I finally feel like I've started to make a dent in the 366 days of 2016, completing the first 50 days without any major issues.
I've also completed my first run over 10 km, after I ran nearly 13 km on the 17th Feb. My previous longest run this year was about 7 km. But for whatever reason I went out with the intention of just running a quick 5 km and just through enjoyment decided to do a longer a route.
It's strange and completely counter-intuitive, but I often find the longer I run for, the more comfortable I feel and the more enjoyable the run. I don't if your body just starts to relax or you get in a zone, who knows. But I just had one of those runs that made me remember why I love running so much and had a genuine buzz afterwards.
Over the course of the last 50 days, I've also written a blog article for Rethink, the mental health charity who I'm raising money for. You can find my blog piece here.
Overall I'm feeling strong and confident and it's great to see my times coming down and the distances going up.
Bring on the next 316 days!
Showing posts with label Rethink. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rethink. Show all posts
Monday, 22 February 2016
Wednesday, 10 February 2016
One month down
I think the biggest challenge so far has definitely been the psychological struggle to motivate myself to get out and run everyday.
Whenever I've trained for other events which have been more physically demanding, like my first marathon I ran last May, I've had rest days and if you don't feel like training one day, you have a day off and run the next.
But there's been days in the first month where I've felt under the weather or had a long day at work and it's hard to gee yourself up to go and put the work in. But I knew this was going to be the case and that's why it's a challenge.
The good news is, with each run I'm starting to feel a bit stronger now and I'm having fewer and fewer aches and pains too!
Bring on the next 11 months!
Tuesday, 12 January 2016
Getting back in to the rhythm
For anyone who's ever studied sports science you'll know that there is an acronym, S.P.O.R.T which lays out the principles of fitness training.
Over the first week and a half of my 5k a day challenge, one of these principles has caused me a great deal of pain and frustration.
The letters of the acronym stand for specificity, progression, overload, reversibility and tedium and the one that's been troubling me is reversibility.
If you've ever reached a level of fitness and then stopped training for any reason, whether it be injury or laziness, you'll be fully aware that when you start training again your body plays a bit of a cruel trick on you. Painfully quickly you'll come to the realisation that what you were once able to do, you no longer can.
Last year I ran my first half and full marathons, to do this I was running 3 or 4 times a week, between 10 and 40 km. So when I set myself this challenge to run 5 km every day in 2016, I thought physically it would be fairly straight forward.
However, after a couple of months without running regularly, running 5 km again has felt like a massive test on my stamina. As well as the physical effects, this has a big mental impact too. It's hard for you to accept that what used to be a pretty standard run,
is now absolute agony.
But along with trying to raise money for Rethink, getting back on the road and pushing myself mentally and physically over the course of the this year was part of my motivation and this is the first hurdle I've got to overcome.
Over the first week and a half of my 5k a day challenge, one of these principles has caused me a great deal of pain and frustration.
The letters of the acronym stand for specificity, progression, overload, reversibility and tedium and the one that's been troubling me is reversibility.If you've ever reached a level of fitness and then stopped training for any reason, whether it be injury or laziness, you'll be fully aware that when you start training again your body plays a bit of a cruel trick on you. Painfully quickly you'll come to the realisation that what you were once able to do, you no longer can.
Last year I ran my first half and full marathons, to do this I was running 3 or 4 times a week, between 10 and 40 km. So when I set myself this challenge to run 5 km every day in 2016, I thought physically it would be fairly straight forward.
However, after a couple of months without running regularly, running 5 km again has felt like a massive test on my stamina. As well as the physical effects, this has a big mental impact too. It's hard for you to accept that what used to be a pretty standard run,
is now absolute agony.
But along with trying to raise money for Rethink, getting back on the road and pushing myself mentally and physically over the course of the this year was part of my motivation and this is the first hurdle I've got to overcome.
Tuesday, 5 January 2016
The 5k a day challenge has started!
So I've completed the first four runs of my challenge, it's been a tough start but at least I've only got 362 to go!
The reason I've decided to take on this year long fundraising effort, is to try and raise a bit of money and awareness about a charity called Rethink. They do really important work, tackling the stigma that's attached to mental health issues.
It's a really sad fact, that in 2016 mental illness is still so misunderstood and ignored. There is a real reluctance to discuss mental health openly and honestly in our society, which only perpetuates the problem.
But the sad truth is, at any one time one in four of us is suffering from mental health problems. That basically means you, a family member, a work colleague, a friend or a number of these people are likely to be suffering, right now.
That's why this cause is so important, because we are all affected. So over the coming months, I hope my running efforts and this blog will help stimulate a discussion and make a positive difference.
The reason I've decided to take on this year long fundraising effort, is to try and raise a bit of money and awareness about a charity called Rethink. They do really important work, tackling the stigma that's attached to mental health issues.
It's a really sad fact, that in 2016 mental illness is still so misunderstood and ignored. There is a real reluctance to discuss mental health openly and honestly in our society, which only perpetuates the problem.
But the sad truth is, at any one time one in four of us is suffering from mental health problems. That basically means you, a family member, a work colleague, a friend or a number of these people are likely to be suffering, right now.
That's why this cause is so important, because we are all affected. So over the coming months, I hope my running efforts and this blog will help stimulate a discussion and make a positive difference.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)