crowd here. They line the route and the noise is deafening. I hope Lisa and the kids have made it and i hope they see me, but I'm not looking for them I'm staring at the left hand corner that will take me and my stupid aching legs to the finish. I turn the corner and see the finish line and I'm running fast as i can the crowds noise seems to have doubled in volume and its carrying me. i see the gun time is 2 hours 4 mins and a few seconds, but that's not my time, I've not looked at the watch since before the cramp, how long did i walk for? I stopped the watch as i cross the finish but i failed to see the time.

I was hoping for 2 hours this year, in 2010 when i ran it last i did it in 2 hours and 35 mins. I know 2 hours is a massive leap so anything near that is amazing.

i check the watch but i can hardly see it..... 2... not 1!

1 hour 56 mins and 24 seconds!!

here is the link to the stats

Well I'm gobsmacked that's nearly 40 minutes improvement on last time.

I can hardly walk my feet feel like I've been running on sandpaper, i grab my medal, water and goodie bag and stumble off the kit tent to retrieve my bag. checking my phone trying to get hold of Lisa, she is by the first aid tent waiting, i bump in to my mate Pete, he looks as bad as me and came in just before me it seems. He asks if i have water, i have a bottle unopened so i pass it over. we share a moment of solidarity and of hard times and agree to meet the next day for the 5km run i have to continue with so i don't have to run it alone. we part company. i hobble off like a zombie collect my bag and drag my undead bones to meet Lisa and the kids. She was still at the tent waiting, "Well done" she said perhaps thinking I'd come in at 2 hours 4 minutes. "Was that your actual time?" i tell her the good news and she is just as pleased and amazed as i am, giving me a hug only to discover the sweatiest neck in the world! i sit on the grass where we met to change my trainers and as soon as i do my right leg cramps up.... nice.

we all stay for a bit longer, i buy a tee shirt, a burger, a coffee, donuts. we watch some of the runners coming in, some of them finishing like cheetahs and others like tractors, but all still finishers and that's all that counts.

Well done all those that ran on Sunday and those that didn't run, do it next year, you will hate it and love all at the same time!

I ran The Robin Hood Half Marathon this year as part of my 5kaday for a year challenge for Nottinghamshire Hospice and it was run 245. The first and only other Robin Hood half marathon I ran was in 2010 and I struggled through in 2 hours and 35 minutes. I tried a couple of longer distances a few months back and coped pretty well so thought I’d just continue with the shorter daily runs and force myself round on the day. Knowing that the 9 months out of my yearlong challenge for Nottinghamshire Hospice has raise over £2700 was great inspiration during the tough second half of sundays event. Local families rely on the vital support they get from the hospice so I know the money that’s raised is just as vital.

If you feel you would like to donate please go to www.justgiving.com/5kaday

Robin Hood Half Marathon - Sunday 28th September 2014 - Training

The first and only half marathon I ran was in 2010 and it was the Robin Hood Half  MarathonNottingham. It took me 2 hours and 35 minutes and I considered it a fail, I didn’t put enough effort in on training, no hills or speed work nothing, I barely covered enough distance week by week. I was surprised to be feeling so tired at just 7 miles in. I almost gave up and walked home as I passed the nearest point to my house. The only thing keeping me going was I had driven to the start so fetching me car would have been a pain. 2010 still included Wollaton Hall and this was about the hilliest section.

Most of the spectators stood along the track here and so as I walked most of it made me feel like an extra special looser. I ended up running/walking with a lady who appeared to look like I felt and we got through the final sections together. I’m running this years (2014) half marathon as part of my 5k a day challenge for Nottinghamshire Hospice. This year I have 2 things to worry about; 1. Can I complete the race? Well since they ditched the wollaton section its flatter so that’s one in my favour, I have ran an awful lot more recently (obviously), I have run a lot more hills and speed runs too, so I’m in much better shape to finish. 2. Will I be able to carry on running the next day? This concerns me more than the actual race. I have managed a couple of longer runs during my challenge so far as much as 20km so not much short of the 13 miles I  need to cover on the day. The first time I tried it I picked up an injury,

 just a small niggle in  my right calf that bugged me for about a month. Never the less I managed the distance with not much trouble. I’m going to try and run one more longer run before the day and perhaps a few 10kms as well as quite a bit of hill work just to make sure I’m as ready as I can be. There are lots of training schedules out there for half marathons but if you can spare the time there is nothing better than a daily 5km run to get you round. I am hoping to finish in 2 hours this time, that is a huge difference to the last one, if I manage it I’ll be knocking 35 mins off the time! Don’t forget I’ll be running everyday as always before and after the race so there will be no room for ‘tapering’. Tapering, for those not in the know, is a clever way of saying running less as the race day looms. The way I will do it is just run slower and walk a little bit during the days leading up and then  the opposite after the day. As far as energy drinks are concerned, I’m not going to bother, just water for me and then plenty of protein after to help my muscles repair quicker. The last time I ran 20km I went after a busy day with a 500 ml bottle of water. It was no way near enough but I got round, the worst bit was getting in to trouble for being out so long and not helping with the bedtime routine! Oops Sorry!

Fingers crossed I’ve done enough to manage a good run and maybe even a good time too.

As always your donations will help me along as they have so far in the challenge www.justgiving.com/5kaday

Run 182 - Half way

2.54km, I stopped, cheered and jumped about. Half way exactly, Its all downhill from here, I hope not – that will make my quads ache.

This mini celebration took place during the Half way run event at Rushcliffe Countrypark on Sunday 27^th July. That means I have completed my 182^nd 5km run. I found myself running with Adam again, must be a matching pace thing and when I stopped at half way to revel he carried on running shouting “what you stopping for?” How to ruin a poignant moment!

With a couple of Facebook messages a few days before the day I was able to get around 8 runners to help me mark the 100^th run and we thought the next milestone should be half way but this time we should put a bit more effort in. The venue was the first thing to consider and what better than using a place already used to runners completing a 5km run. Rushcliffe Country Park holds a parkrun every week of the year and so would be perfect. The team at the Hospice had arranged the whole thing and did a tremendous job, from setting up a simple way of registration through EventBrite to organising first aid, marshals and even cakes and refreshments. The formal registration meant that all runners had a bib number so all the finish times were recorded too, my bib number was ‘001’ I felt no pressure to finish first. The run was started at 10.30am by Michelle from the hospice and Rebecca Drysdale who is the current Miss Nottingham, (I have still to get her in trainers for a run) and around 30 of us left the start line on this very hot Sunday morning. I'm not used to running at this time of day preferring the early morning or late evening, so I was feeling the heat. I set off from the front along with my son J

osh and and Peter McConnochie a fellow runner and photographer, the last time we ran together Josh out ran us and by the way Pete set off I guessed he was not going to let that reoccur, needless to say I saw neither of them until the finish line. Pete came in with a very respectable time of 22 minutes 13 seconds and Josh was 1 minute behind him. At 12 josh has age on his side so I doubt he will be able to hold him off for very long.

Adam and I crossed the line at 25 minutes 41 seconds, one of our fastest joint runs I reckon. Everyone who ran came in looking very warm so the heat really played a part. Simon Ross and Lisa Tandy arrived ‘home’  in first and last place respectively they are Brother and sister so this felt quite fitting that they should ‘bookend’ the pack. As everyone moved to the visitors centre for refreshment I was interviewed for The Beestonian (see the article here). By Matt the editor and Mel, who works with Matt was roped in to run. Thank you to them for taking the time to come over and speak to me. While people enjoyed a cuppa and a cake there was a raffle draw for the £50 decathlon voucher, this was won by Gary Robertson. All in all is was a fantastic way to mark the half way point of the challenge because not only has it given me a real boost to continue on it has also boosted the donations as the unofficial total stands at £335, £150 of that was from runners registration and the rest was from refreshments, proving that exercise is alright… but its not as good as cake.

Thank you very much to all who help organise the event and to all those who ran and /or donated on the day, It was a great to see such support for both the challenge and the charity.

Are you a runner? Join me on my half way run and enter a draw to win stuff!

The half way run is only a couple of weeks away now and you can help me run it!

All you need to do is register for the run and you are in with a chance of winning a £50 Decathlon voucher. Entering the half way 5k run, which takes place at Rushcliffe Country Park on Sunday 27th July costs £5.95 and £5 goes straight to the challenge in aid of Nottinghamshire Hospice.

Not only is there a £50 decathlon voucher to be won there are also Nottinghamshire Cricket Club tickets for the Royal London One-Day Cup available too. We have 8 pairs of tickets available for matches in August and to become eligible just register for the run and get in touch to say you would like a ticket.

Click here to be redirected to the Hospice page and enter the run.

A quick look at how I'm holding up nearly 6 months in.

After making the decision to take on this challenge  last October I started to think about running more. I was running 2 to 3 times a week at that point and I think that was being generous really as some weeks I didn't run at all.

I knew that running was the best thing I'd found that kept my weight down, I could always lose weight if I really forced myself to eat well, although I would rather omit foods from my diet rather replace with a healthy option. This is a stupid way of losing the pounds but it worked for me, the problem was it never lasted very long and after a few months id be back to feeling uncomfortable in my clothes and complaining that they'd shrunk in the wash again. So I started to up the running and by that I mean just running more often, one extra to start with. I did this by reducing the mileage and increasing the frequency, rather than running 5 miles 3 times a week id run 3.1 miles (5k) 4 times a week. I ran through November and into December until I was running at least 5 times a week. During Christmas I think I only took Christmas day and new year’s eve off. It made sense to me to have a go at running often as I could, not only to start to get my body used to the amount of daily exercise I was going to be throwing at it but also to get my mind ready too.

With the new year now firmly with us I turned my attention to the challenge ahead so I kept up with the mentality and ran as often as I could. I’d been a good boy and Santa had been kind leaving me a few quid in my stocking. As the others had had it before I started in October I was able to purchase some new running shoes and I began to look at how I was running, was the style I used going to help me plough through 12 months of daily exercise, or is going to hinder my progress? I have always been a ‘Heel striking’ runner and this was a very conscience thing. It involves rolling on the foot from heel to toe as your shoe contacts the floor. The theory being that it creates a smoother action thus producing less of a jolt in the joints and back as you progress. I had to more or less teach myself to this as I was naturally a flat footed runner and I knew that this was definitely not the way to keep injury at bay. I have been ‘heel striking’ for years and it has worked well but I found it had a tendency to limit my pace because the faster my pace the more it was like putting the brakes as my heel contacted to pavement. It also seems to make my body upright and almost forced me to lean slightly back.

Improving my overall times was going to need a change in my running style. Now I’m not trying to become the next Bolt  here because after all its going to be about longevity and not speed but there is a lot to be said for leaning towards the direction of travel and once I started to do that I found I was naturally running more ‘midfoot’ I made a conscience effort to keep my heels off the floor just enough to allow some spring, this helps to take the pressure off the joints and makes for a quiet run as well. The downside to this new style I've adopted is the amount of extra effort and strain on the calf muscles. I really wasn’t prepared for the pain I suffered while I readjusted. I had to perform various calf and hamstring stretches a lot more than usual for around 3 months and the first months runs after changing my style were really hard. I’m through it now and I now run just slightly forward on my foot (hard to explain), I don’t get any pain from my calves or joints at all and over the last 6 months I have shaved off at least 5 minutes on a 5km run which I think is pretty incredible considering I’m not a real runner, I just run. Another great tip I was given which really seems to work for me is breathing properly, Concentrate on the getting all the breath out fast and on the breath in, try a double breath as I was finding that I wasn't really using all of my lung capacity and on the odd time I did it actually hurt a bit. I also find that if I time the inhale with 2 strides it really helps get a rhythm going. After all if you can’t get oxygen to the muscles what good is having them strong? I know this all sounds stupid; learn to run – Learn to breath! Surely all this is stuff we all know how to do right? Well I’m not sure it is, it’s like anything we do, the most efficient way of doing things doesn’t always come naturally to us but a little effort in the right areas can make a massive difference.

I’ve gone through a long period of adjustment generally, I struggled with knee pain for a few weeks that came on towards the last 2km of a 5km run, it worried me a little, so much so that when it first came on I started looking in to different solutions to combat it. One of the things I enquired about was the use of Aloe Vera, they put it in drinks and market it as, well, it sounds stupid but they market it almost as a joint lubricator, a WD40 for the body. They suggest that runners have gone from struggling to walk to be being able to run marathons by using it, that is one hell of a claim. Of course there is very little evidence to suggest any of this stuff actually works, if any. I had a wedding photography client who just happened to be a doctor who put it very well saying that, there is no money in attempting to prove the authenticity of these claims and products, time is better spent in finding cures for disease. so even if these things are working we are unlikely to get any concrete evidence. That being said there is no telling of the placebo effect, if it works in reality or in the mind, it still appears to work and if it helps then why not. Anyway back to the actual issue, my knee pain, I had quite a severe sprain on my ankle due to fall whilst running a few years back and my weak ankle was always at the front of my mind whilst running. To be honest it still dominates my thoughts on rough ground and grass.

The more I ran the more I spent time analysing my body as I went and I started to get the impression I was stiffening up my right ankle joint to try and protect it from twisting unnecessarily. This had to be a contributing factor to my knee pain so I started to relax the whole leg as much as I could, not completely I might add, that would have been stupid, but just enough between strides. After a few runs I found the point in which the pain started was later in to the distance until it was completely non-existent. Thank god for that because once you start down the road of self-diagnosis online you end up with one week to live.

I’ve not had a lot of back pain really either which has been great, although I do suffer from a stiff vertebrae in my upper back at my shoulder area, this is quite common and has caused some severe pain before I started the challenge. At its worst I can breathe in fully and it stops me sleeping so I knew I needed to get to the bottom of it before I started on the challenge. I dragged myself to the doctor after a particularly rough week during a visit to 'Center Parcs' (I'm always ill there!) and he was good enough to refer me for some physio. The appointment came through really quickly which was more than an a welcome thought as I was now struggling to stand for more than a few minutes without having to find a seat to puff, blow and complain on, I could barely stand to wash the pots!... not a ploy I assure you. I had 5 sessions with the NHS physio who was amazing, I only had 15 minute session which mostly consisted of her pressing her thumbs down hard om my back bone forcing the locked vertebrae to move, not fun. I was also given advice not to sit for long periods, 30 minutes was the maximum time suggested and I was give 3 exercises of twisting and stretching of which I did 3 times per day. After the fifth session I was discharged with a much improved spine and we had clean plates again, what joy to be able to stand and even sleep for long periods without moaning. Mind you, I still moan but for a whole host of new reasons that change almost daily.

Aches and pains come and go and initially I felt as if all would be well as I did quite rudimentary static stretching, but the more I ran, the more I hurt. I read a lot about Shin Splints and was keeping my fingers crossed that I would be spared this ordeal and to a degree I have been although the shin area of my legs don't need much of a knock these days to make me yelp. The worst pain I have had has been in my right calf, it has been a severe pressure pain inside my muscle and was worse while walking. To start with I was convinced I was looking at compartment syndrome (damn you Dr Google!). I'm still not entirely sure what it was, but it has subsided and I'm relieved. After a couple of months a living social email dropped in to my inbox as they do every 20 minutes, for once I took the time to read it. It had details of a company offering sports therapy in West Bridgford. The voucher was £20 or you could buy 2 sessions for £38, I bought 2. Victoria the physio I met was extremely good, I completed a medical questionnaire and we discussed my reasons for coming along. She was quite taken by the challenge and offered to support my on a regular basis at a reduced rate. Over the next couple of months she worked with me to get my legs as good as they could be offering some great advice on stretching, diet, what I could realistically accomplish at home as far as self physio was concerned. I bought a foam roller on her advice and its perhaps the best thing I did, as it is an amazing way to get those knots out in my quads. there has been moments where I had pain in my legs and the only way was to roll them on the roller on the most painful areas, the problem was my brain just didn't want to let me, I couldn't bring myself to inflict that sort of pain on myself. So the only way was to get someone else to do it for me, so I lay on the floor on my left side and I Asked Lisa my partner to roller a wooden rolling pin on the leg. I asked her to do it as hard as she dared, That woman has no fear! it hurt so much I was sweating more after a few minutes of that than I do on a run, mind you, it worked a treat because the next day the pain had almost gone. The old adage 'No Pain, No Gain' really is true.

The Wollaton Hall 10k race

I woke with a jolt at 6am "Good morning, welcome to Saturday" my 2 year old seemed to be saying by stamping it out in Morse code on my ribs! This was becoming one of my least favourite ways to wake. Mind you, I'm always grateful to get the chance. Today was Wollaton Hall 10k day. I'd collected my chip, bib number and bright orange race T shirt the day before from the Sytner Mini showroom as recommended in the email. It worked out well as i had a physio session at 4.45 nearby so i could pop in on the way back.

The sad news was Victoria, my brilliant Physio was finishing and moving to Cambridge, she has been amazing in teaching me how to self-treat between sessions by using a foam roller, a tennis ball and I've even had Lisa my partner use a rolling pin when its been that bit too painful and  no matter what i do i just can't bring myself to put all my weight on the area in question. Of course the rehab sessions have been amazing too, I'm not sure i would feel as good as i do now without some pretty intense appointments, I often came away sweating more from 45 minutes laying down than i have from a 5km run. Anyway its Saturday and I'm up now, I feel rough, I'm still getting over my '720 hour thing', its like '24 hour thing' just longer, I'm amazed how long a simple cold can hang about pouring glue in to my face on a nightly basis. I wouldn't normally bother before a run but i need a shower.

I was going to run from home to the start... I didn't.

This is the first organised 10k race I've done since 2010 when i entered the 10k pudding run in Heanor. Its called 'the Pudding Run' because it takes place about a month before Christmas, the route takes you past the 'Matthew Walker' Pudding Factory and you receive a Christmas Pudding at the finish. That run ends in a horrible uphill section and just before that i remember running past the turning for a few minutes before i realised my mistake. I completed that one in 1 hour and 6 mins, today i was hoping for under an hour. It was quite busy and the field near the start was full of people in orange as we were all asked to do so by the organisers, apparently Sytner were making a video of the event. I wasn't wearing mine i had donned my Hospice running vest of course. We were all treated to a safety briefing of which i heard very little of and then herded through 2 small gates, one gate after the other at the top of the field. claxon sounded and we were off.... walked a bit.... and we're off ... walked a bit more.... right that's it, I'm through the timing gates, start the watch timer and look for 5.30 minutes on the pace.

This seemed to take ages as there was reported to be around 500 runners attending. We gathered at the start and i spotted a few people i knew, we had a brief chat, i noted a few nervous bladders in the men as some dashed to the bushes on either side of the track.

Another garbled briefing and then just as we were about to set off they drove a black mini through the centre of the crowd of runners! I set the watch ready to start, I also had the chip strapped to my right shoe on the laces as instructed, The

Wollaton Hall is a fantastic setting for the run, the route involved running 2 laps and wound through the grounds nicely with a few tight sections where you had no choice but to slow down and get in single file. They certainly made good use of the inclines as there seemed more up than down and I'm not sure that's even possible. There was a great down hill section just after a tight rooty bit where the grass opened right out, as usual I threw myself down doing some of best overtaking, downhills are a great way to add speed without any extra effort and if you get it right you can improve your position and get a breather all at the same time. It threatened rain all the way round but luckily it held off, a bit of a drizzle would have been quite refreshing. The second lap I found tougher, being as it was another lot of 5k and with the off-road course and hills my legs were like pieces of string flapping about in the wind. It really made me question my fitness for the Robin Hood half marathon in September. I have got to be running more 10k's and including lots more hill work at least to be able to make it round in one piece.

As is usual with these things my watch recorded the route at less than 10k, it did that during the Erewash 5k run in May and I had to run extra when I arrived home. Luckily I spotted it as I crossed the finish so carried on the extra 0.25km to make up 10k. I may have appeared a bit of a loon as I continued up the hill after everyone else stumbled to a stop straight away and queued to have the chip removed from their shoe. I watched 10 km's click over on my watch and finally stopped running, i walked back to get my chip cut off and then walked back to the car. The mic was open and in the hand of a presenter on a small mobile stage in the next field as i hobbled passed, i unlocked the boot and pulled a full bottle of chocolate flavour recovery drink from my bag as prizes were given out. I don't recall all the winners announced except one, it was the first male over the line, his time was 32 minutes.....32 minutes?! he could have ran almost a half marathon in an hour at that pace! My legs carried me over the line in 53 minutes according to the website.... i am way too old for this crap.

Center Parcs, Rain and the Unbreakable Bruce

Just back from a few days at Center Parcs (the Sherwood Forest site), of course i still had to run and what a place to do it. Its long flat roads carved in to the forest floor with huge tall pines guarding the timber villas made it a fantastic running environment. I'm always ill when we go and this trip was no exception, coming down with a pretty (or no so pretty) bad cold just a few days before was not a surprise as id been feeling a bit run down, having a bit of  stressful time with work, the illness and the  endless running is taking its toll.

Stress seems to show itself in my lower back causing a tightening sensation that stiffens me up quite a bit. The break is over due. Id hoped that i could get a run in with a few of the staff at the Parc but due to our trip coinciding with a grand opening of a new facility elsewhere in the country it was not a good time for them.

Our villa was only a couple of minutes walk from the Village Square and that's always a bonus as it means we don't need to hire bikes. I had the map in the welcome pack so was intending to sort out a route for the runs but i didn't get to look at it until a few minutes before i set off on the Friday evening for the first run i soon decided just to go out and see where i end up after all its well signposted and i knew the basics having been  few times before.

The worst part about Friday evenings is the amount of vehicles there are on the roads as everyone gets to drive to their respective villas so they can off load, they must return to the central car park that evening and anyone that doesn't gets stickers on the windscreens asking them to move it So dodging all the guests on the roads queueing to get back to the car park wasn't fun. Its surprising how much their presence irritates  as you do get the feeling as someone from the land of Pedestra that you have the right of way.

The most notable run during the break was the one I completed on Sunday evening. The eldest 2 kids had just been collected by my mum and dad as they both had school on the Monday and keeping them out of school for a day now carried similar punishment to armed robbery, the weather looked kind, the sun was cooling off a touch and there was no wind to speak of, so as we arrived back at our villa now was deemed to be a good time to get the run out the way. I emerged from the bedroom having changed to find different weather all together, the sun was gone, the clouds had muscled in  and it was starting to rain. Well there was no way I’m hanging around until it brightens up, so off I went, I had yet to run In a proper storm and today I was going to get the chance.

Deciding to run passed the tree houses so I could ogle at how the other half ‘mini-break’ was todays plan. These places are fantastic looking made completely of wood with a sloping bridge leading around the structure appearing to literally be built around a tree. After the that I think I took a wrong turn. I've always been terrible at following my nose and I need to travel the same route 5 or 6 times before I can do it without prompts so it was no surprise that I now found myself in an area of the parc I’d never seen before, I didn’t mind, in fact that was the point of not looking at the map. Running through the trees I felt as if I’d really found Sherwood Forest which sounds odd being as the parc is built within it. And I suppose that’s the right word ‘built’ as even though the forest is clearly all around and the buildings are sympathetic to it, it does seem heavily built up. It was raining pretty hard by now as I broke out on to the road and thunder and lightning was now in session, for some reason I found the forest canopy quite a comfort as without it I imagined my skeleton flashing bright white through my skin after a lightning strike.

I ran towards another runner covered in a large black waterproof coat that remained me of the one worn by Bruce Willis in the film ‘Unbreakable’. The coat was so big that I didn’t notice that he was also pushing a guy in a wheelchair, he too was wrapped in a very similar coat with just his face showing. I recall spotting the two of them in the pool earlier the man in the chair was being carried around the pool by the other and I remember thinking he was a bit of a hero at the time. Bruce Willis played a reluctant super hero in the film, how apt. “race you!” shouted running man I said something like “I think you would win” as the rain had washed my get up and go away by then. “all this for a Sunday dinner” he replied. For a few seconds I ran alongside them but when they slowed I carried on at my pace and we slowly separated until the gap was too big to converse. I took a few photos and videos before I arrived back at the villa, my shoes were buckets of water and my clothes couldn’t be any wetter if I had fallen in the lake. I had no choice but to strip off outside and leave a soggy pile of garments in the porch, a quick shower, dry clothes and a takeaway there surely is no finer end. The guy that delivered the Indian suggested he probably saw me running in the rain, no doubt wondering who the nutter was. I had intended to run around the parc again the next day before we left but the trainers were still too wet I almost brought both pairs along but went with just the one pair as after a short discussion with myself it was agreed that you can prepare just a little too much… not so in this case.

Focus on Hospice services - Where your money is going - Day Therapy

I'm sure a lot of people have heard about the 5k a day challenge now and that it is all about raising money for Nottinghamshire Hospice, thank you all for putting up with the constant digital cattle prodding to get you all the donate.

Sunday 27th July will mark the half way point and over the next few weeks leading up to it I'm going to be focussing on the individual services offered by the hospice to patients and their families to give you some information about what your money is helping to pay for. 

Nottinghamshire Hospice is committed to ensuring the best possible palliative care for adults with a life limiting illness, and to giving respite and support to their carers.

Thank you to anyone who has been kind enough to donate to the Justgiving page or who is planning to.

Please donate at www.justgiving.com/5kaday

This week the spot light is on the Day Therapy services.

The following text is taken from the hospice website - www.nottshospice.org

A dedicated team of very experienced health care professionals, supported by volunteers, provide individualised holistic care encompassing the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of people attending Day Therapy, in comfortable and relaxing surroundings.

Everyone is treated with dignity and respect and new ideas are always welcomed. Day Therapy is provided free of charge to people in the Nottingham area. A Day Therapy Nurse assesses every new referral at home, and consent from GPs and consultants will then be obtained.

Referrals for Day Therapy are welcomed from any health or social care professional for anyone with a life limiting illness who is in need of palliative care and thought to be in their last year of life.

What to expect in Day Therapy

Day Therapy provides a wide range of services in order to support the range of people who come to Nottinghamshire Hospice.

 

Professional Services Provided

As well as offering a comfortable, superbly equipped non-hospitalised environment, our Day Therapy facility provides a range of services.

 

Daycare FAQs

Here are responses to some of the questions we are asked most frequently about Daycare at Nottinghamshire Hospice.

To read more about the sections above click here to be directed to the hospice page.

Comments from patients

“We have so much fun and the laughter hardly ever stops. If I wasn’t here, I would be at home just sitting in my chair and wishing my days away. Here, I have made new friends and the care given by the staff is wonderful - my days may be numbered but my time is full to the brim”

"The love here has brought about a complete transformation in me"

“It’s like having a second family"

“Marvellous staff, great food and good company!”

“What would I change about the Hospice? Absolutely nothing!”

“I’m proud to tell my friends I come to the Hospice; it’s a wonderful place.”

Cameras and Kalenji's at The FA Headquarters

Running and photographing with the FA at St Georges Park was today's task and waking with what felt like hayfever coming on that was not going to be an easy task. I don't get hayfever, why am i getting it this year? Stupid pollen!

cameras and Kalenji's

I'd kitted up the night before so i would be rushing about this morning but inevitably i still ran out of time and i was rushing. This was the first time I'd needed camera gear and running kit for the same venue on the same day and there seemed to be way too many bags. A quick check... Fuji kit bag? check... Canon body - lens - extender?... check. Monopod?... check. trainers?... check. shower gel, towel?... check. T-shirt for signing? ... yes yes check. That's everything, oh hang on running gear... where has that gone... ah, I'm wearing it! in that case i need a change of clothes..... right that's everything i think. I arrived at the park in Burton on Trent at about 11.30am and considering all the signage on the way and the satnav the entrance came as a surprise to me and i nearly missed the turn. Standard.

driving the long drive up to the car park at SGP

Parking in the 'additional parking area' was about as far away from the entrance to the Football Centre as i could get it turned out, so getting over to reception wearing all the bags was an interesting walk. i signed in and watched people arrive outside wearing running gear while i drained the water cooler, more and more arrived until there was at least 10 runners warming up outside the entrance to the centre. Wow! that's a great turn out. Unbeknown to me the FA staff are an enthusiastic bunch and Jenny Morley (Senior FA Tutor Workforce Coordinator) was one of the best organisers, she is the girl you contact first if you want something sorting, so it looks as if we had struck gold. 

Kalenji and me waiting in reception

Waiting for runners to arrive

Jenny briefing us on the route

My involvement with the FA started a few years ago when Craig Lee (Football Development Officer at the Nottinghamshire FA) came along to one of my beginners photography workshops. We had a chat about what he was hoping to achieve with his new knowledge after the session had finished,  but just before he left he suggested that there may well be opportunities for me to help out with projects from time to time. As he left i felt quite positive about the chance meeting until i realised i called him 'Lee' not Craig as he left! Great now i look like a prat, that's the last time i hear from him. Well as it turned out that wasn't the case and since then i have spent quite a bit of time working with them on various projects, one of my favourites being the Notts FA annual Awards.

the last FA awards

When planning who to get on side for help with the 5k a day challenge the Notts FA we always top of my list but to my surprise they contacted me first, I arranged a meeting with them at the hospice one Friday afternoon at the end of January, just a few days after the challenge began. A potential run at St Georges park was one of the things to come out of the meeting, Craig was confident he could reach the right person to help us organise something and that person was Jenny Morley. Jenny had left no stone unturned and had been able to persuade about 18 people to give up a lunch break and run a 5k. As well as that she had organised a small road block, marshals at critical points on the route, a golf buggy or two and she had even run the route that morning to make sure she measured it out correctly.

Road block

We were about to set off when i realised my watch hadn't found its satellite signal so i asked for a slight pause while it 'had a think'.

still talking routes.... I'm lost!

After way to long it was suggested that the building was perhaps sheltering the device and once we were clear of the structure it would find me and sure enough it did. i settled in to quite a fast pace so after a while we were in 3 groups with quite a gap between us all, feeling a twang of guilt, i hung back with the trailing few and helped them along and then sprinted up to the middle group. It was my fault these people were running today, the least i could do was chat to them. after a while i tried a go at getting back up to the leaders, no chance, I'll stick to the middle now, I'd gone the wrong way once already. We were cheered and applauded to the finish by the leaders but unfortunately my watch read 4.2k so i had to continue on, i didn't want to have to run later like i did after the Erewash 5k just to make 5km. The guy running with me offered to keep me company for the 'extra' bit and we ended up running 5.5km. See the route. 

i have to say i was extremely pleased and impressed with everything i saw and was involved with today and i really couldn't believe the effort that had gone in to it. I showered and changed and i was ready to be photography Andy instead. 

outside the football centre

top advice

The FA toilets... heads will roll!

Loved this, was outside the centre on the wall

I will be photographing this years Notts FA awards evening as usual. but i will be donating all of my fee to the challenge. We are also hoping to get a bit of publicity on the night as well as organising another run later in the year, but his time somewhere more local. 

Thank you to Craig and Jenny and  everyone involved in the run at SGP and whatever is to come.

Have a look at why I'm doing this challenge on the hospice website

Please donate at www.justgiving.com/5kaday

Thank you