So, now C25K is done, and the big wide world beckons.
Goals thus far include:
>Run
>Try to enjoy it (at the moment, this means stay slow, stay comfortable)
>Run again
It was sunny outside, and cool. I felt rested, and reasonably hydrated - all auspicious signs. I thought I’d treat myself to a music subscription. First 3 months free, ta very much. Kate Bush… The Whole Story is gone from Apple Music. No! OK, Hounds of Love then.
Don’t overdress… right, off we go. Where to? OK… let’s go on the big loop. 6K but I can turn round before halfway, or walk the last K. Feels brave.
It felt strange not having coach in my ear, just Kate. I hadn’t appreciated how many bits there were in her songs that made me jump slightly - like the whispered “wake up” at the start of Waking the Witch. I’m sure my heart notched up a beat.
There was what felt like a sizeable hill. I stayed slow, and though I was a little breathless at the top, managed to recover.
A long stretch past groups of men with chainsaws, and others sitting in vans. A couple staring a bit. I found myself drawing myself upwards and striding more purposefully, which I paid for later. I felt really laboured at the 4k mark when I hit another hill. I’ve been doing this 16:8 fasting, which has been great, but I was actually at about 18 hours sans food and the greater effort of running a longer distance/time was causing a slight wobble in the legs and a faint nausea.
I staggered to the top of the incline and leaned on the gate for a moment, then padded downhill again.
The Garmin was going crazy telling me I’d achieved this and that. I’d run for over 30 minutes, which felt good, so I took a moment at 4.5k to pause in a lovely spot where the sun was reflecting on the river. I’d come across IannodaTruffe’s final post yesterday, and I was so moved by his words. The picture is my little nod to him.
I pushed the wrong button again so my watch wasn’t recording for a while, but it doesn’t matter. I ran about 5k in total, and had a recovery 1k walk back home in the sunshine.
Keep on running…