Running everyday has become a habit

Ickworth Rotunda House

Ten days into January and I along with many Janathoners are continuing to exercise every day. The weather although generally cloudy, grey and cool  with temps hovering around 3-4C or 37 to 40F has been favourable compared to December's snow.

Decided today to inject a little more pace and do an interval session. This consisted of 10 x 30 seconds faster intervals with a 1.30 second recovery in between so nothing too tough.

Chilly Start

I ran my 4 miles in 35 minutes which was my quickest this year so the lighter mileage of the last 2 days certainly helped. I am hoping legs willing to run close to 30 miles this week. My total last week was 26 miles.

Ipswich Harriers

Yesterday after my run in the morning I went out to Ickworth Park to watch the Suffolk Cross Country Championships. There was a succession of races over several hours for different age groups. Whilst we were there we saw many of the junior races and walked the course which was a tough one with a short sharp hill near the Canal Lake followed by a hilly drag up past St Marys Church to the finish. The ground was clumpy by that I mean not like a flat playing field this had grassy mounds and tussocks meaning unless you watched where you placed your feet you could easily turn an ankle. However the weather was pretty good for runners and spectators so it could have been even harder.

This post contains a few shots from Ickworth Park and the race.

It takes guts!

The course followed a route around the Canal Lake. Much work is underway to restore an early 18th century garden. Vineyards on the slopes are producing a small quantity of wine each year and many bee hives were introduced last year.

The Grade II walled kitchen garden is situated 500m south-west of Ickworth House
on the north bank of the River Linnet. It is enclosed on three sides and is open to The Canal on the south side. Within the kitchen garden lie a further two walled enclosures also open to the water, currently used as a vineyard. Sir John Hervey's three-bay, single-storey Summerhouse (also listed grade II) built in 1703 is situated in the centre of the main garden. It is constructed of red brick with moulded cornice and a parapet which hides a flat roof. The Summerhouse is said to have stood in the grounds of the old manor house and was retained as a feature within the kitchen garden

Downhill around walled garden

St Marys Church - vineyards beyond the lake on the rise

Day 1 - 5 miles
Day 2 - 5 miles
Day 3 - 4 miles
Day 4 - 4 miles
Day 5 - 3 miles
Day 6 - 2.52 miles
Day 7 - 7 miles
Day 8 - 3.5 miles
Day 9 - 2 miles
Day 10 - 4 miles


Total 40 miles

The Canal Lake at Ickworth Park Suffolk

One of my frequent running routes takes me to the National Trust Park at Ickworth. The park has several miles of routes to follow and two lakes including the one in this video.

It was a windy day so the sound is rather blowy. Stick with the video to the end and you will see across the lake the old summer house.

The Grade II walled kitchen garden is situated 500m south-west of Ickworth House
on the north bank of the River Linnet. It is enclosed on three sides and is open to The Canal on the south side. Within the kitchen garden lie a further two walled enclosures also open to the water, currently used as a vineyard. Sir John Hervey's three-bay, single-storey Summerhouse (also listed grade II) built in 1703 is situated in the centre of the main garden. It is constructed of red brick with moulded cornice and a parapet which hides a flat roof. The Summerhouse is said to have stood in the grounds of the old manor house and was retained as a feature within the kitchen garden. (extracted from St Edmundsbury Borough Council's Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Interest)

Beyond the summer house you can see St Mary's Church and the rotunda shaped Ickworth House.



The small vineyard here produces some good wine . I tried a bottle of their walled garden white wine and very enjoyable it was.

Ickworth Park Suffolk - Seven Mile Run

I tried to pick the best time to run and listening to the weather forecast this suggested lunch time onwards. It certainly appeared that way as I set out towards Ickworth Park for an easy 7 miles. This is day 26 of my 11 week half marathon training programme and after being cooped up in the car for a lot of yesterday in a trip to the Birmingham NEC I was glad to be able to get out for a run.

Half way into the run the weather which had been breezy turned from a drizzle to hail and this was fun as my visability reduced and the ground around me turned a little white. The breeze soon took the dark black clouds away to be replaced by bright blue sky and a little sunshine.

A lot of this run took me of the road and on to the fields and pathways around Horringer and Ickworth Park. At times I was battling over thick mud and up and down hills.

My time for the 7 miles was 1hr 1 min and 54 which was a pb for the year, not that I was aiming or trying to do this and only represents a 5 seconds a mile improvement but as I pile on the miles I am looking for some small signs of progress.

I think all the training has also resulted in a reduction in my weight since Christmas as I am now down from 86.5 to 85 kilos. However as I am 5ft 9 inches tall according to the Body Mass Indicator Calculator I am overweight as I have a BMI of 27.6. Body Mass Index is defined as a person's weight divided by the square of a person's height, using the metric units kg/m^2.

It is also said that those who like to exercise such as runners may weigh a little more as they will have a stronger composition of muscle to fat. A number of gold medal winning athletes at the Olympics would be considered obese based solely on their BMI. A skinfold thickness measurement with calipers is used by some trainers and doctors when judging an athletes body fat ratio.

Online BMI Calculator

To get to a healthy BMI figure I would need a BMI under 25 and to do this be 76.5 kilos or 12 stone. That would mean losing 1 stone 4lbs or 10 kilos! Unlikely as I like a beer or two and I am not dieting in any way.

One of the alternatives to the BMI Calculator is the halls.md body mass index calculator. According to this they have slightly different definitions of weight.My BMI of 27.6 would make me marginally over weight - sounds a little better but not a lot!

Adkins Wood Ickworth Park Suffolk

7.5 miles in 1 hr 6 mins 53 seconds

In a break from work at lunch time I ran up to Ickworth Park from Bury St Edmunds. My plan being to seek out the cooler shade of Adkins Wood on a fairly warm day.

Running through Little Horringer Hall Farm up the hill past a large field of barley I was met by a group of cyclists coming at a fair lick down hill. The path being narrow they thankfully saw me and gave way just in time.

At one point I had contemplated jumping into the barley to avoid a collision.

This run is nearly all over fields but emerging from Little Horringer Hall Farm you do arrive on Westley Lane. There is little traffic but cars do tend to hurtle along this stretch and you have to be on guard because of the bends in teh road before you arrive in Horringer Village.

Once in the village you can quickly venture into Ickworth Park and turning immeadiately left you can explore Adkins Wood.







Still muddy in many places it was a case of running from side to side along the track and skipping over puddles but at times with no option just plonking straight into the mud.

This is a run with lakes to visit on route. The first lake is known as the Fairy Lake and is always quiet in fact I don't think I have ever seen anyone there when I have run past.



















Close to the fairly lake is a duckboard footpath. It was really good to see that this has all been replaced. The previous duckboard in this muddy section had disintegrated to the point where the remaining boards were removed last year. The new boards are nice and solid and there is no bounce as there was on the old timbers.

The next lake which is more well known to any visitor to the National Trust site at Ickworth is the Canal Lake.





















In the photo you can see in the foreground a summer house , behind which there is a small vineyard which produces some fine qulaity English wine. St Mary's Church at Ickworth has been derelict for many years but there is a sign there now to indicate that restoration works are now being undertaken by English Heritage. In the background on the right is Ickworth House.

I ran very slowly today not entirely sure why but this run is more about enjoying the sites and there is always something different to see. For instance today a large school party were enjoying a wildlife trip to the park with a packed lunch.




















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Now playing: Augustus Pablo - House Raid
via FoxyTunes

Ickworth Park Lady Herveys Wood

9am 10.2 miles in 1 hour 22 minutes 51 seconds

Week to date mileage 33

Month to date mileage 99

Average weekly rate 31.7

Average Monthly rate 138

Year to Date 638

Life time 8416

I couldn't resist returning to Ickworth Park having spotted a pathway yesterday that I thought might lead to a large lake in the woods. I ran through Adkins Wood but took a turning through the middle of the woods at firepoint 115 which lead me over to Lady Herveys Wood and the lake that I have never visited before in Ickworth Park. The lake appeared very shallow and I imagine is much less frequently visited than the main canal lake near the summer house.

On the OS Map it appears to be twice the size of the canal lake but it is difficult to get an impression of this as there only appears to be a pathway at one end of the lake though I am sure on another visit I will take a look to see if I can run around it.

After the lake through the woods there is a pontoon or duck board slate bridge over a wet section. The boards are somewhat bouncy and I thought I was going to put my foot through a board though I am sure they are stronger than they look. This is a wet section it appears there is a stream or an outlet from the Canal lake down to Lady Herveys Wood lake hence the duck boards.

You emerge from the woods into open fields and rolling countryside with excellent views of the Rotunda House and St Marys church. Eventually you arrive at the red brick walls that surround The Bothy. On a rise over the canal lake there is a well tended national trust vineyard , a summer house and the brick house called a bothy.

I ran around this lake and then returned past St Marys Church and out of the Ickworth Grounds before returning home.

Ickworth Park Adkins Wood

8am 11 miles in 1 hour 28 minutes

Week to date mileage 22

Month to date mileage 89

Average weekly rate 31.4

Average Monthly rate 136

Year to Date 628

Life time 8406

The weather was a mixture of sunshine and showers as I set of for a woodland run around Adkins Wood in Ickworth Park. The run takes me along a footpath over farm fields through to Horringer village. Immediately inside the national trust grounds of Ickworth Park if you turn left and climb a stile you are into Adkins Wood.

Here there a multitude of paths that you can follow and I have yet to explore them all. I decided to keep to a straight path so as to go out 45 minutes and and back in the same time. I didn't quite keep to this as I ran out of woodland when I arrived at the road called Poulters Lane on the main A143 near to Whepstead.. On the OS map Adkins Wood becomes Lady Herveys Wood and then finally Lady Catharine Wood. I have realised now that I could have carried on over the road to pick up a path into Dovedenhall Wood, something to look forward to another day.

In the woods the tracks were wonderful and squelchy plenty of puddles and mud to dodge from side to side as I ran down the paths. I didn't see anybody at all during the whole run in the woods. I must venture back asap as I can see there is a large lake shown in Lady Herveys Wood that I have to see maybe tomorrow if time allows.

After my recent problems with running I felt a lot better for a longer run. There is nothing like it for sorting out your pace and breathing and for getting into a good rhythm

Adkin's Wood Ickworth Park Suffolk

9am 12.2 miles in 1 hour 38 minutes 18 seconds

Week to Date mileage 35

Month to date mileage 110

Average weekly rate 35.1

Average Monthly rate 152

Weather: Cool slight frost

On today's long run I decided to take a new path in Ickworth Park oe which I haven't tried before. As you enter Ickworth Park there is a stile on the immediate left into some woods which has some red and blue markers. The ground wasn't too bad but was sufficiently muddy
and boggy to dissuade and walkers from venturing here. There are one or two stone markers from which I learnt this is known as Adkin's Wood and was planted in 1800 - 1812.

I have had a quick look but have yet to find out anything about Adkins and who he might be.

There was a lovely view of Ickworth House and this ties in fairly well date wise with the wood as the house was started in 1795 but not completed until the 1830's by the eccentric Hervey Family.Have a look at the link it includes a virtual reality image of the house. The gardens were apparently designed by Capability Brown though this would mean the gardens came before this house was built as he died in 1783. This is possible though as it is thought there were at least two previous houses to the current rotunda house. Who was Adkins though? Anyone know of him?

The church is the wonderful St Leonards named after a French saint, Leonard of Limoges (the patron saint of prisoners). It dates from the 14th century and must have some Norman connection . However the Norman period of history in England dates from 1066 through to the 13th century and by the time of the building of this church England in the late medieval period was in the grip of black death. It was estimated that between one third and one tenth of the population died between 1348 and 1350. So why was the church named after a French patron saint of prisoners ? After all England was at war with France in a battle known as the Hundred Years War. This war was very costly and resulted in Richard II introducing a poll tax .

Eventually the peasants revolted against their landlords in 1381 and though this anarchy was put down it was remembered for many years . The local Abbot in Bury Richard de Cambridge was murdered. It is interesting to note that the when the peasants Revolt of 1381 was finally put down a national amnesty was declared but Bury St Edmunds was the only town to be excluded because of the scale of trouble and violence. According to a BBC Website it was during this period that English rather than French became the language of daily use. Some how I just cannot see how folks in this country ever spoke French on mass! Just try and compare it to today most people in this country cannot speak another language - I could try and try to speak French but basically I am too lazy and I would never use it. These were certainly changing times when the average person if he wasn't killed by the black death was starved to death through high taxes. The Church remained extremely powerful in putting down and controlling the peasants. Does the Church of St Leonards have anything to do with the Peasants Revolt? Probably not but running raises lots of questions!