Yes, I do apologise,, I am a day late opening the doors to the corner. The cushions are ready and some super hot cross buns are freshly made and waiting!
I have been busy trying to come back to earth after the wonderful day I had last Sunday! A running meet up in Derbyshire, with some running forum friends, from all over the place, was something very special!
I know that many of you, just starting out on the C25K programme, will experience this for yourselves, at some point.
We have no idea, when we begin where this running will take us to!
So, I hear you ask... what on earth is the photograph of... talk about a gruesome gargoyle! He seemed like a good choice to illustrate my ramble today. He has appeared before and is getting quite swell-headed. But why?
Well, you will either relate to him or not. You either have one, or not. He is for the purposes today... a gremlin! A running gremlin!
He, or she, is that voice in your head... ( no , not that one), the voice that says...whatever you’re doing isn’t good enough.
You should be running faster, you need to be trying harder, you need to be running further, and sometimes that voice goes even further.
It begins by whispering that, no, you don't really want to go for the run... you don't need to, why should you? The couch is comfier, the house is warmer, its too hot, it's too cold, it's raining or it's windy!
Also, unbelievably, that, just because you enjoy yourself when you run and the feeling you get afterwards... is no reason to keep running!
That gremlin tells you, also, that if you struggle and try to do things to improve matters.. it is a waste of time, you won't feel better mentally and physically, You will gain no benefit at all from running..
WHAT!!!!
Some folk do not have any time for gremlins... a scientific approach is how they handle things, and that is just fine...but, if you DO believe.... then that little sneaky voice can be a real issue!
They get everywhere.. at any level of running.. they will tell a newbie that pain is good... you should push, you should struggle... injury and pain are no reason to give up.
Gremlins tell lies, they are lazy, they dislike exercise of any kind and they are cowards. They also hide under the running shoes... and when you lift those shoes up to put them on... they run for cover. Like the cowards they are!
You can shut that gremlin's voice up, by listening to your own voice, your supportive voice, the one that tells you, you are doing your best, you are taking it exactly how you should be, that you are ahead of every other person who is still sitting on the couch.
You listen to the voice that tells you how amazing you are. You listen and you believe it.
I've read a few posts this week, and over the years that mention gremlins...Many of our runners have had experience of them and even given them names...but hopefully you will recognise them for what they are.
All you need to do is listen to that other voice and know that all of us, however slow and steady we are can outrun a gremlin, any time
So... is anyone here got a pet gremlin... has it got a name... ? I seem to remember one called Mavis? Did you manage to get rid of it or how do you cope with it ?
We are all eager to know?
Looking forward to see who pops in this week...
Floss x
P.S.
Read this and have a giggle...
We have a wonderful runner on the forum and she had a real character... his name was Gary... I drew him once... She showed him that he was messing with the wrong runner and he lost out so, so many times... and she is still running
I do, or have had a companion... renamed now, thank you. backintime .as a ...Shadow dog...... I have learned over the years, how to handle him, but that is a whole other post!!
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Great subject for this weeks catch up corner Floss…
I have gremlins everywhere…not just under my shoes…they're in my running drawer, they’re in my pockets…they’re even in my socks and their voice gets louder the closer in get to stepping out of the door!!! So I have many a battle with gremlins…they’re always telling me I can’t do it..or it’s making no difference to me…but I always seem to keep plodding on…something keeps me going…it’s all the hard work I put into my c25k journey and the feeling that I had made it, remember I punched the air after my final run?? I try and take that feeling with me when I go out..it’s strange because when I see a runner I always get the urge to go out and then when I have the opportunity those gremlins start prodding…
I don’t want to be the person I was before I became a runner…I like who I am & I’m happy that I have a running drawer, I love that I have loads of running shoes & I still shop for running clothes when I get a chance!! My life really did change when i bumped into the c25k app & there’s no way those gremlins are sitting me back down on the couch!!! X
It is so, so hard sometimes, when work, family and everything else seems to be conspiring, sometimes in even the nicest way, to stop us getting out there.
That's when the sneak little tricksters strike. ! Any opportunity for getting into the runner's head! You do love your running and your posts have been a source of support and reassurance to so, so many, there is NO way you can ever let this go.
We shall and me especially, be watching for your posts.... get those runs in when you are able. be kind and accept the days when they don't happen, but find time somehow, to kick those gremlins into touch and head out of the door. xxx
Gosh the gremlins, where do I start. Suffice to say that today they were out in force - but they lost anyway. Mine live in my sports bra I think, it's the one thing about running that I really dislike. I've tried a few of them but none seem to feel like slipping into something comfortable. Anyway, I digress, BackinTime 1 gremlins 0, Week 4 r 1 done!
As an aside, if I may, concerning your Black Dog - they get a bad rep! I have a gorgeous, lovely, black (going a bit grey around the muzzle) greyhound. I am a champion for renaming anything bad against black dogs or black cats as they are often the last to be adopted in shelters (mine come from a shelter for retired greyhounds). I know you didn't mean anything bad by it, but naming and superstitions have had consequences for these poor animals.
Oh my,.. I apologise, yes, I agree entirely and the name conjured by Horace in 65 BC and used a lot by Churchill... I shall now change. it. ! I know so, so many beautiful black dogs... Henry, Charles and Molly... the list goes on,... I never thought!!! Both my daughters rescue cats are black too !
So glad you got out anyway and kicked the gremlins into touch... ! Bras...have you tried Runderwear,... no clasps, fastens or anything to stick in or chafe... I love mine !
Good to see you here, help yourself to more snacks
Great topic and perfectly timed. I forgot my earbuds today and so ran to a distance on a known route. However, without the regular interjections from Coach Bennett or the soundtrack from the podcast I did find it was the most difficult run yet mentally. The internal dialogue was anything but helpful! I won't make that mistake again
Welcome... and I do know what you mean... you really do have to listen to that positive voice in your head on these colder mornings... that and having the right running gear.. !
For now... make yourself comfy and enjoy something tasty, by the fire.. yes, it is raining and windy here in the Welsh Corner this morning!
Not sure exactly where my gremlin used to live but it is here right now, despite the fact I went out in the rain this morning, with Laura to help me on my earphones (!!!) on W1R2.
Yes I did it, but when I got back it is there, muttering in my ear, you are still ill, what do you want to do that for, it’s raining fgs, why not just sit there in the warm with your leg up…..
Sneaky one that... got you at the end of the run... Do you feel properly better...it can be so hard to know when is the right time to get out and when not... !
But yes, you did get out and you did run and now, you can curl up here in the corner with a warm drink and just rest up... well done you,.. we certainly can beat them !!! xxx
Well, you sent me to Wikipedia with your mention of Ostara. Now I understand March hares and the traditional contents of Easter baskets. I’ve been ignorant of that all my life! As to gremlins, I’ve a big one worrying me that I might not get back to running what with my aches and pains—that I might be too old to heal well enough or that it will take too long. I think if I rest, the pains will go away but how do I know how to pick up running again?
My friend, this question is almost as deep as the meaning of life one! Your aches and pains, I am not sure how we can be helpful... other than the exercise routines and trying to get Molly sorted! I know you past history but I do not think you are too old... if you are... then I certainly am !
Rest, but do some exercise to keep supple..... loads of seated ones out there ones which may help.. five and ten minute ones too for legs and arms and core strength .
The only way to know how to pick running up again is to run... start where you left off and try a little jogette... slow and steady and see how you go? As my Nan used to say, you have to suck it and see ! xx
I do have running gremlins and, trust me, they've been quite vocal lately. I feel that I'm getting the upper hand, though.My main problem at the moment is those pesky housework gremlins. I just can't seem to beat them🤣
The housework ones!! Do they want you to do it...or not???
I think we really do have trouble with our head voices... and listening to our own supportive one is really hard. It is good to have you here with us and know that you are not alone !
Fantastic post for all of us Oldfloss . Especially for the newbies but in my experience for the Graduates too! After I graduated (first time), I felt fabulous. I slowly increased running time after several consolidation run (never a rule breaker when it comes to exercise so to avoid injury - oh how the irony!)
Then I suddenly went crazy for steep hills and trying to speed up a bit too (not on steep hills that would be pure madness 🤪). So low and behold came my first trip and longest stay to the IC. I had got carried away and to make it worse I kept running despite pain 😫. Why ? Because I was determined to finish my run and that was that 🤦🏻♀️ (stubbornness runs in family! ).
So I learnt hard and fast on that one. perhaps this was my Gremlin as something in my head was clearly giving me the wrong advice and I have NEVER listened to it again!
Definitely Graduates too... sometimes even more so...Perhaps it was a gremlin... a suggestive one trying to lure you into bad ways... thank goodness you go the measure of him/her...
I think that our own voices are the hardest to hear sometimes, especially when we are tying something new.
Good to have you here with us today... I have made some tasty carrot muffins again and I have some rather tasty St Clements Hot Cross buns too... enjoy ! x
good morning Oldfloss, I think I have gremlins every morning before a run, “I don’t feel I could do 30 minutes today” or “I really don’t feel up to it today” or “I’m tired so I’ll just see how far I get doesn’t matter if I only do such and such” but ofcourse once I start running after my warm up walk I feel good and this morning I ran for 33 minutes covering 3.9 km the longest I have run so far so you see it doesn’t matter how the gremlins try and put me down I always do longer than I think I can. And oh I have a black frenchie called Ted, he has an incurable neurological desease called meningoencephalitis which means his immune system attacks his brain and makes it swell, MRI showed multiple lesions on his brain, he has been having palliative chemotherapy for over a year now, he is blind in one eye and he is my special little black dog who I love with all my heart ❤️ ❤️❤️
You certainly have got those gremlins on the run...they have a half hearted attempt when you are heading out and then run for cover when you run and feel so good. Mind with that little fella on your side, who can blame them? Take a moment to rest here for a while and maybe we can find your little chap a sneaky treat too xx
thank you Oldfloss, my dogs and my running are the reason I get up every day, this gremlins can take a hike but they will probably always be there at some point, it’s funny how our minds work in that way, love your gremlin he has got a right stare that bores straight into your head if e stare at it long enough 🤣
he looks really big in that photo how big is he and can you take a full length photo I’d love to see all of him he does look rather scarey with that menacing gremlin stare I can imagine this is what my gremlin would look like sitting on my shoulder wispering in my ear 🤣
well said! I have listened to my pet Gremlin many times! I have battles with it several times! Pushing yourself to fast to quickly and usually ends with injury!
Last September I started running again I was really impressed with the way things was working! Passed 5km graduate at beginning of November! Then started training for 10km! All was well until Christmas and new year! 2nd week of January I was hit with a virus! So running was not an option! Then I went on holiday for a week and the virus came back again! All this time the Gremlin kept going in my ear you’ve got your 2nd graduation coming up you need to run!
When the vagotomised back friend m holiday knowing how bad my breathing was I did a test 5k that ended up being 8.5k I got back home and had a massive asthma attack more steroids more antibiotics! Missed my graduation missed doing the London Winter run! Then to cap it all braking my shoulder !
I have had to start all over again but gremlin is saying you know you can run better than this you can push this you don’t need to start over! Fact and reality are I do need to!
I am sticking to the plan no more no less!
I need to build it up slowly my arm needs gentle movements to loosen it of!
I do need to stretch before running and after I do need to walk at a brisk pace to warm up and cool down!
I have a wonderful Beginners 2 Runners group that are very supportive and really do great people running! Next week they are starting their new beginners course! Which I am going to do! As my week 3!
Set backs are part of your journey as well as gremlins! They are fact! Getting back out there and getting past the front door are what counts!
Hello... sorry for the late reply... I have been busy avoiding the puddle on the way to the corner!
You have had a rough time and that gremlin is not helping, but you have told him what for! YOU are listening to YOUR supportive voice and WE are right here beside you... stick to the plan..it works, you know that and sooooo many of us have been where you are... me included..
Do take care with that shoulder... ouch... it sounds very painful x Stretching and some rest day strength and flex work is essential. We need to keep our running body in trim, to keep up with the legs..
Your group sounds terrific and just the thing to see off any unwanted voices... Do please pop in again and let us know how it is going... there is a comfy cushion or chair for you to rest up on x
Hi Oldfloss! This is a great subject! I've been reading all of the replies, and I'd be willing to bet every runner, at some point, has had a Gremlin or two! I know I have one! I keep mine around though because he's not always a "bad" gremlin. He does have his moments when its windy or cold, or really hot, and he tries to talk me out of a run. But, for all the times he tries to talk me out of going, or tries to tell me I don't run fast enough, or far enough, he always goes with me. Once he knows I'm not going to listen to his negativity, he settles down, and that's when he becomes a good Gremlin (can a gremlin be good 🤷♀️?). You see, he's also there to tell me things like "let's change our route today and not run the exact same locations". Or, "make sure you make eye contact with that person so they know you are aware". Most days I run alone, and for someone who watches way too much Dateline, I always listen to that little gremlin voice when he is being a "good" gremlin 😉.
Well, here I am skulking in the corner AGAIN! It's funny that you should mention gremlins Oldfloss, because I really think this might be what is holding me back. I keep starting and stopping at Week 6, Run 2 procrastinating and finding sometimes quite pathetic reasons why I can't run today and then falling back off the horse yet again 🙄
Well, I decided today that I'm going to go right back to square one, but not look at it as going backwards, but rather trying to find my mojo again. I am hoping that with so little effort needed to get me through the first few weeks at least, that I will have time to build back that habit I had a year ago, where I jumped out of bed raring to get to the gym and run!
I now have a treadmill at home, and the £38 a month I save on gym fees and the petrol money on top for the 12 mile round trip to said gym three or four times a week is coming in handy in these hard times, so no excuses.
May I ask you all to stand on the sidelines keeping me on track and holding me accountable please? 🙏
We are here , in the corner... the cushions always ready , so we can sit and ask you all about your progress. It is raining this morning, so the hot drinks are ready, there are warm croissants and crispy pastries.... !
What you are planning is not a backward step...it makes sense... perfect sense and you will be joining a fair few of us who have had to begin again and it has not always been easy. But, the facts speak for themselves... this works.
There is no need to push, no need to rush and it is so familiar. We know what is coming, we know that we can do it...the tricky part is keeping going, on the days when those gremlins spot a weakness and leap in. That is when you pick up the trainers and move...
You have so many reasons to run... and the bonus of a bit of spare cash to use in these current times, excellent!
I do know how you feel... I have been back to square one or back to bits of the C25K plan so many times... but we are a tough breed... we do want to run and somehow, with the support of our friends here we get back on track!
So, sit back, enjoy a rest and then... get those runners on and do it... I and we shall watch for your posts... you can do this... and we will be right here to celebrate your success ! xxx
Just a straight copy and paste job from my own feed to update the catchup corner group.....................
Well, two runs back in to the restart of C25K and I woke up this morning to a horrible pain in my left knee, with the right one whinging a bit in sympathy 🙄
With hindsight (which is wonderful thing) maybe I shouldn't have decided to try road running this time round. I have been (gently) castigated so many times in the past for running exclusively on a treadmill to try and protect by dodgy, much surgically enhanced, spine so I thought why not give it a go outside this time. BAD THOUGHT as it turns out 😔
Ironically, I thought it would be my spine that would object if anything was going to, but it seems my knees have taken far more umbridge to being on hard road surfaces!
I have ibuprofen on board to help with the swelling and pain and hope a couple of days off should turn it around. I will still walk 2/3k a day with the dogs, but no running, and walking at leisurely pace instead of the usual march (as you do when you have a Mastiff on a mission on the end of a lead 😅).
We are away at a jive weekender from Friday to Monday, which is hard enough on the knees with all the bouncing, so I might hang on until next week before starting again (ON THE TREADMILL!).
Ho-hum, these things are sent to try us. Next time I have a great idea, I'll ignore it!!
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Week 2 Run 1 Slipping and sliding
Update - week one, run 2
I'm shocked at the distance my running shoes have covered, do you keep track of your mileage?
