I hadn’t planned it, but decided early Friday morning to get in the weeks long run before breakfast. The weather was good for running. Grey, but not cold and not raining. Still nervous about calf injury so decided to take it very easy. Velcro support strap on, shorts and a long sleeve top and heading out to Richmond Park. The outer track round the park is a bit over seven miles and very pleasant scenery. But its not an easy circuit with plenty of hills to slow down your times. I didn’t push it, just tried to keep it steady and not push too hard on the calf muscle. Worked fine and I revised my target to add a few extra miles. When I exited the park at Kingston gate I had done just over seven miles. Heading past Kingston hospital I added another loop coming back through the Coombe Estate to bring the total distance to just over 10 miles. Felt fine. Pretty slow time. If I ran at this pace for the full 26.2 distance I would finish in something under 5hrs 15min. But plenty of time to improve. Next week 12 miles or perhaps a half marathon?

Stats: 10.05 miles in 1hr 59.06. Average pace 11.51. 1235 calories burnt, 345ft elevation gain.

Peter

So we now head into winter with the clocks changing on Sunday heralding the start of early evening darkness. For some this marks a retreat indoors for long nights in front of the TV, but for the running community it just means readjusting a training programme to keep fit in winter.

Running outside has lots off positive benefits and will fight off physical lethargy and mental depression. If you need to run at night, find a well lit route and if possible run with friends or in a group. If you are working from home, get out for your run in daylight hours and adjust your schedule accordingly. Or if you are a gym member, in extremis you can resort to a running machine.

Whatever you do, try and keep to a regular schedule. It’s a good idea to have a goal. Why not enter the Quicksilver Hampton Court Half Marathon on February 21^st? Then when it looks cold and dark outside, just visualise yourself fit and in form on the start line. It’s a great incentive to get you out the door!