Hunting Gear For Missing Mojo

Hello readers.

Me and Naggy!

I know it's Saturday, or I should say, parkrun day! But I really wasn't feeling 'it' to go and join in every one else this time around.  But I did go out running, hence I am here blogging!  For Christmas presents this year I have been blessed with some very lovely running gear from my lovely husband and my lovely friends!  My prezzies are just literally nagging me to get out there and run!  The Old Boy got me these fantastic earphones that connect to my phone, and.....then nag me, or they will nag me once I have them all set up.  I need to do this VO2Max thing just to see how fit I am!  Well, before I even start the test I know exactly what it's going to say......'how the heck are you still getting out of bed let alone trying to run!'

So no parkrun, and NaggyNeighbour wasn't going to do parkrun today either, so we decided that we would go together....or at least I think Naggy nagged me on Boxing Day that we will be running together today somewhere!  I must admit, I was relieved somewhat, not doing parkrun this morning.  For a start, I got a bit more of a lay in!  I do like my bed!  Also there was less pressure to run 'my best' or 'look as if I am enjoying it'!  You know, I do really love running, but somehow its kind of got buried under all sorts of stuff, food, beer, lazyitus, tv, carnt-be-arsed-itus, you name it and it's all piled on top of Mojo. I need to get rid of all that stuff and look to see if I can get Mojo back for it myself!  As I have said to the beginners in the past, "It's all up to yourselves to actually do the training, do the running, get out there and just do it, all we can do is tell you how, support you and encourage you" Sounds so simple doesn't it.  For some people it is, for others its blimmin hard!  I am in the blimmin hard band!  Just like some people can pick up foreign languages really quickly, or pick up an instrument and just play it, it just comes so easy to them.  For me, its blimmin hard!

So I have all this gear here, new running leggings! Now they are something to behold!  People will notice me in these!  Because of that I better be blimmin running!  I have this buff, it says it all really! I have new shoes, a new running journal with running pen and also I have these fantastic ear things which nag me when no one is around!

So let me tell you about the run.  We turned up at Norman Park and it was fairly empty of runners by the time we got there, no left over parkrunners to be seen.  We parked up the car and I had my ear thingys all ready to test my VO2 shit, see how fit or unfit I really am!  We were planning on 3 laps, well I was planning on 3 Naggy will get in so much more while I  am still out there doing my 3.  What I didn't want to happen was for her to lap me!  She has done that before when I had planned on doing laps around the park!

For some reason I thought this app thing (which I had to download for my new earphones)  would just measure my VO2 as I ran along and then just let me know at some point in the 15 minutes it said it would take what level I am at!  So there I am running, Naggy was just in front of me pulling away with each step and then the thing in my ear starts telling to ran faster, reach my max!  What the.....f...!  This ear piece has only got to be good right?!  I mean it's motivation in an earpiece!  It's all mine as well!  I just continued to listen to the music in my ears, I had turned on my spotify, and just tried to run as best as I could!  The thing is, the last time I had run was the Woo Woo run on the 18th Dec, so 11 days ago.  And there has been a lot of snacking, smoking, eating and drinking going on since then! 

I completed my first lap, feeling slightly smug, because I was thinking I was all that, and then the next lap happened!  I was flagging a bit to say the least, but I tried my best to run as fast as I can the thing in my ear seemed to have stop nagging me to run faster.  By the time I got to the top of the park again, along the short straight the ear things kicked in saying that I had reached my max thingy, or  whatever it was I had to reach. Well that surprised me! Of course I thought that was it then the test completed, so I just ran along as best as I could, trying look like a professional in my running gear!

I completed the second lap not feeling quite so smug as before.  I took a look at my Garmin, I wanted to see how fast I was running.  I was still running pretty fast considering I was knackered.  But there was those walking bits too.  By the time I got to the top of the park, by the play area, I looked behind for Naggy,   I couldn't see her anywhere, she is so going to lap me, I can feel it!  My chest is nearly tearing itself apart!  'Serves my self right!' I thought to myself, nothing good can come from all the bad shit I've been doing that's for sure!  Roll on the New Year! I am deffo not quoting that New year, new me shit, because it will be the same old me come the 1st of January as it was on the 31st December!  But I am hoping to have a new attitude! I just going to have a lot of work to do to get to a new me, sometime next December!   Fingers crossed eh!

The last lap and boy was I looking forward to this finishing, I was feeling tired and my chest was hurting, not surprising really, but only one lap to do!  I pushed as hard as I could, when I got to the top of the park along the short straight the ear things kicked in again saying that the test was over! Flipping eck,  I had forgotten that I was doing that!  Well, actually I thought that once I had reached max then it was all over anyway!  But no, I had to run for 15 minutes after I had reached max!  And then it told me  'Your fitness level is below average!'  Well, that's a surprise.....not!  My fitness level has been dropping for some time to be honest!  But I really want to get back to how I was before!  I need to!  I can't afford to replace my wardrobe!!

Well, I think that just about covers it!  Until next run!

My Buff, by the way!  What you think!? 

Woo Woo Run 2018!

Hello blog readers.

What an evening!  It is not pleasant out there.  If I wasn't leading, if this was not the last club run and if I was doing parkrun on Saturday morning, then I might just have stayed in doors!  Most of my pals were, J.J. Auriol, CarolWithAnE, RefMichael, NaggyNeighbour!  Most of them have or are getting over a cold!  The thought of going out on a chilly wet December Woo Woo run.  I wasn't quite sure if I was going to have anyone joining me in the Woo Woo run this year!  But GetYourLegsTracy came around a picked me up!  Well, I wasn't going to be driving my car this evening.

The now, infamous Woo Woo run takes in as many Christmas lights as possible in a three mile course, and hopefully while we run and looking at the lights we 'Woo Woo' each and every house!  Some of the houses only got a 'Woo' while just a few others got a 'hmm ok?'  Sounds fun, right.  But, in that heady mix of friends, running, woo wooing and pretty lights, throw in a few hip flasks of.....some medicinal warming drinks and you have a great fun night! 

I think the best flavour of drink has to go to K, she brought along a Cherry Bakewell Flavour Vodka!  Interesting I thought!  I had honey flavoured Jack Daniels, and there was some Woods too, a dark rum I believe.  Someone else had some Gin, not sure if that had a flavour, I am not a gin drinker!  But we all did have a share of each others drink!  I even brought along some tiny little shot type plastic glasses just in case others didn't bring along something and wanted to indulge!  We may have to try and make a competition of who has the most interesting flavour drink! Hmm, it's an idea!

Ok, so I am waffling on and not talking about my running!  Well, it really does show that I have not been doing as much running as I should have!  I struggled around this evenings 3.47 miles of running!  Of course it took longer than usual because of the um...festive stops!  But my legs also really didn't want to be out running!  I am not resigned to the fact that come January I am going to have a huge job on my hands getting this fat ass body back to some sort of......shape......not round!

So the best bits of this run.......of course is running with my pals, GetYourLegsUpTracy, Lou, K, Kathy, MichaelL and it was good to run with IllustriousLeader again!  It's been a while!  Plus 2 other ladies whose names I have still yet to remember!  Useless with names! The best bits of this run..... has to be getting out there doing it. It's one in the eye for Running Mojo which is hiding at the moment!   The best bits of this run.........it was fun in spite of the rain that came down!  The best bits of this run......I did it,!  I know....Its the same as the first point!  But yes, I did it, I did it with my pals encouraging me to keep going!  "Just to the corner Old girl" "Come on just a bit further!"  Yup  I did it, with a little help from my friends!

Now I should take all that, remember it, turn it over in my head, cogitate on it, then bring it all together come the New Year!

So, unless I actually do something on Saturday morning at my Spa weekend with my daughter and nieces, then the next time I write anything will be in 2019!  So very happy Christmas readers, and have a happy New Year.  May 2019 bring you all that you hope for, God bless you all!

Here are some photos from our run taken by Lou including the one at the top.  Brilliant pictures!

This is more of less about 3 or 4 minutes
into our run

These lights are brilliant.  I am sure the neighbours
try to outdo each other every year!

Here is all of us, well apart from the one taking the picture!

Is that an Elf running!  Hang on, its me!

Club Run!

Hello blog readers.

The penultimate run before Christmas, my goodness, how quickly Christmas is approaching!  I was leading today, to be honest I really needed to lead, just to get my lazy ever expanding backside out of the door!  I know I am leading next week too, so today is a bonus for me!

My Whatsapp group with all my buddies was going crazy with people saying they are not going due to illness and other stuff happening, so really I was so pleased I was leading!  I had a route planned, not the Woo Woo route, that one is for next week!  This week I was taking them up pass the lovely chandelier, I was hoping they had their lights on! The chandelier looks so lovely when the light is shining through it!

We ran up Birchwood, always a favourite hill!  I really do try to make friends with hills!  One day we will be best buddies! One day!  I had about 9 people in my group, what am I saying, there was 9 of us running today, I always take a count up before we run out and when we get back (just to check I don't lose anyone!) So 9 of us running up the hill, we were a little spread out but we were running up hill.  Once that was done the other couple of hills won't even be noticed!  Can you see that I still try and kid myself! 

Anyway, the people with the lovely chandelier didn't have their light on but they did have some amazing christmas lights outside their house, so we stood for a second or two to admire them.  Then we continued you on the run down, knowing that we have to run back up again!  Oh I can't wait for my running mojo to be back on board, with me entering every blimmin race going!  I will get there though, I just hope it gets there soon!

I asked everyone if they wanted to do a hill rep or two when we turned the corner on to Kevington Road.  I asked rather than said as I wasn't really into myself, but when a couple of them said yes, why not I just had to give it a go.  So we all ran up the short sharp hill to the lamppost and then back down again to the round about and then back up to the lamppost!  Just those two times and then we continued our run.  I was well impressed with my group for doing that, they made me do a hill rep, something I wasn't really going to do!

I kept my group as close together as I could, when I looked at my Garmin to check on the pacing I realised that I hadn't even turned the blimmin thing on!  Oh well!  But the route we did was a usual route, same same, I can find the geeky stats from there and then just use that map to display here.  but that wouldn't be fun would it!  Why not go and check out my blogs and see if you can guess which route I did.!

So about 4 and bit miles......ish.....at around ......00000 minute miling!  But one thing, it really was a very pleasant run indeed.

Secret London 'PWR' Run!

Hello blog readers

I am just a bit late in writing up my report about this fantastic run I did with my running buddies.  It was last Wednesday evening, 5th December,  with a great guide from this.....eh....running tour guides, called, believe it or not Secret London Runs!  I guess if I have put it out here they won't be so secret!  Still, what a great evening it was!

Our social SecretaryJoanne booked these guys months ago.  Joanne and some others from our club had such a great time last year they decided to let the rest of the club know about it!  So much for the secrecy from them too!  Once heard about it I just had to put my name down and so did my best buddies.  There were about 80 PWR's led by four fabulous guides.  Our guide was named Vikki.

We started to make our plans on getting up to London just a few days ago, some of them were travelling from Orpington, a few of us were travelling from Petts Wood. Some were travelling from other train stations and yet more, (which really amused me when I thought about them) were travelling from work.  And why would that amuse me?  Well usually when PWR's do something interesting and fun like this, we like to dress up a bit.  Just a bit, just to stand out in a crowd!  The air waves and internet over Petts Wood were kept busy for a few weeks as Christmas run leggings were on order, fancy dress costumes and tutu's!  Not to mention a huge Santas sack with untold sweeties in there! Oh and Elves, there were elves!

I had to walk from the place where I work in my tutu, well actually I had two tutut's on, just to be different, well actually, it was a petticoat and a tutu, here take a look. 

 Don't I just look as cute as a princess!  I should have worn a Tiara!  A Santas hat had to do though.   And just as well I had it on though as it started raining, it had been raining for most of the day! But I got a new nickname, 'Donna TwoTuTu's'.
 
I was alone as I walked/ran to the station and when I arrived there, earlier than I anticipated, due to the run/walk because of the rain!  So there I was looking like this, very colourful, Santa hat wearing princess! Alone!  By myself! Even "Gorgeous!" I got from one lady as I walked past her on the road didn't help me from feeling very self conscious.  But I had to sit and share the waiting room at the station, me, in my two tutu's and wait!

In the waiting room

I was so pleased when the first of my friends found me as I moved on tothe platform to see if anyone was getting off the train that had just pulled in, instead it was Naggyneighbour , she had just parked her car and had joined me on the platform!  She had her lovely christmassy leggings on and yet she refused one of my tutu's!  Then Wendimoo arrived, and Karen, then everyone else.  TracyGetYourLegsUp, CarolWithAnE, SnapperHannah, Auriol and loads of others!  So many of us!  Everyone had on something very christmassy, well apart from Auriol and Nigel, they only managed to get places at the 11th hour! So no time to things organised!

On the Yule Train

We met up with all the other PWR's at London Bridge, J.J. also met us there.  It was her that had to come from her place of work dressed in her lovely new leggings!  I think she was very pleased to see us all so she didn't quite look out of place,  this is a picture of most of quite a few of us!


Once we had met up with everybody we walked the short way to the Needle, just on the corner of Tooley Street.  We were all given Santa hats, so we all looked the same, sort of, and we also had bells!  It was a jingle bell, Christmas lights run!  Fan-blimmin-tastic!  A couple of pictures here and then we were off for our run. 

This is most of Group 2

It was about 8k in all, through some great London landmarks plus.....plus some fantastic bits of London history thrown in by our guide!  Did you know that the river Thames froze over and then they had like a Christmas market on the river!  Also did you know that had some point, those that were in charge didn't want Christmas at all, and ordered all shop keepers to stay open on Christmas day, not a hint of a Turkey festive meal was to be cooking!  I know, talk about bah humbugs!  Which, incidentally,.......I think, is where Charles Dickens 'A Christmas Carol. was probably was inspired!

It's been a good few days now since this run, I am not going to be able to recount all the wonderful stories and information that the wonderful Vikki was telling us, but I will try and remember some of them!  Anyway, if you really want to know more you can always go and book these guys for a secret run for yourselves!  I do remember talking about St Nicholas and how he help some poor chap to get rid of his daughters.....when I say get rid of, I mean in the nicest possible way, St Nick threw some money down the chimney of this poor chap with three daughters he wanted to get married off!  The poor man couldn't afford it, so this lovely bloke called Nick wanted to help, anonymously!

When we got to one of the theatres that we passed we learned of some chap that gave gin and cake to the actors, plus a few more interesting facts about a London Christmas!  All of that while running through the streets of London!  We ran through Southwark, across Southwark bridge, St Pauls Cathedral and down Fleet Street!  That brought back memories for me!  The first time I was in Fleet Street I was signed up to an agency, it was called The Three Tees Agency.  They helped me get my first job as a Telex Operator!  Kids now days wouldn't even know what a telex machine is!  OOO, I sound so old!

Down the Strand we ran, J.J. reminded us of the 10k we all did together back in 2016, I think it was.  That was the last time I did that run anyway.  The others had done it a couple of times after that. Covent Garden was next, we had seen some great lights already, but these were really good, there was also a huge Christmas Tree.  Did you know that the tree in Covent Garden was the biggest potted tree in Europe!  I think I have remembered that particular fact right!

People in London were amused to see us lot.  Oh, I forgot to mention, although there were about 80 of us, we didn't all run together!  There were about 4 groups, of course I was in the slower group.  We still kept bumping into the other groups though!  So as I was saying, the tourists and maybe even the locals were amused to see us and some even want their pictures done with us!  Fame!  We had run to Summerset House, as well!  I had forgotten that bit!  The ice skaters looked lovely!  Some of our PWR's were very creative in getting their pictures taken!  You should take a look at these.  The lights of London as just so beautiful too. Link to more photos.

Carnaby street was brilliant too, they had a theme with their lights, Bohemian Rhapsody!  They have some of the lyrics up in lights!  Of course when we saw them we burst into song! Mind you, we were singing all the way round!  Vikkie had brought along a little speaker and had her Christmas play list coming through it!

Oxford Street was our final destination, with the lights of Bond street and Regents Street to bring a tear to our eyes!  Or it could quite easily have been the gentle rain that had started by then.  The Regents Street lights were inspired the very first set of Christmas lights to go up back in.....well, the very first time lights were used.  And they are called 'The Spirit Of Christmas'.  Oh my goodness, they really are very beautiful!  What is it about Christmas lights that just brings a smile to your face and just takes you right back to when you were a child!?

Spirit Of Christmas

We said goodbye to Vikki here, and us in group 2, there was about 13 of us in our group!  We had plans to meet every one else in a pub near Victoria Station.  Yes, of course it ended in a pub, where else would we end up!  But all of us, all the other running groups would end up in the pub!  Oh here's some of the elves that came along too!

Wow, what a brilliant run it was!  In spite of the rain and the weird looks we all got on the way to meet the rest of the elves on the Yule Jog, we had a brilliant time!

Here's my geeky stats, you can check out if I have my geography in the right order!  I just like to write things down as I remember them, with maybe a quick glance at the map!  I tell you what, as my memory is blimmin useless, why not sign up to a run with SLR, they don't just run through Christmas apparently there is a Gin run and other types of runs!  I may just have to look into doing another with them.  They really are a fab organisation!


photos are from quite a few of running buddies, they not all mine

Club Run

Hello Blog readers.

Second running session in a row! Well, actually it was half a run! But I still went out with my running buddies and had good intentions to do the whole of the run honest! But as things work out I was needed to do just half a run!  It's just as well I went out running yesterday and will be running tomorrow.....and on Thursday too!

So Naggy came to get me at mine, shes literally just over the green so not too far to come, then climbed in her car to go and get GetYourLegsUpTracy.  We were just a couple of minutes later than usual. GetYourLegsUpTracy was waiting outside for us and we drove to the rec.  I knocked on the door for J.J. then we all walked around to the rec.  I do like this bit, it's like we are kids again and we are all knocking for one another to come out and play, just like we used to do as kids. I am so looking forward to tomorrow!  We are all going to be dressed up in Christmassy stuff!  Don't worry, there will be photographic evidence of that run!

Anyway, back today, all four of us walked to the rec from J.J.'s house, they were already into the leaders routes!  We had a couple of new leaders who were doing their Debut leading, one of them, Michelle, I can remember like yesterday, her very first run with Petts Wood Runners!  She and her friend just turned up and ran with Group 1.  It was a particularly hard out and back route that day, all the way down Southborough Lane and back.  I am glad it didn't put her off!  So, the leaders had just given out their routes and we all went to find our leader with their paddles.  I decided to sweep for group 1 this evening, as I am running tomorrow......did I say I ran yesterday too! 

CarolWithAnE was leading group 1 today, and she had a big group, 13 of us!  She was doing one of my favourite routes.  It's one that I use for move up Tuesdays, as it nice and flatish, so we can push ourselves just a little bit extra....if there are no new comers in the group!  But as I have said, I only did about half this route today, two of our runners had pull out, one had fallen over hurt his ankle and the other runner was just wanting to do just a bit less.  I think she would have completed the whole of the run if this other runner hadn't pulled out, you can be surprised at what you can do. I said I would walk with them as they wasn't quite sure of exactly where they were!  Well, it's best to save my legs, I have no idea how fast we will be running tomorrow, I just hope it's not as fast as group 3!  Especially as we have at least 8k to run.....I think!

Well, that about covers my run/walk today, I am still pretty glad I went out, I need to get out!  My Mojo is somewhere out there!  The bit that I did today was brill though,  CarolWithAnE doing a great job of keeping the rabble together!

Geeky stats

....Um...Hello!?

Hello blog readers

I can't believe it's been nearly a week since I've put on lycra! What a lazy mare!  It's true. I ran on the 24th of November, parkrun, but I was just so disappointed with myself, I really wasn't 'feeling it' on the day!  But from that point onwards it seemed my mojo was staying hidden under blankets, duvets and food and drink!  Seriously!  I didn't even go to club run!  I did try getting my fat ass out, even to say that I would sweep for Auriol.  But the promise of heavy rain kept me under my blanket......well actually it was a slanket, and it belonged to Naggyneighbour!  We had tea and chat at her house instead!  But a couple of our whatsapp group gang did go out that day, Auriol of course, she was leading and CarolWithAnE, apparently it stopped raining too!  Oh my goodness they were very smug like afterwards.....and to be honest....they deserved to be. 

Thursday didn't happen, we had a surprise 60th birthday for Tracy instead!  So much worth it though, the look on her face was brilliant!  And then Saturday arrived again, my ass stayed firmly huggled in my bed!  I did not move!  But SnapperHannah went! I can't remember if anyone else went that day!  I wouldn't trust my memory of late, I see people at running that didn't actually go! I know, senior moments happening!!

Anyway, that explains lack of blogs! No running, no blogging!  But this evening Naggy sent me a text to say that she fancied running, did I want to go? I said "I may"  Just that, nothing else, not a definite yes, or no! The next text from her was "Ok good, I'm already changed see you soon!"  I was still at work!  Sometimes I come home on a non running day, such as Mondays and Wednesdays and there is dinner cooking or I just happened to sit down and then not want to move from my cosy chair!  But today I said "I may." As you can guess, I went!  There was no getting away from it either! 

I got changed straight away and went over to Naggy's house.  "Just a nice easy one then" I said, "Of course, just 3 miles" she replied!  So that was it, we were off,

"Nice and easy, not too fast" I said
"Yes, it's just to get out, that's all" said Naggy
"We got that run to do on Wednesday evening" I reminded her
"I know" she said
"..and we have club run tomorrow" I said, "That will be three days in a row of running!" Could I redeem myself, I wondered.
"Well, it will be four times in a row" Naggy reminded me, "There's track on Thursday!

Oh blimey!  What have I done!  I can't remember the last time I ran four times in a row!  I know it was when my Mojo was well and truly in charge of my running!  Naggy had planned a nice little route around our way, down the path to Turnaround Lamppost and then beyond!  We ran to the A21 and turned right!  Thank goodness, turning left would have been a much long run home!  Running with Naggy was just like the old days.....well, just like it used to be when I was training for the marathon and doing so much more running.  She encouraged all the way round.  She also gave me rules!  No stopping for a mile, then a 30 second rest and then run for a mile, a 30 second rest then all the way home!  I really didn't think I could do it!  But I was determined to try!  There is no try with Naggy, not unless it's spelt 'Tri' She does believe in 'Do it, just do it'.  I ran for the first mile, and so looked forward to my 30 second walk, and then the second mile began.  It seemed that 30 second walk went by in a split second, let alone 30 seconds!

I ran a bit slower on the second mile, I wish I could show you on my geeky stats, but just as I was writing this blog I went to go and upload my run to my Garmin account and my watch is showing no activities shown!  Blimmin gutted!  I know I did it, and I saved it.  But also I remember my watch doing this funny buzzing and I pushed a couple of buttons without really looking at it, and I think I may have deleted all activities from my watch!  It's just as well Naggy has her geeky stats to show off with!  I wanted to see what my splits were with each mile,  oh well!  I think my watch probably needed to be 'cleaned out'  I haven't done it since I've had it! 

But before all of that happened, I noticed that when we got back to Naggys house my watch was saying 2.93 miles, well, you know me, that was never going to be left like that!  I had to make sure it said 3.00 miles!  But of course, that was the last I saw of these geeky stats!  But I must say, I do feel just a tad smug.....no, actually I feel bloody knackered!  Three more runs this week, then maybe a angelic look can be found on my face!  Just like the one at the top of this blog!  You got to love a snapchat filter! 

I picture of geeky stats will appear here tomorrow when I asked Naggy for them!