Evolution

I have to confess. This isn't my first blog. But, the others I've kept were just journals, diaries or memories for me to treasure in private. I do have a poor memory for the finer details, so writing blogs has been a way to pin down some facts and thoughts through my life. I've been wondering of late, how much has my running improved? The feeling that it 'never seems easy' always seems ever present. So, I thought I'd have a flick back through some old blog entries and look at what I've done. I am pleasantly surprised with my progress.

It was in April 2011 that we moved to Glossop. In London I'd done some running, mostly around Greenwich Park or Blackheath. I remember being quite chuffed at reaching the vast distance of 5km. My motivation to run was similar to what it is now - to be fitter and healthier. But the motivation to run wasn't yet ingrained. It was a physical activity that caused pain, and I used numbers (stats) to get me to the next corner, the next lamppost, the top of a hill (usually walking). It all seemed like bloody hard work and I know looking back now that it was.

It wasn't until I moved north that I started to enjoy running. Yet pleasure for running didn't come immediately. I was excited to be able to move quicker than walking pace in the hills. The motivation was to be in the hills, seeing birds and mountain hares, listening to the sound of the wind and not hearing any sirens or traffic. It was the pleasure of just being out there that got me inspired to run more, to improve my running and see where I could get to.

Running was still hard. I hated hills. I didn't trust my feet on the uneven ground. Anytime I ran with someone else I always felt like I was holding them up. I felt the struggle and every step of exertion. And the thought that one day my running would be as effortless as the other people around me kept me going. It must get easier I kept saying. To some degree I know now that those thoughts are false. Running is never 'easy'. But I'm now happy with that. If it were easy then everyone would do it and there'd be no overweight or unhealthy people in the world (not that running alone will solve those issues!). But it takes months and months, and years and years of consistent running and training and hill reps and early pre-breakfast runs and bloody hard work (yes there's been sweat and sometimes tears) to make even a small dint in it gaining the status of being 'easy'.

Thinking about this over the past few months has fixed in my mind that it doesn't get easier. The goal posts move. You just get more used to suffering. More accustomed to the pain and effort needed to get you up a particular hill. Most of my pain is in my head. Though lately I've learnt where the mute button is. Most of the time. I think it's this ability to switch off from the pain and suffering that a lot of people don't push through. They give up. Stopping and starting on a run programme in fits and bursts just compounds the issue of pain perception and I genuinely think that a lot of people don't want to suffer. They want quick fixes from minimal effort. Well it just doesn't work like that.

So, returning to my initial thought that provoked the writing of this blog, I looked back through the old blog posts and I've found a few snippets I'd like to share. They've helped me realise that my running is better now. I'm running faster, further and yes, sometimes easier than I used to. I've just pushed the level I'm aiming for so what I'm doing now won't feel easy. Here's snippets from my blog entries from around the time I started to think about running being something I might do to get fit...

"did 200m walk; 500m run x 5. so 2.5 km running total, and total time about 32 mins...." 7 Sept 2010

"I shall keep doing the 2.5km runs for a few weeks, build up to not needing a rest" 8 Sept 2010

"5 sets of 1 min walk/3min run. first 2 sets a tad difficult. legs felt stiff and awkward." 24 Sept 2010

"[1min walk/4mins run] x 7 sets.
sets 1&2 at 7.30/km.
sets 3&4 at 7.30/km with 1.0incline.
sets 5&6 at 6.30/km.
set 7 at 7.30/km.
rest walking to cool down. hit 5km at about 39 mins.
total time 47 mins and 5.38km" 26 Sept 2010

So, from small beginnings I've managed to do a 25km run, run some fell races, win a few random prizes, break a sub-50minute 10km (check out the last line from 26 Sept 2010 so see how chuffed I feel on this one), and generally get lots of consistent running done.