Tuesday 5 March 2019

On the mend finally!  The last few days have taught me a lot when it comes to injuries.  Patience is a virtue remember, its all about process no matter what.  You've just got to believe you'll be ok and allow it to heal with time.  You can't rush it, you can't make it heal faster than it wants, youcan't cheat the process.  So I learnt that in future if I get a minor injury that I shouldn't just put it to one side and try to carry on, I need to listen to myself and remember past experience. The process will actually be quicker if you just give it a chance where as I've just been to hasty and its cost me.

I'm now looking forward to the Hardmoors 55, in fact I can't wait for the mini adventure and getting back out on the trails.  Initially I was wanting to really push myself in this race to get quicker over the 50 mile mark ready for the 110 and the Lakeland 100 but now I'm just content with actually getting the finish and being uninjured.  There's something to be said for healthy body-positive mind!  It will be a great test actually to see where I'm at and how the weight loss I've been working on will affect me.  Since Christmas I've dropped 3-4kg so half a stone which feels mega and I hope it tells in my long runs.  Using the shakes for lunch will be interesting too, as it will have made me less depend on a larger amount of food so it will be interesting how my body copes on route.

I keep thinking about why I keep doing this stuff now.  As really I've achieved all the goals I set out for and proved everything to myself that I needed to prove.  I'm just now mentally so much stronger because of my journey and all the good habits I've managed to re-train my body and mind to do are so ingrained that its actually just who I am now.  I don't want to change back, I like being me.  This culture really got hold of me, yes I love the runs and the adventures but its made me so much more.  Its made me a better all round person, more disciplined, more appreciative of other people and my environment, and I like looking after myself now.  The discipline for training go's much deeper than you think, it becomes part of you and everything you do.  Its created all these 'good habits' that make or are the ingredients to a better life not just running.  Its great!