PARK LIFEApril 2011 – Edition 3

Welcome to the Spring edition of Park Life!

It’s been a successful start to 2011. Our ladies teamcame second in the Sunday League Cross CountryLeague (narrowly missing joint first place); LaureyRankin qualified to represent Great Britain in her AG inthe Europeans and Worlds Duathlon following anamazing performance at Dambusters a few weeks ago;Kat Berry was 2nd female and 1st in her AG in theDunmow Duathlon this year; Colin Field and Ann Bolithowon Golds in the British Masters Track IndoorChampionships and Lisa Elmore continued her fantasticseason by finishing 5th overall and 1st in her AG in theBritish Masters Cross-Country Championships, as wellas coming 1st in the Hertfordshire trials.

You may have noticed there is a strong theme here offemale success and, while I may be biased (…yes, I amfemale, despite being refused entry into the ladies funnelat Royston), there is no denying we have a strong teamof females who have accomplished great things so farthis year. There have been, however, some fineconsistent performances from the men in all agecategories and their creative, written talents are evidentto see in this Newsletter, as all articles are supplied byour male runners, Christopher Thompson, Chas Taylor,Garrett Turbett and James Joy as well as a fine ‘joke’from Tim Ryan, that some women may find offensive orjust plain untrue. The facts above though speak forthemselves, so well done Ladies!

Trevor Jex and Penny also give us a rundown on thesuccessful Beginners Programme plus the usual raceresults, photos, captain’s Recipe and more can be foundinside!

Inside this Edition:

Handicap Results ……………………..Chingford League Results …………..Sunday League/General Results …...Track Results …………………………Half Marathon/Marathon Results……Triathlon News ………………….…….Captain’s Recipe …………...…………Hyponatraemia ………………………..Breaking the Injury Cycle ……………Beginners Programme………………..Beach Run …………………….…….Running for the Over 60s .……………A Male Perspective ……… ………….TP Gallery ……………………………...Bread Pudding Club …………………..New Members Welcome …………….

Thanks to all of those who contributed this quarter!We hope you enjoy it…Feedback welcome.

(please send to P&P).

Club Championship2010/11Congratulations to the following winners ofTrent Park’s Club Championship.

Women’s Overall Winner: Jo SmithWomen’s Vet: Lynn JonesWomen’s Super Vet: Christine Read

Men’s Overall Winner: Adam BowmanMen’s Vet Winner: Mike PriorMen’s Super Vet: Malcolm Allen

Jo Smith & Lynn Jones collectingthe Ladies 2nd place trophy atRoyson. Jo/Lynn also won awardsin the Club Championship.

Adam Bowman (left), Mike Prior(right) at Royston and also winners inthe Club Championship.

2345566789101111121212

Terence Scott[terryscott@debohun.enfield.sch.uk]

January 2011Abs Reyman 23:55Adrian Day 25:46Ann Felstead 34:36Alex Green 19:18Charles Dadey 31:21Christina Green 27:45Christine Savage 24:27Dan Dartington 19:38Dawn Limbert 24:22Ed Simmons 22:35Elizabeth Dadey 36:30Festus Kuye 26:15Frank Moran 21:20Hazel Wigginton 27:02Helen Crowne 33:57Jacqueline Rhodes 35:15Jane Moss 26:04Joe Kandekorem 26:29Joy Bebbington 34:46Julian Tracey 34:23Laurey Rankin 22:21Len Edmonds 26:51Luke Bowie 22:04Luke Edmonds 25:35Maria Tuton 25:02Mick Green 21:45Mustafa Reyman 24:09Jack Singer 25:24Jill Atkins 30:49Joan Gaylor 38:48John Craft 28:12Jonathon E-Brown 31:06Malcolm Blackwood 25:58Mark Hughes 27:51Nick Winterhalder 24:18Pat Moran 23:15Saajda Deen 24:16Stelios Gopoulos 24:47Steve Dodd 21:04Stephen Clayton 25:43Sue Steadman 30:30Sylvia Goodman 28:40Tabitha Bryant 25:25Trevor Duke 27:37Tim Ryan 27:41Victoria Salmon 24:31Viv Cannon 39:53

TPRC Handicap 5KCW: club winner

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February 2011Adam Bowman 19:29Adrian Day 26:17Alan Collingbourne 26:12Alex Green 20:03Andrew Newland 25:08Charles Dadey 32:27Christerbel Mate 31:47Christine Barrymore 30:58Christina Green 27:25Christine Savage 25:36Christopher Thompson 25:48Dan Dartington 19:19Dawn Limbert 25:01Elizabeth Dadey 37:03Emily Goldfinch 33:47Festus Kuye 27:39Frank Moran 21:45Gillian Ranson 31:22Helen Crowne 34:59Henry Saunders 19:09Jack O’Brien 34:52Jack Singer 26:10Jacqueline Rhodes 37:06Jane Allen 27:22Jessica Monserat 26:34Joan Gaylor 37:39Joe Marchione 29:44John Craft 28:01Joe Kandekorem 25:44Julian Tracey 33:20Len Edmonds 27:10Malcolm Blackwood 25:57Maria Tuton 25:07Martin Cullen 22:42Megan Glennon 35:07Melissa O’Hare 28:57Michael Semark 21:33Paul Meehan 25:25Robert Pick 21:36Ruth Semark 28:45Pat Moran 23:22Scott Aiken 17:53Stelios Gopoulos 24:08Stephen Clayton 24:32Sue Evans 27:54Sue Steadman 30:20Sylvia Goodman 28:11Tim Ryan 27:36Trevor Duke 28:07Viv Cannon 39:15

March 2011Alison Ball 24:56Alex Green 18.52Andy Andreou 19.23Andreas Vassiliou 20.24Anne Roberts 28.17Barlen Soopramanien 23.42Charles Dadey 32.07Christina Green 26:16Christine Barrymore 30.06Christine Prescott 28.51Christopher Thompson 25.49Colin Thurston 20.42Dan Dartington 19.37Elizabeth Day 32:47Emily Goldfinch 32.37Festus Kuye 25.55Fiona Neville 27.42Garrett Turbett 19:48Gillian Ranson 30.10Hazel Wigginton 26.06Helen Crowne 35.34Jack O’Brien 33:24Jessica Monserat 26.56Joan Gaylor 36.06John Craft 27.03John Sanger 21.28Joy Bebbington 34.02Julian Tracey 30:49Len Edmonds 26.50Linda Andrews 29:05Luke Bowie 20:14Lynn Jones 23.40Mark Hughes 28.43Megan Glennon 35.50Melissa O’Hare 29.36Mike Jones 22.05Mustafa Reyman 23.49Pat moran 22.27Paul Meehan 24.59Paul Ward 21.13Peter Roll 23.54Philip Best 23.34Roger Brown 31.02Sarah Osborne 50.52Scott Aiken (pic) 17.40Simon Merritt 20:34Stelios Gopoulos 23.41Sue Evans 27.00Sue Steadman 29.04Sylvia Goodman 27.21Terri Walford 28.25Thomas Cursley 19.09Tim Ryan 26.36Trevor Duke 27.47Viv Cannon 38.20

Scott Aiken racing in March’s handicap– his fastest time in 2 years, 17:40

Chingford22/01/2011

Scott Aiken 34:50Henry Saunders 36:53Pete Williams 37:18Adam Bowman 37:47Mike Prior 37:54Alexis Ralphs 38:46Stuart Manktelow 40:44Colin Creer 40:55Steve Dodd 41:01Jane Studd 42:00John Rose 42:29Jess McCormick 42:37Garrett Turbett 43:57Malcolm Allen 44:08Luke Bowie 44:09Jo Smith 44:14Mike Jones 46:43James Joy 46:43Dave Sawkins 48:00Lynn Jones 48:22Jonathan Ball 48:30Daniel Palmer 48:34Chas Taylor 48:58Jack Singer 51:25Theodosia Green 51:44Malcolm Blackwood 52:42Adrian Day 53:28Barlen Soopramanien 54:07Liz Jackson 57:09Mark Hughes 58:21Christine Read 66:07

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Chingford League

Victoria Park05/02/2011

Pete Williams 27:50Henry Saunders 29:23Mike Prior 29:43Alexis Ralphs 29:44Tom Cursley 30:07Dan Dartington 30:09Adam Bowman 31:21Stuart Manktelow 31:22Luke Bowie 31:55Steve Dodd 32:41Jess McCormick 33:22Jo Smith 34:19Mick Green 34:23Malcolm Allen 34:42Peter Goldfinch 36:15James Joy 36:37Mike Jones 36:45Daniel Palmer 36:46Lynn Jones 36:54Vasso Vassiliou 38:16Malcolm Blackwood 40:03Adrian Day 40:26Barlen Soopramanien 41:02Jack Singer 41:22Trevor Duke 46:57Julian Tracey 51:02Emily Goldfinch 51:21

Highams Park Relays12/03/2011

Pete Williams 11:43Scott Aiken 11:43Henry Saunders 11:49Alexis Ralphs 12:25Adam Bowman 12:34Mike Prior 12:52Luke Bowie 12:57Stuart Manktelow 13:43Paul Ward 14:04Jo Smith 14:15Jess McCormick 14:33Dave Sawkins 14:44Malcolm Allen 14:56James Joy 15:03Chas Taylor 15:36Carmel Harrison 16:09Lynn Jones 16:12Adrian Day 17:00Trevor Duke 19:05Anne Roberts 19:58

Adrian Day

Pete Williams

Malcolm BlackwoodThames Riverside 20M, 05/03/11Paul O'Donnell: 2:25:58

Orion 15, 20/03/11Tony Agius: 2:46:18Jess McCormick: 2:13:32

London Heathside 5, 05/03/11Scott Aiken: 29.02, (1st AG, 8th overall)Adrian Stevens: 38.12Adrian Day: 44.01

Other ResultsFred Hughes 10, 23/01/11Paul Castaldo: 1:13:03Mick Green: 1:16:57

Oakley 20, 27/03/11Chas Taylor: 2:43:25

Sunday League

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Watford16/01/2011Scott Aiken 34:22Lisa Elmore 35:09Adrian Edwards 37:10Adam Bowman 37:19Mike Prior 37:42Dan Dartington 38:16Henry Saunders 38:39John Rose 38:50Jane Studd 39:19Stuart Manktelow 40:11Frank Moran 41:17Jo Smith 42:12Malcolm Allen 42:13Chas Taylor 44:40Lynn Jones 45:23James Joy 46:01Dave Sawkins 46:07Peter Goldfinch 47:30Jas Deen 48:33Malcolm Blackwood 49:07Jack Singer 49:15Jonathan Ball 50:07Jo Kandekore 51:27Liz Jackson 53:51Sylvia Goodman 57:19Christine Prescott 57:59Christine Read 60:39

Royston13/02/2011Scott Aiken 35:52Pete Williams 36:31Lisa Elmore 36:59Thomas Cursley 38:37Alexis Ralphs 38:38Mike Prior 39:10Adrian Edwards 40:18Adam Bowman 40:28Keith Murphy 41:40Jane Studd 41:42Stuart Manktelow 41:52Colin Creer 42:17Steve Dodd 43:26Jo Smith 44:15Mark Bourke 45:03Chas Taylor 45:40Malcolm Allen 46:04Paul Ward 46:10Lynn Jones 46:52James Joy 47:09Marion Murphy 47:48Claire Murphy 49:11Jack Singer 52:58Chris Thompson 53:37Malcolm Blackwood 54:03Natalie Roll 54:04Adrian Day 54:32Mark Hughes 55:13Jonathan Ball 56:18Jane Allen 56:21Liz Jackson 58:54Sylvia Goodman 60:58Jill Atkins 62:36Christine Read 65:42Alison Bateman 68:00

County & National CrossCountry ResultsBritish Masters, Birmingham 12/03/11Lisa Elmore: 23:04, 5th overall and 1st in AG.

Herts Masters 5k, Watford 20/03/11Lisa Elmore: 18:23 (1st)

Middlesex, Trent Park 08/01/2011Senior Men: Scott Aiken: 47:37; Adrian Edwards: 54:25; AlexisRalphs: 55:55; Steve Dodd: 57:04; John Rose: 57:17; John Flannery:59:42; Mark Jackson: 61:48; Paul O'Donnell: 62:16; Mike Jones:64:52; Peter Goldfinch: 66:43; James Joy: 67:21.

Senior Ladies: Jo Smith: 39:25; Kat Berry 40:22; Lynn Jones: 42:35;Liz Jackson: 49:37; Christine Read: 55:05; Jill Atkins: 55:25.

Lisa Elmore

Lynn Jones

James Joy

Alexis Ralphs (left)Thomas Curlsey (right)

Liz Jackson

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British Masters Indoor26/02/11 & 27/02/11

60mM70 Colin Field: 9.50 (Bronze)W65 Ann Bolitho: 10.84 (Silver)W50 Chris Salvary: 9.66

200mM70 Colin Field: 32.85 (Gold)W65 Ann Bolitho: 38.24 (Gold)W50 Chris Salvary: 31.98W45 Wendy Guild: 31.66W40 Rachel Waters: 30.16

3000mW40 Lisa Elmore: 10.25.97 (Silver)

Long JumpW50 Chris Salvary: 3.66

Triple JumpW50 Chris Salvary: 7.26

EVAC Champs, 13/02/11(Eastern Vets Athletics)

60m Chris Salvary: 9.75 (Silver)Triple Jump Chris Salvary: 7.23m (Silver)200m Chris Salvary: 33.17 (Bronze)Long Jump Chris Salvary: 3.59m200m Rachel Waters: 30.36

SCVAC Champs, 20/02/11(Southern Counties Vets)

60mM70 Colin Field: 9.5 (Gold)W40 Rachel Waters: 9.0 (Gold)W45 Wendy Guild: 9.6W50 Chris Salvary: 9.7 (Gold)

200mM70 Colin Field: 33.0 (Gold)W40 Rachel Waters: 30.4 (Gold)W45 Wendy Guild: 31.9 (Bronze)W50 Chris Salvary: 32.7 (Silver)

Long JumpW50 Chris Salvary: 3.69m (Gold)

Triple JumpW50 Chris Salvary: 7.30m (Gold)

Watford Half Marathon, 06/02/11Chas Taylor: 1:41:51Duncan Bensted: 1:58:38Christerbel Mate: 2:23:52John Coppock: 2:24:31

Wokingham Half Marathon, 13/02/11Craig Molyneaux: 1.37.17

Dorney Lakes Half Marathon, 20/02/11Dan Dartington: 1:28:57Jacqui Hardwick: 1:29:53 (4th lady/1st AG)John Rose 1:32:26Ian Johnson 1:38:08 Mick Green 1:39:00Foulla Green 1:48:14 (2nd AG)

Roding Valley Half Marathon, 27/02/11Dave Meller: 01:27:27Martin Morgan: 1:42:21Phillip Waller: 1:49:57Duncan Bensted: 1:56:30

Bath Half Marathon, 06/03/11Jacqui Hardwick: 1:29:32Paul Castaldo: 1:36:14Ian Johnson: 1:37:51Martin Cullen: 1:38:11John Rose: 1:38:27Chas Taylor: 1:39:29Foulla Green: 1:48:13Christine Prescott: 2:14:30

Milton Keynes, 13/03/11Andy Andreou: 1:28:55

Hastings Half Marathon, 20/03/11Malcolm Allen: 1:36:21Joseph Kandekore: 1:59:19Christerbel Mate: 2:24:07

Reading Half Marathon, 20/03/11Mike Prior: 1:27:20Bernard Minsky: 1:59:03

Track

Steyning Stinger Marathon, 06/03/11James Joy: 4:47:28

Good luck to all those club runners takingpart in London this month!

Half Marathon

Marathon

Ballbuster Duathlon, 05/03/118 mile run, 24 mile bike and 8 mile runDave Meller: 33rd overall in 3hrs 9 mins, (5th AG)

Dunmow Duathlon, 05/03/11Kat Berry: 28th overall in 1 hr 35 mins, (2nd lady, 1st AGAndy Andreou: 44th overall in 1hr 39 mins, (7th AG).

Dambuster Duathlon, 19/03/1110k run, 42k bike and 5k runSimon Merritt: 2:28:03 (41:08; 1:22:05; 21:51)Laurey Rankin: 2:30:34 (41:45; 1:25:26; 20:59)David Jacques: 2:38:39 (43:51; 1:29:01; 22:38)Ady Pugh: 2:48:02 (50:35; 1:29:32: 25:09)

Big Cow Duathlon, Emberton 27/03/2011Michael Semark: 1:25:53 (20.59; 38.17; 25.09)

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Carrot Cake1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda, 200g self raising flour, 2 large carrots grated, 100gsultanas, 1 teaspoon mixed spice, 200g brown sugar, 70g finely chopped walnuts,150ml sunflower oil, 2 large eggs.

Preheat oven to 160 C or gas mark 2.5, grease and line one 8" round cake tin, orsimilar oblong tin.

Sift flour, bicarb & spices into a large bowl. Stir in brown sugar, carrots, sultanas &walnuts. Combine eggs & oil together and stir them into the dry ingredients. Beatwith an electric mixer for 5 mins; them pour into the cake tin and cook for about 70minutes. Check it's cooked by seeing if a skewer comes out cleanly from the cake, ifnot, cook for a while longer and try again. After a few minutes tune the cake out ontoa wire tray to cool.

For the cream frosting on the top of the cake you will need.30g cream cheese, 15g soft butter, 1 teaspoon grated lemon rind, & 160g icingsugar.

Beat the butter, cream cheese and lemon rind until light and fluffy. Gradually add theicing sugar and beat smooth. Spread onto the top of the cake. You could makedouble the frosting and put it round the sides as well, but I find it makes it too rich.

Captain’s Recipe By Malcolm Allen

Laurey Rankin, hasqualified to representTeam GB in her AG atthe European &Worlds Duathlon thisyear after a greatperformance at theDambusters Duathlonin March. She isfocusing on her halfIronman in June.

Kat Berry isrepresentating TeamGB in her AG at theEuropeans in Juneand will be racing theWorld 2011 and Euro2012 qualifying raceslater this year.

Triathlon News

Kat Berry receiving herbronze medal at the WorldsTriathlon Championships inBudapest, 2010. Sue Macrowan qualifies for the GB team virtually

every year and regularly wins her age group innational championships. She has represented GBat the World Championships five times, the firsttime in Manchester in 1993 followed by NewZealand in 1994, Perth Australia in 2000, Madeirain 2004 and most recently Budapest in 2010.She has also qualified for this year’sChampionships but will focus on the half Ironmanin Switzerland in June 2011.

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In recent years there has been a great deal ofresearch into exercise-associated hyponatraemia(EAH). EAH is defined as serum sodium (Na+)concentration of less than 135 mmol/L, whichessentially refers to an excessive dilution of serumsodium levels resulting in an electrolyte imbalance.Prior to 1985, this condition was not reported, andrunners generally finished marathons with weightloss but without serious medical complications.EAH will usually result in weight gain during thecourse of an endurance event. During the 2006London Marathon a study was conducted byLondon Marathon Sports Medicine specialists todetermine the incidence of EAH in runners in theLondon Marathon1. In this study 12.5% (n=88) ofhealthy volunteers developed asymptomatic (failedto show noticeable symptoms) hyponatraemiarunning a marathon in cool conditions.

First in 2005 and again in 2007 an internationalpanel of medical and scientific experts met for the1st International Exercise-AssociatedHyponatraemia Consensus DevelopmentConference2, 3. Included on this panel was DrTimothy Noakes, author of Lore of Running andleading sports physiologist and veteran of manymarathons and ultra-marathons. Amongst the manyquestions the group were aiming to answer duringtheir 2007 meeting were:

• What are the risk factors for thedevelopment of EAH?

• How can EAH be prevented?• What advice should be disseminated for the

prevention and treatment of EAH?

As London Marathon is nearing and as many will befirst time marathon runners, I felt that it wasappropriate to simplify some of the advice andinformation available. To start, there are several riskfactors associated to developing EAH1, 2, 3,including:

Athlete-related• excessive drinking behaviour• weight gain during exercise• low body weight• female sex• slow running or performance pace• event inexperience• nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents

Event-related• high availability of drinking fluids• 4 hours exercise duration• unusually hot environmental conditions• extreme cold temperature

Many of the risk factors are out of the control of theathlete, However, many are within their control andcan be influenced on the day.

Early signs and symptoms of EAH can include:bloating, ‘‘puffiness’’, nausea, vomiting, andheadache. However, many of these signs andsymptoms are non-specific and can be presentfollowing prolonged exercise in the absence of EAH.However, if during the course of the run or in thesubsequent hours you begin to experience any of theabove symptoms, it is advised that you seek medicalattention. It should be noted that a 1-2% weight lossis to be expected during a 26.2 mile marathon as aresult of substrate oxidation (energy metabolism),without a net loss of total body water. This does ofcourse call into question the process of weigh-insduring ultra-marathons whereby athletes can bewithdrawn based on percentage of body-weight lost.However, I digress; this article focuses on the 26.2mile marathon.

So the advice and recommendations from the expertsis very simple: “Avoid over consumption of fluids”1.Two ways of ensuring this are to: 1. drink onlyaccording to thirst (i.e., ad libitum)4, and, 2. useanalogous methods, to estimate hourly sweat lossesduring exercise and avoid consuming amountsgreater than this during endurance exercise events3.The latter can be achieved by weighing one’s selfprior to exercise and then again immediately after.The weight loss will mainly account for fluid loss. Forexample, if one were to lose 1 kg during a bout ofexercise, this would equal 1 litre of fluid (providingthat fluid was not consumed during the bout ofexercise). Keep in mind the above mentioned riskfactors; if the weather is unusually hot, your sweatrate will be higher and thus your fluid requirementshigher also.

Excessive drinking behaviour is somewhatcontradictory to what many athletes have been told;that is, thirst is a poor indicator of hydration. This istrue and therefore I would suggest that following thesuggestion in point 2, would lead to a more usefulhydration strategy during the race and a morebalanced hydration state following.

HyponatraemiaBy Garrett Turbett

Understanding the Risk of Exercise-Associated Hyponatraemia during Endurance Running

(1) Kipps C. et al. The incidence of exercise-associated hyponatraemia in the London marathon. Br J Sports Med 2011;45:14-19.(2) Consensus Statement of the 1st Int Exercise-Associated Hyponatremia Consensus Development Conference, South Africa 2005.(3) Statement of the Second International Exercise-Associated Hyponatremia Consensus Development Conference, New Zealand, 2007(4) Noakes TD. Fluid Replacement during Marathon Running. Clin J Sport Med. 2003;13:309–318.

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It is commonly accepted that runners get injuredat some point, and most accept this as aninevitable outcome of running. For some thisbecomes a cycle of running, injury, recovery, andrunning again.

Some people think running is something we arenot designed to do. Other say the high physicaldemands placed on our bodies are the cause andthus are running too much. However, we aredesigned to run. Humans are the most perfectingdesigned endurance running machine on theplanet. Other animals can run, and run faster, buthumans can run further and for longer thananything else.

Current research suggests that our ancientrelatives didn’t just run to avoid being eaten. Theyran to hunt, using their superior endurance, forpersistence hunting. Chasing their prey, not givingthem a chance to stop, until they dropped dead.

Therefore, if we are the most perfectly designedrunning machine, why do so many people end upon the injury bench? Surely, if you apply thesurvival of the fittest principle, all the geneticallybad runners, who get injured all the time, wouldhave been wiped out. Unable to run, and thusfeed themselves.

Basically, some people have lost the ability to runas nature intended. They, therefore, put stressesand strains on parts of their bodies that were notdesigned for running. Thus, they get injured.

They then assume that this is due to a factor otherthan their running style, after all running is simplyputting one foot in from the other and therecurrently style does not feel unnatural. Thus, theytry and design their way out of the problem, withdifferent shoes, orthotics, compression clothing,etc. rather than taking a back to basics approach.

If you brought a new car, and every time you wentto drive off, you did so in a cloud of tire smoke,wheels spinning away like crazy. Would youeither, put up with it and accept that the car willbreak at some point, spend hundreds of poundschanging the wheels, tires, suspension, etc., orchange the way you drive it?

Therefore, why not apply the same principle toyourself? Rather than putting up with it asinevitable or spending hundreds of poundsdesigning your way out of the problem, why notchange the way you run?

Changing the way you run can be like giving upsmoking. Initial you may feel worse, slow andsluggish. Temptation is around every corner,and it is far too easy to drop back into the oldhabits. However, if you persist the benefits canbe great.

Like giving up smoking it is far easier to do withhelp and support. You need someone to look atthe way you currently run or video you so youcan look at yourself. You need advice on how tostrength any areas of weakness and how toactual change the way you run.

Therefore, do some research on differentrunning styles and techniques. This maybebarefoot, Chi, Pose, Evolution, Natural Running,etc. Find one you think will work for you, talk topeople who use this method. Then find someonethat can coach you in this method, rather thantrying to learn it out of a book or watchingYouTube. If it does not work for you, go back tothe drawing board and start again, or adapt it soit does. Like giving up smoking you need topersist and a method that works for one personmay not work for you.

Once you have gone through this process therewards can be great. Fewer injuries mean moretime training. More time training will result inbetter performance. It could also be your currentrunning style is also inefficient. Therefore, youwill save energy that is normally wasted allowingyou to run further or faster than before.

James Joy is a Natural Running Coach

Breaking the Injury CycleBy James Joy

We’ve just completed the second BeginnersProgramme and thought it might be a good idea toshare with you our thoughts about how things havegone and to tell you a bit about what we’ve beendoing.

The idea started last year when we becameconscious of the number of people who wereapproaching the club about joining, but had donelittle running in the recent past (if at all). As usualwe had to give them the standard TP response thatyou need to be able to run for about half an hourbefore we are able to accommodate you in one ofour regular groups. This often elicited the response“well how do I get to run for half an hour”, which weresponded to by giving general advice andinformation.

From this experience we were aware of the needout there for absolute beginners to be given anopportunity to start the running experience in a safeand gradual way. This also coincided with theOlympic build up, when it is expected that there will(hopefully) be an upsurge in interest andparticipation in many sports, particularly running.The third component was the club’s membershipand active participation in the recently formed LeaValley Athletics Network. This has not only broughtnew financial resources into the area but has alsomade increasing access to running one of its majorthemes.

The case for doing something was therefore verystrong, and we felt that our club was ideally suitedto running a beginners programme because of ourinclusive ethos and friendly atmosphere, togetherwith the wealth of experience and knowledge withinthe club.

We therefore looked around at existing beginnerscourses in other clubs as well as the emerginginitiative from England Athletics that was trying topromote new start up running groups. As a resultwe devised a programme that we felt wasappropriate and flexible with an emphasis on takingpeople gradually, safely and progressively into the‘running habit’.

With only one short advert in the local press welaunched the first programme in the spring of 2010.To our surprise we had a tremendous response(mostly by word of mouth) which resulted in ussigning up some 24 people in the first week or so.Although not a fund raising initiative, we decided tocharge £30 for the course so as to encourageserious commitment, but said we would take this offthe membership fee if people decided to join theclub afterwards. Seemed like a fair deal.

We ran two sessions each week on a Saturdaymorning and Tuesday evening in the park, led byourselves and assisted whenever possible byPauline and Lisa.

We started form a base of 30 seconds walkingfollowed by 30 seconds running and repeated 20times. Over the weeks we gradually increased therun time and decreased the walking time untilpeople could comfortably (or were at least able!) torun for a sustained period.

At each session we organised a thorough warm upbeforehand and stretch afterwards to get everyoneinto good habits and to give us the chance toexplain the importance and reasons for doing this.In addition, every week an email was sent toeveryone with an attached handout giving adviceand information about various aspects of running,diet, pulse rate etc.

They were a great bunch of people and a reallygood atmosphere quickly developed within thegroup which not only made it enjoyable, but alsogenerated some healthy incentives to keep going.On average we had about 15 people turn up toeach session which we were able to organise inone group, due to their co-operation with a processof continual regrouping.

The programme culminated with everyone runningthe handicap at the end of the ten weeks. Theprogress that had been made was truly amazingand the looks of joy, pride, achievement (and relief)were a great reward for our efforts. About 12 fromthis first group went on to join the club and havebecome regular active members as well as prizewinners at subsequent handicaps.

After a break, we decided to organise a secondcourse but this time during the winter monthsstarting in January, to catch all the new yearresolutions!

We didn’t advertise this time but were still inundatedwith applications which resulted in us signing up 36people and having to turn away a number as wecouldn’t manage anymore.

Beginners Programme & Penny Cording

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By Trevor Jex

Not being able to use the park on a Tuesday evening,we moved the midweek session to the track whichhas proved very popular (and safe).

We’ve again had a smashing group of people whohave all entered the spirit of what we are trying to doby helping, supporting and encouraging each other.The ability range has been somewhat greater thistime and we therefore split the group about half waythrough the programme so that everyone wassuitably challenged! We didn’t however let this dilutethe camaraderie that had developed as everyonecontinued to do the warm ups and stretches togetherand also use the same routes in the park (and on thetrack of course!)

With Jan’s helpful co-operation, everyone did theJunior Handicap in week six and really surprisedthemselves as well as giving us a good indication ofprogress. As before, the programme culminated withthe main handicap in week ten at the end of Marchwhen 25 from the group took part. Again, theimprovement made by everyone was fantastic andthe smiles on faces said it all. We even had a couplerun it in under 25 minutes and a further 5 in under 30minutes. Beginners?!

The big difference on the second course was thetremendous support we’ve had from a large numberof club members who have come along and joined inwith us, particularly on a Saturday morning. This hasnot only made it easier to manage spread out groups,but has also meant that the beginners have receivedinvaluable encouragement, advice and support on anindividual basis. It’s been so much better andhopefully members have found it enjoyable andrewarding. Please keep a look out for the next one aswe need your help if this worthwhile club initiative isto continue successfully.

It’s 7.15 am 19th March. The temperature isaround 20°c and the sun has just risen. I’m on agolden beach – firm sand to the left of me some3 metres to the sea and to the right of me some5 metres where it turns into loose sand. Theground is almost flat making it a perfect runningbase and the beach goes on for 10k + in eachdirection; North and South. It’s Varca Beach,South Goa, India.

I’m figuring, I’m on holiday, what am I doing thisfor, at this time, in the morning? But, like allrunners, one has to keep it up or slip back into alevel of unfitness to be frowned upon on one’sreturn, so here I am. Just a short 40 minuteround trip should do it, then the sun really doesset in and climbs to 40°c by mid afternoon.

As I run, I feel it on my back, providing thevitamin B etc I have so missed over the gruellingwinter months back home. The sound of thewaves and the feel of the sea air is relaxing. Ioccasionally meet a runner coming towards me,often a tourist, and we salute each other’s drivefor fitness. Occasionally I have an escort; one ofthe wild but locally fed dogs who live on thebeach by one of the shacks where we eat ourcurrys on a nightly basis. They go with me for awhile then come to the end of their territory andpass me over to their neighbours. I like to feel Iam out running with them. I pass through almostdeserted patches of beach, then shacks wherethe owners are preparing for the day, then somefishermen bringing in their nightly catch; it’s allso surreal. I look up at the light blue morning skyand down towards the horizon – it’s majestic.

I have this experience imprinted on my mind andcan recall it now I am back at work; a memory Ishall not forget and will savour for years tocome.

BeginnersProgrammeCont/d

A Beach RunBy Christopher Thompson

10

JoanThe start of the handicap!

A MalePerspectiveIt's not difficult to make a woman happy. A manonly needs to be:

A friend, a companion, a lover, a brother, a father,a master, a chef, an electrician, a carpenter, aplumber, a mechanic, a decorator, a stylist, asexologist, a gynecologist, a psychologist, a pestexterminator. a psychiatrist, a healer, a goodlistener, an organiser, a good father, very clean,sympathetic, athletic, warm, attentive, gallant,intelligent, funny, creative, tender, strong,understanding, tolerant, prudent, ambitious,capable, courageous, determined, true,dependable, passionate, compassionate, withoutforgetting to: give her compliments regularly, loveshopping, be honest, be very rich, not stress herout, not look at other girls.

At the same time, you must also give her lots ofattention, but expect little yourself, give her lots oftime, especially time for herself, give her lots ofspace, never worrying about where she goes.

It is very important never to forget birthdays,anniversaries and arrangements she makes.

How to make a Man happy:Leave him alone. 11

Before I give any of my readers the wrong idea this isnot intended to be a manual for how to run in thetwilight years, it is however a personal view of myown experience.

I am now approaching the 5-year anniversary of mestrapping on my first pair of running shoes. I did thisas part of a crazy plan to run the London Marathon inthe same week as my 60th birthday in 2007. I am nowa few weeks away from my fourth London Marathon(I missed 2009 through injury).

Before getting those running shoes on I decided Ineeded to get fit so I went and got myself a trainer.As someone who is very careful with my money thecost of this was daunting but it is one of the bestdecisions I made and I am still working with the sametrainer. It has had significant impact on my strength,flexibility, focus and weight.

Weight is an interesting area of change in my life.Almost as soon as I started running weight droppedoff. I had spent all my life significantly overweight.Now I was eating just as much, if not more, and theweight was going down at an amazing rate. I neverworried about being 5 stone overweight and now Istress about being 2 or 3 pounds over my raceweight.

I take my running very seriously and particularly myracing. I want to be the best. I continually want tochallenge myself and others. Now being the bestdoesn’t mean I’ve got to be an elite runner – it’s a bitlate for that. However I am always looking for apersonal best or an age group placing. There are lotsof ways of measuring your ‘best’ but you have to gofor it to get the most from running.

When I get the results from any race I obviouslycheck my time first, then other Trent Park runnersand then the other over 60’s. It’s always fun seeingwhich other Club runners you have managed to finishahead of.

I took early retirement a few years ago and havingspent years of chasing my tail I found it difficultgetting used to a new way of life. Running and TrentPark Running Club have made a big impact on mylife. I suppose I could have joined the local over 60sclub and spent my time playing bingo and listening toa Vera Lynn tribute act but I chose TPRC as the nextbest thing. I have no regrets.

I am now planning more challenges and plenty ofyears of running for the over 60’s….and 70’s….

Running for theOver 60’s

By Chas Taylor

Chas….Now

Chas….Before

By Tim Ryan

4

Bread Pudding ClubOn behalf of the Bread Pudding Club, £30 of Spring Draw

Tickets has been purchased from the Royal NationalInstitute for the Blind. The first prize is £5000 (you never

know someone has to win it!).

Keep Running Keep Eating Keep Giving

New MembersA Big Welcome to the following Members who have joined

us in the last quarter:Alison Ball, Luke Bowie, Emma Clarkson,

Elizabeth Day, Paul Hart.

TP Gallery

12Aileen The Balls cheering

on Mum

Simon Merritt &Jack O’Brien

Garrett Turbett Luke Bowie

DebbieMichelle & Lucy

Julian Tracey,winner of March’s

handicap!

The Family GreenWe’ve lost someone…