Cardiff Half Marathon Review

Cardiff half marathon Sunday 16th October 2011

Sunday was my second Cardiff half marathon and I think I have to say that this year was not a very well organised race. I thought that with the mishap of the course being short last year, they would have been sure to make it a good one this year.

The start of the Cardiff half marathon was chaotic to say the least. When I got closer to the start there were queues of people for the toilet with 15 minutes to go to the start. There were not enough porta loos for the thousands of people that were there, so it caused a lot of rush and panic in my opinion. I was very lucky that I did not need the toilet at this point.

The panic for me was finding the start and my pen, as it was very poorly signposted. Everyone was frantically looking for the right pen, including myself. Some people were even jumping over the barriers to get into their right pen. It was so cramped looking for and getting into my pen with people rushing and pushing. Not only was it the runners that I was trying to get past to get through to my pen, but spectators as well. It is not very helpful having families with buggies which made it even more stressful. I think they should think of having a runner’s area only, to alleviate the congestion at the start. Luckily, I found a gap in the barrier and squeezed into the sub 2:00 pen. Even though it was not the pen I wanted to be in at that point, I was just happy to be in any pen. I would recommend that they have more open points where you can join the pen at your designated point. When we got going it was still very cramped as the start was very narrow for the number of people that were competing, but it did open up after a few miles.

I felt that the water stations could have been placed at better mileage points. I did not see the point in having a water station at mile 12. It would have been better having a water station at mile 10 or 11. Also the screw caps were a bit of a hazard as they were all over the road and I was just imaging the worst!

I don’t believe the course was flat (as advertised) as there were definitely steady inclines. The double back on the dual carriageway from mile 6-9 was pretty soul-destroying to be honest.

I have definitely had a better goody bag before too!!. It consisted of a cheap sports drink, cereal bar and the choice of a medium or extra-large t-shirt. I would not say that I am a medium, so I have a massive shirt that I will probably use as a pj top if at all!

On a more positive note, we were very lucky with the sunshine we had and the finish into the bay was just lovely and made it all worthwhile. The crowds were just fantastic and they made the atmosphere at the finish brilliant.

I will be back next year to do the Cardiff half marathon, so let’s hope the organisers take on board all the runner’s reviews and make the race more runner-friendly.

Cardiff half marathon 2011 - A very disappointing 1 hour 43 36 seconds

Lead up to the Cardiff Half Marathon

Week before race day


Sunday

I did a 5-mile easy run this morning. Just to keep my legs moving but nothing too strenuous.

I also had my favourite pre-run meal –a bagel, one banana and peanut butter.

Monday

A 30-minute run on the treadmill on the following settings:

10 min @ speed 10

10 min @ speed 11

10 min @ speed 12

Tuesday

Today is my last run before the Half Marathon so I did a 4-mile easy jog.

From now, I will not do anymore exercise until the race day on Sunday.

Saturday Morning

I woke up in the morning and for breaksfast had:

Meal 1

50g porridge

1 scoop casein

I then got ready and headed for Cardiff. The journey took about 3 hours. In this time I had a snack which consisted of:

Meal 2


2 x rice cakes

1 tsp peanut butter

When we arrived at the hotel we checked in and then had some lunch in the room which consisted of :

Meal 3

1 x wrap

100g chicken

1 x banana

We then went to the spa in the hotel and chilled out which was very relaxing. The spa started getting quite busy so we decided to go back to the room and just chill out.

I had a snack which consisted of:

Meal 4

100g carrots

60g cottage cheese

Nuts and raisins

Later, we got ready for dinner and went to an Italian restaurant called Gios which was lovely.

Meal 5

Leek and potato soup

Lasagne

The lasagne was very yummy. There was such a buzz and you could tell it was a popular choice by the people queuing outside waiting for a table. The atmosphere around Cardiff was brilliant considering they lost the Rugby World Cup semi-finals. All I wanted to do was join in and get on the beers but unfortunately knew better the night before a run!!!

Of course I made sure I was drinking plenty of water throughout the day to keep me hydrated.

I made sure prior to going to bed that I had all my running gear laid out for the morning and also made sure my running bag was packed with my gels and energy shotz.



Race day - Sunday

My alarm woke me up at 6-45am. I had slept through the whole night which I was surprised by because I thought I would be up most of the night thinking about the run. I had a cup of tea and got ready to go down and have breakfast.

Breakfast 7am

1 x Bagel

Peanut butter

1 x banana

Cereal

1 small glass of orange juice

I came back from breakfast and had a bath and got ready for the race.

The Starting Line

We left the hotel at 8:30am and walked to the start line (about a 10 minute walk away), but just when I thought we were there, I realised the start was further away than I thought. The whole area near the Bay was heaving with runners and spectators trying to get as close to the start as possible.

At this point I wished I had got to the start line sooner because, like I always do, I started stressing about finding my starting pen. With 10 minutes to go to the start of the race, I had still not found my pen and when I looked at the porto loos, there were queues and queues of runners and all I could think was surely they should be at the start line.

It was very stressful trying to make my way through runners and spectators. I could not see any entries into the pens but was not alone. Some runners were even climbing over the barriers to try and squeeze in.

I desperately wanted to find the sub 1:45 pen, but had to do with the gap I found in sub 2:00 hours. I was one very stressed-out runner. Not a good start to the run.

To top it off, I felt very full and could feel that my breakfast had not gone down! I really wanted to be in the sub 1:45, the reason being, I wanted to run with the pacemaker because I do seem to struggle to pace myself. Thankfully though, I was in a pen when the gun went and ran and walked until I crossed the start line.

During the Run

I was frustrated because all I was thinking was that I needed to find the sub 1:45 pacemaker but I could not even see the sub 2:00 pacemaker. I found myself weaving in and around people and got trapped behind people at times, this left me feeling rather frustrated and annoyed and so therefore I probably wasted energy weaving in and around people and went out too fast.

I finally found the sub 2 hour pace maker at mile 4 and then moved on to thinking that I now needed to find the sub 1:45 pacemaker. I finally convinced myself to stop stressing and to try and enjoy the race.

After mile 5 or so, the crowds of runners started to disperse so I was able to get into a good rhythm. The weather was just fabulous. The sun was out and there was a nice breeze. I took my gel at mile 8 and I got a stitch between mile 9 and 11. I had to walk for a few seconds and then started running again.

I got to a water station at mile 10 and walked and slowly sipped some water and concentrating on my breathing trying to get rid of the stitch. I started running again but I was unable to pick up the pace because then the stitch would get more painful. I just kept focussing on my breathing and trying to press on the area where it hurt at times.

By mile 12 I had forgotten about it and just focused on trying to finish and not worry about time. I did pass the sub 1:45 pacemaker at the last water station at mile 12 though. So I managed to find him eventually!! .

The end of the course that went passed the bay was really lovely and I did really enjoy that part of the run. The crowds of spectators were fantastic at the end cheering you on. When I saw mile 13 I knew I was near the end so tried to pick the pace up and I finished the Cardiff half marathon with a time of 1 hr 43 min 36 secs.

Recovery

I had plenty of water once I finished and a Powerade. When I got back to the hotel I had a powerbar recovery bar and then about an hour later, I had a chicken sandwich and some pretzels.

What I have learnt from the Cardiff Half Marathon


I have learnt to make sure I eat 3 hours before the run so I don’t feel heavy at the start.

I need to make sure I am at the start for at least half an hour before the race starts to avoid pre-race stress!

Kezziemac's Blogg Update

Measurements

Date                                            8th Sept   13th Sept   21st Sept   30th Sept   8thOct

Weight                                         56.7         55.8          55.5            55.2          54.3

%BF                                            22%        22.3%       21%           21.8%       19.5%

Left arm                                       26           26             26.5           26              25

Right arm                                     27           26.5          26.5           26              25

Chest                                          88            88            88.5            87             85.5

Waist                                          69.5         69           68.5             69              67

Hips                                           99           98.5          99               98              96

Right thigh                                  53           52.5          52              52.5            50

Left thigh                                  54             54             52              53               50


As you can see from the results I am slowly losing a bit of weight which I am happy with because I do not want to lose too much weight. My measurements are also looking good, these are probably more important to me than my weight as whilst training you can also increase muscle which in turn adds to your weight so by just weighing yourself alone, you do not get a true perspective.

Since my last blog I have done two long runs. The first one was 12.3 miles. I really enjoyed this run and felt very good afterwards. I was disappointed with the time I did it in but I am not going to get too hung up over my times at the minute. I am more interested in how I feel prior to the run, during the run and my recovery afterwards.

Before my run I had a bagel, peanut butter and banana . I also made sure I was drinking enough water in the morning. During the run I had the powerbar shots which I am not convinced I really like! I used to like them when I did the marathon but the problem is trying to chew them while I’m running and when you are knackered it is quiet hard to concentrate on chewing and breathing etc... I’m planning to use a gel on my next long run to see if I get on any better.

When I had finished my run, I had some more water and a bottle of lucozade sport followed by a lucozade recovery bar. Then for dinner I had a jacket potato, beans and later I had some popcorn and of course I drank lots of water. I made sure I then had two days off to ensure muscle recovery.

After my two rest days I experienced a bad run. I ran for 5.03 miles and I really wanted to run for longer but I was just not feeling it. I had negative thoughts in my head and my body felt so heavy and all I kept thinking was just go home and chill out and have a cup of tea. But at least I pushed myself and managed 5.03 miles and some people say a bad run is better than no run at all.

I had, had 2 days off so I was very disappointed when I finished. But I guess you have to have some bad runs to appreciate the really good runs.

The next day I ran for an hour on the treadmill and did 20 minutes at speed 10, 20 minutes at speed 11 and then the last 20 minutes at speed 12 and 12.5. It was very hard but I felt so good afterward. After this I was feeling more positive 

I have introduced some x-training sessions into my training which includes the x-trainer and stepper and I have also included some weight training into my sessions to add variety.

My last long run prior to Cardiff was 11.5 miles. I made sure I had eaten 3 hours before my run which included a small bowl of soup chicken roll and low fat cherry yoghurt. I also made sure I kept myself hydrated by drinking lots of water. On my run I used a gel and also used 2 of the powerbar shotz to give them a second chance and I have concluded I really do not like them. Like my experience from my previous long run, they are just too hard to chew while you are running. I would probably just keep them in my bag in a case of emergency.

Once I finished I made sure I consumed more water and had my recovery drink followed by a lucozade recovery bar. For dinner I had rice and chicken to ensure I fuelled up with carbs and had the protein to help repair the muscles.

I now have 2 well deserved days rest and then on Sunday it will be 1 week until the Cardiff half marathon. Yikes!!!!

Don't be scared of weight training ladies!!!

Working in a gym environment I get a lot of comments from the lady gym members about not wanting to do weights because they don’t want to get bulky. I do chuckle to myself whenever I hear this comment, as it’s such a pre-conceived misconception that simply isn’t true! As a personal trainer, I believe it is important for people to understand the importance of weight training, so I am going to explain the benefits of including weights into your fitness programme.

Benefits of weight training


If you include 2-3 weight sessions a week it will help with your weight loss because weight training will increase your metabolism and therefore burn more calories throughout the day. When we are pounding the streets doing our running or cardio in the gym, we are working hard and burning calories, but when we stop, the calorie burning slows down.

Weights are important because while we are doing weights, we are burning calories and will continue to burn calories throughout the day even after the exercises have stopped. The reason for this is that weights build muscle and the more muscle we have, the more fat we burn.

So in conclusion, someone who doesn’t do weights will not burn as many calories throughout the day compared to someone who adds weights to their workout.

On top of this, muscle is much denser and more compact and takes up less space than fat, whereas fat is soft and squishy, so therefore takes up more space within the body.

The more muscle content you have, the better your body shape will be compared to someone who has no muscle content.

Adding weights to your workout

When adding weights to your workout ladies, please do not take it to mean that you can only do light weights with high repetitions. This type of weight training uses your slow twitch fibres, the same as you use for your cardio. I suggest you use heavy weights with low reps to change your programme around. I promise you, you will not bulk up, you will tone up!

To add, one of the reasons behind this is that we do not have enough of the male hormone testosterone to get big and bulky. Your diet would have to be very different to a normal healthy balanced eating plan if you wanted to bulk up.

So, in a nutshell, there is no way you will bulk up, so don’t be scared of lifting weights.

Tracking your progress

When tracking your progress, I say ditch the scales and use a tape measure instead, or try a pair of jeans or a jacket that are tight on you and then, hopefully, after following a weight training programme accompanied with healthy eating and cardio, you will notice a difference and your clothes will start to feel looser on you.

To summarise, along with a healthy balanced diet you can combine lifting weights and cardio and you will see the pounds falling off and see an improvement in your body shape and muscle tone.

Remember: The more muscle we have, the more calories we will burn – even when resting. (yay)

November Exercise of the Month: 100 - Pilates Exercise

Lie flat on your back with your arms by your side palms down.

Pressing your spine into the mat draw your naval to your spine. Don't suck your stomach in or hold your breath.

Think of a weight drawing your navel through to your spine.

Draw your knees above your hips, toes softly pointed from the ankles.

Chin towards your chest (note if your neck begins to get heavy simply release your head down to the floor and lengthen through the back of the neck.

Lift your hands in line with your abdominal wall. Pressing your shoulders away from your ears reach your fingertips pasted your hips.

Vigorously begin to pump your arms breathing in and out through your nose for 5 beats and out for 5 beats until you count to 100.

If you do the 100 you will take 10 deep breaths.

Beginner maybe start with 5 deep breaths.

Be aware of your legs staying in line with your hips.

Paula Dyer - Pilates teacher

October Exercise of the Month: Squat to Row

Muscles worked: quadriceps, glutes, hips, back , core and biceps

•Set the weight so that it is hard enough but you are able to control the weight
•Grab hold of the cable handle bar and walk backwards so your arms are extended out in front of you and then get into the squat position.

•Then come into the standing position and pull your hands towards your chest, ensure that your shoulders are relaxed and keep your elbows by your torso.

•Then repeat 2/3 sets of 10-15 reps