So what next?

So as a full time and full term runner now what kind of challenges do I set for myself when I have achieved my biggest running goal!?

After suffering a bout a nasty post marathon blues it became very apparent that I needed to set some new goals.... and quickly! As previously mentioned marathons are out of the question for at least a year, I want to enjoy casually running again and when you have a marathon on the horizon there is a lot of pressures on you and your life and my husband was well and truly neglected so I'm going to stick to more manageable distances for a while. But before I do that I am determined to run these 'barefoot'!

When I say barefoot I mean in a pair of Vibram 5 Fingers as I am not blessed with a beach on the doorstep! I have been starting to train my feet and legs in a pair of diving shoes (which actually rate higher for barefoot protection on most barefoot sites). I wont lie it is hard work but its making me a confident and faster runner. The feeling of not 'needing' to rely on the support of a trainer is amazing but it does mean you are working muscles that have been barely worked as they've been wrapped up nicely in a supportive shoes. So at the moment the calfs are killing but after a week of barefoot running my calfs are much more toned, my ankles feel stronger and there is something slightly satisfying about working the muscles in your feet! I am gradually building up my inbuilt support system :)

The most notable perks have been the change in my speed, after months of stagnating I am finally getting faster which is great, especially for 10k races!! More importantly my injuries are no longer niggling at all, I haven't had the slightest twinge in my knees, shins or ankles which is making me more confident to go for it!

As i have to build up the training slowly I had to run in trainers today and it wasn't all bad, I was half adopting the forefoot strike and the confidence in me was brimming. I wasn't as fast as when I'm bare footing but I'll happily take a sub 55min 10k which I ran still aching! So where next?

As well as running I have taken up cycling and was due to race a 50mile cycle ride with my husband but we have discovered it'll be nigh on impossible to get to the start line with our bikes....grrrr. So next up is a 5k fun run which I hope to be one of those 'she's taking it so seriously' runners... why not? I bloody do...lol! Then in July I have the Newark 10k which I haven't done before but is my kind of race, smaller field, local and a chance to meet other local runners! Hopefully after running these races barefoot I will be ready to run the Newark Half Marathon in August, again a lovely well known race with a smallish field and even closer to the house :)

So that's the plan at the moment. As well as that I will be taking up pilates again to get that core visibly toned in time for holiday at the end of August...... now do I keep running in Turkey??