So I finished 1st at parkrun!

So an update on me and where I am at. On 10th September I ran my 212th parkrun, yey go me, but this one was different to all those that came before as I somehow came 1st. parkrun is a run not a race but there is still something awesome about coming in 1st and something that has never happened to me before. Honestly, I got lucky, out of the 496 Eastbourne parkruns that have taken place only 10-15 have had slower “winning” times. 

On reflection do I really care? It was the slower summer route and hot, and I had run 55 miles this week so was on tired legs. I did get a PB on the route and you can only beat who is there. Still I am chuffed and just have to remind myself that 10 years ago I was using a walking stick because of Ledderhose disease and 8 years ago I was basically twice the size I am now.

So there you go, a former 20 stone, Ledderhose patient that was fasted with no carb managed to be the first finisher at a parkrun. Wonder what the longest number of runs it is to take someone to get the 1st place token, or who else with Ledderhose has ever managed it? 

In case anyone is interested in what happened: 

It was basically a solo time trial. I started at the front with several others that are normally around my time and got to the first corner, 100m or so in, I am normally at least 10th by this point but was in the lead and there was one guy close behind. The guy behind commented that at least someone knew where they were going so guessing it was the tourist who ended up 3rd. I held back through the first k and according to my watch I wasn’t even on for sub-20, often the case on this route as the start is grassy with lots of turns. Around 2km we reached the dip into an underpass, and I decided to pick up my pace and see if I dropped those behind me, up to now I could still hear them close. 

It worked and I dropped him/ them and from that point was just running scared that someone would catch me, was quite surreal being at the front, only ever happened once before in 2016, only for about 500m and I finished 3rd. With around 800m to go you loop back past the start / finish line and I shrugged to the volunteers as if to say, “how is this happening?” the response was “Go on Gary you Legend”. I kept my lead and took a sneaky look back when I reached the last corner (same as the first one) and knew I had a big enough advantage that it was in the bad, I tried by hardest to sprint to the end and got finish token 0001. Was nice as all the volunteers and other faster runners know my background and were all so thrilled for me.

Not going to lie, I really enjoyed it and was a little emotional when thinking back to everything I have been through. 

The return of 5k parkrun

There was a sense of normality this morning as Eastbourne parkrun returned, the 1st time since March 2020. Having recovered from Ledderhose through radiotherapy and then used my new found health combined with a LCHF diet I got fit and started running. 

Since 2015 a large part of that running has been parkrun. The great thing about parkrun is that anyone can take part, it is free and almost everyone is happy to see everyone else. I have done well over 100 parkruns and including junior parkrun (a shorter event for kids on a Sunday) have nearly completed 100 volunteer stints as well. Given the evidence showing a lack of outdoor transmission of a certain condition it has been disappointing (but understandable) that it took parkrun so long to come back.

parkrun is wonderful for your fitness but for the sense of community and mental health. You make so many friends and get fitter at the same time. It was wonderful to be back running with all those familiar faces even if things were slightly different. 

                   

 

9 years post radiotherapy

It is now almost 9 years to the day since I finished my 2nd week of radiotherapy, you can read more of my background here.. That was back in 2012 (obviously) and how things have changed since then, though we do have another Olympics about to start. 

I still reflect that is crazy how much has change, not just that I now have an 8 year old daughter but with the Ledderhose and things. Thanks to the radiotherapy I have gained my mobility and am not just able to walk pain free but run pain free, well with no pain from the fibroma, running can still be painful. Although standing for long periods of time can cause issue we still work our way round Legoland and have a great time. 

Thanks to Low carb I have lost weight and am a keen runner. I am really excited that parkrun is about to return in England looking forwards to work my way up from the 150 I have completed so far and I am nearing 100 volunteers as well. With lockdown easing I am looking to get properly back into my running and would love a proper crack at my 10km PB early next year. 

I am hoping to do some more Ledderhose stuff soon, more to come on that in another post or two. I am potentially looking to do a follow up survey from the one in 2014/2015. I have learnt a lot since then around survey design, what I would want to focus on and I have learnt so much in terms of data analysis and that side of things. Still just an idea at the moment. 

Another thing I would like to do is a literature review, although I have been keeping my eye out for ground breaking papers I have lost touch a little and would like to see of there is any exciting Dupuytren's or Ledderhose news I have missed in the last few years. 

Really this post was just to get the ball rolling, to say hi I am here and that I will be looking to post a little more again. Maybe tomorrow I will do a post parkrun post, so happy that things are getting back to normal but I don't want to get into that.