Where does the time go ? I meant to post on here last week and forgot and so I am now giving a recap on the last 2 weeks running , so here goes. In my last post I made a lot of running 5 days in a week , me and my big mouth ! On the Sunday and needed to do a bit of painting in the kitchen including the ceiling . I should have left it there but instead I went outside to dig a bed in the front garden . I felt ok but an hour later my back was hurting so much that I couldn't bend down. I had pulled a muscle in my lower back and for 3 days I did no running. By then I noticed that standing and walking was fine , it only really hurt if I sat down. Luckily at work I spend a lot of time on my feet and walking here and there and by Wednesday i felt comfortable enough to attempt to run. It went ok , the only problem being that I can't do sit ups and any stretches that aggravate my back. As the week went on the pain subsided and I was able to complete four runs . The week just gone has been a bit better , I was able to run an interval session of 10 x 400 metres . That didn't go entirely to plan - I had set my watch for track running with an alert set for 400 metres follwed by 90 seconds to walk/jog . However after running the first 400 metres the watch just continued to record the distance without an alert or second interval. I had obviously set this up wrong but luckily my watched has a 'back lap' button so I pushed that to start and record each 400 metres . Not ideal but it kind of worked ! I wore my new Adidas Adizero's again . I love them and wish i had reverted to lighter shoes before . here is a picture of them , with the Ultraboost shoes I use for longer runs. 

 

I took my eldest son to Silverstone to watch some motor racing so my longer run was moved to Saturday . As I am training for the London 10000 the 'long run' doesn't need to be that long . i had planned to run 6 miles and felt pretty good at first but oddly as I reached the quietest part of the route along the canal near Slapton ( a small village a few miles from Leighton Buzzard) I felt a bit weary and slowed for a while . At this point I drifted off and just enjoyed the surroundings , birds singing , looking at the baby cows in the field ( I'm a big softy ) etc and before I knew it I was bowling along at a faster pace once again . In fact the last two miles were the quickest and in the end I completed 8 miles !! I am not blessed with natural talent and I don't think my lung capacity is particularly good , probably as a result of working in the rather 'dirty' print industry with various hazardous chemicals etc , but what I have realised over time is that running is just as much about mental ability and if I focus and think positive thoughts I can overcome these sudden drops in pace and weariness. I have also been quite careful with my diet of late and i have tried to cut out as much sugar as possible. This is easier said than done becuase with two children and a partner with a very sweet tooth there are temptations in every cupboard ! Looking at the stats my heart rate and effort is still improving even though I am having to run many more fast paced sessions. I got home  around 8-30am on Saturday morning with a big smile on my face because I feel like I have come into form at just the right time . I want to get that 10k PB so badly and I want to know that I am moving forwards and can still improve my times . Our friend and neighbour Echelle popped round yesterday and we are all very excited about the race on bank holiday Monday. There is quite a group of us 'Leightonians running and i hope we all beat our times. I just have to be very careful with my back for the next few days and definitely no digging.

Have a great week everyone .