The time has come. I can't deny it any more. It's 'new year, new me' season, and I've vowed to get my sorry ass running in 2015, by hook or by crook. The Run Way is my journey, and it starts right here.
Yes, that's right. It's week four and I didn't do a single run. I'm conducting a personal experiment, and this week, I fell completely off the wagon. It was national sickie day on Monday, and I extended it to a week. I am, like Katy Perry's floundering dance shark, a massive, cartoonishly fat disappointment. I feel as blue as his suit.
After a month of 'just getting through January,' February was going to be the month where I'd come into my own. I was going to be running 5k three times a week in super quick time, eating nothing but quinoa and green juice, writing 1,000 words of my novel every night and sleeping deep restorative sleepz. But, instead, my start to February was a tiring Sunday full of house chores, admin and work to which I factored in none of my healthy resolutions to kickstart a good new month.
I know I'm not the only one to say 'I'll start on Monday,' or 'When February comes around...' I'm a virtually obsessed stickler for having to make a good start on my resolve for fear of 'ruining' a day/ week/ month/ year/ my whole youth... I fear I've definitely ruined this week, and may have dented this whole month if I don't find some serious inspiration very soon. Time for an Insta trawl for fitspo.
Last week I was going great guns hauling myself out into the cold for 8pm runs. This week I've been stressed, tired, hormonally grouchy, demotivated - all the enemies of personal development, productivity and indeed happiness. So to fill in those knackered gaps - instead of eating power proteins, leafy green veg and revelling in an endorphin-fuelling run - I've scoffed secret Dairy Milks with hidden popping candy, cooked pancakes a week early, slurped extra cans of Diet Coke and gotten even spottier and more stressed than I was at the start. Most of all, I've beat myself up for letting myself down.
One piece of news which did cheer me up though, was that 'binge jogging' is bad for you. So actually, maybe my two bursts of 'intense' exercise might actually be as bad as doing nothing. What we're supposed to do for a healthy life is light exercise more regularly. Of course more regularly... So that's what my aim for next week (and from now on) is - RUNNING REGULARLY. Not leaving my runs to the last minute so I end up not doing them at all. Actually making some time to be nice to myself with healthy endeavours. Then maybe I won't be flooping around missing steps like old Sharky at the Super Bowl.