So, off I went this morning...looking forward to getting out in the wind & biting cold...yes, I know, really??!! Yep, it’s true, it’s official, I LIKE WINTER!!! Well, you know, this half of winter when the sun’s out & the floor’s not slippy & being new to this running lark I have yet to see if the mid & latter parts of winter still make me look forward to the outdoor life!!!
This morning’s run was, well, just ok...I couldn’t get in the zone at all, couldn’t get in the rhythm or anything....it just wasn’t happening, so I just ran when my legs & lungs felt like it, sometimes fast then slower....There is a word for this....a Swedish word, Fartleks...yes, you heard FARTLEKS...that’s what I’ve done this morning...it doesn’t involve any wind as the name may suggest, it’s about playing with speed....google it, it’s interesting. In fairness to myself, I prob did run about 3kms altogether of the first run...& I did enjoy the running parts but I could not get past the toxic ten this morning....& on the home stretch I was over taken by my friend’s husband who must be 10 years older than me but he was off like a shot, very focussed with a look of determination on him that I can only imagine having on my own face when I have been birthing a baby....so, I just plodded on back to the car...when i got in the car it was already my plan to go over to the park when I got down home & have a little run round, just do another km to turn my unsatisfactory run into a more acceptable excuse for my red face....so that’s why I’ve run twice this morning...& it’s not the first time I’ve done this...has anyone else???? I don’t like these kind of runs, they bug me...but, I’ve been out...& feel better for it....happy running my lovely family xxx
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Mummycav
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I am with you on the running in the colder weather thing. A couple of my earlier runs were on warmer evenings (just into double figures), and I found myself sweating horribly. The colder evenings definitely help there, and I find it easier to breathe.
Fartlek is speed play....I will run fast to that point....then I will run slow to that point. Just keep going until you have had enough. No need for a second run. Fartlek can be a challenging session if done correctly.
To be frank, do you think you need to relax with your runs a little maybe?
I know you have had a difficult time recently but maybe you need to concentrate on you a little now. Run and have ‘me time’ perhaps. Stop putting yourself under pressure or running will become a chore. We don’t want that MC!
I don’t know why I do it? I sometimes feel like I need to prove myself to someone...but I don’t know who!!! I’m scared that maybe I can’t really run sometimes & that I’m kidding myself....I just want to run & run...
I think you probably can run... for what it's worth my learning is that some are good, some not so but I've never regretted going (apart from the time I was imitating the female olympic runners and tore my calf muscle. Oops.). As Millsie-J said tho: don't forget to look after yourself; running may be part of that but it's a thin line between madness and magic (as my husband says).
I saw your first run just before I went out for my run, and it cheered me to know you had felt like and been out for a run. I was going to run for 5k this morning, but my first split time, then the second one where so good..I decided to keep up the pace if I could and do 4k instead. Was pleased to finish with a faster than usual pace.
I usually do what you did and run some bits quicker, then slow for a bit, recover and push on. Im impressed you did them and knew what they were called..
Got home and see that you have run a second time😉...Go you a speedy 1.5k.
I asked if you are doing ju ju's 10k program, but realised that you probably want to do more consolidating and get up to that 5k again within your zone. That program could be a target for sometime next year maybe...
It wasn't too cold this morning and we both ran our little legs off didn't we😄..enjoy the rest of your day.😊xxx
We did...I like the thought of us both out at the same time 😉...I did think about Ju-ju’s plan but like you say, I’m new to all this & at the moment trying to run comfortably for 5k but that’s not happening...& it’s frustrating sometimes, like today...xx
It will. Just keep running and it will happen. I was the same with my sub 30 minutes park run. Always so close but... Then for no reason I did it twice in a row.
A..& you’re so kind & encouraging & inspirational &......well, the list is endless...thank you, I do feel useless sometimes though...like i can’t really ‘do it’ sometimes I’m so tempted to start at weak 1 x
Be kind to yourself, MC! You are a fabulous runner, and give me a beetroot face instead of a labouring face any day of the week! Who wants to relive childbirth when they go out for a run?
I think messing about with different speeds is great fun and a good way to be "in the moment" and perhaps also to make the most out of a short run. I did this on Monday as i knew the window of opportunity to get out there was very small, and I had a load of fun. My available twenty-odd minutes flew and I felt I got a good workout out of what was really such a short period of time. I wasn't very methodical about it - did the 30-20-10 second jog-run-sprint thing when I felt like it, with easy going shuffles in between. I was on a flat path (by the river) with a decent enough surface which made it easier.
Again, please please try not to be hard on yourself. Hugs to you xxx
I love your posts, such a great self-derision ability! And very impressive running: your first run would be good to me, not just an ok... As for the second run, I've found out that if I'm up to it, since I need to walk 15 mns from the park back home (at least, depending where I am in the park), I'm much more relaxed in the stride and I can actually run faster after a bit of walking to recover. Sometimes, I run not to be cold as my body cools down quickly (especially now with winter) and I usually feel lighter than during the first run. Thank you for the "fartleks" link, it's quite intriguing! Wish you some more nice, relaxing runs!
Lol..thankyou!!! I know my first run seems ok but I just felt disappointed with it...I can soon change that though with a quick jog round the park!!! Stop n start runs make me cross so I just had to go to the park to run constantly, I felt much better afterwards!!! Have a go at some ‘fartleks’ they’ll prob suit you 🏃🏼♀️🏃🏻👍🏻
Any run is a good run, well done for getting out there and giving it a go.... twice!! Do whatever floats your boat, you've got to try these things out to know what suits you. You know you can run 5km in one go, you are just choosing to do something a bit different at the mo.
I've become really bored with my route now and I know it's affecting my run for the worse. Maybe try somewhere new? You are still going, that's the main thing .
Duly shaking - had an attack of the Fartleks this morning myself, trying it out for Juju's 10k plan. Whilst I can't really do them full on, I can do a simplified version. It made the run a bit more interesting and took my mind of the tediousness of pounding the same streets. Any nice country parks or reservoirs near you? You need a nice view to keep you occupied
fartleks do sound like fun ... well done on a bit of fartlekking, whoever you were overtaken by! I can't add anything to the wise words on here though, but I hope you can give yourself credit for every run, you're great and to me you're proving that every time you get out, doesn't matter how the run is.
I had a friend at school who set the speed thingy on his boat (yeah a boat) to Swedish because it amused him no end that fart was swedish for speed ... "max fart" ... "current fart" (I know current probably isn't swedish for current >_<) ... hehe...
Hey lovely, don’t beat yourself up, you had 2 great runs today..!!
My neighbour birthed an 8lb 12oz baby on Sunday .... sh!t, I would NOT like to have seen her face during that ordeal 😱 ... much rather struggle to get to 5k any day of the week..!!
My youngest was 9lb 8 1/2 ozs when he was born, no pain relief either, loved every minute!!!!! I want to be awesome...& inspirational & all the positive things that people look for in a runner but some days I don’t feel like it & I need someone to inspire me...then, I only have to look on here & I am truely inspired by some of the journeys I read about x
Oh my good god...!!! 😱 I did childbirth (I use the term loosely) once and vowed NEVER to do it again... I didn’t..!!
Do you not appreciate that you ARE awesome and inspirational... every time you run, every post you put up and every supporting word you give to all of us... it’s all inspirational. Without you as one of my stalwarts, I would never have got through this..!!
So go and look in the mirror NOW, smile and say “I am awesome”..!!
.... because we all think you are, you should too 😘😘
Well done in spite of what you might think Mummycav :). You got out there and kept the habit going. Twice in a day! I've never tried these Fartleks, they seem to be quite popular now. You make them seem like fun. Think I have to look at some new routes as well. Went around the cemetery so many times this morn that my head is still spinning.
New routes or even old ones that you haven’t done for a while just break it up a bit...I haven’t run up n down the main road, past MacDonalds, greasy spoon, car wash etc for a while so might do that again next time out...give the Fartleks a go, you’ll enjoy it 😉
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🍏 Fartlek or Foolish
The unrecognised inventor of fartlek, 
