January Microadventure: Take Two
5 minute read.
By the time I’d fully committed to this monthly challenge I’ve set myself, we were already on the downhill to February, so I decided to keep things short and simple for my first outing. But it was tame (by my standards). And what I’d written was boring if I’m being honest.
I walked a local greenway, checked out a neighbouring nature reserve and treated myself to a head-sized almond croissant from one of my favourite bakeries. Three things that would have been *much* more fun as a family.
That’s not what I want OOO to be.
‘Could I do this with my toddler in tow?’ is probably a good barometer for what I’m hoping to get out of this. If the answer is no, then I’m on the right track. OOO is about finding my limits and pushing a little bit more. It’s about discovering how far I can really go when I ignore everything that tells me to stop.
I like the jeopardy of knowing I might *not* be able to do it.
Like cycling Bealach na Bà in the Scottish Highlands, which involves 626m of climbing over 6km. I failed at the final hairpin and had to push my pannier-loaded bike. Or joining the university skydiving club and learning to jump solo, which thankfully I didn’t fail. Or doing the 3 Peaks in 24 hours Challenge – we just made it in 23 hours and 43 minutes.
Sounds sadistic reading that back, I’ll admit. But this is the stuff that got me excited before I became a mum, and honestly, I think it’s what’s going to get me through motherhood. I lost it in those early days so now I’m clinging on to this little bit of me as hard as I can.
Unintentionally colour co-ordinating with the sign at the start of Bealach na Bà, 2017
3 Peaks, 2017. 6am atop Ben Nevis (we did it backwards to have a night out in Edinburgh…)
That brings me to my current goal: Manchester Marathon in April.
Not what I had intended to write about for OOO but with training increasing, I figured I’d kill two birds with one stone. I’m a busy parent; I’ll use one stone wherever I can. Plus it means I can make some of my longer runs more scenic over the next couple of months, in the interest of writing something more adventurous.
So, January Microadventure take two…
While it was up on the moor where I run often — and technically not in office hours because January had turned into February already and I needed something to write about — it was a milestone. And so I’m claiming it as my first endeavour.
The milestone? I reached half marathon distance for the first time since summer 2021 (a few months later I was pregnant and reduced my kms). It was also one of the hardest runs I’ve done in a while. Broken sleep and early mornings are the realities of training with a toddler – and I felt it more than ever climbing up onto the moor.
I’d plotted a route but had completely gone off course within a kilometre, distracted by the voice in my head telling me I was too tired, not ready to run a half, too heavy legged. Regretting that spicy Mexican dinner the night before (in hindsight, that was probably not the best choice). Annoyed I’d forgotten to wash all my running tights and thus squeezed into a size that no longer fits.
My Garmin watch rated my Performance Condition a 4. Liar.
Usually I’m straight into a run but for the first 6km I was battling not to turn around and go home. That was nearly an hour in, which is slow going for me.
I knew I *was* fit enough to run a half marathon – I’d been building my distance up since September – but mentally I needed a constant pep talk. So I pushed for just another 500m, just across the beck, just to the big right turn. By this point I was so off-route I was doing my original plan in reverse (god knows how that happened).
Suddenly it felt good.
When I run long somewhere remote something amazing happens. I switch off. Check out. Disappear. I forget about the stack of dirty clothes waiting for me at home, the emails I still haven’t replied to, and the shopping list I’m always adding to in my head. I forget I’m a partner, parent – even person sometimes. If you ask my name, I wouldn’t bet on knowing that either.
15km in I felt like I could run all day. A wobble on my right ankle and a twinge in my right knee told me otherwise. A familiar feeling from my last marathon training. I made a mental note to focus on those in my strength training session later that week.
20km in I could see the finishing line below me. Flying down the hill, half marathon clocked and 650 metres climbed, I felt like a different person. Although I still wished I had larger tights on….
And so I made it, the halfway point. Just have to do that twice over in a few months.
I walked through the door to my enthusiastic cheer squad (my toddler is desperate to ‘run like mummy’), a strawberry milkshake and an afternoon watching Toy Story and Arsenal (neither my choice). The pile of washing sat waiting for another day.
*****
I’m running Manchester Marathon for Zarach, the children’s bed charity on a mission to end child bed poverty. Find out more and donate here.
Kit
In case you want to know. Because I always do.
Garmin Forerunner 945
Altra Lone Peak 7 trail runners
Skins compression tights
Anker soundcore P20i in-ear headphones
Camelbak running bag with 1L water bladder
Veloforte energy chews (I’m a convert from gels)
Note: My running headphones (Plantronics Backbeat Fit 505) drowned on holiday when stray dogs chased me into the sea. Currently eyeing up Shokz bone conductor headphones, if anyone has any thoughts on them…
