Meeting pals for a run was a big boost
Woohoo, after sticking to the lockdown rules and only running with one other, and always from my home doorstep, it has been an absolute pleasure to drive a little way to run with friends who I have not seen in months. In some cases lockdown has been kind to them. With others, the need to be working from home – therefore no walking for the train or bus together with bad eating habits – have taken a bit of a toll so me rocking up will have helped motivate them again, I hope.
I am still slightly ahead of where I need to be in order to run over 5,000 kilometres (3,000 miles) in 2021 which is around eight miles a day, every day, so meeting up with friends this week I split my days into alternate long and shorter ones with the longs being a half-marathon.
On Monday it was with
Oliver, who I ran a race in
Albania with, only this time we swapped the hot mountains there for a warm plod around Richmond Park.
On Wednesday it was Rob, whom I met in a race in the
Sahara, but this time our plod was in Brighton along the flat promenade on a beautiful sunny day.
Just the simple pleasure of seeing old friends in different surroundings gave me a massive mental boost and, of course, what is there not to love about being by the seaside and seeing so many others sharing that joy which I am sure many of us have missed?
I know that the weather will not always be sunny, but having missed out on so much, taking every opportunity to create some more memories in different places should not be passed over, even if it turns out to be not so warm.
So I hope you get out this Easter too and grab a bucket full of fresh air along the way like me.
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What is there not to love about being by the sea in the sunshine?