Running for eight minutes - TWICE!

I made sure I had a good nights sleep last night so I'd feel good and ready to run this morning, I was actually looking forward it which is an amazement in itself.

Like yesterday I went for a long walk again away from home so that when I actually started running I'd be heading back towards the house and this really does work.  I wasn't worried about anything, wasn't thinking about anything other than enjoying my run and enjoy it I did.

That was 2 x 8 minute bursts of run with a 5 minute walk in the middle and it was great.

The feeling of coming home and kicking my trainers off was even greater though :)

Starting again for the Nth time!

To be strictly accurate I have never actually stopped running altogether but instead of the 3 runs a week I promised myself and was sticking to initially, I dropped to only 1 run a week which even I admit is just rubbish.

Checking my run history on runtastic just now shows I did 12 runs in January, 11 runs in February, 15 runs in March, only 9 runs in April and a shameful 4 runs in May :(

Today was good though and I feel positive again.

I have realised that one of my biggest stumbling blocks (other than being unable to run uphill while living in a very hilly area) is that I HATE running away from my house.  So for example if I'm running in a circular route and there is a short cut back to my house, then all I'm thinking about as soon as I set off is whether or not I should take that short cut. Then on the off chance I don't take the short cut, instead of feeling proud of myself I just feel terrible thinking of how far I'm running away from my house (daft I know but I can't help it)

So today rather than just the usual 5minute warm up walk expected on the couch to 5k plan I walked for 15minutes taking me much further away from home so then all my runs could be towards my house and then last run would be on a gentle slope so even less pressure.

And so I did week 5, run 1 which is 3 x  minute bursts with 2 x 3 minute walks in between.
That covered 2.3km in 24minutes which while slow is good for me so I'm happy again.

Now I just have to keep that up again and with a bit of luck, come August when I head off on holiday I'll be taking my trainers with me and running next to the sea which has been one of my dreams for a long time :)

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!