I am writing this blog from the comfort of my sofa after a challenging 5k event earlier this evening. Jack is playing FIFA on his PS3, Russ has gone to bed and I have just had 2 slices of Hawaiian pizza and some chocolate twisted doughballs as a treat. Harvey is in his bed and all is well.
This week has seen my walking training increase slightly. Last Sunday saw me do 6.27 miles, 3.0 miles were completed on Monday and 5 miles on Wednesday. This evening (Saturday) saw me do a 3.18 miles in an organised event and tomorrow I have a 7 mile walk to do.
I'm really enjoying this challenge and the bonus of weight loss is an unexpected plus. I have never been a lightweight...I like my food too much and I'm a bit lazy...so I was delighted to find that I have lost half a stone over the last month or so without even trying. I was very surprised when I stepped onto the scales, held my breath and squinted down to read the measurement. I had to check and weighed myself twice more and the reading was the same so I had to accept it. Happy days!
Now to this evening's event which was a 5k/10k glow in the dark event which was held at the National Trust site at Polesden Lacey in Bookham. Jack was running the 10k and I was walking the 5k. I had already been out and purchased headlamps for us both which we had been told that we had to wear for the event.
I had been struggling with a migraine all day and I was worried about how I was going to compete at all. Jack came home from work, we both got changed, I took yet more painkillers and off we went.
We got to Polesden Lacey with time to spare. We registered and were given our race chips which we had to wear on our fingers. The weather was unpleasant. It was extremely wind and felt very cold but it was dry.
At 7.30pm we were under starters orders and away. Immediately it became clear that the conditions were treacherous in places. Most of the route was countryside and it was incredibly slippery and muddy underfoot throughout the whole course. Running with headlamps on our head was not something we were used to and it felt strange to be running in pitch black with just the light from your head to guide you.
The course was not only muddy and slippery but it was also hilly which we hadn't expected. It reminded me of the Devil Run but at least I did that in daylight. I found running in such conditions this evening very, very hard and at times it felt dangerous. Several competitors that I saw had lost their footing and had fallen over. I managed to stay upright, more by luck than judgement, and finally finished my 5k in 52 minutes which I was really happy with bearing in mind the conditions.
Jack found the 10k run the hardest one he has done to date. He agreed with me that trying to run in those conditions was really difficult and that the hills were shockers! His words to describe it after the event were 'exhausting', 'challenging' and 'draining'. I'll leave out the expletives!
We both finished, we both got medals!
We were very happy to get to the end of the race and were delighted to get our medals and get in the car and drive home to be honest.
So, that was the last of our planned events that we have used as part of our training for the main event in March...only a matter of 5 weeks away. It has been really good to try all these events and it's been good doing them with Jack. Memories and all that!
I hope to wake up headache-free in the morning and set about my 7 mile walk with enthusiasm. I'm off for a cuppa now and then off to bed.
Don't forget: https://www.justgiving.com/teams/runjojo
A xx
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