TENse Freeing TEN K

Hello blog lovers.

You know sometimes the only thing that can clear your head, or even stop you thinking about anything apart from what you doing at that precise moment, well I needed one of those today!

It's been a mad and happy few weeks with my eldest daughter over from America but then Wednesday she left to go back.  A shitty day was all that Wednesday gave me.  Thursday was good, well it involved running, but then this morning more stress!  So yes, I needed a run. I needed to do a long run (anything over 3 miles for me these days is a long run)  But I also wanted to feel the peace about me.

It's a no brainer!  My own clubs 10k route!  I did try to drum up a bit of company to go with me, but to be honest, running solo is sometimes what I need, but I was just trying to heed advice about running in the woods solo.  But running in the woods is just too good to not to.  I didn't want to pound pavements, sucking in car fumes.  I didn't want to have to stop and worry about traffic, I didn't even want to run around pedestrians!  I just wanted to be alone, running in the woods.

I didn't have any time in mind, if I took longer than the very first time I did this course way back in 2010 then so be it.  If by some miracle I get a pb, then again so be it.  It was all about emptying my head, feeling free!

I knew most of the route, the piece through the streets, and into Little Thrift. I knew the way through Jubilee park and past Bickely Manor, Goss Hill and Botany Bay Lane.  That was the easy bit.  It was after I passed the Williet memorial and came back onto the middle of the woods path that things will get a little hazy.

I knew it was the path that I took with Illustrious Leader when we ran to sort out her marshaling point for her team, So I took what I thought was the right path and came across the two benches.  I am sure this is the way.  There were a couple of other paths that criss crossed but I had a point in my mind.  The marshal point that I had in 2012, I knew roughly where it was and I just hoped that I didn't undershoot or overshoot the correct path.  Guess what I got it right!  I came straight up the path and I could imagine what the runners were thinking when they saw me point to turn left to run along just a little bit more of the woody path before coming out for the final 2k of the run.

Back out on the streets again, fumes from the car, fumes from the road works, people to dodge, but my head feeling a lot lighter!  My heart feeling a lot light, body aching like anything!  But a lot happier.  I may as well finish the whole of the Petts Wood 10k  even though I was feeling more stress free that when I first started it.

Of course I took my Garmin with me, and now I can look at it,  just to see how many calories I have blown away which will help me decide what to have for dinner tonight! A beer later? most defeinately.