Saying hello…and goodbye to Two Oceans

Posted on April 4, 2012 by Bo

As KK and I depart for our annual Easter break down in Cape Town, I must admit, I’m feeling a little mizz. In fact I’ve been feeling a bit down for a while now. You see, as everyone packs their bags and counts down to the Two Oceans half or ultra marathon, I won’t be running the race this year.

I pulled out due to injury as well as not being mentally ready to race against a cut-off time of 3 hours I feared I would miss (again). I was at a point where my running was not fun anymore and I hated the training. So I made the decision to stop stressing about my running, to focus on the 10km races and start falling in love with running again…

It was not an easy decision but once I made it, it was a weight off my shoulders and I still think it was the right decision. I have really enjoyed the shorter distances and I’ve had fun not having to constantly watch my pace. I’ve been happy with a 4km run in the evenings from home and sleeping later when I don’t feel like getting up at 3:30am for a race. It has helped me get back my “running mojo” and I’m enjoying it more than ever.

Yet it still doesn’t take away the fact that I wish I was running on Saturday. It doesn’t take away the fact that reading people’s tweets and blogs as they count down to the race doesn’t fill me with a tingle of jealousy and bit of regret.

While I know runners don’t judge one another, I am my biggest critic and keep trying to convince myself that pulling out of the race doesn’t mean I’m quitting. It means I’m doing what’s right, for me, at this point in time.

But it’s a heaviness that fills my heart.

I will still be there to support KK and the rest of our running gang. I’ll most probably get *goosies* when the gun goes off and I’ll still be super excited to see my running friends cross that finish line.

I’m holding thumbs that KK runs a PB! I wouldn’t miss that for the world!

Ps: this will be my last blog post until we get back from holiday on the 15th April.

Have a wonderful Easter!

Maybe a bike ride will do me good

Posted on April 3, 2012 by Bo

KK comes home the other day and announces that him and his bestie, DSM, are thinking about doing the 94.7 Momentum Cycle Challenge at the end of the year. He is surprised when I excitedly proclaim, “Awesome, me too!!”

You see, my history with cycling is not a good one…

Since I’ve met KK, he’s been an avid sportsman (I’m boasting now). Other than all the running races he’s done, he has completed x5 Two Ocean half marathons, x1 Argus race, x7 94.7 Cycle Challenges and a couple of mini triathlons thrown in as well. So naturally, on weekends, we’ll engage in some sort of sporty activity.

About 12 years ago, KK and I used to ride our bikes quite often. I lived in Bedfordview at the time, and it was always a really fun occasion to go for a long ride on a Sunday afternoon. We took the bikes to KK’s place one day. He lived in Northcliff (emphasis on the cliff). Riding bikes was tougher as Northcliff is all ups and downs!

We decided one day to ride down (!) to Emmerentia Dam and back home. It was divine. The wind in my hair, the rising sun on my back… we got to the dam in no time and watched the dogs playing in the water and people feeding the ducks. It was a great morning.

It then started to get hot and so we ventured home. However, this time, it was all uphill! And lots of them. My legs ached. My back broke. I was getting sunburnt. With so many hills, I landed up pushing my bike. KK, who was fitter than me, kept moaning that I need to get back on the bike and ride.

Eventually, I exploded! I was so tired, hot, bothered, I threw my bike on the floor, kicked it and walked home without it. I vowed never to ride my bike again. KK pushed his bike and mine all the way home. Since that day, if people ask me if I have a bike, I say no.

Looking back today, I know I acted really childishly but I had been pushed too far and had had enough!

Well, I’m ready to give it another go and so the idea of 94.7 really appeals to me. I’ve got some time to think about it but while my foot has me out of running action, this might be an alternative option?

Wait, wait, wait!

Like I said, I’m thinking about it. A part of me still gets put off at the thought of punctures and at just how long the route is – 100km!

But for now, I need to dig my bike out of the garage, dust it off and make friends with it…That’s a start.

Time for a clean up

Posted on April 2, 2012 by Bo

I’ve heard it so many times before: If you are trying to lose weight, make sure you don’t stock anything that can potentially tempt you. To be honest, if I’m going to be serious about sticking to a proper, healthy eating plan, I got to do what’s right.

So I finally cleaned out my sweet cupboard. By cleaned out, I don’t mean I sat down and ate everything. I literally threw stuff away and took the rest of the sweets to work (only to make my colleagues grow chubby!).

I have been meaning to do it for ages but never got around to doing it and every weekend, I’d just buy more and more goodies, adding to the heap.

My weakness is chips. I love chips! Any flavour but especially the chutney flavoured ones.

Funny enough, I am able to resist chocolates. In fact, some years have gone by when we’ve had to throw Easter eggs away because they’ve gone old.

Sorting through the cupboard, I was horrified that so many of the sweets had passed their expiry date. So much of it had to be thrown away as it was inedible. Some of the goodies I had no memory of even buying. Worst of all was that some of it were gifts from people that had gone to waste.

What’s left in my cupboard are packets of nuts, dried fruit (and maybe one bag of speckled eggs and a pack of caramello bears). But no more chocolates. No more buckets of sour gums. No more chips.

And it feels good…

Why do we allow things in our lives to gather dust? Why do we put off clearing out and getting rid of things in our lives that are only causing us to slip up or not accomplish our goals? How come we don’t see how unnecessary things take up so much space in our lives?

Chatting to a Champ about my feet

Posted on March 28, 2012 by Bo

At the Jackie Gibson race on Sunday, I was strolling around the field, waiting for KK to finish his race when I happened to bump into top marathon runner and Comrades champ, Lesley Train. (LOL, I say it so casually, as if I know her!)

Lesley happened to be talking to KK’s bestie’s mom-in-law and as I walked up to the two of them, I was introduced to Lesley. I must admit, for the initial 10 seconds, I was a tad star-struck! I have watched Lesley on TV, I’ve heard the running commentators singing her praises, and here in front of me, stood this teeny tiny, bubbly woman.

Lesley was not running Jackie Gibson on Sunday due to a stress fracture and was expressing concern about the upcoming Two Oceans. I mentioned that I had pulled out of the half marathon race due to plantar fasciitis and it’s then that she told me about her experience with the crippling pain of PF that she too had suffered with in 2011.

She said it took her 6 months to get rid of her PF. In fact, she had to stop running altogether for 3 months because of it. I have been struggling with it for just as long so it was comforting to know that treatment and recovery wasn’t a quick fix.

She went on to give me her top tips which helped her get rid of PF:

Magnesium (and lots of it). She recommended a liquid form over the tablets.
Foot splint. She borrowed one from a friend and although it was uncomfortable to sleep with at night, it did help stretch her calf muscle.
Sitting in front of TV, Lesley would slip those toe dividers you use when painting your toenails to help stretch the foot open while she watched TV (such a girl!).