Week 8 done !

[HillsEverywhere]

So I'm done with week 8 and ready for week 9 ! How on earth did that happen ?

I loved week 8. After an awful week 6 and a rather meh week 7, I wondered what had changed to make running so enjoyable, when I had struggled to have fun since W5R3.

And I thought back to something my tutor had told me when I was a timid beginner at my job and completely lacked self-confidence. He'd said that the inner discourse – the way you talk to yourself – was key. He'd said that if I began something with a negative inner discourse ("You'd better be careful or you'll screw up, and don't go forgetting things like last time"), I was setting myself up for failure. Positive inner discourse on the other hand ("You've got this, you've already done harder things, remember Mrs X told you she likes the way you do this") was a real booster.

Then I realized that what has changed is my inner discourse when it comes to running. I've stopped giving myself "pep talks" to get out of the door. I've stopped dreading what comes next. I've stopped pressuring myself. Not because all of a sudden I've become a particularly good runner (I'm not, and next week I'll probably graduate from C23K rather than from C25K), but because, as I once did with my job, I've accepted that this is who I am as a runner and, as long as I'm moving, it is good enough. So now when I head out for a run, I'm not thinking "you'd better get your fat behind moving", I'm thinking "let's greet the new day !" And it works. Even when my legs are not at their best, like today, I find things around me to take pleasure in. I congratulate myself for small victories – getting to the top of a hill, not twisting my ankle on a pebble-y bit, getting rid of a stitch...

And this is in great part thanks to this wonderful, positive, supporting community, who is so good at noticing all these small successes (which are probably as important as the big ones) and helped me make that inner switch.

So, thank you ! You've all helped me to become someone who enjoys running, and that was a much bigger challenge than getting me to run for an amazing 28 minutes

[AJ77]

Well done!

[UnfitNoMore Graduate]

Well done and great post. It is the little victories that make the bigger ones. Victory lap time... 2 extra minutes is tiny. I’ll hopefully not eat my words later when I do it 😂

Enjoy the 30s, it’s what we signed up to be able to do.

[Oldfloss Administrator Graduate]

It happened... because.. you did it... You.....you ran every run... the rough and the smooth.

A huge well done on every single level... You have got this just right...

I wrote in a past post..when we think of the runs.. think, Delight not dread... Anticipation not apprehension...and Wonder...not worry!

The way you are doing this works.... and yes... you are a great runner... and will only get better and better...you will reach the 30 minute runs, having enjoyed all the runs to the podium... and what will be afterwards, will be... but I can tell you this... for you...it will be fantastic

Thank you for this post!

[sunshinefish Graduate]

This is great to read. Thank you, and good luck with week 9 next week!