Today I opted out of a morning run because an extra hour in bed was far more preferable. It’s always more preferable, but the need for duvet far outweighed the benefits of getting my run out of the way.

I chose to do a 3 mile out and back along a route with which I have a mental block. The way out is fine, but I can never be bothered doing exactly the same route back and I end up adding on strange loops and extra bits. I’m sure that this doesn’t make it any easier and yet I do it anyway.

After yesterday’s sensitive Shuffle episode, I decided not to take any chances and when Show of Hands came on, I stuck with them. Never underestimate the effect that a fiddle can have on your pace, particularly when you’re listening to something like Galway Farmer. If you have a listen, make sure that you get to just after 3 minutes – I do a very good impression of “stamping hooves and steaming breath” at that part!

 

Day 25/31 –3 miles

Ferrero rochers burned

Janathon is clawing at the last few tattered scraps of my dignity. I’m not averse to nipping into town or wherever dressed in my running kit, but it felt a bit weird doing a full weekly shop round Tesco. Weird or not, the only way that I was going to avoid a Janathon fail was running home from the supermarket (while Ginge drove past me with all the shopping) so run home from the supermarket I did.

In all honesty, if it wasn’t for Janathon I wouldn’t have run today. If it wasn’t for Janathon, I would have just wanted to get the shopping done, have tea and hunker down for the evening. If it wasn’t for Janathon, I wouldn’t have had to run a miserable route (it’s along a bypass – what it bypasses isn’t particularly interesting, but is better than industrial estate to the right, housing estate to the left). If it wasn’t for Janathon, I wouldn’t have had really achy calves and Achilles that complained on every rise of the undulating path. If it wasn’t for Janathon, I wouldn’t have surprised myself by positive self-talking myself up the last incline despite wanting to give up (and I couldn’t give up and lose face after overtaking a man who took up the entire pavement, just by walking).

And if it wasn’t for Janathon, I wouldn’t have realised that my Shuffle seems to know just what I need, giving me Don’t Worry, Be Happy for the penultimate quarter of a mile.

Day 24/31 –3 miles

Ferrero rochers burned

Prevents Piss Poor Performance. Or some variation thereof. It took ages to plan today’s run; I didn’t want to run in the village, I wanted to go somewhere interesting, I didn’t fancy a route I planned last week because I think it should be reserved for nicer weather, I was happy to drive but not too far…

Unfortunately, I got busted and was told in no uncertain terms that I was spending too far long planning, instead I should have been out doing some actual running. After a bit of googling I hit upon a plan, only to realise that while it was a good plan it was also a 10 mile plan. I pondered for while, got changed and drove 2 miles down the road to cut 4 miles off the loop. Part of me is proud of coming up with this plan, part of me is ashamed, but there is no way that I could have done 10 miles without a lot of walking and some tears.

I only had a vague idea of my plan; straight on, turn left, hope for the best, run round a lake, return by the same route. Although I managed to find my way, I forgot to account for the number of hills and the fact that it’s not the most inspirational of lakes (it’s actually a reservoir). However, it was nice to go somewhere entirely new and I added on an extra quarter of a mile to make up for a bit of walking on the return uphills (alright, it was also because it started raining and my car was a quarter of a mile away).

All in all, I did enjoy today’s run. Not having a clue where I was going took my mind off things, the extra quarter of a mile made it the longest one I’ve done in ages and I just felt good afterwards.

If all goes according to plan, next weekend’s daylight running photos will not include trees or fields. Phew.

Day 23/31 – 6.25 miles

Ferrero rochers burned

Ah, daylight running! I feel very satisfied with today on all counts. Once I’d written my Stuff To Do list, lost it and then found it again, I managed a very effective morning and got lots done. Ginge was at work and when he arrived home, we went out to do the 5 mile route that he ran on Wednesday.

We live in the village where Ginge was born and raised, so every route is littered with historical significance (sometimes about the village, more often about where he and his mates used to hang around having a less than legal drink) and they take me on routes that I would never go out on alone.

Ginge (who has once again declined my offer to guest blog) remarked that he was finding the route easier today than he did on Wednesday. I put this down to the scintillating company and witty banter (he did agree that it was nice to have someone to point things out to), but more scientifically, Ginge reckoned that it was down to timing (afternoon instead of first thing). Apparently the optimum time to run is in the afternoon, unfortunately my head and my body disagree with each other on this one. I’m a morning person for doing things and if I don’t get things done then (including running) I’m much less likely to do them later in the day. I’m also more likely to get quite cross with myself for not doing them at the time that I ‘should’…

I really enjoyed today’s run. It took my out of my comfort zone in terms of time (Running at lunchtime? Surely no good will come of this…), route and terrain (Fields! Streams! Leaf mould! Stiles!), I got to spend some time with himself and I didn’t fall over (thank you to everyone who wished my knee well – it’s fine, unless I prod at it. I will stop prodding at it some time soon).  I also got to see the only cows in the village.

Unfortunately, I’m now sitting in darkness thanks to a very localised power cut (streetlights are on a few hundred yards down the road – conveniently this side of the pizza shop) and may never know what happened in Come Dine With Me.

Ooh, and the cumulative Ferrero Rocher count has gone past a century – 107 so far!

 

Day 22/31 –5 miles

Ferrero rochers burned