did i mention how much i love running?

Did I mention how much I love running right now?

Oh, I did?

More than once?

Sorry.

Actually, I’m not sorry at all. I’m going to say it again. I love running.

I love my running shoes being covered in mud. I love finding half a packet of fruit pastilles in my pocket and saving them for the next run. I already told you how much I love looking at how far and how fast I went.

I love it that running takes me to parts of the city I wouldn’t otherwise go to.

On Saturday I went down the hill to the park, and got mixed up in the tail end of the local parkrun. I bumped into a man I used to run with at the back when I first started doing it, and we walked for a while, talking about what we’d been doing.

He turned off towards the finish, and I carried on up the valley, running alongside the river. There were a few runners out, and a few dog walkers, but it was quiet. It was cold, and windy, but the sun shone and it was sheltered in the woods.

I went uphill for a long time. I went slowly, and walked a lot. This was a long run – more about ‘time on feet’ than pace. Eventually I emerged from the wooded valley and could look back over the city.

I’d forgotten about this little post. It points to various local landmarks, and tells you how far away they are. You can just about see my house in the distance.

It also points to some not-so-local places….

I love this road. It’s quite flat, with farmland to the left, the city to the right, and an expansive sky.

It’s also quite exposed up there, and rather windy.

I’d climbed about 800 feet, and this was the high point of the run, so I was taking advantage of it being relatively flat. Until I spotted the clouds building up behind me, and decided I’d best pull my finger out and head for home.

I covered 10.5 miles that morning. I love it that my legs will carry me that far.

This week the mileage takes a step back, to allow me to recover a little. I’ll run five times, instead of three, but they’ll all be short and relatively easy. Next week I’ll need another long route – I wonder where I’ll end up this time?