runningtothelight

It’s been a long time since I’ve been on this site. A lot has happened in the past couple of years. I’m still running although there have been a few stumbles along the way. I suppose I stopped updating the blog because, basically, I didn’t believe anything I could write here could possibly interest others. I continued to listen to a range of podcasts from a variety of individuals who, over the years, have become friends. Inevitably, it was Nigel, from the Running From The Reaper podcast who triggered my interest in blogging again.

In a recent podcast, he mentioned “Fitness Rocks”, the podcast on exercise medicine and science which used to be produced by Dr Monte, an American physician. Monte stopped producing this podcast a couple of years ago and we all miss his insights into the relationship between health and exercise.

This is an area in which I have some professional interest and, it seemed to me that I could, in some small way, try to make up for Monte’s absence by producing some podcasts on the topic. So, I will. If, that is, I can remember how to put a podcast together. So, look out for some new stuff fairly soon.s I will be joined in this effort by Dr Andrew Murray, a fellow Scot who has just come first in the North Pole Marathon. This is but the latest in his astonishing list of ultra running achievements.

So, what’s been happening? 2010 was a fairly successful year for me. I covered almost 1400 miles in my running and, by the end of the year was doing about 60 miles a week. We had a lot of snow, I got injured and I lost momentum.

2011 saw a big birthday – I mean, a REALLY big birthday – and, for I short time,I began to think I should act my age. That feeling didn’t last long and I’ve decided that birthdays should now go in reverse. I’m now younger than I was last year!

I needed an operation on my leg last October and took a bit of time to recover. I’m back running again and slowly building up the mileage. As always, I’m encouraged to keep going by tuning back into the lives of the running podcasters who give up their time to encourage others. I hope that, what Andrew and I try to do over the next few weeks can also be of help and encouragement.

Here it is….eventually. I’m getting too old for this. Its taken me a couple of weeks to work out how to load the mp3 file into the correct bit of the website so that it can be downloaded. Anyway, it seems to work now. I’ll fiddle away until I can get it uploaded to iTunes.

Basically, this is an introduction to me and where I run plus an interview with an ultrarunning colleague at work. She is in the ballot for a place at the the Western States 100. She has only a 1 in 5 chance of getting in but she is such a good athlete that it would be great to see a Scot getting in to such a prestigious race.

Anyway, here it is, warts and all. I hope the next one doeasn’t take so long to get on line.

The music is by Carlos Saura and his album is available for download free under a Creative Commons license at:  http://www.jamendo.com/en/album/4372

Standard Podcast [ 33:25 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

I don’t find running easy. Where I live, its winter. We have cold, dark and, usually, wet nights and cold, grey and, usually, wet days. At this time of year, it’s hard to get the shoes on and go out running when all it means is cold and wetness. Once you’re out, you settle into the rhythm, the endorphins kick in and you’re glad of the peace. But….getting out….that’s the hard part for me.

Its not as if I’m a finely honed athlete, pushing my fitness to the limit to shave seconds off a 10k time which is already ludicrously quick. I’m no natural athlete. I’m just an ordinary bloke with a tendency to be overweight. But I have a family I love, a job I love and parents I love. I watch football (or, at least, what passes for football in these parts.)  I enjoy good food and a glass of wine. I have friends whose company I enjoy. And……that’s the problem. I have so many good things in my life and so many reasons to stay healthy. That’s why I run.

The evidence that regular, moderately strenuous exercise helps keep you healthy is overwhelming. The evidence that many of the habits we have acquired as modern homo sapiens causes chronic ill health and shortens our lives is also overwhelming. I want to do what I reasonably can to enhance my health so that I can live longer and stay healthy and independent as I age.  I want to continue to enjoy the many good things in my life (…..except the football…… enjoy is not a word you use about this football….)

I have 3 reasons for starting this blog. Firstly, other running blogs and podcasts have been highly motivating for me.  On dark, windy nights, its surprisingly comforting to listen to another runner on your mp3 player discussing their training, their running aspirations and generally telling you what is going on in their lives. I’ve benefited so much from the efforts of fellow runners who take the trouble to share their running experiences with the world. I feel I owe that part of the running community something so this is my way of paying them back. Secondly, if blogs and podcasts have motivated me, there is just a chance that something I might say in this blog might motivate someone else to get active and improve their prospects for a healthy future.

My third reason for starting this blog is to try to work out, through research and interviews with experts,  how I might improve my running from the routine plodding which I currently do into something more efficient, more enjoyable and more effective.

So, over the next few weeks, I would like to look critically at the reasons for running, how to get the best out of the time I spend on the road and how to get a little bit better at it.

I hope you feel inclined to join me for some of that journey