Skip to main content

Profiteroles for Breakfast!

Christmas Week.

Like most people, I've been confused about what day it is, eaten too much, slept too little and not moved too much from my sofa.

I did manage a Christmas Day parkrun at Hanley for the first time in several years, but running and training for Race to the Castle has hit a bit of roadblock - perhaps starting a training plan the week before Christmas wasn't the best idea.

On Thursday (Boxing Day), I had profiteroles for breakfast... my justification being they were Christmas leftovers that really needed to be eaten up. They were lovely; I had two helpings. I even added extra cream.


On Friday, I spent three hours in the M&S café... coffee, toasted teacake, another coffee, a slice of cake. I did blitz lots of emails and other admin... but only moved about 500 steps in the process. I should have been running but my knee was aching slightly - I opted for rest instead but didn't really take much persuading.

On Saturday, I was back in Hanley Park for parkrunday - at least I think it was Saturday. It was a busy morning with a big turnout of runners - I spent most of the afternoon nodding off on the sofa again. Oops!

So, after a few days where mind and body have switched off from thoughts of training and preparation - 22 weeks until Race to the Castle - it was time to shake off my lethargy and go out for a run.

Whenever I need a little wake up call and to get my mind back on my training plan, I have a few old tricks to fall back on... a run on my own, where I don't really know what route I am going to follow but with the possibility of muddy shoes and where I follow a footpath even if I don't know where it leads.

It worked.. almost six miles completed, no pain in my knee and I only got a little bit lost.

And I felt much better at the end of it.

So no more profiteroles for breakfast - mainly because I've finally eaten them all.

Time to focus on all the exciting challenges to come in 2020 - although I will make time this week to have a little look back on 2019 - the year of my blogging challenge. This is post 52 of 52 - I did it!








Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Well, that's a long way!

Race day was finally here.  After a difficult couple of weeks, I woke up on Saturday morning with a certain amount of trepidation after a very restless night's sleep and a couple of weeks of niggles, aches and tiredness. I reminded myself of the three goals I'd set for the race - start with confidence, enjoy the adventure and finish with a smile - and was boosted by some encouraging messages from friends and family. After a quick breakfast and a short bus ride, I arrived in Marlow for the start of the race. I wasn't sure what to expect and actually had no idea how many runners were taking part. My start time was 9.15am and it seemed like there were a couple of hundred of us setting off in the "competitive" wave covering marathon and ultra marathon distances. The ultra marathon route was approximately 33 miles involved an extra loop around Hambledon but we all started off in the same direction. My first race goal was accomplished as I started with...

(Not) Sorry!

It has been a while since my last blog. There's been a lot going on. Sometimes life gets in the way of running and writing about running. I'd like to say I'm sorry but this post is all about being not sorry, hopefully not in a selfish "I don't care if I upset you" kind of way but instead with a spirit of "I've got my motivation and priorities back on track and that's a good thing". I'm not sorry that I've decided to taken a step back from local road racing. Last year, I raced so often between May and September, that races were almost the only running I was doing. I forgot to rest properly and my body took a hit. There was a reason for racing so often: I was chasing points and placings in the NSRRA. Winning my group was a real possibility and points in every race mattered. It would be wrong to say I didn't enjoy it... I loved the competition and the challenge and of course I enjoyed winning... but I realised I wanted this summ...

Waiting to Exhale

I completed the final long run of my training for the  Greater Manchester Marathon  last Thursday - 10 miles in wind and rain along the canal towpaths of Hanley and Stoke and then through Fenton and back down Victoria Road. I was feeling tired before I set off and, as I left the house, I contemplated a shorter run than my training schedule suggested. I decided to listen to the latest edition of the Marathon Talk podcast as I ran, a special show reflecting on the unexpected and tragic events at the Boston marathon on the 22nd April. The stories that were told and the emotion in the presenters' voices reflected much of what I'd been feeling since news broke of the attack. As I ran, sometimes with tears in my eyes, I forgot about being tired and focused on my goals. I would show my support for the people affected by the Boston bombings by being as ready as I could be for my first marathon on April 28th. Meanwhile, all eyes were on London yest...