I was phoned recently by Impact Marathons to see if I had any questions about my trip to Nepal, about visas, vaccinations or anything else. Knowing that I’m going to the back end of beyond to help remote, and in some cases poverty stricken, communities, I asked if there was anything I could bring with me to donate. I imagined I might be told crayons for the school we’d be building. Or sanitary towels for the women and girls for whom we are championing equality. Something I could pop to the shops on the way to the airport and pick up in bulk. Little did I expect the answer to be running shoes. Second hand running shoes thankfully, as running shoes are not cheap things to buy, but none the less…running shoes. It took me by surprise. I suppose that’s a bit of my ingrained prejudice speaking; “these people need simple, cheap things to make their lives better, not the same expensive technical things as I need”. Then, moment of unconscious bias beaten down, I thought about it a bit more. Of course running shoes are needed, everyone deserves access to sport. Sport keeps people healthy. Sport builds and strengthens communities. Sport also gives you opportunities outside of the communities you live in. Even more than that though, when you live in the middle of nowhere, without a car or bike, running to the market or the next village can save an awful lot of time! Running shoes though, are not readily available in your corner shop, and even if they were they’re very expensive to buy when new. For those of us living a comfortable lifestyle of privilege here in the UK though we frequently chuck out our running shoes because we’ve done a few hundred miles in them, or because the latest model has come out, or even because we’ve quit running. So in many of our homes there are a fair few pairs consigned to the back of wardrobes or dumped in the dust of the cupboard under the stairs.
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I was quite lucky when I did my couch to 5k programme to start running; in the 9 weeks it took I didn’t experience any injuries or illnesses. The only real obstacle I had to overcome was my own lack of cardiovascular fitness, which is exactly what C25K is designed to do. 5 months on, and moving into marathon training I’m having a very different experience though. Now I’m finding obstacles and things have got a whole lot more challenging. I’m now trying to run 4 times a week, rather than 3, and one of those runs is interval or hill training, and another will be a long distance run. It’s all been a bit of a shock to the system and its been hard making that shift, both physically in terms of how my body is holding up, but also logistically! Trying to fit in 4 runs a week when you work, and when you have a three year old, and when your husband is also trying to fit 4 runs in to train for the same race can be an organisational nightmare! I haven’t managed it every week yet, but my body and my brain are learning and I’m getting better at it. Just as I was starting to get into the swing of the 4 runs a week, and all the crazy plyometric exercise & internal training malarkey I caught a bug. I spent 4 days wiped out on the sofa, and the best part of 10 days hacking my lungs up. Not ideal for running. As I started to recover I took my running kit in to work to go participate in my weekly Colmore Business District running group. A slow and difficult run, but none the less I managed it following my illness, so I was feeling like I was back on track. A few hours later though, and my exhaustion befuddled my brain and I managed to leave my gym bag on the train. 5 days later and we are yet to be reunited, so I am sadly lacking in heart rate monitor and decent quality trainers. Still, nothing is going to stop me training for my marathon (well, except the aforementioned exhaustion, logistics and illness) so I ran my 6 mile weekend run in my old trainers. Not ideal as they’re pretty basic and I had rather sore legs & feet afterwards. Not to be discouraged I tried another solution to my absent trainers last night & embarked on a cross country run! In the spirit of overcoming as many obstacles as possible we got lost, found an angry man & his angry dogs, retraced our route, visited the same church repeatedly in our meanderings, got scared by cows and nearly angered a badger….but we made it. And do you know what, it was one of the most amazing runs I’ve ever done. So find me some more obstacles (and maybe my lost gym bag while you’re at it), and I’ll keep trying my best to hurdle them all. |
AuthorChloe is running 1000 miles to raise money for Global Action Nepal. She's also an engineer and a Mum. Archives
August 2017
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