So I haven't written much lately, mainly because I haven't ran much.
So what can I tell you? Well about 4 weeks ago I acquired a minor injury which put me out of training for a week and I went away and whilst I had every intention of running whilst away, I had no room in my luggage for running gear. :(
So I thought maybe a break from running would renew my love for it a little and get me fired up again! Whilst I was away I was still walking around 3-4 miles a day and swimming so I suppose that could be classified as cross training. By the time I returned I was so excited to go for a run I felt pretty insane and after a lacklustre 4 mile run I was disappointed. I think I was just exhausted from travelling. For the rest of the week I made as many excuses as I could (rather than face up to the fact I was just exhausted) and only managed 2 more little runs with the dog.
Running with the dog is a fun way to run. It's slow so I don't time it and I try and incorporate playtime in too so he doesn't get bored. When I first ever took him for a run he seemed to not enjoy it but now he just absolutely loves it. Everyday when I put my running gear on he waits in anticipation to see if he's joining me today. When he does join me he bounds around like a fool and I do to.... we go out cross country, wade in the rivers and play chase me. It really is the best time I ever have with him, it's our bonding time.
And once we are sufficiently muddy and we can't sprint anymore we plod home. Whether we've ran 1 mile or 4 miles when we reach the 200 metres from home mark he goes into 'I can't possibly walk another step' mode. He isn't tired, I know he isn't, as I said its just a certain point he does it whether we've covered a mile or 5.... so everyone looks at the poor dog who is utterly exhausted! What a cruel owner I am! I personally think he does it to keep our fun run times our secret. So when we get home he bounds to life again for a few minutes to thank me and get exciteable when I do my lunges then he passes out for the evening a very happy dog.... now we just need to get my husband to join to make it perfect! I wholeheartedly recommend running with the hound (or Joggies as we like to call it) it's fun, no timers, no pacing, no seriousness, just good old playtime and covering 3 miles whilst you are at it!
So after a week of fun running I'm back on the serious stuff now. Inspired by the Great North Run I'm now craving a new challenge, I have a 10k in a few weeks and another half marathon end of November in which I hope to nail my target times for the year (sub 53 10k, sub 1:55 half). After reading a few articles about marathon training I have discovered that if you are running what I am on a good week (20 miles in the week with a long run of 10-12miles) and you are consistently doing this it is possible to run a marathon with extra training over 4 weeks. Now I wouldn't go that minimalist I think the commitment to marathon training wouldn't be anything like it was last time as I have the fitness to run 13 miles at the moment (maybe more). Being so injured last time I was constantly playing catch up. So I think I may do a marathon in Spring with the hope of just upping training for 6 weeks and see how that works for me..... I have nothing to lose really. My London Marathon experience was hampered with injuries and my time, whilst ok, was disappointing to me so now want to prove to myself that I am a sub 4:30 runner because I know I am! So It's safe to say, I have a renewed zest for running again :)
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