8 – 21 February 2021 “In out the cold.”

Ice. Wind. Rain. Double-digit temperatures (barely). A variety of weather patterns, but finally starting to lean positively! The start of the fortnight had weather still firmly within the “freezing cold winter” category, with incentive to go out is as low as the sub-zero temperatures keeping week-old snow on the ground. However, I’ve been able to ditch the extra-thick gloves for the last few runs, and was even fine with just a T-shirt yesterday! Annoyingly, my headphones weren’t working but it made for a thoughtful run (my thoughts being, “get out of my way!”)

With lockdown (3? Or 4? Wait, when was 2?) active, that means the streets are empty… while the parks are rammed. Discourtesy from other park users has been prevalent, with dogs running amok (and into me, without a single word of apology or concern from the owners), and people blocking paths more than usual. But with half-term and various stuff going on, I hadn’t gotten out too much anyway. It’d be heroic to say “not as much as I would have liked” (I have a loose definition of “hero”), but I’ve not been that enthused anyway. It’s weird how much I took runcommutes for granted; forcing myself into a position where I had to run home, as opposed to forcing myself off the couch! However, with the virus starting to reduce and anticipation of events restarting (again. Nothing could possibly go wrong this time…), the thought of racing – my true motivation – tingles my feet.

With a marathon and a half in consecutive weeks later in the year, I’ll probably focus on the latter as it feels almost like starting from scratch marathon-wise. Nonetheless, I’ll still look to do some marathon training; running in the sunshine months is a good motivator for getting out!

1 – 7 February 2021 “Calm before the storm.”

Although I’ve given up on following the news (I’d only just discovered that lockdown is extended until March. What!), occasionally the odd update trickles through such as the return of the “Beast from the East”; a snowstorm which caused havoc a few years back. Of course, with everybody already trapped indoors and events not scheduled, this is one beast that won’t bother us!

This week I pushed myself into a speed session, alternating a minute at fast pace (approx 5:15/mile) with jogs, for 30 minutes. The weather was perfect and the park not too congested, so it made for quite a fun session, with a cyclist even passing positive comment as I kept up with them!

Talking of sessions not done for a while, I had the privilege of taking my daughter out for a run early in the week. Despite the cancellation of young runners’ training, her enthusiasm hasn’t waned and often races the few other children at her school (then again, who didn’t at her age!). As a result, her speed and endurance has improved from the last time I took her out, with an average pace of 9:25/mile, and over a minute faster on the route. At least one of us will be parkrun-ready when it returns!