Yes I know! The headline for this one is a bit sensational. But I continue, week in, week out, to make vast improvements. I'm losing weight. I'm running better and further than I have ever done. My endurance and stamina levels are improving noticeably and I'm starting to feel that I might actually reach Lands End in August.Tonight was the 2nd time this week that I'd ran from Blaydon to Shotley Bridge. On Wednesday, I ran the course in my second ever quickest time - 01:40:52, just missing out on a PB by 30 seconds. Tonight, however, using my super GPS watch I decided to race against myself using Wednesday's time. For the purposes of this story we'll call that runner from Wednesday Slow Mark . I never once used the watch to check the elapsed time, distance or pace. I merely relied on trying to keep ahead of Slow Mark.
Pictured is the watch at the 3 mile point. It was telling me that I was 0.2 miles ahead of Slow Mark. By the time I'd finished the run this gap had increased to just over half a mile. When you run up the same old paths week in and week out having something to race against at least makes things a bit interesting.
As it turned out, I smashed my previous best of 01:40:36. I amazed even myself when I
saw that I'd completed the 9.6 mile course in 01:36:16. I knocked nearly 4 and a half minutes off my previous best time. Absolutely awesome (for a fat lad!).Given that the run is all uphill (See the pictured elevation profile) I was even more pleased with this outcome.
These long uphill runs are really going to stand me in good stead for the mountains I'll be running over in Scotland. Oh and there is that little matter of the ones in the Pennines!
Right that's the nice positive stuff over. Sunday is my next scheduled run. I'll be attempting the very challenging 22 mile course from Castleside to Middleton. Thankfully, the forecast is good. Not too hot at 16 degrees and a nice 12 mph easterly wind. Wahooo! That should be a tail wind!
