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Going Home!

Friday, 24th May 2019

I’m currently on the train to Edinburgh aiming to arrive at 11:22. I normally get on the 8am train that gets me to my favourite city one hour later so not too sure why I booked the earlier train. Either the price was cheaper or I thought it was great idea at the time. I’m full of those, the ideas that seem great at the time and, on the days running up to it, you think what the hell was I thinking. That tends to happen the day before when I’m setting my alarm and I see the number 5 as the hour when I’ll have to wake up. It’s definitely a “facepalm” kind of moment.

All I have to think is that I’ll get to Edinburgh one hour earlier than normal, which will give me extra time in Scotland. What’s not to like about that? If it’s just the lack of sleep because of the early start this morning, who cares? I’m going home! And this time, I’ll have my Titi Carla with me. I’ve messaged her earlier to say I was already on the train and she messaged back that she had plenty of time before she had to get on her way to the airport. I’m on the same island as my destination but taking the slow/touristic approach.

I’m excited about the trip for different reasons, as you may know:

- I’m going home! That’s always the best feeling, I love going back to Edinburgh, my safe haven.

- I’m going to see some of my friends, starting with my Grams tomorrow so our usual Saturday morning coffee/tea catch up and then Baby Kate is meant to go to the finish line on Sunday to see me complete my first half-marathon.

- I’ll be showing my Edinburgh to my Titi Carla who’s visiting Edinburgh for the first time.

- I’ll be running my first ever half-marathon – throat is feeling a bit better but my asthmatic lungs are set for a big workout! In the rain! Anyone knows any weather gods and can put in a good word for me? Please?

- Oh have I said that I’m going home?

I don’t have much planned for Carla’s stay but I’m sure I can recommend a few spots that she can visit/see since I won’t be with her the whole time – I have to work this afternoon and tomorrow I’m resting my poor legs for the run on Sunday.

She has the Castle sitting gorgeous and majestic on the rock overlooking the city, the Royal Mile linking said Castle to Holyrood Palace, passing by the Scottish Parliament. There’s Carlton Hill, which I have told her not to do without me as it can be quite steep in parts and I’d rather go up there on Monday and help her up and maybe buffer her way down! There’s the New Town, the Old Town, there’s the museums that are worth the visit. Nothing planned but plenty to do and visit. She can even get one of the open top buses to go around town and even down to the Royal Britannia by Ocean Terminal.

I’ll see her early afternoon and then send her on her way while I do a bit of work. And I have to do the same now although the view out of the window is too nice to focus too much on emails and systems. Oh well, the things I do for a trip to Edinburgh!

Long weekend coming up!

#edinburgh #edinburghhalf #goinghome

Sunday training!

Sunday, 19th May 2019

For most people, Sundays are normally that day of the week when they have a lazy and late start, don’t worry about alarms or plans early in the morning. I haven’t had one of those in a very long time and I don’t think I would know how to cope with that.

When I moved to London (I’m trying to remember how long ago I’ve been here) in 2011 (it’s a cop out but at least I don’t have to use that one grey cell left in my brain), I joined a rowing club about 4 months in and from that point on and for about 5 years, Sundays were always rowing mornings, which mean no lie in.

You could think that, with no rowing, I would turn into a slob and sleep till noon but I can assure you that hasn’t happened. When I was a rower, I loved the feeling of having the rest of the day left once I finished the training. OK, I admit that sometimes all the rest of the day involved was a long shower, a nap and maybe slouching on the couch for the rest of the day. Trust me, about a double session on the Thames, you learn to appreciate it! I sometimes would go straight to the city centre and meet a friend for lunch but, why kid myself, most days, I would just come home and crash.

I had signed up as a barcode scanner for this morning’s Junior Parkrun at Acton so I had an early breakfast and then walked for about 30 minutes to the park. It’s always a slow build up, with volunteers turning up in dribs and drabs. To be fair, majority are parents of the kids running so they tend to come along with the children. Run done - those kids are fast -, I handed over my high vis vest, did my asthma inhaler, wrapped my hoodie around my waist and off I went for my long run.

I made a strategic detour by the flat so I could drop off my inhaler and my hoodie. I could have taken the inhaler with me but I knew the hoodie would do my head in, as it would start to slip, knots would become undone and I didn’t want to throw my GAP hoodie away.

Quick upstairs and downstairs and I carried on as I still had 13km out of 16 to complete. I made it down to the river, past Kew Bridge and then along the water. Although the path there is made up mostly of gravel, the rower in me loves the scenery with the odd rowing crew and launch passing by. I always say: once a rower, always a rower; and it’s true. I still have the calling of the Thames that has some sort of power over me.

At 10km, I turned around and headed back the same way I had come. I would have preferred to have run a bit further and then come back along Kew Gardens but that would have added another 3 or 4km to my already long run so I just turned around. It’s very busy around Kew Gardens anyway with all of the people making their in and people aren’t that considerate to runners, they just queue everywhere.

At 13km, I started to get cold. Today wasn’t a particularly hot day and with the top getting sweaty, I started to feel my body temperature drop. I gave it another km and then I stopped the run. I was feeling overly tired and, although I could have done another 2km, I knew it was best to leave it at that and just walk back to the house. I’m not sad or disappointed that I didn’t do the distance I had initially planned, sometimes you need to adapt to the circumstances. It was still a great run and I know I’ll run the half-marathon in a week’s time! I will own that half-marathon!

I won’t do much running this week, I have one planned for Tuesday or Wednesday and around that, I’ll do some stretching.

Things got even more real yesterday when I got home to my race pack, with my number! I know I’m running it, I’ve known it since I agreed to do it and even before I registered but, seeing the number with my (official) name on it, made it a thousand time more real! Can’t and won’t back down!