I couldn't resist signing up for the Milton Keynes Reimagined Half Marathon really:
"This is an EA measured and certified race course taking in the beautiful lakes and scenery of Milton Keynes. This self-supported race features advanced timing technology with built-in turn-by-turn voice navigation for round-the-clock service in a two week period from 6 September."
And half of my family live in Milton Keynes, so I could pop in on them after the run. Hadn't seen any of them since before the lockdown 😊
In the end there were actually THREE apps involved: 'What 3 Words' to get me to the exact starting point, the MK Reimagined Google app for links to the required race route, and RunGo to load the map and give directions throughout the run. I was glad I thought to practice all of it ahead of time!
So off I went in my car on Tuesday morning. I arrived at Willen Lake bright and early, and eventually managed to more or less pinpoint the start. A sweaty man was looking at me wandering around looking at my phone and said "Excuse me, are you doing the MK Reimagined race?' It turned out that he had just finished the half marathon, and he told me that the sign-post stickers along the route, and the app directions, were really good, and there was a slight diversion on the other side of Willen Lake (due to some engineering works), but it was all fine, and he wasn't happy with his finishing time, but there you go... 😄
So with this unexpected single spectator, off I went! Round the lake, I got to the diversion spot, followed all the signs no problem, and then RunGo started warbling on about lovely Willen Lake and all its watersports "to my left". As the lake was actually on my right I felt a little bit anxious at that point! But it was fine, and I followed the route mostly with no problems - a couple of times the app went quiet at the wrong moment, where there were no stickers as back up, so I did actually run a bit further than a half marathon in the end, but no bother!
And at this point I must just say that the other reason for wanting to do this run is that the route is just BEAUTIFUL!!!! I took no photos at all (apart from that of my swag in the hotel later), so I have cannibalised some pics from Google Images to make this collage. The vast majority of the route was along water, under trees, past overgrown meadows. I barely saw a soul the whole way round, it is gorgeous and I thoroughly recommend any run organised in MK!
OK, but now the bad bit. I was not in a good place for this run. Many of you know that I have been having another bout of Achilles trouble recently, and although it's not terrible, I have cut back on my running because it's just no fun running very far with a slightly sore leg! I have been trying out a somewhat pioneering method of rehabilitation which you can read about here if interested:
But also, I have been terribly stressed out recently, waking up in the early hours and fretting. My diet has been a bit summer-holiday-ish 😊 So on Tuesday, after very little sleep and a two hour drive I was terribly tired, and if I hadn't booked this event I would not have gone running! It was a really warm day too. My heart rate soared as soon as I started running, and actually hit the highest number I have seen since I got my Garmin! I could not catch my breath, and had to walk frequently. I got abdominal cramp quite early on, and it wouldn't shift - probably because I was so very tired. Here's an interesting article about cramp while I'm here 😊
My finishing time was 2 hours, 27 minutes, which is by far my worst HM time EVER!!!!
But. I had time to enjoy the scenery, and a chance to philosophise. My new plan is to get my diet, cardio fitness, and sleep back on track, work on my abdominal strength, carry on fixing those tendons, and most of all to step away from this computer more often and prioritise my personal health and fitness! (I'll still be around though) As it says on the the t-shirt I collected from Up and Running MK after the run, I will "NEVER GIVE UP"!!!
roseabi xxx
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roseabi
Ultramarathon
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Well done Roseabi, you did so well and had lots to cope with. It was really inspiring to read, and no doubt you’ll regroup and come back heaps stronger. 👏👏 (I empathise with sleep issues!) xx
It does look lovely and you did get to the end, so a huge congratulations from us,
A big congratulations on completing this run. Gosh, so many times it must have felt easy to stop or be totally defeated. Against a backdrop of beauty you needed that fight, experience and determination to finish. Love what you shared because better days will come for you and today, even though you were far from race ready and confident you did it! 🎽
Shame it wasn't all you hoped it would be, but with any luck it's the nice bits you'll remember later. When I looked on strava I noted that it looked an amazingly green/blue run with very little grey, nice. I also spotted a couple of bits where I suspected RunGo had failed you (easy to spot when you've made as many mistakes as I have with navigational apps - oh, and I wouldn't even have realised the lake was on the wrong side, sometimes it pays not to know my left from my right!). Rest well and hopefully you'll feel on top of your game again soon. Thanks for sharing the good and the bad 😊 xxx
The route looks beautiful roseabi. You say it didn't go to plan due to cramp etc but you did it . Hope you are able to get some decent sleep and finally get rid of any niggles/pain. Good luck and congratulations on your HM 👏👏💪
What gorgeous photos! Now I’m off to google how far MK is from me....
Well done for carrying on despite you feeling as you did 💪🙂 I hope the beautiful surroundings helped and you feel better soon.
That’s an interesting article on the gelatine. My mum has sworn by eating jelly regularly and her hair and nails are so strong! I don’t know if you can still buy those little packets of jelly anymore but let us know how you get on.
It looks like a really lovely place to run and congratulations on completing the run despite how you were feeling I think that shows what a strong person you are and an inspiration to newer runners like myself. More time away from the screen to get things back on track to how you want them and, like you say, prioritise yourself is definitely needed sometimes x
That looks like a beauty of a spot to run Abi. You must go back and take some pics when you can. I’m sorry you were not feeling it this time around and your mindset for treating this as a transitional run towards where you want to be in diet, sleep, cardio etc makes good sense. NEVER GIVE UP!!
Well done on getting up, out and running it anyway, when it sounds like your body would have rather stayed in bed! That's not an easy distance to run on fumes👏
I'm sure a bit of TLC in all departments will do you the world of good...hope you feel more rested and lively soon x
I so enjoyed the post, ( except the bits where you were suffering a bit) x and you did wonderfully, despite all the blinking issues that you are weighed down with, my friend.
Hopefully you can ( I know you will ) get yourself sorted out; starting to be a tad kinder to yourself instead of worrying about all of us Do your exercises, and do things that you simply enjoy doing too .
Awesome lady, you are, truly inspirational.. and that time? Blooming great... that would do me certainly
Congratulations on achieving a HM after all the problems you have had with your Achilles Roseabi, especially with lack of sleep thrown in. Milton Keynes looks a great place for it and having instructions to lead you round the route is very innovative.
This year has affected us in different ways and if you need to retreat and take care of you, that is completely understandable. You have been great at supporting us through thick and thin and now is the time to concentrate on yourself. I totally agreed that switching off the PC/phone can be so liberating especially as we’ve become so dependent on it recently.
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It's earlier than I thought, but.. I'm a half marathon runner!!!!
Half Marathon here I come!
Yay - I did it!! I am a half-marathoner! 
April Half Marathon Here I Come!
Half marathon... I just did something. 