It’s been a while!

2021 round up

2021 by month

Did I achieve what I wanted to?  No

I’d aimed for 1000 miles, but illness meant that there was no way I could do that.

I didn’t get a 5k PB.

But I did manage to do lots of running, I did travel and run, so I’m grateful for that.

And it seems even longer since I was running consistently.

Just when it felt like things were beginning to return to something approaching normality, and my running was going OK, I got the dreaded positive lateral flow test.  I’d had a few cold symptoms (and this was before omicron was identified) but several negative tests so thought it was simply a cold.  But it wasn’t.

Dawn just breaking at the end of my run

Covid wasn’t too bad, a few days of feeling rough with headaches, sinus pain and a cough, but it seems to be taking a long time to recover.  My running has taken a massive hit – I took a month off, with just one attempt at parkrun in that time (really shouldn’t have tried) and I’m struggling to get back into any kind of comfortable routine or rhythm.

I’m not sure if the struggle is due to covid directly, or if it has triggered issues with my thyroid disease.  I do know it is incredibly frustrating!  Fatigue is real – doesn’t matter how much sleep I get, or how much I try to rest, I don’t feel rested.  Is this covid? Thyroid? Aneamia?  Tight chest and feeling like I can’t take a full breath has been horrible, this is easing, but running triggers it again.

A snowy walk

Along with all of this I’ve found the whole pandemic / christmas / work / family situation really challenging.  I’m someone who likes a plan, and so much seems uncertain.  My husband had covid at the same time as I did and my son tested positive the day before he was due to come home for christmas (so I still haven’t seen him).  It’s rubbish.

Christmas Day parkrun at Beverley

I know that we’ve actually come through this relatively unscathed so far but I’ve had moments of feeling really down about it all, just completely fed up.  I’m trying to do what I can, change what is in my control and worry less about what I can’t change.  

What does that mean?

• Less alcohol (much less!) – none during the week, and a limited amount on weekends.
• Eating better – more fruit and veg, less processed, less rubbish.
• Iron supplements – making sure I take these regularly to combat anaemia, along with vit D.
• Sleep – try to improve my sleep routine.
• Running – get back to a regular pattern.

All of these are repeats of what I’ve said previous years, but that’s OK. I don’t see this as something that is short term to achieve and then forget about – they are all a process and I’m sure a reminder now and again will always be a good thing (and always be needed!).

At the moment I’m aiming for three runs a week, just three miles each.  I also want to add in one strength session.  Then I’ll see where we go from there.

I’ve been out for a couple of early morning runs, and as much as it is a struggle when the alarm goes off to get out of bed, I really appreciate it once I’m out.  Really looking forward to the sunrise being a little bit earlier – at the moment I’m just getting a glimpse at the end of my runs.  

In an effort to encourage my husband to run on a morning I have employed a new tactic…  normally I just don’t give myself a chance to even ask myself if I want to go or not, it is just a case of getting up and out of bed without really thinking about it.  But that doesn’t work on someone else.  So the new one is to say, you won’t regret going for a run, but you are likely to regret not going for a run.  Do you think it will work and get him to come out with me?

Steve’s 250th parkrun as a tourist on New Year’s Day

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