I have done it again and left it so long in between blog posts, whoops!
However I have had a lot going on in my life, all good things. I had a wonderful time in America, I spend 12 days there. It was incredibly hot when I arrived late on Saturday night (3am UK time) and I was shattered. However due to jet-lag and excitement I woke up at 5am local time and couldn’t wait to go for a run in Central Park. I waited for my cousin Sarah to get up and at about 8am we went for a 5 mile easy run around the reservoir in Central Park. There were lots of runners out (you have to run in anti-clockwise around the lake – very efficient). We also ran by the athletes taking part in the New York Triathalon running through the park, it must have been tough in that heat.
I found the run really invigorated me and helped in getting me over my jet-lag. That afternoon I got a lift to a town in upstate New York called Kerkhonsen where I was taking part in a Jewish Choral Festival (the reason for my trip). Kerkhonsen is in an area known as the Catskills, a mountainous region with woods and lakes (incredibly beautiful). I had great intentions to stick with my training plan whilst at the conference and my first morning started well with a 6.30am run around the resort golf course. However my first session at the conference every day was at 08:15 and I didn’t finish until 11pm, which meant I was absolutely wiped out. I had to make the decision that if I was to get the most out of the conference professionally, I would need to have the extra hour’s sleep I would lose by going for a run. Someone also told me that there are bears in the Catskills, which clearly put me off running alone first thing in the morning.
However I am glad I managed to squeeze in one good run and I took some pictures of the beautiful environment to show you all.
When I got back to Manhatten I was able to get a few runs in, mainly along the East River. I only did one speed session due to the heat and the amount of walking I was doing every day was also using up a lot of energy (one day I clocked-up 28,000 steps – run NOT included). Manhatten is a wonderful city to walk around however and I was glad to have my strong running legs to help me.
I also spent a day and night in Conneticuit with my family, which was a much hillier environment than Manhatten to run in. I went for a 6 mile slow but enjoyable run around the lake where my great aunt lives, we also did some good long swims in the lake.
When I returned from America I was worried I would have gained weight from all the amazing food I ate, however I did that much walking that I actually lost a couple of lbs!
I only had two weeks back in London (where I managed to stick to my training more easily) and then I was off on holiday with Tom to Split in Croatia. I packed my running gear with good intentions, however we arrived in the middle of a heatwave, the first three days were on average about 37°. Although we were not running we were getting lots of exercise doing walking tours of Split and the surrounding areas.
On the fourth day it was cooler and overcast, I took this opportunity to get up early and run for 40 minutes along the coast, which was hilly but beautiful. I saw plenty of other runners out, who were obviously taking advantage of the cooler weather. That was the only run I managed in the 6 days we were there, but in extreme heat (and whilst on holiday) one shouldn’t feel too bad for missing a few sessions.
I’m back in the UK now and back to my training, I have also been incorporating more strength work into my training. I have downloaded a weights programme and have been incorporating this into my day when possible.
I had a pretty crap long run yesterday, which got me down a little bit, however I have decided not to put pressure on myself to get a PB at Ealing in a few weeks and just run to enjoy it. The busy upcoming High Holy Day period at work means I want running to be an escape not a stress.
Katie Rose Runs 