Running On Empty

So, despite the negative test on Saturday before heading to Morpeth, a further test on the Monday showed that I have the dreaded COVID after all. Tuesday and Wednesday were rough and, while I've improved a lot since then, running has been the last thing on my mind. Anyway, this is just a quick post to say I will get back to it, but don't yet know how soon. I'm actually booked in for my first proper orienteering for months  this coming Sunday, but unless I (and my family) suddenly turn the corner, that's unlikely to happen now. Right now, I'm thinking more about a parkrun in a week and a bit's time. Fingers crossed... 🤞

I promised this post a while back, so what is it with me and my feet (and my moaning about my feet)? In short, neither has been diagnosed by a doctor, but I'd swear to god I suffer from both Raynaud's phenomenon and Morton's neuroma . I've had 15-20 years of symptoms of both of these things, which feels like plenty of time to figure it out. The former, Raynaud's, is fairly unmistakeable. It's not just a foot thing, but my extremities get painfully cold very easily, especially in winter. All it takes is for me to carry a bag of frozen peas from a shopping bag and put it into the freezer for it to kick in. Or I can expose my face to the cold in winter and suddenly my fingers and toes are white, cold and painful. Gloves — even special Raynaud's gloves — and thick socks don't help either; instead I just find they restrict the blood flow further. As for how this affects my running, I really need to be warmed up before... well, before I start to warm up (i...

Just a quick post: I've been meaning to explain why I chose this name for the blog, though it's pretty straightforward. Ever since I started my third attempt at Couch to 5K back in March(?) 2022, running has never felt comfortable. It's a damned good thing that Laura, the voice of Couch to 5K, taught me that it was a mental game as much as a physical one. Even after completing the programme and having been running at least weekly for months now, I still feel on the brink of giving up, lungs bursting, after just a few hundred metres. At parkruns, I'm the guy noisily heaving for breath the whole way round. (Apologies if I'm hanging off your shoulder while doing that.) I get in sight of the finish line and watch in disbelief as those around me put on a burst of speed while I have literally nothing left in the tank. (Always with the car analogies! 🙄) Anyway, that's all it is. Throughout pretty much all of my runs, I feel I'm giving absolutely everything I'v...

Right, where do I start? Introductions, I guess. My name’s Mal and I don’t enjoy running. However, I’m 47 years old now, have a very sedentary lifestyle and know that I need to get more active to stay (become!) fit and healthy. So, as much as I hate exercise for the sake of it, earlier this year I began my third attempt at Couch to 5K , encouraged by family and a couple of workmates who were also doing it. And that’s where it began. On Friday 20th May 2022, I completed the Couch to 5K. But by then, I had other goals too. I wanted to do a parkrun (also 5K long). I’d signed up for the Race For Life (another 5K). And I’d signed up for an 8K urban orienteering event in my home town of Newcastle upon Tyne. At the time of writing this, those things are now a few months behind me, all ticked off. I set further goals of getting in the top 50% of men at a parkrun (tick!), running a sub-25 minute 5K (tick!) and running a 10K (errr…). But why the blog? A few reasons, really: I’m so amazed by the...