Keeping light

I never thought I’d say this but I’ve become a running convert. I even miss it if I don’t get out now a few evenings during the week. My friends and family will tell you that myself and the world of running has had somewhat of a patchy past! I was a member of a club when I was seven years old but I never quite found my distance and lurched between sprints to long-distance. Most attempts at competitions resulted in sudden surges of adrenalin and a very queasy tummy. We parted ways for a few years shall we say!

Well, all of this changed for good in January when I began to train for a half-marathon. Don’t get me wrong it wasn’t easy…at all! I had evil stitches for weeks at the start of my training, shortness of breath and a real mental barrier of ‘I’m not able to do long distance’ to address before I got in the zone. Believe me, if I can get fit enough to enjoy running, so can you!

So why the sudden change from being a very occasional 2-3k runner to putting a half-marathon medal around my neck in April you ask? It’s all down to my other half! We set each other New Year challenges and my half-marathon deadline really made me face my slight fear of running. What challenge did I set him in return? A climb over the 02 arena which is on the hit list this summer!). Don’t worry, there will definitely be a post about that when we do it!

Running clears my head, gives me energy, I sleep better and even with niggly injuries and falls (…the cuts have just healed after a recent tumble), I find that nothing will put me off running now.

If you are getting started, try and find a friend of partner to join you and run as a pair. I know that I couldn’t have completed my race without support and it was the laughs along the way that kept me going when my knees hurt and motivation dipped! It’s good to run with an experienced runner who can set the pace and notice bad habits you might have picked up (I have a tendency to get very heavy on my feet and scuff when I’m tired, which can lead to trips).

I run to clear my head, to chat, to unwind and more importantly to get out and take notice of how nice our local area is. We live right on the doorstep of two of the nicest parks in London, so tonight even though I was shattered after work and the couch was calling,  I went for a quick run. Nothing too extravagant, just 20 minutes but now I have that little pat on the back feeling and it’s lovely.

My task for my runs over the next few weeks is to stay light on my feet and lift my legs higher…even though all I want to do is veer off and join one of the many picnics that are dotted around the parks these warm evenings! Nope, tonight I stayed focused and here are are my happy feet below after tonight 🙂 Now for the couch!  xx