Janathon Day 1: Out with the old and in with the new

So this time a year ago I started Janathon and the training for my first half marathon. I didn’t really know what to expect. The longest distance I had run was 10k and that was with several stops, several years ago. The thought of the half marathon terrified me and excited me in equal measures but I was absolutely determined to succeed and Janathon was the perfect way to kick start my training and 2011. I had also started this blog only a day before so it was a great way to chuck myself in at the deep end of the pool of blogging.

 I was so determined to succeed and I made it to day 25 before I was struck down with the flu.  Not a cold that made me feel a bit achey but proper flu where I was unable to move for over a week. You can read about it here. I was gutted to have to drop out as I’m not the kind of girl to give up but after a sickness blip, I’m pleased that I completed my first half marathon in Paris just over two months after the start of Janathon in 2 hours 11 minutes. Support from my online friends was a really vital part of my training. It motivated me and helped me to succeed.  I then went on to do my second half marathon in September with some of the girls that I ran Paris with.

I turned 30 on Christmas day and I have set myself some goals in my happy 30's challenge to make sure that I live this year to the full. 2012 will (hopefully) see me run in the Berlin half in April, take part in my first triathlon in June and then finally a marathon in August. I am thinking about either Helsinki or Reykjavik so do feel free to share any experiences of either of these races with me. My absolute dream would be to run the New York marathon but the race fee is huge and I just cannot justify it. My running has taken a bit of a back seat the last two months with not only one new job but two, so Janathon is the perfect way to get me started and rekindle my love affair with the pavement.

I came close to bailing on day one after a little bit too much celebrating saying goodbye to last year.  I’ve had a bit of a love hate relationship with 2011 so I wanted to say goodbye in style and what a good job I did! So much so, that the sofa and duvet was way more appealing to me than the road and my neglected running shoes. After an afternoon nap to recharge my dehydrated roast filled batteries, I pulled myself together, slipped on my trainers and jacket and headed out into the rain. I ran 3.5k which isn’t far but it’s further than I ran yesterday or the day before. In fact it’s further than I’ve run on any day during the last six weeks. It felt really good to be back pounding the pavements and I felt surprisingly good although considerably heavier that I was the last time I ran. My little 3.5k run was my pass into the Janathon 2012 challenge and this time I’m going to try my very best to reach the end in one piece.


A glimpse of the new year fun