13 Weeks To Go - Gentse Feesten

Monday 27th July, 2009

Two good length runs this weekend, a total of 13.5 miles, the longest one 7.64 miles, and a trip to Belgium's annual Gentse Feesten.



The Gentse Feesten runs each year for 2 weeks in Ghent, a town 30 minutes by train to the north west of Brussels. It was my first visit to the city and I was surprised at how gorgeous it is: cobbled streets, canals, 900 listed buildings. And great shopping.



The music and theatre festival is Europe's third largest festival after Germany's Oktoberfest and Valencia's Falles. It starts each year on the Saturday before Belgian national day (July 21) and runs for ten days. There are stages in each of Ghent's main squares with organised acts and small street acts like buskers and acrobats run alongside. The last day of the festival is called De dag van de lege portemonnees, the day of the empty wallets!

















www.gentsefeesten.be

My runs were much less exciting, I am getting stuck in the same route: from my flat down to the Bois de la Cambre, same route through the park and then a few laps of the pond. Need to change it up!











The stats:
Distance: 7.64 miles
Time: 1 hr 10 mins, 12 seconds
Pace per mile: 9 mins 11 seconds
Calories: 803

Fell Over

Wednesday 22nd July, 2009

Running didn't go well today. I was really tired but felt like I should go out anyway, given that the marathon is approaching.

It was a bad idea. The tiredness and the uneven Belgian pavements conspired to send me flying across the road, my ipod smashing on the floor. I was shaken up and my knee really hurt but I decided to carry on anyway, making just over three miles before stopping and walking the rest of the way.











I can't get a good picture of the other knee but it has a massive bruise on it.

Two Weekend Runs

Monday 20th July, 2009


Two short runs this weekend and a lotta Belgian beer. My two runs were each of just over 3 miles, which was fine for me. I am going to try and pack in a few longer ones this week and one looooong one at the weekend.

My exploration of Belgian beers is going to have to take a back seat as I ramp up the marathon training. These beers are seriously strong.

This weekend I tried Belgian favourite, the Chimay Bleue - a dark ale which packs a whopping 9% alcohol. Chimay - in the very far south of Belgium - has been a centre for cheese and beer production since 1862 when Cistercian Trappist monks began brewing to generate cash.

I liked the beer - it has a creamy bitter sweet taste - but it is very heavy and I couldn't take more than one.



www.chimay.com

10k

Thursday 16th July, 2009


Today I discovered that if I run from my house to the forest and then twice around the pond, I make about 10k.


Having not been out for a few days, I was keen to get a good run under my belt to reassure myself that I was still "a runner".


Ususally I find the first 2 miles or so the hardest, so battling through those I pumped up the i-pod and pushed on, keeping running the whole time (try to ignore that massive v-shaped dip in the middle of the running chart below).

Felt AMAZING at the end. Bring on the marathon!













Ran: 6.22 miles or around 10k

Time: 58 mins 31 seconds

Pace per mile: 9 mins 24 seconds

Calories: 654

The Grim Reality

Monday 13th July, 2009

Short post today as I am not feeling that positive about the task ahead. Went out and managed a measly 3.75 miles in 39 minutes.

That's ok, according to the New York Marathon's Basic Marathon plan. I remember from my last marathon that it is more important to go running regularly - read five days a week - to keep your muscles used to running, than to push yourself to go further each time.

I hope this is true...

Victoria Beckham runs 4 miles a day, seven days a week, according to this story in U.K. tabloid, the Sun:

"I run four miles, seven days a week," Posh Spice said. "I feel energised and healthy - there are really nice gyms here and I just enjoy it. I need that self-discipline to get up in the morning, drop the kids off at school then go to the gym. I can think properly then go home and do some work. But I do feel so much better.

"David puts music on my iPod and Gordon Ramsay bought me trainers where you have a little chip so you can clock how far you're running."

VB is a NIKE+ user too - I wonder if her screen has an error on it??

Summer Rain

Saturday 11th July, 2009

One of the frustrating things about Brussels is the erratic weather. The climate changes at a pace more rapid than any other city I have lived in or visited.

You can be sitting in a pavement cafe, sipping coffee in the sunshine and within a matter of minutes black clouds will have gathered, prompting a ferocious torrent of rain.

The Belgian sky. In JULY:















This morning: I dressed for my run - it was sunny - but no sooner had I donned my running shoes the rain started. In the end I went out and ran for about half an hour in the rain. Pretty unpleasant. Retired to the gym. Oh, and my Nike+ Sportsband seems to have given up the ghost too. Not. A. Good. Day.

There's an interesting article on geeky-blog Wired about running barefoot and how it's supposed to be better for you:

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/07/barefoot/

The Big M: New York

10th July, 2009

113 days to go until the ING New York City Marathon on November 1st and training has to start.









I am really excited by the challenge of running New York. The race is one of the World Marathon Majors and goes through all five boroughs of the city, finishing in Central Park. It has more than 35,000 runners, two million spectators and 315 million television viewers.













Starting to train for a marathon is very daunting. I remember back to early 2008 when I started to build up to the Edinburgh marathon - the task ahead is so big and incomprehensible you can start to think you'll never be able to do it.

One thing is for sure, Marathon training requires a lot of preparation and a lot of determination. Mental strength is key: both to pushing yourself out of the door to run 12 miles on a rainy Sunday afternoon when you'd rather be watching telly, and also to carrying yourself around the course, especially those final five or six miles.

Most marathon experts advise 12-18 weeks of preparation - with 12 as an absolute minimum. There are roughly 16 weeks to go now and it's time to step up to the plate!

The NYC Marathon website has training plans here

I am going to use one of those - meaning I will have run over 400 miles by November - and combine it with other activities - tennis, yoga, aerobics and weights in the gym.

My goal is to be able to show a marked improvement in my fitness and in my body shape and also to get comfortably around the marathon course without injury. WISH ME LUCK!

http://www.ingnycmarathon.org

Malta

Jun 23rd-30th, 2009

Holidays took me to the southern Mediterranean isle of Malta. Foolishly I packed my running kit. I did make it out running once - 3.26 miles round the beautiful St Julian's Bay - early in the morning when the heat wasn't too much. My route and some pictures below.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Julian%27s

http://www.choosemalta.com/en/about-malta/webcams.php