Wow! A Run At Last!

Monday Run and Natter - it's a start!

It started with an early morning text message to Becci, Linda and Helen to see who would be running that evening. It is a bit of a psychological push to know that everyone is going. The clocks went forward on Saturday evening and it would be good to be able to run in the lighter evenings. Not only that but we seem to be enjoying a very warm Spring and that makes it easier to shed layers without worrying about getting chilled.

It was still very mild well after I'd got back from my run

• Prep for run
• Plan for session
• Post run report

Prep for run

Whenever I haven't run for a while I find it hard to shake off a feeling that I have forgotten something important. To overcome this I use lists I can check off and I keep these on Evernote which is an app for note taking.

The stacking notebooks on Evernote are excellent for an obsessive  list maker like me

I always have a post it note in my organiser as well - just in case.  

Happily my Garmin is now working properly after I gave it a master re-set which was necessary as it was not charging properly.

Plan for Session

Monday evening runs are all about chatting and relaxing whilst getting in a few miles running. It isn't usually necessary to plan at all but I wanted to be sure that I was actually fit to run and that I wouldn't trigger an injury by going too mad (that would not be likely to happen on a Monday run). 

Even so here are the things I kept in mind:

• make sure there is no sign of chest infection to impair breathing
• start slowly to act as a warm up 
• keep the run slow and even to lessen chance of straining unused muscles
• be aware of how I am feeling
• warm down stretches

Post Run Report

It was so good to see everyone and I felt relaxed straight away. Becci had not been running because she had damaged the skin on her heels and Helen had not run because she lacks motivation when she has to run alone. Linda had been out though but was happy to keep to a low level pace.

We used our tried and trusted route

We went clockwise round one of our usual routes which meant a downhill start and then an almost level run of about 3 miles.

The weather was so kind to us and we were running in the last of the daylight which was fantastic. I tried my new running jacket which packed away into a pocket and fastened round my waist and left me free to run in a short sleeved top. I still had my long running tights and I think I could have been happy in capri length leggings.

This is exceptionally warm for the end of March

Most of us had to take off a layer and Helen seemed to struggle a little after a couple of miles which might have been caused by the warm weather.Helen also has a knee problem and is due to see the physio and I, for one, was happy to run quite slowly.

I was good to have taken off a layer and I felt comfortable the whole way round being able to talk without becoming breathless and I tried a little increase in pace once or twice without a problem. I did not feel as if I were totally free of the virus but I am not 100% sure that pollen allergies might be at play with so much blossom about and fields of rape in bloom. The laps looked steady and gentle:

A slow and steady pace

We spent some time stretching at the end of the run and are looking forward to the races we have entered and it felt good to get back to a more normal routine.

The only thing I think I might have to watch out for is a persistent niggle in the joint of my big toe but I'm going to give it a bit longer before I decide what to do.

I think we all went home much happier and a little fitter.