W4 under way

[richardvc]

Good Morning

Apologies if this is the same old same old that everyone else posts !!

I just like getting my feelings out and don't mind if no-one either reads or replies to it !!

I have just completed run 1 of week 4 and was surprised just how much running was in it - I know it is a running programme BUT 5 minutes continuous !!!!!

I got through much better than I expected and my recovery is getting quicker and quicker which is very encouraging.

I also track my runs on runkeeper and today covered 4.78km in 36 mins and 6 secs - only 220 metres short of a 5k and I walked some of it too !!

I am so pleased.

So my next target is to get 5k under my belt even if that means walking that little bit extra.

The only problem is where I live there is little or no flat running - it is all uphill or downhill and the timing of the runs seems to make me run uphill and walk down !!!

Anyway, excuse my ramblings. 5k here I come.

[dagshar Graduate]

Well done. 5 minutes may sound much at that point, but you were ready, weren't you?

[richardvc Graduate in reply to dagshar]

Dagshar - I really truly hate running but I was more than ready.

BUT this challenge has got me motivated and I won't be giving up any time soon. I have the remnants of a cold and can't wait to see how I perform once that has gone.

For all my bluster about hating it though, I think deep inside is some part of me that feels smugly satisfied and may even enjoy hating it !

Does that make sense ?

By the way, thank you so much for the encouragement.

[dagshar Graduate in reply to richardvc]

I know exactly what you mean. It is an odd mix of hate, enjoyment and feeling of achievement that contributes to an overall love of and addiction to running. I still don't enjoy every run, often find it hard and sometimes wonder why I think I can do this (only during a tough run though ), but then there are times like when I did my 5k trail two weeks ago and was running through woods and on paths with glorious views over the countryside, that it did feel exhilarating and enjoyable even though it was physically challenging. It's not the thought of the London marathon that appeals to me, but running in beautiful settings like the Northumberland coast or the Welsh mountains that drives me.

All the best for the remainder of the programme.

[poppypug Graduate]

Well done Richard !

Yes I understand totally what you mean This running lark gets well and truly under your skin. There are times when you cant wait for your run to end and times you don't want it to stop !

Sounds like the running bug is biting !

Keep going , youre doing great and keep posting xxx

[richardvc Graduate]

Thank you Poppypug.

I like your dog !!

The great things is one of the guys I work with is a runner - Brighton Marathon etc etc

He and I are friends on runkeeper so he knows if I have been out or NOT !! RK notifies him as soon as I post any stats so I cannot lie or cheat. He is watching !!!

I also have to text him as soon as I have completed my run.

In essence I have Laura in one ear and Carl in the other !!

With backing like that, how can I fail ??

Ps This forum's great too !

[poppypug Graduate]

Ha ha ! Oh there's no hiding place for you Richard , all bases covered

Its great that you have a mate to support you and yes , you have got all of us on here

Good Luck for the rest of the programme ! xxx

[Rignold]

Just keep in mind that the challenge is to run continuously for 30 minutes by the end, not to run 5k. Distance and speed are not an issue. stamina is.

[richardvc Graduate]

Good point Rignold.

Thanks for that.

The stamina is improving every day though and that is something that I really like !!

[misswobble Graduate]

I just got back from the Northumberland coast Daggers! I wish that I could have been fit to run. I had my route all worked out but I still can't run cos of my stupid leg!!!!! Note there Richard, go steady. It's all about running within your capabilities and not getting carried away with speeds, distances or times! It's about building up your strength and stamina over a long period so you are safe to run without injury for the rest of your days

It's all about being strong all over. Your body always seems to be a bit behind your running legs so give it time to catch up, which is why we take rest days between runs. Building up your core and upper body - as well as your legs - will mean you can run safely and hopefully without injury. We all pick up niggles at first as our bodies adjust to the new stresses.

It's great fun though and running take take you places you never thought possible

[Idolitorus Graduate in reply to misswobble]

Sensible advice for us all Miss W. Made me think twice about going for a slightly longer distance than prescribed by the podcast, this evening.

I have just taken an extra rest day due to a calf niggle then, as I am feeling better I was contemplating being silly again. Nope. Follow the plan. Slow and steady. Wk9 will be here before I know it.

[richardvc Graduate]

Thanks misswobble.

I haven't had any niggling injuries as apart from being overweight I am still reasonably fit and mobile.

I take the point about being strong all over and have some kettlebells which will be dusted off and used but have to sort out my diary so I can work them into my routines.

I do shiftwork so working regular times in is impossible so it requires some thought and preparation - I can do it but no days are the same.

BUT I also believe achieving small goals at a time is a great motivation tool and is how I live my life so that won't be changing.

[gary_bart]

You're going quite fast for Week4, so maybe you're pushing yourself closer to the edge of your limits than the rest of us are? That would mean you're paying for the speed in suffering, which it's fairly easy to hate.

I suppose if you're very goal-driven (and don't enjoy stopping to smell the fox poo on the labradors along the way) then maybe you just have to suffer. Happiness for you lies somewhere up there at the end, and it's not available along the way there, so you have no option but to drive yourself till the goal is achieved?

(I'm pretty sure I exaggerate; I'm trying to think more about the different ways life might run, rather about you in particular. I mean for all I know, you might be secretly working on building up to eat the biggest pizza ever consumed by a human being, and you just have a hobby of inventing fictional runners to come and share what they would have felt, online - just like I'm actually the grandmother of seven dwarves, and I live in Uzbekistan, but don't like to admit that)

Waffle, waffle. Thing is, we each of us need to make do with whatever motivators are immediately on hand, to achieve what we can convince ourselves are reasonable goals. The way that washes out is some of us are just going to have to hate it till it's over. (And sometimes kind-of enjoy that.) It would be easier to not miss runs if it was the desire to go and run that propelled you onto the roads, but whatever works for you, works. (And if you come forward to honestly declare your hate like this, you actually give courage to the closet run-haters out there, who've been sitting on the sides too embarrassed to admit that they have found no hippy bliss in torturing their legs like this.)

[richardvc Graduate]

Gary_bart I think you have hit the nail on the head.

I guess that I have the long term goal in my sights - weight loss, fitness, wellbeing and a sense of accomplishment by conquering something that I NEVER ever thought I could do.

How I get there is almost irrelevant and to be brutally honest I guess that I may not exactly hate the running but the fact that I am totally out of my comfort zone.

By concentrating on what I really want to achieve is pushing me on every time I put on my kit and get out the door.

Thank you all. The great thing is that I can come on here talking rubbish and one of you decent people takes the time out to respond for MY benefit.

Your help is quite awe inspiring and I hope to 'pay it forward' at some stage.

The power of forums !