Done it!! Week 9 Run 3 at Farmoor Reservoir in a beautiful sunny morning!

[iain-strachan]

And here's the full mobot to prove it!

I can honestly say this is one of the best things I've done. At school I hated running, and I was very un-sporty - always the number 11 batsman, and made to field in a position that didn't matter too much, always the last person to be picked for the football games etc etc.

Week 1 - I never believed I'd be able to do 30 mins given the struggle it was to run for one minute at a time. But I'm delighted to have got through it - not repeating any runs, and not having to stop when I was supposed to be running (apart from once for a few seconds when I got lost!)

And this community has been an immense inspiration - just to read people's inspirational stories and reading of folks overcoming struggles, gremlins etc.

Next thing is to attempt to run 5k (today I covered just over 5k including the warm up walk, and the 5k Strava gong went at about 38 minutes after the start of the workout. I actually ran for 31 minutes so I could catch up with my wife who was walking across the bridge path across the reservoir.

I'll try and post some observations later about what I've learnt - but at the moment I'm just too ridiculously chuffed to see that little grey icon saying "Graduate" after my name to put down anything coherent.

[Burrows79 Graduate]

Well done runner 🏃‍♂️

[KimLoulou Graduate]

Well done. Enjoy your sucrssd

[SueKen Graduate]

Well done Iain!

[spinner2017 Graduate]

Awesome well done

[Bluebirdrunner Graduate]

Woo hoo...hello Graduate Iain😊...

Congratulations on completing the program in style.✋👏👏👏👏

🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

Happy running..

[iain-strachan Graduate in reply to Bluebirdrunner]

I still can't get the silly smile off my face?

[Bluebirdrunner Graduate in reply to iain-strachan]

Its a great moment to have captured on camera too Iain.. good planning.

Looking forward to hearing what you do next...

[iain-strachan Graduate in reply to Bluebirdrunner]

I have to admit the mo-bot was posed and pre planned! I was wearing the phone on my arm during the run. My wife walked round and took the short cut path across the reservoir so in the final moments I turned up this path and ran to meet her, total 31 mins. Then we put the phonecam in burst mode so I could pick the best one out. I might be able to make an animated GIF out of the 73 frames it captured.

[iain-strachan Graduate in reply to Bluebirdrunner]

The plan is to do the Abingdon Parkrun next Saturday. During the week I might have a practice at actually running for 5k. I'm thinking it will take me about 36 to 37 minutes at current pace. Want to spend some time consolidating 5k runs before trying anything longer.

[louisep76 Graduate]

Yay!!! I bet you're over the moon. Well done

[iain-strachan Graduate in reply to louisep76]

I think "over the moon" sums it up pretty well. I didn't expect to feel this good about finishing. Is this normal? 😃

[naedoot]

Well done

[Millsie-J Graduate]

Congratulations graduate! Lovely shiny badge 🎓🏅💪🏻⭐️

[Hidden]

Fabulous job Iain! I remember the feeling so well. You have come a long way and the world of running is opening ahead of you......

[Karina1976]

Absolutely fantastic, such and achievement and well done . Hoping this will be me in just over 2 weeks x

[iain-strachan Graduate in reply to Karina1976]

I'm sure you'll make it. I think once I'd cracked 25 minutes on Week 6 Run 3 (dreaded it before!) I kind of knew that I had one week to get used to this, then the increases for Week 8 and 9 to 28 and 30 minutes respectively looked very doable.

[runlikeagirl Graduate]

Excellent. Well done! 👍 👍

[Hidden]

Well done graduate! You're a runner now!👍😄😄

[Sandraj39 Graduate]

Congratulations! What a great post and what a fantastic place to run too! Good luck with the next stage of your running journey! 🙂

[Pizzola]

Well done Iain, you seem to have enjoyed the whole experience!

[Martin_Rose Graduate]

Well done you, I've just done run1, week 2, hope to be where you are up to soon, great achievement.

[ancientrunner Graduate]

Well done - and join the rest of us who can't work out why we left it so long to become a bit "sporty".

[Gillma Graduate]

Run-gratulations!!!!! So good - love the picture. You sound unstoppable .

[Curlygurly2 Graduate]

Just brilliant! You are allowed to be chuffed, in fact it's obligatory! I'm glad your photographer agreed to be there, that's a super shot, and what a lovely place you run in! Congratulations and welcome to the grads lounge. And thank you for sharing your journey with us, I've enjoyed your posts! Don't disappear now, stick around and let us know what you get up to next xx

[PaulaHud46 Graduate]

Congratulations ! Amazing! Well done! I'm fully expecting to bawl when I do it 👊

[Rolavery]

Well done that's amazing!!!

[Lastlight Graduate]

Congratulations, a great achievement.

[figmeg Graduate]

Hurray! It's my last one tomorrow - I had to have 4 attempts at W9R2! Hopefully tomorrow will go a bit more smoothly . . . Well done!

[iain-strachan Graduate in reply to figmeg]

Good luck!! Let us know how it goes.

[figmeg Graduate in reply to iain-strachan]

Thanks! I did it! Hard work and only 4k but onwards and upwards! Off to get my badge now . . . .

[iain-strachan Graduate in reply to figmeg]

The badge suits you!

[figmeg Graduate in reply to iain-strachan]

Haha!

[Decker]

Nice work Iain! 👍🏼

[Mee07]

Well done and a massive congratulations. 👍🏻👏🏻🏃 🎉

[Bonkersbrit Graduate]

So pleased for you!👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼Enjoy the raw, child-like , all encompassing feeling of personal pride. Somehow, I think we forget how to feel emotions like we did as kids......until we learn to run!!!

[iain-strachan Graduate in reply to Bonkersbrit]

I think you absolutely hit the nail on the head there about feeling emotions like kids!

See this well-written Guardian article: theguardian.com/lifeandstyl...

Here's a particularly good bit from the article:

Running brings us joy. Watch small children when they are excited, at play, and mostly they can't stop running. Back and forth, up and down, in little, pointless circles. I remember, even as an older child, I'd often break into a run when walking along the street, for no reason.

...

Racing along out on the trails, or even through the busy streets of a city, splashing through puddles, letting the rain drench us, the wind ruffle us, we begin to sense a faint recollection of that childish joy. Somewhere a primal essence stirs deep within us; this being born not to sit at a desk or read newspapers and drink coffee, but to live a wilder existence. As we run, the layers of responsibility and identity we have gathered in our lives, the father, mother, lawyer, teacher, Manchester United-supporter labels, all fall away, leaving us with the raw human being underneath.

....

I just love that bit about all the labels all falling away - as if we are shedding the baggage that we normally carry around.

[Mimirossi Graduate]

Well done Iain! So pleased for you!

[McFitty Graduate]

What a lovely graduation post. Fabulous picture! It quite takes you by surprise doesn't it, that elated feeling of pride and accomplishment? I remember thinking 'I feel like I've just conquered everest'. I didn't get rid of the silly smile for days.

Huge 🎈🌻CONGRATULATIONS🌻🎈Iain

Party on😊

🏆🍧🍹🍻🍷🎉🍰🍸💥🌻🎈🎓🎓🎓🎈🌻💥🍸🍰🎉🍷🍻🍹🍧🏆

[iain-strachan Graduate in reply to McFitty]

Thank you! You've just put the silly smile back on my face again! Now then, I must try harder to be serious & get on with my work! Parkrun next Saturday I think! Maybe a practice or two during the week at actually running 5k rather than just for 30 mins.