Posts Tagged ‘Running’
F is for…
Posted on: November 17, 2013
- In: Friendship | Fundraising | Running
- 2 Comments
F is for fitness, surprisingly fun,
I never realised how much until I started to run.
F is for Flora, my fantastic friend,
who walked the length of the country, end-to-end
F is for fearless, for we might need to be…
she’s agreed to run the Brighton marathon in April with me!!!
F is for fundraising, for MS and Mind
We’d love you to sponsor us, if you’d be so kind
F is for flipping heck and five months to go
Can we run 26.2 miles even going slow?
F is for faith, we know that we can…
But we’d better start working on a training plan!
Friendship and fun, Flora and me,
Running a marathon doesn’t seem as scary as it used to be.
So, please show your support, give us a cheer
…and come visit our sponsorship page here 🙂
Waiting For Today
Posted on: October 7, 2012
- In: Fundraising | Running
- 10 Comments
Five months ago, I signed up to run a half marathon, even though I couldn’t run a mile
Four months ago, I power-walked a marathon in the Edinburgh Moonwalk
Three and a half months ago I started to learn to run, by using a Run 10k app and gradually increasing the ratio of running to walking
One month ago I ran my first 10k race and joined a running club
Yesterday, I ate my own body weight in pasta and drank a huge amount of water
Today I ran the Royal Parks Half Marathon with 8 fantastic colleagues, finished in 2 hours 17 minutes and raised £760 for Tommy’s. It was scenic, it was tough, my hip hurt and at times I felt like I would never reach the finish line. Yet, the sense of achievement and pride is immense and I am hugely grateful and appreciative of all the off-line and online support I have received.
Today, I want to say thank you. For those who came out and cheered us on, for those who have encouraged me and given great advice, for those who have sponsored me, to everyone I have bored with running stories, worries and concerns. You’ve all helped so much more than you know.
Thank you!
High-fiving my daughter at mile 4
Defining Limitations
Posted on: July 12, 2012
- In: Confidence | Development | Fundraising | Health | Learning
- 22 Comments
I’m not a runner. I don’t enjoy running. I never run for pleasure, only out of sheer necessity to catch the train when I am late leaving work.
Except, somewhere in the midst of training for the moonwalk, I became attracted to the idea of maintaining and improving my new-found fitness and I started to think the previously unthinkable, that I could perhaps learn to love running. And during May, whilst I was extending my training walks to 16, 18, 20 miles and starting to understand the power of saying yes, I agreed to run a half marathon with some fantastic work colleagues in October in aid of Tommy’s.
I am struggling to convey the enormity of the challenge to me at that point – I knew that I couldn’t run even half a mile without stopping and I wasn’t willing to risk my already strained muscles by starting to train for running before I had completed the moonwalk and rested properly. So it wasn’t until the end of June that I started to do my first short runs and could put my determination and blind faith to any sort of test. It’s not easy learning to run, but I had at least developed some good stamina and was able to run for five minutes and walk for one minute over three miles during my first foray into running.
I’ve been going out for a run three times a week and I’m starting to reap the benefits – tomorrow I will be running 25 minutes without stopping, walking for a minute and then running a further 25 minutes. If I stick to my training plan (which I will!) in another week I will be running for 45 minutes, walking for 1 minute and running for a further 20 minutes. My body is in training and my mind is too…I know I can do this now and I’m starting to enjoy it. I love the fact that I am doing something that I thought I couldn’t, pushing against my own perceived limits and that I have this huge and daunting challenge to aim for.
It turns out, as ever, that the only real limitations are in my own head.
I am becoming a runner. I enjoy running and I will keep running for pleasure and necessity. If I can do it, so can you!
I do have a sponsorship page, but I know many of you have already sponsored me for the moonwalk, for which I am already hugely grateful. I’d love to hear any great fundraising ideas that you may have and will keep you posted with how I get on 🙂
The HR Juggler 