No snails were harmed in the making of this 10k .....

[Tartancat]

.... as they were all well ahead of me with no chance of being trodden on.

Why was that run so hard yesterday? Right from the start I struggled with my breathing and my legs.

1st k - across the potato field and it was hard work

2nd k - still hard (though when I checked my stats when I got home that was my fastest 1k split ever, so that might explain it. Funny how running on tarmac can make such a difference to speed)

3rd k - all uphill, and guess what? It was hard

4th k - the slippery downhill section was still slippery, so I had to run along the side of a ploughed field instead, and that was .... not easy.

5th k - took a bit of a wrong turning, but at least the track was grassy and flat.

6th k - gave in and walked for a minute - I think I felt that I'd managed 5k so it was ok. But in my head I know it wasn't.

7th, 8th and 9th k - walked 4 more times. Near the end of the 9th k I was stared at by 2 horses, who then took off across the field, as if to show me how it should be done. Show offs!

10th k - ran it all - hoorah! But actually that last kilometre was slower than the previous 3 - go figure!

But on the plus side, it was a lovely route, I didn't get rained on, and I made it home in one piece.

I've only got a half hour lunch break tomorrow in which to run, and I'm highly tempted to go back to that stretch of tarmac to see if I can go faster still!!

[Bluebirdrunner Graduate10]

Beautiful picture Tartancat. Well done on your 10k adventure...

Hope your legs have recovered for your next run. xx

[Tartancat Graduate10 in reply to Bluebirdrunner]

Thanks Bluebirdrunner, the legs are feeling fine now. I think they were just having one of those days!

[over61andstilltrying Graduate10]

Well done to you! All those different terrains add variety and the route gave you lovely views. i'm a view runner! Oh! I just called myself a runner! Well whatever next! Well done again. Hard or not you ran! 😊🏃‍♀️

[Tartancat Graduate10 in reply to over61andstilltrying]

You ARE a runner! And running up the hill in the picture is a future project where the views are better still!

[over61andstilltrying Graduate10 in reply to Tartancat]

Do you have a running app that advises you of your elevation gain? I find all the data from my free running app amazing. It is not completely accurate, but still so interesting. My last run recorded 272m elevation gain ( a record for me), no wonder I was seriously slow! So well done again on your run with a potato field, uphill stretches, slippery parts together with route finding problems. Stops or no stops you ran lots, 10k no less!! I stopped loads of times during my last run to take photographs, all part of the running fun. When I want to achieve a distance record, I make a no stops allowed rule, but even with stops we have both put more miles (or kms) in our legs which prepare our legs for more running. Happy running to you!

[Tartancat Graduate10 in reply to over61andstilltrying]

Wow, 272m elevation, that's a lot of uphill! The hill above is just 100m elevation over 1k, which is about a 1 in 10 slope. Walking it is is hard enough, but little by little I'm able to run a bit further. Maybe by this time next year......!

And I agree with you, no stops allowed when trying for a certain distance. Next week will be better!

[Crawlhome Graduate10]

That's a gorgeous view Tartancat. Well done on another 10k, amazing work😁

Are you sure about running again tomorrow? I needed two rest days after my 10k this week!😄😄

[Tartancat Graduate10 in reply to Crawlhome]

Just a short run today so should be OK. I know what you mean about taking an extra rest day though - I had to do that after my first 10k - it was a shock to the system!

[Bluebirdrunner Graduate10 in reply to Tartancat]

Ha,I took a week off after my first 10k! Having just done Ju Ju's 6 week plan to get there I was very tired! but oh so happy 😁xx

[JonathanP Graduate10]

Hi Tartancat, sounds quite a challenge particularly the ploughed field! Yes my PBs have all been on tarmac - I should really mix it up more.

[Tartancat Graduate10]

Getting off road is brilliant. You know there's no chance of a PB, so there's no pressure, you can just relax and enjoy your surroundings.

But for speed, tarmac is the way to go!

[misspelling]

Well done for your great run.

I recognise those hills..... I recently graduated the C25K by running around the flat roads of the town at the top of those hills- I haven't ventured off the top and down the sides yet in my running !

[Tartancat Graduate10 in reply to misspelling]

Well I'm at the bottom and haven't even made it half way up! One day we'll have to meet in the middle!