I have two reports to tell you about. First is the Saturdays Beginners Group, which started a week last Saturday. And the second is about todays group 0.
But fist the Beginners group. I rode my bike along to Towncourt Road and entered the rec through the back gate. I was happy to see quite a few people over near the pavilion. We always have a great turnout of people. Some continue on through to the end and become fully fledged members of PWR. some only make a couple of weeks, and yet others have come back to start all over again! To try and get that fitness bug going! And being part of a group does help with the motivation!
I have joined in week 2, I didn't make it the first week, Big Son was 21 on the Friday, I will say no more! So already they were up to 2 minutes running and 4 minutes walking. I think I will be able to keep up with them all and to try to do my best to encourage anyone. I know my back was hurting a bit after Thursday morning run, but I think I will be ok, as long as I take it easy!
It's great to see everyone really looking forward to seeing what they can do, with the warm up drills to get their muscles warmed up done it was time for the first of five 2 minute jogs. It really is great just listening to the runners as they run around the green "I don't think I will ever be able to run 5k" and "We gotta do this 5 times?"
Just encouraging them to get to the end of each two minutes jog session is all they need. After the four minute walk they are recovered enough to do it again. It doesn't sound a lot, but when you have never run before each two minute section is a huge step!
At the end of the session is was brilliant to hear comments like "I did it!" "I didn't think I would be able to do that last one" But you know they will be back! They have a mission to complete!
Group 0
I had decided on Thursday that I may just only do Group 0 this time, as my back was a bit sore, and today it was a definite that I would only be running in group 0. This weekend my daughter came home from Chicago so we were having family time for most of the weekend! On Sunday, after a very long visit in the local establishment we walked back from Petts Wood, via the Kebab shop, to my house. It's about a mile walk. Now my daughter has long legs, and so does her husband, and the were striding along while I was running after them......in my heeled boots!
My shins were suffering the day after, on the Monday! Even walking was hurting them! Today however, it wasn't as bad as it was yesterday. But I am going to take my own advice and take it easy and not to run in group 1.
Some of group 0 have now gone back to group 1, and a couple of the others have had other things that have kept them from getting here today, but I had a newbie! Jenny! She actually came along the past two weeks, but she didn't realise that I had cancelled! (She is now firmly in the loop, via email and Facebook page!) She came along at 7 but then waited until 8 to join in group 1. So she has actually been able to run in the next group even though she said she was at the back! I personally can't see anything wrong with that, as that is usually where I am at every race.
Thats always a good thing as its experience of what it's like to move up to the next group! But for now group 0 is where she wants to be. I told her that we will be running up Birchwood, get the hill out of the way first, (even though there will be a couple of smaller undulations). It's always good to get a hill out of the way, especially knowing that for the next part it's all flat and then a lovely down hill.
This run was all about Jenny, run when she could, for as long as she could, with a couple of scheduled stops to just gain composure. It's a chance to work on her breathing technique, to get control and keep control of her breathing. Sometimes running in a group you have the added pressure of trying to keep up, especially if like me you are the one at the back. All thoughts of breathing tend to go out of the window!
Group 0 is about practise, about gaining experience of running in a group but with out the added pressure of keeping up! Which is why I only ever keep our distances to 2-2.5 miles! I think Jenny did really well today, and I think I did pretty ok too! At least my shins didn't hurt as much as I thought they were going to! My back wasn't as bad either!
See, sometimes I do listen to myself! Even though I was really tempted to run with group 1 this evening, especially when I saw all my running pals! The rain had stopped, the temperature felt perfect for an evenings run! But, I must do what I tell others to do!
Here is the geeky stats, from my very worn, broken (strap only) Garmin! I must write a letter to the man in the red suit this year!
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