My mile for Sport Relief

If I'd been organised I might have arranged to do this properly and actually register at a formal event and even get sponsors as that's the whole point unfortunately I'm not organised.

When I set off this afternoon I'd not even thought about Sport Relief to be honest with you, I just wanted to get this week 6 run 2, finally over and done with.  I got so far into my route and ended up on the street where my daughter's school is and I remembered that she and her school mates were all doing a Sport Relief Mile today though and that spurred me on and kept me going.  They're going to be having a great time as they can do their mile as a three legged walk, or a wheelbarrow walk with a friend, I was red faced and panting but if they could do it then so could I.

And I did !!

This is my actual route but not strictly accurate as the time includes my warm up walk but the GPS didn't pick up until I'd actually started running, and I stopped it at my cool down walk - which is why the loop isn't closed as it normally would be (I haven't magically learnt how to teleport to a starting point from my house)

So basically I ran 2.6k in 30minutes (that's a mile and a half but I did have the 3minute walk in the middle too) and look at all the lovely red (fast) bits on my map :)

So you can't sponsor me but you can still donate to Sport Relief or if you'd like to sponsor Emma for her mile, drop me an email!

Week 6, run 2 take 3

Unfortunately it wasn't a case of third time lucky :(

This was has me beat up to now and it doesn't make sense after being able to run 20 minutes non stop why 2 x 10 minutes with a 3min walk inbetween should be so hard..?  The first ten minute run is actually okay (surprisingly so actually) but that second ten minute seems impossible right now.

I blogged about the first attempt in my 'running in my view' post.  I tried again on Tuesday, managed 6 minutes of the last ten and then ran out of road - I know I could have (should have!) turned round and added a loop on for the sake of 4minutes but I just couldn't bring myself to think of that.  Tried again today and in my defence it was incredibly windy, I was okay for the first ten minutes, then turned a corner, the wind hit and it was just too tempting to take the short cut home again.  I just don't seem to have the determination I want / need to crack this this week.

To put a positive spin on this though, those 3 attempts have covered 10k in total, though not all running and according to runtastic have burnt 1,300 calories so that is a day of free food!

I'll try again at the weekend - fingers crossed for me please!

Running in my view

Odd title but it does say what I mean.  Rather than just enjoy the view from my window on Saturday morning I actually got up, got my husband to drop me off at Wentworth and ran home through the view that I usually just enjoy from my bedroom window.

So I set off at Wentworth Woodhouse.  On a clear day I can see this big house from my attic window and these lovely views are the main reason we actually bought our house back in 2011.

It was a lovely sunny day and there were quite a few people out enjoying the peace and quiet, later in the year this is a really busy path with lots of families heading up and down, enjoying picnics at Greasbrough dams and there are a number of geocaches hidden around the area too - though I've only managed to find one!

The problem with running along such a lovely route is that it is too tempting to stop and take photos, to try and capture the lovely stillness that you can feel as you wander along.  And so I ran my first ten minutes okay but my second ten minutes was kind of hit and miss.  I also don't like running past people with dogs who aren't on leads so that was another reason for stopping occasionally.  I'm sure there are very good dog owners out there but how can someone who can't even keep their dog to heel expect me to trust them when they say "He won't hurt you"?!


So I got photos of all the Wentworth Follies (that I can also see from my bedroom window) but from a different angle and then this lovely photo of the first glimpse of Greasbrough Dam (complete with finger in the top corner - I never said I was good at taking photos just that I like it!)

And here is where I tripped myself up a bit as in my foggy memory I kind of thought my route would hit the road here but actually there is obviously the length of a full dam to run / walk plus a bit more and that's not even including the walk home once I did hit road.

It wasn't a bad morning though - I did my first 2.5k in 24mins and then my second 2.5k in 41mins - in my defence the second half of my route was all uphill and along a busy road with no pavement so I had to keep stopping for cars as I was scared they wouldn't see me pressed into the hedgerow.  Then I rang my husband and he and my daughter met me on the ridge above our house (where I ran last week) for a slow meander home.   It was a lovely start to the weekend and one I definitely will repeat.

Tissues at the ready

No I'm not going to make you cry but it seems the hayfever season is upon us and bleurgh to it.

I just went out for my second run of this week - week 6, run 1 if you're keeping track, and I can't remember the last time I was so snotty and my eyes are nasty and itchy too.  So I'm going to have to have my pockets stuffed with tissues from now I guess as today really wasn't pretty!

Decent run otherwise 1 x 5 minute, 1 x 8 minute and a final 1 x 5 minute with 3 minutes walking in between and the usual 5 minute warm up / cool down either side.  I went back to an older route and it was amazing to see myself carry on running past the point I used to want to collapse after just a 60 second burst.

Slow and sure but getting there!

The start of spring - in my step?

So the warm weather is wonderful after such a cold, crappy few months and it feels lovely to be out in the sunshine but OMG, it's not as easy to run when it's hot.  I never ever thought I'd say it but I did find it easier when it was cold and raining - maybe it was motivating to keep running and get back indoors when it was horrible outside?  Though that leads to the premise that the sunshine would make me want to run for longer to enjoy the warmth more and I'm afraid that isn't the case, I still want it over and done with as soon as I can!

Anyway, I can thank the sunshine for making me get up early yesterday and enjoy the start of spring.

Sunday's route

This photo doesn't really do the view justice as while it's not the best view in the world, the feeling of being out on a Sunday morning was fab.  I was quite high up looking out across to Wentworth, the sun was shining, the sky was so blue, there was hardly any traffic noise and it felt so easy to breathe up there if that makes sense to anyone?

I don't think I'll have this route as a normal running one though as to reach the footpath I do have to walk up what is usually a very busy road with no pavement and it's a bit scary to be honest. I will however wander up there on the occasional non-running day just to take a break from my desk when I need it,  as it was lovely. Although actually, as this is the view from my bedroom maybe I could just go stare out of my window and get the same effect :)

Monday's route

Today I stuck to my usual road run and managed to run for 20 minutes, it felt even warmer today.  It's incredibly bright too and while I do have those magic glasses that go dark in the sunshine I have got a headache from the glare now I'm back home.

I also felt like I was cooking so next time I'll be running in short sleeves again and maybe even start looking for some cropped running trousers.  Thank god I never see anyone I know when I am out there!

What have you given up for Lent?

Despite my Catholic schooling I haven't done the Lent things for years.  My children come home each year with a list of things they're giving up - this year my son outshone himself and has decided to give up going to the supermarket with me and eating any food that isn't a pizza .  Kind of missing the point there Sam don't you think?

My daughter is doing a bit better, her class are completing little tasks during Lent to help them count their blessings.  So to support her, this year I'm giving up being half arsed!  For the next 40 days and 40 nights I will stick to my 1,200 calories a day intake and I will run 3 times a week and I won't allow myself to make any excuses not to do this.

You've all heard me now so I can't back out.  Well if you've read all my blog you might have heard me say very similar before but at this point in time I am very determined and it's the now that counts.

So today was week 5 run 2.  2 x 8 minute runs with a 5minute walk in the middle and at either end to warm up and cool down.  I actually went over on my ankle as I crossed the road before I started my first run so I'm surprised I managed this one, I thought I'd given myself the ultimate excuse there as you can't run when your ankle doesn't work can you?  But no, I carried on and it was okay, I surprised myself.  Let's hope I can say the same at the weekend when I'm planning my 20 minute run again!

Getting back on track

I'm feeling determined again - it's easy to tell I've fallen off the running wagon recently as I've stopped blogging too but I'm back!

The sun was shining this afternoon and I think the fact that I spent all day yesterday in bed feeling crap has actually given me more energy than usual.  I was just going to take it easy but thought I may as well put the week 5, run 1 podcast on to listen to and see if I felt up to it regardless and it went better than I thought.

I added a new tiny loop on at the beginning of my usual route so by the time I got to my second run, I was back to the place I usually would start run one.  Mentally this felt ace, especially when I got to the final run and realised that was it.

So 3 x 5 minute runs today with 2 x 3minute walks in between, starting and ending with a 5 minute warm up walk (plus a bit extra on the way home as I ended up further than 5 minutes away - or I walked really slow once I heard "stop, that's it" which is actually more likely)

Not bad, I'm pleased with this one.

I'm going to repeat this again on Thursday and then again once at the weekend before moving onto week 5, run two.