Good morning, running people.
The coffee is on, the muffins are baking and the pastries are already ready! Some super smoothies and some tasty healthy nibbles too!
Okay, here I am and here you are again I hope...
I have left this post for a couple of days , to give us a full week, to take us into the new month.
Loads going on right now... I am back and forward to Wales, whizzing around like a small whirlwind but running! I have just got run 3 to do of Week 6, before moving on smoothly to the longer runs 
Bliss! Hopefully in a short while!
It is good for body and soul to get out there on a more or less regular basis... Happy snail.
Now I have found time still, to check in on all of our friends here. And you are doing absolutely wonderfully! Moving through the programme and letting the runs and the legs build up ! We have got, also, a few more repeaters. Folk like me... building back after a set back of whatever nature and returning to the friendly familiarity of the programme and the companionship and support of all our runners!
One thing though, has struck me... in quite a few of the posts...and that is comments about finding the runs a bit, ( or more), of a struggle... second time around... or third even! There is also a word in those posts too, that sneaks in... and that is the word , stamina!
What is it? Do we need it. Have you got it? Do you want it? Well the answer we hope ,to all of these. Eventually is YES!
Now I am, as you know an old snail... and that Stamina is something that features greatly in my running and my life too. I know what it is... I know I need it... I have got it most of the time and YES I really do want to keep it!
Whether you’re starting any week of a C25K program, repeating bits or all of it or having moved on and are running more. To run comfortably and staying injury free are goals that I feel we would all aim for?
There is no sure-fire way to help boost running stamina, but there are things that may help!
Starting C25K can be a tricky business; for many of us, running may be a new exercise, we are not sure what to expect or how our body will react. This is why checking out the pinned post on How to Run C25K will be so, so helpful, and why, also visiting our amazing Strength and flex Forum is going to be helpful also.
For folk repeating, (like me ), there can be pitfalls also. Yes, we know what is coming, we know how the runs build up...but that may work against us. We were okay the first time, or the second... but this time, why is it so hard, why am I struggling? These questions pop into the head!
Well. What seems to be a common denominator is, trying too hard , expecting too much, too soon ,maybe and forgetting that our whole running body, ( including our mind), needs support and other exercise.
We do need to keep all of ourselves strong, and fit for purpose!
There are, on the S and F Forum, so many links to the kind of stuff, ( I love that word right now), we should be doing to help ourselves. CBDB works so hard for all our forums and she has compiled so much, in the way of useful and impacting exercise. There are quite a few things there from me too, and I shall be posting on this very subject of stamina, there later today
In a nutshell here...
Start slowly and build up... small steps have a big impact... be consistent and committed... and..., just run. The more we run, the more our stamina and our strength build up.
Do try too, to keep this thought in the back of your mind, especially if you are struggling, that your running is not for enduring, it is for enjoyment.
Okay, slip off the running shoes, grab your cushion and snack and share. How are you doing right now, really? Be honest, let it all out here, and if you are struggling, what are you doing or going to do about it, because we all do have issues, even small ones and it is so important to recognise that and deal with it.
Looking forward to chatting with you and to seeing some of you later in the Changing Room Chat on the S and F Forum.
Oldfloss x
