On Sunday I ran in my 7th Standalone 10K, which is a 6.2 mile running event near where I live. I first ran it in 2011 and have done every year since, except twice when I was injured. Sunday was my worse ever showing, managing the distance in a slightly enjoyable 1 hour and 8 minutes. But, my best ever time was just under 50 minutes in 2011, and since then I've only managed one other race under 50 minutes and the rest under 1 hour.
My running history is quite sad and boring, and is detailed in depth on my New Trainers Please blog (that I've not looked at for years). Briefly, I started running in 2011 to lose weight and get fit, was surprisingly successful, set super-fast (for a nearly-40-year-old) PBs at 5K, 10K, and half marathon distance, then stupidly decided to run a marathon and injured myself, causing a slow decline in running ability, fitness, and mental health.
After getting a spot in the London Marathon in 2015, I got injured again (during the race), and I've not really run again regularly since. I have fits and starts. My most recent one began in March this year, with slow run-walks and lots of long distance walks to get my legs working again. After much trying, I finally managed a full 5K without stopping at the beginning of July, only to then stop training again because it was Summer and too hot to be outside.
Am I always destined to be rubbish at running now? Only if I say so! I am quite buoyed by my surprising achievement on Sunday, which although slow was actually 10 minutes quicker than I expected. Once I have got past this weekend (Cub camp), I will have brain space available to process the idea of training again. (At the moment it is full of risk assessments and schedules and worries about not having enough help.) But is this just another excuse for not training? Probably. I am a great procrastinator (for example, I have just written this blog post instead of doing any work or writing a plan for Cub camp).
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