A while ago I wrote a Blog called “The Hare” stating “There is no such thing as slow”, but today I am going to talk about “fast”. “Fast” of course, is relative. If anyone has studied Eienstein’s theories of relativity, they will know that perversely, the speed of light is distinctly not “relative” since it will always messure the same regardless of the speed of the observer (which has always seemed seriously weird to me). However you look at it, the speed of light is fast, but what about my running?
Well it’s all relative. Relative to the tentative 8 miles I did a few weeks ago, today’s run was quite a bit quicker and felt a lot more comfortable. When you have run at a particular level, it can be quite difficult accepting your limited performance while recovering from illness or injury. What I was reminded of today, is that even though you find it hard to understand how you can ever run faster, training WILL pay off and when you do start to run faster it will actually feel easier!
That’s how I felt today, I was feeling my pace comfortable and without even trying harder, it was considerably quicker. The other reason to be pleased is that today, I reached my 100 miles for the month which means I get another awesome medal from Awesome Virtual Running Events. If you are reading this Tony, the challenge has encouraged me to push the envelope just a little bit this month to reach the goal and set me up for the next few final weeks of marathon training.
“But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded.’” 2 Chronicles 15:7 NIVUK
You wouldn’t believe I saw a Gruffalo today! In the story, Mouse thinks The Gruffalo is an invention of his own imagination until he meets him face to face. To achieve things in sports like running, you first have to believe you can do it before you see the victory or goal achieved. When I finally recovered from a virus at the beginning of March, I chose to believe my physio, that I could still get fit for the London Marathon. Today’s 15 mile run (which included the encounter with The Gruffalo) was tough, buts put me back on target!
In the olden days (e.g 70s 80s & 90s), I used to regularly buy a number of magazines; in my case it was titles like “Practical Electronics” and later “Personal Computer World”. In those days there was no Internet and it was always exciting opening those glossy pages to see what was new and what I could learn because they were the only way to get that information. I can also remember reading most of the articles really carefully; it was valuable stuff! Of course, I always have been an Internet aficionado and I wouldn’t want to turn the clock back, but in exchange for its benefits we have lost some things and that excitement of the latest magazine is one of them.
Marathon Mann 