When you choose to write a blog about running and travel, probably the worst thing that can happen is for there to be a pandemic that restricts travel, and to have a catastrophic injury that prevents running for a long period of time.
With both of these featuring heavily in the first half of 2021, there's been little to talk about when it comes to "running the world". After all: no running, no world.
But this started to change a few weeks ago: I ran for the first time.
Where I live, running is impossible without going up and down hills - a bit too challenging for a first run back - so I went to a flat Victoria Park, where I broke the 5 mile/hour speed limit for a full half hour, and enjoyed my first run back.
With that excitement done, the hard work is now on - trying to build my volume back up, so that I can start to explore new routes, new gear, and new (and old!) races.
Some interesting running that's on the calendar:
- The Asics London 10k
- A weekend in Cornwall
- The Big Half
- The Paddock Wood Half Marathon
- The Queen Elizabeth Park 10k
- The London Marathon
That's two new races, three races on repeat, and a part of the country that I'll be exploring for the first time.
Beyond this, I might get a track race or two in this summer, and hope to have sufficient confidence in my ankle to be running some Cross Country races this winter.
A race-heavy schedule, to be sure, but a mix of race starvation, a need to repeatedly test my fitness as I work my way back, and just rolling with rescheduled dates from postponed races makes it so - and perhaps there will be some content here soon.
In any case, enjoy a post-first-run-back coffee with me here:
