A breath of fresh air and breathing to talk...

As I have mentioned, I have been struggling a bit to keep the momentum going in my training, and before my holiday in June I was struggling to get out three times a week. In fact, my runs had dropped to about one every 5 days. I took my running gear on holiday with the idea of going running a couple of times with Mr Taffi (with Mummy and Daddy Penguin looking after the little monkeys) but I felt no enthusiasm to get my running shoes on. This might have been a good thing - a break from the grind of running, and then back with gusto.

I think it has worked too. I have managed 3 runs per week for the last few weeks, and part of this is thanks to a bit of variety.

I have started running once mid-week with an old friend who has also entered the Cardiff half. This has multiple benefits:

• I run with her in the morning (Mummy Penguin looks after Monkey2 while Monkey1 is in nursery) so I don't have to struggle out in the valuable busy evenings,
• I get a variety of routes - my friend and Mummy Penguin both live in a small town in the Vale with quiet roads and lanes and lots of hills.
• My friend frequently runs with other runners, and runs at a pace that allows conversation, and by running with her, and doing the same, I am learning a whole new skill - more on this in a minute.

I've actually really enjoyed these runs - there have only been two so far as time constraints meant this week's had to be cancelled (I really missed it). It has been great to catch up on gossip, moan about various things, and just chat. Whilst I enjoy the audio books I usually use to while away the time and block out the pain, talking is better. The miles pass faster (even though we are travelling slower) and it hurts less (and I don't attribute the lower pain to just the lower pace).

I has also been a lesson in reigning myself in. I am overly ambitious, and that is part of the reason of my aforementioned disillusion - I am always striving to do better, with EVERY run, and that is just not possible. As Mr Taffi is always saying, sometimes your body or your mind is just not up for the run on any given day. It has been good just to run for runnings sake, and not for the time or distance or pace target. And it also means that finally I am doing the mid-week "Easy" run prescribed by the training plan. That "easy" run has always become a "pace" or "interval" run until now, because I am always pushing myself. It has been good to switch off the pace alerts on my Garmin watch and just enjoy without the nag nag nagging...