Hello running people
Slip off your shoes and grab a cushion!
Here we are running towards the end of June. Hard to believe it I know.
Well, the view from the Corner today is a really different one... blue sky, blue sea and a breakwater that stretches almost to the horizon. Bliss!
I thought I would post this today, before heading back to our regular Catch-Up Corner
So, how has it all be going with everyone. I have been reading some incredible posts, from all of you. Our new runners, heading towards their first big goal, our more seasoned runners, heading the same way for a second, ( or even third time, and some of us moving forwards to our next goal. I managed a super short run on Wednesday before hitting the IC on a course of antibiotics! But, that gives me even more time to read your awesome posts!
It has been good to see, that many of the new runners amongst us are reading each other's posts and taking the advice to read some of the excellent pinned posts which give so much useful information.
The biggest recurring theme with our Newbies this last week has been Week 5 and Week 6... but the pinned post from IannodaTruffe , Week 5 Myth Buster, has set many minds at rest.
If you are in the Corner with us for the first time, please do make sure you check out the pinned posts and check out some past Corner posts too.
Now... my photograph, and the cryptic meaning of the words in the title of the post ?
Well, I have shamelessly borrowed a phrase from the NRC running app I am using right now, and tweaked it a little The breakwater shot, which I took on my run on Wednesday morning, seemed ideal as an illustration.
Every Finish Line is a Starting line and every Starting Line is a Finish Line.
What do I mean by that? I'll explain.
Each one of us, when we begin C25K, have come to a Starting line. The start of a whole new part of our lives. It is something completely new, and far, far in the distance, ( oh yes, it seems a really long way away), we can just, if we are lucky, see that Graduation Finish Line
It is the Starting Line for our runs which will take us to a healthier, fitter and maybe, happier, Finish Line.
But in order to begin this, we have just crossed a Finish Line.
If we are doing C25K for the first time, it means we have finished sitting on the Couch, it may mean that we are finished with unhealthy eating habits, it may mean that we are finished with putting up with the feeling of being mentally and physically drained; we really are ready to cross that Starting Line.
If we are returning to C25K, then again, a Finish Line has been crossed. What has happened in our running before, has coloured the journey back to it. We have had, maybe, illness, injury, mental or physical issues and, now we have reached the Finish Line and are eager to cross the new Starting Line once more...taking us to a new goal and new Finish Line.
Interestingly too, even in the C25K plan, every single run we take begins at a new Starting Line , built maybe, on the one before , but a brand new run, and one to be embraced and enjoyed.
This probably sounds loopy to you, but to me it makes sense.
Every Finish Line we cross, means it's time for a new start.., we cross the line and decide how to move forward, using the knowledge and skills , experiences good and bad, that we have gained, to help us.
We might increase some of our rest day exercise, we may spend more time on one aspect of that exercise... our stamina or our core strength, We may have realised that our running body has a weak point; our knees, our ankles, our breathing! We may want to find new routes, and try new terrain.
We may have realised that running three times a week is just too much and that we can still run, but in the way that suits us. We may have become aware that the running is not just helping us physically, but that our mental well being is dramatically improved too.; and we are going to nurture that feeling in other aspects of our lives?
Crossing the Finish Line with worries about moving forward, might be something that happens, also, to some of us. But... there is, on the forums, a wealth of support, guidance and advice.
We will run on , maybe on our own, but never alone. There is always someone who will cross that new Starting Line with you.
So... things to think about? I know I have things to think about as I move on and I know I shall be looking to all of you and my friends on here to support and help me in those decisions.
Wherever you are in your running, just grab a cushion, sit down and share what has been happening with you and your runs.
We can't wait to hear what you have to say
Oldfloss x
