I was sick

I was sick, but now I'm well again, and there's running to be done.

After an extended non-running period whilst suffering from a bout of nasty seasonal ailments, I went out for the first time in nearly two weeks this morning. It's reassuring that I haven't forgotten how; I managed my fourth fastest time for the short loop. But the 10k is only five weeks away now, and I've got a lot of catching up to do. On the bright side I was perfectly comfortable running in a temperature of about 4C (39F). Well, perhaps that's a slight exaggeration; at least I didn't notice any bits turning blue and dropping off.

Emergency stop

I wasn't supposed to be running today, but a combination of heavy rain, lack of sleep and a funny twinge in my right foot (which has since gone away entirely) had kept me from going out on Thursday, so out I went this morning, just for 3k. A fine morning, and quite a reasonable run, until I got about half way round when a pressing problem came to my attention. I'd eaten an excellent dinner the previous evening, and, well, nature had taken its course. Jeanne describes the problem with her customary eloquence. Although today was my 40th outing since I started running, I haven't encountered this particular challenge before. Perhaps my gradually increasing pace is having a more, um, unsettling effect.

Things grew increasingly desperate as I approached Gilbert Road. I stopped running entirely, hoping that if I walked slowly home I might have some chance of making it. For a while it looked like I might be OK, but a little way up Gilbert Road the problem reasserted itself with increasing urgency. I began to think of people I knew who lived nearby, and while there were a couple of possibilities, I couldn't really imagine either of them welcoming an unannounced sweaty apparition on their doorstep at 7am demanding an immediate favour. Then, in what I can only describe as a flash of genius, I remembered the nearby Chesterton Sports Centre, which by happy coincidence opens at 7am. I shuffled uncomfortably along their ludicrously long approach road, finally making it with only moments to spare.

Phew.

I ran the rest of the way home in a subdued frame of mind.

The training schedule lists a 5k run for tomorrow. I shall be taking steps to prevent a recurrence.

October summary

12 outings in October, out of my target of 16. Rather a patchy picture earlier on, but picking up a bit towards the end of the month:

I think the 10k schedule should keep me on track. My average pace in October was 6:20/km, against 6:34/km in September. It was pretty constant over the month, though:

That quicker one was the first time I'd run the short loop with only a minute walking.