Monday 17 April 2017

Strength training.

Today I am not running as it is a strength training kind of a day.

I decided to follow a body coach kettle bell workout on YouTube. I like to have someone to copy when working with weights as I'm not yet confident in what I am doing.

It was a pyramid style workout with

10 press-ups
10 dead lifts
10 shoulder press
10 squats
10 lunges

Then into 9 of each exercise before 8 of each all the way down to do 1 of each. It's tough but I did it with jelly legs by the last few reps of lunges. All of this should make me stronger and ultimately a better runner.


Sunday 16 April 2017

Freedom

Today I got up and went for a run before starting the day. Whilst running I realised that this is the first time in 3 years I've not had a marathon to train for. I didn't need to worry about my training I am running because I want to therefore this was a 'free run' I could do it anyway I liked.

This thought made me run as fast as I dared Sienna steep hill then I played The Lamppost Game. I ran at an easy pace for the space of one Lamppost then as fast as I could for 3 lamp posts. It felt good and I enjoyed the run. Heck I may even get up in the morning and have another playful run!





Did you manage an Easter run?

Saturday 15 April 2017

Park Run

I'm not gonna lie, I don't like park run. it's hilly (well my local one is anyway), it's laps and I have to drive to get there. So a 5k run takes me around an hour and a half with travelling. Those are the main reasons I don't often do it.
So last week I had no excuse as I was staying down in Brighton ready for the marathon on Sunday, it turns out the hotel I was staying in was literally opposite Hove beach park run. It would be rude not to partake then wouldn't it. So I got up put on my running gear and stepped outside and into park run. It was flat, it was on the beach and it was hot. The runners were friendly, in fact as I was stoods watching the waves another runner, Dennis, came over and introduced himself. He is friends with a runner from my club and he recognised the vest. We had a chat for a few minutes before it was time to get going. I quite enjoyed this as park runs go. At the end another runner came over to speak- I have met her at some of the marathons I have done so a quick catch up and good luck as we were both running in the next day's marathon. Then just as I was leaving another runner came over having spotted my club vest and introduced himself, he knows Steve from the club. Small world.
I guess this is one thing I really like about Parkrun. I don't get to them often but it seems when I do everyone is happy to chat and they are very welcoming.

This week S had gone to stay at Nanny's house so as I had no children to think about I decided to go to park run. I'm not gonna lie I wasn't feeling it when I got there. It was overcast and looked like it was going to rain, it was windy and I was freezing. 1 mile in I had warmed up enough to remove my jumper- what a contrast from last week it was! I plodded around at a nice comfortable pace and came in at 26:32. That'll do for a first post marathon run. Another runner from the club came up at the end and said thanks- I had passed him near to the end and he decided that he was going to give chase and although he says he didn't catch me he did get himself a new PB, it's nice to think that I helped someone else, even if at the time I was clueless just in my own little world at that point. I have to say as much as I usually don't like prk run I didn't mind it at all today, wouldn't go as far as to say I enjoyed it but it was OK.

Do you PArkrun? What is your local course like?


Friday 14 April 2017

Hello

Hi,

I am creating this blog to help document my fitness journey and help to remind me to look for the positives in life. Sometimes it's all too easy to get bogged down in what we don't do rather than what we do do. So here's to a positive start!

I like to run, well most of the time I like to run! Lol I do do a fair amount of running. I have been running for a couple of years now, in that time I have gone from a couch to 5k-er with the NHS podcasts to completing marathons. 11 of them in fact. Now I am not a fast runner but I do get the job done. My last marathon was last weekend (9th April) when I ran the ludicrously hot Brighton marathon. It was a tough run in the heat but with support from my running club I got there. The same could be said for most of my runs.

As well as my running I want to improve my general health, that is I want to improve what I eat to be more healthy and I want to develop more strength in my body. Not beefy Arnold Schwarzenegger type strength but general muscle usage strength.

What are your goals? What do you enjoy doing?


Strength training.

Today I am not running as it is a strength training kind of a day. I decided to follow a body coach kettle bell workout on YouTube. I like...