Run Beki Run

Hello! πŸ™‚

I hope you're all enjoying watching the Olympics- there's such brilliant coverage on the BBC, you can literally watch every single sport, every single event, and not miss a moment. This means that you could quite easily spend all day sitting on the sofa watching sport but not actually getting any exercise yourself! Quite funny really...

However, there is no doubt that the amazing achievements of Helen Glover, Heather Stanning, Lizzie Armistead, Bradley Wiggins and many others are hugely motivating and inspiring. I definitely feel encouraged to get out there and I'm sure that the increase in people trying rowing or cycling etc will be one of the most important legacies of these Olympics.

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After three weeks holiday in Australia my fitness has definitely slipped, but I felt it was important to give my legs a chance to recover and heal themselves (recap: I had developed shin splints from being too enthusiastic with my running!). We did lots of walking, and other activities such as swimming and kayaking which kept me moving even if I didn't run at all.

Since getting back I've been cross training and strength training (weights) only, to work on my general fitness, and making sure I do a proper warm-up and cool-down with a long stretch. However, yesterday I decided to give running a go again. I'd read about the Couch to 5k program a lot in the past, and yesterday discovered this app (created by Active.com) which guides you through the workouts and tracks your progress.

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It might feel like a bit of a step back, but I decided that I wanted to do a more structured program to stop myself from doing too much too soon, so this seemed the perfect option. It's a really good app as well, easy to use and with some great features.

You choose a "trainer" who speaks to you through your headphones telling you when to run/walk, with motivational phrases thrown in too. You can choose the "nice" one, or the drill sergeant depending on how much you need to be pushed!

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The app also allows you to listen to music at the same time, with controls on the same screen to select/change tracks. The music is faded when the trainer speaks to you so you don't miss any changes, and a clear bright clock counts down the time as well. I found it really simple to follow and it made the workout go really quickly becuase I wasn't constantly checking the timer on the treadmill, I just waited for the voice to tell me to run/walk. I think it would work even better when running outside as then you don't even need to change the speed on the treadmill so there's even less to think about and you can just focus on running well and enjoying yourself! πŸ™‚

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The C25K program has 3 workouts per week, and lasts 9 weeks so I will keep you updated with my progress.

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I'm still seeing my physio intermittently and have also purchased some Zensah compression sleeves, which I wear when running and for a couple of hours afterwards to help with calf support and recovery. Having only worn them a couple of times I don't have a comprehensive review yet, but they do seem to help.

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I'm also looking into getting a foam roller, recommended for at home sports massage by soothing tight muscles and increasing blood flow and circulation. If you're interested here is a great blog post with some suggested ways to use one.

Anyway, back to the Olympics now! More cycling, swimming and rowing today- definitely makes sitting in the office more interesting!

Beki x

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