Two years ago, I wrote but never published a post entitled "Things I hate about the London Marathon". I decided against posting it because I didn't want to piss on the parade of those who had found it a highlight of their racing calendar. Some of my vitriol, however, did seep into a Facebook post … Continue reading Hamburg Marathon 2025
This seems to have come around awfully quickly. It seems only yesterday I was entering the Hamburg Marathon in a fit of pique, my hopes of a decent performance at Yorkshire ripped to shreds along with my left calf. In my last post I was approaching the spiritual anniversary of my calf tear (the day … Continue reading Ten Days To Go
This will be one of those boring posts where everything is, for now anyway, going okay. Why is it that I find it so much easier to write about my running (or anything else) when it is all going wrong? I'd try to find something funny to say about the 2025 Brighton Half Marathon but … Continue reading One of those boring posts
Wednesday was supposed to be a big day: my debut pacing at an actual race - the Chase the Moon at the Olympic Park . It had taken me some time to get a 70 minute slot, having had to cancel in October after I tore my calf and then finding all the slots taken … Continue reading Give It Some Welly
When I booked the Hamburg Marathon, the six months to wait seemed like an eternity, an eternity in which I was sure I would gain 20 kilos, lose all my fitness and break at least one vital limb. Suddenly it's only a month and a half away and none of those things have happened. Of … Continue reading 73 days to go.
When there is a severe weather warning featuring 80kph winds and heavy rain, one would probably be best advised not to travel to Wigan to do a woodland parkrun and watch a third division football match. Sensible people would probably fuck the whole thing off, do some Les Mills in their living room and then … Continue reading Storm Darragh
I'm Leyton Orient at the beginning of the 2014/15 season. The play off final is lost and I'm regrouping, ready to go again. I'm hoping this is where I can stop extending the Leyton Orient analogy, because as you may know in the summer of 2014 Orient were sold to some pisstaker Italians who tried … Continue reading Football Analogies Probably Need To Stop Here
If I had to give you two really unhelpful tips about how to run a successful marathon, they would be: Don't get injured and spend the last six weeks of your training plan sat on your arse. Don't do it in a howling gale and torrential rain. If the unorthodox training finalé hadn't darkened my … Continue reading Yorkshire Marathon
I will keep this one brief, as you've probably had enough of my angst. My 10k trial run was successful and therefore I will be on the start line of the Yorkshire Marathon on Sunday. I am trying to worry less about my leg (and the futility of my life) and more about the weather … Continue reading It’s on
I have done everything the physio has told me: endless calf raises, run/walk laps of Bartlett Park, graduation to a 37 minute parkrun and finally, tomorrow, my big test: a 10k race in Regents Park. If I can do that, I can give the Yorkshire Marathon a crack. I should be feeling pretty jubilant right … Continue reading Down Bad
It's been two weeks and three days since I tore my calf at the Surrey Half, and it's three weeks and four days until the Yorkshire Marathon. During this time I've reacquainted myself with feeble physio exercises, indoor cycling and volunteering. I've learned more than I ever needed to know about operating a water station, … Continue reading Couch To 42.2k
After my completely embarrassing performance in the 2020 Dock2Dock 5k, I had filed 5k swims alongside marathons in the "too far, not my skillset, never again" category. However, after two summers on the trot where I was injured and couldn't run, and weekly Swim Doctor sessions with the very patient Naomi shouting "high elbow" at … Continue reading Dock2Dock
Looking back, I'm surprised I thought my marathon training could have ended any other way. How many times have I said that my entire life has been defined by Leyton Orient's experience in the 2014 League One play-off final? From 2-0 up at half time to losing the penalty shoot out. In other words, the … Continue reading Surrey Half Marathon 2024
Time flies and before I know it, it's six weeks and six days until I run the Yorkshire Marathon, I've already knocked out my 20 miler and am bathing in Maranoia. It's safe to say it is going a whole lot better than last time: I've not broken my leg, for a start. Neither have … Continue reading Marathon Training (six weeks to go)
Last autumn I joined a gym. Not the ordinary sort of gym where people sit on the machines reading Facebook and do classes with excruciating names like Bums, Tums and Thighs (I have been a member of one of those for decades) but a proper Heavy Weights Gym round the back of a rugby club … Continue reading Adventures with Powerlifting
It's a very strange feeling when you accomplish your goals after years of failure. All I ever wanted for myself was a half marathon PB and a sub 30 5k. I didn't really think about what would happen when I got them, which is of course absolutely nothing. I have entered the realm of unremarkable, … Continue reading The definition of insanity
It was my birthday last weekend, and every year on my birthday two things always happen: I get a stinking cold and the weather goes to shit. For some reason, this didn't deter me from booking a half marathon that fell on my actual birthday or being surprised when I proceeded to get a stinking … Continue reading Littlehampton parkrun and Worthing Half
Back in 2016, I ran a PB at the Brighton Half Marathon, and then six weeks later I ran the Reading Half Marathon. Between those events I tripped over a wonky paving stone outside Higham Hill Park and broke a rib. Consequently, I did not replicate my success of Brighton 2016 at Reading 2016. Or … Continue reading Reading Half Marathon 2024
I love Germany. Every time I go there, I go home thinking that I should have been born German and that it was a travesty that I was born in bloody England. Germany is tidy, efficient and has rules which people follow. Germans wait for the green man at road crossing even when there is … Continue reading Georgengarten parkrun
Had you asked me ten years ago what I wanted most for myself, I would have told you that I wanted the return of my no-good, cheating, lying, conning boyfriend. Well, maybe I wouldn't have admitted it to you, but that was the truth. Toxic relationships work like that, there's an addictive quality, where you … Continue reading Brighton Half Marathon 2024
These days Leyton Orient are in League One, which means that they no longer have to play teams whose grounds are just big wet fields in the middle of nowhere with a bus shelter at one end. Now we get to go to proper stadiums in the middle of nowhere. They have roofs and flushing … Continue reading Barnsley parkrun
If you have any interest in parkrun, you'll probably have noticed the furore surrounding the recent deletion of all course records and the "Most Events Table" from the parkrun website. parkrun have issued a statement saying this is to make a more "inclusive" atmosphere and encourage slow runners and walkers to join in. They believe … Continue reading A slow runner’s view of the parkrun course records saga
One of the things I like about parkrun tourism is the way it prompts you to explore holiday destinations that you never would have considered otherwise simply because the parkrun there fits the criteria for someone's particular challenge. Left to my own devices I would simply go to Greece every year (which doesn't even have … Continue reading Zuiderpark parkrun
Last weekend featured a trip to Aldenham parkrun, which is located somewhere between Borehamwood and Watford in a country park round a reservoir. It is a bit of a hike from London but by now any parkrun that meets everyone's suitability requirements (me: not grass, most other people: not a repeat, everyone: can actually get … Continue reading Aldenham parkrun
Having decided that cycling is not suited to my skill set, it was time to look for a new multisport challenge. It didn't take me long to settle on the aquathlon associated with the Eastbourne Triathlon which seemed perfect: a sea swim and a seafront run and the abject and unbridled joy of knowing all … Continue reading Eastbourne Aquathlon
A state of frenzied anticipation broke out amongst my rather easily excited friends with the announcement of a new parkrun that is local and meets all the suitability requirements (toilets, no grass or other major trip hazards, nearby pub, no fuckwits). The only downside is the fact it has a comma in its name which … Continue reading Thames Path, Woolwich parkrun
This week I reached the momentous milestone of 100 different parkrun venues. This is known as a "Cowell" to hardcore parkrun tourists (after Mr Cowell, the first person to achieve the milestone - not Simon Cowell btw) but I prefer to just call it my 100th different venue so people who aren't parkrun tourists have … Continue reading Church Mead parkrun
Rob says I have to start updating this blog again. You'd have thought I'd have grown out of doing things suggested by Rob by now, yet here I am. I suppose Worthing is as good a place to start as any. Part of the reason I haven't written much lately is because everything I try … Continue reading Worthing Half Marathon
(This entry has been sitting on my computer half finished since the world cup started - sorry!) Most people seem to get The Corona when they're at their fittest. I, however, was already in the depths of injury-related unfitness at the point when I succumbed, which made me wonder if I would actually sink to … Continue reading York parkrun
The downside to having steroids injected into your bum is that steroids wreck your immune system and make you more vulnerable to infections such as The Corona. Having a good record of evading symptomatic infection and a recent vaccine, however, I didn't worry too much about this and when I noticed a persistent dry cough … Continue reading Italian Flu
My first parkrun since my bottom injection, and can you guess what happens? Two days before parkrunday, I go out to see The Cure in Italy like the sad old goth I am, get absolutely trolleyed on cocktails with names like Paris Hilton and Julia's Strap On, and fall flat on my face, too drunk … Continue reading Farfalle parkrun
I've not written on this blog for a while because a) every time I started writing it came out as self pitying blurb that was definitely not funny and of no entertainment value to anyone b) sitting on my ancient computer chair to write them was too painful (there are a few half finished draft … Continue reading Back
On 2nd October 2004, the first ever parkrun took place in Bushy Park. At the time, it was known rather less invitingly as "Bushy Park Time Trial" and there were a total of thirteen runners, none of whom took more than 30 minutes to complete the 5k course. There were no tourists, no milestones and … Continue reading Bushy parkrun
What happens when you're doing your best running in years and are on the brink of smashing that six year old PB? You get injured of course. I have developed a literal pain in the bum, otherwise known as piriformis syndrome. I don't know why I have this as I have not been doing anything … Continue reading Crane parkrun and Hackney Half
A couple of months ago I had a sudden burst of inspiration and decided to start a mission to run all the parkruns in Essex. Several of my friends are aiming for "Lon-done" but this doesn't appeal to be because there are a lot of parkruns in London which follow my strongly non preferred format … Continue reading Burnham on Crouch parkrun
For many compulsive parkrun tourists, becoming an "alphabeteer" (visiting a parkrun beginning with every letter of the alphabet, except X, because there isn't one starting with X... yet) is a top priority. It's an enjoyable challenge which requires one to be a little creative. Some letters are easy (I've lost count of my Bs, Hs … Continue reading Jesmond Dene parkrun
Having resolved that four half marathons for the spring season was plenty and that I was under no circumstances to enter any more, I promptly set about entering ten mile races, because of course those last three and a bit miles make all the difference. Rob was doing a two-lap 20 mile race in Milton … Continue reading Twin Lakes 20 (or 10)
There is, allegedly, more to life than running, and for the first time since the pandemic I packed my bags for a weekend away supporting my atrocious football team, Leyton Orient, in that underrated Northern beach resort, Hartlepool. I also managed to drag Rob along for his first live Orient Experience. Although I love running, … Continue reading Hartlepool parkrun
Last fortnight I came the closest I ever will ever come to running another marathon, which is running two half marathons a week apart. This wasn't entirely a deliberate choice, both were postponed from 2021 and weren't a week apart when I booked them, though when I learned of the new dates I didn't want … Continue reading Surrey Half Marathon 2022
The trouble with pouring your heart and soul into your half marathon training and not falling over or catching Corona in the days before is that you find yourself on the start line an absolute bag of nerves with no excuses for failure. There's no "well, I would have done better if I had trained … Continue reading Brighton Half Marathon 2022
After starting 2022 in my usual catastrophic fashion and flunking RED January at 9:20 on January 1st, I decided to try again with RED February. As February is a bit shorter than January I decided to start a bit early, on 22nd January, and therefore as of today I have run thirty days in a … Continue reading RED FEB
Half Marathon training is well underway which is a good thing because I have already booked five for this year and it's only February. I can't work out if it is going well or not. On one hand, I seem to be able to run long distances very comfortably (no lying on floor groaning when … Continue reading Harrow parkrun
On Friday I had one of my bright ideas. These never end well. The bright idea in question was to do my long run on the running track. I thought this was a good idea because a) it was New Year's Eve and surely no one else would be there b) if something started to … Continue reading Sunny Hill parkrun
Isabel Trail, Stafford, 13 November 2021 Finally I'm in good form, the weather is kind, it's a perfect course (a flat out and back on a disused railway line). I'm going all out for a PB. I don't even care that I have a half marathon the next day because we all know I'm never … Continue reading A Tale of Three parkruns
"Did you sleep well?" asked Rob over breakfast on the morning of the South Coast Triathlon, the day of which had finally dawned after two cancelled years on the trot. No, I hadn't slept well. In fact I'd spent most of the night lying in bed Googling "how far are you allowed to push your … Continue reading South Coast Triathlon
I believe 7th August 2021 was the fourth date I set for my 100th parkrun. I can't be sure of this because like with everything in the last year, the endless cancellations and postponements got the better of me and I lost all grip on how many times things had changed and any faith in … Continue reading Brockwell parkrun
In three weeks and three days I am doing a triathlon. Considering I signed up for it on 23rd November 2018, nearly three years ago, you can hardly say this has been sprung on me, yet I still feel completely incompetent. Perhaps this is because I have had so many events cancelled that I am … Continue reading I just can’t wait to become a triathlete!
First of all it was going to be October. Then early June. Then late June. Then July. At first I missed going to parkrun desperately, but then I missed everything and everyone desperately. When things started to reopen I started enjoying the freedom of not having to get up and run 5k every Saturday morning. … Continue reading The Day parkrun Came Home
Last week, we had an outbreak of the other kind of weather. Hot, sunny, weather. Finally, it was time to turn off the heating, take off the woolly socks and go swimming without worrying about how I would get the feeling back in my fingers afterwards. The only problem with hot, sunny weather is that … Continue reading Clapham Common Chase the Sun
The Hertfordshire Half is to half marathons what Sunny Hill is to parkrun. Featuring hills, undulations, slopes, mounds, mounts, hummocks, bumps, heights, ascents, inclines and gradients, the only thing you can say for it is that there is no mud. (Except for that bit in the second kilometre where you have to go round a … Continue reading Hertfordshire Half Marathon
Thought I had better post something to confirm that I am still alive and have not given up running (or blogging). Recently there has been a deluge of races as everything that was postponed over the last six months finally stopped being postponed, leading to comedy moments such as me opening my post and realising … Continue reading Still Alive
My first half back could have gone better, to say the least. The problems started pretty much as soon as I arrived at the racecourse and discovered that there was no queue for the women's toilets because apparently the vast majority of the entrants were men (378 men and 101 women according to the results … Continue reading Aintree Half
I know we've been here before but dare I say that I am actually running a real-life, timed, official HALF MARATHON this weekend. The train tickets and Airbnb are booked and I am curiously eyeing a square object with a zip lid that you can fill with clothes, shoes and toy cows. I think they … Continue reading Non Cancelled HM Incoming
About a year ago I shelled out TWO HUNDRED QUID for a top level running gadget called a Stryd. This little footpod promises to deliver laser smart precision running dynamics data, facilitate power based training and - most importantly for me - deliver far more accurate distance data than GPS. Great, I thought, no more … Continue reading Stryd Wind: disappointed customer
Not just one RunThrough race this week but two! Given that my visit to Ally Pally parkrun a couple of years ago was a total horror I'm not sure why I thought it was a good idea to sign up for a 10k race at the same venue. I can only assume I did it … Continue reading Alexandra Palace 10km
The St Albans 10k was great and everything, but for me it didn't really feel like races were back until I'd done a RunThrough race! And the first back for me was one of my favourites, Chase the Sun at the Olympic Park. Even though I'm not normally an evening runner, I do really like … Continue reading Chase the Sun Olympic Park
For the tenth (I think) time in the last year, I find myself horrified by the fact that I have a half marathon to run that looks like it isn't going to be cancelled. It's worth mentioning that every single one of those half marathons have been cancelled in the end, some with just days … Continue reading Ouch
This is a running blog... and FINALLY I have a running event to write about! Restrictions on outdoor sport were lifted six days ago and I've certainly made the most of it with two trips to Victoria Dock for swimming, one to Charlton Lido, and two to Mile End track (one to run and one … Continue reading St Albans Easter 10k
And therefore after this post I will only post about running. I won't go as far to say that I will never mention The Corona again, but I'm sick of talking about it, and sick of adding a caveat about not knowing what will happen next to everything I dare to wish or plan for. … Continue reading This is a running blog
The moment I set eyes on Mark Keds for the first time was the moment I knew categorically that I was not a lesbian. I was fifteen years old and saw this picture of his band, the Senseless Things, in the NME. Mark Keds, standing with the sun in his face and the wind in … Continue reading Mark Keds
The coronavirus vaccine is nearly here. There's rumours it could land for us NHS workers in the next two weeks. And my current source of utter gobsmacked boggling bemusement is that some people who are able to have the vaccine are actually dragging their heels about it. It would make more sense to me if … Continue reading The End?
Random bleakness from today's run. It's all gone a bit Leyton Orient. Last week I ran my fastest 10k race (1:10:14) on Saturday, my second fastest ever half marathon as a training run on Monday (2:42:24) and equalled my 5k PB on Wednesday (33:53) despite being knackered and having a bit of a hangover. I … Continue reading Two nil up at half time…
With the corona on the up again, I'm not sure how many of my running events will go ahead any more. I'm constantly expecting that email to drop telling me yet another has been cancelled. I'm over virtual medals and not-parkruns and ready to race, so I was extremely happy when the extravaganza at my … Continue reading RunThrough Olympic Park 10k
parkrun announced that they would return in England at the end of October, and of course almost immediately the coronavirus transmission rate went through the roof and an unannouncement swiftly followed. I'm very sad about this, but I do think it was the right decision - not because I think there is much danger associated … Continue reading Velopark 5k
One event that I had planned for 2020 that didn't get cancelled was Dock2Dock, the annual swimming race in my favourite swimming spot, Victoria Dock. The race has three options: 1.5k, 5k and 10k, and takes you all the way from the usual course under the Unreasonably High Footbridge, under Connaught Bridge into the next … Continue reading Dock2Dock
The last six months have been like the worst marathon you can possibly imagine. Six laps of Shoreham Power Station. On the first lap everyone was stealing the toilet paper from the portaloos and stockpiling the finish water. On the second lap, loads of the runners died and you had dodge the dead bodies. On … Continue reading RunThrough Battersea 10k
As the coronavirus related restrictions have eased, it seems like most of the British population has fallen into two camps: Camp One are still vehemently refusing to leave the house for any reason. They do not think schools, pubs, gyms, hairdressers or events of any kind should be open until the virus is completely eradicated. … Continue reading Return to Racing
Today is the final day of my challenge. I've completed all seven of my 5k runs, made my donations and here is my final post. Of course this one had to be for George Floyd, the man whose death has sparked the Black Lives Matter protests and, finally, got everyone talking about what we can … Continue reading #BLM day seven: George Floyd
As John Fashanu said, the only way for a black man to make money in the 1980s was to sing, dance or play football. Michael Menson chose the musical route, and those of us of a certain age may remember his work as a member of Double Trouble, as in Double Trouble and the Rebel … Continue reading #BLM day six: Michael Menson
Daniel Adewole was sixteen years old when he died alone in his prison cell. He was an inmate at Cookham Wood Young Offenders Institute. Daniel suffered from epilepsy, but had missed his last hospital appointment "because his family knew the date and place" and the prison were concerned this was a security risk. On the … Continue reading #BLM day five: Daniel Adewole
Justin Fashanu was the first openly gay professional footballer. The homophobia and persecution he received for this cost him his life. Justin and his brother, John, grew up in Norwich. His mother had placed them in Barnardo's orphanage. She was a single parent with three more children. The two boys were adopted by a white … Continue reading #BLM day four: Justin Fashanu
Forty-seven year old Belly Mujinga was a ticket controller at London Victoria Station. She was married with one eleven year old daughter. Back in March, Belly was understandably extremely concerned about going to work during the coronavirus outbreak. Not only did she have a respiratory condition which put her at higher risk of becoming seriously … Continue reading #BLM day three: Belly Mujinga
Breonna was an emergency medical technician and first responder, and had been working hard in a patient facing role at the beginning of the coronavirus epidemic, despite the fact that as a black person she was at far higher risk from the disease than a white person. She lived with her boyfriend in Louisville, Kentucky. … Continue reading #BLM day two: Breonna Taylor
For the next week, I will be running 5km every day in memory of a black person who died too soon, writing a story biography of that person on this blog, and making a donation to a relevant charity. My first run is in memory of Stephen Lawrence. I am writing about Stephen first because … Continue reading #BLM day one: Stephen Lawrence
This weekend, the NHS started coronavirus antibody tests for all staff. These are the tests that tell you whether you have had coronavirus in the past (but not if you have it at the moment). Mine came back positive. It seems I must have been one of those "asymptomatic carriers" who apparently comprise approximately 30% … Continue reading Positive
I wished for (and still wish for) a beginning to the end of lockdown. But not like this. Here is a sample of things I wished for: Public transport to return to normal, in particular the reopening of Blackhorse Road station and the end of the "one way system" at Stratford which necessitates a five … Continue reading Be Careful What You Wish For
Pymmes parkrun is the second closest to my flat and the third different parkrun that I attended (after Finsbury Park and Hackney Marshes). Despite it's proximity I haven't been back since that solitary visit nearly three years ago and you might be forgiven for thinking that it was a horrible and unsuitable parkrun. This is … Continue reading Pymmes parkrun
I've had some pretty shit birthdays. I was born on the 28th April, which usually coincides with the last match of the football season - rarely a happy day for Leyton Orient fans, and always a deluge of unseasonable weather after a couple of falsely promising pleasant weeks over Easter. My seventeenth birthday took some … Continue reading Birthday Half Marathon
My alarm goes off at 4:30am, just like it did Before. I'm no longer the only person awake and online at that time; some people are suffering insomnia, some have lost all sense of date and time, others are enjoying a night out at Virtual Slimelight and others have deliberately got up early to go … Continue reading Lockdown, Day 22
Boris has spoken and the only reasons people are allowed to leave their house are for groceries, medical/care needs, work and exercise. Considering the first three are not a lot of fun (especially when the first leads to a scrap in the pasta aisle over the last pack of tagliatelle), it seems every fucker on … Continue reading Womblestow
When I returned from Chalkwell Beach parkrun, I failed to notice the large white envelope that had plopped through my letterbox in my absence. I failed to notice it until the next morning, just after I had finished ringing work to tell them that I was very sorry but my cold had turned into a … Continue reading Evicted in a Epidemic
If I were still writing my work blog, I would have given you an insightful piece about the thrills of working for the ambulance service during a pandemic, how the reaction of the public, press and government is doing far more damage than the disease itself, how at least twenty people who have no relevant … Continue reading Chalkwell Beach parkrun
My friends often complain that I like to get to events, particularly running events, far too early. My general rule is to catch the train before the train I would catch to arrive on time. Next time anyone complains about this, I am going to cut and paste this post at them and explain THIS … Continue reading Surrey Half Marathon
Quick post because I'm off out to football (not cancelled this week) and have very little time! On Sunday I made it to the Berkhamsted 5 Mile "Fun Run" which, despite the sexist and non snail friendly announcer person, was a nice race. It was quite a challenging course with a full mile of uphill … Continue reading Coronavirus Rigidus
NOTE TO FUTURE SELF: Do not EVER plan anything that involves leaving London during the month of February EVER again. Better still, do not plan anything that involves leaving the house for the month of February ever again. This weekend, Leyton Orient were scheduled to play Forest Green Rovers, the league's only all-vegan football team, … Continue reading Stratford Park parkrun (Stroud)
My Facebook feed was full of posts about the Brighton Half Marathon yesterday, which means my half marathon PB is now a mammoth four years old. It's past the toddler stage and soon it will be going to school, and before you know it, it'll be up and away and gone to university and then … Continue reading Limp
It's been a hard weekend. On Saturday I heard the very sad news that my friend Flash had died. I "met" her on the Livejournal group The Ladies Loos about fifteen years ago and she was very kind to me when all that bollocks happened with that horrible ex I mention from time to time. … Continue reading Valentines parkrun (again)
Chase the Moon Olympic Park 12th February 2020 - 35:06. My slowest run at this venue for god knows how long. I ran as fast as I could but I didn't even feel out of breath. My legs can no longer keep up with me. I am feeling very down at the state of my … Continue reading Wankle Woe
Having been confined to Sarf London for the last two months, it was finally time to break free of my shackles and head to the bright lights of Castle Park for the World parkrun Tourists meet up. Castle Park is in Bishops Stortford which is a place I know precisely nothing about quite close to … Continue reading Castle Park parkrun
To celebrate the start of Feet Up February, Rob and I entered a half marathon (each) and then proceeded to run precisely seven miles between the two of us. On the way to this feat of failure, we decided that whoever put in the worst performance would be entitled to the Tequila of Shame in … Continue reading Thorpe and Egham “Half Marathon”
At the time of my last entry I was thirteen days into run-every-bloody-day January, had done far too many miles up and down the squidgy trails of Beckenham Place Park, joined a shit gym in an effort to take pressure of my legs, not used it, done more squidgy hill miles, and got totally complacent … Continue reading How RED January Ruined My Life
This is my second attempt to take part in the MIND initiative, RED, which requires participants to run (or exercise) every single day for a whole month in order to do something-or-other to do with mental health. You may recall last year's fell by the wayside somewhat when I caught a nasty disease from a … Continue reading RED January 2020
Gone are the days when New Year's Day was a hungover write off, sacrificed unto the cause of downing multiple tequilas in a dubious establishment to toast the first hours of the oncoming year. New Year's Day is now the day of The Double, the only day of the year when one can record two … Continue reading Greenwich and Bexley parkruns
It has done nothing but rain for months and I am sick of it. I can't even remember the last time I went out for a run and came back with dry feet. Even last week's 100% tarmac parkrun venue, Peckham Rye, included an unexpected water feature. The soft sarf-landaners of Peckham weren't as hardy … Continue reading Mud Glorious Mud
Ten miles is a great distance for a race. It's far enough to push you without getting into that "I've had enough and want to go to the pub now" stage that always seems to creep in during the last 5k of a half marathon. Unfortunately there are relatively few 10 milers out there - … Continue reading Thanet Alan Green Memorial 10 Mile
It's hilly, but it's not in a field! Hilly Fields parkrun (near Lewisham) has been bothering my to-do list for some time, and an opportunity to visit finally presented itself this freezing Saturday. With many parkruns cancelled due to Weather (of the slippery ice variety) I was very lucky that other than suffering from Loss … Continue reading Hilly Fields parkrun
I have been wanting to do RunThrough's Hertfordshire Half Marathon even since the first event in 2017 - in fact I was on the verge of signing up when I had a stress fracture related relapse and was confined to a hobble. Last year I was still traumatised from The Marathon and couldn't bear to … Continue reading Hertfordshire Half Marathon
With my half marathon looming, I decided to do the sensible thing and not run today. Instead I volunteered my services to Hackney Marshes parkrun, where I was placed in the rather nervewracking role of timekeeper for the second time. I know how disappointing it is when you get a great parkrun time and your … Continue reading The Hackney Marshes Massacre
This weekend was my second time taking part in an Adidas City Run. I did the Shoreditch 10k back in 2017 and it was ok, but not amazing, so I have not gone out of my way to do another. Fulham, however, fitted well with my half marathon training plan and is a fairly novel … Continue reading Adidas City Runs Fulham 10k
One of the many good things about parkrun is that it gives you an excuse to hop on a train and visit friends in far flung glamorous locations (like Derby) whom you have not seen for far too long. You shouldn't need an excuse, of course, but as we get older, busier and less prone … Continue reading Alvaston parkrun
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Triathlete | Blogger | Running Coach | Fitness Instructor
Better at writing than at running
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Matt Bodkin... usually running
Better at writing than at running
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Better at writing than at running
Better at writing than at running
Better at writing than at running
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Better at writing than at running
Better at writing than at running
Voyages through family and local history
Better at writing than at running
Family stories are my buried treasure. -- Patricia Greber, treesrch1800 at gmail.com
Better at writing than at running
Better at writing than at running
Better at writing than at running
7:07 