Tuesday 4 June 2013

to refocus...

Thanks to everyone for the support you gave me during my big whinge post a few weeks ago! Sitting down and writing it all down like that really made me reassess things and while there are still some things that are completely out of my control at the moment there are still quite a few things that are within my control.

So I sat down and had a long hard think about things are thought about what it was that I really wanted, what my goals were... I had written that in 12 months time I wanted to run a half marathon . I have always wanted to get more into running...on my 101 goals in 1001 days list I wrote a few years ago I said that one of my goals was to Fall in love with running, and while I won't tick that one off as achieved just yet I realised that I need to refocus my exercise goals.

So I got realistic and have decided to change my exercise plan and move slightly away from the 12wbt plan for me, I consulted my good friend Google and looked for half marathon running programs for the treadmill.. I am not a massive fan of running outside (I know I know!) and given that it's now officially Winter in Toowoomba I know it's not going to happen! It's cold and miserable and foggy and just downright yuck! I came across a few blogs and websites that discuss the topic and like everything it has it's pros and cons. I find for me, running on  the treadmill has many more pros than cons
  1. I can do it rain, hail or shine
  2. I find I am more likely to run for longer and not stop on a treadmill
  3. I keep a steady pace
  4. I have a treadmill sitting in my lounge room with a perfect view of the telly
  5. I don't have to leave the house
I won't label myself as a 'runner' just yet but I have completed a few races in the past. I have run the Bridge to Brisbane twice, the first time when it was still 12km and then once at 10km and whilst I ran the whole way and think that I can run for ages I am not very fast and plod along! My goal is also to get faster and doing interval training on the treadmill will hopefully help with that.

So my google search has given me some great training plans and tips on running training on the treadmill, the main one being to up the incline to at least 1. So on Saturday I kicked it off with a 4km run, I set my incline to 1, my speed to 7.6 and then upped it during the last kilometre and completed the 4kms in 30 minutes and 35 seconds! I was SO stoked with that! Without having any data to prove it I am confident this was a PB! Would love to get that down to 5km in half an hour but baby steps!



Would love to hear from anyone who has completed a half marathon about your training programs and times!

Linking up with Essentially Jess for IBOT!


4 comments:

  1. I love reading of people who are exercising and keeping fit. It is what I used to do and what I aim to do again soon !
    I too am a plodder, and, while I would love to be a runner, I just don't think I am built to be a runner - and I am OK with that. It really is more about the exercise than what I look like !
    Have the best week !
    Me

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  2. A friend once told me "If you run, you're a runner." I think doing a 12k and a 10k certainly qualifies you as a runner! For the longest time I didn't feel like a runner, either. But I can go outside and run 5k if I want to. And that qualifies me as a runner, I think! I need to re-focus, too. It's been a long time since I sat down and wrote out some goals. Thanks for the reminder! x Aroha (#teamIBOT)

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  3. I go through months when I'm a 'runner' months when I'm a 'shuffler' and months where I'm in denial that I should be a runner because I have a half coming up the next month! So know what you mean - I've persevered though + after a few months of running I'm beginning to feel more like a 'runner' - I wrote a guest post on Hummingbird's Song http://www.bubsweatandtears.com/2013/05/how-to-survive-half-marathon.html if you'd like to read - all about surviving my first half after 3 yrs and a baby :) thanks for sharing, Pip x

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  4. Go you!! I went for a run the other day for the first time in close to a year. 2.8 kms in 23 minutes which wasn't great, but also wasn't bad. I'm hoping to do a bit more too, but the idea of a half marathon terrifies me!

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