Last day of the recovery week scheduled into my 5k-10K app makes it a 30 minute steady run, so I'd promised myself this was going to be the day I ran up the hill behind one of the local farms. One of my friends and both agreed, at the beginning of this year, that running up it without stopping is something we could only do when we were a lot fitter. So I knew I had to get out there and get going first thing this morning (as long as it wasn't too hot already).
Except, I had a long day on my feet all day yesterday doing (admittedly) lovely things with my grandsprockets (they're 1 and 2) and my daughter, and actually what the gremlins wanted me to do was stay in bed a lot longer. I did finally get up though, found I hadn't turned my phone on to charge overnight, so had a drink of water while it got at least some charge. Then the dog and I headed out to walk to the farm, with the wind blowing straight at me.
The closer I got to the farm the more the gremlins poked at me: it's windy already, it will be even windier up there... you know there's a gentle slope you can run up instead that goes in the other direction, the wind will be behind you then...
Farm reached, I turned the app on, I could see the track the gremlins wanted me to take instead snaking off to my left, behind the horse fields. As I approached the gate to the path I should take, with the path the gremlins wanted me to take a few yards farther on, I still hadn't made up my mind, and then--
The gate was open! More than open, the gate is, in fact, broken. I wouldn't even have to stop walking to wrestle it open, and the path beyond looked cool and shady and inviting. I let the dog off her lead and away we went.
The last couple of minutes of my warm up walk got me a short way up the hill, and then I was running slowly (slow and steady wins the race after all) up the hill accompanied by the voice of Nigel Havers on BBC iPlayer.
Ladies and gentlemen, I did not stop. Not once. I greeted a fellow runner halfway up as he was running down and felt like a Real Runner! When I got to the pylon at the brow of the hill I threw my hands in air and shouted 'insert victory dance here' as I ran past it. Yes, really.
I slow ran along the ridge; I greeted another runner. I turned the corner and ran the undulating rutted path that lead me towards home; I greeted another runner!
I had to slow right down and backtrack a bit, just before the cool down section, when we met dog walkers as one of theirs was a bit OTT and my girl is a bit nervous, but still I did not stop \o/
It's only my regular 5k run, run backwards and it took me, maybe, about 5 minutes longer. But I feel like I really accomplished something this morning.
*points at picture* Nearly home!