As Tuesday was an 'annual leave' day, I met SS at the gym for an 'extra' bit of training, in preparation for next Saturday!!
We headed straight for the treadmills, and whereas I am really anal about getting 'hill practice' in at the moment, SS did a mixture of everything, in fact she was a real fidget!! She ran a bit, jogged, climbed, walked, ran some more. I climbed, up, up and up at a tough but steady pace for the full 30 mins.....I had put my iPod onto the 'shuffle' selection, and was quite surprised at the eclectic mix I had on it, but it got me to the top!
I listened to Brandon Flowers, Feeder, Robbie (bless him!!), a little bit of Kings of Leon, Bon Jovi, Lady GaGa, Paramore, the Good Charlottes, Mika, Take That, Abba (works for me!!)and threw in some Marillion, anything to get the legs moving!
This was followed by a circuit of weights.
Today (Wednesday) saw us at the gym again, for our usual weekly slot, and we both did a hill this time, 30 mins of the steep incline on level 15, before we hit the weights - again.
We feel adequately prepared for the Ridgeway next Saturday, but once that is done, we then need to focus on the Surrey Centurion as the next challenge....that is a flatter course, but we are going to need to cover distance pretty darn quick - 100 miles in 24 hours, so the incline on the treadmills can come down (phew!!), but the speed has definitely gotta go up......
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Wednesday 27 April 2011
Monday 25 April 2011
Early start....
So, another early start!
Met SS at the top of the road, 7am, and again we headed to the common for a 'quick circuit' before breakfast. SS was off to London for the rest of the day, and I had promised to take Cassia to Nuffield as it was an 'Open day', so we both needed to 'get a move on'...
The common was deserted.....just the odd gobby cow (four-legged variety) and a few wild ponies....and as a point of interest, we noticed that the common is deserted of rabbits at the moment. At one time when we walked around in the early mornings there would be hundreds bouncing around, but there are none to be seen - and it's Easter -which is quite disconcerting....my money is on them adders.....
We did the full circuit, and as mentioned in a previous bog, our speed is now around 5 miles an hour, so we were in Costas as soon as, having coffee and toasted panettone with jam!
I took Cass to the gym for an hour 'taster' session, and whilst she was doing that, I made use of it myself!
I did,
10 mins treadmill - run
10 mins treadmill -uphill walk
5 mins treadmill run
10 mins treadmill power-walk.
10 mins rowing
Upper body weights.
Sunday was a 'day of rest', spent with the family in Tewkesbury, replacing lost calories by eating a roast dinner, hot cross buns and easter eggs....as you do!
Today was another gym day as the Ridgeway40 looms ever nearer!
I did a big hill climb today, setting the treadmill onto hill mode, level 15 for 30 minutes, and even though I was tempted to run in the middle to ease the knots in my hips, I kept climbing to the end...hopefully, Barbury Hill, which is 7 miles into the Ridgeway should be a doddle this year!
After 30 mins on the treadmill, I decided to give one of the static bikes a go, for my brother Tim's sake, so I cycled for 30 mins, again I put it onto hill mode at level 15, which is a fairly hard and tough programme, but I did find this slightly boring and well......I did get to the end of the programme, but would have rather used other equipment if I'm honest, but according to the monitor, I had burnt 278 calories, so not too bad - it also gave me a chance to listen to my Brandon Flowers CD, this is a bit too slow to listen to for running, but ok for cycling.
I then concentrated on a set of upper body weights, before utilising my 278 calories et al in Starbucks!!
Met SS at the top of the road, 7am, and again we headed to the common for a 'quick circuit' before breakfast. SS was off to London for the rest of the day, and I had promised to take Cassia to Nuffield as it was an 'Open day', so we both needed to 'get a move on'...
The common was deserted.....just the odd gobby cow (four-legged variety) and a few wild ponies....and as a point of interest, we noticed that the common is deserted of rabbits at the moment. At one time when we walked around in the early mornings there would be hundreds bouncing around, but there are none to be seen - and it's Easter -which is quite disconcerting....my money is on them adders.....
We did the full circuit, and as mentioned in a previous bog, our speed is now around 5 miles an hour, so we were in Costas as soon as, having coffee and toasted panettone with jam!
I took Cass to the gym for an hour 'taster' session, and whilst she was doing that, I made use of it myself!
I did,
10 mins treadmill - run
10 mins treadmill -uphill walk
5 mins treadmill run
10 mins treadmill power-walk.
10 mins rowing
Upper body weights.
Sunday was a 'day of rest', spent with the family in Tewkesbury, replacing lost calories by eating a roast dinner, hot cross buns and easter eggs....as you do!
Today was another gym day as the Ridgeway40 looms ever nearer!
I did a big hill climb today, setting the treadmill onto hill mode, level 15 for 30 minutes, and even though I was tempted to run in the middle to ease the knots in my hips, I kept climbing to the end...hopefully, Barbury Hill, which is 7 miles into the Ridgeway should be a doddle this year!
After 30 mins on the treadmill, I decided to give one of the static bikes a go, for my brother Tim's sake, so I cycled for 30 mins, again I put it onto hill mode at level 15, which is a fairly hard and tough programme, but I did find this slightly boring and well......I did get to the end of the programme, but would have rather used other equipment if I'm honest, but according to the monitor, I had burnt 278 calories, so not too bad - it also gave me a chance to listen to my Brandon Flowers CD, this is a bit too slow to listen to for running, but ok for cycling.
I then concentrated on a set of upper body weights, before utilising my 278 calories et al in Starbucks!!
Friday 22 April 2011
Two weeks to go....
Two weeks to go until the first of our two races (May 7th -Ridgeway40 )so training has been good. Unfortunately the same can't be said for the bank-they still have our account 'on hold' whilst their investigation 'is still in progress'. The good news is - if you can call it that - that I had a phone call from Policeman Dan from Hampshire and Isle of White Police, to say that they think my purse was stolen by some 'professional criminals from Coventry' who have been targeting surgeries, and are part of a big investigation - so hopefully Santander will cotton on to the fact that I am not 'scamming them' and give me my money back .....we'll see eh?!
Anyway...training....
Tuesday saw SS and I at the NuYu gym at the top of town. We were told to meet a 'Kelly' there for 2pm, but when we arrived, she was 'off sick'! We seemed to remember that the last person to meet us there was unavailable too....
The gym is a bit pokey...and very dark inside, so that, and my terrible eyesight wasn't a good combination, however, they had compensated for my poor hearing and had turned up the internal music soooo loud that both SS and I had to turn our iPods up to full blast in order to drown out their racket, sorry, music. We managed half an hour on the treadmill in these 'conditions', and called it quits! The cardiovascular machines are set out in rows and all face a...well...a brick wall......and you can have all this for £24.99 a month.
On the other hand....you can pay £36 a month, and carry on at Nuffield, with stunning views of the Racecourse and golf course, quiet music, and lighting working at full capacity, which is what we did on Wednesday......
We met at 8.30am, and headed straight to a treadmill each, with a view of the racecourse! SS opted for a pretty darn quick run, I opted for a serious hill climb and did this for 10 minutes, then did a quick 10 minute run, before returning to another steep hill climb for 5 minutes, before finishing with a 5 minute run at the end, before a sedate warm down walk of 5 minutes. We then spent time doing a serious circuit of weights.
On Thursday, we roped Jamie and Cassia into joining us for a walk - we promised them food and they readily agreed!
We met at Kintbury station, and then walked 4 miles along the canal into Hungerford. SS and I arrived at the Tutti Pole coffee shop and had had a drink before Cass and Jamie showed up, but at least they DID show up, we enjoyed lunch, and then walked the 4 miles back - again SS and I had time for a spot of sun-bathing whilst waiting for them to appear -again! Once home, Cass decided she was shattered, and decided she didn't want to walk anymore, so I did the 'Newbury loop' with Golda and Mali, adding another 3 miles onto my total, making it 11 miles in order to justify my creme egg!
Friday was another gym day, and I did as follows;
10 mins treadmill uphill climb
10 mins treadmill run
5 mins treadmill uphill climb
5 mins treadmill sprint
5 mins treadmill walk - flat
10 mins cross-trainer
10 mins rowing machine ( 1000 metres in 4mins 43 seconds woo-hoo!!)
Circuit of upper body weights
5 mins treadmill sprint - to finish.
The afternoon was spent cutting down trees, lifting the odd log and sweeping brambles - so I guess that was a training session in itself too........so, two weeks tomorrow, SS and I will be trudging across the Ridgeway -I reckon we're prepared.....but just in case, the alarm is set for tomorrow, and we'll do a circuit of the common.......
Anyway...training....
Tuesday saw SS and I at the NuYu gym at the top of town. We were told to meet a 'Kelly' there for 2pm, but when we arrived, she was 'off sick'! We seemed to remember that the last person to meet us there was unavailable too....
The gym is a bit pokey...and very dark inside, so that, and my terrible eyesight wasn't a good combination, however, they had compensated for my poor hearing and had turned up the internal music soooo loud that both SS and I had to turn our iPods up to full blast in order to drown out their racket, sorry, music. We managed half an hour on the treadmill in these 'conditions', and called it quits! The cardiovascular machines are set out in rows and all face a...well...a brick wall......and you can have all this for £24.99 a month.
On the other hand....you can pay £36 a month, and carry on at Nuffield, with stunning views of the Racecourse and golf course, quiet music, and lighting working at full capacity, which is what we did on Wednesday......
We met at 8.30am, and headed straight to a treadmill each, with a view of the racecourse! SS opted for a pretty darn quick run, I opted for a serious hill climb and did this for 10 minutes, then did a quick 10 minute run, before returning to another steep hill climb for 5 minutes, before finishing with a 5 minute run at the end, before a sedate warm down walk of 5 minutes. We then spent time doing a serious circuit of weights.
On Thursday, we roped Jamie and Cassia into joining us for a walk - we promised them food and they readily agreed!
We met at Kintbury station, and then walked 4 miles along the canal into Hungerford. SS and I arrived at the Tutti Pole coffee shop and had had a drink before Cass and Jamie showed up, but at least they DID show up, we enjoyed lunch, and then walked the 4 miles back - again SS and I had time for a spot of sun-bathing whilst waiting for them to appear -again! Once home, Cass decided she was shattered, and decided she didn't want to walk anymore, so I did the 'Newbury loop' with Golda and Mali, adding another 3 miles onto my total, making it 11 miles in order to justify my creme egg!
Friday was another gym day, and I did as follows;
10 mins treadmill uphill climb
10 mins treadmill run
5 mins treadmill uphill climb
5 mins treadmill sprint
5 mins treadmill walk - flat
10 mins cross-trainer
10 mins rowing machine ( 1000 metres in 4mins 43 seconds woo-hoo!!)
Circuit of upper body weights
5 mins treadmill sprint - to finish.
The afternoon was spent cutting down trees, lifting the odd log and sweeping brambles - so I guess that was a training session in itself too........so, two weeks tomorrow, SS and I will be trudging across the Ridgeway -I reckon we're prepared.....but just in case, the alarm is set for tomorrow, and we'll do a circuit of the common.......
Sunday 17 April 2011
Lie-in....
After a busy week at work, and stresses ++ with bank managers etc etc, I sent Chris and Cass up to Coventry without me this weekend, as I really needed some 'time-out'. We were all meant to be staying at our friend Lou's, mainly so Chris could go to a golf show, and so Lou and I could shop...hmmm a bit tricky without a bank account or cards.....
I didn't even tell SS that I was staying behind because I desperately needed a lie-in too...something that hasn't happened on a Saturday for weeks, months, years even!
Golda had other ideas and proceeded to bark at 5.30am until I let her out.....
After 'pottering' around at home, I felt sufficiently guilty by lunchtime for not having done anything (curse SS!!) so took the dogs out on the 'Newbury Loop' to 'warm-up' and then headed to the gym for a quick work-out consisting of;
10 mins treadmill -run
10 mins treadmill-power walk
5 mins treadmill -run
5 mins treadmill power walk
5 mins treadmill warm down walk
Full circuit of weights.
By Sunday afternoon, I was feeling 'guilty' AND 'twitchy' (curse SS again!!) and realised it was because I was missing my usual Saturday walk, so after taking Golda and Mali for their walk - again the Newbury Loop (3 miles) with extra running around time in the park for Mali, I changed into trail shoes and headed to the common. Once on the common I had the 'urge' to run instead of walk and did the smaller of the loops before heading back home (after 5 miles) when to my joy, I remembered that Costa Coffee on the retail park was open til 5.30pm on a Sunday - well...it would be rude not to...!
I didn't even tell SS that I was staying behind because I desperately needed a lie-in too...something that hasn't happened on a Saturday for weeks, months, years even!
Golda had other ideas and proceeded to bark at 5.30am until I let her out.....
After 'pottering' around at home, I felt sufficiently guilty by lunchtime for not having done anything (curse SS!!) so took the dogs out on the 'Newbury Loop' to 'warm-up' and then headed to the gym for a quick work-out consisting of;
10 mins treadmill -run
10 mins treadmill-power walk
5 mins treadmill -run
5 mins treadmill power walk
5 mins treadmill warm down walk
Full circuit of weights.
By Sunday afternoon, I was feeling 'guilty' AND 'twitchy' (curse SS again!!) and realised it was because I was missing my usual Saturday walk, so after taking Golda and Mali for their walk - again the Newbury Loop (3 miles) with extra running around time in the park for Mali, I changed into trail shoes and headed to the common. Once on the common I had the 'urge' to run instead of walk and did the smaller of the loops before heading back home (after 5 miles) when to my joy, I remembered that Costa Coffee on the retail park was open til 5.30pm on a Sunday - well...it would be rude not to...!
Wednesday 13 April 2011
Finally....
I've finally got around to writing on my blog again, after a really rotten week.....it's been a nightmare trying to sort out bank details and barclaycards etc...the latest is that my bank account is still 'frozen' whilst the bank 'investigates'...that means that they will let money in...but won't honour transfers, standing orders, direct debits, cash out, or let me write cheques, basically I'm stuffed..and this could go on for another couple of weeks yet.....the good news is that I had a barclaycard delivered yesterday - yay! so at least I can now do Tescos.....all this hassle whilst the thieves are happily spending my £3000 somewhere.....(and using my Starbucks card-pah!)
Anyway....onto training....
Saturday saw SS and I do a short walk only. My excuse was that I had my Dad down from Birmingham for the weekend, SS's excuse was that she was meant to be going to London (that's another story involving heavy metal and lost tickets!!), so we met even earlier than usual, and did even shorter than usual!
6.30am saw us at the top of the road, heading towards the common, and it was a quick circuit around of the full perimeter, the usual 8 miles, before heading to Costa's for breakfast.....I had missed my chocolate twists and decided to have one for 'old times sake'!!
With all the training we are doing we seem to definitely be picking up speed, and guess that we are doing on average 4.5 - 5miles an hour now.
I wasn't able to get to the gym on Monday as I usually like to, as again I was in the bank trying to speed up the process of getting to my money, so by Tuesday afternoon I was 'itching' to get there and went straight from work to do an hour of cardiovascular work, I definitely needed to release some 'happy hormones'!
I did;
10 mins treadmill -run
10 mins treadmill - uphill walk
10 mins treadmill -run
5 mins treadmill -flat walk
10 mins x-trainer
15 mins cycle (for my brother Tim's sake - to see what the fuss is about - easy-peasy!!)
Wednesday SS and I met as usual at the gym for our 'wednesday workout', and again it was freestyle.
SS did a very fast flat walk, but did throw in a couple of hills mid-way through.
I did 20 mins of a steep uphill (getting ready for our first race on May 7th as there are 2 hills that nearly kill me!!) and then I did 8 mins of very fast flat. The last 2 mins I ran as if I was being chases by demons as I really needed to let off steam, and it felt great...I don't think SS has ever seen me move so fast, apart from the time I thought I saw a python......
We followed this with the usual circuit of weights, including the abdominal machine..and I did 60, yes 60 reps on that.....have I got stomach ache now to prove it!!
Anyway....onto training....
Saturday saw SS and I do a short walk only. My excuse was that I had my Dad down from Birmingham for the weekend, SS's excuse was that she was meant to be going to London (that's another story involving heavy metal and lost tickets!!), so we met even earlier than usual, and did even shorter than usual!
6.30am saw us at the top of the road, heading towards the common, and it was a quick circuit around of the full perimeter, the usual 8 miles, before heading to Costa's for breakfast.....I had missed my chocolate twists and decided to have one for 'old times sake'!!
With all the training we are doing we seem to definitely be picking up speed, and guess that we are doing on average 4.5 - 5miles an hour now.
I wasn't able to get to the gym on Monday as I usually like to, as again I was in the bank trying to speed up the process of getting to my money, so by Tuesday afternoon I was 'itching' to get there and went straight from work to do an hour of cardiovascular work, I definitely needed to release some 'happy hormones'!
I did;
10 mins treadmill -run
10 mins treadmill - uphill walk
10 mins treadmill -run
5 mins treadmill -flat walk
10 mins x-trainer
15 mins cycle (for my brother Tim's sake - to see what the fuss is about - easy-peasy!!)
Wednesday SS and I met as usual at the gym for our 'wednesday workout', and again it was freestyle.
SS did a very fast flat walk, but did throw in a couple of hills mid-way through.
I did 20 mins of a steep uphill (getting ready for our first race on May 7th as there are 2 hills that nearly kill me!!) and then I did 8 mins of very fast flat. The last 2 mins I ran as if I was being chases by demons as I really needed to let off steam, and it felt great...I don't think SS has ever seen me move so fast, apart from the time I thought I saw a python......
We followed this with the usual circuit of weights, including the abdominal machine..and I did 60, yes 60 reps on that.....have I got stomach ache now to prove it!!
Wednesday 6 April 2011
Argh!
SS and I met at the top end of town today as we were going to look at a new gym -NuYu- to see how it compared to Nuffield, and whether it was any cheaper!
I had also been given some free passes via work so thought why not...that is until they were nicked along with my purse, but as we had made an appointment, off we went......
First impressions.....coffee bar and milkshake area provided by Mr Moojuice, so not bad, but we had been told to be there for 9am, and at 9.20am we were still waiting to be shown around. Then I had a call from Cass's school nurse to say she was up-chucking everywhere and could I remove her!
So, gym visit at NuYu to be rescheduled for next week, and I promised to meet SS at Nuffield later, once Cass had been 'assessed', and then off to 'assess'.
Poor Cass looked really rough, and needed some TLC, which then gave me chance to carry on cancelling and re-ordering new cards etc following yesterdays theft.....and finally, at 2pm, I managed to get some training in! (considering this is a training blog.....)
We did half an hour on the treadmill, I did a powerwalk hill, but did a 5 minute run in the middle of it to 'loosen the knots' as my legs felt stiff, and this was followed by a circuit of the usual weights.
It was really hard to get in to the 'training zone' today...I did just want to shout 'ARGH' really loud......but what did make the day better was a lovely present off SS - a new starbucks card to replace my stolen one - bless her x.
I had also been given some free passes via work so thought why not...that is until they were nicked along with my purse, but as we had made an appointment, off we went......
First impressions.....coffee bar and milkshake area provided by Mr Moojuice, so not bad, but we had been told to be there for 9am, and at 9.20am we were still waiting to be shown around. Then I had a call from Cass's school nurse to say she was up-chucking everywhere and could I remove her!
So, gym visit at NuYu to be rescheduled for next week, and I promised to meet SS at Nuffield later, once Cass had been 'assessed', and then off to 'assess'.
Poor Cass looked really rough, and needed some TLC, which then gave me chance to carry on cancelling and re-ordering new cards etc following yesterdays theft.....and finally, at 2pm, I managed to get some training in! (considering this is a training blog.....)
We did half an hour on the treadmill, I did a powerwalk hill, but did a 5 minute run in the middle of it to 'loosen the knots' as my legs felt stiff, and this was followed by a circuit of the usual weights.
It was really hard to get in to the 'training zone' today...I did just want to shout 'ARGH' really loud......but what did make the day better was a lovely present off SS - a new starbucks card to replace my stolen one - bless her x.
Tuesday 5 April 2011
Unbelievable....
My plan for this afternoon was to go to the gym, run a bit, do some weights, rowing, and probably throw in some sit ups for good measure...instead I felt sick to the stomach for another reason.
Whilst at work today, someone nicked my purse out of my bag, and then helped themselves to £3000 out of two bank accounts.....and took my driving licence, barclaycard and other cards for good measure. It's taken most of the afternoon to cancel cards and speak to the police, so no exercise today, other than stomach churning....
However, yesterday I did do 30 lengths in the pool if that counts??
Whilst at work today, someone nicked my purse out of my bag, and then helped themselves to £3000 out of two bank accounts.....and took my driving licence, barclaycard and other cards for good measure. It's taken most of the afternoon to cancel cards and speak to the police, so no exercise today, other than stomach churning....
However, yesterday I did do 30 lengths in the pool if that counts??
Sunday 3 April 2011
Hip replacement...
After yesterday's 32 miles, woke up with a stiff left hip.....I think I'm a bit young for a replacement so I headed for the gym this afternoon instead to 'run the knots' out, which seems to have worked....and has probably saved the NHS £5000!
My workout was;
treadmill 5 mins uphill walk
treadmill 10 mins run
treadmill 5 mins uphill walk
treadmill 10 mins run
treadmill 5 mins flat walk
cross-trainer 10 mins
row 5 mins (1000 metres)
circuit upper body weights
treadmill 5 mins sprint.
And then, being Mother's day, I had a date with a box of Thorntons......x
My workout was;
treadmill 5 mins uphill walk
treadmill 10 mins run
treadmill 5 mins uphill walk
treadmill 10 mins run
treadmill 5 mins flat walk
cross-trainer 10 mins
row 5 mins (1000 metres)
circuit upper body weights
treadmill 5 mins sprint.
And then, being Mother's day, I had a date with a box of Thorntons......x
One month to go!
One month to go until our first race...May 7th and we will be trudging our way across the Ridgeway, from Overton Hill in Wiltshire, to Streatley in Berkshire....40 miles across windswept, rugged terrain, open to the elements.....better get training then -
Saturday, 7am, met SS at the top of the road, and our feet found their way to Greenham Common. In fact, our feet very gingerly found their way around the common as we were on 'adder alert'! Every stick or twig we saw looked like a possible suspect, so we did walk a lot quicker than our normal pace.
One circuit later and we were in Costas, were the wildlife was definately tamer (or at least not poisonous!), having breakfast stop one!
After refuelling, back to the common for circuit two, and we headed towards the gate at Thornford Park end, dropping down through the farmyard at Crookham and onto the canal, heading towards Thatcham Lakes and Newbury.
The weather started to brighten up and became increasingly warmer as the morning progressed, a lovely spring morning, and the conversation turned to 'spring' and the lack of 'spring signs'. We had spent several hours walking around lakes, and along the canal, and although we had seen swans and ducks, we had seen no ducklings whatsoever....this then led back to adders...and whether they ate ducklings??? answers on postcards please!
After eighteen miles we hit Starbucks in Newbury so had breakfast stop two/lunch one or we could just say brunch, before deciding where to go next...we thought, ideally we ought to get about 30 miles in this week....it's a little difficult knowing how much to train for in one go...the experts/books advise not more than 40 miles in one go for training (whatever your ultramarathon distance) as you can damage muscle etc....and we now do that on a regular basis with minimal recovery time....but don't want to push it!
10 miles doesn't seem worth it, 20 miles is a little easy, 30 is a good round number so that's what we try and aim for, or at least 20+...if it's 20+ you can justify two cake stops!!
After deciding on our mileage, we decided on the route, and headed back to the canal, but this time in the opposite direction! We walked along as far as Enbourne Lock, and then cut across the fields heading up to Speen church. Through the graveyard, dodged some traffic, and then found a bridleway and footpath which took us onto Donnington Golf course.
This was extremely busy, and not all of it is open to the public, so we had to navigate up, and around it, avoiding buggys and balls, in order to finf the bridleway which led over the A34 and up onto Snelsmore Common. We followed one of SS's 'shortcuts' - which, surprisingly, had a hill in, and wasn't short.....and then we were onto Snelsmore....where there was a sign telling us that Snelsmore was home to not only normal adders but 'hunting adders' - woop woop!
We did a circiut of the common, very jumpy as every twig seemed to have zigzag markings, and then by the gate at the exit, we bothed jumped a mile and did (hate to admit it) girly screams as there was a MASSIVE slow worm (could have been a python, size of it!!) which we thought was gonna eat us!
The route back took us via Donnington Castle, and through Donnington Village, into the top end of Newbury, to finish our expedition with a cake from Kings Coffee House Bakery, and to also give us the energy to walk home!
Home was via town and Newtown Road...SS heading along Monks Lane and Elizabeth Avenue...and me heading BACK down Newtown Road with 2 dogs desperate to have a run around City Park and a stroll up Wendon and Chandos Road;.
So, all in all a good training day..lots of nice sunshine...nice cakes and approx 32 miles.
Saturday, 7am, met SS at the top of the road, and our feet found their way to Greenham Common. In fact, our feet very gingerly found their way around the common as we were on 'adder alert'! Every stick or twig we saw looked like a possible suspect, so we did walk a lot quicker than our normal pace.
One circuit later and we were in Costas, were the wildlife was definately tamer (or at least not poisonous!), having breakfast stop one!
After refuelling, back to the common for circuit two, and we headed towards the gate at Thornford Park end, dropping down through the farmyard at Crookham and onto the canal, heading towards Thatcham Lakes and Newbury.
The weather started to brighten up and became increasingly warmer as the morning progressed, a lovely spring morning, and the conversation turned to 'spring' and the lack of 'spring signs'. We had spent several hours walking around lakes, and along the canal, and although we had seen swans and ducks, we had seen no ducklings whatsoever....this then led back to adders...and whether they ate ducklings??? answers on postcards please!
After eighteen miles we hit Starbucks in Newbury so had breakfast stop two/lunch one or we could just say brunch, before deciding where to go next...we thought, ideally we ought to get about 30 miles in this week....it's a little difficult knowing how much to train for in one go...the experts/books advise not more than 40 miles in one go for training (whatever your ultramarathon distance) as you can damage muscle etc....and we now do that on a regular basis with minimal recovery time....but don't want to push it!
10 miles doesn't seem worth it, 20 miles is a little easy, 30 is a good round number so that's what we try and aim for, or at least 20+...if it's 20+ you can justify two cake stops!!
After deciding on our mileage, we decided on the route, and headed back to the canal, but this time in the opposite direction! We walked along as far as Enbourne Lock, and then cut across the fields heading up to Speen church. Through the graveyard, dodged some traffic, and then found a bridleway and footpath which took us onto Donnington Golf course.
This was extremely busy, and not all of it is open to the public, so we had to navigate up, and around it, avoiding buggys and balls, in order to finf the bridleway which led over the A34 and up onto Snelsmore Common. We followed one of SS's 'shortcuts' - which, surprisingly, had a hill in, and wasn't short.....and then we were onto Snelsmore....where there was a sign telling us that Snelsmore was home to not only normal adders but 'hunting adders' - woop woop!
We did a circiut of the common, very jumpy as every twig seemed to have zigzag markings, and then by the gate at the exit, we bothed jumped a mile and did (hate to admit it) girly screams as there was a MASSIVE slow worm (could have been a python, size of it!!) which we thought was gonna eat us!
The route back took us via Donnington Castle, and through Donnington Village, into the top end of Newbury, to finish our expedition with a cake from Kings Coffee House Bakery, and to also give us the energy to walk home!
Home was via town and Newtown Road...SS heading along Monks Lane and Elizabeth Avenue...and me heading BACK down Newtown Road with 2 dogs desperate to have a run around City Park and a stroll up Wendon and Chandos Road;.
So, all in all a good training day..lots of nice sunshine...nice cakes and approx 32 miles.
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