BRR Blog – 14 July 2025
Our fabulous team at the Newman Hilly 5
Hi there, Road Runners!
Times change: in the 1960s song ‘California Dreamin,’ by the Mamas and Papas, the preacher liked the cold because he knew it would make people stay in the church for longer. This week the Mayor for London has issued advice which suggests churches are a good place to escape from the heat! With the heatwave due to continue for a few more days, it’s worth doing whatever you can to keep cool.
Last Friday. ten fire engines and around 70 firefighters were needed to tackle a grass fire on Wanstead Flats. Multiple seats of fire affected an area of approximately 14 acres of grassland. Luckily, there were no reports of any injuries.
The London Fire Brigade has issued the following advice. It should be a no-brainer, but every year people seem to act like they have no brains!
“If you’re heading out, please don’t take a disposable BBQ with you. They can retain heat for several hours after use and are banned by local authorities from many of London's parks. Also, make sure you are discarding cigarettes properly and take rubbish home with you if no bins are available.
“At home, make sure your BBQ is positioned away from flammable items like fences, sheds, decking and trees and please don’t have any type of BBQ on your balcony. We’re also strongly advising people to avoid burning any waste in this type of weather and to not have bonfires, particularly in their gardens.”
Also, if you happen to see a glass bottle left lying on the grass, please pick it up and pop it in the bin. Glass acts like a magnifying glass to concentrate the sun’s rays and can quickly spark a fire.
OK, lecture over, now for the rest of the blog!
Phipps 5k Race: Volunteers Needed
It’s not long until our August bank Holiday race, on Monday 25 August, which is the last race in this year’s ELVIS competition. Jess, our Run Director, has been doing sterling work in the background getting all the permissions sorted out (the Council, the police, England Athletics) and sorting out the first aid and chip-timing. But we will need a whole raft of volunteers on the day to make the race a success. Roles include on-the-day registration, course set-up, finish funnel management, water station volunteers, lead bike, tailrunner/walker, marshals, kids’ race organisation (timers, number takers, marshals, medal giver outers, etc).
I know a few people have already volunteered, but details have got lost on WhatsApp. So I am going all modern with an online volunteer list called Signup (what could possibly go wrong?). If you can help out, here's how it works in 3 easy steps:
1. Click this link to go to our invitation page on SignUp: https://signup.com/go/QEHZOfu
2. Enter your email address: (You will NOT need to register an account on SignUp)
3. Sign up! SignUp will send you an automated confirmation and reminders. Easy!
You may get pop-ups inviting you to buy cases of wine etc - you should decline these; the website is free so I suppose they have to do something to make money. It’s also American so it would be a long way for thewine to come from!
Note: SignUp does not share your email address with anyone. But, if you prefer not to use your email address, please contact me and I can sign you up manually.
Roles will be allocated nearer to race day. If there is anything you would really like to do, or really don’t want to do, just let me know.
Realistic Pacing
How do you pace yourself for a race? Go out too fast, and you might blow up and miss your time goal. But go too easy, and you also might miss your time goal!
According to the experts at UESCA, the US endurance running training organisation, the golden rule is ‘start conservatively, finish strong.’ And the longer the race, the more critical that becomes.
For efficiency, it is always better to run at a smooth and steady pace rather than erratically (this doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t ‘jeff’ e.g. run/walk, but if you do you should try and follow a set pattern throughout your race). That doesn’t mean you should run every mile or kilometre at the same pace but you should try and maintain a steady level of effort. For example, running flat out until you are exhausted, then having to walk the rest of the way, is likely to be slower than keeping a constant effort throughout a race and maybe winding it up in the last few miles if you are still feeling strong.
Be realistic about what you can achieve; if you can run eight-minute miles in a 5k race, it is unlikely you will be able to maintain that pace for a half marathon, unless you have not been giving your best. While it is good to push yourself in training, don’t start a race trying to keep up with someone who is beyond your level of capability and then become demotivated when you inevitably drift backward. Pace-setting tools can be helpful to show you what might be realistic for you, if you are running at your best. But, as always, listen to your body and be aware of the prevailing conditions; be prepared to change your pacing strategy if you feel unwell, develop a niggle, or the race conditions are not as expected (e.g. it is much hotter than expected).
Give it a Rest
A good measure of the health of your cardiovascular system is your resting heart rate (RHR). Research shows that a higher heart rate is associated with an increased risk of adverse cardiovascular events and heart conditions, such as heart attack or heart disease. So it is a good idea to aim for a low RHR.
Your RHR is the number of times your heart beats per minute when you are lying down or sitting still comfortably after a long period of time.
The most accurate way to measure your RHR is with a running watch and chest strap, but a watch with a built-in heart rate monitor will give pretty good results (Nabeel has tried both and can confirm this is true!) or you can do it the old-fashioned way, by placing your forefinger and middle finger lightly over your pulse in your inner wrist. Why not use your thumb? Because it has its own pulse and will confuse things. Count the number of beats in 30 seconds, then multiply it by two to get your RHR in beats per minute (bpm).
How to manually measure your heart rate
It's usually recommended to measure your RHR when you first wake up in the morning, and before you have taken any stimulants like caffeine in tea or coffee, smoking or vaping, or taking medication. For consistency, try and measure your RHR at the same time each day.
According to the British Heart Foundation (BHF), a normal adult heart rate is between 60 and 100 bpm while resting. But your heart rate can change every minute and what’s ‘normal’ is different for everyone because of their age and health. A RHR greater than 100 is considered high and could be a sign of tachycardia. The BHF suggests the following ways to reduce your RHR and protect your heart:
The number one way to reduce your RHR is through exercise. Exercise strengthens your heart so that it needs to work less hard to pump blood around your body, resulting in a lower bpm rate. Other ways to reduce your RHR are:
getting more sleep – 7-9 hours is seen as optimal
cutting back on caffeine – try to have no more than one cup a day
stopping smoking – nicotine is a stimulant and smoking makes the heart and lungs work harder to oxygenate your body
losing weight - the larger you are, the harder your heart has to work to deliver oxygenated blood to your entire body.
meditation – reduces stress
massage – calms the nervous system
Often runners will have a RHR below 60 bpm, which can cause consternation for medical practitioners, as such a low RHR may be a sign of bradycardia. Symptoms of bradycardia are:
Dizziness
palpitations
feeling more tired than usual
feeling generally weaker and fainting.
If you have these symptoms, see a medical professional. If not, your RHR is probably just low due to your fitness and you have nothing to worry about.
Conversely, if your RHR is around 100 bpm or more, this could be tachycardia. You should see a doctor if it persists, but self-help centres around improving fitness.
(Very) Hardrock
This year’s Hardrock 100-mile endurance race saw great success and great tragedy. The early miles of the challenging race, in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado, USA, were marred by the death of one of the 146 registered competitors. The exact cause of death of the 60-year-old woman has yet to be ascertained but organisers have long emphasised the race’s inherent hazards, including falls, exposure, lightning, and altitude-related illnesses
The race went ahead despite the fatality. The men’s title was won by Ludovic Pommeret, who turns 50 later this month, in 22:21:53. Frenchman Pommeret became one of the few back-to-back winners in Hardrock history, having last year won the race running in the opposite direction.
The women’s race was won by first-timer Katie Schide, who crossed the finish line in 25:50:23, a new record for the race in either direction, and the first sub-26-hour finish by a woman. Schide, also from France, had spent weeks checking out the course, which evidently paid off.
Athletics in the News
If you have booked tickets for the Diamond League in London this summer, intending to see Keely Hodgkinson in the flesh, you will be disappointed. The Olympic gold-winning 800m runner has withdrawn from the competition and delayed her season opener by a few more weeks to ensure she is fully race-ready. The 23-year-old GB record-holder was due to start her outdoor season at last month's Stockholm Diamond League but had to pull out after suffering a minor setback in her recovery from a hamstring injury, which she originally picked up back in February.
In better news, the BBC has just signed a deal which ensures major UK athletics events will be free-to-air until 2029 The athletics shown will include live and highlights coverage of the Novuna London Athletics Meet (Diamond League), Novuna UK Athletics Championships and Novuna UK Athletics Indoor Championships. This adds to the BBC’s existing athletics coverage which features events such as the Olympic Games, World Athletics Championships, European Athletics Championships, Diamond League, and the London Marathon.
Greg’s Race Report
ELVIS race No 04 this week for Barking Road Runners was the Newman Hilly 5-mile race at Hainault Country Park. The trail race, organised by Ilford AC, was well attended by BRR members with Paul Withyman 33:56 being first male finisher for BRR followed by Stuart Mackay 33:57, Martin Page 37:16, Rory Burr 39:13, Tom Shorey 41:28, Kevin Wotton 41:47, Tom Brennan 46:30, Jason Li 46:51, Barry Rowell 47:00, Steve Colloff 48:38, Mick Davison 48:44, Dennis Spencer Perkins 50:27, Rob Courtier 52:27 and Martin Mason 61:35. Les Jay was a DNF due to injury.
First BRR female finisher was Belinda Riches 43:52 followed by Joyce Golder 48:42, Nikki Cranmer 53:33, Alison Fryatt 53:52, Clodagh Shorey 56:02 and Dawn Curtis 61:16.
Louise Chappell ran the Race for Life 10k at Hylands Park finishing in a time of 1:08:13.
Louise after her race for life 10k
Huseyin Dogan ran in the Saucony London 10k finishing in a time of 1:04:42.
Huseyin at the London 10k
Cristina and Trevor Cooper competed in a standard triathlon and an Aqua Bike respectively. Cristina finished her race in a time of 3:18:22 whilst Trevor finished his 1.5k swim and 4K bike ride in 1:48:33 which was good enough for 2nd place.
Cristina and Trevor after their triathlon and Aqua bike races
Barking parkrunners
Barking - Joe Stacey 21:37, Joshua Ezissi 22:54, Mark New 23:49, John Mitchell 25:15, Jason Li 28:05, Barry Rowell 28:45, Martin Mason 34:02, Faye Spooner 34:49, Les Jay 39:35, Nikki Cranmer 48:27 and Alan Murphy 49:30.
John Lang hitting his 100 volunteer milestone at Barking parkrun
Clacton Seafront - Rory Burr 24:42 and Stuart Burr 27:25.
Stuart and Rory at Clacton Seafront parkrun
Great Salterns - Rob Courtier 32:52.
Rob at Great Salterns parkrun
Ingrebourne Hill - Louise Chappell 36:25.
Louise and friends at Ingrebourne Hill parkrun
The Leas - Peter Jackson 20:31 and Paul Withyman 20:55.
Paul W and Peter at The Leas parkrun
Torbay Velopark - Kevin Wotton 26:28.
Valentines - Chris Muthaka 30:43.
Victoria Dock - Stuart Mackay 20:58 and Jess Collett 26:08.
Zuiderpark - Belinda Riches 27:23, Steve Colloff 30:21, Darren Graham 39:48 and Denise Graham 54:17.
Steve, Belinda, Darren and Denise at Zuiderpark parkrun
Highest BRR age gradings this week were Belinda Riches 63.6% for the women and Peter Jackson 72.46% for the men.
BRR Diary – July/August
PLEASE NOTE: an additional Club Handicap race has been slotted into the diary on Thursday 14 August, to make up for the one that was postponed when the festival was in Barking Park.
The highlights of the coming weeks are listed below but you can see the full diary of BRR events on the TeamUp app. Simply download the TeamUp app to your phone, then enter the calendar key: ks67p21gt8p5gzdo66 when prompted. If you don’t want another app on your phone, you can also find it under the ‘events’ tab on the Barking Road Runners website: https://www.barkingroadrunners.org.uk/calendar.
7.00pm, Tuesday 15 July - Speed Session. Jim Peter’s Stadium, Mayesbrook Park. This week, by popular demand, we have the Toblerone session. Other chocolate bars are available, but they don’t have track sessions named after them.
THREE TIMES the following:
30 secs run, 30 secs recovery
1 min run, 30 secs recovery
90 secs run. 30 secs recovery
2 mins run, 30 secs recovery
90 secs run, 30 secs recovery
1 min run, 30 secs recovery
30 secs run, 2 mins recovery
Like last week, you can walk or float (i.e. jog) the 30-second recoveries, but you should take a proper rest for the 2-minute recoveries.
7.30pm, Wednesday 16 July - Valentines Park 5k (ELVIS 05). Valentines Park, Melbourne Road, IG1 4LG. Hosted by East London Runners, the course is similar to Valentines parkrun but not exactly the same. Online entries are now closed, but you should be able to enter on the night. Turn up early to avoid disappointment.
7.00pm, Thursday 17 July – Road Run. Castle Green Centre/Jo Richardson School. Usually around 4-5 miles. May be dependent on numbers, after the ELVIS race the night before.
7.30pm, Thursday 24 July - Handicap 05. Barking Park, near the tennis courts. Things are getting exciting in the handicap competition, but it is all still to play for. Even if, for you, it is too late to win a trophy, you could still win the crispy tenner, for just £1 investment. As always, let Greg know if you want to run but haven’t already taken part, so he can work out your handicap.
7.30pm, Wednesday 30 July – Harold Wood 5k (ELVIS 06). Harold Wood Park, Harold View, Harold Wood, RM3 0LX. The race is run on a one-lap, multi-terrain, 5k course in and around Harold Wood Park and Pages Wood, Harold Wood. There is a bar if you can stay for a drink afterwards. Enter at: https://events.kronosports.uk/event/1092
10.30am, Saturday 2 August – Orion Forest 5 (ELVIS 06). Chingford Plain, Bury Road, Chingford (race HQ, Orion Clubhouse, Jubilee Retreat, further up Bury Road). A nice (though tough), cross-country, ELVIS race, usually with decent refreshments available at the clubhouse afterwards. Enter at https://www.entrycentral.com/Orion_Forest_Five_Race_3_ELVIS
Cracker Corner
Yesterday Chris told me to stop behaving like a flamingo. Well, I had to put my foot down.
I started training to be a pharmacist but it was such hard work I decided to dispense with it.
Chris told me he could think of 14 reasons to leave me, plus my obsession with tennis. I said, ‘That’s 15, love.’
Quote of the Week
“Once we accept our limits, we go beyond them.”
Albert Einstein
And Finally…
I noticed this Vita Coco competition in Sainsburys at the weekend and just had to go for it. You might be able to get the QR code to work from the photo and enter the competition yourself, if you open the blog on a PC. I don’t know who would be most shocked if I won the top prize: me, for actually winning something, or Zharnel Hughes, for having to train someone who runs like me. Britain’s fastest man trains Britain’s slowest woman…
Happy Running!
Alison
Chair, Barking Road Runners
