Support = success

I felt tired and stressed but I went out anyway. BF was down so we went out together, the goal being 9 miles. 2 miles in he asks how I am, and I tell him im tired. He wants to know why, because he says I should feel relaxed, but ive had a hard week, and im only 2 miles in, ive been out half an hour, and I know me, and tho the initial aches dont subside til the first mile, the stress and tiredness of a tough week doesnt subside until ive been out an hour. Mile 4 and ive run out of water, so i take advantage of having a running partner who is more than capable of catching me up, and send him into the shop as I continue along the agreed route. It isnt long til hes back by my side, offering me chocolate covered raisins. I decline, concentrating on the route, as Im now into the unknown, having previously turned back on my loop of the local villages well before now, and im trying to work out how far i need to run before I can loop back if im gonna cover 9 miles. His GPS tells us we've covered 5 miles as we come up behind my gym, so I take advantage of the natural loop of the road rather than stop and turn around. Coming back into the main road of the village, a girl walks past us as were coming to the end of a walk break, and i dont know why, but i take offence slightly, and jog past. A few minutes later on another walk break she walks past again. Someone explain that to me, I say, once shes out of ear shot. Ive overtaken her once, and shes just walking! And with that im off, my pace much quicker, and spurned on by the song that comes on my MP3 player, I push myself a bit more. I shorten my next break to one minute instead of two, and the im off again, still pushing myself to achieve more. That was your best mile, BF tells me, as GPS informs him we've clocked our 6th mile. At mile 8 I calculate in my head the best route to clock our last mile, and turn left at the pub, to the surprise of BF. I thought u'd go straight on he says, but I tell him it wouldnt quite give us 9 miles, so we come up behind the park, and finish about 500 yards from our destination. Could you have kept going? he asks. Get lost I sigh, the pain setting in. 2 hrs 23 my watch reads.

I sprint the last 100 meters, even tho theres no need, for the euphoria that follows. I get indoors and start to stretch. Then I got cramp all down my left side. That was painful. A couple of hours later im in the pool with BF and my son. Tired, in pain, and being driven crazy and its only the beginning of the summer holidays. Legs ached at bed time, and again when i woke up, after the best nights sleep in weeks, but it isnt long before I feel fine. It wasnt all that long ago that the day after a run, I was in agony, and I was sure I was mad to even attempt this. But I am noticing recovery is easier, even tho im clocking an extra mile each week, and i feel good despite covering an extra two. Having said that, I have read that you can increase the miles by up to three extra each week but more than this isnt recommended. Didnt go to gym today, as I was too busy and that annoyed me, because I really wanted to go.

I was so tired yesterday, that im sure i would have given up if i had been on my own. It made a nice change to have someone with me, and while it would be nice to have that more often, I dont want to become dependent on having someone with me, because I know it will just be me on the day. But I know hes proud of me, and he doesnt have to come with me for me to know that. I dont need him to be physically with me to know he supports me, and I know I can turn his support into my success.