Sometimes a little bit of rest is as good as working hard..

Bit of a long title this week, and another late one! Don't get me wrong, writing these blogs has become somewhat, my own therapy so I haven't forgotten, its just, the road is a little bit bumpy at the moment, but I'm sure we will be on a nice steady flat soon. 

Lion's Wednesday 🦁

Now, Wednesday to me used to always be 'hump day' and way back when (we're talking Windsor days) this would mean caramel latte day to get me over the worst. My bank balance is much a bit healthier than lining the fat cats of Starbucks, being back in the north and a complete change in mindset / routine / life now sees Wednesday and Lions day! It helps me make sure I'm home from work early enough to see Mr Coxy, get changed and head out for some nature therapy. 
Unfortunately I was a lone ranger this week, it was a really special week for Jess - Marathon week - so she had decided to give Wednesday a break. 
I knew I'd still feel comfortable, so I did what I would never be able to do a few years ago. 

I turned up on my own.

Yes, to those people who have been in my life for a good few years they know the protocol, I categorically will not walk into a cafe / restaurant / bar to meet you, you will have to come out and meet me, but here I am, parking up and walking to meet my fellow Lions.
I'd call that progress?

Pounding the cobbles before disaster struck.
(Very happy with Shelby's photography skills here, 

my legs look the longest they probably ever will look!)

This week was a gorgeous run/plod around the local area, Brinscall and Wheelton, except... there was a slight problem. I'd been going through a rough patch at work, and, my appetite had completely diminished. I knew I needed to eat, to fuel myself, but my body did not want me putting anything in.
Welcome to the danger zone. I absolutely tried my best to get water down me, just so that I had something to power me through. Now, we're not talking ridiculous distances here, no. This was just short of 4 miles. (or to the likes of me, who works in km, just over 6.) I had no idea where I was and I had ended up with the slightly faster group who had decided to press on. I thought we were nearly back and I knew I'd kept some water in the car, and then, I just got the hunger shakes. The only way I can describe this is when your phone starts to flash at you that your battery is low and you're going to run out of energy very soon.

My red light was flashing. Bright.

The last section was mentally hard, but luckily I was able to speak to Denise and get to know her a little bit more, which really helped me to forget about my impending doom and get back quick. 
(Denise is a fellow Lion, who also completed Great Manchester 10k the other week, we ended up finishing together!) 

Suffice to say, when I got back home, I was able to eat. A lot. 

Saturday - Parkrun #48 🌳

I can't believe that I am now on Parkrun number 48. I only got my 25, in December, and yet, here I am, 3 weeks away from the original first milestone, 50.

When I left the house, Mr. Coxy was full of optimism. "I think it's a PB week." Little did he know.

I turned up to Sophie's. We had a guest joining us this week... 🐶 Bailey! 

Sophie, did not put any pressure on me whatsoever to run with her. But, it was a warm day where she had a dog, herself and a water bottle to get around. It's only fair.. I stayed with her. It was so wonderful to take the pressure off myself to maintain a PB time. We jogged, we nattered, we gee-ed Bailey up when the heat was getting to him, we pulled over and gave him some water. It was lovely. 

Which also proves, Parkrun is not just for running. We walked.. "I suppose we better run a bit actually." And got around in 39 minutes. Lovely. 

Important to keep your animals hydrated!

And it made us stop and look back on how far we have come with this running journey. a mere 9 months ago when I was around the 37 minute mark, Sophie decided to do a 'slow' Parkrun with me, she talked at me, but it took me so long to actually get around I did tell her to stop talking to me, because I couldn't catch my breath to respond.

Fast forward to today and we've not lost our breath, we had a good old catch up and the sun was shining. 
Perfect medicine for the start of half term. 

💕 Hey Pretty Smiling People.. 💕

And then.. I turned my alarm off for Sunday. No Sunday run. And, I was fine about it. 

Sometimes, you need to just stop, have a minute and have a bit of a rest. My time isn't going anywhere, my love for running certainly isn't going anywhere. But sometimes, you need to rest rather than working hard 100% of the time.

And who knows.. a PB could be around the corner of 'rest week.'

Admittedly.. I ran off for a sprint finish..

Sunday

Sunday however, was special for a very different reason. Kind of the reason this blog started. So, yes, Jess, I am blaming you. 👀

Sunday saw the start - and the end of the Edinburgh Marathon.

I, of course was not doing this event. I think I'd still be crawling around the course, truth be told. 
But I met Jess on a dreary, cold January Sunday morning, as she had joined the same running club 🦁 on the same day as me for her first run, and, as we got chatting, she explained that it was her marathon training for Edinburgh. 

I personally feel I've been on this journey with Jess. Through long runs, through motivational Whatsapp messages, through Covid(!!)  and joining the gym together!!! 
So, I woke up, really excited to see her complete her goal, that we had been non- stop talking about since January. 

Alexa - Play Foo Fighters, My Hero
Jade also played a huge part in this adventure too!

So Jess, this blog is dedicated to you, and all that hard work you have put in over the months I've known you. 🍻

I'm sure that this is just the start and we will have many more adventures, but next time, I might be by your side. 

You are my absolute hero for everything you have achieved - and thank you for making me spend a whole Sunday fretting about you! 💕