Bosworth Battlefield, Canal and Bosworth

This was a route my neighbour knew, so it was a case of following the leader. We parked a couple of fields away from Bosworth Battlefield Centre and go ourselves ready. We walked across a couple of fields as a warm up and then I started the Garmin (Forerunner 610) for the run when we were alongside Bosworth Battlefield Centre.

We headed into Ambion wood along a track that headed towards a disused railway line. Once we arrived at the disused railway line we turned left and ran towards an old railway bridge. Running through the woods is a really nice and peaceful experience and I feel very fortunate to be able to do it.

Once we arrived at the old railway bridge we dropped down to the canal and turn left heading North bound along the canal, again this is really peaceful. I found it a bit difficult to get in to a steady run as well as watching out for tree roots, bumps and pot holes. We ran a fair way along the canal until we came off the canal.

We joined a road that went over the bridge and up a long hill heading towards Bosworth. I felt so tired by this stage and just walked up the hill. As soon as we got to top of the hill I started off running into Bosworth and through the square passed a monument. Just out of the square there is a narrow road leading south through a gate, this road seemed to go on forever as I had to keep stopping due to my heart rate not recovering quick enough and staying low. I was glad to get back to the car and have a sit down, even though it was quite an achievement for me.

For some strange reason when I uploaded the data from the Garmin Forerunner 610 to Garmin Connect the map part of it don’t work but the rest of the data is there.

Garmin Connect - Bosworth Battlefield, Canal and Bosworth

Another route at Sutton Cheney Wharf

It’s been a nice change going for a run with my neighbour, generally the pace has been slower and with more stops than I am used to but the distance has been further. I have found so far my legs are not so achy the next day.

The route used parts of the route I have used for the past 4 runs, so I was reasonably familiar with it. We started off with a little walk for a warm up and then once we got to the other side of a gate I set the Garmin to record the route. I started the run at the pace I normally do but this was too quick, I found it hard to keep to a slower pace to start with, but after 5 minutes I settled in to the run.

The run took us alongside the canal and into Ambion woods. After a while the path comes out of the woods and heads towards Bosworth Battlefield Centre. We turned left next to Bosworth Battlefield Centre and headed off along the track in to the woods. This track comes out on an old disused railway line which we turn left and followed down to an old railway bridge.

When we go to the railway bridge we could follow the path alongside the canal, I found this a little hard going as the path was a bit uneven and had pot holes to watch out for. We ran as far as the next bridge which is where we left the canal and joined a road. The road went over the bridge and past a farm (which smelled due to muck spreading), after a little while we entered a car park for the Battlefield Railway Station at Shenton.

We picked up the track which was just across the car park and over the railway line. This lead us through a couple of gates and headed towards Bosworth Battlefield. The path goes up a couple of small hills but enough to tire us both out as we stopped at the top of each hill to catch our breath back.

Once at the top of the 2^nd hill we decided to follow the path down the hill and turn right back in to Ambion Woods and headed off towards the old disused railway. Once we got to the old disused railway track we turned right this time which took us back up to the Battlefield Railway Station at Shenton again.

Once we reached the Battlefield Railway Station we once again headed along the track and up both of the small hills, taking a small break at the top of each hill. At the top of the 2^nd hill the views are just fantastic, it is so peaceful up there taking in the view which you can see for miles across the green fields.

After a short break we headed off along the track, past the Bosworth Battlefield Centre and headed off back in to Ambion Woods. We only had a half of a mile left and at this point I was glad in a way that was not going to take us too long. We settled in to a slow steady pace and ran through the woods and finally alongside the canal to Sutton Cheney Wharf where I stopped the Garmin at the gate we started the run at.

We walked from the gate to the edge of the woods and back again as a cool down, then finally sat down on a bench watching the world go by as we recovered.

I’m glad I did the run and enjoyed the route, but it really shows I have a long way to go until I am fit enough to be able to run the route without small breaks. We have agreed to take a days rest and do the same route the following day.

 

Garmin Connect - 4 Miles from Sutton Cheney Wharf

More running around the Sutton Cheney Wharf route

Since the last post, I have had a further 3 runs around the Sutton Cheney Wharf route. I have slightly modified the route to bring the mileage up from 2.4 miles to 2.5 miles, it is just a case of not cutting the corners which has made the difference.

I have found it fairly had going still, but been soldiering on with it. I have been keeping an average pace of 5-6mph throughout the run, but I have been finding the uneven surface on the track quite difficult to cope with.

I am still enjoying the route, looking at the scenery and running through the forest.

After a bit of reading on several running forums I have found the general consensus of running on a track is known to be more difficult than road running. I am going to keep at it for a bit longer and see if I improve as well as looking at the stats on Garmin Connect.


Garmin Connect - Sutton Cheney Wharf (Run 2)

Garmin Connect - Sutton Cheney Wharf (Run 3)

Garmin Connect - Sutton Cheney Wharf (Run 4)

A new route at Sutton Cheney Wharf

After a tough time running through the winter and lacking a lot of motivation, I have put on weight and not really improved running without stopping.

After speaking to my neighbour about one of the routes he takes I decided to wait until a nice dry day and give the new route a try.

I arrived at Sutton Cheney Wharf a bit apprehensive of the route and where I was going. Having a blister on the back on my left foot made me wonder if I was doing the right thing before it has healed up. I just thought ‘sod it, I am here now’.

I walked from the car park to the start of the trail that follows alongside the canal and set the Garmin. After a short time the path went in to Ambion Woods, the path is a wide stony path leading off into the distance. After a while of running through the woods I came to a gate which leads to the Bosworth Battlefield Centre, I took an immediate left which runs along the edge of the woods.

The path once again disappears in to the woods and finally comes out on a path that runs alongside the old disused Battlefield Railway line, this is a slight incline but nothing too much to worry about. Eventually after this long path then you veer right (next to where the Battlefield Railway line track starts, there is also a railway station there) and through a couple of gates.

There is a hill that does not last that long, but I found myself going up this very slowly and once at the top I had to walk to get my breath back. I started to run again and came to another hill which again just took it out of me, so I had to walk once at the top.

Right in front of you there is a garden feature which is a sundial with a big sword and a king’s crown on the end. All around the sundial there are roses, which makes the whole feature look really nice. The sundial was just a quick look as I ran past and started the descent towards the Bosworth Battlefield Centre.

Just in front of the Bosworth Battlefield Centre you turn right and head towards Ambion Woods (there are a couple of gates to go through before you enter Ambion Woods). I thought to myself that this is now the home straight back towards the car park. The path felt like it was going on forever at this point but I kept going on without stopping.

I finally came out of the woods and followed the path alongside the canal which is only a short distance to Sutton Cheney Wharf car park which is where I stopped the Garmin. I felt absolutely knackered at this point but also felt that I have done better on this route than my normal route around the block.

Note - If you decide to do the route then be aware that there are dog walkers around with their dogs off the lead. All the dogs I ran past were absolutely fine and well behaved.

Garmin Connect - Sutton Cheney Wharf (Run 1)

Running through the winter

I have been running around the local block which is 5k and found that I couldn’t complete without stopping and more importantly I was coming back with injuries most of the time.

I started the Couch to 5k to get myself in a programme which I could follow without over training. I have gone through January, February, and March, doing the programme and just can’t get past Week 6. I have found the couple of hills just too much and feel this is now stopping my progress. I am also getting a little fed up of the route now and feel I need a different route to keep me interested.

Over the course of the winter I have also put weight on and have now got to 14 stone, which is 1.5 stone overweight. This is really down to eating too much of the fattening foods and also not enough exercise to burn it off.

The goal now is to find another route that I can put in to my routine and eat a bit healthier to drop the weight down bit. I am hoping this will keep me motivated more than I have been.

Been running outside in the cold

I have been running on and off, but in the last month I have been running around the block. I have got a route that I can do 5k so I am trying to run that without stopping to walk.

I am finding the motivation very difficult as the days as got very short. I generally go out about 6pm, it is dark at this point and recently has been getting colder.

 

I have just recently bought a Nike Vapor Light jacket, this has helped in keeping the cold air and wind off me, but it does have a couple of areas where it allows to breath. I is shower proof, but being a dry weather runner I am not going to test that part of it out.

 

I can’t run the 5k without stopping to walk a good handful of times, this is a bit annoying but it is the best I can do at the moment. I am also finding that I have very sore lower legs after the run and find it very difficult to walk around for the first 30 minutes when I get home.

 

I am aiming at running 3 times a week the same circuit with the first goal of not stopping to walk as many times and the final goal is to run without stopping to walk at all.

 

I went out yesterday and found that once I had uploaded the data to the Garmin Connect site I had done a 5k in a 30:30 which is very good for me. I don’t think I can better that at the moment, but you never know.

Garmin Connect – Run around the block (5k)

It’s been a long time since the last blog

It has been 2 months since the last time I blogged, my life has changed since the last blog. I have had the redundancy confirmed and my last day was 31-Jul-2012. There are IT jobs about but not the type of job I can apply generally, there has only been a couple that I could apply for.

During this time I have been mainly doing 5k runs on the treadmill, this has been very difficult due to the heat in the room. I have had all the windows open and a fan blowing air around, but it has been just too hot resulting in me feeling a bit faint at times after the run. I have managed to do a 4 mile run when the temperature was a bit lower but that has been the furthest I have run in the last couple of months.

For the last couple of weeks I have been doing a 3.5 mile walk around the block in the evening with my partner, these have been fairly slow going which has taken just slightly over the hour to complete. I few nights ago I did the same circuit on my own and completed in 45 minutes, which for a walk was as fast as I could possibly go.

I plucked up the courage last night to try a run. The last time I ran outside was ages ago and couldn’t even run a mile without stopping and I ran too quickly. Last night I got ready and set my Garmin for a 3 mile run, now I am fully expecting to stop for a walk on a number of occasions during this run, but the main thing was to run at a steady 6 mph (same speed I run at on the treadmill) to see how I get on.

I started off and run out the estate and on to a path that ran alongside a main road. I kept checking the Garmin for the speed and before I knew it I had completed a mile, I carried on running and concentrated on the speed and my breathing.

The second mile came along and I found I was getting a bit out of breath, but this was a record for me I had never run 2 miles outside before non-stop. I decided to carry on and see if I could complete the 3 miles that I had set on the Garmin. I was finding it fairly difficult at this point as there was a bit of up hill running which I am not used to doing, this did tire me out but I still carried on.

When the Garmin beeped and buzzed I had a sense of relief that the run was over but an over whelming sense of achievement that I had completed at 3 mile run without stopping. The next stage for me is to do this same run a few more times before even thinking of extending the mileage or running faster.

Garmin Connect – Walk around the block with my partner

Garmin Connect – Walk around the block on my own

Garmin Connect – Run around the block (3 miles)