Week 22 - Some Great Results
Sunday 3 September 2017. I can't believe I'm up to week 22 already in my fitness regime "The Long Run Back to Fitness". My father cooked roast beef and Yorkshire Puddings - we'll be hearing about these pudding for months to come. He only asked me around 10 times if I'd enjoyed then, and that was before I had my dinner.
I was busy today and just decided to go for a walk. As I passed the horse, on my way to The Glen, I shouted hello and he came running towards me. I put my hands up and shouted no apples today. He must have understood as he stopped before just getting to me.
I got to The Glen just after 6 pm and the weather was lovely. It was busy today: a woman walking three dogs; three adults accompanying lots of young kids walking in the river with wellies on and a young couple out for a walk. I collected litter and took some videos as I walked. The cattle were just across the river at the waterfall. As I was concentrating on the cattle a Golden Labrador appeared next to me and got the cattle exited. I thought I was still recording, but I wasn't.
I was busy today and just decided to go for a walk. As I passed the horse, on my way to The Glen, I shouted hello and he came running towards me. I put my hands up and shouted no apples today. He must have understood as he stopped before just getting to me.
I got to The Glen just after 6 pm and the weather was lovely. It was busy today: a woman walking three dogs; three adults accompanying lots of young kids walking in the river with wellies on and a young couple out for a walk. I collected litter and took some videos as I walked. The cattle were just across the river at the waterfall. As I was concentrating on the cattle a Golden Labrador appeared next to me and got the cattle exited. I thought I was still recording, but I wasn't.
Cattle by the Waterfall.
As I walked back into The Glen a woman with three dogs passed me. I told her about the cattle and she put them back onto leads. Shortly afterwards, as I was using stepping stone to cross the river to retrieve some pieces of litter, the kids wearing wellies came walking along the river past me. My thoughts were "they have come prepared and I haven't". However, after they had gone out of sight, I took my camcorder out at took a video of the river from ground level. I thought the light looked good and it was an opportunity not to miss.
Down by The River on a Lovely Evening.
I filled the bin bag and then cleared the car park of litter, there was a lot. The woman with the dogs questioned me if I get paid for this. I don't. I just use the place a lot and enjoy it better when it is clean.
I walked to the shop on the way home and arrived back by 7.20 pm. I must have walked around 2.5 miles. I did have my dinner later and the Yorkshire Puddings were good. Thank God, by this time my father had gone to bed, but I'm sure I'll be asked about them tomorrow, and the next day, and the ...
Monday 4 September 2017. As usual I was in bed late, but I was up early today. I probably only got 3 - 4 hours sleep. I was in Armagh City at lunchtime and spent a few hours there. I walked up the steep hill to the older St Patrick's Cathedral. I didn't realise how steep the hill was. The original High Church was built in 445 AD on Sally Hill. The site is still home to St Patrick's Cathedral and seat of the Archbishop of Armagh, Head of The Church of Ireland. It was taken over from the Catholic Church during The Reformation. The last High King of Ireland, Brian Boru, was laid to rest next to the cathedral after being killed at The Battle of Clontarf in 1014. In 1840 the Catholic Church, after acquiring the site of Sandy Hill, began building another cathedral. Another St Patrick's Cathedral and home to the Catholic Archbishop of Armagh and Head of The Catholic Church in Ireland. The two cathedrals are only a third of a mile apart and visible from each other. I took a video of the older cathedral and some of the area around it - you can see it below. Maybe some day soon I'll do a full narrated video which will also include the inside.
Armagh City is a bit like Rome in that it has the heads of the churches and it's also built on seven hills. There's even a song about it. You can listen to the song below.
Monday 4 September 2017. As usual I was in bed late, but I was up early today. I probably only got 3 - 4 hours sleep. I was in Armagh City at lunchtime and spent a few hours there. I walked up the steep hill to the older St Patrick's Cathedral. I didn't realise how steep the hill was. The original High Church was built in 445 AD on Sally Hill. The site is still home to St Patrick's Cathedral and seat of the Archbishop of Armagh, Head of The Church of Ireland. It was taken over from the Catholic Church during The Reformation. The last High King of Ireland, Brian Boru, was laid to rest next to the cathedral after being killed at The Battle of Clontarf in 1014. In 1840 the Catholic Church, after acquiring the site of Sandy Hill, began building another cathedral. Another St Patrick's Cathedral and home to the Catholic Archbishop of Armagh and Head of The Catholic Church in Ireland. The two cathedrals are only a third of a mile apart and visible from each other. I took a video of the older cathedral and some of the area around it - you can see it below. Maybe some day soon I'll do a full narrated video which will also include the inside.
Armagh City is a bit like Rome in that it has the heads of the churches and it's also built on seven hills. There's even a song about it. You can listen to the song below.
Song: Lovely Old Armagh, sung by Eileen King.
I also took a few photos of some of the information boards, plaques and the Brian Boru Garden in the grounds of the old cathedral. I'll post a few below, but not all.
Plaque stating Brian Boru was laid to rest here.
St Patrick's (Catholic) Cathedral from St Patrick's (C.of I) Cathedral, Armagh.
I got home at 4 pm and contemplated going for a workout, but I was worried I would be tired due to the small amount of sleep I had. I also had been left a printer, by a cousin, to see if I could get it working again. Printer sorted, a change of clothes and by 6 pm I was on my way walking to The Glen. Yesterday, I had been give a bag of eating apples and I had a washed, cored and cut one into two and took it with me. As I reached the field with the horse, I shouted out "Horse" and held my hand out. The horse knew exactly what I had in my hand and made a b-line in my direction. It took him about 10 seconds to finish the first half and immediately came back for more. As he munched the second half of the apple, I put my hands up in the air and said, all gone and goodbye. He got the message, but as I walked and looked back, he looked after me, looked at the grass and looked back again at me. I know what he was thinking "I liked that, but now I'm back to eating this bloody grass".
As I approached The Glen a runner came along the road past me. I don't know if he had been running on the road or had been in The Glen.
I jogged into The Glen and down to the footbridge over the river. I started my laps on the upper path - I felt so tired climbing up the hill and began to think, "this is not going well". Then I passed a girl walking fast. This gave me inspiration and I ploughed on. On my second lap I passed two women with a small dog. They were chatting, but said hello. The dog kept sprinting back and forward with excitement, almost running into me a few times. As the laps went on I felt much more relaxed. I passed the excited dog three times, each time it was easier. I passed a couple with another small dog. The man said hello and my name, a few yards later I realised it was a bloke I was at primary school with. I also passed a young woman out power walking. I passed her twice and we both said hello both times - I commented on her speed and she acknowledge. I couldn't believe that after four laps I was feeling great as that was my ultimate goal tonight.
Looking down from the highest path to the footbridge over the river.
I know I was really tired today, when I got up, and I know I thought twice about a workout tonight. However, I was so pleased and the thought of five laps would be a real bonus. Yet I felt great, I was really enjoying running for the first time in 17 years, and I was thinking, listen to your body and do what it tells you. On the 7th lap, and I was still saying hello to people, I still felt OK. To do an 8th would be unreal. Yet I set off on another lap and I was still enjoying it. I completed the 8th lap and ran to the waterfall. My heart was asking for more, but my body was saying enough is enough.
I thought I'd be tired on reaching the waterfall, but I wasn't as tired as usual. I had just ran 8.3 km and I didn't need to sit down.
I remember my first lap, when my body was telling me it didn't want to do this. I remember my second, when my body was saying, OK maybe three laps. By my fourth, I started thinking 5 will be great, but I'm feeling good, if my legs hold out I could do 6 or 7 and what a result. After 8 laps I still felt good and was tempted to do a 9th, but I was on a win at this point and didn't want to stretch things. My thoughts were, take the winnings and get out of here.
In real terms, I ran 8.3 km on one interval. That's 5.2 miles and my best in 17 years. If I get beyond 10 km, it'll be my best in 19 years, but let's see.
As I stretched at the waterfall, I heard a grunt. The bull was just across the river. He was looking at me and I said hello. He was on his own (no cows) but he wasn't aggressive as he has been before. Maybe, with no wives present he wasn't jealous of me. Anyway, I stretched for around two minutes, but I didn't need to sit down to recover.
To finish my workout, I decided to add some extra, but what was in my head was not what I planned. My thoughts were to make it up to 9 km. I jogged from the waterfall past the exit bridge and further. I came back on myself and over the exit bridge to climb out of The Glen. I kept going uphill to the road junction and along the pavement towards home. My plans were to stop soon after the junction, but I just kept going, all the way home and further, then back home. I could have kept going.
By the time I stopped I had ran 8.2 km (5.1 miles) and 1.75 km (1.1 miles). What a great run and the most enjoyable in so many years. Total tonight was 6.2 miles running and 0.5 miles walking. I was dripping with sweat when I finished, but I didn't feel as tired as I often do. Maybe, I'm getting there - well I really hope I am.
Let's see what the rest of the week brings. Final words of advice. Never listen to people who tell you, if you run 5 km you loose so many calories. It totally depends on your fitness and your body mass index (BMI). A super-fit athlete will run a marathon and not loose as much weight as an over-weight person just running a mile a day. The higher your Body Mass Index (BMI), a phrase I heard 25 years ago by a running companion, Mark Thomas, and took no notice of, is something I now understand. I love producing formulas and I may take this one on.
One last thing. My father asked me again about his Yorkshire Puddings, five minutes later he asked me again, and ... I think you got the point. My father was a bit drunk again and my mother was sad. So as I was writing this blog tonight I put on a loop on YouTube to some of her favourite Irish singers. She sang for two hours as I was writing and uploading videos and went to bed happy - result.
I am up very late finishing this off (I'm also moaning about the Tories & Brexit on Twitter) but that's another story. Goodnight.
Tuesday 5 September 2017. I decided to just go for a walk today. I was armed with my camcorder and an apple as I walked towards The Glen. The apple was for the horse. I wanted to take a video of him running across the field towards me for the apple. But he saw me too early and was next to me before I could get the camera out. However, I did get a video of him taking and eating the apple. You can see how much he loves apples.
I checked the weather forecast before going out and it said no rain until 10 pm. I was out at 6 pm and by the time I got to The Glen it started raining. It wasn't heavy, but it was raining as I could hear it in the trees above me. The Glen was busy tonight and as well as taking a few videos I also picked up litter as I walked. As I crossed over the entrance footbridge at the bottom of The Glen a tall bloke ran past me - he looked quite fit. At the waterfall a teenage girl was sitting on the bench taking photos of the river with her iPhone - she looked happy. As I walked along the river path my friend from primary school walked past me with his dog. Ten minutes later I stopped to have a chat with him. Two teenage girls were sitting on a bench above the car park. I passed them later as the walked along the top path. They were too busy walking to say hello. The language sounded Eastern European. A small sporty Volvo pulled up in the car park and the tall girl I saw a few weeks ago got out and she ran past me as I stood by the footbridge next to the car park. She ran past me a few times, appearing from different directions on different paths. Two women walked past and said hello, they were dressed in Lycra and looked to be out power walking, but they were walking slowly and talking a lot.
I only picked up around a dozen pieces of litter today. There were many plastic bottles in the river which I could not reach, even with my stick. I need to get a pair of Wellington boots and walk along the river bed, like the kids do, to reach them all.
On the walk home I was going to go to the shop, then realised I had forgot my wallet. As I approached the field with the horse, I could see him in the distance lifting his head and looking in my direction. He must have recognised the sound of my footsteps. As I approached him, he came towards me looking eager. I think he wanted another apple. I didn't have any, but I said hello to him. He looked sad as I walked past.
I got home, grabbed my wallet and headed towards the local shop. When I got back my mother was out of bed and sitting next to the window in the living room. My father, as usual was on his wine in his living room. My mother had been sick in the early hours of the morning. I cooked them two separate and I suppose, because of her sickness, she ate it all. She's asleep in front of her TV as I write this, but she looks peaceful and I'll let her sleep for a few hours.
Earlier, as I walked around The Glen tonight, I noticed that there was so much fungi and I started to video some of them as I walked past. I don't know one mushroom from another but I do find them interesting as they seem to pop up all over the place. Many of them are next to the footpaths, but many are well away from the paths. Maybe, someone can educate me.
On the way home I walked along the narrow road into the village. I'd walked along her almost two weeks ago with my eldest daughter and remembered her stopping to pick blackberries. I just wanted to see if the crop was still there and still ripe. It was, but although it looked good, the berries weren't as big. They'd still make a great pie and I may pick some soon.
As I walked back along the narrow road I decided to take another video. This is a pet hate of mine. All the streets and local roads are so littered now. I once remembered a campaign "Keep Britain Tidy". However, that was 40 years ago. The Government had much less money, but there were two men who were employed by the council to go around and pick up litter off the roads. We now have none and the streets and roads are a bloody mess. Yet we are a much wealthier country and can't afford this. Public services have been cut so much, the fat cats are getting richer and Britain is being made great again through Brexit. It's all a load of bollocks. Sorry, but sometimes I get angry with how the world is going at present.
By the time I got home it was 7.45 pm. I put on the TV and watched Ireland play Serbia. Ireland were the better team, but could not score and lost by a goal. I was disappointed for my youngest brother as he was at the game. In the same group Wales beat Moldova 2 - 0 and I was pleased as I often had a drink with their manager and assistant manager, when I lived in Surrey. They are two nice blokes.
Overall tonight I probably walked between 3 and 3.5 miles. It would have been great to get a run in, but after a great result yesterday, I don't really mind. My ankle still isn't 100% after spraining it 20 days ago, but it's getting there.
Before heading off to bed I went outside to see what the weather was doing. It was dry, but had been raining. The whole area was lit up bu a beautiful, bright moon so I took a video. I love the moon and often take videos of it. You probably know that if you have been reading my blog up to now.
Wednesday 6 September 2017. It's bingo night again so I have to go for a workout early and get back in time to take my mother to the bingo.
In the afternoon I cooked chicken curry and rice for my parents' dinner. Soon afterwards I got changed and ready to head towards The Glen. I left just after 6 pm and took an apple with me for the horse. As I approached the field, I could see him eating at the furthest corner. He must either smell me or recognise my footsteps as he lifted his head and quickly came in my direction. He does love his apples.
I jogged down into The Glen and over the footbridge. A young woman jogged past me from the opposite direction as I set off on my laps. On my second lap, as I climbed up on the highest path, she was just behind me. We both passed my ex-school mate with his wife and their dog. As I went through the car park, I looked over my shoulder, she was disappearing along the river path. We passed each other again, as I had almost finished my second lap, and we stopped to talk. She told me she ran a loop, taken in all 3 paths, which was exactly a mile. I passed her once more and also the couple with the dog. I wasn't feeling too bad as the laps went on, but I didn't feel as good as I had on Monday evening.
By my fourth lap a group on teenage girls had gathered in the car park wearing running gear. There were about 14 of them. I thought it was a local team out for fitness training. On my fifth lap they started to appear from the opposite direction as I ran up the steep hill towards the reservoir. I stopped to let the first few past, then a few seconds later stopped to let the rest past. I was still feeling OK as I started the sixth lap and thought I'd be happy with six. But I did think, that would be under 4 miles. The reason why I didn't really want to do anymore was because, as I ran on after reaching the top of each hill, I felt very tired. So as I completed the sixth lap, I decided to turn left and over the river. It meant I could get the extra few yards in I needed. Then, as I climbed, I thought let's just add a bit extra. By the time I had gone past the highest point, I just decided to keep going.
I finished the seventh lap and continued on straight to the waterfall. It meant I had ran 7.3 km (or just over 4.5 miles). I was tired and stretched. I then decided to sit down and just enjoy the peacefulness of this lovely spot. I probably was enjoying it too much, because I got up I felt stiff.
I walked a few steps, then started jogging again. The cattle had been close to the waterfall when I arrived, but then walked in the direction of the fence at the highest path. Although still feeling stiff, I decided to set off on another lap, but this time along the river path. It was noticeable some leaves had fallen from the trees and were laying on the path. It is the softest path and I thought of all the leaves that had fallen over the decades and never been cleared. It was probably the layering of these dead leaves that made the path so soft. As I reached the car park, three cars with the young girls were just leaving, four of the girls were also walking away on foot.
As I completed this extra lap I turned right over the exit bridge and climbed out of The Glen. I continued up to the road junction and left towards home. I was counting my steps and just kept going all the way home and some extra to make it up to 1.9 km (or almost 1.2 miles). So my total jogging for tonight was 5.7 miles.
I stayed outside for at least 10 minutes cooling down. My t-shirt was completely soaked with sweat, I was really tired and my legs were stiff. I hope I have no adverse affects from tonight as I probably done a bit more than what my body wanted me to do. However, it is by pushing yourself that little bit extra where you can the reap benefits.
At the bingo I got the three books and asked my mother and sister to pick theirs. Again I won nothing and they both won £30 and my mother's friend also won £15 - it should have been £20, but she checked a number late. So overall it was a good night.
I later looked back over all my blogs in "The Long Run Back to Fitness". The posts seem to be getting longer every week. I also can't believe the jumps I have taken at certain points. To put things in perspective. Just after my last daughter was born, 21 years ago, I was running between 50 and 70 miles a week - I was very fit and would win some races. My oldest daughter was young and when I won some of those races she remember it. With not being able to witness those time, my youngest always feels as if she had missed out.
Soon after my youngest daughter was born I split with my wife, yet I still kept running, but the miles became less and less. The pub became more and more. I eventually stopped running almost 17 years ago, after putting on some weight. I ran in a club 10 km and it took me 45 minutes and was over 10 minutes more than I was running 4 years previously. After that, apart from the odd effort I made to try and get fitness back, I never ran another 10 km or anything close. Eventually the weight increased on 14 February 2017 I was weighed at Newry Hospital. I was 17.5 stone and 8 stone heavier than 21 years previously. I was referred there for a naval hernia operation, but they said it would be more successful if I could loose some weight. My body-mass index was off the scale.ago.I suggested for them to give me 6 months to loose some weight.
As it was winter at the time I was not keen to start pounding the pavements again. My youngest brother invited me to play in a golf tournament at Slieve Russell on Sunday, 9 April 2017. I seized the opportunity and thought, if I can carry a full set of clubs around a championship golf course, then I can start to get fit again.
The following day I went for a walk and took it from there. I'm glad to say that 3 stone has dropped off in the last 22 weeks, but I am still so much over-weight. I am determined to shed most of the rest. I'm older now and I know I'll never get back to the times I once achieved. However, if I can loose most of the weight I have gained and enjoy just running more and feel better in myself, then I'll be happy.
At present I'm so pleased I have gone from not being able to run 200 yards to running 6 miles. Everything you want to achieve starts with one step, extend that one step to two, then three, then more ... You'll be surprised what you can do. It won't be easy. You'll have good days and bad days, but the more you work at it and the more pain you are willing to go through, then the bad days will get less and the good days will increase. To me, if this blogs even inspires one person to do what I am at present, then my time doing it has been a success.
Thursday 7 September 2017. My legs felt a bit stiff today so I decided to just go for a walk. I've already had two long runs (in relative terms) this week and I don't want to push things. It had been raining most of the day. I set off at 7 pm. It was still raining gently. I had my camcorder in a carry bag and an apple for the horse.
As I reached the field the horse was no where to be seen. It's a decent sized field and also includes the old railway embankment and the small field the opposite side of the embankment. I shouted out "horse" a few time and he soon appeared on the top of the embankment. He was a long way away and, as I was wearing a bright orange rain jacket, he may not known it was me. I walked along the road to the gate and shouted up to him again. This time he realised it was me and he was soon on his way down the embankment. After I game him both halves of the apple I was on my way.
I walked down and around The Glen. I didn't have a bin bag to collect litter tonight as it was only two days ago when I last did. I took a few videos and did pick up two Red Bull cans, a sandwich wrapper and a plastic water bottle. I walked all the paths and the river path twice. It was starting to get dark and it had been raining most of the time I was there. The Glen was empty of people tonight and on my last walk along the river I did start singing - Thank God no one could hear me.
Tuesday 5 September 2017. I decided to just go for a walk today. I was armed with my camcorder and an apple as I walked towards The Glen. The apple was for the horse. I wanted to take a video of him running across the field towards me for the apple. But he saw me too early and was next to me before I could get the camera out. However, I did get a video of him taking and eating the apple. You can see how much he loves apples.
Horse loves apples.
I checked the weather forecast before going out and it said no rain until 10 pm. I was out at 6 pm and by the time I got to The Glen it started raining. It wasn't heavy, but it was raining as I could hear it in the trees above me. The Glen was busy tonight and as well as taking a few videos I also picked up litter as I walked. As I crossed over the entrance footbridge at the bottom of The Glen a tall bloke ran past me - he looked quite fit. At the waterfall a teenage girl was sitting on the bench taking photos of the river with her iPhone - she looked happy. As I walked along the river path my friend from primary school walked past me with his dog. Ten minutes later I stopped to have a chat with him. Two teenage girls were sitting on a bench above the car park. I passed them later as the walked along the top path. They were too busy walking to say hello. The language sounded Eastern European. A small sporty Volvo pulled up in the car park and the tall girl I saw a few weeks ago got out and she ran past me as I stood by the footbridge next to the car park. She ran past me a few times, appearing from different directions on different paths. Two women walked past and said hello, they were dressed in Lycra and looked to be out power walking, but they were walking slowly and talking a lot.
I only picked up around a dozen pieces of litter today. There were many plastic bottles in the river which I could not reach, even with my stick. I need to get a pair of Wellington boots and walk along the river bed, like the kids do, to reach them all.
On the walk home I was going to go to the shop, then realised I had forgot my wallet. As I approached the field with the horse, I could see him in the distance lifting his head and looking in my direction. He must have recognised the sound of my footsteps. As I approached him, he came towards me looking eager. I think he wanted another apple. I didn't have any, but I said hello to him. He looked sad as I walked past.
I got home, grabbed my wallet and headed towards the local shop. When I got back my mother was out of bed and sitting next to the window in the living room. My father, as usual was on his wine in his living room. My mother had been sick in the early hours of the morning. I cooked them two separate and I suppose, because of her sickness, she ate it all. She's asleep in front of her TV as I write this, but she looks peaceful and I'll let her sleep for a few hours.
Earlier, as I walked around The Glen tonight, I noticed that there was so much fungi and I started to video some of them as I walked past. I don't know one mushroom from another but I do find them interesting as they seem to pop up all over the place. Many of them are next to the footpaths, but many are well away from the paths. Maybe, someone can educate me.
Fungi in The Glen this evening.
On the way home I walked along the narrow road into the village. I'd walked along her almost two weeks ago with my eldest daughter and remembered her stopping to pick blackberries. I just wanted to see if the crop was still there and still ripe. It was, but although it looked good, the berries weren't as big. They'd still make a great pie and I may pick some soon.
Blackberries on the Glen Road.
As I walked back along the narrow road I decided to take another video. This is a pet hate of mine. All the streets and local roads are so littered now. I once remembered a campaign "Keep Britain Tidy". However, that was 40 years ago. The Government had much less money, but there were two men who were employed by the council to go around and pick up litter off the roads. We now have none and the streets and roads are a bloody mess. Yet we are a much wealthier country and can't afford this. Public services have been cut so much, the fat cats are getting richer and Britain is being made great again through Brexit. It's all a load of bollocks. Sorry, but sometimes I get angry with how the world is going at present.
A moan about litter not being cleared by the local council.
By the time I got home it was 7.45 pm. I put on the TV and watched Ireland play Serbia. Ireland were the better team, but could not score and lost by a goal. I was disappointed for my youngest brother as he was at the game. In the same group Wales beat Moldova 2 - 0 and I was pleased as I often had a drink with their manager and assistant manager, when I lived in Surrey. They are two nice blokes.
Overall tonight I probably walked between 3 and 3.5 miles. It would have been great to get a run in, but after a great result yesterday, I don't really mind. My ankle still isn't 100% after spraining it 20 days ago, but it's getting there.
Before heading off to bed I went outside to see what the weather was doing. It was dry, but had been raining. The whole area was lit up bu a beautiful, bright moon so I took a video. I love the moon and often take videos of it. You probably know that if you have been reading my blog up to now.
Moon over County Armagh, Ireland at 1 am on 6 September 2017
Wednesday 6 September 2017. It's bingo night again so I have to go for a workout early and get back in time to take my mother to the bingo.
In the afternoon I cooked chicken curry and rice for my parents' dinner. Soon afterwards I got changed and ready to head towards The Glen. I left just after 6 pm and took an apple with me for the horse. As I approached the field, I could see him eating at the furthest corner. He must either smell me or recognise my footsteps as he lifted his head and quickly came in my direction. He does love his apples.
I jogged down into The Glen and over the footbridge. A young woman jogged past me from the opposite direction as I set off on my laps. On my second lap, as I climbed up on the highest path, she was just behind me. We both passed my ex-school mate with his wife and their dog. As I went through the car park, I looked over my shoulder, she was disappearing along the river path. We passed each other again, as I had almost finished my second lap, and we stopped to talk. She told me she ran a loop, taken in all 3 paths, which was exactly a mile. I passed her once more and also the couple with the dog. I wasn't feeling too bad as the laps went on, but I didn't feel as good as I had on Monday evening.
By my fourth lap a group on teenage girls had gathered in the car park wearing running gear. There were about 14 of them. I thought it was a local team out for fitness training. On my fifth lap they started to appear from the opposite direction as I ran up the steep hill towards the reservoir. I stopped to let the first few past, then a few seconds later stopped to let the rest past. I was still feeling OK as I started the sixth lap and thought I'd be happy with six. But I did think, that would be under 4 miles. The reason why I didn't really want to do anymore was because, as I ran on after reaching the top of each hill, I felt very tired. So as I completed the sixth lap, I decided to turn left and over the river. It meant I could get the extra few yards in I needed. Then, as I climbed, I thought let's just add a bit extra. By the time I had gone past the highest point, I just decided to keep going.
I finished the seventh lap and continued on straight to the waterfall. It meant I had ran 7.3 km (or just over 4.5 miles). I was tired and stretched. I then decided to sit down and just enjoy the peacefulness of this lovely spot. I probably was enjoying it too much, because I got up I felt stiff.
The area by the waterfall in The Glen.
I walked a few steps, then started jogging again. The cattle had been close to the waterfall when I arrived, but then walked in the direction of the fence at the highest path. Although still feeling stiff, I decided to set off on another lap, but this time along the river path. It was noticeable some leaves had fallen from the trees and were laying on the path. It is the softest path and I thought of all the leaves that had fallen over the decades and never been cleared. It was probably the layering of these dead leaves that made the path so soft. As I reached the car park, three cars with the young girls were just leaving, four of the girls were also walking away on foot.
As I completed this extra lap I turned right over the exit bridge and climbed out of The Glen. I continued up to the road junction and left towards home. I was counting my steps and just kept going all the way home and some extra to make it up to 1.9 km (or almost 1.2 miles). So my total jogging for tonight was 5.7 miles.
Backtracking towards the exit footbridge from The Glen
I stayed outside for at least 10 minutes cooling down. My t-shirt was completely soaked with sweat, I was really tired and my legs were stiff. I hope I have no adverse affects from tonight as I probably done a bit more than what my body wanted me to do. However, it is by pushing yourself that little bit extra where you can the reap benefits.
At the bingo I got the three books and asked my mother and sister to pick theirs. Again I won nothing and they both won £30 and my mother's friend also won £15 - it should have been £20, but she checked a number late. So overall it was a good night.
I later looked back over all my blogs in "The Long Run Back to Fitness". The posts seem to be getting longer every week. I also can't believe the jumps I have taken at certain points. To put things in perspective. Just after my last daughter was born, 21 years ago, I was running between 50 and 70 miles a week - I was very fit and would win some races. My oldest daughter was young and when I won some of those races she remember it. With not being able to witness those time, my youngest always feels as if she had missed out.
Soon after my youngest daughter was born I split with my wife, yet I still kept running, but the miles became less and less. The pub became more and more. I eventually stopped running almost 17 years ago, after putting on some weight. I ran in a club 10 km and it took me 45 minutes and was over 10 minutes more than I was running 4 years previously. After that, apart from the odd effort I made to try and get fitness back, I never ran another 10 km or anything close. Eventually the weight increased on 14 February 2017 I was weighed at Newry Hospital. I was 17.5 stone and 8 stone heavier than 21 years previously. I was referred there for a naval hernia operation, but they said it would be more successful if I could loose some weight. My body-mass index was off the scale.ago.I suggested for them to give me 6 months to loose some weight.
As it was winter at the time I was not keen to start pounding the pavements again. My youngest brother invited me to play in a golf tournament at Slieve Russell on Sunday, 9 April 2017. I seized the opportunity and thought, if I can carry a full set of clubs around a championship golf course, then I can start to get fit again.
The following day I went for a walk and took it from there. I'm glad to say that 3 stone has dropped off in the last 22 weeks, but I am still so much over-weight. I am determined to shed most of the rest. I'm older now and I know I'll never get back to the times I once achieved. However, if I can loose most of the weight I have gained and enjoy just running more and feel better in myself, then I'll be happy.
At present I'm so pleased I have gone from not being able to run 200 yards to running 6 miles. Everything you want to achieve starts with one step, extend that one step to two, then three, then more ... You'll be surprised what you can do. It won't be easy. You'll have good days and bad days, but the more you work at it and the more pain you are willing to go through, then the bad days will get less and the good days will increase. To me, if this blogs even inspires one person to do what I am at present, then my time doing it has been a success.
Thursday 7 September 2017. My legs felt a bit stiff today so I decided to just go for a walk. I've already had two long runs (in relative terms) this week and I don't want to push things. It had been raining most of the day. I set off at 7 pm. It was still raining gently. I had my camcorder in a carry bag and an apple for the horse.
As I reached the field the horse was no where to be seen. It's a decent sized field and also includes the old railway embankment and the small field the opposite side of the embankment. I shouted out "horse" a few time and he soon appeared on the top of the embankment. He was a long way away and, as I was wearing a bright orange rain jacket, he may not known it was me. I walked along the road to the gate and shouted up to him again. This time he realised it was me and he was soon on his way down the embankment. After I game him both halves of the apple I was on my way.
Horse runs down embankment for apple
I walked down and around The Glen. I didn't have a bin bag to collect litter tonight as it was only two days ago when I last did. I took a few videos and did pick up two Red Bull cans, a sandwich wrapper and a plastic water bottle. I walked all the paths and the river path twice. It was starting to get dark and it had been raining most of the time I was there. The Glen was empty of people tonight and on my last walk along the river I did start singing - Thank God no one could hear me.
Rainy night in The Glen - Sorry about the singing
I walked home, via the local shop, in the rain. I got soaked on the way and the horse was no where to be seen. He must have been on the opposite side of the railway embankment.
Overall, I was out for 70 minutes and probably walked 3 miles tonight. I'm just happy to have got out and stretched my legs. With only two day left this week, let's see what it brings.
Friday 8 September 2017. It was quite a pleasant day today. I cooked Chicken, with leeks and mushrooms in white wine and creme fraiche. I had a shower and then went to the local shop to get the white wine whilst the meal was cooking.
At 6.30 pm I had stretched and was on my way walking to The Glen. I stopped to give the horse an apple, but decided not to call him as he was on top of the embankment, it had been raining and I didn't want him to hurt himself by running down the steep slope. I just left both halves of the apple next to the gate and headed on towards The Glen,
I started running as I passed where the old railway bridge used to be. By the time I jogged down to the footbridge over the river I had ran about 450 m. I set off on laps and completed four, then all the way to the waterfall. It meant 4.55 km and a decent interval. This was what I was hoping to do tonight, but it did seem, that on the last three laps, I was going faster than usual.
By the waterfall two teenage girls were sitting on the bench, chatting, having a drink and some crisps. I just said hello and walked a few yards away to stretch. I was thinking, I'll be picking up their litter in a day or two. I didn't stretch for long and then jogged back to the exit footbridge, up the hill out of The Glen and along the road to the gate of the field with the horse. A 0.75 km jog to finish my running tonight.
The two halves of the apple were still next to the gate. I picked them up and kept walking along the road. The horse was half way up the embankment and was watching me. As soon as I reached the small wall, next to the field, I stopped and put my hand out. The horse came running towards me and the two pieces of the apple soon disappeared. I walked home and changed, just in time to watch Leinster v Cardiff in the Pro14 Rugby - kick-off was 7.35 pm.
It had been a really pleasant evening in The Glen. the only rain today was late afternoon and when I was out it was dry. The sun even broke through a few times as I ran. Apart from the two teenage girls, the only other people I saw tonight was a man and his dog, plus three young lads I saw on the river path from above. I saw them earlier in a red Astra in the car park.
So total jogging tonight of 5.3 km (or 3.3 miles) plus 1 mile walking.
Saturday 9 September 2017. The last day of the week and hopefully a few miles covered today. I've noticed the leaves have started falling from the trees, signalling the end of Summer.
The rugby starts at 5.05 pm and I would like to get both a walk and a run in before then. I set out for my walk at 3 pm. In front of me were a couple also out for a walk. When I got to the field with the horse, he was by the gate and about 100 yards away. I just shouted "horse". He lifted his head and came swiftly in my direction. The couple turned around, looked at me, looked at the horse, then at me again and at the horse again as it passed them. They looked confused and looked at each other. They watched me giving the apple to the horse, then they walked on.
I passed them before reaching The Glen, but they followed me down the path towards the river. I was out for a walk and not on litter collection today, but I did remember the two teenage girls by the waterfall last evening. I headed towards the waterfall and picked up their two chicken sandwich wrappers. There were no drinks bottles, so they must have taken those with them. I walked along the river path to the car park and picked up another two pieces of litter on the way.
I was collecting everything in a plastic carrier bag and emptied it at the bin in the car park. There was no carrying a stick today, or going out of my way to find litter. However, overall The Glen looked clean.
I walked back around the reservoir and along the long flat path over the sluice bridge and up out of The Glen. I still had the carrier bag and picked up a couple of extra pieces of litter as I walked. On the way home I diverted via the local shop to get a few beers in for the rugby. It was a pleasant walk and it didn't rain, even though rain was forecast. At 3.55 pm I arrived home and immediately changed for my run - I was out again by 4 pm.
As I only had an hour to get back, I didn't walk this afternoon, I ran from home. The horse was by the gate and was so happy to get a second apple today. I didn't dwell too long and kept running toward The Glen. I jogged down and over the river then set off along the top path. The river was flowing well today as it had been raining earlier. I was lucky on this run as it stayed mainly dry, though it did drizzle a few times.
I did have a target this afternoon - get a few miles in, get home and change before 5.05 pm. As I went through the car park, on my first lap, I noticed an empty coke can and a chocolate wrapper lying on the ground. I didn't stop to pick them up, but I did promise myself if I manage a fourth lap, I'll then pick them up on the way past. This litter certainly wasn't there just over half an hour ago. I know I sound as if I am paranoid about the litter, but I really don't care as much as you may think. I enjoy a walk and it's satisfying having a place to walk in and run in that looks good, so I sometimes combine my walk with giving a little bit back.
The bloke with the three dogs was just putting them into his car as I went past, but his wife seemed to be missing tonight. The main thought in my mind was to take it easy, try get to the fourth lap and maybe leave a clean glen for others to use for the rest of the day, plus that will take me to almost 20 miles of running this week.
The climb up to the old disused reservoir, soon after the car park, is always a hoot - it's steep and I really enjoy it, but as I round the reservoir I feel tired. As I turned away from the reservoir and along the long flat path I could feel, like two days ago, I was travelling faster than normal. Maybe, it was because I was worried about getting back in time for the rugby. When I reached this same point on the third lap, I deliberately slowed myself down as I wanted to complete a fourth lap and then jog all the way home.
On the fourth lap I did a lap of the car park to pick up the litter, put it in the bin, and then ran all the way to the waterfall. Just before reaching it I passed a couple with a German Sheppard, it was off the lead, but was well behaved. It was peaceful by the waterfall, the cattle were about 70 yards away up the field, but I didn't stop too long to stretch. I started running again to 150 m past the exit footbridge, by that time I had almost caught up the couple with the dog. I turned back on myself, climbed to exit The Glen and up to the road junction. I turned left towards home and as I got to The Black Path, I turned right to run to the top and back. I continued past my home then back on myself to run to the boundary of the village again and then back home. It felt like a bit of a fudge, but I made it up to about 1.9 km - a bit more than I was planning for my second interval of the day.
My first running interval today was 5.1 km, and to me, at present, 5 k is a decent run. Add that to the 1.9 km I jogged on the way home, it's 7 km (or 4.35 miles). So overall today, I walked about 2.5 miles and jogged 4.35 miles. That's a great way to finish the week.
As I jogged home, the horse was still standing next to the gate, he made a noise at me, but I just told him "don't be selfish, you done well today". He looked sad. I cooked myself a pizza during the rugby and all three Irish teams won today in the Pro14 - Ulster, Munster and Connacht.
One thing did start to annoy me tonight as I ran along the pavement towards home. My heals were starting to get sore and I have history there. In ,my last job I had a bad case of "Policeman's Foot". It took me a long while to get rid of it and I hope it's not coming back.
As for my totals for the week, I ran just under 20 miles and walked 11 miles. That's a total of 31 miles. More running than walking is a big plus. The days are starting to get shorter and I'm going to have to get out earlier if I want to continue running in The Glen. If I can continue to average 20 miles a week running for just a few weeks, then I know the weight will keep dropping off and I'll get more comfortable with longer runs.
One last thing, before I finish this week's blog. As I walked home from the local shop today I was stopped and told "bloody hell, what's happened to you? You've lost so much weight". It's little things like this which give me the encouragement to continue with my Long Run Back to Fitness.
Friday 8 September 2017. It was quite a pleasant day today. I cooked Chicken, with leeks and mushrooms in white wine and creme fraiche. I had a shower and then went to the local shop to get the white wine whilst the meal was cooking.
At 6.30 pm I had stretched and was on my way walking to The Glen. I stopped to give the horse an apple, but decided not to call him as he was on top of the embankment, it had been raining and I didn't want him to hurt himself by running down the steep slope. I just left both halves of the apple next to the gate and headed on towards The Glen,
I started running as I passed where the old railway bridge used to be. By the time I jogged down to the footbridge over the river I had ran about 450 m. I set off on laps and completed four, then all the way to the waterfall. It meant 4.55 km and a decent interval. This was what I was hoping to do tonight, but it did seem, that on the last three laps, I was going faster than usual.
By the waterfall two teenage girls were sitting on the bench, chatting, having a drink and some crisps. I just said hello and walked a few yards away to stretch. I was thinking, I'll be picking up their litter in a day or two. I didn't stretch for long and then jogged back to the exit footbridge, up the hill out of The Glen and along the road to the gate of the field with the horse. A 0.75 km jog to finish my running tonight.
The point where I walked back to stretch & leave the two girls happy on the bench.
The two halves of the apple were still next to the gate. I picked them up and kept walking along the road. The horse was half way up the embankment and was watching me. As soon as I reached the small wall, next to the field, I stopped and put my hand out. The horse came running towards me and the two pieces of the apple soon disappeared. I walked home and changed, just in time to watch Leinster v Cardiff in the Pro14 Rugby - kick-off was 7.35 pm.
It had been a really pleasant evening in The Glen. the only rain today was late afternoon and when I was out it was dry. The sun even broke through a few times as I ran. Apart from the two teenage girls, the only other people I saw tonight was a man and his dog, plus three young lads I saw on the river path from above. I saw them earlier in a red Astra in the car park.
So total jogging tonight of 5.3 km (or 3.3 miles) plus 1 mile walking.
Saturday 9 September 2017. The last day of the week and hopefully a few miles covered today. I've noticed the leaves have started falling from the trees, signalling the end of Summer.
The rugby starts at 5.05 pm and I would like to get both a walk and a run in before then. I set out for my walk at 3 pm. In front of me were a couple also out for a walk. When I got to the field with the horse, he was by the gate and about 100 yards away. I just shouted "horse". He lifted his head and came swiftly in my direction. The couple turned around, looked at me, looked at the horse, then at me again and at the horse again as it passed them. They looked confused and looked at each other. They watched me giving the apple to the horse, then they walked on.
I passed them before reaching The Glen, but they followed me down the path towards the river. I was out for a walk and not on litter collection today, but I did remember the two teenage girls by the waterfall last evening. I headed towards the waterfall and picked up their two chicken sandwich wrappers. There were no drinks bottles, so they must have taken those with them. I walked along the river path to the car park and picked up another two pieces of litter on the way.
I was collecting everything in a plastic carrier bag and emptied it at the bin in the car park. There was no carrying a stick today, or going out of my way to find litter. However, overall The Glen looked clean.
I walked back around the reservoir and along the long flat path over the sluice bridge and up out of The Glen. I still had the carrier bag and picked up a couple of extra pieces of litter as I walked. On the way home I diverted via the local shop to get a few beers in for the rugby. It was a pleasant walk and it didn't rain, even though rain was forecast. At 3.55 pm I arrived home and immediately changed for my run - I was out again by 4 pm.
As I only had an hour to get back, I didn't walk this afternoon, I ran from home. The horse was by the gate and was so happy to get a second apple today. I didn't dwell too long and kept running toward The Glen. I jogged down and over the river then set off along the top path. The river was flowing well today as it had been raining earlier. I was lucky on this run as it stayed mainly dry, though it did drizzle a few times.
I did have a target this afternoon - get a few miles in, get home and change before 5.05 pm. As I went through the car park, on my first lap, I noticed an empty coke can and a chocolate wrapper lying on the ground. I didn't stop to pick them up, but I did promise myself if I manage a fourth lap, I'll then pick them up on the way past. This litter certainly wasn't there just over half an hour ago. I know I sound as if I am paranoid about the litter, but I really don't care as much as you may think. I enjoy a walk and it's satisfying having a place to walk in and run in that looks good, so I sometimes combine my walk with giving a little bit back.
The litter bin and footbridge over the river from the car park.
The bloke with the three dogs was just putting them into his car as I went past, but his wife seemed to be missing tonight. The main thought in my mind was to take it easy, try get to the fourth lap and maybe leave a clean glen for others to use for the rest of the day, plus that will take me to almost 20 miles of running this week.
The climb up to the old disused reservoir, soon after the car park, is always a hoot - it's steep and I really enjoy it, but as I round the reservoir I feel tired. As I turned away from the reservoir and along the long flat path I could feel, like two days ago, I was travelling faster than normal. Maybe, it was because I was worried about getting back in time for the rugby. When I reached this same point on the third lap, I deliberately slowed myself down as I wanted to complete a fourth lap and then jog all the way home.
The start of steep climb up to the disused reservoir.
On the fourth lap I did a lap of the car park to pick up the litter, put it in the bin, and then ran all the way to the waterfall. Just before reaching it I passed a couple with a German Sheppard, it was off the lead, but was well behaved. It was peaceful by the waterfall, the cattle were about 70 yards away up the field, but I didn't stop too long to stretch. I started running again to 150 m past the exit footbridge, by that time I had almost caught up the couple with the dog. I turned back on myself, climbed to exit The Glen and up to the road junction. I turned left towards home and as I got to The Black Path, I turned right to run to the top and back. I continued past my home then back on myself to run to the boundary of the village again and then back home. It felt like a bit of a fudge, but I made it up to about 1.9 km - a bit more than I was planning for my second interval of the day.
My first running interval today was 5.1 km, and to me, at present, 5 k is a decent run. Add that to the 1.9 km I jogged on the way home, it's 7 km (or 4.35 miles). So overall today, I walked about 2.5 miles and jogged 4.35 miles. That's a great way to finish the week.
As I jogged home, the horse was still standing next to the gate, he made a noise at me, but I just told him "don't be selfish, you done well today". He looked sad. I cooked myself a pizza during the rugby and all three Irish teams won today in the Pro14 - Ulster, Munster and Connacht.
One thing did start to annoy me tonight as I ran along the pavement towards home. My heals were starting to get sore and I have history there. In ,my last job I had a bad case of "Policeman's Foot". It took me a long while to get rid of it and I hope it's not coming back.
As for my totals for the week, I ran just under 20 miles and walked 11 miles. That's a total of 31 miles. More running than walking is a big plus. The days are starting to get shorter and I'm going to have to get out earlier if I want to continue running in The Glen. If I can continue to average 20 miles a week running for just a few weeks, then I know the weight will keep dropping off and I'll get more comfortable with longer runs.
One last thing, before I finish this week's blog. As I walked home from the local shop today I was stopped and told "bloody hell, what's happened to you? You've lost so much weight". It's little things like this which give me the encouragement to continue with my Long Run Back to Fitness.
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