As always, I hope that whoever takes the time to read this weekly training and life update had an amazing weekend. I hope some people read this blog, sometimes I feel like only my family read these updates. I’m not a food blogger, so I feel that I need to apologise in advance for all of the food references and photos in this blog.

My weekend highlights included England beating New Zealand, a spot of ‘hydrological’ parkrun volunteering and a confidence-boosting six mile run yesterday morning.

Week eight of my Couch to Half Marathon training plan looked something like this.

Thanks to a two-day training course in Leeds, an evening birthday meal and life getting in the way, the reality looked a little different. I’m actually looking forward to this week being a little more ‘normal’.

So, how did I find the eighth week of my Couch to Half marathon training plan? Did I actually run? Did I use my exercise bike? Did I let life get in the way of training?

Monday – 30 mins cross training

The working week got off to a positive start as I didn’t have to drag myself out of bed in the dark at 5:30am. I may be repeating myself, but nothing beats a lie-in on a Monday morning. I got up at 7:30am, got changed into some gym gear and spent 30 minutes on my exercise bike. I did briefly consider heading out for a run, but my legs felt niggly after parkrun. I spent the morning and lunchtime working from home and managed to clear my inbox. Work completed, I met up with a colleague in Birmingham and we headed up to Leeds.

The journey was uneventful, but we arrived in Leeds in the middle of the evening rush-hour which wasn’t ideal as we didn’t know where we were going. After a couple of navigational ‘fails’ we found our hotel which was located in a slightly dodgy looking area, dumped our bags and then headed into the centre of Leeds to find somewhere to eat.

We decided to play it safe and headed to Ask Italian. I was as predictable as ever and opted for garlic bread followed by Chicken Kale Caesar Salad. The salad was a little on the stingy side and was somewhat underwhelming, I spent the meal regretting my choices.

We walked back to the hotel and spent a bit of time chatting before heading to bed at a sensible time. Thanks to some late-night drinkers and a nightclub, I didn’t get much sleep and woke up feeling tired and a little grumpy. Not ideal before a maths and stats training course.

Tuesday – Rest

It took me less than 30 minutes to realise that I was completely out of my depth and that I’d find the training course challenging. How I passed GCSE and A-level maths will remain a mystery. I found completing what should have been relatively easy maths tasks difficult and quickly fell behind the rest of the group. Looking back, I’ve no idea how I made it to lunch on the first day without having a mini-meltdown. It felt like tears were never far away. The afternoon was just as challenging and I’ve never felt so relieved to make it to the end of the first day of a training course. After chatting with other people on the course, I realised I wasn’t alone.

The most enjoyable element of two-day training courses is the meal on the first night. Although I spent a year in Leeds when I completed my MSc, I couldn’t recommend anywhere as Leeds has changed a lot since 2001! Luckily, another colleague had done some research and suggested Zaap Thai.

We couldn’t book a table and when we arrived the restaurant was busy, so we had a bit of a wait. The wait was worth it as the food was amazing. If you ever find yourself in Leeds, check out Zaap Thai.

I’m not sure if it was the food, the lack of sleep the previous night or the stress of the first day of the training course, but I slept through the early morning dance music and trains. I’m aware that more dedicated runners would have taken their running gear to Leeds, but I didn’t, so I wasn’t able to complete my interval session.

Wednesday – 30 mins cross training

The second day of the training course focused on statistics for hydrology. I’ve always been a statistics geek, so I felt far more confident, was back in my comfort zone and started to enjoy myself. I don’t want this weekly update to turn into an essay, so I won’t go into loads of detail. The course finished just before 4:00pm and I stepped through my front door in Four Oaks at 7:30pm. Not bad considering the train journey between Birmingham and Leeds used to take over three hours. After spending three hours on various trains, I actually enjoyed my cross training session.

Thursday – Rest

I had what could only be described as an ‘admin’ type day in the office. My line manager noticed that I have a lot of annual leave to use before the middle of January so I was able to book Friday and Monday off. I entered the ballot for next year’s Chicago Marathon during lunch and caught up with some of my old colleagues from the Lichfield office. All-in-all I had a good day in the office. I got home and got changed into something a little smarter as I had to head back out for mum’s birthday meal. I’d done some research and had booked a table at Romantica a traditional Italian restaurant that is rated the best restaurant in Sutton Coldfield.

The food was out of this world, definitely worth paying a little extra for. I even managed to take some sneaky photos, always tricky when I’m with mum and my stepfather as they find people taking photos of food a little strange. The photos unfortunately don’t do the food justice. I felt so full after my meal; I knew attempting any sort of training run would be a disaster so I postponed my interval session.

Friday – Rest

I’d love to be able to write that I made the most of the first day of leave, but thanks to some useless workmen making a complete hash of what should have been a simple task, I had to stay in most of the day. By the time the workmen left, it was dark and wet and I was hungry as I’d missed lunch so I didn’t attempt my interval session. Fortunately, the day wasn’t a complete write-off as I managed to make a start on my C****tmas shopping. I checked BBC weather, saw it was forecast to be a tad wet, and dug out my waterproofs ready for volunteering at parkrun.

Saturday – 30 mins cross training

The weather forecast was spot-on; I don’t think it stopped raining all morning. Let’s just say I was more than a little relieved I decided to transfer my Snowdonia Marathon Eryri number to another runner several months ago. I had a lot of fun marshalling at parkrun but suspect that the rain, rugby, and half-term may have had something to do with the record low number of participants. I think this photo sums up the wet conditions quite well.

[Photo: Peter Heafield]

I got home and after struggling to remove my jeans, ordered myself a pair of fleecy, waterproof trousers. And then I saw the rugby score. Wow, never in a million years did I think England would beat New Zealand! Once I’d completed 30 minutes on my exercise bike, the rest of my Saturday was so mundane I won’t bore you all to tears with the details of my adulting related tasks.

Sunday – 6 miles (Run 4 mins/Walk 2 mins)

What a difference 24 hours makes; when I headed out on my six mile interval session it was dry but incredibly cold. After my less than impressive parkrun effort last Saturday, I was a little worried that I wouldn’t be able to run (and walk) for six miles. Once I completed the first mile and started to warm and wake up, I enjoyed my run around Four Oaks and Mere Green. The final mile was a little challenging as my legs started to feel like lumps of lead, but I managed to avoid taking any sneaky, unscheduled walking breaks.

The rest of my Sunday was a far more sedate affair. I watched the Newcastle v Wolves match and to be honest felt Wolves should have won. I treated myself to an afternoon nap – I felt tired all day after my epic(?) run – and woke up feeling completely disorientated. Walking to and from work in the dark isn’t going to be much fun. I spent an hour responding to some blog related emails and then met up with an old school friend for a couple of beers at the Crown pub. All-in-all it was a relaxing Sunday.

Given my current fitness levels, I think that week nine of my Couch to Half Marathon train plan looks slightly unachievable. I’m aware that I’m repeating myself a little, but I’m determined to get my training back on track this week. I’ve got to complete a 36 minute interval session on Tuesday and a 30 minute interval session on Thursday. On Sunday, I’m hoping to repeat yesterday’s 6 mile interval session. I’ll be sure to set out at a more sensible pace and to make the most of the two minute recovery intervals.

Training totals

• Runs: 12
• Time: 7 hrs 16 mins
• Distance: 36.88 miles

Niggleometer

• Right knee: 2/10
• Right foot: 3/10

Did you have a good weekend? I’d like to be able to write about my thrilling weekend adventures but I can’t as I had a quiet weekend.

Did you brave the rain and head to your nearest parkrun or did you stay at home to watch the rugby? I have a feeling that in some areas, next week’s parkruns may be even quieter.

A random one, but have you been to Leeds recently? I was so impressed with what I saw during the training course, I’m already planning a return trip to the place I used to call home.

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