cold | Alice runs!

Day 101: Back to running! kind of….

Posted on March 1, 2015 by mamatematyka

So, how did your weekend pass? Mine wasn’t that great (I haven’t managed to do half of all the things I wanted to), but I did run, and it was blissful. For the first time, I ran outside any plan, any route, any time limits; I just set off and ran through the city and the park in here for as long and as far as my legs took me. I ran to the nearby park and then through and around it before coming back home. That was absolutely fantastic. The setting off to the area I never ran before, without a goal in mind, felt great, and so did coming back to the the familiar parts I ran through so many times before. Not to mention how nice and pleasant was it to run through the park itself!

Day 50: Halfway done

Posted on January 10, 2015 by mamatematyka

There is one thing which am I extremely proud of in my running adventure. And that is not the times, the paces, the distances or the routes. Surely, these things are important and fill me with joy. But the one thing that, above all, makes me satisfied, is my training plan. And, more importantly, how I keep sticking to it.

Yesterday I left… well, let’s not get into details about that. It was bad enough that I was in no shape of writing this post last night. Before I was ready to get out and pound the pavement, it was already dark. And raining. And winds over 30km/h (yup, that’s over 18 mph). Fortunately, it was not too cold. I changed into running clothes and checked the weather, and sat there for almost an hour waiting for the rain to get a little bit less annoying. Of course I got hungry, but running on a full stomach is not too smart.

So, out I went, into the darkness, into the wind and rain, and I said to myself:

“You can do it.
Of course you can find somethings to excuse yourself from doing it.
Of course you can walk half of the distance and still get it done.
Of course you can stop after 3km if you do not feel like continuing.
But that’s just because you’re lazy. You know you can run that 5k and you will run that 5k even if you have to crawl on your eyelashes, because even when the whole world goes into pieces and your legs hurt and your soul cries, 5k is 5k and you ran it before and the only thing stopping you from doing it again is yourself.”

It was a poor run. I was hungry. I started off too fast and had to walk, three times. After the first km, I told myself, no, not now, you can do at least 2km non stop. And I did. I walked 2 more times after 3rd and 4th km. I tried to concentrate heavily on my body: the posture, the stride, the way I use my feet, the way I swing my arms. And I finished with a nice time, nevertheless (6:44 min/km).

So yes, I stick to my plan. No matter how bad I feel or how poor the weather, I keep pushing myself to get all the runs done. I passed the halfway point this week and even though some runs got rescheduled, I did not miss a single one so far. Yay me.

Distance: 5.3km (+3.4 walking)
Time: 35:32

Day 48: Getting tired?

Posted on January 7, 2015 by mamatematyka

Finally managed to get my run done!
Yesterday I was flying back to the Netherlands, and arrived so tired I had to reschedule my run till today. You can see the gorgeous clouds in the picture above – right from the window of the plane!

Day 45: Caltrops! & Pumpkins

Posted on January 4, 2015 by mamatematyka

Today, I consider my very first real attempt at a pace run. I tried to go slowly and run as far as I could, minimising the walked distance. I managed quite well, even though I woke up late and was in hurry. There was a busy day ahead, including making pierogi, hurting myself, visiting family and watching a movie.

Day 43: First of the Year

Posted on January 2, 2015 by mamatematyka

NYE was absolutely fantastic – so great that the New Year day was included in the party. Although I was supposed to run yesterday (and in some ways I think a Jan 1st run would be totally awesome), I chose to spend the first day of 2015 with some great friends instead, playing board games, talking and having fun. I have far not enough opportunities to see them, and I had a great time being with them, including one girl in particular – especially on such a special day.

Therefore, I ran today. The downside is that the temperatures are now above freezing – meaning, everything melted down, it’s rainy, muddy and windy. Perfect running weather.

Day 40: The Last Run this year & The 2014 Summary

Posted on December 30, 2014 by mamatematyka

Today’s run was sponsored by the phrase, be careful!

After I got up in the morning and dressed up for running, my father announced he wanted to go with me again. But, this time, he didn’t want to just run around the neighbourhood; he wanted to go to the nearby ponds to run in a nice scenery as there are beautiful trail routes there. I thought it was a good idea at that time, so we went. And indeed, it was very pretty; white snow, sun, blue sky…

It is not very far, but the ponds are not too big; one run around the first one took 1.3km… and that was enough for my dad. I am not surprised, as the run was difficult; the ground was frozen, plowed with car tire marks, with multiple frozen puddles hidden under the snow and we had to be very careful with our step. Therefore, my father went home and I stayed to finish my distance.

Seems my dad’s method didn’t change much since I was a child. He used to drag me to the middle of a lake and tell me to go back to the beach on my own when I was small so I would learn to swim; now he drove me to the middle of ponds and left me there so I can run home on my own.

Before he did, however, he has shown me the place where I had walked my first steps as a toddler – close to the trees and the green fence:

I wanted to go around a bigger pond, but halfway the round I saw a big, black and brown dog in the distance. I slowed into a walk, hoping to see the dog’s owner soon, but the dog started to bark instead, with no other human in sight. I was about 300m away from the dog, so I turned around and walked away, quite slow, hoping the dog won’t run after me – and fortunately it didn’t. I had to be very cautions there. After it was no longer in sight, I ran back, and again around the smaller pond, and then back home – netting over 6km! The run itself was pretty slow, though, and certainly not a pace run as planned…

As this was my last run this year, I though it would be nice to do…

*drumroll*

THE 2014 SUMMARY

I have run a total of 62.2km in 20 runs!
– netting a total of 7 hours runtime with an average pace of 7:15min/km!
– I am almost halfway my training plan!
I ran in 3 cities, 2 countries and 5 different running routes!

Not bad for someone who started in the middle of November, is it?

See you in 2015! Have a great NYE and a fantastic year!

Distance: 6.3km
Time: 44:47

Day 39: Warsaw – Old Town walk and a play (rest day)

Posted on December 29, 2014 by mamatematyka

Each year, the Old Town of Warsaw is being decorated for Christmas and the New Year with lights. I wanted to go and see the decorations and to experience the atmosphere this year as well, so I asked who would like to join me to walk the Old Town after dark.
As most of my family was busy with work, in the end only me and my father went. Even though it was warmer than yesterday (-5°C), not running and darkness made it feel much colder, and we had to stop for a tea to warm ourselves up. However, the city looked great, as usual!

After the walk we went to see a play at the Warsaw Tear Współczesny (Modern Theatre) with my whole family. It was a Polish adaptation of French La danse de l’albatros by Gérald Sibleyras, and it was a very good one. It is a witty and funny, but also philosophical play about love and relationships between humans. The characters feel very real and close, and the humour reflects on deep questions on what it is to love someone and be with someone. Everyone enjoyed it very much.

IMG-20141229-WA0018~2

Distance: 4.5km (walking)

Day 35: Christmas run with my dad

Posted on December 25, 2014 by mamatematyka

We had a great run today! I woke up, put on my running gear (I knew we will have a busy afternoon, so wanted to get it done as early as possible) and went to say good morning to my parents. The weather was cold and windy, but there was no rain and my dad wanted to run with me. My mother’s expression was more of a “you are all crazy” kind of thing.