Running - AnnaTheApple

June 13, 2013

Would You Rather…

I think it can be safely said that Anna not running is like Anna without apples: not a happy bunny. I’m grumpy and I’m surly. Yes I know I’m being pathetic and yes I know the bigger picture is way more important. Let me wallow in my self-indulgent pit of woe-is-me for a little longer.

I haven’t run since Sunday

That’s a lifetime ago. OK, no it’s not. But it feels like it is. But the rational side of my brain knows five days is just five days and not five weeks or five months. I know I am very lucky not to be out of the game for longer. I know I’m being melodramatic.

And let’s be serious here, this can only be a good thing.

You only have one body. You only have one set of muscles. You only have one set of bones. Treat it well.

Can you hear the desperation in my ~~voice~~ text trying to convince myself this is a good thing? Do you believe me? No neither do I. So let’s go back to glaring at every runner I see, convinced they’re doing it to annoy me.

As I can’t run, I might as well ~~bore you death~~ indulge in a bit of survey fun on running from the lovely OliveToRun blog.

#1. Would you rather bike 100 miles or run 100 miles?

What do you think? Obviously run. Though 100 miles is a fairly epic. Maybe 20 would be run, 80 would be walked and progressively changes into crawling.

#2. Wear TOO many clothes and then have to carry them because it’s too hot or wear TOO little clothes and endure a little coldness?

Hmmm ordinarily in every day life I’d always rather be too hot than cold. I hate feeling cold. But with running, however bad the first initial start is I always know within a few minutes I’ll be toasty and warm ~~in a cocoon of sweat~~. So less is more for me when running. But gloves are always essential in winter. And a hat when it’s really bad.

#3. Would you rather run without your GPS or without your Music?

I’d run without music. I’m a numbers kinda girl and love seeing the splits and stats when I’ve finished because I’m sad like that.

So true. Especially when you’re just hanging around outside your house.

The other week I was running and my Garmin told me my lap database was full (OK, I did ignore the previous 10 warnings leading up to this) and then just stopped. Gave up on me. DNF. So annoying. It was like my run didn’t exist in the running universe.

I need to get me one of these!

#4. Would you rather run socially or run competitively?

Tough. I love races and I love club running where I run with other people in a more relaxed way. Hmmm. Though I’m a competitive person through and through so I guess I’ll take races!

#5. Would you rather start a race in the front or in the back?

I prefer the front. Not because I stand a chance at winning but because I like to start fast and not be held back. It stresses me out to be hemmed in by people. Though obviously this means I get overtaken a fair bit…I like to remember a couple of people who overtake me so later I can try and catch them again.

#6. Would you rather run a race to raise money for a charity or in remembrance of someone?

Either. I think both are a great thing to do. Money to a charity is always good as it’s helping in a tangible way.

This was ages ago – 2011 I think when Ben and I did the 5k Great South Run. We raised money for Alzheimer’s Society (this year we’re running the full 10 mile race)

#7. Would you rather have an awful race experience and PR or have the time of your life and NOT PR?

Time of your life and not PR. Hands down every time. I know I go on a lot about my recent PBs (not peanut butter –> personal best ) but there will always be a chance to try and beat your PB in another race. I prefer to enjoy the experience. I run because I love it. If I stop loving it I stop running.

#8. Would you rather run on the right side of the road during a race or the left?

I run in the middle…? I’m a trail blazer I joke…I have no idea.

#9. Would you rather shower and take a nap after a long run/race or shower and be productive?

After running I am wired. On a Saturday after a long run or Parkrun I come back and eat and then power through all the chores with a crazy amount of energy coursing through my veins. It isn’t until I sit down with a coffee that I’m like “jeeze I am shattered”. I also never take naps.

#10. Run with your significant other or your friends?

I love running with my husband but at the moment it’s just not ideal. We both have different paces. No disrespect to him at all, but if I want an easy run I’ll run with him but then that’s a hard run for him so it helps pace him. I’ve been running a lot longer than he has so it’s fair enough I suppose. He is quickly gaining on me though.

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Your turn: answer some of the above questions!

I think the most interesting question is the PB/PR one and enjoyment. This has been a big thing for me lately to realise that times are not everything. When you start caring too much the enjoyment just goes down. It’s important to not take things so seriously!

If you’re not a runner: ~~why the heck not~~ what’s your passion? What can’t you live without? What would send you into a spiral of despair if you could no longer do it?

June 12, 2013

What a surprise…

Howdy people. How’s your week going? Mine has been dampened by the cold weather and some bad running-related news (I’ll get to that in a minute).

But firstly, to pull me out of my dark and shady place (OK, I’m being dramatic), I must share a couple of the new-to-me meals I’ve been having lately. After spotting THIS recipe on Jessie’s blog I knew I had to try it.

Basil Avocado Chicken

I changed it slightly as I added in a load of random veg with the chicken and I also added a big dollop of Philadelphia cream cheese (because, let’s be honest, everything tastes amazing with cream cheese). Also, being lazy and reluctant to do more washing up than strictly necessary, I didn’t food process the avocado. I just chopped everything up, fried it until it all became melted and then threw in the cream cheese.

I loved it. It was nice to have smooth avocado bits and chunks of unmelted avocados randomly throughout. I don’t eat avocado that much (mainly because Ben ~~runs screaming from it~~ hates it) so this was such a nice change. Basil and avocado are a great combo.

Salads have been a regular meal as well when the weather was sunny.

This was a citrus themed salad. Chicken with goat’s cheese and loads of different veggies and chunks of orange drizzled in lemon juice and olive oil. Fresh and zingy.

And just to throw this one in there…Cake of the week (though strictly speaking there were two cakes of the week, but this one ROCKED – no pun intended): rock buns. I’m loving how ‘non-artificial’ this brand is. Let’s be honest, cake will never be classed as a superfood (I know, it’s upsetting) but having a ‘clean’ cake is surely the closest thing to it.

I have never had a rock bun before but when I saw them in the shop they looked like giant cookies so I was sold. And honestly the jokes are endless

Surprisingly they weren’t rock hard. They were soft in the middle. Like oh-my-god-this-is-amazing-soft-in-the-middle. With raisins, sugar dusting and a hint of cinnamon. I’m going to aim to not buy these every week but seriously it will be hard.

This is yesterday’s outfit. I’m not a massive fan of the selfie photo but when I feel particularly happy with an outfit I feel the need to share because most of the time I don’t have much style. Though arguable the below picture doesn’t prove otherwise

Tops from New Look, Owl necklace from Mango, Jeans from Topshop, Shoes from Tesco

Loving the peep toe shoes: let’s pretend it’s summer. And gotta love the photo bomber having a good old stretch there.

In terms of running…ack. Surprise surprise I have acquired a small injury. I knew this would happen – and I’m sure you’re not surprised if you’ve been following my huge running obsession lately. Serves me right for running so many damn races. I could feel something wasn’t quite right last week (hence the sports massage I had). It was fine during the runs at the weekend but afterwards my right thigh was really painful when I went up and down stairs. I thought it was fine but when I went for a run Tuesday morning within minutes I was in pain and it just wasn’t happening. So I turned round and went home. There’s a way to ruin your day before 7am.

I did a bit of Googling (as you do) and worked out it was my IT band.

So I booked in with the physio (again) and managed to swag an appointment that day. She confirmed it was my IT band and that I needed to take five days off of running. FIVE days. She did some ultrasound and acupuncture on me and gave me some stretches to do at home. She’s a great physio but I couldn’t help but be miserable. But I’m going to be sensible. Five days ~~is a lifetime~~ isn’t that long and it’s not worth risking a serious injury and being out of the game for weeks or even months.

Even if I start twitching…

I’m not ~~bitter~~ that bitter. I didn’t glare at Ben as he went for a run this morning…much. I’m going to try to use my time productively. In effort to be a better, healthier runner it’s time to get back into the strength training groove. Woo, woo, party on. So instead of running this week I’m working on my strength training. Joy of joys.

For all the you gym bunnies and proper strength training experts, I know this looks pathetic. Humour me.

So at the moment it’s nothing leg-focused as I want to fully heal. I want to start working on my core again. After reading a ~~gazillion~~ few running articles on injury prevention I realise I’m definitely not being a smart runner. I need to be more balanced and not just run, run, run. So I’ll be aiming to do this at least once a week to begin with. When my leg is better then I’ll add things like squats and lunges, etc.

I can hardly contain my excitement. Not

Make sure to check out Peas and Crayons for the What I Ate Wednesday link-up!

Pssst, also check out Jemma’s great Simply Bridal giveaway – click HERE.

Have you had an injury before? Did you cope well with resting? I’m just feeling all annoyed that I let this happen and that it’s stopped me just as I was feeling like a superstar. But I guess that’s just it really, never take it for granted and let your ego take over. Don’t be stupid: stretch, foam roll, listen to your body.

Have you ever had an issue with your IT band? I’m not gonna lie, I didn’t know what the IT band was before this…

What’s your favourite avocado recipe?

Have you tried rock buns before? Because you should. Like now.

June 10, 2013

A weekend of PBs

And just like that the weekend is over. I hope you’re all rested and fresh ready for the week! I’m not going to lie, I feel a bit tired and could do with another day off… I had a great weekend of races (casual Parkrun on Saturday and a 10k on Sunday).

For Saturday, I really wanted to push myself and see what I could do on the Parkrun 5k. I felt like I’d had a good week of running and was ready to go. As always, I was nervous in the morning. What was nice was that two friends of ours decided to see what Parkrun was all about so met us down there. It helped ease the nerves to chat to them beforehand.

It was the flatter of the two courses this week, which meant five times around the below field:

As excitement goes, this scores pretty low. Oh sure it’s nice to be off road, but seriously FIVE times around a field. I also massively panicked that I would forget how many laps I’d be on as I went round as you have to count yourself (not that I expected anyone else really to do it for me…!)

And so we were off. The first mile I felt strong and speedy (though a zillion men passed me, even a small child – now there’s a motivation killer for you). I was the second female and kept the first in my sights. As I ran I got cheered on by a marshal who yelled at me “go first girl”. I knew I was not first girl. I thought, this is awkward. I sort of smiled and pushed on. In my head I found it good motivation to try and be first girl, purely to get over the awkwardness (6.41mins/mile).

Second mile was tough. On the course there’s a tiny but steep incline. It lasts all of 5 seconds, but it feels like a mountain. I was counting on my hands how many laps I’ve done s honestly I’d have been lost doing it in my head (6.53mins/mile).

Third mile and it’s still tough. The end was in sight though. On the last lap you then do half a lap to get to the finish. I checked as I ran past a marshal that I was indeed going to the finish now. He laughed at me and said yes. No way could I have gone on anyway (6.53mins/mile).

After finishing I promptly collapse onto the grass and chill for a bit. My official time 20.26 (PB!) and first female. Ben also nabbed a PB as well. He’s just getting better and better, which obviously I’m over the moon about!

Afterwards I ran home at a very easy pace (for me) to just stretch my legs afterwards. It was such a sunny day and I was in such a good mood I just needed to carry on. I know that might sound mad, but when a run calls I answer!

I was quite happy to run at a much slower pace. It felt so good to just chill and enjoy the running high.

Sunday was a 10k in Portsmouth. Usually my mum and mother-in-law like to come watch us as it’s a nice trip out for everyone in the lovely weather. But they went to church instead so my dad joined to cheer us on.

As soon as we got there we knew this was a race full of serious runners. Last week’s beer and cake run looked like a picnic in the park in comparison. It started on a track and as we picked up our bib numbers there were already a number of zooming around the track warming up.

People were looking all intense and serious. Ack.

As we crowded to the finish line I saw this girl who literally looked like an athlete. Pure muscle. She was chatting to her friend and I overheard her say “I went pretty hard yesterday so today I’m just aiming for a 39”. Seeeriously? I dramatically lowered my expectation quite quickly then.

As we started I knew that our first impressions were correct. Ah well, they can’t all be just jollies round the countryside can they?

The course was quite flat and ran alongside a stretch of water. I was annoyed because I couldn’t wear my music as it was strictly forbidden.

I like to have music at tough time to take my mind of things. But the sound of my breathing would have to be entertainment enough. Ho hum.

It was two laps and as you run out to the water you’re head first straight into the wind. Fun. But on the way back it was like we were flying. Pft, 7mins/mile pace? This is easy (said no one ever). It wasn’t easy, just easier. BIG difference.

I distinctly remember thinking “This is horrible. I want to go home. Why do I do this?” about four times ~~a minute~~.

On mile 3 I started running alongside a man and it was one of those awkward situations where you’ve found you’re running the same steady pace and can’t get away. But it was nice as we then started chatting to each other (not a full on conversation, let’s be realistic here; we’re both puffed out). Then he increased his pace and headed off.

The finish was on the track again and as I headed back I felt pretty happy. My Garmin said 5.9miles so I knew the end was in sight. As I turned round the corner to get towards the finish I realised my error.

I didn’t realise we’d still have to run round the track. And you can see the clock. Nothing like a bit of pressure.

But I made it, hurrah! My Garmin time was 43.16mins. I do believe this is a PB, by around 15seconds (I’m comparing to the Marwell 10k not the Moors Valley 10k where I got a faster time as the Moors Valley was a shorter course and less formal a race).

I was shattered though afterwards. Absolutely knackered. I laid down for a little bit on the grass while I waited for Ben and honestly could have stayed there for hours.

Ben beat his PB as well by getting 51.47. PBs all round!

You might have noticed running seems to have taken over my life currently. It’s a shrewd observation and you’ll be 100% correct. I’ve always loved running but since doing these races it’s like I’ve awakened an insatiable beast that can’t be satisfied. I’ve never given birth but I’ve heard people describe running and races like childbirth. At the time it is painful and horrific and you wonder why the hell you signed up for it. But afterwards it’s like you’ve forgotten everything that happened before. You can’t believe you didn’t do it sooner, or more often.

One of the most inspiring things I saw this weekend was watching a woman cross the finish line. Her face as she ran towards the line was a face of absolute pain, agony and hatred. I thought she was either going to cry, scream or punch someone. But, as soon as she crossed the finish line her face transformed within seconds to a face of absolute happiness and joy. Her eyes lit up and the smile across her face couldn’t have been bigger.

That to me is one of the reasons I love running. It hurts, it sucks, it’s hard, it’s tough. But when you cross that finish line, it’s like the best thing in the entire world. It’s like you’ve won the lottery.

How was your weekend?

If you run/workout, why do you do it? What pleasure do you get from it?

Do you like to run with music or without? Running is tough mentally as well as physically and sometimes I really need the music to take my mind of things and occupy my thoughts.

What do you prefer, informal smaller races or more intense and popular races? I like both. But I like to know what’s coming before I get there so I can mentally prepare!

May 29, 2013

Bank Holiday Weekend – Part 2

Howdy! My last post covered Saturday of the long weekend – catch it HERE if you missed it I’m going to miss WIAW as I wanted to carry on with the rest of the long weekend recap. Hope you don’t mind!

So carrying on with Sunday and the 10k race…

Ben and me woke up early again, had breakfast and prepared for the race ahead. It looked warmed and sunny which is great if you’re not running 10km…I started to feel really nervous as my legs felt tired from the Parkrun the day before and I didn’t know what the course would be like or anything. It was in the New Forest in an area that it being improved (planting trees etc.) and isn’t usually open to the public. The 10k was an event to raise money for the improvements.

Ben’s mum (Di), my parents and me all piled into Di’s lovely shiny BMW and headed off. When we arrived we realised that it was going to a be a bit of a bumpy parking situation…

The ground was basically just peat and random chippings and branches with lots of mounds. I felt very bad as Di had offered to drive and had only washed her car the day before…it got very dusty

The course was stony underfoot and basically all out in the open. In the sun.

I always have about three pees before a race. I’m sorry if this is too much information but it’s true. I get nervous that I’ll need to pee during the race. So I used the porter-loo (my worst nightmare) three times before we began.

There were about 100 people and we all crowded up to the start just before beginning. And then we were off! There was a guy right at the front with his dog attached to him by a lead and as soon as we all started running the dog just went mental. He wouldn’t stop barking. It was quite off-putting to be honest and I think a lot of people were annoyed.

I think the first mile was downhill because we were all zooming along. It felt great! I saw the girl in green ahead of me and decided to try and overtake her at some point. I kept her in my sights and it motivated me to keep my pace up.

Then on mile two I was still feeling strong and managed to just gradually overtake her. I think she slowed down though so that helped!

Look how happy we look there…we didn’t know what was coming

The parents got a good spot to spectate as there were several loops that came back to where they were so they got lots of times to cheer us on and take photos. We would definitely need that cheering later on!

As we got to mile 3 I had slowed down form my first zippy mile and was really feeling the heat, the undulating course and the pain. It was the first time in a race I genuinely considered stopping. Or at least stopping to walk. It was so tough.

No more smiles now!

The photo above of me is on the last mile. When my parents and Di cheered me on I just shook my head and gasped “it’s so hard”. There was only one water station half way through and I can never run and drink very well so in the end I just threw it on myself.

I kept looking at my watch. I elatedly thought as I got to around 5.6miles I’m almost there. Ha. My watch beeped 6 miles and I saw what was ahead of me. A MAMMOTH hill.

The photo doesn’t quite do it justice, but I assure you that hill felt like a mountain after 6 miles of hot running. I finished and as I crossed the line and stopped I felt a little bit dizzy with heat. I quickly headed to the drinks stand and only then realised to turn off my Garmin. That’s how shattered I was!

My official time was 45:47 and I was the first female, 14th overall (out of 90). Quite pleased considering how painful I found the race. Mentally and physically tough to keep going and not give up on that last hill as well.

When I saw Ben in the distance about to start the uphill I headed down with some water for him as I could tell he was finding it just as hard as I had. He pushed through it and finished in 58.32min. Not a PB for either of us but I definitely felt a sense of accomplishment.

The race organisers had a good spread of post-race snacks as well.

I had one of the orange slices and honestly it made me feel terrible. Note to self: don’t eat fruit post-run. I got really bad cramps.

Being first female I got a prize: £30 off of a running website!!

Of which I have already put towards a new sports bra and a pair of running gloves (with a cool thumb but that allows me to work my Iphone screen).

After dying for a little bit we decided to head off and find a nice coffee shop to have a bit of tea and refreshments.

We went to a little coffee shop/garden centre called Lavender Tea Rooms. And it was so pretty! There was a field growing lavender and all these beautiful plants. Inside the tea room they sold all these pretty little trinkets, lavender teabags and lavender-flavoured biscuits.

My dad had a bacon roll (which looked very posh!), my mum had cream tea, Ben and Di had toasted teacakes (no photo sorry) and I had mint and pea soup. I would have normally had a scone but my tummy still felt a bit dodge. I thought soup would be a better call! And I am so glad I had it – it was the best soup I have ever had. So good in fact that my mum tried a bit and ordered some for herself as well! And the baguette was lovely and warm.

Then we headed home. When I got home I quickly showered and then headed out (with a couple of apples for the journey) to a BBQ with my friends. I didn’t partake in any food (apart from a slice of cake) as I had just had lunch and was later having an Indian with Ben but it was lovely to hang out with my friends in the sun. Though I felt a bit like I had heat-stroke and I was burnt from the run on my chest and arms.

I met their little guinea pig as well, who was lovely. I used to have loads of guinea pigs so I was quite content to stroke it on my lap.

UNTIL IT PEED ON ME. There’s gratitude for you.

We played some games and chilled out and then I left early to get back to Ben to eat a very well deserved Indian.

Though we both noticed how thirsty we were after the Indian. I mean I know how salty Indian takeaways are but I think that combined with losing a lot of water during the race really hit us. We both went to bed with water by the sides of our bed.

Monday was a lovely relaxed day with the family enjoying a tasty BBQ.

And so a great Bank holiday weekend if I do say so myself! Family, running, tasty food and sunshine. Perfect!

What do you prefer: tearooms or coffee shops? I do love coffee but there’s something so terribly quaint about a tearoom. I’m just sad I missed out on the scone. Next time for definite. They even had lavender flavoured scones!

What childhood pet did you used to have? We had two dogs, hamsters, nine guinea pigs (at one time!), fish and rabbits.

What do you like to eat post-race? I think I just prefer to drink lots of water and then have a proper meal a little while after.

Hills at the beginning or a race or then end? I thought I’d prefer the end but now I’m not so certain!

**I’m sorry if you’re getting bit sick of me going on about being the first girl in races and things like that – I don’t mean to sound like I’m bragging at all. I’m just pleased with how my running is doing. The races I’ve been doing are by no means huge races. They’re smaller informal races, so there’s a better chance to do well!**

May 20, 2013

Running Away and Moving Forward

Hi guys, well what a weekend is all I can say. A lot of highs and lows!!

Saturday morning Ben and I got up early and got ourselves ready to head to our first ever Parkrun (informal 5k race that happens all over the UK and the world on Saturdays). It starts at 9am and isn’t very far from us so we could leave at 8.15am and have plenty of time to work out where we needed to be etc. I had breakfast about 8am – absolutely standard oatmeal. Nothing fancy.

I was so nervous I can’t tell you. I know it’s stupid. But at Running Club on Thursday all the people were saying because it was such a flat course this time (it changes occasionally) and that I was a fast runner I was sure to do amazingly. And then when I got there a few people were saying I was going to be high in the table for the females.

I felt under a bit of pressure. Ridiculous I know because if I didn’t do well no one would really care except me and this was just a Parkrun. People were just observing I was a ‘fast’ runner and it was a flat course and they were being polite and flattering me.

I was also a bit caught of guard as it was very informal. I guess I should have expected this. When we all crowded at the start I was mid-conversation when they started counting to go.

Then we were off. I have never felt so sick in my life. I was jolted into a sprint and pegged it as fast as my little legs would go. I knew the 5k would all be about speed and it was just about going for as fast as you can for as long as you can until it’s over.

A mile in and I knew something was wrong. I started panicking in my head. I felt so sick. I knew I had to slow down but I couldn’t. I felt I would fail by slowing down (yes, I realise this is absolutely ridiculous and I am an idiot). But I knew by then I was going to be sick.

So I ran off the race. I literally ran away from the race.

I did what I had to as far away from the race as I could. Then I kept walking and didn’t look back. I was so annoyed with myself you wouldn’t believe. I started crying (I know, I know – so not worth crying about!). I kept walking to get as far away as I could.

I then flopped onto the pavement and let myself be pathetic for a while until I realised I was lost. With no phone. Nothing.

To be fair, I hadn’t walked a great distance from the race. Probably half a mile. But I couldn’t go back. I was convinced people would have seen or wondered what happened. So after about 15 minutes I realised I needed to do something constructive. The only number I knew off by heart was my parents’ house phone. So I asked to borrow a very nice lady’s phone and rang them.

My parents, bless them, drove and picked me up. They were so lovely and comforting with words of “it happens to all runners” but I was just hating myself right then. Why didn’t I just slow down? Why did I put so much pressure on myself? Why did I eat breakfast!!!!

Then we had to find Ben as I knew he’d have finished by then and he wouldn’t have had a clue what had happened. He was obviously very worried when we found him but very sympathetic as well.

Ben did amazingly in the run. He got 25mins30secs. I’m so proud of him. Bless him, he didn’t want to tell me what he got because he worried it would be “rubbing it in”. But I’m so pleased for him – I’m glad one of us had a success!

Sunday morning Ben and I got up early again. It was time to get back on the horse. We had planned a 10k race in a lovely country park (provided we both felt up to after the run on Saturday). Ben was good to go. And so was I.

I was nervous again, but not because of any pressure I’d stupidly put on myself but because I didn’t want to be sick again. But I had breakfast early and I thought to myself “this is just a nice run through a lovely park”. No pressure.

There was less than 350 people running and it was quite informal. We had numbers but we didn’t have chips or anything. Perfect for a no pressure run.

The first mile I was running literally next to another girl the entire time. Psychologically this is quite hard. But eventually I broke off and then managed to keep ahead. But I then had the issue that I needed to keep just slightly faster than her, which was a hard pace to maintain. It literally felt like a proper race in that respect. And then miles 2-4 I kept thinking she was just behind me. Thankfully by mile 4 I realised she was a fair way back and I was running strong. It was tough don’t get me wrong. Hard, fast running. But I wasn’t feeling sick. In fact, though it was bloody hard work, I felt pretty damn good. The competitive element wasn’t causing me any issues like Saturday.

My Garmin says under 10k which annoyed me and the official times haven’t come out yet (well, as official as someone with a stop watch at the end can be). But I’ll take it

And…I came first out of the ladies!! The girl I was up against at the beginning came second.

I got a little trophy for being the first female!

Then I glugged a load of water and waited for Ben. I was quite chuffed I’d get to see him finish and was ready poised with my camera.

He beat his Marwell 10k by around 4 mins by finishing 52mins56secs. Nice work!

I am really chuffed with the both of us. Firstly, Ben got two PBs in one weekend. For a guy that’s just got back into running I’m pretty damn proud of him. Secondly, I’m pleased that I learnt from yesterday. I put pressure on myself when I shouldn’t have – who the hell cares what time I do a run or race in! No one cares but me, and I shouldn’t be too hard on myself! I love running. Full stop. Getting good times is a great extra. I shouldn’t be so focused on it. I loved running months ago when I wasn’t doing races. I should just enjoy the race and let the times be what they will be.

Beautiful scenery near the finishing line

I’ll leave it there for today as I’ve gone on a bit in this post. I’m pleased with this weekend, warts and all. It’s the failures and issues you have in life that make you stronger!

Have you ever pushed yourself too hard?

Have you ever had a similar ‘issue’ when running/exercising?

If you do races, why do you do them? I like challenges and I like pushing myself. But I have to realised that I love running so much more. I cannot let my need to succeed compromise my love for running.