Weeks 29 & 30

Back In The Game

It has been a pretty good couple of weeks, the shins seem to be weakening in their fight against me, perhaps they have run off at the thought of challenging me as I have ramped up to what I have affectionately called Project Sparta. I am sure the message got passed down my veins and their reaction was a bit like woah I don't wanna be messing with Barker the Spartan man he sounds tough. So all is well now and I am positive it will stay that way until I take part in the biggest half marathon in the world in just 7 weeks!

Since the shins have retracted I have made good use of this by completing 6 and 7.2 miles in the last 2 weeks, I have cut down the running to once a week to keep injury free. I can not tell you what a relief it is to be completing this mileage again, honestly I can not quite explain enough at how frustrating it is to have to stop mid way through your training, it is probably a bit like going to enjoy a cuppa tea and a chocolate hob nob only to find out that there is only one hob nob and that one has gone all soft and dry and has lost the very essence that makes it the best biscuit, incredibly frustrating especially when you are trying to be good with your diet and will have to wait a couple more weeks to treat yourself. I hope you now understand the frustrations.

So in short I am back timings can improve but for now it is getting the distance in, one lap of Pitsford hurt a little bit next journey 8 miles.

Butterfly Release

As you all know one of the charities I am running for is Children are Butterflies, and since I last wrote my family and I attended their annual butterfly release, hosted at Ivy Cottage in Hollowell. The thinking behind this event is pretty awesome, Ann (Director of the charity) nurtures the butterflies herself from caterpillar to butterfly and handles them with care so in time they can be released in memory of families lost babies.

So the setting for this fantastic event was in a back garden and what a garden it was, semi-wild I believe it is referred to, abundant with wildlife and colour and treasured by the owners who from what I gather were inspired to do this for their grandchildren, some fantastic ideas have been implemented including painting up an old caravan based on the railway children story books and using it as a play house. If any one is into gardens then I recommend visiting on one of their open days

And so with the weather holding up for all the families in attendance it was time for the butterfly release, the names of each child read out and the families going up and holding a butterfly in their hands before releasing them into the wild, I think we were the last ones to go up and release our butterfly. I held the butterfly safely in my hands and went to release it, but my butterfly did not want to go straight off, it decided to land on my chest instead, I think it was Jasmine giving me a hug and acknowledging she knows she is always in my heart a real poignant moment for me

A special thanks to all at Children are Butterflies for arranging this event and long may it continue bringing some joy to bereaved parents

Big News

Today there was a big announcement, I can only presume Mo Farah heard I was doing the great north run and thought that man could do with some competition and so he and Gebrselasie have decided to enter in the race, more fool them sabotaging their careers coming up against me, I jest but hey how incredible is it to say that I have raced with these legends in what looks like it is going to arguably be the best Great North Run yet.

Weeks 26,27 & 28

The Great Man

Its been a few weeks since I last wrote a post, sometimes life just throws things at you that move you off course on the path you are travelling, normally that road is a bit quick sandy probably in the arctic, you just kind of freeze you move around a bit just for survival.

Since I last wrote sadly my wife's gramp Roy who I am proud to call my 3rd Granddad lost his fight to the big C, In the 3 years I have know him, I can honestly say I learnt a lot from him, firstly his attention to conversation, he always had something to ask you, and his strongest asset, something I would say he must have trained like a shaolin monk to learn was the art of listening. No matter how mundane the subject matter he always seemed interested, little things like how your working week was. I think anyone can make a conversation but only a few master it and he certainly did.

Since I started training for this run way back in January, he was one of my keenest supporters, having a passion for shoes it started from the moment I bought my 1st pair of aasics, he gave them the full inspection followed by the thumbs up seal of approval, always a good sign when a man who worked in shoes for such a long time approves, he would always ask for updates on how far I have run what my timing was like, and always safely encouraged me, Saying how well I was doing but to make sure I don't injure myself.

Well I tried not to injure myself but my legs just would not listen, I will really miss Gramps but I will use his energy and enthusiasm he had for life even at 90 years old, to do him and my daughter proud while they watch me from above

8 weeks to go

I can not believe that there is 8 weeks to go until I am lining up with 56,000 other runners as we set off on the 13.2 mile course. I think nerves are starting to kick in now, realistically I have 6 weeks of training to do, but with the shins showing no sign of retreat I have had to adopt a new regime this late on in the game, I am going to just focus on doing 1 long run a week and topping up my cardio with cross training, this seems to be the only choice I have at the minute, hopefully after a few long runs I will get back into the groove of things we will wait and see.

Since I last wrote the fundraising total has now surpassed the £500.00 mark I am overwhelmed by this, believe me it will make such a difference to the lives of bereaved parents

Right that is me done for now, stay safe

Weeks 24 & 25

Rehab and Kinesio Tape

So I pick up where I left off, carrying on with attempting to cure these cursed shin splints. Over the last 2 weeks I have basically gone right back to basics, no running over 2 miles, with the clock ticking this is really really frustrating now and I am slightly getting nervous about the big event now.

The sessions I have been having with the sports therapist have been bearing some fruit, not quite your nice juicy fruit more baby fruit at this stage. I have loosened up all the joints around the ankle and the hip now which is good news and the treatment has stepped up with the usage of laser therapy and kinesio tape.

The results so far have lead to me running 2 miles feel comfortable not pain free, but a major difference it will be interesting to see how it holds up after a run of at least 6 miles. My goodness it is crazy how much I actually miss running that distance at a minimum. I have read a lot of doubt expresses about the use of kinesio tape but based on my experience I would recommend it to any one with a niggling injury they can not shift, if you are like me and you have hairy legs then removing the tape without it turning in to some sort waxing beauty treatment is a challenge in its self.

Hopefully with this treatment things will improve and I can up the distance again, a frustrated runner is not the kind of runner you want to see.

Reaffirmation

Sometimes visiting Jasmine's garden is one of the most relaxing places on earth a place that is good for your inner soul, then there are times where you realise you should not be here and actually the place is distressing. In the last 2 weeks they have started to build more gardens on a new row. Since Jasmine's funeral in October her row of neighbour's is now full there are 13 gardens in a row, this gives you a picture of just how many families are affected by child loss and each time a new garden is created a bit of your heart breaks for the other families. Nothing prepares you for the number of people effected and this is why I am running for the charities who will help to save lives. Once again I thank you all for your support so far.

Well that's me for the next 2 weeks, keep safe

Weeks 22 & 23

Freak Toe

Well the frustration of the shin splints continued over the last 2 weeks, after the highs of getting a PB at the 10k bang the lows of the injury return. It seems that these shin splints are like hunger I can only keep them locked up til lunch.

I have decided that I need to get to the bottom of this so I have been to visit a sports therapist to sort me out, after an initial consultation it turns out I am a bit broken, too many sprained ankles in my youth seem to be a cause of the issue. This was pretty much expected what wasn't was his reaction to my big toe, The look on his face was incredibly puzzled as he struggled to get to terms with the fact I have a bend in it he even had to ask if it was a genetic trait that he has never seen before, turns out I am a freak toe! Plenty of training on them to sort it out.

I am hopeful that in the next two weeks I will be back out running pain free less than 90 days to go time is getting tight.

Fathers Day

This week for me has been one of the hardest since it all happened, the whole week leading up to fathers day, I was stressed out about it and probably my most emotional since christmas, I had never dreaded a day coming round quite so much, You just can not get past the fact that I should have been waking up and spending the day holding my little girl and showing her off.

You get this feeling every day but when it is a day special for fathers it really reinforces everything. The day came and quite how my wife managed to find a way to write a card I do not know, It must have taken some incredible strength for her to do that, it is one of her best qualities.

Well it turns out that Jasmine is pretty clever and managed to send a parcel to me through air mail I guess and boy does she know her daddy as what did I get oh yes a Thierry Henry Legend cup, perfect. A trip to the cemetery just me and my girl was to follow and in a way that not many people would understand a feeling of calm and peace flowed through me. The hour of me and my girl I will always remember and I feel blessed as a Father to have had that time with her.

Donations

To end this week a massive massive thank you, as I have now passed the original £400.00 target I set everyone's support has been incredible and heart warming,

Weeks 20 & 21

Back on the run

2 weeks without running to some people may sound like a nice 2 weeks, no pain, no effort, no forcing yourself to push a few extra yards in the pouring rain, purely relax in the house watching Britain's got talent and the voice or something. There was a time when I would have whole heartedly agreed but 21 weeks on from when I started I can safely say I missed it quiet a lot.

It was so frustrating for the injury to follow so shortly after I had just managed to do 10 miles, 2 weeks worth of running was replaced by cycling on the exercise bike 20k at a time followed by a good weight session and ending with 30 minutes on the cross trainer, it is not quite the same even if it is useful to keep your fitness levels up.

So since returning from injury I am breaking back into it slowly for a couple of weeks and have managed two 2 mile runs so far, amazing to think that 12 weeks ago I would have been really happy to have managed that but now I know I have the distance in me it kind of feels like meh! This time it was a mixture of relief as I managed to complete it with no repercussions and some satisfaction knowing that I am back in the game, roll on Saturday lets see if I can manage at least 5 miles

2 pounds to go

Also in the last 2 weeks I had dropped 2lbs and am now just 2lbs off my goal weight of 13.6 stone which would equate to a 2 stone weight loss happy days

Well that's me done for this week short and sweet and don't forget you can sponsor me by visiting .My money giving page £13.00 off of my target now and with your kindness I would really really love to smash that figure out of the park, Take Care

Week 19

What a pain in the shins

Well this has been the toughest week in my training so far, the main problem being that my legs could only manage 3 miles of running. This has been quite deflating in all honesty, at one point I was close to tears with pure frustration.

This week my shin splints came back with avengence, I have suffered with this through most of my life and if any body has suffered from them then you will catch my drift at how unbearable they can be, it is almost as if your shin bone and muscle have decided they have fallen out of love and want a divorce. They scream and shout at each other for a while which is bearable until they decide to have a full on row and launch the fine China plates at each other. They throw that many plates in reminiscent of a Greek wedding tradition all in the space of a storage cupboard. The end result is they hurt each other quite badly and end up in the local A&E where they are stitched up and ordered to rest.

And rest is what I will be doing for the next 2 weeks to see how it copes. Plenty of deep freeze and ice to help reduce the inflammation and plenty of cross training at the gym to keep my cardio levels up.

Level 10

This week I also visited my local wellness centre for an evaluation to help me get my body in the right shape to achieve my goals.
Using Tanita scales to get a full examination of my body. We discussed entering into a competition run by herbalife called Level 10.
You choose from 3 categories weight loss, lean muscle gain and body fat reduction, from this I set a goal to reduce my body fat to around 15% in 90 days which ties in well to fill the gap until the new football season starts.

Also we discussed a nutrition plan, using an identifier as a protein factor to establish what sort of protein consumption my body will require to achieve my goal based on my height and BMI. I will need 126g of protein a day whilst keeping my calories to no more than the 2000 RDA. It is a challenge I am looking forward to and I can not wait to see the results.

If you are interested in taking part in this challenge then please visit Your local herbalife independent distributor's website

Week 18

10k Man? Erm no 10 mile man actually!

This week marked another major milestone in my preparation for the biggest run of my life. I decided that a nice evening run around Abington Park would do just nicely, so at at around 7:30pm I set off on to my latest conquest. Now Abington Park is by no means what I would call an easy run, it has some lovely steep hills which really put the burners into your calves.

I had predetermined that I would run 7 miles at least that evening and off the back of the buzz of running Silverstone I was totally in the right frame of mind. So off I went headphones in and off on a nice 10 minute a mile pace. The last time I had run Abington Park I was ecstatic at achieving 3 laps so after completing my 4th lap I was rather satisfied but I still had plenty in the tank and so I just carried on running. This run taught me something new in that running + nice scenery = easier runs add to that combo with some classical music and you have probably the ultimate scenario for nice relaxed running.

I appreciate that will not be to everyone's taste,but the soothing sounds of big classical instruments really makes you feel unbelievably relaxed to the point any niggling aches in your legs are soon forgotten and it's just you the music and the scenery. For those runners not concerned with high pace then I suggest you try it.

So after 1 hour and ten minutes I had completed my 7 miles, it was not time to stop so I just carried on until my legs said no more, this submission came at 10 miles. Wow I actually can not believe that I can now run 10 miles 18 weeks ago I was out of breath at just 500 yards, this was a whole new level for me. A word of warning though a ten mile run does not hurt until you stop. My goodness they say no pain no gain, well I hope I gained a lot after that, my legs decided they would rather feel like lead pipes than muscle and water, trying to walk back to the car up a hill was certainly not the one with all the lactic acid flooding through me. A few stretches later all was well and what a way to end a pretty awesome running week.

Also this week I notched up another Personal Best for a 1 mile run clocking in at 7:30 so not only am I building endurance I am building speed, watch out Mo Farah Barker is coming to get you.

8 Months

This week also marked 8 months since our little sleeping beauty was born. I can not believe how quick the time has gone it all still feels like it all happened yesterday. I still feel like I had not long held her in my arms looking at her with the purest of love that you just can not describe, thinking how on earth did I play a part in making the most perfect baby girl you ever did see. She just looked so peaceful she really was a real life angel. To this day though I still do not understand why she was taken from us I don't think I ever will, the pain of losing her is still very raw, some days I just would like to hide away from the world and not come out, but then I think of my Jasmine and she provides me with the strength to carry on and to be strong, She is my inspiration she has instilled in me a never give up attitude and while she may not be here, I will still take her on every journey I make, with every flower I see, every gentle touch of wind that pats my back it is all a sign that she is there with me.

Its a boy a real boy

To end on a good note we have found out that baby Barker the II is a boy, we are absolutely thrilled and can not wait to meet him, next up trying to think of a some names, Wilberforce any body?