Image courtesy of Naypong at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
My new hand weights have arrived! I picked them up from the delivery office yesterday 🙂 They are pretty and blue, and also neoprene covered which I really prefer to the shiny rubber stuff my USA Pro weights are covered in – they can get a bit slippy if one has worked up a sweat, or so much as looked at them if it’s summer!
Image courtesy of Digitalart at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
J & I had mentioned earlier in the week about doing a run on Saturday morning ‘about 11ish’, but after a nightmare few days (and nights!) at work I phoned her at 08:50 this morning and told her I was going for a run, possibly a long one, and sooner than 11 as I desperately wanted to clear my head and not ruin my long weekend off carrying a load of work-related agitation around. So, we both got our running gear on and went down to the river at Wylam to see how far along the route to Newburn and back we could get – it’s approximately 5k each way from bridge to bridge in a loop.
Image courtesy of Master Isolated Images at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Getting the motivation to go out for a run is really difficult sometimes – maybe I’m feeling tired, or full, or just lazy, the weather’s iffy, maybe it’s just too hard to take that first step out the door because it’s been a while since I did. There are a few things that help me kick my butt into gear again.
Motivator One: Have something to work for.
My first ever running event was the Great Women’s Run in Glasgow in May last year – and I signed onto the race as a challenge for myself before I’d tried going out running. I used to work out a lot and walk miles and miles a week, and when that filtered out when I finished uni and started work, it didn’t really occur to me how much my fitness might have deteriorated after 2.5 years… I sounded like a dying asthmatic the first time I went out – and 100 yards was a struggle. My youngest sister F was out with me for my first run and can vouch for what a terrible breather I was. But, I had committed to doing it. 10km when 0.1km was looking like a struggle. I’d put sponsorship forms up at work and all sorts. I was in for it. It was either admit to everyone I was baling, or just get on with it and get round that course if I had to be dragged on a bungee rope by my other sister who’d agreed to do it with me – and runs all the time.
Image courtesy of Digitalart at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
It’s 29mph winds outside at the moment, and was a very lovely sunny evening so I had dinner and faffed around until dark before going for my windswept run rather than enjoying the rarely seen evening sunshine! The sky was fantastic though, it’s one of the things I love about not living so near to Newcastle – actually getting to see the sky as a huge high dome full of stars, both because there’s less light pollution and less high buildings – it literally just opens up above you.
Image courtesy of Naypong at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Tonight was a repeat of the workout I did last week from the Feb 2015 issue of Women’s Running – this is the start of the second week I’ve been doing this one and I’m intending to continue it until the end of this week before having a rummage for another one in one of my other magazines to start alternating with.
I’m finding the first set of reps in the session comfortable to easy with the 1.5kg, though by the 3rd set particularly for the arm exercises the weight is a bit more of a work-out level push. I’ve ordered a set of 2kg hand weights from Amazon with the intention of using them for at least one set for the arm exercises, and the full workout for the legs ones. I may decide to order a set of 3kg hand weights for the squat type exercises but we’ll see how we get on with the 2kg ones.
Equipment: 1.5kg hand weights
Time: 20 mins + warm-up/cool-down
Image courtesy of Naypong at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
I’m trying to balance a couple of running sessions a week with some core strength training, and last week started using some hand weights to try the exercises in the Feb 2015 issue of Women’s Running. This was my session for tonight:
Equipment: 1.5kg hand weights
Time: 20 mins + warm-up/cool-down
Playlist: Home Playlist 1
Song of the workout: Rock This Country – Shania Twain
Well, it’s official! I’m not getting out of it now – ballot entry successful for the Great North Run in Newcastle.
My friend J and I decided to enter this year – neither of us having run the distance before, but hey, we’ve got 7 months to prepare right?! We’re both amateur runners – I can covered 5km comfortably at a jog and can make it round a 10km but the end sight is anything but pretty! We’re both booked into several different events between now and then of increasing distances and terrains.
Let the journey begin…
Blue Runnings 