You don’t need to race to enjoy running, in fact I’m sure there are some people out there who find more joy in the sport without the push of the competitive side interfering with their hobby. Indeed, although I just called it a sport, it is a hobby as well. It is both, for me,… Continue reading The Progressive Run
Tag: journal
The Lessons
There is only so much experience a 25 year old can have at anything, and when it comes to running I’ve only spent 5ish years of my 25 invested in the sport. For 3.5 of those 5 years I was just turning up to track sessions, doing the workouts, and then going home and not… Continue reading The Lessons
Ivinghoe Beacon
Autumn has kicked into gear in typical British fashion by being completely inconsistent, with the temperatures celebrating the dusky season by kicking themselves up a notch. This is no reason to complain, it is a reason to pursue one of my simpler seasonal goals: to explore some new run routes, ideally involving some hills. Last… Continue reading Ivinghoe Beacon
Autumn Watch
It isn’t autumn just yet, but the storm strength winds which have been recently blowing through have littered the paths, roads, and trails with leaves, giving the sense that although it may not actually be here, it is most definitely on the way. It has been a strange summer. Early in the year I was… Continue reading Autumn Watch
Gimme Shelter
I wanted to put in some long easy miles yesterday but it was hellishly windy. A bit of wind is nice. It keeps the air moving around the body, cooling you, drying the sweat a little. A lot of wind is terrible. A stiff headwind can make any pace feel gruelling, and can turn an… Continue reading Gimme Shelter
The Right Pain
I wouldn’t run so much if it wasn’t fun, and for the most part it can stay fun. You can make a lot of progress running at a nice steady pace, maybe even enjoying yourself. You can make a lot of progress running even slower than that, especially if you can mix in some trails… Continue reading The Right Pain
Slow Day in the Woods.
I go to the woods at least once a week now. There are hills there that would be good for high effort reps, but I don’t usually go out there for that reason. After a tough weekend session I needed a win. I needed some peace. I needed to feel good about running. And I… Continue reading Slow Day in the Woods.
Good, Bad, All in the Past.
If you get to a point where you’re running more days than you're not, you can sometimes get to forgetting just how hard it is to start out. The gasping for breath, the struggle for form, that desperation when you’re far from the finish and already flagging. Running is never easy, but the more you… Continue reading Good, Bad, All in the Past.
Coffee, Banana, Running Fast.
I don’t usually struggle to get out and run in the mornings. I’ve been consistent enough throughout the year that it just happens without really thinking about it too much, but when a run isn’t just a run, when it’s a workout, then things can be a bit challenging. It can be tough to wake… Continue reading Coffee, Banana, Running Fast.
Beautiful Places
I want this training journal to be more of, well, a journal. Which is to say I want it to be more immediate, more reflective, and more...more. That means an increased frequency of shorter posts which look back on a day of training, or even just on my running life beyond the day-in-day out of… Continue reading Beautiful Places









