Holding back

Hey peeps

A break from the holiday recaps this evening!

I had to re-jig the magnets on our fridge to fit these on!

Since getting back from holiday I have not had a proper routine- after landing Friday morning I was off out on Friday night and then away for a Hen do Saturday-Sunday, getting home at about 9pm on Sunday (after popping in to see Andy’s family).

I was looking forward to a run. I took my running bits with me, just in case I fancied one, and mainly because I used my trail shoes and capris for walks, so I had most of the kit already. But then I usually get annoyed if I pack something and don’t use it, plus when we stayed in Quebec we were right by a beautiful park, so it seemed rude not to.

But the day before we came home I had my little hip niggle again. I think I am going to see another physio because I am not sure why it keeps coming back but I think it is to do with when I get stiff and sit awkwardly- it came on this time after a 3 hour bus journey, and was worse after I got off the plane. So although over the weekend it got better I wanted to be careful.

Anyway, on Monday morning as soon as I woke up I headed out- I only wanted to go for 3 miles and took it really easy. I didn’t look at my Garmin at all (which is lucky because it still takes ages to find the signal these days) and just kept a steady pace.  My calves were really stiff, probably due to a long car journey on Sunday, so lots of stretching when I got home.

And then:

Of course it had to be pancakes! I told Andy I was having a Saturday- he had to work but seeing as in the summer I can do my work as and when, I decided to have some “me” time. I used coconut flour, plus a little normal flour, egg and almond milk, but they are still slightly dry in texture, although some maple syrup sorted that out. I think that once this box of coconut flour runs out, I won’t replace it as I am not a huge fan.

I pottered around at home doing some work and some jobs including clearing out the rest of my drawers and our wardrobe- the drawers now shut, amazing!

To help with the jet lag we went on a walk on Monday evening, just a couple of miles after dinner but it was good to have some fresh air.

On Tuesday I had to power-walk to the post office (we were expecting a delivery but Andy had some training at home which meant he couldn’t answer the door at a specific time so I had to be back for that), and I did a massive clean to follow on from the de-cluttering of Monday. Very satisfying. Another walk was needed post-dinner (I feel like I could fall asleep at around 6pm, and then get a second wind and am wide awake at 11) but we had to cut it short as there were huge clouds looming.

Today I saw my parents, met up with some friends, and then went to Sweatshop. I was really pleased because although my hip has been fine (when doing work I have been careful to get up frequently and move about) I don’t want it to go bad again, so I didn’t want to go crazy. The guy made us do some dynamic moves to warm up, which I really should do before every run, but we did all feel like idiots doing it on the lawn in front of the gym. But then we ran along an old railway line (now a cycle/ footpath) and then back through the fields, and it was gorgeous. I sometimes try to keep the speedier runners in sight, but knew it would be no good for me, so I was sensible, controlled, and finished feeling strong.

I got home to find that I had 15 minutes to go before Bake Off, and with Andy out it meant I could have control of the TV. But I just popped on the athletics to see what was going on, and realised that the 10,000m was going on- so in the end I opted to watch the last half of that before my shower (jumping up and down during the final lap!!) – I shall have to watch Bake Off on i-player instead.

Are you good at holding back or do you always get tempted? I was talking to my Dad about this today- he had to stop running in January as he injured his knee, and has only just been able to start again. He loved doing parkruns but was saying he won’t go at the moment as he knows he would get carried away and be too tempted to try and speed up too much.