Tired

Miles I am supposed to run: 6

Miles I actually ran: 5.25 very slow miles 

Really tired today. Glad I made it round, but was a struggle. Time for a bath, a good book and an early night. 

Night Night!

To my European friends

Miles I am supposed to run: 0

Miles I actually ran: 0

I wanted to try and keep this blog politics free, so it could be my happy place to warble on about the things I love, mostly running, food and wine. However, I felt so sad today, that I wanted to post something on current affairs.

Today was another rest day, and so I went for a drink after work with a few friends, all of whom were from different EU countries. Chat very quickly turned to the recent referendum, and it made me feel pretty rubbish to be British. 

I am white. I am British. I am middle class. While I voted to remain in the UK, the outcome is unlikely to have a massive impact on my life personally in the immediate future. I know many people voted to leave, as they believe that the UK is a strong, independent country, and can manage on their own. I am sure that as a nation we can make that happen. This isn't about hating the "other side." 

Times may be uncertain at the moment, but my overriding emotion following the result isn't anxiety, but sadness. Sadness for my friends, who now feel so unwelcome in a country where they have worked just as hard as me to build a future. 

So I want to say to all those from the EU living in the UK that I am sorry. I am sorry that the UK voting to leave Europe has left you feeling unwanted. I am sorry that many of you have gone to great efforts, having to redo or go to considerable lengths to translate your qualifications to work here, and now you feel like you have to leave. I am sorry for the racism and hateful comments that have been directed at you, or you have had to witness being directed at others, or that you worry may come your way soon. I am truly sorry. I don't want you to leave.

As a country we need to "Keep Calm and Carry On," but we also need to remember that we still need those from the EU, they are our doctors, our lawyers, our engineers, and without them carrying on might become a lot more difficult. So lets be compassionate and stop being nasty and hateful. Just have an open conversation about what's going on, and how we all work together, with our friends and colleagues in the EU.

Normal blog service shall be resumed tomorrow, as I have a 6 mile run to do in preparation for my race on Sunday!! 

Oh look. It's raining again.

Miles I am supposed to run: 6

Miles I actually ran: 3 (Got home late)

Puddles in my hall: 4

Why is that when it rains, every single Londoner feels the need to get in their cars all at the same time, and then drive really really slowly!! My commute home was infuriating! Some people even felt the need to create new lanes, or swap lanes 3-4 times in a 100m stretch. 

As a result I only managed to do 3 miles in the pissing rain today because I got home so late. Probably a good thing though. I kept slipping on the kerb, and nearly falling in to cars/big puddles. I am also now really quite soggy.

Where is the summer!? It can't be this wet forever!...maybe I should start thinking about building an ark? 

OMG A MOUSE!!!

Miles I was supposed to run: 5

Miles I actually ran: 5

Decided to run a different route today, through a few parks, just to mix things up a bit. I took it a bit slow, because my hypochondria has kicked in, and I've convinced myself I'm catching shin splints. 

So I was ambling along, admiring the view of the Thames on a summer's evening; listening to the Tough Girl Podcast and imagining that one day I too will be an amazing ultra runner. When I saw it. A rustle in the bush. Another rustle in the bush. Then out shot a tiny creature. I let out a silent scream, and bolted as fast as I could along the path. Focusing straight ahead of me, terrified of what might be scurrying along behind me. Then, after a fews seconds, I bravely looked to my right...and saw a tiny bird flying along side me. 

I am such a fool. I kept running fast, before casually slowing down again. Trying to make it look like I had been doing sprint training, and this was totally intentional. Hoping nobody would realise I had just run away from an imaginary mouse!  

Sunday, Muddy Sunday.

Miles I am supposed to run: 5

Miles I actually ran: 6

It's always a struggle to persuade myself to get up early on a Sunday morning to join my running club for a Sunday morning run. This morning, however, it was totally worth it.

It was nice to escape the modern world for an hour and run around my local common. Listening to the birds, and stomping through the mud. I got nicely splattered in the stuff, and was very proud of myself for not slipping and falling in it. 

I shall continue to try and be calm and zen for the rest of the day, and ignore the chaos that seems to be unfolding around me...although I have a sneaky feeling that I will resort to drinking wine in the sunshine later to help that process along a bit! 

How not to run a half marathon

Miles I am supposed to run: 8

Miles I actually ran: 0

Croissants eaten: 2

Struggling a bit to motivate myself at the moment. I had hoped keeping this blog might help me to keep going with my running after the Edinburgh Half Marathon, as I'd need to run in order to write the blog. However, it turns out I can write rubbish just as well as I can talk it, so the actual running doesn't seem to matter. As a result, that plan doesn't seem to be working as well as I would have liked! I just seem to be so good at coming up with excuses not to run! "It's too hot," "It's too humid," and "I have a slight twinge in left shin, maybe it's shin splints. Better be careful and not run." 

So today I have decided to sign myself up to another race. I had had a brief conversation with a friend about running the Amsterdam Half Marathon. But today I have decided to go for it, and booked my place. Now I have announced here, I will have to go through with it!

I ran my first half marathon last year. It wasn't only my first half, but also my first race, and I think I made every mistake you can possibly make in a race! I started the race having only done about half the training I was supposed to have done, and I had no idea what would be a respectable time for a half marathon. I decided on a time in my head that was completely unrealistic. I seemed to believe that the adrenaline would turn me in to Paula Radcliffe on the day, so it would all be fine :). 

I stood on the start line, feeling over confident, and bolted off with all the fast people near the front. After 3 miles, I realised the mistake I had made. After 8 miles I was really tired and threw a massive tantrum, texting Mr Runner to tell him how awful the whole thing was, and I was NEVER doing it again. At mile 10, there was a MASSIVE hill. I had only trained on the flat of the Thames path, so that was a bot of a shock. Mr Runner bribed me with the promise of cake and crisps, so I pushed myself to the finish, but vowed I would never put myself through it again. 

A bit like child birth, this pain was very quickly forgotten about. So a few hours later, feeling annoyed and frustrated at myself for not getting the time I wanted, and still high from finishing, I was desperate to sign up for another one. Mr Runner did not believe that this was such a good idea, stating that I had been a pain in the arse to live with throughout the training (he was still a little bit grumpy about the fact I had eaten all his scampi). However, after much persuasion and a little bit of bribery, he eventually let me sign up to another race, and I ran Edinburgh this year. 

Mr Runner is much more enthusiastic about Amsterdam, as I have promised him a trip to the Heineken factory. 

Comfort Carbs

Miles I am supposed to run: 4

Miles I actually ran: 0

Glasses of wine consumed: Many

Not really feeling up to running today. So I am comfort eating Mac 'n' cheese and drowning my sorrows in lots of wine. 

Tomorrow is another day. Tomorrow I will join the rest of the country rolling up my sleeves and getting on with what needs to be done. Today, however, I will be sad. 

Running in the Rain

Miles I was supposed to run: 3

Miles I actually ran: 3

Puddles jumped in: 7

It's been a rubbish, stressful, and frustrating couple of days. The traffic to and from work has been a nightmare, resulting in me being late 2 days in a row, and when I'm at work I seem to be going from challenging meeting, to challenging meeting. To top it all the humid weather is causing me to have more spots that an adolescent on a diet of chocolate, KFC and McDonalds. So after popping out to vote, I went out for a quick run in the rain. 

There is something cathartic about running in the rain. As I go round it feels like all the frustration from the last few days is been washed off. Maybe it's because I'm Scottish, and so grew up in a place where rain was the norm? In fact after being away at university in the south of England for 2 terms, when the heavens opened one day, and it started to chuck it down with rain, I suddenly realised how much I missed it! Or maybe it's just because I'm a bit strange!?

Anyway, I now look like a drowned rat, so I think it's time to dry off, and settle down in front of Netflix for the rest of the evening. It's nearly the weekend everyone! 

Bad run day

Miles I was supposed to run: 8

Miles I actually ran: 4

Crap run. Don't want to talk about it, and it's not really worth recording. 

I did take some nice pictures of the Wimbledon Tennis Club though.

Week 4 Day 2

Miles I was supposed to run: 5

Miles I actually ran: 5

This is how today went. 

Home. Probably should get this over and done with.

Mile 0.5        I'm hungry

Mile 1           I'm tired

Mile 2          Poor little Scottish girls cannot run in this heat and humidity

Mile 2.5       Ooooo two police bikes chasing a scooter down the road

Mile 3          Bugger. This is a big hill. Why did I go this way. Oh well, I'm sure it'll be worth it.

Mile 4          Wheeeeeee. Downhill! Bye bye boys! Girl Power!

Mile 5          I LOVE RUNNING!

Home. Time for food! 

How To Deal With A Hungry Runner

Miles I was supposed to run: 0

Miles I actually ran: 0

Pizzas eaten: 1


Today is a rest day. Yey! Mr Runner and I enjoyed a nice glass of wine in the sunshine and went out for dinner. I enjoyed a tasty pizza. Carb Loading! 

Mr Runner is not actually a runner. However, Mr Runner has dealt with a lot from me, and my running over the years. He has always supported me, waiting for me at the finish lines of all my races, and making sure I eat properly while I am training. 

Mr Runner learnt fairly early on that good nutrition is important for my running. And for him to have a quiet life. In particular, there was  one day, when I was training for my first half marathon, when Mr Runner informed me he was going to be late home. I had just done a 6 mile training run, and was not happy with this information as it meant I was going to have to wait for my dinner. I decided to cook and eat the family sized packed of scampi in the freezer that he was saving, as it was his favourite. Just to spite him. 

Mr Runner was mostly just very confused by this, so he went to the pub with his friend to get some dinner. I went to bed in a state of guilt and shame. At least I wasn't hungry any more. 

The moral of the story is, don't make me wait for food!

Will Run For Cake

Miles I was supposed to run: 5

Miles I actually ran: 6 :)

On Sunday's I run with a local club. We all descend on one of London's many commons and irritate the non-running local population by taking up their parking spaces, and generally getting in their way. 

After slogging up and down more hills than I'd like this morning, and I suspect getting a little lost (hence the extra mile) we all went to the local cafe and eat cake! I like cake, and the reward of cake definitely got me round the route this morning. In fact I have may have mentioned multiple times, how much I wanted cake as I went round.

One of the nice things about running with other people is peer pressure stops you from giving up and going home after a mile. You can complain about the hills with the other runners, and it feels like you are all in this together! As well as running with other people, and a feeling of camaraderie, there are also the added obstacles of other people's dogs, who get very  excited when they see a group of runners, and have a tendency to bolt towards you with large sticks in their mouths. I find this breaks up the monotony of trudging round my local streets nicely. 

Anyway, home now, and time to move on from cake to bacon! Happy Sunday! 

I run like a duck

Miles I was supposed to run: 12

Miles I actually ran: 8 (3 mugs of tea and a cereal bar apparently didn't get me quite as far as I wanted to go!)

Minutes spent watching myself run in front of the mirror: 27

I will often look to the side as I run past shop windows, and see myself running. I think to myself, how strong, athletic and awesome I look. Today however, I got a bit of a shock. I saw my reflection as I was hurtling towards a bus shelter and realised...I run like a duck. 

My legs seem to flail out to the sides, and I look so un-aerodynaic, I'm surprised I manage to get anywhere. Although I guess my unique running style has got me this far, I think I might go and spent the rest of the afternoon inspecting my running technique in the mirror. So if anyone has been trying to contact me. Sorry, I'm a bit busy!

Obviously, as a feminist, I shouldn't care how I look, and I should be proud of what my body can do. I shouldn't give in to social anxiety, and worry about what other people think. But I can't help it. Although I mostly think it's all just  a little bit funny! 

So I will be out tomorrow, doing it all again!

Happy weekend running everyone! 

The beginning....

Miles I am supposed to run: 4

Miles I actually ran: 0 (It looked like it was going to rain...)

Glasses of wine consumed: 2 (off to a good start)

Most people look at me, and assume that I must be a natural runner. It must be easy for me. I'm slim,  I'm relatively fit, and I'm not very good at sitting still.

This is not true.

How did I become a runner? I'm not sure. When I started secondary school, I remember having to do cross country every year. I was appalled at the idea of having to run round the entire playing fields, so used to walk as S.L.O.W.L.Y. as possible, just to make a point. I grew up in the North of Scotland, so the weather was usually freezing. I would insist on doing this wearing just my P.E. kit, and I'd usually end up frozen, which just made me hate running even more. I'm still not sure what point I was making.

I decided to make my first attempt at running when I was a post graduate student. I had no money for gym membership, but I felt that I should do something to get fit, so I decided to run. I'd seen other people do it, and it looked pretty easy, so I thought why not? I bought a pair of plimsoles for £5 from town, dug out an ancient pair of legging and a baggy t-shirt, and off I went...around the graveyard across the road, where I was fairly confident nobody would see me. It was horrific. I doubt I even managed to run 1km.

It was a few years before I decided to venture out again. I had started a my first grown up job, moved to a new city, and all my new housemates were on a health kick. So I felt I should join in. I started off by going to the gym after work, but I found this boring, and I decided to give running another go. I bought proper trainers this time. At the start it would take me 30 minutes to run/walk 3km, and I felt completely broken at the end of it. Not a quitter, I kept going, and slowly I actually started to enjoy running. I found it a really helpful way to manage stress, and keep a little bit of my crazy under control! I slowly started to notice that I was feeling calmer, and more able to deal with the difficult situations that were often thrown my way at work.

I have since moved to London, joined a running club, and completed my second half marathon at the end of May this year.

I decided to start keeping a blog of my runs so that my family and friends can see that I'm no more of a natural runner than them. Anyone can run. I'm not special. I don't bound off like a gazelle every time I lace up my trainers, run 20 miles, and come back looking like I've just been for a gentle stroll in the park. I wanted to use this blog to document my running highs and lows, and hopefully give anyone who bothers to read it a few helpful pointers on what to do if you want to run, and probably a lot more on what not to do!