Bob, good seeing you in your natural environment, this is me with the Ladies.:-)
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Nice Photo Spitty…
You’re a lot younger than I imagined…
An uncannily still and benign morning as I stepped outside for my Thursday five mile run, it was like the weather had been postponed, with not even a breeze to ruffle the treetops, and the sky was a unbroken blanket of grey.
I still feel cautious and instinctively over exaggerate my running style and try to pick up my feet, as I run across that bumpy fieldside path where I fell last week…It’s a relief to feel the hard tarmac of the footpath as I spill out into a housing estate.
Frustration led to occasional bursts of speed, and although my legs felt tired, I managed to knock one second off my Tuesday time…
A run, is a run, is a run! We are all a bit off, Cedronella. Somehow I expect that you will be back at full throttle soon :-D.
Well now, this is a fine read. The love of the great outdoors and wildlife (in Spitty’s case it’s the female sort) is sure indescribable and addictive, even as that watch keeps ticking along.
The thing that upset me most during the lockdown on this side of the pond is that we weren’t even allowed to run, walk, or cycle in our parks and on our beaches. As they say, you never know how much you love something until you lose it.
I feel for you Surfermom, being denied the sport you love. Don’t they realise that it’s as important to a runner to go out into nature and breathe the fresh clean air periodically, as it is for a whale or seal to surface occasionally for its survival.
They would have had to post an armed guard at my gate to stop me going for my regular runs…Although, it was probably easier for me being mainly road and track running and not in public areas…
How is it now Surfermom? Are things returning to normal? And are you managing to get out? It’s good to see you posting again, especially in ‘Bob’s Bits’…
Which leads me seamlessly on to this mornings 8.2 miles…
Following my heart attack the coronary nurse explained that it takes about ten minutes for the muscles to fill with blood and be ready to exercise. But it takes at least twenty minutes for the heart to attain optimal output and be ready for some serious road running. Probably longer in an old bloke after two such attacks…
I’ve never been one for warming up or stretching, theory being, that if I take the first mile leisurely that will suffice for the ‘Warming up’ period.
It has always served me well in the past, but these days I find that at least the first mile or two or even three, I struggle with tired legs and short of breath. After that the world is my oyster and I can run forever…
And so it was on this morning’s run. It was so dark at 6:30am and the sky was filled with heavy grey cloud. A warm breeze caressed my face and legs, but the first three miles had me wishing that I could find a more sedate hobby. Without a good reason to just make it a six, I automatically took the right fork in the road and climbed the small rise on my eight mile route.
From that moment on, the lethargy and tiredness that had plagued me for the last three miles lifted, like a waking from a bad dream, and I just felt stronger and stronger.
So the end product of my labours produced a very respectable time for my 8.2 miles…A good 22 seconds faster than last week…I used to run half marathons (13.1 miles) in the same time…
Not such a good time today, and I had to work hard even for that. In my favour though, it was warm and muggy, and I arrived home covered in sweat. Still nice to be out though…
Can’t be fun Foxy, running in these conditions, I have to push myself to do the two mile dog walk, spose you set off early though, still must take loads of willpower.
Usually about 6:30 am Spitty, when it’s supposed to be cool…
Over the years I’ve run in all kinds of conditions, but I must admit that it’s nice to get home and chill in the hot weather, but I’ll take it over the cold and rain anyday…
You are killing it with the miles, OGF!
Nothing like a good dog to keep one fit and off the sofa, Spitfire! However, in my case, my dogs aren’t pulling me off of the sofas, they are filling them. Two miles is a respectable distance!
The trails are open and my toe is better, so I’ve been testing things out the last few days. After the rare times that I have had to take a hiatus, my legs and lungs have pleasantly surprised me. The last few days have been no exception, though I am noticeably stiff. What’s with this? It’s back to the yoga mat, I suppose. We won’t talk about my distance 
- yet.
SF for the first 800 yards or so she is on the lead and I have to stop occasionally for her to have a sniff etc, at a set point she comes to a halt knowing she will be unleashed, that’s when I get to go full speed, its up to her then, how long she wants to sniff for, she is the one who has to sprint to catch up again.
It was well warm at 9.00am today.
This is why I avoid layoffs Surfermom…The stiffness and pressure it puts on the body to return to where you left off…
A quick glance over my running diaries confirms that my last layoff was in May 2018…I did miss one run when my Gout was at its worst…
Well done on your early exercise Spitty, fortunately it is a rest day for me; From running anyway but that fence along the drive is not going to paint itself…
No thunder or lightning here yet, just a very muggy night and morning.
So muggy in fact, that by three miles sweat was trickling down my forehead and stinging my eyes. I ended up so wet that I’m thinking of changing my avatar to ‘SpongeBob’… Despite that though it was a very good run with a few fast bits included for good measure… Here is my time for today’s five miles, and an App that I will download later…:-D:-D
I’ll probably give fence mending a miss today due to tiredness (or lazyness) and catch up with some admin that has been piling up. Not least of which was an envelope from the DVLA full of forms for my doctor and me to fill out…
After applying to renew my driving licence when I turned seventy last month I noticed that they had neglected to include my lorry driving and minibus driving groups on my new licence. I returned it with a strongly worded letter.
It turns out that you can’t drive those things once you turn seventy without a medical, and a letter from your doctor. If this so called recession gets serious I might have to return to being a courier to earn a crust…:-(…Start up the van Mrs Fox!..
Isn’t it strange the things that go with age? When I stepped off a commercial ferry recently, I decline to take the helper’s hand when disembarking. He quickly took my hand and said it was require for older riders. Perhaps I looked like I needed help?
Ugh, two slights in a matter of seconds. 
Get that letter going, OGF, you do indeed never know!
The humidity and temps are soaring here so my run will be just before sunset. If I don’t return, send in the troops. I will be identifiable as the puddle on the trail - that looks elderly.
Decided to let it go Surfermom, unlikely to need a lorry in the next three years when the licence expires and I’ll have to do it all again. I can do more or less the same in a big van, which I still am allowed to drive…I still find it hard to accept some polite youngster offering me their seat on a bus when I could probably still outrun them…
I appreciate the offer though…
It was nice and dry outside as I left the comfort of my bed at 5:30am, but it was so dark I had to turn on the lights, and by the time I was ready to run it was teeming it down. After rooting out my waterproof top I hit the road. Tired heavy legs but I still opted for the 8.2 mile route as I arrived at the road junction. It gets very warm running in a waterproof top in the summer, so as the rain had eased off, so did my top…
I carried the top in my hands for the next three miles, but as I crossed the canal bridge with two miles to go, down came the rain again. I managed to continue running in just my tee shirt for a while, but then the rain became heavy and I struggled back into the waterproof. All in all a struggler of a run which is reflected in the poor time, but at least I can rest easy for the rest of the day because I did get out…
Nice soggy effort, OGF! As I am a night owl, I am in admiration of your ability to get up before the sun and make such an endeavor. I realize after reading your posts, what a finicky runner I am. The rain is manageable, but I don’t like anything moving or flapping. My hair is in a pony tail, and my tank, tights, shorts, and running top are all lycra so as not to chafe. Carrying something, like a running top, would be insufferable. At mile 0.0, I’m still wearing at the finish line.
The humidity and temperatures are soaring here, so I count back my estimated running time 30 minutes after sunset to ensure I’m not in the dark for too long. Sometimes a late start pays off better than others :-D. Last night:
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Ha! ha! Surfermom, each to our own, if it gets you out running then it’s good…
I can’t say I enjoy carrying anything while out running (not even a bottle of water) but after running a few mile and getting hot under the collar the waterproof just had to come off… The rain had eased off to just a drizzle and I would rather get wet than overheat (very uncomfortable)…
In my early days on a crisp frosty morning (minus 5*C) I thought it best to wear a pair of thermal tights under my shorts to keep the legs warm. I had only run a couple of miles before I found them intolerable, so finding a secluded lane, off they came and were hidden in some bushes where I returned later in the car…
Never covered the legs since…
I just can’t get along with man made fabrics Surfer…Lycra…Urgggggg…
Strictly cotton for me…Except my waterproof top, which is breathable, waterproof, anti magnetic and even radiation proof…I think…
Anyway, it cost more that some of my cars in the past so it must be good…
I also don’t like ‘Flappy’ things surfer, but I haven’t had to resort to a ponytail yet… Loved your sunset in the wild…Here’s mine on the estate…
Gentle intermittent spots of rain and a featureless sky as I ran down the street and across the field of doom… I managed to cross it without incident although I was having a hard time finding my pace on tired wooden legs.
I tried a faster pace through the woods, and the running became easier as I was spat out onto the main road. Occasional flurries of speed followed by lethargic jogs took me the couple of mile along the busy road to the lane, I was trying very hard to at least look like a runner to all the drivers and bus passengers making their way to work.
It felt better to be alone on the lane, not even a dog walker this morning, and the occasional bursts of speed continued as I dodged and weaved round potholes and boulders and although I was feeling better I would still be glad to arrive back home. The rain never really turned into anything worrying, and as I turned down the road and back to my house with a final flurry of speed, I wondered if I had run faster than I thought and perhaps come close to a years best time for the five mile course…That would at least explain my tiredness…:-D…Unfortunately not! Just the usual…
Bob, just try to remember we all slow down as we grow older and there is no way we can all keep up the same pace as in our younger years.
Please don’t force yourself to ‘break records’ now, accept your slower pace and respect your age and health, you will enjoy it more.
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