Posts

Posted Jan 31, 2013

Wow, the final day 31 already - that went past like a rocket! A good, pointy, fast one, too. I came across it first through a community on Twitter; in participating, I've felt part of a group of similarly-minded people, manifested in a rather enjoyable on-line but disparate community. I still haven't actually met any other Janathoner in the flesh, for instance, but don't feel this has detracted at all. (And Saturday is rather busy, sadly!)

Posted Jan 31, 2013

... crash and burn when life has other ideas. I was supposed to be doing another hot yoga session this morning. However, a rather late "tax return" session meant I would only manage 4 hours of sleep: forget it! With the rest of the day then full of work (productive, but fraught) and an evening with friends round for a nibble (excellent company), suddenly Janathon isn't looking good!

Posted Jan 30, 2013

Janathon was the easy bit today. A short run to/from outdoor circuits (1.49 miles in 12:36), and then our new phase of activity which is pretty cardio with sprinting, lunges against resistance, slow twitch/fast twitch and so on. Okay, it was a bit wet (read: rather miserable) and not wearing my waterproof trainers was a bad call, as I discovered when we ran through deep puddles in the car park we are using at the moment. But these are the things that make us strong! (Aren't they?)

Posted Jan 28, 2013

Given that it isn't possible to increase the number of hours in a day, I need to find new ways of fitting in the things that are important to me, and jettisoning the ones I can live without. Today I have been trying the first approach!

Posted Jan 27, 2013

With the concert, and snow, out of the way, it was back to something more normal today. After mile of hill running as a warm-up, Holger and I had an hour of pairs training, doing various combinations of weights and so on. Felt good to be doing some proper graft after all the not-really-quite-the-same work that is flute/music. (Which I've also been doing tonight).

Posted Jan 27, 2013

Not that kind, though! Today has been dominated by a rehearsal and concert with my local orchestra, the Misbourne Symphony Orchestra in Amersham. With the recent snow, we had dropped a rehearsal so today has been quite tense and long, as we catch up.

Posted Jan 26, 2013

Ingredients: lots of work, a planned run for lunchtime, a concert tomorrow, a more scary concert in April, a TRX suspension system and a gin and tonic.

Posted Jan 24, 2013

I am one tired Janathoner today, intent on getting to bed on time after yesterday's late night: I need sleep! So, onto the facts. Tonight I did an hour of circuits: 45% triplanar barbell work, 45% kettlebells and 10% abs with planks, weighted V-sits etc. Hard work, and temperature control a problem, balancing snow against excessive heat generation. Good, though, and a quick but enjoyable outing for dinner with Holger after, down to The Swan in Amersham Old Town. Tasty.

Posted Jan 24, 2013

So, after a busy and snow-laden day, it had got to 11PM with no sign of exercise. I had been really hoping for a run, but the freezing ground with new snow fall was making me a bit nervous of taking a fall in my tiredness. There was a bigger hurdle, though - I also needed to fit in some pretty serious practice for my flute concerto with the Misbourne Symphony Orchestra in April. (My spractice - Spring practise, a bit like January marathon - has been going "alright", but not much more). In the end, realism won over: finishing flute at 00:15 didn't leave a great deal of time!

Posted Jan 23, 2013

I can't spin much of a yarn around today's Janathon effort, so won't try! I managed an hour's circuits in the snow in Hervines Park, and stuck with the 20Kg kettle bell ... just. It has been a day of trials and tribulations - the cat wee-ed on the duvet, so it had to go to the drycleaners, and the office heating was rather pathetic - so now sleep is all I can think about ... zzzz .... See you tomorrow, same time, same place!

Posted Jan 22, 2013

The unexpected thing about our outdoor exercise class in the snow is that, when you're there, being too cold is the last thing on your mind. You tend to go in suitable footwear and perhaps an extra layer or two, with gloves and hat, but by the time you are ten minutes in to the session, you're losing clothing pretty quickly! Today was no exception, with a pretty intensive set of barbell and kettle bell exercises to keep us going, offset by the distraction of a beautiful but rapidly cooling evening with clear sky and large moon. Even lying on mats doing nasty v-sit exercises surrounded by snow felt oddly natural.

Posted Jan 20, 2013

Today was a characteristically busy Sunday. With the kids around, snow by now very slippy, homework to be done and the like, a run was always going to be a long shot. A stint in the pool, though - that's another story.

Posted Jan 20, 2013

Wild Training in the snow

Posted Jan 19, 2013

Darrell, snow-swept

Posted Jan 17, 2013

It is about 7.5 miles from my office in Rickmansworth to where I live in Amersham. One day I plan to run home: this is quite a lot longer than my current regular range, but not beyond the bounds of possibility. I thought, for my Janathon run today, that I would go just a part of the way, to Chorleywood rather than Amersham, and then get a train back, to work towards this goal.

Posted Jan 16, 2013

Today I have been exhausted. Tired, after a late bedtime and waking children; physically rather achy after a few hard days; and emotionally drained with everything that is going on. While I like being busy, probably more than is sensible, right now I'm feeling the pressure of all the things going on and coming up. Janathon and general running to improve my form and feel in shape for a triathlon, practice most nights for a flute concerto in April, work, kid taxi service, our 4yo on full tantrum alert, the general juggling of family life - right now it all feels much too much. Important things - and people - are falling by the wayside, not getting the attention they deserve. And today has been proof that emotional state and diet are very closely related - and not in a good way...

Posted Jan 16, 2013

Today's Janathon effort had some definite extra "get up and go" about it.

Posted Jan 14, 2013

Today's Janathon contribution took the form of a circuits class this evening at Hervines Park in Amersham. It was cold and extremely vigorous, involving kettle bells and barbells, with various combinations of lunges, swings and the like. As usual, there was a good selection of cheery people there to make the whole experience more enjoyable, and the music, provided by yours truly, kept things moving nicely too!

Posted Jan 14, 2013

Posted Jan 12, 2013

Weekends tend to involve a lot of kid stuff, and this weekend we've also got friends coming over for a visit. So I thought I'd get my Janathon commitment out of the way early, with a short-ish and quick run before breakfast, using one of my local routes around Amersham. I didn't want to overdo it, since I'm planning a repeat performance of the Pednor Loop tomorrow, hopefully with one or two friends this time, which I am really looking forward to. I was happy with the result: 2 miles in 15:48 (but chilly hands, as it was sleeting and I didn't have gloves).

Posted Jan 12, 2013

A slightly late blogging of yesterday's effort... It was all over by 8:30am, and most invigorating. On Fridays I have been having morning pairs PT sessions with my friend Holger; this one was a bit different. We started with a brisk warm-up walk, then moved into 45 minutes of various activities - rowing, weights, flys, chin-ups etc. All hard work, but also highly entertaining as we in turns encourage and mock each other!

Posted Jan 10, 2013

Thursday evening is orchestra practice for me - I play flute in a local orchestra, the Misbourne Symphony Orchestra. (We have a concert soon, that you might like to come along to!) So doing exercise this evening just isn't going to happen. Instead, I thought I would slip in a quick run at lunchtime.

Posted Jan 9, 2013

On balance, it seemed like the best idea today was to take things a bit easier - I noticed on my training log on FetchEveryone that I had reached nearly 19 miles so far this month, which is way more than normal for me. Advice from all directions was to avoid pushing it and running the risk of injury, so instead I stuck to my circuits class with Wild Training. As usual, this was very hard work but very good fun; it's a really nice bunch of people who come, and we always have a laugh as we approach death...

Posted Jan 8, 2013

I confess to getting slightly nervous about all this extra running mileage! Don't get me wrong, I'm really enjoying it. I've run further in the last week than any previous week of my life, though, and with the general advice "out there" that you shouldn't boost your mileage by more than something like 10% per week, I fear I'm running an increased risk of injury.

Posted Jan 7, 2013

After 3 (for me) longish runs over 3 days, I thought that perhaps a day of recovery might be sensible. (I have a little plan in mind for tomorrow, too, that would benefit from fresh legs!)

Posted Jan 6, 2013

Posted Jan 5, 2013

Never underestimate the importance of sleep! One late night/early morning, and next thing you know you're up a half-hour late and all your plans fall apart. We have a busy family day in London, and a few things to do before we go, so there was barely an hour to fit Janathon in. This ruled out my Pednor Loop run, unfortunately.

Posted Jan 4, 2013

As it turns out, all today's exercise for Janathon was complete by 8:30 this morning. I had been hoping to do a run this evening, but yesterday's circuits and subsequent very late night, followed by this morning's early PT session, did me in completely! (But at least I managed to get my "spractice" in too, and not too late for once.)

Posted Jan 4, 2013

Today I made it, for the first time, to a "hot yoga" class at Absolute Hot Yoga in Gerrards Cross. Mrs H is an ardent fan of yoga in general, and I have watched her get fitter, stronger and happier as she has continued with her practice. Today, with the kids at my parents' for a short break, we realised we could both go to a yoga class together - almost unheard of!

Posted Jan 2, 2013