Rosedawn Ramblings

My Dad! It's been a bit quiet on the running and blogging front for the last few months... since the Potters' Arf back in June in fact. The summer weather never really came... and then my Dad's health deteriorated and I flew out to see him in France before he passed away in July. My Dad's battle with cancer had been a strong motivation for my first half marathon in March and for my fundraising for Cancer Research . I lost my running mo-jo for a while. Then a few weeks ago, the call came round at Potters Trotters  to persuade members to take part in the North Staffordshire Cross Country League - 4 events over approximately 5km on Saturday afternoons from September to December. I confess that I didn't sign up immediately - I think I was held back a little bit by memories of running through icy puddles around the rugby field on a cold and wintry day at parkrun in Glasgow back in January. Inspiration from London 2012 But during early September, as I starte...

Yesterday, I completed the Potters 'Arf - my second half marathon and a very tough experience, especially the last two miles. But I did it and also within my 2hour target, so I could pick up my bronze medal... In the build-up to the race, I was a little bit nervous. I'd had a really mixed experience with my training - I didn't run properly for about 2 weeks after a cold/cough amidst the dreadful weather and had only managed 2 of my planned 4 long runs. I'd also missed out a couple of scheduled hill sessions, which I knew I could cause me problems on the Potters 'Arf route. However, I'd managed a really good training 10-mile run with Liz and Jo from Potters Trotters on the 31st May, then a fast Hanley parkrun on the 2nd June and also a good mid-week speed session in which I did my fastest ever kilometre. By Saturday night, I was a little bit more relaxed and ready to run... bring it on! Given that the start / finish line for the Potters 'Arf is only ab...

I think I may be a fair weather runner.... the rain, hail, sleet, snow and freezing temperatures over the last couple of weeks seem to have an major impact on my motivation. I've had to force myself into my trainers to get out there and run. Sometimes, like yesterday when the wind and rain didn't stop, I haven't even got out of the front door at all. My parkrun times in April have been getting slower not quicker, although running through driving rain does seem a good excuse for being a little bit off PB pace. Long runs have been non-existant for the last three weeks, although I did manage some speed work and hill reps last week - mainly thanks to Kirsten's encouragement. Perhaps its just a natural lull after the excitement of achieving my half marathon goals in Stafford back in March. Or did I eat too much chocolate cheesecake in celebration? Maybe I just needed to let myself recover for a little bit longer, or I've reached a plateau. Perhaps I've been expecti...

I did it! After three months of talking about it, blogging about it, training, stretching, pilates, and the interminable waiting of last week , I did it and I have the medal to prove it! My Medal My Sprint Finish! On Sunday 25th March, at just after 12.00pm, I completed the Stafford Half Marathon in a very pleasing and slightly surprising 1:58:08 (sub-2 hours in runners speak). That works out at just over 9 minutes per mile. I even managed a sprint finish - running the last 400 minutes in about 2 minutes. As you can tell from the before and after shots below, it was hard work on a very sunny and warm day. Before - Smiling! After - Still Smiling! Some thoughts on the race based on the music I was listening too as I ran: Ready To Go - this was my first experience of a big race - almost 2,000 participants completed the event. It was a bit of a scrum at the start but everyone was very friendly and I had a few conversations whilst we were waiting to start. Once ...