Week 7, Day 3

(Saturday 7:00am)

Emotions (before):

I am away from home and staying at the place I grew up in. Although I lived there for 20 years, I had never ever jogged around it! It is a picturesque area with parkland, river, nature trails and foot bridges hugging the water. 

I was looking forward to going running along a different route to the previous sessions. Unfortunately, I was not in a happy frame of mind when I left and this affected the success of this session.

The run:
Oh what an awful run. I did three naughty little walks today! I have realised I am going too fast in the first 10 minutes and therefore the final 15 are a struggle. I really need to work on jogging at a consistent pace right from the start. The first 1.6kms was completed in 9 minutes with an average pace of 5:37mins/km. However, the next 16 minutes was at an average pace of just over 7mins/km!

I accidentally left my headband at home so my headphones kept on falling out and this, in addition to my sour mood, contributed to the struggle to get my feet off the ground.

I need to learn to use this time as a personal break or escape, rather than carrying thoughts on my shoulders as I run.

At the 15 minute mark, I decided that was it for jogging and I was going to walk the rest of the way home. I paused my GPS and got ready to discard the session. Then I saw on the map that I had covered 2.7kms. I thought, 'I want to get one more kilometre done.' So after a bit of a walk I got my legs going again and jogged the rest of the way home (with one more walk in between!).

To my amazement (and confusion), I covered 3.91kms in this 25 minute run/jog/walk/hobble/jog at an average pace of 6:29mins/km.

Since then, my mood has improved and although I didn't consistently jog the whole 25 minutes, I guess the effort wasn't as bad as I thought it was. I got myself back into a jog when I had pretty much given up on the session.

Tips for next run:

• Use the sessions as a time that is only about you and your body. Leave any negative thoughts behind and make this time a personal escape from the world.

Week 7, Day 2

(Thursday 7:00am)

Emotions (before):

I was actually looking forward to this jog, I really wanted to hit the 4km mark in the 25 minutes. I followed all my own advice and tips and ensured I went when I was really ready.

The run:

Today was a good day. As I was keen to go for my jog, the session was a positive one. I did my first 1.6kms (1 mile) at an average pace of 5:40mins/km! I didn't intentionally go at that speed, that is what my legs decided to do.

As with the last session, my legs slowed into a walk for 30 seconds between the 18 minute to 20 minute mark. My goal for next session is to make sure I do not stop jogging.

I was determined to hit the 4km distance, so I made myself run an extra few seconds in order to achieve that feat. I guess the extra time made up for the naughty walk. I do not know how I am going to fit in another kilometre in only 5 minutes!

I arrived home very puffed and very tired! I am grateful I do not have to work at the moment and I can sit on the couch for a very long time to recover....4ks to couch!

So in 25 (and a bit) minutes, I covered 4kms at an average pace of 6:36mins/km. 20 seconds faster per k than my last run. I will try and go at a more conisistent pace next session. I need to aim for a 6:00mins/km in order to complete the 5ks in 30 minutes. I will get there in a couple of weeks. At least it gives me something to aim for after the iPhone app is completed. 

Tips for next run:

• If you have a distance goal in mind, keep going in order to achieve it, even if you may go slightly over the program's time.
• If you had any shortfalls in your session, make conquering them a priority in the next run.
  

Week 7, Day 1

  35 minutes of exercise: 5 minutes to warm-up, 5 to cool-down and 25 minutes running.

(25 minute run with no walking)

(Tuesday 7:30am)

Happy New Year!

Emotions (before):

What a great position to be in to start the new year: being able to jog for 25 minutes straight! I skipped Monday's scheduled run as I was still a little tired from the festivities of new year's eve. I was nearly going to skip today's run, but my boyfriend was asking "What time are you going for your jog?" and I felt a little embarrassed to say I was thinking of skipping another day. What a very lazy frame of mind I was in to start the year!

I was a little nervous about the length of jogging time, even though I did it a couple of days ago. Knowing there is no interval training this week, just a straight jog, is daunting. 

The run:

My first half was really good. I was jogging a little quicker than last week and I was enjoying the exercise. At exactly the half way mark, as I heard her announce it was time to turn back home, my body decided it wanted to go to the bathroom. I believe it was both physical and psychological. My body was trying anything to get out of the last 12 and a bit minutes and was putting on a fight via my tummy. 

So my pace for the next half slowed right down and it was a battle to tell my body "You don't really need to go," or "The faster you go, the quicker we will get home," or even, "For goodness sake, just go if you really have to!" (note, I didn't!).

Although, I did slow to a walk for 30 seconds (just before the last 5 minute mark) to try and alleviate the aching. Out of this run though, I can see my body is quickly responding to the new time frame and I know it will get easier.

I covered 3.74kms (in the 25 minute jog) at an average pace of 6:55mins/km. My first 10 minutes was at an average pace of 6:27mins/km. I was a little disappointed I didn't finish at my starting point. Oh well, I always have the next session to try again :).

Tips for next run:

• Ensure your posture is correct during your run. To help, pretend someone is pulling your head up towards the sky. This may assist in straightening up your neck and back.
• Go to the bathroom before you exercise. Your body will look for any excuse to get out of finishing the jogs.