Dear Green Places

Sometimes I kick myself (but not too hard, I bruise easy...) at how lucky I am to live in Glasgow. With its diverse population and communities, world-renowned educational and cultural institutions, not to mention one thousand and one ways to spend your time or your hard-earned buck. But recently I've also been reminded how dear our green places are, especially now that I use them to run in, through, and around.

Being a southsider I have loads of parks to choose from, practically on my doorstep. Pollok Park is a fave Saturday morning locale since I started going along to parkrun regularly last year, and I ran it yesterday, for the first time since December. Even though my training lately has reduced to going out twice a week, I do feel fitter than the last time I ran the 5k there and so was a bit disappointed not to better my personal best on Saturday morning....however, the beauty of parkrun is that there's always next week. And I did manage to run up the hill from hell both times without stopping, a personal achievement, and no mean feat if you have been and know what I'm talking about!

Last Sunday I took a wee notion to run in an entirely different direction to normal, and ended up in Linn Park. Even though it was the middle of the afternoon I was a bit wary running into a park alone that I had only been to once in my life, but the plus side of running in an unknown environment was not realising just how tough it was about to get...A river runs through the park and on one side is a lovely flat trail nestling alongside the lazy river while on the other is a winding narrow path consisting of a rollercoaster ride of steep steps up and down, obviously dreamt up by some psychopathic park designer with a grudge against runners, walkers, or anything else on two feet.

With typical (for me) beginner's luck, I ended up on the Himalayan side. As much as I would love to tell you I took on the hills with gusto, bounding up and down them in two single leaps each time, my feeble attempt ended up being closer to crawling on all fours than actual running. Once I reached the flat ground again my legs were useless lumps of lead and I conceded defeat to a pair of very dapper old ladies out for an afternoon stroll who managed to overtake me at all of their 2.5 mph pace.

Ignorance certainly is bliss to me, so since the course for the Women's 10k has been officially announced, I've been too nervous to look at it very closely. However, a friend was telling me that the route takes in not one but two parks, Bellahouston (which for my shame I have never ever been in) and Pollok. Again, I think to myself, how lucky I am to live in a city with so many lush green spaces to run through, home to different species of Glaswegian wildlife, and lots of animals and plants too I hear. ;-)

When I'm on the home strait of the 10k through Bellahouston and maybe struggling a bit, one thing that will keep me going is a long-held wee dream of mine: which is to one day go for a run through one of the most famous city parks in the world, and somewhere very close to my heart, Central Park in New York.

And I'm not talking about doing the New York Marathon. No, I just mean like when you see shots of people jogging in films or tv shows which are set in New York (remember all those key moments from Sex and The City which happened in Central Park? eg Charlotte meeting her future pet dog "Elizabeth Taylor", or the time when Miranda moved into the 7 minute mile running group after another disastrous 'romantic' encounter, the details of which I won't go into here, SATC fans will know what I mean!), well I want to do that someday.

I've been to New York several times before and spent memorable hours in Central Park, but only got the courage to take up running in the last year or so. And I don't think I'll be able to truly say I have had the complete Manhattan-ite experience until I've jogged through the city's iconic park on a sunny spring day...

Return flight to New York, £499. Running through Central Park, priceless :-)

How about you? What's your favourite real-life, or fantasy, park run?

Glasgow Parkrun

Hello again

Saturday morning 2nd parkrun ,better P.B. I would recommend this free run to anyone training for the ladies 10K .Its easy to register online , easy to find. easy to park and thats about it for the EASY part after that its all about pushing yourself round this challenging 5K route guided by all the organisers and it is such a well run event it makes it so easy to take part . Everyone taking part is made to feel welcome from the novice runner to the winning athletes Give it a go ladies .

Been Feeling Rubbish

Well it's been a couple of weeks since I last posted a blog. This is mainly down to the fact that I haven't been able to get out for a couple of weeks due to to having a heavy cold, I was struggling to breath and lost my voice! It was terrible - and I was on night shifts.

Anyway, this is almost all out my system and I am back to my training. We ran 47 mins on Tuesday night at a great pace and I felt brilliant after it. Starting to gradually build up my distance - I haven't managed more than 8K since last years race and really should start building up my distance.

Parkrun will be starting up over the next few weeks at Strathclyde park and I looking forward to a regular timed 5K to keep me on track.

Love reading everyone's blogs, keep up the good work x

Face of the RaceFame!

Face of the Race Fame!

My training is going really well at the moment, I'm managing my usual 5K route comfortably and I'm trying to add a bit extra on each time I run so that I can gradually build up my distance although measuring my distance isn't my strong point, I don't really use my pedometer or chart my distance but I base it mainly on local knowledge and I know the rough distances so hopefully I'll get by on that. During my early morning runs I'm often quite taken by the view, particularly on a bright, fresh morning and sometimes I find my running can get a little side tracked when I stop to take pictures!!!

I'd really like to try the actual Women's 10K route, but as I'm not from Glasgow I don't often get the opportunity to spend time in the city however next weekend I have a hen night in Glasgow and I'm making plans to incorporate some running along the race route beforehand - I think it will be really exciting to try it out!

The Face of the Race competition has been amazing, local people who see me running my usual route each morning are coming up to me and telling me how great they think it is that I'm involved and my good friend opened her No1 magazine a few weeks back to find my face in the middle of it, she said she was really proud which was a great feeling! I've also had a lot of support from my Weight Watchers leader Patsy Freeman, I would really like to thank her for that. She announced my involvement in the race at our meeting and encouraged all the other girls who attend my meeting to get involved and run the race which was so kind, makes it all seem really special and is doing wonders for my motivation. Looking forward to the months ahead!

Here's looking at you, kid

Palms are sweaty, my stomach is churning, couldn't sleep last night, and I'm shaking as I walk out the front door....to face my first run out in the open air since December.

Some people will be wondering why I am so scared of something they find perfectly natural, while other people will know exactly what I'm going on about. It's not the first time I'm ever attempting to run so its not the fear of the unknown. In fact it's probably cos I know what to expect that I am so anxious.

It's all those fears that using the treadmill for the last 3 months had eradicated: what if I run out of steam before I'm even more than halfway home, what if I need the loo, how many people are going to witness my huffing, puffing body trundling along, and what are they going to think? Having decided to try a run by myself, at least I didn't have to worry about holding anyone back or have the embarrassment of seeing the rest of my companions shrink to the size of ants as the gap between them and me widened.

But, I had decided this weekend was now or never. The weather has been beautiful, my hip seems to be on the mend, and all my friends are making great progress with their training, so it was time for me to stop being such a baby and grow some cojones!

I headed out nice and early and used my nikeplus to make sure I didn't go too fast too soon. It wasn't long before that wasn't a problem anyway as my legs realised what a cushy number they had been onto in the gym. One km in and I was struggling to lift my feet off the ground and wondering if any of my neighbours would clock me if I headed back to my close 10 minutes after I'd just left.

Well, I managed just short of 5km in the end, not the best of runs, and I stopped to walk even between the traffic light breaks. But in the end I did what I set out to do, which was set my foot out the dreaded front door, and planned to try again today - if my body was still friends with me after putting it through that rude awakening. And a rude awakening it was this morning too, rising out of bed I felt like I had been run over by a steamroller in my sleep, however, catching sight of my lady bumps in the mirror it was obvious that nothing about me was flatter than yesterday...:-)

I'm always one to listen to both sides of an argument before I decide to do what I wanted to do all along anyway, so although my body was protesting any further effort this weekend, off out the door I set again this morning. Not quite as early as Saturday morning, so the world of Glasgow was very much up and at 'em, but after 10 minutes I was actually so tired I couldn't give a flying fig who saw me, what they thought, and what kind of a state I looked. I was oblivious to everything but just trying to keep going.

One wee trick that seemed to work for instance was not looking ahead but staring resolutely at the ground. It actually did work as sometimes seeing a long street ahead of me makes me think I'll never make it and that's when I usually give up and walk.

I also struck out on a different route to my old tried and tested, as I think that the same familiar landmarks tend to remind my body of past occasions when I've felt jiggered at those points. Today everything would be a new experience and so my legs would just have to plod on without prejudice. And so I was able to run up a hill without stopping, got a chance to run on grass, and I even managed to run along a few streets which were human-free (the holy grail of the self-conscious runner).

On the home strait I checked the distance on my nikeplus for the first time, knowing it was definitely longer than the previous day but hoping that my usual luck wouldn't mean it was about 0.1km longer. But, yippee, I had actually managed another mile more than yesterday!

Stepping back through my front door ruddy-faced, windswept, and smiling to myself, I suddenly felt a pang of unfaithfulness to the trusty old treadmill that had seen me through the good days and the bad of the past few months. Cos it was clear at that moment that I had fallen in love again with running outside...

The treadmill and I both knew it couldn't last forever though, and that if I didn't leave the comfort of the gym I would regret it. Maybe not today, or tomorrow, but soon and for the rest of my life. As for my return to running outdoors again? I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship :-).

What I Think About When I Think About Running

Okay, just start slow, let the beats of Madonna wash over you, whatever you do don't think about the fact you are going to be running for another hour and right now you are only 30 seconds in...one tune down, six to go till you've done 5k, but don't look at your nikeplus, promise you won't look now...oh here we go, someone's joining me on the nearest treadmill, a guy, who doesn't smell for a change, thank god, o-ho, he's going for it, must be about 6 minute mile he's going there, see how long he keeps that up for...2nd tune down...

...I should really take back that t-shirt dress to H&M as I like the idea of it more than I like it actually on...woo-hoo, every few minutes it actually seems like I'm going as fast as that speedy gonzalez next me to here cos we run in sync for like three steps...was that the 3rd or 4th tune that just finished...if i was a man, and gay, and lived in LA, in the sixties, I bet I could cure Colin Firth's broken heart...mmm Colin...knew it, Speedy was in it for the short haul and has abandoned me to my plodding, oh well peace again...don't like this tune, skip it...

...well my hip seems to be holding up, let's crank up the speed to 5.2 on the treadmill, wonder what the 5.2 is, probably the richter scale considering the way my fat bum is jiggling along, be enough to cause an earthquake 2,000 miles away...check pace on nikeplus (careful not to press the button for distance, mustn't know the distance just yet, probably only done 3k or something), aye, pace just under 7km/min, that's pretty average for me....

...here comes another treadmill neighbour, hold on a minute is that guy really wearing denim shorts??? Careful not to stare or you'll fall off the treadmill and become one of those stories that people pass on 'did you hear about the girl who fell off a treadmill in front of the entire spin class?'...god he must be roasting in them...god, i'm really hot actually, feel like the air is as thick as custard, wish i hadn't worn this stupid hairband, keeps all the heat in and then it feels like my brain is cooking!....phew, a cold breeze just in the nick of time, just as well I went round and opened all the windows before I started....

...right 7th tune, that must be about 35 mins of running now as that's usually my 5k time, how do I feel? pretty damn good, reckon I could carry on like this for hours! steady on, let's see if you can do another seven tunes, then if you can limp through another two you should be able to beat your furthest distance yet...okay, so save the most inspiring tunes for when I really need to pull out the stops, Bruce, Madge, Kenny, bide your time my old pals, bide your time...

...loads of skater girls passing by outside, oh aye, must be that roller derby thing again in the gym, changing rooms were full of tattooed, hair-dyed girls skating aboot last week, looked like a cool bunch mind, and at least no as whiny as they netball girls the week before...

...uff...ouch, that was sore, wee knee gave way there...okay slow pace down for a minute, knew hadn't seen last of that gammy hip...just take it easy, in fact press pause on the treadmill and have a wee drink....aye, that's better, now be careful and press the right button to get started again, press the wrong one and it cancels out your settings on the treadmill and you have to start all over again....and for god's sake don't forget to start up the nikeplus cos if it doesn't record this run you may as well give up now and hit the nearest wine bar...mmm what I wouldn't give for an ice cold glass of Pinot right now...

...Okay, all good...might be time for first patron saint of my running playlist, Kenny Loggins come on down...."been working so hard, keep punching my card"..."everybody cut, everybody cut, everybody cut footloose", yes, I feel great, check pace, down to 6.37km/min, woohoo, never been that fast before!...everything's going great, maybe it would be okay to look at distance now? No, you promised yourself. You'll only be disappointed. Nah, it must be about 7k by now surely. Surely you can't be serious, I am serious and don't call me Shirley, hahaha never gets old...

...time for Hung Up again methinks! Watch out for that bit when it fades out and you think the song has finished cos it just fades up again and there's still another two minutes of the song to go...god my legs feel like lead, okay what was thing you read in Runner's World, that tip that said imagine you are walking on clouds and if you step too heavy your feet will go through the cloud...yeah that's it, feel a bit better, more upright, god if only I wasn't so ruddy hot though....

...right that's it, I can't take it anymore, I'm going to check the distance now!....no, now...this time...now....woohoo!!!!..8.5k....I think I can do this, I think I can get to 10k and a bit more, I'm tired and my pace is down at 7.20km/min but i'll save the final push for last km....here's another new neighbour, aye go for it, knock yourself out, pounding away next to me like the proverbial hare, yes I look knackered and my leaden feet are hardly lifting off the treadmill but I've been here for almost an hour you johnny-come-lately! Gaarrrr....

...you're almost there, time to go down fighting..."baby we were born to run, woah ho ho, woah ho ho ho ho hoaaaahhhh", I am going to die right here right now but at least I'll die happy, check the distance, 9.9k....oh c'mon do me a favour!...Right keep going just a little bit longer, 5 mins and you'll have beaten your longest ever run...but my legs are so tired...well use your arms then, keep them pumping along and they'll keep you going...

...I just want to sit down with a cup of tea and a giant double choc chip cookie and never move again...okay let's check the distance then, 10.1k, almost there, right that's you got another 0.2k to go and you'll have gone further than ever before, keep your mind occupied, work out how long do you need to run for if your pace is 7.20km/min and you have 0.2k to run...okay speed multiplied by time equals distance or is it distance divided by speed equals time, or time times time divides distance up to speed....what the hell am i going on about? Just check the ruddy nikeplus ya big numpty....here we go...10.3k, yippeee!!!!!!!!!!! Job done and I don't have the energy to go another step...slow down the speed of the treadmill....wipe your brow and grab the bottle of lucozade sport...mentally punching the air and shouting inside 'get it up yous'!!! I did it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

...Right, when can I get back to the gym this week to do it all over again?....

Just completed a 6.5k run in glorious sunshine! I have a week off work and what a difference it's made to my motivation to just get out there during the day, I'm finding I actually want to go out rather than I have to go out.

I think I've mentioned previously that I'm not really new to running but it's the first time I've commited to running a race and therefore training for it and it really does make a big difference. I've kept my running up continually now since the start of the year however I've really stepped it up in the last month, the time when I would normally be trailing off from my promise to myself at the start of the year to exercise more. I can feel the difference in my fitness levels now and I feel better in myself, more alert and energized in general. So if any of you girls out there are thinking about signing up for the Women's 10K in May my advice would be just go for it because it makes running worthwhile, gives you a goal and something to focus on plus I just keep thinking about what a fantastic day it's going to be!

I'm going to stick to working on my distance at the moment, perhaps working up to 8K by the end of March, rather than focus on my speed as the most important thing to me at the moment is to keep going and not stop mid-run, otherwise I can't get going again! Planing on running the Women's 10K route early April to get an idea of much work I've got to do before 9th May!

Will catch up with you soon and all the best with your training meantime! x

Getting the running bug xx

hello again....well i am starting to train now that the weather is better....last week i jogged/ran from my house in Lambhill to Stobhill in half an hour...I felt great afterwards...

I have also been keeping my fitness levels up by attending keep fit classes...body combat, attack and thighs bum tums....I also tried yoga on Thursday night which was very relaxing and great for stretching the muscles.

I am looking forward to the fun run at the end of March at Bellahouston. This is a 5K and I hope to do meet up with the other face of the race winners for some handy tips for training xxx

I have set up an account with Just giving to raise money for the Big Build Appeal and the sponsors are coming in. Thank you everyone xx My team who are running with me are my sister Nicola Foy, my cousins Tracey Hill, Donna Price, Mary mcGonnigle, Jess Nelson, Ashleigh Graham amd my Aunty Jean xxx