My first 5km buggy run in over a year

This week has been up-and-down in more ways than one. A big high was being included in a Vuelio top 10 list, my cycle commute is definitely ‘up-and-down’, work feels relentless as it’s the start of the academic year and my running still feels in decline. However, I was pleased to complete my first 5km buggy run in over a year.

I’m still not back in my office full time but hope to be there at least two days a week very soon. It will be lovely to have a change of scenery and a chance to talk to more people face-to-face. At the moment, it feels like I spend all day in online meetings. I really love my job, but miss the serendipitous interactions that take place on a busy campus.

Vuelio Top 10 UK running blogs

It was lovely to be included in Vuelio’s Top 10 UK Running Blogs this week. I lost my blogging mojo for quite a few months, so this was such a pleasant surprise.

I follow the other blogs on the list and enjoy the mix of content, so I’d recommend that you check them out.

The school cycle commute

Most days, I cycle to school with M. It’s mostly an easy ride as the vast majority of the 2.5 miles is downhill, although there are a couple of short sharp uphills where I need M’s pedal power. One section of the ride is on a busy narrow road, however, it has a shared cycle path/pavement for the majority of its length. This makes me feel more comfortable riding with a 4-year-old.

However, after I’ve dropped M off, I have to ride back as quickly as possible. I love my Giant City Escape W, but it’s nearly 10 years old and not the lightest bike. I also have the addition of the FollowMe tandem and M’s 20″ bike, which makes the rear end of my bike a little unwieldy. Embarrassingly, my Garmin often tells me that I need 19 hours of recovery by the time I’ve cycled home!

Southampton parkrun event #409

Today I completed my first 5km buggy run in over a year. I ran most of The Old Showfield parkrun with M in her running buggy, but Stu took her after 2.5 laps as he’d already finished.

We arrived quite early. M had decided that she didn’t want to run, so I agreed to push her in the buggy. However, we agreed that she could walk to the start and walk back to the car afterwards. On the way, we noticed some unusual fungus on a tree – it looks a little like a face.

The weather forecast for today was terrible. After we’d chatted with some friends, M insisted that I put her rain cover on. On the first hill, I was joined by Jill and Caro. I was so grateful to Caro for taking the buggy whilst I removed my running jacket as it was much hotter than I’d realised!

I had a couple of walking breaks each time that I went up the hill as I feel so unfit these days. It was nice to be back at Southampton and to chat with so many familiar people.

How did I do?

I felt slow today, so I was pleasantly surprised to find that I was 3 seconds quicker than at The Old Showfield parkrun! Pushing 30kg is hard work!

I’m now six runs away from my ‘double ton’ at Southampton parkrun. I’m also eight runs away from my 350th parkrun. I was the female with the third-highest number of runs (although 10th overall).

Did you parkrun today? At home or were you touring? I’m hoping to do some more parkrun tourism in the near future, so watch this space!