28 Sept – 2 Oct 2015 Running Info

Hi all,

There’s a lot of important stuff in this email (so please read it!) because we’re starting our pace groups this week. I’m going to try to avoid bombarding you with too much training information all at once. I’ll give you the basics and point you to the website for more specifics. We’ll come back to these training principles often throughout the year.

On Monday we have a great run to the Whole Foods in Piccadilly Circus. I love the variety of the route and running along the Embankment through the heart of London. But the best part is ending at Whole Foods for some great coffee and food. (There is seating outside and upstairs.) The entire route is 6.5 miles but you can also take the tube from Blackfriars or Temple which is 5 miles. Wednesday we’re in Notting Hill and Friday back up to the Heath.

Good Luck Racers!
This weekend Meg Stone and Yianna Xenakis are running the Causeway Coast half marathon in Northern Ireland. The route follows the paths, tracks, beaches and coastline of the Causeway Coast Way which is described as “one of the most spectacular coastlines in the whole world.” What an adventure! We can’t wait to hear about it. I love that running has brought you to such a unique part of the world.

2016 HALF MARATHON
I sent out an email Friday announcing that the group will be travelling to Nice, France to run the Semi-Marathon International De Nice on Sunday 24 April 2016. Thanks for all the positive feedback. We’re really excited about this race. If you didn’t receive the email, it may have bounced to SPAM. If not, please let me know so I can check the distribution. Registration for the race has not opened yet. We’ll be back to you soon with more details about the flights, hotel and race registration.

PACE GROUPS
Each training week is planned to have one longer/slower run on Monday, one shorter/faster run on Wednesday and one hill run on Friday. The pace groups are for the longer/slower run and the pace listed is the training pace (not race pace). For the tempo/faster day and the hill day the groups will not necessarily be together. Some folks may want to push it more than others.

For those who are interested, there is a nifty calculator on our website to determine your training pace as compared to a target race pace. For many, the pace calculator might be too technical. As a rule of thumb, you should run your long run at a pace that allows you to carry on a conversation. Not too fast, not too slow. (I know that is easier said than done!) The slower run is an important part of your training because it helps build mileage without injury but it also helps your body build fuel. For more info about pace and the science behind the slower run, click here

The pace groups are not an exact science! They serve more as a general guide. Since our group is so large, the pace groups allow for smaller groups of women that run roughly the same pace to find each other and train together.

Leaders
There are 2-3 women in each group who will be pace group leaders for the long run. They’ll help keep the group together, which will be increasingly important as we do more longer runs and/or new routes. But please remember that everyone is responsible for generally knowing the route, not just the leaders.

Please let me know if you need some help finding your group or if you have any questions.

The “Eights” Group (8:30-9:15 min/mile)
Leaders: Kathy Anderson and Yianna Xenakis

The “Nines” Group (9:15-10:00 min/mile)
Leaders: Amy Grace and Erin Roth

The “Tens” Group (10:00-10:45 min/mile)
Leaders: Darcy Fautz, Maureen Fossum and Jane Novak

The “Elevens” Group (10:45-11:30 min/mile)
Leaders: Julie Adams, Stefhanie Howe, Melissa Kay

The “Twelves” Group (11:30-12:30 min/mile)
Leaders:  Nicky Falconer, Karina Kalb and Sonia Takkar

A big THANKS to all our leaders – you play an important role in helping such a large group work smoothly!

That’s all for now – Keep RUNNING!

Jane

ROUTES

Monday, 28 September – Whole Foods Market Piccadilly Circus– 6.5 miles

This is fun destination route.  How can you resist a fun run that ends up with delicious and healthy food options to bring home?   Don’t forget your cash and tube card!  We start out heading east on the canal and run to the Wall.  We’ll exit the canal there and turn right onto Rodney, which will turn into Penton Rise, then King’s Cross Road, and eventually Farringdon, which we will stay on until we reach the embankment.  We then turn right and run along Victoria Embankment to Northumberland (just past Embankment Tube Station).  Turn Right onto Northumberland and run through Trafalgar Square onto Cockspur and then turn right onto Haymarket.  Take Haymarket into Piccadilly Circus and turn left onto Coventry. Run through Piccadilly Circus, across the street and onto Glasshouse Street, where you will see Whole Foods Market.

Wednesday 30 September – Notting Hill (4 – 6 miles)

Run out the canal to the west and exit at Ladbroke Grove.  Run to Elgin Crescent and make a left.  Continue to Ledbury and go right and then left at Westbourne Grove.  Run down Westbourne Grove over Bishop’s Bridge and down the steps into Sheldon Square.  Go back along the canal and out where you entered and back to Starbucks.

You also have the option of a shorter run by not running as far as Ladbroke Grove.  Instead, run half the distance you want, turn around and head home.  For example, running to the Westway flyover and back is about four miles.  

Friday 25 September – The Heath (4-8 miles)

We run up the hill on Fridays–it’s tradition! It is hard, but you’ll feel great when you are finished.

If you are not up for a hill run yet, no problem, just let us know.  Every week there are a group of women who prefer to do a flat run.  We can help make sure that you find each other.

4 miles:  A great way to ease into running the hill.   Run up to the Hampstead tube station and back. If you have trouble running up, think about how easy it will be running down!

5 miles: The Betsy Route
6-7miles:  The partial Heath route
7.5 miles: The Highgate route
8 miles:  The full Heath route

Click here for maps of all of the Heath routes.

19 21 25 Sept Running Info

Hi everyone,

Another great week of running! Keep up the good work! This week we return to some of our classic routes that offer lots of options in terms of mileage. Monday is Hyde Park, Wednesday is The Wall and Friday is the The Heath. I’m out of town early next week and won’t be running Monday and Wednesday – I’ll miss you. For all the veteran runners, remember to reach out to the new runners, introduce yourself and ask if they need help finding a general pace group.

A reminder to everyone, that the weekly email and route maps are posted on our website by Sunday night every week. On the website, you can zoom in on the maps which is the best way to learn the routes.

Aches and Pains

If you’re getting back into running and starting to notice a few aches and pains, please try to see an expert. Often with proper stretching or strengthening exercises you can address something that is bothering you and prevent an injury. You also may consider a sports massage, which can be an excellent way to deal with tight muscles. We have recommendations of who to see under the “Our Experts” tab on the website.

Why Should Long Runs Be Slower?

For a great answer to that question, read the following Runner’s World article that gives a clear, concise summary of the science behind training with a slower, long run. We’ll return to this concept a few times throughout the year. When you tackle a new distance, your mile pace should be 45 – 90 seconds slower than your race pace. “When we overload the body in gradual, incremental increases, it responds positively by becoming stronger. If we overload the body too rapidly or too heavily too soon, it doesn’t have time to adapt and we risk poor performance, injury, illness and/or mental burnout.” Long slow runs also help build Mitochondria. They are the “powerhouse” of the cell because they are responsible for producing the energy required for muscle contraction. All important stuff if you want to run an endurance race! Right now during the early fall, we’re not worrying too much about race pace and training pace. The most important thing is to run, build up your fitness, get to know the people in the group and have fun! In general, you should be running at a pace that enables you to comfortably chat and have a conversation. Next week we’ll be sharing more information about the pace groups. The pace groups will play an important role in our training schedule when we start to gradually tick up the mileage and when we’ll be doing our long slower runs.

Barclays Sidewalk

When we meet in front of Barclays in the morning, try to gather in the plaza and not the sidewalk. We’re such a large group and we want to be good citizens and not block the sidewalk for people walking by.

Keep running,

Jane

ROUTES

Monday, 21 September – Hyde Park  – always versatile! (3 – 8 miles)

Click here for all of the Hyde Park interactive route maps

Start:  Everybody starts the same way… head west on Circus Road, turn left on Grove

End Road and follow south as it becomes Lisson Grove.  Cross over Marylebone Road and continue on Seymour Place until the end.  Turn right and cross over Edgware Road and then take the first left on Stanhope Place to enter Hyde Park at the intersection with Stanhope Place. Cross into the Park—you’ll see a silver orb just inside the Park.  After entering the Park, turn right and run towards Speaker’s Corner.

3 Milers:  Continue south through Hyde Park, past the Serpentine and at the Carriage drive, make a left and head back toward Hyde Park Corner.  Take the Hyde ParkCorner tube home.

5 Milers:  Follow the 3 mile run. At Hyde Park Corner continue back up/north on the carriage drive.  Exit the park at the Animals in War memorial and follow Upper Brook Street.  Turn left on Park Street, which becomes Gloucester Place and then Park Road back to SJW.

HydePark5miles

 

6 Milers:  Upon entering the park, turn right at the silver sphere and run until you meet N Carriage Road where you turn left.  Run down to the Serpentine, crossing over the bridge then left to run along the Serpentine. At the end of the Serpentine, turn left again and make your way to the eastern edge of the park.  Exit the park at the Animals in War memorial and follow Upper Brook Street.  Turn left on Park Street, which becomes Gloucester Place and then Park Road back to SJW.

HydePark6mi

 

8 Milers: follow the 6-mile run but do not turn left at No Carriage Rd, instead cross over [this is tricky, be careful of the traffic] and follow until you reach the large broad walk where you turn left.  Run past Kensington Palace (on your right) and take a left to run along the southern edge of the park towards Hyde Park Corner, then turn left on the eastern edge of the park.  Exit the park at the Animals in War memorial and follow Upper Brook Street.  Turn left on Park Street, which becomes Gloucester Place and then Park Road back to SJW.

HydePark8mi

Wednesday 23 September – The Wall (3 to 6 miles)

We head down towards Regents Park, then enter the canal at the Charlbert entrance and run east [left] cutting through Camden Lock Market until we run out of canal path at Islington.  Since the canal is blocked here, we call it “The Wall.”  At The Wall, we turn around and head back to St. John’s Wood.  This is a great route to do a tempo run because there are no traffic lights.  But please be careful and aware of the bikes on the path.

If you run all the way to The Wall and back it is 6 miles.  But it is very easy to run half the distance if you want and turn around and head home.  As a marker, if you run to the Camden market (where we have to exit the canal path and run past the food stalls for a minute) and return home it is a 3 mile round trip.

 TheWall

Friday 25 September – The Heath (4-8 miles)

We run up the hill on Fridays–it’s tradition! It is hard, but you’ll feel great when you are finished.

If you are not up for a hill run yet, no problem, just let us know.  Every week there are a group of women who prefer to do a flat run.  We can help make sure that you find each other.

4 miles:  A great way to ease into running the hill.   Run up to the Hampstead tube station and back. If you have trouble running up, think about how easy it will be running down!

5 miles: The Betsy Route

6-7miles:  The partial Heath route

7.5 miles: The Highgate route

8 miles:  The full Heath route

Click here for maps of all of the Heath routes.

21 – 25 Sept Running Info

Saturday, September 19, 2015

12 14 18 Sept Running

Hello everyone,

Another great week of running! I’ve really enjoyed meeting the new runners – thanks for joining us! If you’re just getting back into running, and you’ve struggled a bit, don’t give up – Keep running! I promise with each run it will get easier and you will feel stronger.

We have some great routes this week with many distance options. Monday we head to Sloane Square/Westminster/Green Park and you can pick anything from 4-10 miles. (10 miles is for the women doing a fall half marathon.) You’ll see all the options listed below. Remember to bring your Oyster card. Wednesday we head west out the canal and return to St. John’s Wood through Kensal Rise. And as always, Friday we’re up the hill!

General Training and Pace Groups

In general, each week we run a long/slower run, a shorter/faster run and a hill run. We have pace groups that help make it easier for folks to find each other and will be especially important for our long runs. I’ll write more about the pace groups in the next few weeks. We follow the training principle that your long run should be at a pace slower than your race pace. If you’re new to the “race pace” concept, don’t worry! We can help you figure out where you should be.

Maps

Just a reminder that by Sunday evening, this email is posted on our website www.womenrunningtheworld.com. On the website, you can zoom in on the maps and see the street names. If you need to brush up on any of the routes or if you are new to running in London, please take a look at the maps before we set out.

Be Careful

I know we are all tempted to dash across the street to stay with the group. Please be careful! In the past, we had a runner hit by a motorcycle and we also had a runner hit by a car (on a weekend run). They were both OK, thank goodness, but I’m reminding you that in London you can’t depend on the traffic to stop for you. Also be mindful of pedestrians and bikes. We are a big group and we’re often running on narrow sidewalks.

Keep running,

Jane

ROUTES THIS WEEK

Monday 14 September  – Sloane Sq/Westminster/Green Park–3.75 to 7/10 miles  Your choice!

 

Today’s routes are fun because you can pick whichever distance suits you–in this case one size can fit all! 

 

Everybody starts out to Hyde Park, taking the usual route: west on Circus Road, left on Grove End, all the way down to Seymour Place where the road ends.  Right on Seymour, across Edgware, left on Stanhope and enter the park. At the silver orb, turn left and run down to the southern edge, following the path to the right before it leaves the Park.  Run to big gated exit before the tall ‘One Hyde Park’ complex, cross over Knightsbridge at William Street, quick right on Knightsbridge then a right onto Sloane Street.

 

3.75’ers:  at Sloane Sq, take the Tube home!

 

6.33’ers:  continue past Sloane Sq down Lower Sloane St/Chelsea Bridge Road to the Thames.  Turn left on the Thames side of Grosvenor Rd and run along the embankment to Westminster Tube–you’re done!

 

7+’ers:  continue left on Birdcage Walk, cutting through St James Park to the Mall, then left on the Mall towards Buckingham Palace, crossing before the circle to reach Green Park.  Run up to the Green Park Tube on Piccadilly St and head home!

SloaneSq_Westm_GreenPk201509

 

10 milers:  for anyone needing a longer run today, continue past Green Park Tube, through Mayfair to Baker Street and head to SJW Starbucks–this will give you almost 10 miles.

 

 

Wednesday 16 September – Kensal Rise 4-5+ miles

The beginning of this run takes us along the canal to the west.  Please be aware of bikes along the canal and move into single file whenever you hear a ‘bike!’ shout.

Start out heading west on Circus Road, turn left on Grove End to St John’s Wood Road and go west, turning left on Cunningham then right on Aberdeen to work your way to the canal entrance on Blomfield.  Enter the canal heading west and run to the Ladbroke Grove exit.  Here we turn right and run over the bridge along Chamberlayne Road to Harvist Road. Turn right on Harvist, which turns into Brondesbury Road, and take that to Kilburn High Road/Maida Vale.  Turn right and follow Maida Vale to Hall Road where you turn left and run back to Starbucks. If you want to shorten this route, run west on the canal and turn back at your desired half-way point. 

(The two mile mark is at the point on the canal when the Westway highway is over our heads.)

 KensalRise6mi

Friday 18 September – The Heath (4-8 miles)

It’s Friday [again!], so everyone up Fitzjohn’s.  You can pick your distance and whatever you choose, there will certainly be someone else interested in running that distance.  All of these routes are on the website.

If you are not up for a hill run yet, no problem, just let us know.  Every week there are a group of women who prefer to do a flat run.  We can help make sure that you find each other.

4 miles:  A great way to ease into running the hill.   Run up to the Hampstead tube station and back. If you have trouble running up, think about how easy it will be running down!

5 miles: The Betsy Route

6-7miles:  The partial Heath route

7.5 miles: The Highgate route

8 miles:  The full Heath route

Click here for maps of all of the Heath routes.

______________________________________

Website:  https://womenrunningtheworld.commm

Facebook Group:  Women Running The World (request to join)

Email: wrwlondon@gmail.com

The group at Big Ben last week

14 – 18 Sept Running Info

Saturday, September 12, 2015

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5 7 11 Sept Running Info

Hi everyone,

Thanks for another great week of running! You’ve all been so friendly and welcoming – I really appreciate it! We have many new runners joining us this week, so make sure you take a minute to say Hi.

This week we return to some of our favourite runs. Monday we head off to the heart of London with a 4-mile run to Big Ben and then we take the tube home from Westminster. (If you prefer a 2-mile route you can take the tube home from Marble Arch or a 3-mile route is the tube home from Hyde Park corner or a 5-mile route is taking the tube at Green Park after you hit Westminster.) Remember your Oyster card! Runners who are training for a fall half-marathon can loop back home for an 8-mile route. As always, if you haven’t been training all summer, don’t be tempted to do the longer route. Gradually adding mileage is one of the best ways to avoid injury. For the new runners, don’t be tempted to run too fast especially as you add new mileage. You should be able to talk the entire time during the Monday run. If you are struggling, consider slowing down a bit. Just let me know if you need some help finding a group that is running your pace. I’m happy to help.

Wednesday we run west along the canal and loop back home through Notting Hill. The entire route is 6 miles, but you can easily shorten it by turning back at any point along the canal. If you want to run a total of 4 miles, the 2-mile turn-around point is when the Westway motorway is over your head. Friday we’re back up the Hill!

Borough Market- Save the Date

One of our favourite routes is to go to Borough Market on a Friday. Now that the market is open earlier in the day, we’re going to add a Borough Market run into our regular running schedule as an option on some Fridays. If you want to plan ahead, our first Borough Market run will be on Friday Oct. 9 (this gives some time for the people who are getting back into running to build up to the 5+ mile distance). We also have one scheduled for November 20 right before the Thanksgiving break. For anyone who doesn’t want to do a destination run, the Hill is always going to be an option on Fridays.

Looking ahead

For those of you who like to plan ahead we have the following Monday routes over the next month:

7 September – Big Ben

14 September – Sloane Square/Embankment/Westminster

21 September – Hyde Park

28 September – Whole Foods Piccadilly

Late-Start Group

We’re trying a new thing this year. We have a group of runners who can’t make it to our regular 8:15am start (mostly because their children attend schools that start later than 8am) who are going to meet later to run together. The group meets at Barclays at 9:30 on MWF and they do the same routes set for the 8:15 group. If you have a friend who would like to join this group, please have them email us.

Beginner Group starts this week

The beginner group starts this week on Thursday 10 September. If you know anyone who is interested, please email Amy Grace at aewgrace@gmail.com. Please remember that the beginner group is for women who have never run before. Even if someone can only do 1-2 miles, they should be in the MWF group.

London Weather

This week was a good example of London weather. We get clouds, showers, sun, heavy rain – sometimes all in the same day! Don’t let a bad forecast discourage you from running. If you wait for the perfect day, you’d never get out the door. We had many days last year where the forecast was for rain, but it didn’t actually start raining until we were finished with our run. In any case, it does make sense to invest in a good breathable running jacket for wet weather.

Love this picture from our run to Big Ben in June!

Keep running,

Jane

ROUTES THIS WEEK

Monday, 7 September – Big Ben (4-8 miles)

 

This is such a fun route!  We run right through the heart of London and stop at the famous Big Ben.  The 8 mile option is for runners planning to do a fall half-marathon.  

 

On Monday we head to Hyde Park via the usual route. Start heading west on Circus Road and turn left on Grove End and follow south as it becomes Lisson Grove.  Cross over Marylebone Road and continue on Seymour Place until the end.  Turn right and cross over Edgware Road and then left to enter Hyde Park at the intersection with Stanhope Place.   Run along the eastern edge of the park to Hyde Park Corner, under Wellington Arch and down Constitution Hill.  Run past the Victoria Memorial down the mall and enter St. James Park.  Run over the pond and out of the park, turning left onto Birdcage Walk and down into Parliament Square to Big Ben.  Those running four miles will take the tube back to SJW from here and those running eight will turn around and follow the same route back.  You can also make it about a five mile run by turning back at Big Ben and running to the Green Park Tube Station, then tubing it home.

BigBen4mi

 

 

Wednesday, 9 September – Notting Hill (4-6 miles)

 

Run out the canal to the west and exit at Ladbroke Grove.  Run to Elgin Crescent and make a left.  Continue to Ledbury and go right and then left at Westbourne Grove.  Run down Westbourne Grove over Bishop’s Bridge and down the steps into Sheldon Square.  Go back along the canal and out where you entered and back to Starbucks. 

You also have the option of a shorter run by not running as far as Ladbroke Grove.  Instead, run half the distance you want, turn around and head home.  For example, running to the Westway flyover and back is about four miles [two out and two back].

 NottingHill

 

Friday 11 September – The Heath (4-8 miles)

It’s Friday which means everyone up Fitzjohn’s.  You can pick your distance and whatever you choose, there will certainly be someone else interested in running that distance.  All of these routes are on the website. 

If you are not up for a hill run yet, no problem, just let us know.  Every week there are a group of women who prefer to do a flat run.  We can help make sure that you find each other.

4 miles:  A great way to ease into running the hill.   Run up to the Hampstead tube station and back.

5 miles: The Betsy Route

6-7miles:  The partial Heath route

7.5 miles: The Highgate route

8 miles:  The full Heath route

Click here for maps of all of the Heath routes.

______________________________________

Website:  https://womenrunningtheworld.commm

Facebook Group:  Women Running The World (request to join)

Email: wrwlondon@gmail.com

Time for our first Big Ben run!

7 – 11 Sept Running Info

Saturday, September 5, 2015