I love the summer months, bright light early mornings seem to nudge me out of the door to get an early plod in. I’m always grateful to my dad for his gift of an ‘early riser’ gene, and I’m a regular member of the #earlyrisersclub. It feels good to bank an early morning plod by 6.30am when I need to get my act together, head out to catch a train and embrace the day. The summer seems to make this so much easier than dark winter mornings!
It was a family holiday to Centre Parks back in 2006 when I knew I needed to take action and become a bit more focused with my exercise. Beth my daughter was 3 and I wanted to be fit for her and knew if I was a bit fitter I’d feel better in myself. I was also in a job I loved yet it was consuming physically and emotionally, I knew getting some balance by introducing regular activity would be helpful in many ways for me personally, my family and for work. So I treated myself to a new pair of trainers and some running kit and headed out to a local bit of greenery. It was the couch to 5k that got me going https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/couch-to-5k-week-by-week/
There have been lulls over the years when I haven’t run as much as I’d like, I’ve lost my running mojo and found it again along the way, but it was 2016 when I decided to start doing organised runs. I set my sights on a half marathon and once that was achieved I looked around for a marathon. It was the Cancer Research UK Race for Life Marathon in September 2016 that confirmed that even I could run a marathon. It was the start of my ongoing commitment to trying (not always successfully) to keep my weight in check, keep my resting heart rate at less than 65 (less than 60 would be amazing) and creating a bit of space or ‘headroom’ for my thoughts to wander.
Regular Saturday morning ParkRuns at beautiful Panshanger and friendly Ellenbrook fields are part of my weekend routine. Yet it was my local running club that if I’m honest has made a huge difference to my sustained commitment to exercise. They say that you become most like the people you spend time with and I think this picture sums up the joy of a Saturday morning, normal people with busy full on lives trying to keep active and have fun too (even in the rain). I am forever grateful I was brave enough to join my local club, Garden City Runners.
The club has meant I’ve met people who like me embrace the joy of distance running and over the last 2 years I’ve given ultra running (that’s any distance over 26.2miles) a try. My ultra running buddy Elaine would say we’ve chatted, got lost, eaten lots and had plenty of adventures along the way too. Ultra Running has also provided some cracking multi day challenges along the Cotswold way and Jurassic Coast too https://kathevans.com/2019/03/24/ultra-running-nhs1000miles/.
The challenge of #NHS1000miles http://www.wecommunities.org/blogs/3443 and the #WeActiveChallenge http://www.wecommunities.org/blogs/3483 have provided an online community, again with others who are juggling being active in busy lives. People like Cat Wilson, Marc Harder and Jackie Smith are the best encouragers, true motivators in Chief 😉
We’re all aware of benefits of physical activity @LauraKoehli brilliant blog summarises them here http://www.wecommunities.org/blogs/3491
yet there’s something about ‘taking action’ on this information that we need to take a personal decision to do…
For me being part of a likeminded community both physical and virtual is helpful in refreshing, refocusing habits. The #WeActivechallenge offers us this August a chance to have fun, try something new and create a bit more ‘headspace’ to achieve some balance in our lives.
We’ll no doubt have a real giggle on twitter again in August with the #AHPsActive and it looks like #DoctorsActive may be ‘in it to win it’ this year, but seriously it’s our year isn’t it Nurses?! #NursesActive
Kath Evans Connecting 