Everyone who knows me will tell you that I’m a real gym bunny and have been for years. I practically live at Donyngs at the moment and am definitely making the most of my monthly membership!
It’s the Les Mills classes that I love going to, and I’ve always struggled with gym sessions as I lose my motivation.
Since I’ve been running outside in the last month or so, my opinion of the treadmill has decreased somewhat. It’s now referred to as the ‘Boremill’ as I just don’t feel like I’m getting anywhere when I’m on it – I suppose I’m not really!
Everyone kept telling me that outdoor running would be completely different to the treadmill, and wow were they right. Even if you run on the tread with a decent incline, it’s no match for the undulating hills of outside, and the branches and uneven terrain in the woods or park. And it’s all about the fresh air! Who wants to be stood in the same spot breathing in the sweat of the person next to you when you can be free?!
I’m converted anyway. The tread is a nice pre-work morning session filler but it just doesn’t do it for me any more!
I’m running the marathon as part of team Run For It, working to raise money for YouthNet and AgeUK.
I work with Age UK on a daily basis through my day job in financial services marketing, and am therefore aware of the work that they do for people in later life. Each year they help transform the lives of over 5 million people by providing vital support and services and fighting discrimination, poverty and isolation.
Did you know that in the UK today, over 1 million older people have not seen another person in over a month?
YouthNet and Age UK have teamed up with a mission in mind – bringing young and older people together to end loneliness and isolation. Young volunteers are teamed up with older people so they can connect with others as they make the opportunities the web has to offer. As older people learn how to use online tools, they’ll discover how easy it is to keep in touch with their friends, family and local community.
Every mile I run on marathon day will raise money to help prevent 1 million older people in the UK from feeling lonely. We’re all going to be old one day – so please, dig deep.
Yesterday saw me tackle my first outdoor 10k race. Having run a couple of outdoor 5ks in preparation, it was time to step it up a gear and give the 6.2 miler a whirl. Conditions on the day weren’t too bad – it was a bit chilly and it started to spit with rain as all 600 runners warmed up with ‘dynamic Sue’. As we all lined up at the start the rain stopped (must have been a sign) and then the gun went! I’d positioned myself towards the back of the field (50 – 60 minutes predicted time) and as we headed out of Lloyds Park and turned left towards Shirley, I was feeling good and overtook a fair few people. It was really difficult to get into any kind of rhythm until about 2k when people had bunched off. The course was fairly flat but there were a few hills at around the 5 and 8k marks, with 8k being a long drag! I managed to get a really bad stitch at 6k as I couldn’t control my breathing, and couldn’t shift it until 8k, so this slowed me down a bit unfortunately. As I saw the 9k barrier approach I stepped it up a gear and felt like I had quite a bit left in the tank. The final 1k was mainly downhill, so I picked up the pace and produced a good sprint finish (even if I do say so myself) in the last 200 metres, to overtake 4 people in the home straight. I was really pleased to finish in 56mins, and feel I could have gone faster without the stitch! The good thing was, I felt I had a bit more left in the tank and wasn’t as exhausted as I thought, which has given me confidence. My weekly 5k runs in the build up to the race certainly helped. Next stop, the Brighton half marathon! It never ends! Here I am at the end of the race showing off my shiny 10k medal!
The definition of a marathon: 1. A long-distance running race, strictly one of 26 miles and 385 yards 2. A long-lasting or difficult task or operation of a specified task I think the Virgin London Marathon 2013 falls into both of these! So, my marathon journey has well and truly begun. I applied for a ballot place and for the second year in a row, was unfortunately denied one. Unphased, I then decided I would go down the charity route and have secured a place with the Run For It team, raising money for Age UK. I’m really excited to have secured a place and although I know the next 6 months will be a challenge, I’m determined to cross that finish line. I’ve always been quite a sporty person – I was on the cross country and netball teams at school, and represented my county in athletics a few times, but it’s only been in the last 12 months or so that I’ve started to enjoy running again. Having said that, it’s mostly been running on the treadmill, and I haven’t been running long distances – the odd 5k here pushing towards a 10k. The idea of running 26.2 miles is really daunting at the moment – it’s the thought of hitting that pavement continuously for over 4 hours without collapsing that’s really getting to me. Or running from my house to Haywards Heath – that seems near on impossible! I’m quite a competitive person however, and would definitely consider myself as positive. So although it will take time, no doubt hurt, will require willpower and changing my life, I WILL get there. I’m taking one week at a time – it’s not a sprint race after all.
