Walking took the run out of my legs

Saturday 31^st March

Distance: 5.01 mile
Time: 1:04:25 min
Avg Speed: 4:75 mph                            
Avg Pace: 12:49min/mile
Calories Burned: 681

Yesterday the temporary contract I had at one school ended and when I started there I set my self the small target of running home on my last day. With all good intent I went to school in sports kit. I was aided by the fact that it was also a PE day so I did not look out of place in tracksuit and trainers. It was my said intent to run home I had even emptied my school bag and took only essentials in a small back pack. However my good intentions were scuppered by a kind gesture. The Head and Deputy Head appeared at the class room door towards the end of day with a big bunch of flowers, for which I was very grateful but it just meant that unless I adopted the Olympic torch mode of carrying I could barely run with them. So I decided that the best option was a brisk walk home. This I did. I walked the 4.2 miles home in about 45 minutes burning off approximately 250 calories. I use the words ‘about’ and ‘approximately’ as I somehow managed to switch the tracker app off halfway home!!! Nevertheless I walked home in a goodly time. However I was wearing my ‘other’ trainers and not my good running shoes as I did not want to wear them all day at school, and for this I paid a price. I found that by the time I got home they had rubbed on my wee tootsies.  

Now a very important factor that you my dear reader must bear in mind is that I am most DEFINITELY NOT the kind of girl who wears flat shoes!! My feet have been squeezed, forced and jammed into some of the most ridiculous but beautiful high heeled shoes imaginable. I am a shoe whore. I admit it. My shoe collection is extensive and believe you me if Manolo Blahnik made running shoes I would have them. As a consequence of 41+ years in 3 and 4 inch heels my tendons, muscles and feet have made adaptations. Although, surprisingly, I have not had any difficulty with my running schedule thus far, I did suffer today because of yesterday’s walk. My little legs and stumpy feet do not like walking in flat shoes and as a result when I started running today I found it hard as my legs ached before I started and as a consequence I did not go as far as I had intended. I ran to the cemetery and back, in fact if I could have taken my legs off I would have left them in the cemetery! I would never have believed that walking could affect my running so, but affect it, it did.

I made the decision half way up the road this morning, that instead of going for distance today, I would attempt to develop the duration. I am convinced now that I have the distance in me for the half marathon, I am even thinking further about a full marathon, just a wild thought at the moment (watch this space!). However what I need to build on now is not so much the distance but the length of run versus walk time, also the recovery after paused time. I am aware that since I started the training schedule, each time out I have taken fewer rests and I also walk less. Now though, I do need to build this to a more constant running mode and work to eliminate the walk time, or at least to get it down to smaller manageable slots. With this in mind I tried very hard today not to stop as often and to keep running when I wanted to walk.  Even though my legs ached I still managed my longest nonstop run of 1.8 miles so my new target now is to get to 2 miles without stopping.

My achy legs serve only to remind me that even though, at times, this is proving hard my legs do have a half marathon in them, which is about 13.5 running miles more than my beloved Raison d’etre has in his. He waits for me at the door on a Saturday morning when I get home and his beautiful face and wonderful smile are all the encouragement I need. My good man would love to be able to run out with me but he cannot. I watch my neighbours (who are also running for MD in the GNR) go out running together and would love for me and mine to do the same but we never will. We can still go out for walks together which I hope will always be, we will just have to see how his dystrophy progresses as to how long he will still be in an upright position for those walks. I live with hope that a cure or a treatment will be found for this debilitating of conditions, but at the moment there is neither. So for this end I keep going and thank you to all who have sponsored me so far I am eternally grateful be assured that you are helping an extremely worthwhile charity. I have pledged to raise a minimum of £300 in sponsorship. With your help I will. I would love to double that…… can you help?

If you want to read about the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign its work, outreach, campaigns and research just log on to www.muscular-dystophy.org  and see why I am doing this. If you feel you want to support me then please log onto my just giving account and make a donation www.justgiving.com/Team-LewisMDC. A huge thanks you to all of you who have donated already.

Thank you for your support.