Weekly running round up - 4 runs, 11 miles and a few tears of elation

Today is a biggie. I've just completed a 5 mile run (5.5m including warm up walk)!!!

I like to acknowledge the big and small achievements and I've just got to note this one.

I hadn't done a long run since my 4.5m run two weeks ago. As it seems to go, I get excited about the prospect of a long run, then as the time gets closer, I get a little nervous. It didn't help when I woke up at 5am and started worrying that I hadn't got enough sleep and I wouldn't have enough energy to run.

After initial panic, I did get back to sleep...until 10am. Then I was worrying I wouldn't be able to fit everything AND a run into the day!

I made sure I ate enough in the morning to get me through the run in the afternoon. I didn't want to not complete the 5 miles just because I hadn't fueled up enough!

The time went fairly quickly - I'm learning not to keep checking my watch for time/miles! A new challenge was the wind. It was pretty strong today and at times I really had to push against it. I ran mainly on the paths that were more sheltered from the wind this time.

When I first checked my watch I had completed 2.3miles. Almost half way there! When I checked again it was 3.7miles - only 1.3 miles to go, less than 15 minutes. And when I got to 4.7miles I knew I was going to do this for sure! That's when I started getting really excited - I'm actually going to complete 5 miles.

I did keep an eye on my watch at this point....4.7 miles, 4.8 miles, 4.9 miles......5 MILES! And I promptly burst into tears. I wasn't expecting that to happen! Where did that come from?! I just felt a big surge of pride at my achievement. I wish there was someone there I could have shared that moment with. I was elated! From being pretty much sedentary for the last few years to being able to run 5 miles....that's no small achievement. They say self praise is no praise...I don't always think that's true - you've gotta give yourself a pat on the back from time to time!

Of course as soon as I got home I had to send a tweet out. Twitter, well, my twitter friends to be precise, play a big part in my life and to have friends there to celebrate with really means a lot. Thank you so guys and girls! xx

So here's today's map and stats. I didn't record the .5 mile warm up walk as it took that long for my gps watch to pick up a signal -boooo.









I had a couple of great questions from my twitter friends which made me think about today's run and running in general.

Fiona asked, Was it more of a mental struggle or physical?



Hmmm.... Physically it was of a battle against the wind. That was a new experience and presented a different type of challenge of pushing through it and not letting it blow me around! There's always the Toxic Ten minutes at the start of any run so I know I just have to run through that and I'll start to feel better. At 3 miles I felt the beginning of a blister, but although I was aware of that, it wasn't enough to slow me down (only a tiny blister upon post run examination).

Mentally, I always have a positive talk with myself as I go around. Lots of "you can do this! you've done 1 mile before, just do that 5 times! You have eaten enough - you have go enough energy for this. It's not a hill, it's a slight incline!" That type of thing. I also let my mind and imagination wander....I tune into my music and think about the week ahead, plans to make, blogging to do, work, friends, and the big dinner I'm going to have when I get home! lol


Libby asked, So what was the turning point that made you get - and keep - the motivation to crack it this time? What is your secret?

I had to think about this for a few minutes. Great question!

What made me get going? I'd made a new years goal of doing more physically. Due to working for myself the last few years I've pretty much been in front of the computer screen. I've been aware that this isn't healthy but always made the excuse that I didn't have enough time - work comes first. Which I know sounds absurd - health comes first of course! I didn't have my priorities right. And if I don't look after my health a bit better, then I will make myself ill and definitely won't be able to do my work and follow my passions and achieve my dreams.

What's keeping me going? A few things. For a start I know I'll feel worse if I start skipping on exercise and making excuses. I'll be on a slippy slope back to square one again.

Then there's the personal challenge and the achievements, and I really believe you have to acknowledge even the smallest of achievements - even if that's just putting your trainers on and seeing what happens when you get past the front door.

As this is my personal challenge. I only have to answer to myself. Though I must admit that making myself accountable in public on this blog does help! But I set my own goals and I'm not doing this for anyone other than me. I haven't entered any races as I simply don't want to, certainly at the moment.

I'm enjoying see what my body and mind can do! It's easy to underestimate what we can achieve. I think this is a mental challenge as much as a physical one. I go through a range of mental 'states' with running. When I think about the runs I have planned for the week, I get excited. As the time comes closer to getting ready to go out, I have to push myself at times. When I am out there, I'm already doing it. And when I get home, I never regret making the effort.

Tracking my progress is a great motivator too. When you can see achievements, however small they may seem, they all add up. Whether someone has never run before and completes 30 seconds of running non stop to someone who can run for miles and miles, every step counts.

I'm not sure I have a 'secret', but a combination of the above keeps me going. And if I ever have any doubts I'll make sure I come back to this page and remind myself!

Thank you for the questions!

Here are the maps and stats for this week. 11 miles in total.

Hula Hooping news!

I've ordered my OWN hula hoop! Julia, the teacher, is going to customise it for me in my favourite colours, red/silver/black. I can't wait to get my hands on it and have the option of practising at home when the hula mood strikes!

My friend Fiona pointed me to these amazing (and different!) hula videos. I think you'll enjoy them!

Fat Boy Slim - That old pair of jeans

Hula Hoop song - it's a bit mental!

And now it's time to chill out for the rest of the night! :)

Weekly running round up - 10 miles reviewed

Well, I met this weeks goal of matching the 10 miles I ran last week!

I've had to break up the 10 miles into 4 runs. Ideally I'd like to keep to 3 runs per week. There's a couple of reasons for this.

I get more satisfaction out of 3 mile runs than 2 milers or 1.5 as I did today. With the shorter runs it feels like I've just got going and it's time to stop. It seems to take me .5 miles to get into the run. It's like I've shocked my body into moving and it has to catch up with the change!

Secondly, time. It's simply more time efficient to fit in 3 runs as opposed to four when you take into account the getting ready for a run bit and recovering afterwards.

So this week, I'm going to do my best to complete 10 miles in 3 runs instead of 4. And I also have a big preference to running earlier in the day rather than the evening when I'm usually getting a bit tired. More on that later.

I think you may need to click on image to see it bigger

Monday - 2 miles

A wee bit of a struggle. Body & legs felt heavy and like I had never run before! If you want to interpret the chart, the higher spikes are where I have slowed down and/or taken a walk break.

Although I try to avoid hills or rather inclines, it's a bit impossible around some streets where I live. However I am pleased that I talked myself into powering up an incline that moments before I was going to walk. There's a lot of self talk and encouragement that goes on at times!







Weds - 2 miles

In the rain! I actually love running in the rain. It didn't bother me one bit when rush hour evening traffic ran into puddles and splash me! This was a better run and body and mind were with me on this one. "Bring it on!" I was thinking as I deliberately splashed into puddles in the street.

It was a little bit of a rush though as I had to get home, shower, change and shoot off to hula hoop class.









Friday 4.5 miles!

.5 mile warm up walk THEN 4 miles WITHOUT STOPPING!!

I only slowed down for a minute to change the battery in my mp3.

I LOVED this run. It felt really good. Nice and easy. It was quite windy, but the rain stayed away and the sun even came out for a little while.

The only downer about this run was that at the last .5 mile I developed a blister. This was despite taping up my blister prone areas - the tape has slipped out of place. Ouch.

And it was only when I got home that I discovered I need to get a new sports bra! The ones I have were when I was 30+ lbs heavier, and although they felt fine and seemed to do their job, they were obviously not the right fit. So I am now a proud owner of a Shock Absorber!




I decided to get arty again with my warm up walk. It kinda worked. Sort of. It's a running man!

To keep things varied and not just run around in circles I though I would try and run on all the paths in Cannon Hill park. I actually went over the sames paths more than once due to the mileage I wanted to do. A loop around Cannon Hill on the outside paths is almost a mile.

Sunday 1.5miles

This was just a quick run to bring my total up to 10 miles. I wish it had been a bit longer, but I really don't want to over do it. I had also put a special blister plaster on my blister before my run, but like the tape, it has shifted out of place by the time I had finished.




And this is a map that combines all the runs I have completed this week.

So! Another week, another 10 miles. I'm happy with that! In fact, it's quite hard to believe at times.

Another lovely benefit I'm discovering after a run is a runners high! All those endorphines I didn't know I had are springing into life lol. Also, and it comes as no surprise, I find myself going to bed a bit earlier. It's strange to actually listen to my body these days. Resting is just as important as exercise and I need to allow myself the time to recover from these runs.

My goals for this week are:

Complete 10 miles (maybe 11) in 3 runs.


Make my weekly long run 5 miles *gulp!*


Address my blister issue - more plasters or new trainers?


Run earlier in the day, and not the evenings.

I've had some great responses from my twitter friends. Lots of encouragement and advice. And even had a few tweets from twitter friends, like this one from David Webb saying I've inspired them to get their trainers on and go out for a run!



Good luck with the running guys and girls - we can do it! :)