Thank you so much for stopping by my first proper blog post. I’ll be looking to post regularly on all things running and writing. In particular I’ll be providing updates on my progress and lessons learned as I look to publish my first children’s book (with a running theme!) in the coming months and run the London Marathon in October.
I love running, there I said it! It felt appropriate to kick off by declaring this, for the avoidance of doubt given the topic of my blog. My next post will be on why I love writing, but that is for another day.
There is something about the simple act of moving my body, one foot in front of the next, that I find profoundly positive. Whether it be walking or running, the motion and momentum that YOU create with that first step, is a signal to your mind that YOU are on the move and mean business. I find it and can be a trigger to return to being in the present moment if my mind is racing (pardon the pun).
So I’m a big fan, as you can tell. Aside from the health benefits, running has brought me joy, solice, fulfilment, and an inner peace and confidence. Whilst also leading to pain, frustration, suffering and at times, tears. Most recently running has provided me with goals, structure and a regular opportunity to clear my head, get fresh air and much needed daylight having been Iocked down intermittently over the past year during the global pandemic. I’m truly grateful for it and I sincerely hope to continue running for as long as I can and humbly encourage others to do so to.
It has not always been the case however. You could say I’m a latecomer to the running game. Running was not really focused on at school apart from once or twice in the summer.
My earliest memories of running are from when I was about 5 years old. I vividly recall being in a short sprint race alongside my school classmates on a grass field, with white painted lines indicating the lanes. A handful of parents were present, and cheering (It was a small school). I remember constantly looking over my shoulder to see the position of others rather than focusing on the string being held up at each end as a finish line. Unsurprisingly, I didn’t win that race however I did receive a ribbon for my efforts. I’m sure I still have that ribbon somewhere, alongside a few others for various obstacle based races over some unspecified distance (sack, three-legged and egg and spoon races were the most common).
I really enjoyed participating in all sports at school, particularly basketball. Running was not seen as a priority, other than as part of team sports, until the annual end of year ‘Sports Day’. The one time a year we got to run on a proper running track!
Fast forward ten years and in 2007 on a whim in I signed up to run the London marathon. This was pretty ambitious given the longest I had ever raced before was 400 metres and I was pretty unhealthy at the time.
I’ll return to my 1st London Marathon experience at a later date (and I’ll be returning to the start line of the London Marathon for the second time this year). Suffice to say I struggled all the way around on that hot Spring day. It was a pivotal moment for me as I followed a training plan for the first time ever. Starting from literally a standing start and a run/walk strategy I made it round the 26.2 Miles in one piece.
I haven’t ran a marathon since, in fact my running was pretty sporadic in fleets and starts for a while but I had the bug.
Whether it be 5 Milers on the south bank of the river Thames in London, 5k dashes at Park Run or exploring new places on holiday, I have many fond memories of tying up my laces and getting moving.
I hope this blog will inspire runners and non runners alike to get out today and put one foot in front of the other and see where it takes you.
I’m delighted to say I’ll be doing so come rain or shine and am am pretty sure we will both feel a great benefit afterwards.
I’d love to connect to hear about your running stories, goals and aspirations. Drop me a note or follow me on Strava or Instagram and let’s see where this running rollercoaster takes us next.
Cheers
Phil
