Sure what else would you be doing on Christmas Day after your dinner and after your folks visited but go for a wee run? And what sort of dad would I be if I didn’t bring my daughter, Michelle, out with me as well?
I also had just over 10k to do to reach my target for the Run Up To Christmas challenge, plus there was the small matter of a Virtual Runner UK Christmas Day medal to earn.
It hadn’t been my intention to leave it until early evening. The original plan was to do the local parkrun with Michelle and then the extra distance on my own when we got home but heavy overnight downpours led to the cancellation of parkrun, and because the rain was so incessant it wasn’t even practical to do the run ourselves in the morning.
But I knew I had to do it at some point today so when I noticed at 6pm it had faired up I decided to strike while the iron was hot. I told Michelle to get ready (I bet she thought she had escaped!) and off we went. I was very vague as to why Michelle had to go for a run with me, offering some loose promise that it’d worth her while – she certainly didn’t know there’d be a medal at the end of it for her!
Because she isn’t a runner we took it very gently but, to her credit, she ploughed on until we got to 5k whereupon she asked what she was getting for it. I told her I had told porkies and that she was getting nothing … I don’t think she was amused, until we got home and I presented her with the aforementioned Christmas Day medal which I hope/think pleased her. She did do well so it was the least she deserved.
I was still short of my #RU2C target so I went back out on my own to complete the run, eventually running seven miles in total which, on top of yesterday’s five, wasn’t a bad old total over the last couple of days.
It was pleasing to get to the seven miles – and quite comfortably too – because I’ve got an 8-mile trail race on Saturday, the Castlewellan Christmas Cracker, so this was good preparation for that … and that eight will be a good springboard as my half marathon training kicks into action.
So, two runs over Christmas, four medals earned, a target met and all my festive indulgence cancelled out … I’ve done rightly!
Run Up To Christmas progress (50.4k)
2nd December – 5k
4th December – 8k
9th December – 2.9k
17th December – 10k
19th December – 5.2k
24th December – 8.1k
25th December – 11.2k
HUFF, PUFF AND SHUFFLE 