On Friday I headed down to the big smoke for The Running Awards. I was kindly invited by Strava to join other bloggers for a run followed by a Q and A session and a balcony seat for the awards at the O2. I left London with a goody bag, loads of selfies and really sore feet and I didn’t even run the marathon!
Happy Birthday to my blog, it turns one today (14th of February)! I have to admit I had no idea what a blog really was when I started out. I just knew I wanted to write and create my own little space that others might find useful, entertaining and motivating.
I’m keen on self-reflection. I wrote a diary for years as a child and I dip in again from time to time now. I find it very therapeutic and I just LOVE reading it back. It helps me to be grateful for all I have and to set targets for the year ahead. It’s amazing how much you forget, even in the space of a year. I guess blogging and vlogging kind of replaces a diary in some ways but I’ll still be making my yearly entry looking back on the year I’ve had and making plans for 2016.
Anyone else getting the feeling that more and more people are exercising? I know lots of women who are starting to run, the numbers of cyclists streaming past my house at the weekend has risen dramatically and I’m sure there’s more people wandering round the supermarket in trainers and lycra! Looking on-line, the exercise forums are flourishing, #thisgirlcan is everywhere and more and more decent kit is tempting me. I was hoping that as a nation we’re starting to make a change but I wondered if it was just my own view of the world; a bit like when I was shopping for my first pram, I saw them everywhere! Wouldn’t we rather just go down the pub? Well, fear not, a new survey hasn’t burst my bubble, only blown it a bit bigger!
I’m delighted to have been asked to be the Resident GP for UK Sports Chat. If you haven’t heard about this fantastic, growing community then let me fill you in.
Do your children enjoy exercise? Are they doing enough? Sometimes we have to nurture a love of exercise in our little ones. The current activity guidelines for children age 5 to 18 are that they need to do at least 60 minutes of physical activity every day. This should be of moderate to vigorous intensity so needs to be something that gets their heart racing and makes them out of breath. On three days a week this should include an activity that strengthens muscles and bones. Under 5s should be active for at least 180 minutes a day but this can include lighter activities too. Have a look here for the NHS guidelines and suggestions about how to achieve this.
I know, I know, how can I have been a runner for 7 years and never have done a parkrun? I’m almost embarrassed to admit it. Parkrun has become a regular date on most runner’s weekly calendar and Twitter overheats on a Saturday morning with race facts. So, what took me so long and was it worth the wait?
I love solving a problem, I get real satisfaction from finding a solution to challenges that face me. When I met Yvonne Brady an Irish business woman she took my breath away with her story of problem solving on another level entirely. An engineer by trade she took up running as a hobby and like many women found that leaking a bit of urine was an embarrassing side effect. Rather than moaning or giving up she decided to take action.
So, the enormity of my double marathon challenge is starting to hit home. As I was struggling for energy in the latter stages of the 261 Women’s Marathon in Mallorca I was searching for positive thoughts to banish all the negative ones that kept popping into my head. At one point I was thinking, “Keep going, you never have to do this again”, that seemed to help until it dawned on me that I would in fact be repeating the ordeal in 7 weeks time.
I was flattered and excited when Vicki Psarias aka ‘Honest Mum‘ asked if she could interview me for her ‘Wonderful Women’ feature. What a compliment! I love Vicki’s blog, work and style. You can read the interview here. Why not take the time to have a look at her amazing blog, I can guarantee there’s something there to tempt you.
