First Run in a Hopeful Year

Today saw my first run in several months. It was short (1.5 miles), it was slow (19:50), it was a mixture of running and walking – and it was a great feeling! I was running in a new area, along quiet paths next to a small lake, and the air was clear and not too cold. I have missed the feeling of freedom that running has given me in the past. It was a pleasure to rediscover this and to be running without any pressure or expectations regarding my performance. Mind you, I was tempted at times to increase my pace beyond what was “sensible” – I guess that mindset never goes away. It is about finding the best balance between performing as well as you can without the pressure detracting from the pleasure of the moment. I imagine anyone who has not yet caught the “running bug” will find this a bit alien – but persevere and the feelings will come.

There have been many reasons why I have not been running for the past few months. It began with physical problems – my hip flexors were playing up and my physiotherapist suggested that I might also have the beginnings of arthritis in my left hip. Additionally, life events have taken up a lot of my time – a family bereavement, putting our house on the market (how stressful is that?!), sending loads of stuff into storage (my life – as epitomised by my belongings – confined to a shipping container), and purchasing a property overseas. And as a consequence of the physical and the (for want of a better word) “sociological” factors, the old psychological factors kicked in – low motivation, fear of injury, negative thoughts, and probably a degree of laziness.

I am not sure what helped me turn a corner. Maybe some of that life stuff is easing off. Maybe it was the little pangs of regret/guilt I felt when seeing other runners out and about, or being with my son and daughter-in-law who run regularly. I made the first step on Friday by retrieving some of my running gear from storage. Not everything was there – I think the main bag with everything (including my Garmin watch)was buried deep amongst my worldly goods. I bought some new running socks and a top yesterday. This morning I downloaded a running app (Map my Run) to my phone. I had thought about doing a run without a means to record it, but the prospect brought me out in a cold sweat! How sad is that? Reminds me of the adage from my NHS days – if it is not written down then it didn’t happen.

Some of you may have noticed that I have made some small changes to this site. I have changed the title, the tagline and the icon. My plan is to combine my running adventures with my move to Avren and life in Bulgaria. Not exactly sure how it will work, I will probably be serving two populations, and a crossover with those keen runners who are interested in my life in Bulgaria (maybe n = 1).

Oh, no running photos to share today. Will the last sunset of 2022 over Avren suffice?