Aye the nights are fair drawin in!

So last night was the first night after the clocks went back, and the start of the period I hate most in the year. For the time I'm NOT at my work it's dark. And even some of the time I'm at my work..... it's dark. It's not a great time of year! 

Obviously it's also too dark then for me to be out wandering or attempting to jog on my tod, so I plan also on doing some swimming on my nights on my own. But last night I decided to just go to the gym and do my programme. This is week 3 of block 2, with the ultimate aim of walking/jogging/walking for 5 minutes each time. 

So, off I went - and did something I never felt capable of doing in the past, running, or at least attempting to run, in a gym, with all the "beautiful people" I did get a few looks - but I'm certain that was only due to my dayglo trainers that they were all very jealous of! I've posted a pic of my glow in the dark "Halloween" costume. 

Onwards and upwards - another so called reason for not exercising banished? What's your next excuse Campo?? ;-)

Tough mudder.....

Inadvertantly managed a trial run for this race at the weekend.  Set off for a nice walk around a friend's housing estate, with Muttley in tow.  Aforesaid Muttley seemed to require some urgent bodily function, so we decided to head off-road slightly to allow him to do so.  A few steps into the off road adventure, alarm bells began to ring, but at the top of the hill it looked a lot less wet and muddy so we decided to continue.  Anyway........ it errr wasn't :D  So we ended up trudging for a total of 5k in 63 minutes, more than half of which (time wise anyway it felt) was trudging through muck, and hanging on to (barbed wire) fences and pulling ourselves out of the muck.  63 minutes is an interesting time actually - being, as it was - the one and only official "race" time for me in a 5K (race for life June2012) So that in itself represents a huge improvement?

Lessons learned from that "walk" :-)

Tip 1 - wee picturesque country lanes are not quite so picturesque in Scotland after a week of rain. 

Tip 2 - barbed wire fences are jaggy! 

Tip 3 - trainers have a limited shelf life for partaking in aforementioned activity. And finally, 

Tip 4 - a Jack Russell loves running about in the muck. He's not so sure about the bath at the end of it tho!! ;-)

It's all worth it in the end tho - and I promise - the hill was much much bigger than this...... honest!

So...... that horse.....

Well there was neigh sign of it again last night, but tonight, well and truly saddled and riding high lol. Target was 5x30/30 jog/walk and I did 5x30 /30 and 5x30/60! I think I might pay for this tomorrow!! However - feeling great and very up for another 10 week block. Last week I was, rightly, chuffed with myself at completing the first 10 weeks. Tonight though, that's all behind me, albeit I'm still using the success as a motivator. If I've done one ten week block, I can do another one. Next stop Christmas Eve - ho ho ho! :-)

Very low today again

Not sure why. Not done any exercise since Thursday, so perhaps that. Dragged down by work, maybe, forgetting to take the iron and vitamin tablets over the weekend another possibility or maybe it's the money issue as normal at this time of the month. More probably all of the above. But I have to balance that with the thought that someone I haven't seen in ages says I'm looking brilliant and "disappearing in front of her eyes" and was really encouraging and positive with me! So let's get back on that horse and Get out for a run after work. Come on!!

Block one done and dusted.

Never ever would have thought it possible, but there we are.  All done.  All achieved.  Feel absolutely brilliant, very chuffed with myself, and very, very grateful to Cathy, Sharon, Shirley Anne, Les, Winnie, Sam and all the other jog leaders who haven't yet had the ermmmm "pleasure" of plodding along at a snail's pace with me of a evening.  I get the impression though - as the weather gets worse over the next few months, I might have a queue waiting to take me out and get back in again within half an hour or so lol.

Seriously - bring on the next 10 weeks.  And the next 10 after that!!! ;-)  Campbellinho's up for this now :D

Seriously need to update the spreadsheet and the link

night one of the final week of block one over with.  One night left of the first stage. #VeryProud

Week 9 complete

Would never have thought it possible! #amazed

week 9 begins...

I'll expand more on how I feel as I near another milestone, when I post next week, after (hopefully) finishing week 10. It's been a fair old journey, it's been emotional, it's been tough, it's been hard, it's been rewarding, it's been confidence building and it's been fab!!

I'm about 10 weeks away now, from my second ever 5k, and the first I'll be attempting to run parts of.  I feel different in a way.  I feel a little bit like if I'm able to run bits of this race it'll almost be a seal of approval.  Currently I feel a little bit like I'm wasting the jogScotland leaders who are going out with me time. I know that this is not the case, as I have said to them, but It's certainly not a run out for them, while at the same time it is absolutely knackering me.  I'm definitely seeing improvements though and each week I seem to be able to do more. So I feel a little bit like if I can run as much of this 5k as I can, I'll feel I belong a bit more.  The people in the club are absolutely brilliant to me and absolutely do not make feel feel like this - this is me thinking this.  I cannot praise jogscotland highly enough