Sat 14miles...bring back the rain, and I'll even take some wind!

Of course I was nervous...that's normal...once a nut-head,always a nut-head...

Don't believe what anyone says running never gets easier....I was ready for today...mentally I was stable...physically had a pulse,legs were moving....breathing was controlled...all these factors were going to make today my day...no fecking and blinding ( was going to stick to my declaration)....but bloody hell no one factored in todays 'heatwave''.....

All met in the Aquadome car park..9.30 sharp...big crowd out this smorning... Sun was shining...birds were tweeting...today was going to be a good one...

Took a group photograph beforehand...as u can see we are a fine group of athletes! it was divided up into 3 groups..Brian takes the elites( I will get there one day!),Maeve takes the intermediate runners and Marcus takes the newbies....we are the biggest group...

Started off...from the minute go I could feel the heat..it's only march and the sun was out on full form...started out along the back of Fels point...Jerry points out ( I'd say were only running for about 15mins) that already we've ran 1/28 of our run done...talk about putting us on a downer! We all told him feck off and go ahead with the other group and don't be annoying us...jokingly of course but i threatened that if he opened his mouth once more I'd swing for him...with one if my water bottles....focus focus focus...

Marcus asks me just after that 'was I alright'...I was sweating already...but in actual fact I put on moisturiser this smorning and that in conjunction with the sun probably made me look like a sweaty betty....but I was sweating...


Headed 'up the road by Lidl' and already I was trying to find shade...wore a running hat but that didn't do much good...tried not to focus on it too much...wiping the sweat off my nose...the temperature started to increase...most of the group were trying to run in by the shade in single formation...not a puff in the air...this run was going to be tough...

On holidays...went to Portugal last year..normally you'd find me underneath the umbrella with a scrunched up look on my face trying to put up with the heat...reading a book was a nightmare as with the heat and the sun cream....the book print would be smudged from stopping and starting...I definitely wasn't born with a thermometer....can't handle heat and love the windows being open...what the hell am I going to do on marathon day if it's warm...

Came along to the top of Kearney's road...hmmm where is Marcus taking us now...I'm not going to loose the plot cause of a simple route change...this must be the extra mile...we swing a left..meet some of the other group coming towards us...they were going at a good speed but they definitely looked as warmed up as us....I think it was around this point that I really started to feel the heat...oh my god my top was sticking to me already and we were only 4/5 miles into the run...kept knocking back sups of drink every 10 mins...didn't want to get dehydrated...tugging at my top trying to put some ventilation through it...waste of time...

Headed back that road...under the trees may I add...trying to cool down but it wasn't working...swung a left along the top of the rugby club...people were losing their inhibitions because everywhere I looked there were runners popping out of ditches after coming from a pee pee...the joys of long runs...

Everything was sweltering...my top was disgustingly soggy...my pants were sticking to me...and my feet felt very damp and squishy....what the hell...after about the 6 mile mark I could feel a bloody blister coming on...something was sore and it was annoying me...tried to ignore it...kept going...put more weight on my opposite foot to relieve some pressure....maybe it's a pebble..feck I have to stop...sit on a wall...doggies start barking thinking I'm an intruder...whip off my shoe...socks drenched from sweat...oh for christ sake...no pebble...a fecking blister...the cheek of it to interfere with my bloidy 14mile run! Fecked and blinded for a couple of minutes...adjusted socks...put shoe back on...started off again...felt a bit better for a while but could still feel the fecker...


Fell behind the group a little but that didn't bother me...they weren't too far...i could catch up quite easily..at this point someone definitely turned up the heating...twas around 11o clock...and I was cursing the sun...please not today of all days...hit the base of toonavane...slowly but surely made it up the hill...but had to stop at the top to take my shoe off again...was actually thinking of running barefoot but I'd probably end up in A&E with puncture wounds in my foot! Fiddled my sock...ok I have to run home with this bloody blister if it kills me...the pain was vicious...and I'm a bit of a wimp...but a blister on the big toe was driving me bananas...

Retreated back the way we came....the long road home woohoo....half way along we lost Jerry...turned around...gone... not a sign of him...Marcus runs back the road to look for him and we like cheeky school kids start strolling...happy happy...walking...stretching... laughing...eating the last few jellies...giving ourselves pats on the back...with no interest in running! There wasn't a runner in sight...next thing we hear the ' boss' coming and he's roaring at us to start running...u know when u come across a herd of cows in the middle of the road and they have no interest in moving...well that was us...we ignored him for a couple of seconds and then had to go on our merry way as he caught up to us....from there I kind of stopped and started...moaned and groaned... Fecked and blinded...still sweating from the heat....the blister was alive and well...with the help of Mags and Catriona we made it back to the car park in one piece....

I'm sitting here on Sunday morning writing up yesterday's run....not too tired...we've gone past the stage where I have a fear of the distance...no matter how hot it gets or how windy it gets or how much it rains I now know I can complete the distance....

Over 33 miles to be covered next week...mad


16 miles next sat....must check the weather forecast!...and no moisturiser!

Wed 4 miles....the evenings are getting brighter and the miles are getting longer...

Left work this evening and was listening to the news...flights were being cancelled from Heathrow due to high winds...didn't think I'd be facing highs winds on the back road to Blennerville....

4 miles tonight....there was a flicker of doubt in my mind this evening....pulled into the Aquadome car park waiting for the others...I was the first...factors that created my doubt were winds ( of course!), cold and just couldn't be fecking bothered to run tonight...I nearly...just nearly thought about whizzing out of the car park like a getaway car and dodge running....sher no one would miss me...of course they fecking would...all I do is complain about every aspect of running!

But guilt crept in...if I didn't go tonight I would be pissed off at myself for the rest of the night...and that's worse...I lost 3lbs last week...woohoo I will be a slim jim! so I sat in the car and waited for the first person to come...no leaving now.....phew...no more mind games...

Tonight Marcus( our head honcho) announces 'route change'...the fecker...he knows I just lose the plot at the mention of any bit of a route change...nut head tendencies and wild eye movements start to show...I like my comfort routes! Brian Hayden automatically realised that I was going to get a bit anxious...and commented quickly that it was up Ballyard and down Kearneys rd,out Blennerville and back in...I think he saw my wild look and tried to settle me cracking a joke about my loola comments in my blog! But he was right...

Ok ok...I've done the route before...no problem I won't freak out...it took me three weeks to get up that damn hill and tonight I wasn't going to let it beat me...I'll probably have to book myself into a hotel in limerick cause I'll have to drive the route...round and round like a loola...but who cares it will settle me...I'll put on my water belt and running outfit just to get into the spirit whilst doing my route around limerick...all you'll see is a Kerry reg car with a nuthead gawking out the window supping my lucozade lite out of my belt and a wild look on my face from the fear of the route!

Headed up Ballyard hill like a trooper...woohoo...didn't realise my fitness has increased...very proud...turned right at the top...small group out tonight...then the winds started...feck they were strong....head down...slowly..plodded along the long road...and plodded...and plodded....Catriona was talking to me but I choose to ignore her coz I couldn't bloody be bothered to say ' what did u say'!! Rude I know but I was trying to bloody run through gale force winds....headed back in Blennerville....the evenings are definitely brightening up coz I could visibly look into the halting site where I wanted to stop for a pee per last night...made a good choice there!

Was only about 2 mins off the group tonight but they were definitely going slower...I wasn't getting faster...

Felt much better coming back into the car park....am not a dosser...no guilt...woohoo!

Am still of my diet coke addiction,my Lent campaign is going brilliant except for the odd frothing at the mouth at Kathleen in the office eating her cream egg...but it will be worth it...

Bought myself sugar free jelly...oh what a treat I've to look forward to...and I might go mad and have a rice cake...sarcasm is great...

14 miles on sat...I'll be grinding the teeth that morning...

Tues 6 miles...amazing how a small thing drives you crazy!

6 miles...how hard can it be...well it was very hard cause I was bursting to go for a pee pee from the minute I got out of the car...

About 15-20 of us turned out tonight,pelting rain (dirty rain) and cold...I always wear a t-shirt going running as I tend to boil up pretty quickly but my teeth were having a great chat tonight....tonight's route was the same as last weeks...left the aquadome,down to Fels point hotel,back up past the aquadome again,back out to Blennerville and back the bloody same long road again...

Rushed from work this evening...even-though I'm only a minute down the road I still like to be in the car park a bit early to settle my loola tendencies before I go running...my fear of being last is always there...but I am always last so I'm pretty used to it by now...the rest of the group thought they were in Cheltenham racing tonight because one minute they were there and the next they were gone racing out the road like race horses....and the poor ould donkey (me!) was still warming up enjoying the traffic and even admiring the doggie as I ran past...I will get faster one of these days but for now I'm happy out at my own pace...

Chatting away tonight with the two Catrionas,we were reminiscing on a cycle we did last year....wait for it...the distance was 16k....it was a charity cycle out in Castleisland ....there was a choice of doing 150k,100k,50k and 16k....of course the latter was my sporting choice...16k seemed massive and the thoughts were how the hell can I do that I'll be fecked tired! Loaded up the bike in the morning,headed out to Castleisland with all the gear on...I like my gadgets and gear so I had everything...I'd bought myself an expensive bike before that to coax myself into exercise...I remember being so nervous and to top it off I had a flaming puncture when I took it out of the car...threw a hissey fit...I'm not bloody going cycling! I'm the type where anything could throw me...everything has to be in place....nuthead I know...a nice man fixed my puncture...phew...I needed my strength for my cycle...with all my money spent on the bike i hadnt a clue how to fix a puncture...off we went very proud...pedalling along happy happy...I was knackered by the half way point with all the stress!got back to the hall delighted I'd completed my first big cycle...you should have seen us...pulled the bikes up outside the community centre like real pros...whipped off our helmets...shook the hair a bit...gave a few puffs like real athletes...shoulders back...heads up high very proud of what we achieved!! Walked into the community centre starved...gasping for food and fluids...and we were the first eejits back! the shame....the shame....the shame....the grannies serving the tea must have had a great giggle coz we ate the ham sandwiches like we never saw food!

All I thought about tonight during running was where I could go to the toilet! All the water factors included: it was raining,we ran by a river and I was jumping over puddles...how could I focus on anything but going for a pee pee! Was even thinking of stopping by the halting site on the way out but the smell of horse poo and the fear of my knickers being robbed put out me off! It mad how you focus on something that you know you can't do...

4 miles tomorrow night...woohoo looking forward to thur and fri rest days....

Tues 6 miles...amazing how a small thing drives you crazy!

6 miles...how hard can it be...well it was very hard cause I was bursting to go for a pee pee from the minute I got out of the car...

About 15-20 of us turned out tonight,pelting rain (dirty rain) and cold...I always wear a t-shirt going running as I tend to boil up pretty quickly but my teeth were having a great chat tonight....tonight's route was the same as last weeks...left the aquadome,down to Fels point hotel,back up past the aquadome again,back out to Blennerville and back the bloody same long road again...

Rushed from work this evening...even-though I'm only a minute down the road I still like to be in the car park a bit early to settle my loola tendencies before I go running...my fear of being last is always there...but I am always last so I'm pretty used to it by now...the rest of the group thought they were in Cheltenham racing tonight because one minute they were there and the next they were gone racing out the road like race horses....and the poor ould donkey (me!) was still warming up enjoying the traffic and even admiring the doggie as I ran past...I will get faster one of these days but for now I'm happy out at my own pace...

Chatting away tonight with the two Catrionas,we were reminiscing on a cycle we did last year....wait for it...the distance was 16k....it was a charity cycle out in Castleisland ....there was a choice of doing 150k,100k,50k and 16k....of course the latter was my sporting choice...16k seemed massive and the thoughts were how the hell can I do that I'll be fecked tired! Loaded up the bike in the morning,headed out to Castleisland with all the gear on...I like my gadgets and gear so I had everything...I'd bought myself an expensive bike before that to coax myself into exercise...I remember being so nervous and to top it off I had a flaming puncture when I took it out of the car...threw a hissey fit...I'm not bloody going cycling! I'm the type where anything could throw me...everything has to be in place....nuthead I know...a nice man fixed my puncture...phew...I needed my strength for my cycle...with all my money spent on the bike i hadnt a clue how to fix a puncture...off we went very proud...pedalling along happy happy...I was knackered by the half way point with all the stress!got back to the hall delighted I'd completed my first big cycle...you should have seen us...pulled the bikes up outside the community centre like real pros...whipped off our helmets...shook the hair a bit...gave a few puffs like real athletes...fecked tired...shoulders back...heads up high very proud of what we achieved!! Walked into the community centre starved...gasping for food and fluids...and we were the first eejits back! the shame....the shame....the shame....the grannies serving the tea must have had a great giggle coz we ate the ham sandwiches like we never saw food! But we were two delighted eejits...

So in comparison i actually ran nearly 20 k at the weekend..so it shows the progression that can be made...there is hope for me yet...

Tonight all I thought about in my run was going for a pee...all the way round...when you know you can't do something your mind just focuses on that one thing..peeing...
All water factors included..it was raining..we ran by a river...and I was jumping over puddles...so pee pees were all that I could think of...I nearly stopped by a halting site But the smell of hose poo and the fear that my knickers wud be robbed off me helped me keep it in...oh the joys of running...

4 miles tomorrow night...

Sat 12 miles....we conquered the bridge!

Well obviously I was going to be nervous...I can't not be a nuthead on long run days....I'm allowed that much!

12 miles....

Got up this smorning like a Duracell Bunny...nervous energy more like...ate my lumpy porridge..was starved...didn't cook my porridge properly but I still knocked it back..it was tough...

Was first into the aquadome this smorning...how am I going to do 12 bloody miles with Tonavane hill included I thought to myself...I can't be the only nervous loola in the group...rest of the group arrived...I'd say there was about 20 runners out today...Marcus was talking about our 'treat' after the marathon...3 weeks after limerick there's talk of a 50 mile JFK Walk down in Sneem....woohoo let's all go for a very long walk and just banjax up the legs even more! At the moment I can't even run up the stairs in work cause my legs are just in shock...I used to pounce up two steps at a time but now I'm holding onto the bannister and taking geriatric steps...but u know what,life is too short so why not do the 50miles in Sneem! It should be good craic....this time last year I was living a nursing home lifestyle...get up,work,eat,sleep...and that was groundhog day every day...

Marcus rounded up his slow troops (the nervous bunch!)Brian took the fast group and Maeve took the middle group...

Off we go...trotted along the walkway behind Fels point....steady pace...hit the playground near Lidl and Marcus makes us walk over the wooden bridge...makes us sup our drinks whilst walking over it...if anyone saw us theyd think we'd just run a marathon...great idea tho as it settled me completely...off we go up the road near lidl...the lads couldn't think of the name of this road so now we've renamed it as ' the road up by Lidl'! How inventive are we...kept the pace all the way up towards Caherwisheen....last week my loola tendencies kicked in at this point but today I was ready for it...started pelting rain....great will have soggy knickers and soggy socks for the rest of my run...but as Marcus points out it could be raining on the day of the marathon...toes crossed it won't...

Hit Kearneys rd,feel brilliant...two girlie runners passed us out on the way...they sped past like true runners...then we see them at the top of the road walking! Ha ha! Apologies I'm not a vengeful person but good enough for them! pacing,pacing,pacing...that's our motto...

One of the group went for a pee...because she went for a pee i wanted to go for a pee! But didn't...haven't overcome my fear of falling behind in the group so I held it in...met some of the other group passing the cul de sac near Tonavane hill...the feckers passed us out...u know the game of Red Rover that u'd play as a child where u create a line of people and then one would try and burst through it...well that came to mind...block the feckers!! Ok ok ok I didn't do it but I wanted to...

Hit base of Tonavane..the dreaded hill..but today I was much more relaxed.. no grinding of the teeth and no nut head thoughts...kept focused and just listened to Marcus... Slowly but surely we made it up...hit the top and I was waiting for my minute break...just to celebrate our achievement....the fecker keeps running! Oh my god where is my well deserved break u fecker- that's what I thought to myself! we keep going...up the other hill past the bridge..hit the top and back down...no break..but I put the head down and got over my inner hissey fit....met a lady on a horse outside the equestrian centre...even-though I'm not a horsey fan I wouldn't have minded hitching a lift on the back..they smell...

Woohoo we were on the long road home! Fantastic...

Knocked back a gel...they are vile...needed something to get me home...6 miles to go....chatting away..I've never chatted whilst running but today I did! it feld good..one thing I have noticed in the past was that if I stressed,my breathing went haywire like a gasping donkey, then I'd be all tense and it was a vicious circle...but today was different...

Retreated back Kearney's road...legs were stiffening a bit but that was expected...never once did I want to stop...today was my day...and the group were fantastic...toe was sore on my right foot..but I wasn't going to let that little piggy ruin my run so I blocked it out....put a toe foam on it this smorning to protect it...my second toe is longer than my first...so my trainers are two sizes too big but it works! Only use them for the longer runs....loola...

Hit the back ' road up by Lidl'...it's strange how the mind plays tricks but the minute I saw Lidl my whole body started to seize!my arse was numb,my toe was about to fall off,my runners scoliosis kicked in,hunchback,and a painful scrunched look appeared on my face! It was pelting rain and at this stage I wanted to make it home without stopping....started chatting again to distract myself...the topic of conversation was ' we so wanted to stop'! But it worked...didn't stop once...

Saw the Aquadome...I was never so happy to see the carpark....I wanted to give an ould star jump but physically if I jumped up in the air,my legs wudnt hold me on the way down and I'd probably slump on the ground like a drunk! Marcus makes us run around the car park....that was torture....and I'd just done 12 miles!

We all finish....stand around in a circle and he tells us to pat the persons shoulder on our right....mad but it felt good!

12.1.....well done to everyone and the group were brilliant today...I couldn't have done it without ye...simple as...and thanks Marcus..

14 miles next sat...