Happy New Year!

I have been incredibly slack posting a blog for the past couple of weeks, but lucky I can’t say the same for my running!  For Christmas week I did back to back runs which weren’t as long as I planned but they were very enjoyable.

On Christmas day I woke up at 4:30am and started my run in the dark. I didn’t feel like ascending Mt Ainslie so I was happy to just climb Mt Majura instead. It was a very peaceful morning at 4:30am and It was bliss! I am still getting over my fear of running in the dark, but the glistening lights in the distance were breathtaking and made it all worthwhile! 

There was countless roos out and about, and I saw two having a boxing match! As the morning went by, I came across many other runners & walkers, so there was plenty of hellos & Christmas wishes! This really made my day! There was just something magical about this run, that I will only feel again this time next year!  

I stopped at McDonalds for a raisin toast & coffee.  Had a lovely chat to a Cyclist who said he was a triathlete. 

This run was the first time I got to test out my new pack by Ultimate Direction and I love it! The weight is much better distributed compared to my old pack, it feels so much lighter to carry. I also wore my Santa hat for the entire run, I should have taken a photo to share!

So it was 32km overall and a fantastic start to the day!

I was a bit disappointed at the end of the week, feeling like rubbish I did a 13km run instead of 23km. I finished on just over 80kms for the week, not the 90 that I wanted, however I only planned to do 80 anyways! I was feeling more tired & lethargic for this week’s lot of training and also gave myself a bit of a break with less elevation gain overall.

The following week I was gearing up to bring in the new year, and a new challenge! I joined the Run Down Under event, all my runs are sent in each week and get to compare myself to other runners and see who runs the farthest in the year! 

I started with a 26km road run which I was very pleased with and gave me a bit of confidence leading into the Canberra Marathon in April. I felt comfortable and although I won’t get to do many road runs during my training, so every now and then it’s great to see how I’m travelling on this surface.I backed this up with a challenging 38km run on New Year’s Day! There was plenty of walking, and I even had a stopover at the shops on the way home to grab some groceries! I’m sure I looked a little bit silly carrying my groceries home whilst running, but who cares! 

I had a well-deserved rest after that and on the Saturday I volunteered as tail runner at my local Parkrun and enjoyed my morning!  It was a great way to finish off the week. 

Last week I had some forced rest, by the weekend prior, I already knew I was in a bit of strife with my teeth, I was in agony! I managed a small run on the Monday, but after that I quickly got worse!  I managed to get into the dentist, but it took a few days for the infection to start clearing and it wasn’t until Friday that I could run again. I’m up for an expensive few trips to the dentist, but well worth it! 

I did 43km for the week, I am glad to be feeling much better, and ready keep on going!