Fi - The Plodder is back!!

Maybe you hadn't missed me and realised I'd been away?
Maybe you've not seen me in person so not noticed the excess pounds gathering?
Maybe you were just too diplomatic to comment? (don't be!)
Maybe you were too polite to ask how the training was going ? 
Maybe you thought in spite of my silence I'd completed my half marathon challenge? (you should know me better!)

As for me - I've no excuse!

Pretending that I was still a plodder whilst only crossing the doorstep once a month - was never going to work!
Pretending that by packing my trainers each week I was still a plodder - was never going to work!  (you actually need to put them on!)
Pretending that my clothes were not getting tighter whilst buying bigger ones - was never going to work!
Pretending that I was a runner because I read Runners World was never going to work!

So January 2012 meant New Year, New Start!

Putting plodding back into my life has not been that difficult. I've quickly fallen back into the habit of planning my plodding week to fit my other diary commitments.

However, the plodding itself has been hard, very hard - much harder than I thought it would be!

Motivated by a new mantra "Run, Fat Bitch, Run" (taken from the title of my latest running book and seems to be working wonders) I've got out there and huffed, puffed and pushed myself round my planned routes. Pedestrians have given me a wide berth and some very odd looks, with more than one appearing truly concerned as red faced and breathing heavily I slowly stagger by!

I've learnt the hard way what having the best part of 6 months off means; you can't just pick up where you left off. I've slowed significantly (probably all the excess baggage!) and my time over 3.2 miles is currently about 4 minutes slower than it was last June....... and even worse about 8-9 mins slower than my best time .........Thanks to Garmin all stats readily available for comparison!

But I'm not deterred - because I know I'm back for the long term. I've missed it - I just hadn't realised how much. It's not been fast, it's not been pretty - and at times it's been downright ugly. But I'm already feeling the benefits .....both mental (me time away from the phone and laptop) and physical (the scales finally taking a downward turn).

So welcome back to my blog - join me on my plodding journey, with all it's ups and downs - but if you don't see me around for a while - do ask why not!!