Tag Archives: running

Running through a storm is not as glamourous as it sounds!

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I heard the thunder, I saw the dark clouds moving in, but I simply ignored it thinking it would blow over. It didn’t.

Two kilometres in to my run last week Thursday I got caught in the biggest storm to hit Jo’burg. At first, the drops didn’t appear to be that heavy so I decided to push on and not turn back.

Big mistake!

Within 5 mins, the rain was so heavy I could not see in front of me. I had to seek shelter along the side of the road under the trees (I know!) and next to some bushes. At first, I thought it would blow over but it just got louder and heavier, it felt like the lightning was going to hit me!

I stood dead still, holding myself in a tight ball and closed my eyes. I waited. I hoped it would stop.

Every now and then a car would drive passed. The problem is that with no pavements and very little water drainage in Douglasdale, I would get splashed. I refused to cry. I kept trying to convince myself that it was awesome. It wasn’t!

After 10 minutes, I made the call to run home. It did not look like the rain was going to stop and I feared it might hail. It was getting late. I was freezing! I was 2 kms away and thought that at the most, it would take me 20 mins. I could not run fast because the puddles of water were so deep. My running shoes were drenched!

I arrived home, ran straight upstairs and jumped in to the shower. My mascara had run all down my face. I had left puddles of water from the front door all the way through the house.

I’ve heard people raving about how wonderful it is to run in the rain. How refreshing it is.

Geepers! I rain in a storm. Never again!  

Sometimes, the signs are there and we refuse to listen. We ignore them. And then have to face the consequences.

The lesson: if it looks like a big rain storm approaching, it most probably is. Go run at the gym!

I love my weekends, especially because of…

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Friday night pasta…

We don’t eat a lot of take-out. For us, Friday nights are pasta night in our house. It’s the one night of the week where I make a kick-ass pasta dish, loaded with cheese. Yum!

Saturday morning breakfast in bed…

KK wakes up quite early on Saturday mornings. If we aren’t off to run a race, he will make breakfast which we usually eat in bed watching something we’ve PVR’ed on TV. Even if it’s just a bowl of Milo cereal, or muesli and a hot cup of tea. It’s perfect! The best part is falling asleep again and waking up later.

Saturday movie night…

If we have no other plans, KK and I usually go to movies. We take it in turns to pick the movie and always buy x2 small popcorns and a water. After the movie, we go for supper. It’s our special “date night” and never grows old.

Sunday afternoon naps…

I absolutely love napping on a Sunday afternoon. It’s even better if there’s a typical Jozi thunderstorm and the room gets all dark and cosy.

Spending time with my dogs…

Annie and Emma follow me wherever I go. They absolutely adore me. It’s also the only time I get to really snuggle them and let them cuddle with me when I nap. I like to spend extra time talking to them and brushing them. They love it!

Feeding the birds in my garden…

There’s nothing more beautiful than the sound of birds in the garden. I have two bird feeders and it attracts so many birds to my garden. All weekend, there is the sound of weavers and grey louries in the trees. It’s magnificent!

Early morning races…

Running races have become a part of my life. It’s what we do. I once told a friend that I was thinking of quitting the running and she said, “You can’t. It’s such a big part of what you and KK do on your weekends. It’s what your friends do on weekends. Quitting is not an option.” She’s right. It’s a big part of our lives and our weekends. Yes, so the 4am wake up and driving to races in the dark always feels like hell, but crossing those finish lines and eating pancakes under a tree after a race while we all review how the race went is .. well, it’s pretty awesome.

Try again. If that fails, try again.

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I did not have the best of week’s last week. Having received the news from my running coach that I had not followed my training schedule correctly and had therefore not improved as he would’ve liked sent me into a depressed spiral where I questioned my running and considered quitting.

I got blasted by my coach for even having thoughts of quitting. He said to me: Get your mind right!

Ironically, this is where I am lacking in “strength”. I am disciplined enough to train every day. I have even changed my diet, cutting out wheat and red meats. I drink enough water and have ensured I wear all the running gadgets one can buy. All the boxes are ticked. But getting up when I have fallen down is so difficult.

Previously, when it came to motivating myself and getting my head space right, I would sit quietly and repeat positive statements to myself. I would envisage myself running and completing races. I would fill my time with reading motivational running books. It would always be a very private and personal journey.

But there’s something I realised a few months ago when I started my blogging. When it comes to believing in my abilities, nothing helps me do that more than realising that others believe in me. In fact, spending time with people that build me up is exactly what I spent the week doing.

Dinner with a best friend (who meticulously read back to me every sentence from my coach’s email and analysed each comment with a fine tooth comb and turned each sentence into a positive statement – Marci, you mean the world to me), to the awesome run with an inspirational friend from Cape Town (Rogeema, you are too awesome for words) and an Iron Man (Morne) who surprised me with a visit, right down to the motivational tweets and caring comments on my blog telling me that quitting is not an option and that they believed in me.

There’s nothing that touched my heart more than realising that other people are so willing to share in my running pains and get me through the bad times.

I’m back up. I’m running.

Dear coach, let’s start again. I’m ready.

Pushing through the storms

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Living in Jo’burg, one of the things I absolutely love are the awesome Highveld storms! I love the build-up…the dark clouds, that booming thunder and the lightening across the dark purple skies. There’s nothing more spectacular!

However, with a detailed running training schedule to follow since I started with my running coach, I’ve become really niggly with all the rain that has hit Jo’burg in the last few weeks.

You see, I have totally changed my training regime since January. Whereas before I trained mostly indoors, with a personal trainer at the gym at 6am on Monday, Wednesday and Fridays, I am now only focussed on running every afternoon, as per my new running schedule, out on the open roads.

Let me stop for a minute and be completely honest with you: The last 3 weeks have been difficult. I have run every day (except Saturdays). It’s not as if I am clocking up major kms. Somedays I’ll only run 3kms, but the discipline to run and to push myself, especially with the required speed work is out of my comfort zone. It’s hard work. It’s not something I’ve done before. My entire body screams ‘stop’!

The humidity that comes with the afternoon rains hasn’t helped. It feels as if I am suffocating. I cannot breathe. I am often gasping for air and the sweat just runs down my face. Wednesday’s run was particularly difficult and it took all my energy and strength not to walk. I failed. Most of the route I landed up walking instead of running. I felt pap! But I’ve stuck to the schedule and have pushed as hard as I can.

I then came across a @runnersworldza tweet that not only made me smile but made me realise a few things…

I realised that it’s been 3 weeks. Already! Yes, 3 difficult weeks but I have not quit. My legs have not given up on me. My body is getting stronger and stronger. I’ve realised that I am in fact doing more training than I did last year. This is awesome! This is what counts!

I need to stop complaining and enjoy my training! Let it rain!