Sunday 10 April 2016

Update on Cheryl's HM Training and Fundraising

Nine miles - welcome distraction 1

In my last post about Cheryl's training, she had a difficult run, partly because of a busy bit of road, which was a long uphill drag towards the end of a 9 mile run and partly because gels didn't agree with her.  

Following that, we (Cheryl, Rach, Chris and I) did another 9 mile run to consolidate progress, using a similar route, but out and back, instead of a loop, so we avoided the bad bit of road. Unfortunately, on the return, we were foiled again by the level crossing being closed, meaning we were hanging about waiting for what seemed like about 5 minutes, but was only actually 2 minutes! This threw Cheryl off stride for a bit as it was about 2 miles from the end, so she was quite tired.  However, we got going again and then had a welcome distraction as Andrew turned up in the opposite direction, having passed us in his car on the way home from work and decided to run 3 miles from his home, to where we were running, to meet us - like you do!  Unexpected distractions always seem to take the mind off tiredness. 

Into Double Figures - welcome distraction 2


After the 10 mile run
On March 25th Cheryl broke into double figures, with a 10 mile run from Great Limber to Nettleton, via Grasby, Kelsey Moor and Pub in the Woods route.  It was Captain Katy's birthday and a large contingent of CRC runners were going for a shorter run and meeting at the Dunn Deal tearoom in Nettleton. We worked out how long it would take to run the 10 miles and set off at 7.30am.  

This was a really good run for Cheryl - the best I'd seen her run to date.  The weather was warm and sunny, we didn't set off too fast and maintained a nice even pace.  It was great to hear Cheryl note that tiredness hits much later in a run than it used to.  

As we got to about 7½ miles, Cheryl had heavy legs and was ready to get to the end of the run.  We saw a figure running towards us in the distance and as he got closer we realised it was Mark Page.  Just the ticket.  Mark was really motivating when Cheryl joined the CRC Get Started Course in 2014, so his arrival at this point was perfect.  He chatted away about this and that, and reminded Cheryl how well she was doing.  When we got very close to Nettleton, he ran on ahead tot he tearooms to get us two large glasses of water ready for our arrival.

And then, as we rounded the corner from Moortown Road onto the A46 - there across the road on the Salutation car park, were all our CRC running buddies, having just completed their run and getting ready to head off to the tea room.  What a welcome sight that was.  Cheryl (unlike me) is not an attention seeker, but I like to think she was secretly delighted by the claps and cheers as she completed her run.  We then enjoyed a lovely breakfast for Katy's birthday, with lots of running chat and reassurance from those 'in the know' that if she can do 10 miles, she'll do 13.1..... after all, it's only a parkrun more!

Fundraising for the Pink Rose Suite
Fired up by how well the above run went, we set about getting Cheryl's Just Giving page set up.  You may recall from the last update, that the change of date for the N. Lincs half meant that it falls on the 21st anniversary of Cheryl's breast cancer op. 

She received significant care from the Pink Rose Suite and wants to make her HM even more meaningful by raising funds for them to give something back.

Within a couple of hours the donations started to come in and soon she was up to over £50.  That's it - she's GOT to run it now! No going back.

There are 2 ways to donate:  Click here to visit Cheryl's Just Giving page and make a donation online.

Alternatively, you can text NLHM53 £x to 70070   (where x is the amount you wish to donate) . It will cost you your donation, plus your normal text rate.  You will get a text back to ask if you wish to add Gift Aid to your donation and to add a message that will show on Cheryl's Just Giving page.

Eleven Miles - Stick with the Winning Formula

The most recent long training run was today.  As the previous run went so well, we kept as much as possible the same - we just added on a mile lap of the village at the beginning to make up the distance.  Cheryl ate the same yesterday as the meals she ate the day before the previous run.  She brought Shot Bloks with her, which she gets on with and we set off at about the same time, early morning.

Everything went just as well.  It seemed as though it was going to be warmer, but I don't think it could have been as we didn't seem to drink so much water.  Once again, Cheryl noted that it's much further before she starts to feel she has run out of steam.  


The journey between running for 1 minute and running for over 2 hours. A step at a time.



We had a little bit of distraction in the form of music on my mobile phone, but mostly we just chatted our way around, which is another testament to progress.  As planned, I sent a text message to Chris as we hit Moortown Road.  The text message said, "We're out of the Woods" which, with about 2 miles to go, seemed very appropriate!  

Cheryl had a little hip-ache, but we identified that it was mostly when running on a camber, so running down the middle of the road was the best strategy ..... don't tell Cheryl's mum that bit.... she'll have kittens!  She took a couple of ibuprofen and when I saw her wince in pain I actually, for a moment, turned into a nice person and asked if if she wanted to walk a few steps!  She declined! "I'll be OK!"  Wow.  Her head is in the right place.  By the time we finished the run, the pain had gone, she was all smiles, and so was I.


Look at all those achievements!  Progress across the board!

I can't tell you how proud I am and how much I am enjoying watching Cheryl reach this goal.  From someone who used to say, "I could never run", this is a pretty big deal.
I make no apologies for using this one again.  It's so true.


You can donate any amount - just change the amount in your text message.



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