Good morning and happy Bank Holiday Monday. I hope that whoever reads this latest rather random training and life update is having/had a great long weekend. So far, my long weekend has had one highlight, getting to the end of the second week of my Couch to 5k training.

The second week of my Couch to 5k training plan looked like this.

Apologies for the repetition but in an attempt to avoid breaking myself, each interval session started with a 5-minute warm-up and cool down. Cross training sessions comprised of 30 minute training sessions on my exercise bike.

Monday – 30 mins cross training

Someone once told me – I can’t remember who – that people with PhD degrees don’t tend to have a lot of common sense. Let’s just say that as I struggled to navigate downstairs to get a glass of water at 6am, I regretted running twice the previous day. The dreaded DOMS had made an unwelcome but predictable appearance. As it was reasonably early, I decided to complete my exercise bike session before starting work. I figured that a spot of pedaling would help wake my legs up. I also wanted to start the working week with something more positive and enjoyable than time recording.

Slightly sluggish exercise bike session completed, I had a shower, got changed into some work clothes, ate some breakfast, set up my work laptop, and then wrote my weekly ‘things to do’ list. I managed to stay away from social media and had a productive day working from home. I even completed a task I’d been avoiding for a couple of weeks; drafting out my objectives. At 4:30pm I finished work and headed into the garden to make the most of the warm weather. I’d originally aimed to spend some time reading a couple of chapters of The Squiggly Career but I ended up enjoying a sneaky snooze. A positive start to both the working week and the second week of my Couch to 5k training.

Tuesday – 28 mins intervals (run 2 mins/walk 2 mins x 7)

I’ll probably never find out the name of the runner I spotted running past my house at 5am, but I wish I could say thank-you. The mystery runner stopped me heading back to bed and postponing my interval session until the evening. Running just after 5am was definitely worthwhile as except for a lot of snails and some wheelie bins, I had the streets to myself and was able to focus on my running. I wore my Brooks Adrenaline GTS 18 trainers for the first time, they felt comfortable and reminded me of the importance of regularly replacing my trainers.

I found the first four sets of intervals relatively easy and only started to feel like the unfit runner I most definitely am at the moment during the final three sets of intervals. Looking back, I’d say that my breathing was fine, however, my legs felt quite heavy towards the end of the interval session, something for me to work on.

I got home, had a glass of chocolate milk, and as it was still quite early and I couldn’t start work until 7am, headed back to bed. Another perk of being able to work from home I’ll most definitely miss! The rest of the day was quite mundane so I won’t go into too much detail. Work was work, challenging at times, and enjoyable at other times. I made the fatal error of watching Olive and Mabel just before our weekly team catch-up.

I’m definitely more like Mabel than Olive. I finished working at 4pm and walked to the local chemists to collect my prescription. Seeing the empty beer garden outside my favourite pub on a warm sunny afternoon was slightly surreal. I got home and spent a tense couple of minutes cutting the insoles I’d been sent to review down to the correct size for my Brooks. All in all another enjoyable and productive day.

Wednesday – Rest

Once again, this weekly update is turning into an essay so I won’t describe my rest day in a lot of detail. Last Wednesday the mixed vegetable box I’d ordered from M&S was delivered. I ended the day wondering what to do with the mountain of potatoes and onions. This week, the seasonal fruit box I’d ordered from M&S was delivered. I suspect I’ll be making banana bread soon.

Thursday – 24 mins intervals (run 2 mins/walk 2 mins x 6)

Thanks to sleeping with my bedroom window open, the sound of the dawn chorus woke me before my 5am alarm. This left me with two choices; get up and complete my interval session or attempt to go back to sleep. I opted for the first option and got to experience an amazing sunrise that my phone camera didn’t manage to capture.

As an injury-prone runner, I was mindful that running in new trainers and new insoles was slightly risky. Fortunately, the new trainers and insoles combined well and except for the very occasional twinge, the interval session was pain-free. After running at a pace I struggled to maintain on Tuesday, I ensured I set out at a more realistic pace, the result was a far more enjoyable interval session that didn’t leave me struggling to negotiate the stairs at home. I felt so good after the interval session, I attempted to take a couple of slightly more artistic post-run photos. I clearly still have some work to do as my right foot looks a tad unnatural!

I’m sure you can predict what happened next? I got home, knocked back a glass of chocolate milk, and then headed back to bed as I knew I needed more sleep. I’m not sure what went wrong, but I didn’t wake up again until just after 9am. Not ideal when I had a Zoom meeting 30 minutes later, I don’t think my colleagues noticed my slightly scruffy appearance. If they did they kept quiet. Although having to work until 5pm was a bit of a shock to the system – yes, I know I don’t live in the real world – the rest of the day was productive.

Friday – Rest

Last Friday, one of the highlights of the day was chopping and freezing 12 onions. A week later, one of the highlights was using a couple of the onions I’d frozen in a homemade chilli con carne. Lockdown life most definitely has its mundane days.

Saturday – 30 mins cross training

At 8am I found myself enjoying a virtual ride on my exercise bike around Lake Garda. I was relieved it was a virtual ride as I’m not a confident cyclist and some of the downhill sections were, quite frankly, scary. I suspect I peddled a little too hard as my legs felt tired when I reached the end of the 30 minutes. I suspect that I may have to be sensible and switch to an alternative form of cross training as the interval sessions get longer. I need to give myself the best possible chance of completing the Couch to 5k.

The rest of Saturday could only be described as mixed. I spotted something online which made me experience severe parkrun #FOMO for the first time in a few weeks. I spent a couple of hours trying to make my house look slightly more respectable and prepped some meals for the week ahead. A somewhat mundane but productive start to yet another long weekend.

Sunday – 32 mins intervals (run 2 mins/walk 2 mins x 8)

When I looked out the window just before 6am and saw how gloomy and windy it looked outside, I nearly headed back to bed. I had to remind myself that I’d set my alarm so early for a reason; so that I could complete my interval session while most sensible people would still be in bed.

I’m not sure there’s much I can say about my third interval session of the week. This is always a positive sign! As I’d struggled a little on Monday, I ensured that the interval session incorporated two of my favourite running routes. I completed the first four intervals on what I call the Knighton Road loop and then crossed what is usually a busy junction to complete the final four intervals on what I call the Streetly figure of eight.

This approach seemed to work really well and I reached the end of the 32 minutes feeling great. So great, I wasted a few minutes messing around trying to capture a flattering post-run pose.

The fact another runner spotted me pretending to stretch was only a little bit embarrassing. Hopefully they won’t remember when I no doubt see them again at a local parkrun. The rest of my Sunday featured some gardening, some blogging, a nap, a takeaway from my local Chinese, and some housework. I also remembered to redeem the Runners Need voucher my sister gave me for my birthday. I’d usually wait until the sales. With the current economic climate unfortunately looking rather dismal, I thought it would be sensible to redeem it.

The third week of the Couch to 5k training plan I’ve selected looks achievable. I’m aware that I’m repeating myself, but I’m confident I can complete all the training sessions, I just need my right knee to cope with the slight increase in running. I’m looking forward to running for three minutes at a time. I just need to remind myself to slow down and to run at a sensible pace. I don’t want a repeat of what happened earlier this year when I struggled to complete a couple of interval sessions and training became a chore.

Training totals

• Runs: 6
• Time: 2 hrs 36 mins
• Distance: 12.71 miles

Niggleometer

• Right knee: 4/10
• Left knee: 2/10
• Right foot: 4/10
• Left foot: 1/10

Are you having an enjoyable long weekend? Am I the only person who thinks we should have been able to save all these Bank Holidays until life returns to some sort of normality?

Does anyone else think that large-scale races will be cancelled for the rest of the year?  I should have been taking part in the Vitality London 10,000 today but can’t see how any large-scale races can take part any time soon.

Which challenge out of the parkrun road sign challenge and the post box challenge would you recommend? I’ve checked the local post box page and have seven within a 500m radius. Sounds easy but I can’t remember the last time I saw a really old post box.

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