Two weeks to go, eek!!

Illness keeps getting in the way of my training, it's so annoying!!

First I had the injury in my calf/ankle from running, then it was sinusitis and really bad toothache, then I had chronic dizziness from a problem with my ears, and just when I was ready to start running again, now I've come down with a cold! Not happy. But I did run Parkrun Hove (5km) yesterday, so I'm happy about that.

Here is me post-Parkrun...

I ran it in 25:14, which although isn't a pb, I was still happy with. Especially as I felt all cold-y and hadn't run for over a week because of my ear problem.

Bit of a cheesy picture...

Below is my post-running snack of toast with three-nut butter, Cheezly (vegan 'cheese') and alfalfa sprouts...yum...

 

...closely followed with a less healthy meal of more toast, waffles, Cheatin' ham (vegan fake ham), roasted tomatoes, onion and courgettes, and more alfalfa!

So I am going to try and continue to run this coming week, despite the cold,  apparently when you are ill, if it's 'above the chest' then you can carry on running. So I will. 'Cos I feel if I don't I'll struggle to get a good 8km time at the RISE event.

I am *really* chuffed that I have already reached my sponsorship target of £150 for RISE! I have so far raised £198. If you want to sponsor me that would be really awesome. Here is the link/info- https://www.justgiving.com/stephimusgrave

Happy running and happy Sunday everyone :)

-x-

4 weeks until RISE, 9 weeks until Brooks!

So, it's four weeks until I run the RISE 8km, and nine weeks until the Brooks 10km, which are both in Brighton.

Training is going ok, but I need to ramp it up a bit. One bit of good news is that I got another pb at Parkrun (Hove) on Saturday. It was strange and unexpected cos I hadn't been doing much running, so it must have been down to cross-training and the fact that the fitness you gain from intensive training actually stays with you for a while even if you stop for a few weeks. I ran it in 24:22, which I was so happy about. I still feel I have a way to go with my 5km times. So that's good.

Last week I ran three times: a short 2.77km run at my mum's in Cuckfield, a 5km along the seafront in Brighton/Hove, and Parkrun (5km).

I was supposed to run yesterday but didn't, and I was hoping to make it to my first RISE training this morning, but I was ten or fifteen minutes late and I couldn't see anyone there. Boo. I will try and go out later but I am feeling so tired so we'll see! I keep thinking, 'tomorrow' I'll start properly.... Haha. I once read that sometimes the motivation for something only comes once you've started. And this definitely rings true with my running at times. But how do you push past the feelings of 'I can't be bothered'? It's hard, that's for sure.

I will definitely try to make the Thursday training, and perhaps run today or tomorrow as well. In trying to make the session today I cycled really hard into the wind for about twenty minutes, along the seafront, and then cycled for about 25 minutes back, so it wasn't a wasted trip.

Here are two pics I took after my seafront run last week....

See ya -x-

RISE 8km Undercliff Run

I'm running 8km for RISE on Sunday 12th October, which I'm excited about, not least because it's only the second ever organised event I've entered! The last one was when I was about 21. That's if you don't count Parkrun, which is actually an organised event, and something I try to do on average about once a month, but haven't really managed, I just go through phases of not going and going. That's a 5km volunteer-run event that happens every week all over the world, but mainly in the UK. I'll post separately on it at some point because it's amazing.

RISE is a charity which supports and helps people affected by domestic abuse. They are based in Brighton (UK) and help people in Brighton, Hove and West Sussex. I feel strongly about supporting them and am looking forward to raising lots of money for them. 

8km isn't too challenging for me as I've been running up to 17km recently, the only real challenge is whether or not I get this pain back in my leg. I was running up to six days a week and then I had this moderate pain at the bottom of my calf muscle, maybe even my achilles tendon (?), I'm not sure. Anyway so until today I haven't really run for about three weeks, so I am really hoping that it won't return.

If you want to sponsor me that would be really awesome, here is my Justgiving page:

https://www.justgiving.com/stephimusgrave

They have some free training sessions, which I'm looking forward to. The first one I can make is next Tuesday,

The run itself starts in Saltdean, on the outskirts of Brighton, and then goes into Brighton, and then back again. The Undercliff Walk itself which I'll be running along is lovely, I normally walk or cycle along it, so it'll be really nice to run it instead. 

Here's a pic of it on a recent run/bike ride with friends....

So, I guess I better get training.....

-x-

New blog!!

Hey,

So I feel bad that I haven't been keeping up with my allotment and food blogs for the last year or so. So what better way to resolve this than by starting a brand new blog?! Actually I thought that it might help to reboot my existing ones if I can get excited by this new one!

So. Running. I've been doing a lot lately, and I've also started to enter organised events. I've recently signed up for: Brighton Half Marathon '15, Brooks 10km in November '14 and RISE 8km Undercliff Run, which is in just under 5 weeks. Eek.

If you're in any way interested in running, reading and looking at running-related pictures, this might just be the blog you've been waiting your whole life for. Haha, not really, but maybe you'll enjoy joining me on my running journey.

Running can be difficult at times; things like lack of motivation, injury and low mental endurance can really set you back, even make you feel down (which happened to me recently when I couldn't run for three weeks because of an injury). But mostly running is great. I like running for lots of reasons, but mainly because I can do it for free, it keeps me fit, both physically and mentally, and I get to see the sights of Brighton, Hove and the surrounding areas whilst doing it. There's also a great feeling of community, especially at events like Parkrun and being part of groups/clubs like Vegan Runners. Even being part of a group on social media, sharing your recent runs and pics, can make you feel part of something really special.

Maybe see you out there.....

-x-

This is me after getting a pb at Clair Parkrun in Haywards Heath :)