Coatesville Classic...

Last Sunday I ran the Coatesville Classic Half Marathon... Apparently it is the most scenic half marathon with the world's best finishers medal... If that doesn't make you want to do it then I don't know what will!

It was a very beautiful and scenic run and the weather was absolutely beautiful. It was the calm before the storm that was the 'weather bomb' that hit the regions starting later that day.

I did this run in the hopes that it would help me to gauge my running progress for my up-and-coming marathon. It really did help, but not in the way I was expecting.

Firstly, I had set a time goal in which I hoped to complete the run in, which I did not. However, what I did not realise when I set this goal was just how hilly the whole course was. This is not a problem though, as I love running hills, I train on hills, but it is not the best if you are trying to obtain a personal best (PB).

So... Although I did not break my PB, my progress is coming along nicely in that I managed to run the whole course, hills and all really strongly and I even managed to up my pace somewhat for the last 1km to finish strong... This hasn't really happened before, I usually am just about dead when I cross that oh so lovely finish line. But my energy levels felt great, as did my body - bonus!

Here is a pic of me (thanks to marathonphotos.com) of me crossing the finish line in a time of 1 hour and 57 minutes (I was hoping to do it in under 1 hour 50 mins, but we'll save that for the next one - perhaps flat!).

I would have had more (and better photos) to put up but we had a minor camera malfunction, thus the stolen pic :)
And, as always, my wonderful husband was there to encourage me at the start and cheer me on at the end. What a treat!  I know it's a-whole-nother year away but I would totally recommend this run as one to do as it is challenging and very enjoyable in terms of scenery and the whole atmosphere of the run. Would be a great goal to aim for!

So how have your running ventures been coming along lately? I would LOVE to hear!

Done and dusted!

So apparently today was forecasted to have destructive winds and heavy rain but it has been a beautiful morning for a run. I hauled butt out the door for the 26km run I had been dreading this week (just wasn't really feelin the running this week) and it turned out to be great!

It was windy, yes, but not too bad and actually found the breeze cool and refreshing when I was sweating it out. I also finished before any huge bouts of rain pummelled down on me and it was sunny pretty much the whole time.

Anyway, I know you are dying to hear about the actual run itself so here you go...

The first hour and a half of it was ok (the whole run took me 2 and a half hours total), but then I started to get the ol' attack of the mind going on - little evil dude on one shoulder whispering in my ear 'You're too tired, you're sore, who cares if you don't finish, an hour and a half run is still really good... blah blah blah!'

And just as I was about to go 'evil dude, you are making a good point there' I ran (literally) into one of my running mentors for the Auckland marathon. None other but the true legend herself, Ady! Woop! She really is a running legend and the NICEST and most ENCOURAGING person out btw!
Anyway, she had just started and I still had another hour to go so we joined forces to beat the running game together... And it was great! I'm tellin ya, you NEEEEEEED a running buddy! As this lame little add that I just found on google says:

It sums it up perfectly even if it is in a cheesy sort of way. I pretty much did all of my training for the Auckland Marathon by myself (bar a few that I ran with Ady) and thought that I didn't need anyone to run with. However, it's getting a little different now, a little boring and a little lonely. Especially when I know all the words to all 400 or so songs on my iPod... Yikes! So I encourage you to find someone who likes to run, or maybe even someone with the same goal as you, or just someone who wants to help support you in your running to get out and pound the pavement with. It makes the runs go faster (especially those LSDs) and it is just plain nice to have someone alongside to chat to (or not) and to share the running with.

So do you have a running buddy? If so, what do you like about having them run with you? Please do share, would love to hear any stories.

P.S. Now I am enjoying a guilt free relax on the couch and am about to go bake a cake for my Grandad's 85th birthday - which I intend to eat a HUGE piece of BECAUSE I CAN... Suckers!!! Yuss!!

Contemplation... A.K.A Procrastination

Contemplating my long weekend run (26km) in a potential storm... Doesn't sound that fun. Have not prepared mentally and haven't got all my things laid out like I usually do when I get up nice and early to go running...

It's almost as though I have already written the run off, which I wouldn't feel so bad about as I sooo don't feel like going. However, I will feel worse if I have it hanging over me all weekend knowing at some point I still have to run. So, I guess it's time to suck it up and take some words of advice that I have been known to throw out there for others...

Just run! Just get out there and start running. That's all there is to it!

Watch this space for how the run goes (hopefully I don't get blown away from the 'destructive wind' set to come) and I will leave you with this question...

What are the things that put you off running? And how to you side step those to get out there and just do it?