Month: April 2012

My Marathon Experience

Yesterday I ran the London marathon – yes, really and it was difficult, but yet in a bizarre way enjoyable as well.

The day started early with tea and toast and then a drive to the train station, because our local line had engineering works going on I had to journey across the Queen Elizabeth Bridge and we could make out Canary Wharf, where I would be running around. As I arrived there were lots of other runners arriving, bright red kit bags in hand also arriving and the moment I arrived on the platform you could begin to feel the excitement and anticipation. There was a lot of chatter on the train, as well as the smell of deep heat and ibuprofen gel!

Soon enough we arrived at Blackheath in glorious sunshine, a steady stream of runners crossed the grass from all directions making their way to the blue start. Music was blaring, Lucozade sport was being drunk everywhere you looked and the number of banana skins was immense! Having queued for the toilets once I grabbed everything out of my bag for the run and then went and dropped it off at the relevant baggage lorry and then queued again. To be fair there were enough toilets that only a few minutes were spent waiting, others braver than me used the female urinals but I decided I’d rather queue. I watched the start of the elite women’s race and then headed over to my start zone, right at the back. Again there was lots of chatter a mix of people who had competed before and others, like me who were nervous first timers. Quarter to ten finally ticked round and after a couple of minutes we began our slow shuffle forwards, it took about ten minutes to get over the start line and then we were off and running. The sheer sea of people was mesmerising, the costumes were amazing. Everyone seemed happy to be there and be taking part. From the first step to the last the support was amazing, no spare pavement anywhere.

The thing that caught me by surprise was how hot it was, the forecast had been for showers all week and in the end it didn’t rain until about 4pm by which time I was fighting my way through the crowds trying to find my friends and family! The run itself was going well, the Cutty Sark section was amazing and I was making good progress, I did get overtaken by a huge pink nurse which looked very heavy and a rhino and it was great looking at all the costumes and the messages people had on them as to why they were running.

I was starting to feel hungry heading towards Surrey Quays when I spotted some familiar faces in the crowd. I was delighted to see the kids and the big bag of jelly babies they had! A couple of handfuls later and I was back on my way. Crossing Tower bridge was amazing, the noise and the colour as well as the landmarks of London was amazing. Then came the turn towards Canary Wharf, those that were faster were already on their way back heading towards embankment and the finish line. For me though there was still a hard slog and still no sign of the promised rain!

As I came into Canary Wharf I couldn’t help smiling as the runners came to the underground roundabout and all started walking and stretching, after all it was one of the rare places that no-one could see you! Emerging back out of the tunnel and running again into the noise of the crowds and cheers. As I ran through the Limehouse section and people began to slow down and walk I could hear some of the kids in the crowd saying ‘come on, you’re meant to be running.’ Their parents tried to shush them in vain but it did make me smile, there were loads of people handing out oranges, sweets and even custard creams! As I came into the part of Canary Wharf that I properly recognised I saw more familiar faces and then saw the kids, hubby, even more friends and my Dad and Step-Mum all together! At this point I grabbed the school Travelling Teddy as Pixie had asked for him on purpose and ran round with him. Luckily it was at the point where Canary Wharf loops round on itself and so I was able to give him back about a quarter of a mile later but we had pics of it. Mr T even managed to capture some pics of runners doing the YMCA moves by the Lucozade bus at mile 19. As I left Canary Wharf energy levels began to fade, I knew I wanted to run the last bit so I slowed down and tried to save some energy. The Lucozade jelly beans came in handy and I power walked until the Rotherhithe tunnel. Coming out of there onto embankment was another highlight! The noise was a roar, charity boppers and notices were everywhere and you couldn’t run a step without someone cheering you up. I had seen the Great Ormond Street Caterpillar, several rhinos and the London Pride beer bottle.

As I closed in towards the finish I could see the dark clouds gathering, once through mile 24 I knew I was nearly there so I tried as hard as I could to keep up an even pace, mile 25 arrived and then I knew I didn’t have far to go! As I ran past the London Eye to my left, Big Ben in front of me and then turning towards Birdcage walk the countdown began. The noise in the finishing area was immense and the atmosphere was brilliant, I did run ever so slightly more quickly for the last 200 metres. I went up the ramp to have my timing tag removed, was given a medal and a goody bag containing my finishing t-shirt and the famous foil blanket and then the heavens opened.

The exhilaration of finishing was amazing, the sights I saw all day inspiring but honestly I won’t be doing it again. The amount of effort the runners put in, especially those in heavy costumes is monumental. Perhaps the biggest test was reuniting myself with my friends and family, trying to make my way through to where those with ‘T’ surnames were supposed to congregate was awkward, we then had to make our way out of this area to Westminster tube station. As some points the station was closed due to the heavy foot traffic in the area but when we eventually came to the platform the train was not too crowded. We had decided due to the heavy rain storm not to hang about, I was eager to get home and rest my aching legs.

I was thrilled to be presented with a huge Millie’s cookie from my family and once we got home, with my legs feeling decidedly jittery – the adrenalin having taken over I had a hot and bubbly bath. I discovered a huge blister on my left foot – a first for me and a purple toe on my right foot having been squashed a few times en route by other runners and stray bottles of water and lucozade! By then my legs gave up the ghost and I stayed in bed occasionally moving to try and loosen up the muscles that were now tightly wound! I feared the worst this morning but surprisingly once I got moving I was OK. If I sat down for too long it was difficult to get back up again but as the day has gone on the tightness has eased. I think it will be a couple of days before my legs feel completely normal again and I am not planning any type of run until next week!

What has amazed me most is the support both during my training, the race and today and the fantastic generosity of people My initial fundraising target was £750 but to date the total without gift aid is 1498 practically double (and with gift aid on eligible donations it is £1742) After six months of training, and a time of 5.25 for the marathon I am happy to say I’ve done it – from now on I am definitely going to be a ‘fun-runner’ from now on running a couple of times a week to keep fit! Having said that the experience of running the marathon, seeing the costumes, the determination and the sheer organisation of it from the port-a-loos, to the charity volunteers, Saint John’s Ambulance and the people giving out water and Lucozade is unique! There are some down sides as I got nearer to the end I saw those who were struggling ,fellow runners helped them on and others stopped for a massage and plasters, I did see a couple of people who needed more medical assistance and it does make you realise who hard it is, however there is an extent to which I enjoyed running the marathon – especially as I know I’m not going to be doing it again!

Well done to all those who ran, especially those of you in costume and thanks again to all those who watched live or on telly and tracked me and even more thanks to those who gave up their money for the charities I supported!

Best foot forward for the Easter Bunny

The kids are excited – tomorrow being Easter and all that brings with it school holidays and the promise of chocolate. For some reason despite constantly referencing the Easter Bunny they don’t seem to believe in his/her/ its power to steal Easter eggs as well as deliver them! Predictably as soon as the holidays began the weather changed from glorious sunshine to cloudy with occasional showers, worsening to deep snow depending how far North you were!

Despite that the holidays began quietly, filled with boring but necessary tasks such as dental check-ups all run, (thank goodness none of us had any problems!), opticians for Hpops and the confirmation that she is slightly long sighted and then a visit to the hairdressers for all so that they could be tidied up! The big two enjoyed a craft and cooking day at Bake it Make it, a business run by local mums. The kids made cornflake nests, chocolate thins, easter bunny pegs and easter wreaths which have been proudly hung on bedroom door handles and have certainly brightened the place up. Not only did they get all this with a break for lunch fitted in but the two ladies running it seemed unruffled when we collected the children and unlike my house when any kind of craft work is carried out it did not look as if a pillow had just exploded or the entire contents of the cooking cupboards spilt all over the floor!

On Thursday I aged another year – I celebrated by taking the children to Pizza Hut and then bowling where they wasted no time in absolutely thrashing me! I did redeem myself by winning an angry birds pig teddy from one of those coin hungry arcade machines, the fact that I could probably have bought the thing for about half of what we put in it was lost on the children, all that they cared about was that money went in and a teddy came out! In the evening we had a movie night and I was delighted when all three of them sat and watched the first Harry Potter film. Copious amounts of popcorn probably held but Elf really seemed engrossed in the film and even Hpops acknowledged that it was OK!

Yesterday was yet more errands and preparing for Mr T’s birthday – he celebrates today and to be honest after Elf’s football, in the cold with no cafe serving hot drinks, we’ve done very little. Watched the boat race which turned out to be very dramatic, football focus, read a little, played with the kids a little and will soon be blowing candles out from atop a muppets birthday cake – chosen by the kids of course because this year we couldn’t repeat the feat of the football cake from last year.

Marathon training is now tapering and at last the end seems to be in sight, just over two weeks to go. Last week I managed just over 20 miles and still felt relatively OK! It is nice to think that most of the hard training is done and dusted now although I am still trying to raise money for the charities I am supporting.

http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/melsmarathonmadness

Tomorrow is a half marathon and then lots of chocolate. This week I have been doing other preparation in terms of trying to work out how to get to the start line on race day! My initial plan to walk five minutes down the road, jump on a train to Liverpool street then switch to the tube and so on has now been disrupted due to the fact that upon checking the train timetable it appears there are engineering works taking place! After a brief panic and the discovery that all the marathon coach/breakfast packages had been booked I decided that what will have to happen is a journey into Dartford, this will take me straight into Blackheath – hopefully in plenty of time. My first goal is to offload my kitbag and get to the starting point on time rather than still be queueing for the toilet when I am supposed to be at the start, which is what happened to me at the Brentwood half a couple of weeks ago, it didn’t particularly compromise my race but had to start from the back.

The nerves are beginning to kick in as I look at the route and read all the information in the official magazine which describes what happens at the expo that has to be attended, work out what I need to take with me and even worry about who is going to stand where and try to ensure I remember all of it so I don’t just jog past and ignore them. I am hoping my GPS app will still work but knowing how many people are going to be around this is not guaranteed.

Wishing everyone a happy chocolate filled Easter!

Zumba Fitness XBox 360

Having enjoyed the first Zumba games for the X-Box I awaited the release of this game with interest. It was billed as being bigger and better than the first outing and indeed in many ways it is. The graphics are more lifelike, the music and background environments more varied and interesting. There are also more instructors featured and in the classes, particularly the 45 and 1 hour classes they are all featured.

The game works in a similar way to the previous one, with the added benefit of voice control, having said that I have found that this feature is not very responsive, the hand signals do seem to be better in this game but even so it still take a fair amount of time to navigate through the various menus to the game itself, there is also a lengthly introduction video which if you miss the opportunity to skip holds you up for a couple of minutes.

The game itself can be played for 20, 45 or 60 minutes at low, medium or high intensity. You can get a sample of each class before you start. If you prefer to practice a single song or learn a step you can do that by following the appropriate link in the main menu.

As stated the graphics are very different from the original game, the classes take place in a variety of places including rooftops, clubs and swimming pool. The thing that takes some getting used to is the way the camera angles change even mid-move. Like many of the dance games a next move indicator appears just before you need to carry it and rather than the ‘encouraging’ comments from the instructor are gone and replaced by an image of you and your moves. Instead of the zumba double points you collect stars and if you get a big enough chain of moves correct you trigger zumba euphoria. This means that the screen seems to have a mist over it for a small amount of time. Once you get used to the odd camera angles and the euphoria mode you’ll find the graphics more detailed and useful than the previous version.

Included in this version is a calorie counter, however having played the game at different levels and for different lengths of time I have come to conclude that it isn’t very accurate. I also run a lot and 45 minutes running monitored with a GPS monitor burns approximately 450-500 calories depending on speed, according to the game 45 minutes of mid-intensity zumba burns over 900! Anyway that aside I think this game is an improvement on the previous one and suitable for all levels of ability. I would definitely recommend it a fun way to tone up and burn calories!

All the Single Ladies by Jane Costello

An interesting tale where once the heroine gets what she thinks she wants she immediately begins to question it. Samantha, the lead character is likeable and is devastated when she learns that her boyfriend Jamie is planning to travel. She acknowledges that he is a free spirit and that this is the most frustrating thing about him.

Instead of lying around brooding Samantha summons the help of her two closest friends and comes up with a plan – to make Jamie jealous and make him see the error of his ways. We enter the world of internet dating with mixed results and then Ben arrives and things begin to get complicated.

As well as the problems Samantha has in her love life she comes to realise that her best friend is spiralling towards alcoholism and there are some touching scenes when she confronts her in an effort to help her deal with the problem. There are plenty of surprises and upbeat moments in the book. Samantha’s family also feature and add to her worry load as her sister decides to seek out her birth father which leads to the unearthing of a few skeletons in the closets.

An entertaining read that is both funny and touching.

The Bloody Meadow by William Ryan

The Bloody Meadow is well written, well paced and will keep you guessing to the end about who is responsible for the events chronicled and who is on which side. It is written when everyone is Russia could be under suspicion for saying or doing the wrong thing. Korolev, the main character and detective in the novel is himself worried about this, indeed he fears the worst when he hears a car pull up at an unexpected time and immediately you are immersed in the menacing world at the time of the all powerful USSR state.
Treachery is the name of the game and if you are on the right side crimes go unnoticed and unpunished. Everyone is careful to ensure they address one another correctly and this makes the investigation more difficult for Korolev. As the case deepens the danger to Korolev and those around him worsens as well. The passages describing the film set and trying to determine who saw what and who was where when proves how complicated things are. Several people lie to cover up the possibility of being disloyal to the state. In this way Ryan writes convincingly portrays the tense atmosphere by which citizens had to live their lives.
I enjoyed this book, it is fast paced and you become absorbed in Korolev’s world and share his fears as the plot unfolds. It is a book that requires concentration as you need to keep track of the characters and what is happening to them but it well worth a read, it is more than just the usual murder mystery but a political thriller as well.