Tag Archives: runner

My 1000 Mile Challenge 2016

It really is time to say goodbye to 2015, and tomorrow I’m going to be sharing all my New Year’s resolutions (so keep an eye out for that one!), but today I want to tell you all about one thing in particular I’m hoping to do in the coming year.

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I’m calling it My 1000 Mile Challenge, and it is what is says on the tin: throughout 2016, I’m aiming to run 1000 miles, whether it be an official race, on the treadmill at the gym or just going out and running; if I’m running, it will count.

While I’m aware how crazy this all sounds, it works out to less than 20 miles a week, or just under 3 miles a day. A year ago this would have seemed 100% impossible to me, but after the year I’ve had? I’m up for the challenge!

And, of course, there’s a reason for my madness – it’s all for charity! Each month I’ll be choosing a different charity to support (and please get in touch if you have any suggestions!), and shamelessly begging people to sponsor me, with the aim of raising £1000 collectively, and I’ll be sharing my fundraising pages on Twitter so everyone can keep up with how I’m getting on!

Am I mad?!

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RunDisney 2016: 3 Weeks to go!

Just a quick little update on this week today, I’m busy trying to feel Christmassy in preparation for next week!

So on Tuesday Dad and I headed out for a quick run after I decided my knee could probably handle it, and we’d only made it about 1k from home before it caved, and I finally gave in to the suggestion of going to Physiotherapy, which I did on Thursday evening.

Turns out, my knee-cap is mis-aligned, causing abrasion between bones around my knee and creating scar tissue, which is what is causing the pain I’m experiencing, so in the next few weeks I’ll be undergoing treatment to reduce this scar tissue, while strengthening the muscles in my legs which will keep my knees straight while I run, simple! Meanwhile, my leg is covered with KT tape to support my knee, so that I can keep running through the treatment.

Freshly taped, we went out Friday morning to test this theory, and it was an absolute dream; I felt totally fine, which cheered me up immensely, yay! We have, however, held off running this weekend due to it playing up slightly on Saturday, and also Dad’s had some backpain, so we’re going to allow recovery time (and cos its Christmas) before a final ramp up and taper down in the final weeks approaching races!

°o°

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RunDisney 2016: 4 Weeks to go!

4 weeks *tears up with excitement*

Now a lot of exciting things have happened this week, but running sort of hasn’t been one of them. We kicked off the week with a recovery run on Tuesday; I call it a recovery run because it was in no way a training run, we just had to keep moving following Saturday’s half marathon distance – we lasted about 25 minutes and everything was hurting a little. For me, that was the end of my training for the week. Remember that knee problem I’ve mentioned before? Yeah well our recovery run tipped it over the edge and I’ve spent most of my time this week with an icepack taped to my leg.

Tuesday evening also came with one of those exciting things I opened with: corral announcements, and the release of the event guide! So we’ve been placed in corral F, with a predicted time of <2:21, which we’re capable of, but I very much doubt we’ll do what with photo ops and character meets along the course. The release of the event guide means we now know our race courses, the expo set-up and all the timings and transportation details, so I can start memorising everything in an attempt to mentally prepare myself!

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Exciting thing number 2: we’ve received some of the details for the Star Wars weekend from our travel provider, so it’ll only be a matter of time before we have our corrals and other info through from RunDisney! Unfortunately techincalities have meant having to reschedule one of our breakfast reservations, but its really not the end of the world!

Dad ran on Saturday without me, partially because of my knee, but mainly because I was in London for the day with my lovely friend Chelsea (because I know she’s reading this), eating pizza and amazing cookies, but considering we walked over 10 miles around the city I think that counts as training! And despite a slight complication at the end of the day, I came home to a package from Walt Disney World – our travel documents!

This is happening!

°o°

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Winter Run Wear

Its the season of big coats, woolly hats and hands stuffed into pockets because you forgot your gloves yet again, and any excuse to stay home in the warmth is welcomed with open arms, unless you’re a runner..

We’re a strange breed, and a year or two ago I would look out on those braving the low temperatures to get in a training run and think ‘is it really worth it?’, but now I’m part of this world I welcome a brisk winter run because I know how to dress for the occasion.

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My first winter essential is my fleece, which I save for the coldest weather; its great for keeping away the chill while you’re out, but once you get back home you’re gonna want to whip it off pretty quick before you start to cook!

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Next staple of mine is a bunch of lightweight long sleeved tops, like this once from Asics. On cool days, you might worry that they’re not gonna keep you warm, but once you get going you’ll warm up nicely, but also avoid overheating. Something I love about running in colder weather is that its cool enough to run with my hair down, so chunky headbands that keep the cool off my ears and the hair out of my face are pretty great!

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I love my bodywarmer in the winter months – its super lightweight and not at all bulky, but at the same time makes all the difference out in the cold. I would also recommend a lightweight infinity scarf; even if you don’t want to run wearing it, it’ll help keep you warm once you start your cool-down.

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Bring on the thermals! Forget the idea that they’re thick or too hot, and find yourself a nice light one because you’ll be amazed how much warmer they’ll make you! Sometimes I also like to wear a hat – you lose a lot of body heat from your head, so it helps prevent you cooling down too much, and the same principle applies to gloves!

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Finally, the dreaded waterproof jacket! I say dreaded because who likes running in the rain, right? Well, like it or not, a lot of runners still do it, so the waterproof is fairly essential. I found shopping for mine pretty tricky; a lot of jackets claim ‘splashproof’ or ‘water resistant’, rather than waterproof, so you have to take a risk on whether you’ll be fully protected from the weather, but generally I would recommend avoiding cheaper/high street brands and go to a proper sports brand!

Once you’re fully equipped for the cold, there’s nothing to stop you from keeping up your training through the winter months. You never know, you might enjoy it!

xoxo

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What Motivates Me; The Runner, The Blogger, and the Everyday Girl

Motivation is something that I, and I guess most people, battle with constantly. One minute I’m super pumped to get everything and anything done, then all of a sudden *poof* I’ve spent 3 hours watching Friends re-runs and browsing Pinterest..

But believe it or not, I’m an incredibly driven person, and there are many things that really boost my motivation:

1. Competition

You can probably guess that I’m a crazy competitive person, but everyone is, right? Its the runner in me; I run faster in races surrounded by other people, push harder in the gym when its busier, and eat better when I’m out with friends. Its not always about smashing the competition, as much as it is about having the drive to prove what you are capable of.

2. Numbers

This sounds odd, but its really another aspect of my competitive nature: beating myself. I’m always looking at numbers – running pace, blog views, social media followers, sales figures etc – and its purely for the purpose of knowing where I’ve come from and where I am now. During training, I pester Dad constantly.. ‘What distance are we at?’ ‘What pace are we running?’ ‘What did we do last time?’, and its not because I’m curious, its because I’m constantly working out how much better we’re doing, eg. our record for 5 miles has dropped from over 1 hour to 55 minutes in the past 2 months.

Similarly, I check my blog stats daily. I need to know how many people are reading, what’s most popular, when is traffic busiest.. I check Instagram so frequently I’m amazed my phone screen hasn’t worn away where the app button is, and its all because new likes, comments and followers make my day, and that keeps me happy and excited to post!

In life, its just as much of a drive, just slightly more boring.. I monitor spending and savings to the point where it becomes slightly anal, I countdown days til big events and holidays, I even count my steps! What can I say, numbers just do it for me, I guess..

3. Targets

Sometimes the main goal can seem so far away, so I always set smaller targets to keep my spirits up along the way.

As a runner, it could be as big as the next mile, or as small as the next step, but having something to concentrate on and aim for makes it all the more easier. When I have writers block, which happens ALL the time, even just finishing the paragraph can feel like a great success, and that feeling pushes me to get the next sentence, next paragraph and next post finished.

4. Who benefits from what I’m doing

I don’t think I would describe myself as totally selfless, but I don’t do anything without thinking about those around me; who might it affect, what do they think etc..

I run for myself, I run because I do it with my dad, and sometimes I run for charity. When I’m writing I’m thinking about my readers and what they enjoy, and with every decision I make in life I’m constantly considering my family, friends and those around me.

5. What am I getting out of it

See, not totally selfless! Every time I lose drive, I have to remind myself why I’m doing it and what I’m going to gain. Every run is another step towards my fitness goal, every gym workout contributes to a body I can be proud of, and it gives me a kick to know I’m eating healthy!

As far as blogging goes, the benefits for myself are really just the good feeling I get from sharing my experiences with my readers; I’m not in blogging for the ‘fame’ or anything, its just nice to get the words out..

Life is probably where I have to keep reminding myself of why I’m doing what I’m doing most often. When I’m regretting picking up that extra shift or two, I have to keep telling myself that I need the money (see, those darn numbers doing it for me again), and reminding myself that I’d otherwise just be sat at home watching rubbish on tv! Spending bans are for savings goals, long days and late nights are because work has to be done, and salads instead of burgers are because I want to live a healthier life.

What motivates you?
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