Sunrise

In Africa , when the sun rises the lion knows he must run faster than the slowest gazelle if he is to eat and survive another day.

The gazelle knows that when the sun rises he must run faster than the lions if he is to survive another day.

So, it doesn't matter if you are a lion or gazelle, when the sun comes up you need to be running.

Postcard from afar

Well, I have done it and been getting out running ! The temperature during the day here is well over 30C so I've been getting up at the crack of dawn when it is cooler.

I have found a 3 mile circuit I can run on dirt tracks through the olive groves, it really is a beautiful feeling to be out running and watching the sunrise with the Andalucian mountains in the distance.

Again, I get to see far more of the area because I run :)

Leaving on a jet plane.....

Well, this time tomorrow I will be on a plane heading somewhere hot and sunny.... Not on holiday but for work. I still haven't packed, need to take my car to the garage to leave it with them to repair and have a whole host of other things to do...

I'm not sure if I will get any running done while I'm away ( I hurt my shoulder yesterday so moving my right arm much is a bit painful ) and also it will be HOT and I have never been a great fan of running in very hot conditions. I will take my trainers and running gear (and sneak in a head torch because my only free time is likely to be when it is dark...)

I'll try and post a few iPhone photos because it is such a beautiful area that I will be visiting but I know I will be very busy. I've been looking forward to this trip for a while but when I get back I need to get back in to training for Hell Down South ( please someone remind me why I entered it !)

Barns Green Half Marathon

Well, yesterday I ran the Barns Green half marathon. I wasn't expecting a brilliant time because I haven't put the training miles in that I would have liked to but I really enjoyed the race :)

I followed my normal pattern of walking through the water stations to make sure I drank properly, after a very long day at work the day before I knew I was a bit dehydrated before I started the race so I really didn't want to make it worse.... Because I didn't plan to run and race to get a PB I slowed down to high five the children at the side of the road who had turned out to cheer us on and chatted to other runners on the way round; on the whole runners are a very friendly bunch, it doesn't matter how fast or how slow you are we have all turned up to do the same thing. When you look at a bunch of runners together you see a real assortment of sizes, shapes and ages.... Along with a real mix of clothing, I think Gok and the other fashion gurus would have their work cut out to make runners look fashionable, we all end up with our favourite or lucky items of clothing that we wear in to the ground....

I was one of the lucky ones whose chip time actually worked (note to sports systems, don't keep screwing up the timings, if you get my marathon times wrong I really won't be a happy bunny) and I finished in 2:01:34 which is only about 2 mins slower than my PB from earlier this year that was after a lot more training on a flat course !

Could I have pushed myself harder and got a PB ? Quite possibly, but I wouldn't have had as much fun and for me the enjoyment of running is a very major part, if that isn't there then one of the main reasons I run has gone...

Anyway, at the end of it I got a nice shiny medal for my collection :)

Somewhere over the rainbow.....

Well, it has been a real mix lately, in more ways than one !

The weather has turned back to being quite unpredictable even though it isn't really that cold and I'm still struggling to fit in as much running as I would like !

Tomorrow is my next half marathon, I don't doubt that I can run the distance but I haven't done the volume of training that I had planned to do a few months ago. But a few months ago I didn't know that I would be quite this busy with work or have a dog !

I'm still getting out walking with Millie every day and I'm really looking forward to when she can start running with me. We had some friends come and stay this week with their two Cockapoos and if they are anything to go by then Millie is really going to enjoy running :)

With the rain we have had lots of fantastic rainbows, I've taken a few photos on my phone but somehow I can't quite capture how beautiful it really looks from the top of the Downs..

Anyway, wish me luck for tomorrow and enjoy these photos.

Be Yourself....

Although I haven't been running as much as I would like I have been walking about 3 miles every day with Millie.

It was really lovely to be able to get out for a long run on Sunday over the South Downs. I'm still really enjoying running without music and tuning in to myself and my surroundings.

It is easy to compare yourself to others; look at how fast other people run, how far they run and how it seems effortless... But all we actually see of people is the little bit on the surface, not everything else underneath.

We are not all going to break records like Paula Radcliffe or Mo Farah but you can't have a winner if there is only one person in a race. I love taking part in some of the larger races and seeing the wide variety of people that run for just as wide a variety of reasons. People who want to beat their own times, people that want to beat their own daemons and people that run for a cause.... The people that look like they've stepped off the cover of a glossy magazine at the finish, the people in fancy dress and the people that look REALLY glad to finish.

We are all different :)

I have stopped chasing times and I'm just enjoying the running, savouring the scenery and enjoying the conversations with other runners, cyclists, dog walkers...... and the pigs. I have found myself starting to chat to the pigs that I run past, and the sheep, and the cows. I don't know if this is a habit I should worry about (or maybe I should only start worrying when they reply !) but the pigs in particular always look so chilled....

Anyway, these are the pigs on Sundays run :)

Go placidly.....

Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there
may be in silence....

I'm back to running without music, just to enjoy the scenery and
sounds around me. We all live busy noisy lives and it is easy to miss
the beauty of silence; just the sound of your own feet and breathing
is, somehow, therapeutic. It gives you a chance to sort out this mad
world in your head and appreciate what you have in life.

This is a photo from one of my evening runs....