Run, Fat Boy, Run

I've realised that, although I set the blog up to witter on mostly about running and whatnot, I've not even mentioned it yet, so here goes.


I get asked, fairly regularly, why I run. There isn't a simple answer to that one, and plenty of times I ask myself the same question. I'm not among the quickest, I'm certainly not the most elegant and, a lot of the time, I run with gritted teeth. The truth is that there must be something of the masochist within me. The times when I enjoy running the most are when the weather's rubbish, when the distance seems too much, when the aches and pains start to show. That's when I feel like a proper runner. Those are the times when I can clear my mind, focus on the task and battle against all the obstacles.


I've been running off and on for years but with a degree of seriousness since 2008. Over the last few years I've clocked up a fair amount of runs (2008: 105 miles in 30 runs; 2009: 627 miles in 121 runs; 2010: 483 miles in 82 runs and, so far 139 miles in 29 runs in 2011).


I've completed countless 5K races, four 10K races, one 10 mile race, six half marathons and one full marathon and not been anywhere near the front in any of them :-) My personal bests, such as they are, are:

• 5K - 23:36 (September 10)
• 10K - 53:44 (December 09)
• 13.1M - 02:01:54 (March 10)
• 26.2M - 05:09:46 (April 10)

I have three goals for 2011:

1. To complete an officially organised and timed race at each distance up to the full marathon (so 5K, 10K, 10 mile, half marathon, kilomathon and full marathon)
2. To run sub 2-hour half marathons before the end of the year. It might not sound like much, but getting to 02:01:54 last March nearly killed me...
3. To change my running style to be able to run a 10K race either barefoot or in minimalist shoes

The barefoot/minimalist running conversation is a post for another day, this post is already waaaaaaaaaay too long.