Last weekend I went up to Manchester to do some Christmas shopping with my brother (already!). Not ones to miss out on an opportunity to go hill walking, we went up to the Lake District on Saturday and had a fabulous day in the hills. Despite the grim weather forecast during the week we had only one rain shower and one snow shower - the rest of the day was lovely! Here's where we went:
For those in the know, that's five Wainrights: Ullock Pike, Longside, Carl Side, Skiddaw and Bakestall (we avoided
Great Cockup - really, there's a hill with that name!). Evidently iPhone and Garmin have different ways of calculating distance: my Garmin said it was 8.91 miles.
Talking of miles, I didn't neglect the running whilst away: I went to my brother's gym and did two 5km runs (as per my training schedule). Whilst grateful for the opportunity to use his gym, I must say that I have a new-found respect for anyone who runs on treadmills!
Congratulations! Glad to hear that you managed to stick to your run schedule and weren't thrown by the delightful distraction of some more hill walking. Interested in the comparison between treadmills and "proper" running (i.e. out in the park/on the pavements where you brave the elements). Seem to recall expressing a very strong view that "indoor cycling" (spinning) in a gym isn't cycling at all and compares very unfavorably to the experience (and sense of freedom) from getting out on 2 wheels.
ReplyDeleteDelighted to see things preparations getting off to such a solid start.
Tony
Thanks Tony!
DeleteYes, I think the comparison between running on a treadmill versus the park is exactly the same as spinning versus being out on a real bike. My main problem with the treadmill was the lack of stimulation from seeing the world (although I did quite like the video to Will Young's "Jealousy"). I think I would go insane if I did all of my running on a treadmill.
Conversely, with spinning there is some stimulation from the instructor (push ups, anyone?) and I've only ever viewed it as a form of training; furthermore I have very little experience on a real bike - as you know! Consequently I like spinning (although I admit to looking forward to the possibility of going out on a real bike after the marathon...)
Years ago I ran on treadmills. I found they gave a false sense of effort, since there's no wind resistance. So running on a treadmill at a given speed and incline is easier than in real life. I also found that the only way to make a treadmill session interesting was to work a lot harder than I would out for a run. Better than nothing, but never really enjoyable IME.
Delete