Friday 23 March 2007

Fabulous run this morning

I really enjoyed my run this morning. It felt great while I was running. I was still on a high by the time I got to work an hour later.

I bought a book on Chi Running. I read about it on someone's blog, and I saw it in Borders the other day, so I thought I'd give it a go. Today, I jumped on the treadmill and worked on a couple of things mentioned in the book - my cadence and picking up my feet. The time just flew and I didn't feel like I was working hard at all. I ran at 7.6 km/h. I was only going to do 20 mins because I was a little late to the gym, but I decided to keep going and ended up running 4 km in just under 32 mins. I nearly missed the bus, but the run was definitely worth it.

Of course, I don't know if the run felt easy because of the different technique or because I'm so much fitter. Still, it doesn't really matter. I had a great time.

I didn't get to the gym tonight. I had a social engagement that took precedence. I was glad to discover that I was able to miss a gym session without completely stressing over it. I'll make sure I do the weights session over the weekend and I'll survive not earning the points for the workout.

I've realised that I'm going to have the best hair at the gym tomorrow. I'm off to the hairdresser in the morning, and then I'm heading straight to the gym. I hope that all the people on the treadmills around me appreciate it. *chuckle*

On Tuesday all the people around me nearly witnessed something I'm sure they'd probably not appreciate. I was running along on the treadmill and my shorts started to fall down. These were bike pants, so it was pretty extreme for them to fall down. Fortunately, I was able to hike them up enough to ensure that I didn't have an ongoing battle with my pants falling down, as it would have put an end to my run. On reflection, I was quite pleased that this had happened because it's a sign that my shape has changed again. I'm not so sure I'd have been pleased if they'd kept falling down though.

On Sunday my brother and I are getting together. The conversation was quite hilarious - Me, the former couch potato: "I'm going for a run, then I'm off to the gym. I'll be home around 10:30." Him, enthusiastic exerciser, who inspired me to start this journey in the first place: "I'll come over then and we'll walk to the shopping centre (miles away) for a coffee - that way we'll exercise while we talk". Me: "Great idea." Can you believe it - I think that's a great idea?!? What's happened to me? By the way, the reason we're walking is that he can't run because of a bad knee. Being a loving sister, I take great delight in reminding him every once in a while that I can run and he can't. He's avoiding a knee reconstruction, so I figure he's fair game. Besides, I can always run away from him!

3 comments:

Andrew(ajh) said...

I am a Chi Running fan too. I bought the book a while ago, and I have read through it once. I haven't tried doing any of the exercises yet, and am just about to start re-reading it. But like you, I've been trying to implement some of the theories too, primarily the lifting up of the feet and the forward lean. I think it really helps, and credit it for some of my faster times recently. I find if I can concentrate on lifting the feet, making them lighter, I can "get into the zone" and run well. I've ordered the DVD too. I do have a bit of trouble with body self-awareness if you know what I mean, so thought seeing it might help - sometimes I have trouble doing things from a book.

Jaykay said...

Enjoy your weekend in Melbourne, and don't forget your brolly!!

Sarah said...

What a great post Kathy!!! The whole thing made me smile from start to finish. Love the bit about the conversation with your brother - I can totally relate!

Great news about your shorts falling down too!! I'm sad about having to ay goodbye to my fav pair of gym short soon - but it's for the best reason!!!

Have a great weekend!