I never thought I’d see the day where I’d actually look forward to running a 5k but after all the house drama in January (four floods and a smashed oven), getting back to normal on the running track was very, very welcome indeed.
But, perhaps predictably, it seems that running is a lot harder than I thought it was going to be. In my head, I just thought I’d be moving my legs a bit quicker each week and voila! A 15 minute 5k, as if by magic. Not quite.
While weight training can be difficult and you need to make sure that you focus on form constantly or you can really injure yourself (been there), it seems that all the stars need to be aligned in order for running personal bests to be achieved.
As with my last Stretford parkrun attempt, I ended up getting a stitch on the second lap of the park – in pretty much the same place on the course as the previous run. I assume this has something to do with the time I’m eating before the run and I’ve been having my breakfast an hour before the event, so today (February 15th) I’ll try an hour and a half and see if that makes a difference.
In stitches
If any of you have any tips for what to do if you get a stitch while running, I’d really appreciate it as I don’t want to stop if it happens again today. And also, what even is a stitch?!?
I aimed to get a good seven hours sleep at least last night and planned a nice healthy meal for supper that hits all the major food groups (zaalouk with lamb, halloumi cheese and flatbreads, for those who want to know), so hopefully that will help fuel me well for this morning.
And I avoided drinking too much before the run too, so I won’t be sloshing about as I attempt to get below 30 minutes for the first time. I’ve also got a fancy new running belt as the one I had on the last run did nothing but annoy me. And my south Manchester running coach Joe set up Map My Run for me so I can hear my pace per kilometre as I run… so, hopefully, all the stars are lining up for me to shine.
Wish me luck!
Sarah
