Holiday Randomness

(running near St. Andrews in the fog)

One of the best aspects of being off work for the holidays is that much of the structure and routine in my life get swept away by a wonderful sense of randomness. I get up when I like, go to bed when I like, I eat when I’m hungry, and I run and ride my horse whenever I feel like it. I’ve been baking cakes, hung out with friends and have contemplated writing my next novel.

Unfortunately, in the midst of this controlled chaos, I have yet to find the time to write a coherent blog post. Therefore, rather than yielding to blogging silence, the least I can do is to share the randomness with you. In that spirit, here are some of the running things I’ve been up to:

1. I’ve added a new pair of running shoes to my repertoire: the Asics Hyperspeed 5. As I’ve pointed out in an earlier post, one of my main running goals for 2014 is to get serious about my speed workouts. I was so excited when they arrived that I decided to take them for a spin straight away…
2. I’ve discovered that early morning runs are not for me. Seriously, half of the time I don’t know my own name before breakfast, so why I thought it was a good idea to go for a run after rolling out of bed (new shoes or not) eludes me. While my first run in my racing flats wasn’t terribly fast, I was still very impressed by them – they are insanely light and definitely keep me on my toes (no pun intended). However, the absence of cushioning is also very noticeable, and I know that I’ll have to work my way up the miles with them carefully before I can comfortably race half-marathons in these shoes.
3. Eating a curry the night before going for a long run is not a good idea. Actually, it’s an exceedingly terrible idea. Just thought you’d like to know.
4. Try as I might, I just can’t convince my friends that running in the hills in December is good fun. Most of them think that my hill runs are crazy (regardless of the time of year) and some even think that any form of running is a dreadful idea. I have, however, been able to convince some very important friends to come hiking in the mountains with me. It’s also good fun (just slower fun) and means that I can scout new trails for running. I’ve been getting very excited about sneaking back to some of the places we have visited; just me and my running shoes.
5. While I’m on the topic of scouting new areas: I’ve started reccing the route I’ll run in June as part of the Great British Relay. I’ve almost got the route it finalised; I’m staying off the main roads, which makes the route slightly longer, meaning that I’ll have to run faster. It’s a careful balancing act between safety, fun, speed and time. While I know that the event is still months and months away, I’m getting pretty excited about it already.
6. Last but certainly not least, my experimentation with the Nike Running Dri-fit Toe Socks has begun. So far, I can report that they are a bit tricky to put on but feel quite nice to run in. They also make my feet look kinda cute (now there’s something I never thought I’d say). I will keep using them for a few weeks and see if they make any difference to the state of my toenails. Certainly after my long run this morning, my toes felt marginally less battered than normal, so my hopes for these socks remain high!

I hope you’re all having a very merry holiday time!