Just keep running, running, running

I've been doing quite a bit of running lately. It started around the time that I had to stop going to my fitness classes because I could no longer afford the fees.

I had been thinking that I needed to find the motivation to do something by myself and kept telling myself that I would go out for a run of an evening. Then the evening would roll around and I didn't want to do anything other than get comfy, watch TV and go to bed.

One evening after dinner I was about to go and get a glass of red when I realised that I'd been telling myself all day that I would go for a run that evening. I realised that if I had a glass of wine that there is no way I'd be able to run afterward, so I dragged my arse off the lounge, got changed, grabbed my iPhone, stuck it in my arm band holder and got running. I wasn't starting completely from scratch fitness-wise, but it's been a while since I've run any sort of distance and I was feeling a bit apprehensive.

I had no real plan in mind, I just decided to run and see where it took me. I know my general area well enough to know what direction I need to get back home, so I just cruised along and followed my nose. When I felt like I'd been out for long enough, I started to head back home. I decided to have that glass of red when I got back home.

Going for a run felt so good that I've been doing it most nights since except for the week I spent on night shift at work. I enjoy the feeling of being out of an evening getting very little some speed up, getting my heart rate up, and most importantly, it's the only 30-45 minutes of my entire day that I get all to myself. It's the having a small amount of time all to myself that I enjoy the most.

On the nights I don't run, either because I've done PT at work that day, or I'm having a rest day, I really miss it. I know I do need to have rest days, but I still feel guilty that I'm not out doing something.

I've been finding that I'm able to run faster and further even just in the few weeks that I've been running regularly. It's a wonderful feeling. I find that listening to music while I run is a great way to keep myself going as I tend to listen to music that is reasonably fast and has a good beat to it.

On Friday night when I got back from my run, I decided to jump on Facebook. One of my friends had posted up a link about early bird entry for the City 2 Surf and it ended at midnight. On a whim, I decided to enter. I figure it gives me something to aim toward and gives me another reason to keep pushing myself to run faster and further. I'm crapping myself slightly at the thought of Heartbreak Hill though.