Hockey and running

This morning I made it out for a run. Considering that I signed up for the Run it Off challenge on Friday it's about time. I thought about running on Saturday morning Thinking about it was as far as it got. Snug and warm in my cosy bed, I was easily able to convince myself that I'd do plenty of running at hockey that afternoon. On Sunday morning I was too sore to contemplate going for a run but at least I had been right about hockey. I also bought myself a new pair of running shoes. :-)

I've been finding it really hard to get up and go running. There's the cold factor. The radio announcer mentions the negative temperature and I'm convinced that another half an hour in bed is a better option. There's the "it's dark outside" factor, which is rapidly becoming a non-starter. There's the "it's been so long since I went running that I can't run anymore" factor. I'd like to blame the radio announcer but that one is strictly in my own head. There's the "I'm so fat that none of my running clothes will fit me anymore" factor, which, according to the scales, is not at all true but it sounds fair and reasonable at 6 am.

I was lying in bed this morning, working out a way to eliminate the various factors, when the obvious answer jumped into my head. Run later in the day. That eliminates the dark factor and adds more than a few degrees to the temperature. I'm having a few days off work at the moment, so I decided that I'd go running after all the kids had been dropped at school.

What a great idea. The sun was shining, the sky was blue, I'd looked up my weight at the start of the year and reassured myself that I'd only put on 1.5 kg since January, and I reminded myself that I'd run pretty well at hockey on Saturday. I set a realistic goal of heading out for 30 mins and I told myself that the real achievement was to get my backside out there. It didn't matter how far I went or how fast I ran as long as I was running.

TB was incredibly helpful. I'd planned a nice flat route along the bikepath towards town. He suggested that I run in the opposite direction as there were some good hills that way. Instead of punching him, I followed his advice. To my surprise I didn't do too badly on the hills, although I have to admit that I did walk part of the way. My "trusty Garmin" showed that I climbed a little over 60 m. I managed to go down even further, ending up 7 m lower than when I started. I'm not exactly sure how I managed that. I kind of expect the house to be at the same elevation when I get home as it was when I left. Maybe it's the earth's rotation.

I ran 4 km in 30 mins, which wasn't too bad. 7.5 mins/km in fact. It was a comfortable run and I am feeling terrific. I got out there, I survived, and I'm keen to do it again. Aren't these challenges wonderful?

Mind you, TB has been given the job of chief motivator and Kathy-out-of-bed pusher. We'll have to see how that goes. My secret goal is to get him out there with me. Shhh.