I feel as fit as a fiddle, I'm on top of my game........

Aaaaaaaaaa-CHOO!!

Famous last words I'm living to regret boasting about to my friends now. It's been a while but since my summer races I've felt stronger and fitter and the race distances I've recently participated in I've achieved faster and recorded PB times, treated myself to new Newton motion trainers for my winter training and with one more race for the year, that I've run on before and know the course well.... I've set myself a race finishing target. Surely this must be a course PB for myself too?

What can go wrong?

Then work colleagues start dragging themselves into work coughing and sniffing. After their  third sneeze, croaky voice and pronunciation of words reminds me of the 1980's Tunes TV advert my sympathy level (or selfishness level) reaches as far as "Why don't you go home early"…. *Thinking, now!* ....... These brave soldiers then sit and pollute the office, which causes me a level of concern as I sit and look at my wall calendar working out how many days I have to remain free from illness.

As a precaution up my fluid intake, eat some more fruit and take a stronger dose of vitamin C in an attempt to maintain good health. I have one more scheduled run for tomorrow just to keep my legs ticking over. Well that night I'm finding myself sniffing more and more and as for waking in the morning I can feel my chest tightening (As an asthmatic this is a sensitive area anyway) So I plod around my house cursing my work colleagues and then debating.... the runners rule. If it hurts neck up I "run" if its neck down "Don't run".... Aaaah or is it the other way around? Do I still head out and do my scheduled hour long run and risk tipping my immune system into meltdown for the cold/flu virus to win this battle? Or do I cancel this run in an attempt to save my energy?

Very reluctantly I chose not to run and will now class this as a taper. Pffft a taper to run a file mile race on a flat course in Middlesex all due to illness good grief!. By the time Sunday arrives I wont have run for seven days which was so not part of my race preparation. That'll teach me shouldn't have been so smug that I was immune to illness just because things were looking good on the running front. Probably a reminder that and more so for the  older runners. To start respecting our bodies whether it's illness or injury.W hen the body says no. It really means it. The body is a remarkable at self-healing if  given the chance but through habit of running how many of us give our body the chance to heal? Or just through “habit” make the situation were in twice as bad ourselves?

Daily Diet....

How did you enjoy October 1st 20% VAT increase on all sports nutrition? On this day I looked in store at my usual brand and size and wow £79.99 !! Oh my days. I cannot justify that!! Even after a successful 2012 Olympics where I’m pretty sure many have got off from their sofa taken up some sort of sport /exercise? So why hinder those now prepared to work hard and participate in sport thus, looking after their health at the same time?? Anyway…. Feeling on top of my game in my new Newton’s, running stronger and lighter on my feet how can I next improve my running? How about the fuel I put in my body? I’m sure it’s not a case of drinking a protein shake because the advertising says it’s the best thing since sliced bread? I’m not nutritional expert and sure, if I visited one I’d get a nasty surprise. What one body requires maybe another would not? What advice one person is given may not work for another.

I seemed to have an on going battle with the constant carb intake I have been advised to keep on top off just to give me energy to run long distances. It appeared know matter how long I ran, however many times of the week my weight stayed the same or even went up how can this be possible and I honestly feel cant be the only one in this same situation?

I’ve decided to make a few changes. I cannot afford amount of nutrition now that health shops are going to charge me. OK this is a good thing as surely I have to look for more natural and healthier methods.

1) Smoothies - Damn easy 5 a day in on go. Chuck everything in, blend down in one. Quite filling too

2) I work shifts do I need a dinner in the evening? Or is that an old habit…. Eating too late for the food to not digest and get stored in my fat cells

3) Breakfast as always, then I am snacking though the day. What with?  Anything small and light that will fill me up until I next want to eat

Due to the power of Twitter and the best tweets, I’ve received from Karen and Claire I have turned to baking Protein cookies, brownies and flapjacks. Helpful because I have a nut allergy so a lot of products in store contain nuts! Sooo if I turn to making these same products without the ingredients that will kill me, surely, that is healthier for me? also If I can ditch the bread and eat more fruit and Vegetables I’m determined my PB’s Will come down and as Aly Dixon says “Aspiring to be the best I can be”

The Queen Of Sheffield

Having failed to purchase a single Olympic 2012 ticket I couldn’t help but show a sense of determination or insanity and head out at the crack of dawn on the  day of the Olympic parade to cheer home Team GB. Armed with running fitness magazine, a freshly charged camera and a few snacks (no drinks as I didn’t want to drink away, get the urge for a loo break and hop from one leg to the other not wanting to lose my place at the front of the barrier) I was out my front door at 04:30 and plotted up outside St Pauls Cathedral by 06:00 ready to shout and cheer at #ourgreatestteam.

 

By the time a few other people arrived to along the route to become my new neighbours it wasn’t long before we started to talk about our favourite moment of the Olympics and confirm what we had been told within the media as to which number float our favourite athlete’s would be standing on. “Mo Farrah will be on number 1, Super Jess would be on float number 2 and so on…

I managed to pass the time by and before I knew it the parade had started and with camera in hand time I leaned on the barrier ready, ready to snap away capturing pictures of our nation’s new heroes……. This was where lady luck took over. Yes the floats were passing by but as I stood on the right hand side of the road, Team GB members tried to greet the crowd by moving from both sides of the float. To my dismay Float 2 passed by with Jessica standing on the far side of the float and out of camera view. I absolutely rolled my eyes to the heavens as I … could.. not…believe it!!

Sir Chris Hoy

Mo Farah

Victoria Pendleton

Greg Rutherford

Tom Daley

Louis Smith

Alistair Brownlee

 

OK this one missed athlete out of a team of many but i managed to take pictures of some of the remaining TeamGB members (only a handful for your viewing) but it was great to see Jessica announce she was releasing an autobiography. I wonder if she’ll do a book signing at the time of its release? Well what do you know November 9^th 13:00 at Waterstone’s, Canary wharf…. I looked to the sky and said praise the lord! Time to book the day off work! to be told… NO! I can’t have the day off as no one can cover my shift……. WTF!! Perhaps you don’t understand… This isn’t some piss poor excuse I really would like to meet the Jessica Ennis. She’s here on my doorstep (again) and my boss is telling me I can’t have the day off?? As you can imagine I was sooooo pissed off!! The only agreement I could come too was take half a day and go back into work after I got my book signed because no way! Am I missing this appointment!

As far as I was concerned this was an Olympic Parade round 2, this book signing is going tobe popular. I made the same plans as before. 1) Fully charged camera 2) A copy of running fitness magazine 3) snacks for the morning. No drinks! 4) Drop the girls off to school then head on up to Canary Wharf (Yeah Baby). So with my bag packed the night before I got ready early Friday morning with a smile on my face. I even splashed on my favourite aftershave, headed out on the school run, kicking my daughters over the line of the school gates before heading to London.

 I arrived at Waterstone’s at 09:00 and dreaded turning the corning to the queuing area wondering how many people were there before me. I was handed ticket number forty one and was informed of a list of do’s and don’ts. At this point I met “Nikki” an athletics fan, track competitor, running encyclopaedia of knowledge who helped make the time go by ever so quickly. Her only downside was the fact she was a Gooner!!  (Booo)

With the morning going by the queue behind grew slowly but by the time Jess arrived… *cough* Late… the queue stretched back out of sight but at a guess over two hundred people. In front the media had arrived with their gigantic camera’s and lens’s and lunchtime called and many city folk came out for their lunch and know doubt suddenly decided to take an extended lunch break.

As the queue moved forward Waterstone’s staff again made the rules clear. No touching Jessica, Have your book open and ready for her to sign, No extended requests to whoever no pictures posing next to her, yadda, yadda, yadda. Nkiki then asked what am I going to say to her?... …… Damn It, you know what? I really don’t know? I love you… no,no, no too stalkerish. Well done for winning gold. Tsk she’s probably heard that a million times. I started to panic now but should I have worried? Hell no this is Jessica! A genuine person who was damn easy to talk too like we’ve been friends for years. My book was dedicated to my girls and she asked if they were interested in athletics and I was pleased to say that they were. I wanted to ask so many more questions but, conscious of Waterstone’s restrictions they placed on queuing fans, it was time to move aside for the next person to have their precious book signed too.

Just ever so slightly chuffed, with my book now signed I safely tucked it in my ruck sack I took a quick look around glaring off anyone who thinks they might take a chance and nick this now priceless book off me. I then proceeded to push my way to the front of the roped off area and to practice my photography clicking away trying to capture for my own photography portfolio Jessica again bringing a smile to hundreds of people within this shopping area.

    

Do I stand firmly in the corner of Team Ennis? I sure do! Will I be voting for her in this year’s BBC Sports Personality of the year? I sure will…. Has she a chance in winning??… (sucks in air….shaking head) I’m not fully confident about that. …. Probably not a book makers front runner to do so. The great people from “Sheffield” reminded us that they alone won more Olympic 2012 gold medals than the whole of “Australia” managed to do! (Which is quite funny considering they dislike us Poms) However I am very proud to say…. I have actually met one of their Olympic Champions.

All Hail Queen Jessica Ennis.

Rejected from VLM Ballot

Boooooo!!

Rejected from the 2013 VLM Ballot time for Plan B..…

But seriously! What an absolutely HIDEOUS jacket to send out to non-successful applicants. As if the bad news of Elvis wasn’t enough, Virgin go rub salt in the wounds with a cheap and nasty jacket like this. Good lord above, I bet couldn’t even sell this jacket at a Boot sale for 50 Pence.

Come on Virgin be fair??