Pardon my absence, as I have been away doing some odd and wonderful things, although this has come with some trouble as well!
I never announced it, but I decided to take a break from running over the course of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, as they were held in my home city of Vancouver. It troubled me that I wasn't there, and because of this, I ended up switching on to Vancouver time for nearly the entire two weeks. This brought many a smile, and sometimes a tear as I witnessed one of the best Games that has ever been held, and the performace of a lifetime from an amazing team of Canadian athletes.
My break started with a bit more cause than that though, I had somehow managed to tweak a muscle in my groin during my last week of training, which by the way was an absolute gem of a week! That week saw me hit a milestone of four runs (as promised), with my big run being a 4 mile belter to equal my longest distance yet. Perhaps it was too much too soon though, and I ended up on my arse for the following week, and then fell into the world of the Olympic Games. This too meant that I would find some new Canadian friends to share the moments with, and it would ultimately mean a trip to the Peartree in Edinburgh for potentially the most memorable night of my life, as the Canadian men brought home 'Hockey Gold' to close the games. I was in a see of 40-50 Canadians as we watched 'Sid the Kid' slide home the winning goal in overtime... the things that dreams are made of!
All throughout the games, I got an overwhelming feeling of appreciation for what the athletes go through. How hard they must train to stay at the top, or perhaps, how hard they train to overtake their competitors. This was the first time I had seen, and appreciated the work that goes into becoming an athlete. It's a bit scary to think that these people dedicate their lives to being able to prove their athletic worths on the World's stage, yet there are so many of us that would consider watching them to be a form of sport and/or exercise. We are such an unhealthy society if you think about it. We weren't built to sit at a keyboard all day! The body is engineered to travel, and yet, we just don't do that!I ended up at a running 'seminar' of sorts about a fortnight ago, sitting in a room full of runners, some of them mental, and some of them similar to myself. The seminar was meant to be a lift for runners of the Edinburgh Marathon, but instead was kind of off-putting. I was surrounded by people who ran when they weren't working, people who ran on average more than 100 miles per week... you know the people who are extremely lean, and the kind that you see leading marathons on TV. There was some good advice given at the seminar, but there were so many questions about so many technical things... which ironically I would normally love! I was surrounded by runners who weren't talking about running, but instead what they eat before a marathon, whether or not to use 'race flats' in a marathon, how to best use the 'Fartquad' method, how and when to use 'gels'... all of these things have nothing to do with the running, yet the whole reason we're on our feet at that start line is to run! Hearing people brag about their 18 mile average runs, and hearing someone pipe off numbers for training in a Rain-man like fashion couldn't have made me feel smaller if they'd have tried! Here I was, unbelievably proud of my four mile achievements, being belittled by a guy next to me asking how smart it would be to sprint the beginning, and then finish the race with a slow pace... so that he could be on TV. Lesson learned - The best way to learn about running is to do it, and the
best way to inspire yourself to run, is to prove to yourself that you can accomplish more than you thought. This added about a week to my break, which I really should apologise for, as I am coming to find that people really are reading this, and they are interested in what I am doing!
The break was well needed, but I don't think it was well deserved. Over the course of the last three to four weeks, I have found four pounds that I had originally lost, and I hadn't run, which meant I would be starting from scratch when I did decide to get the shoes on. This was something that really hurts, both physically and emotionally, as your confidence really takes a hit when your hard work goes to waste like that.
My first run back was pathetic, and even made me tear up a little when I got back. I managed a measly 3/4 of a mile before my shins seemingly exploded, and my lungs were finished... 0.75 miles from a previous 4 mile run... how devastating! I walked home, and my confidence was shot to death... I was finished. I even thought about giving up altogether! That was... until I decided to go out and do it again in a couple of night's time.
My second run this week was a reasonable 2.56 mile run that had me panting, and had given me a slight pain in my right knee. I didn't care though, I was back on form, knowing that my improvement was genuine, and was as I had expected, and what I needed. AS if this wasn't enough, the television gods seemed to be listening and that night, one of my favourite comedians, Eddie Izzard was on telly running something like 43 marathons in six weeks, or in other words running around the UK in six weeks. If you've ever seen Eddie Izzard, you would know that he's not a marathon runner by any means, in fact previous to this effort, he had five weeks of training with a trainer, and that was really it. He just made his legs move, and his body did the rest.
In the first program, he ran ten marathons in eleven days... a whopping 260 miles in just over a week. This wasn't what I was going for, but what it did do was show me that the unbelievable is still possible. He also said something that will stick with me for awhile, "When you're racing no one, you're always number one". When you've got nothing to lose, you can only win! The only thing I needed to really concentrate on was the simple movement my legs are supposed to make in order to make me run, and the rest will follow. This gave me a new-found level of confidence that would mean I would soon be back on track, and even better, I would be achieving something I never thought possible.
"When you're racing no one, you're always number one"
- Eddie Izzard
That brings us pretty much to today, only today I am buzzing, as I have accomplished the unthinkable. I went for a run last night as a sort of stress release. I had a crappy day at work, which pretty much summed up my week, and I wanted to go into the weekend with a good feeling to lift me. I went for a run, thinking about the fact that Eddie had done something so amazing because he believed he could, and because there was no other choice. I decided to go for a run thinking the same. I had originally aimed for three miles when I went out, and I also changed my route mid-run to keep things interesting. I felt good! My legs were a bit shaky, and my knee was starting to moan again, but my lungs were finally back in shape and keeping with me. I ran, and when I got a stitch, I kept running. When my knee started to give up, I kept running, when the hills were too big, I kept running.
I kept running for a total of 8.12 miles, for 1 hour and 27 minutes solid, just me, some sore niggles, and the road. I proved to myself last night that anything is possible, even the most unexpected. It has given me such a lift, but it has also come at a bit of a price. When I got back home, I was light-headed, dizzy, and I could taste blood in the back of my throat. My knee was tight, and sore, and my legs were a bit like jelly. I jumped into a freezing shower for about a half hour, hoping that would improve things, which it did. That being said, I am sitting on my sofa at the moment with a knee that is incredibly unhappy. It's having troubles bearing weight, and it is incredibly sore, and feeling inflamed... I don't care though, because look what I did!
I need to remind myself that there are still ten weeks of training ahead before the big day, but that this is an amazing show of confidence to myself. I now know without a shadow of a doubt that come race day, I will be at that damned finish line, even if it kills me.
At this point, I want people to start giving me some help. The troublesome part about this blog is that until my break, I knew of about three people that were reading it, and now I have come to find that there are a number of people taking the time to read this. My challenge to you this week is to say something! Even if it's just a hello, I want to know who is watching, and I want to know that there is some interest in this, otherwise it's a pointless effort.
I mean, just look at this... this was from a good pal of mine from back home from a couple of weeks ago, this is good stuff!
EVAN!
No more laziness, no more time to waste! WTF is going on with taking 2 weeks off when you are just getting back to bye bye fat kid! I don't want to see your blog offline for another 2 years so get your ASS outside and RUN! Get to the gym and get fuckin pumped! I don't care if you don't like the gym. GET YOUR ASS IN IT. diet your ass off and get this weight loss in the bag. NO MORE EXCUSES!! NO MORE LAZINESS!!!!!!!
Love Binga
Thank you to those of you who have done something to spur me on, whether it be nice comment, a helpful comment, a needed kick in the ass, or maybe even just a leg rub (Thanks Alicia). You guys are the ones helping me through this, and I'd really like to see more of it if possible! I want to cross that finish line thinking about all the people I am taking with me on my back.
Oh, and I also want you to start coughing up some money! I had an incredibly kind donation from Tina, but unfortunately so far, it's been the only one! Please spare whatever you can, it's easy, secure, and for a good cause in Maggies.
No recipe today I'm afraid, I need to go and ice this knee! Look for one mid-week!
Thanks for sticking with me everyone! I look forward to your comments!
