Thank you for taking the time to have a glance at my blog.
I’ve come to realise that there can’t be much excitement surrounding a bloke
running once a day for 100 days; so I’ve tried to make this as much about the
effect this is having on myself and of course the charity funds raised by
taking part in this challenge and where they are going.
Since January I have felt extremely mixed emotions with
running. I was never overly keen on running and much preferred the cycling, as
last year’s Land’s End – John O’ Groats charity bike ride showed. But the year
does seem to be whizzing by at breakneck speed, which is more than I can say
for my January running pace. Within my first 3 weeks of running daily my body
was begging me to rest and stop putting such strain on the muscles and joints;
however – “what the mind believes the body achieves” and it was a big
psychological battle to come to the realisation that there was over 300 days
left of consistently running and of course the target of 1,000 miles to get
myself to.
I slowly upped the miles from January into February in order
to not fall too far behind the 1,000 mile challenge target. This is when I
started to enjoy some of the benefits that came with running on a more than
regular basis. My knees, which previously thwarted many running attempts seemed
to be coming to terms with the fact this was going to be happening all year and
the pain has eased dramatically. I strongly recommend a good pair of trainers
without wear, a maximum of 500 miles in trainers is cause to throw away and
start afresh – the difference is astonishing!
At the close of January I entered a last minute race which
was for another good cause – the Lancaster flood relief 10k. I really enjoyed
the day at a well organised event and had my first taste of a running track
with the race beginning and ending on one. This earned me a new PB for a 10k
race with a time of 43:56, with a previous best of 45:24 this was almost 2
minutes down and a really good morale booster.
Morale boosters come thick and fast when running with and
texting the man who introduced me to this challenge – Karl Hodgson. Karl has
continued his running and now incorporates much needed rest days. He has
consistently told me that I can keep improving my times and with the dramatic
improvements I am seeing in my own pace and fitness – I am starting to believe
him! As the face of Cuerden Valley Park Run he’s an inspirational figure to be
around and as I almost staggered over the finish line of my 12th
Park Run; I was greeted with an approving smile from him as he informed me I
had ‘smashed’ my personal best by almost a minute. Which, on that course is
something I am very proud of!
On to March and my 28th birthday approached. I
thought what better idea than to run my first half marathon of the year in
Liverpool; the home of my chosen charity – Everton in the Community – and fly
the flag for the charity as well as strive for another PB. I ran this race with
both Karl and my other close friend and resident of Liverpool, Rob Garth. We
all ran well, with Karl achieving an absolutely ridiculous 1:19 and myself with
1:33 – this was a massive 11 minute improvement from last year for me and the
first time I have gone under 1:40 in a half marathon. This was a very
significant achievement for me as it was my goal at the start of the year to
run under 1:40, and to achieve it after less than 3 months into the challenge
it is a real boost for confidence and determination.
The most stand-out runs for me this year so far have been
Run #28, where I completed my first race of the year with the 10K at Lancaster
and achieved a PB of 43:56. Run #50 in which I completed just a mile but in
Riga on the stag do of my brother. Which was a majorly difficult run but
completed in 8 minutes none the less. Run #65 where I ran my first Park Run of
the year and saw myself get back into the 22 minute zone which I had slowed out
of in previous attempts. Run #73 of course was Liverpool Half Marathon where I
achieved a PB of 1:33:26 on my 28th Birthday, which was no doubt the
proudest moment of the running year so far – which I got to enjoy with my
friends also. My second Park Run attempt of the year was Run #93, which saw me
achieve a PB of 20:43 and a fifth place finish, this was fantastic for my
confidence and belief in the ability to keep going and keep improving. Of course Run #100 was a major milestone and a Park Run time of 20:42 - Which was another PB if only be 1 second... Every second counts, Karl!
I do not want these efforts to be wasted and want to show my
support for the incredible charity I am raising money for. Everton in the community is so much more than just a charity related to a football team. I
think this shows when there are several donations made by the reds of
Merseyside towards the charity. I have experienced first hand the differences
made by this charity – giving much needed social inclusion schemes to the
homeless, mental wellness schemes and of course; the fantastic free school.
Everton in the community has been in the press recently with their support for
the Justice For The 96 campaign also and I can only ask that you please donate
to the worthwhile causes that EITC present. I will continue to fly the flag
proudly for the rest of 2016 with every single mile covered done for the
charity.  |
| Karl looking extremely proud after another PB on my 100th Run of the year... |
Thank you for taking the time to read this blog – and if you
would like to donate please visit www.justgiving.com/steven-willetts5
If anyone wants to accompany me on any runs in future,
please get in touch @StevoCasino (Twitter). Steven Willetts (Facebook) or
follow me on Strava.
Runs completed so far: 100
Miles covered so far: 261
Days remaining: 266
Miles remaining to target: 729
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