I must admit it has been pretty difficult with the heat wave. Especially as my morning’s involve a 5:30am wake up for a fairly long commute. While the evening’s are pretty warm it makes running really hard. But with all this I have still been managing to keep to 2-3 runs a week. Although these runs have mainly been at the weekend. At the weekend I can do Parkrun and also an early morning run on the Sunday. It’s far cooler then and I have more time, rather than losing most of my evening after a long working day. So how have I been keeping motivated?
I still don’t have a schedule but I do have a goal
You probably think that’s not very motivating. But you know with the heat, my commute and long hours, if I don’t get out for a run it can be a bit guilt inducing. Instead I just have an aim, 2-3 runs a week, 1 of which being Parkrun. I find Parkrun super motivating and it really does keep me going. But if you’re after a schedule, I like the ones that Bupa do. This is the easy 10k training plan. I find a lot of plans expect you to go from no running to 4 times a week straight away. This plan is 3 times a week, but really eases you in. Now as I said above, I do have a goal. This year I’m running the Worcester 10k and possibly, another 10k before Christmas!
Stretch, stretch, stretch
My commute involves a rather long walk to/from the station and on top of running this can leave me very tight. I stretch daily even when not running, but I also use the torture device foam roller. Foam rolling hurts, but it releases a lot of pressure in my muscles, subsequently helping my joints. I’m also a huge advocate of Epsom salts, although it’s a little warm for hot baths at the moment!
Walking
As I said above my commute involves a lengthy walk to/from the station. This I must admit has been integral to my renewed fitness. It’s really helped me build a baseline fitness. Plus if the trains are messed up and I’m home too late to fit a run in I’m still working out! Never dismiss how good walking is for you.
Swimming
Now this one is only just back on my radar. For a lengthy period my hydrotherapy pool has been shut. But finally our local trust listened to patients and paid for it to be fixed. Let’s just say we were all this >< close to starting crowd funding. Hydrotherapy is great, it’s low weight bearing exercise, it helps me stretch more than on land as the heat of the water eases muscles further. It’s a great recovery tool and it genuinely helps my arthritis as well helping me keep motivated.
Parkrun
Last but not least, I know I sang it’s praises in my last post about getting motivated to run again. But it is a huge part of my weekend now. As I near my 25th Parkrun, never did I think I would run a sub 30 min (28:22 is my current PB), nor did I think I would get myself out of bed routinely for it. Honestly, it’s been integral to my improving health. Plus it’s a wonderful atmosphere whether you walk it, run it or jog with your pram. I urge you to give it a go!
