Blue skies running

Up and out this morning at 7am. It's an absolutely gorgeous day up here at the moment. Cool air, bright sunshine and blue skies. Perfect for running. So it was a bit of a shame that I felt really ploddy and laboured. It took about 35 minutes to feel as if I'd loosened up - and even then my knees felt like creaky gate hinges. I've not run much this week, but last week was good, with hill reps and a good tempo run, followed by a trot out with my brother in law Pete on the Sunday.
We've decided it's time to move house and have been looking around. Like a Herdwick sheep, I feel hefted to this region, so I'm pretty sure we won't be moving far. We had the strange experience of seeing our house on Rightmove this week and I have to say it looks pretty fabulous. I'd buy it!!

Smileyrating for today 6/10; for the previous week 8/10

Lovely!

Lovely run yesterday morning. I went slow and steady for 77 minutes along the River Kent and back. It was a gorgeous morning with cool air and clear sunshine. The river was as still as I've ever seen it; so utterly smooth it was hard to imagine that it was flowing at all. There were herons standing like statues along the bank. A pochard duck paddled around near the weir. Oystercatchers peeped loudly overhead. It was fabulous.
The route took in a wood, managed by the Woodland Trust. At this time of year the woods look at their best. IMHO. The bluebells are out, as is the wild garlic and the celandines. The whole wood was a beautiful, vivid mix of blue, white, yellow and leaf green.
As you can tell, I enjoyed my trot out. It was capped by meeting, on the way back, a superb weimaraner called Lucy, who I've seen on many occasions being walked around the village. She was huge but bounded about like a giant puppy, full of the joys of spring.

Smileyrating 9/10

Best laid plans...

Went out yesterday at 7am for what I hoped would be a nice brisk trot around the 2.7 miles of the run I call the River Loop. Well, it didn't quite work out that way. It was one of those outings when you just know, from the very first step, that it wasn't going to happen. My legs felt really heavy and my breathing laboured. Still, I plodded on, past somnolent sheep and bluebells shimmering in the woods until I eventually got back home relieved it was all over. I put my bad performance down to the fact that I spent all the previous day shovelling tonnes of compost at Holehird gardens where I volunteer. It was like a 6 hour gym session doing squats for 5 out of the six!

Smileyrating 4/10