It's only 5k

So today, to celebrate Halloween, my local Parkrun asked its runners to all dress up. The last park run I did was back in June. (It would appear OCR got in the way a bit). So I got up extra early this morning to put my face on, having spent last night tearing up a bed sheet because like the amazingly organised mother I am, I left a fancy dress costume to the last minute and there's nothing left. Anyway after scrabbling around looking for the white face paint (cheers Stacey) I slapped on my makeup for the morning and headed to Kent Life where my local one begins. Yes I got some very odd looks on the way down but then if this:

......was behind you, I imagine you might have done a double take too. My nine year old thought I looked and behaved like a weirdo and sat in the front next to me slowly getting lower and lower because obviously he didn't want to be seen with his weirdo mum asking me to do the window up. Yep I was being spooky out the window at passers by too. 

So we were off, the lovely Amy (dressed as a cat) and I set off on her first park run. I'd say the first 2k I was absolutely fine, it was a nice pace and didn't feel like I was pushing myself too hard. I begun to get rather warm. But then I was wearing an old white bed sheet so hardly surprising. From then on in I struggled quite a bit, with everything, regulating my breathing, being mindful of not heel striking, and then my right knee started niggling at 3.5k so ended up walking a bit, jogging a bit, walking again. We ran up Howard's Hill at the end and I finished in 43.33 according to my Strava. This is still a PB from doing it back in June which I should be estatic about but all the way around I just kept thinking how the hell am I going to do a marathon. Even looking at my fastest mile it would still take me about six hours. 

The lovely Amy and I 

After a bath and a small Facebook talking to, I've decided that I should acknowledge that it was still a PB, I also still ran my fastest mile ever and that it's going to take time, stamina and most definitely a positive mental attitude to not only keep going and dragging myself out there whether rain or shine but to finish and to get fit enough for the marathon in six months time. 

To sponsor me please go to http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/ShellyLaw

Judgement Day

I do something called Obstacle Course Racing or OCR, to the muggles of the non OCR world, their response is usually something like 'oh is it like tough mudder'. The OCR community smiles, nods their head whilst uncontrollably laughing inside, love it or hate it though tough mudder is what initially got me interested in OCR. My aim to do one by the end of this year, that was until I discovered the absolute minefield of other OCR's out there. That were cheaper and 'for the community'. Initially my first OCR was supposed to Judgement Day at the infamous Copehill Down and the FIBUA village which I was excited about. I had got this race for free as a gift for volunteering at another of their races a couple of months before. Unfortunately due to some twat on the M4 my car was written off and I was therefore injured and unable to participate, it was no problem, my race code could be used for another one. Over the next few months I kept volunteering for Judgement Day and became part of the #jdfamily, building up my volunteer passes for what would have been a free race year next year for me with Judgement Day.

That was until I got an email from the volunteer coordinator a while ago, someone had asked him about saving up your volunteer passes to go towards The Unknown. I currently had three passes, which was enough for a place in The Unknown. Now, nobody really knows much about The Unknown except that it changes you as a person in a positive way. One of the participants David Beatty told me that he stopped caring about the small stuff and focuses on the more important things in life. Now being beasted for the best part of 36 hours isn't everyone's cup of tea and the volunteers really struggled to be so damn horrid to them with memory tests, dune running, sea dunking, white noise type torture. It broke some people, but those that stepped out, still stuck by to support to remaining souls that continued. They were only referred to by their numbers and had to refer to the volunteers as 'Staff'. It was tough for everyone. But the feedback afterwards was absolutely epic. 

I am not prepared mentally or physically for this type of beasting and so I asked if I could offer up my own volunteer passes for a space in The Unknown to be auctioned off for Sands. This was of course accepted and so I shall be holding an online auction for a place in The Unknown. 

For more information about The Unknown or Judgement Day, please go to www.judgement-day.co.uk 

What a surprise 😳😳

So back in April, nearing the end of my midwifery degree I thought it would be an amazing idea to run the London Marathon. I had submitted the painful dissertation at this point and was very much just making up hours and catching babies. I applied as soon as the ballot was open praying among 200,000 other hopefuls that I'd be lucky enough to get it.

Fast forward to the beginning of October and this arrived in the post:

Along with a dodgy fleece that I couldn't wear but that lots of people from my OCR community raved about wearing for winter training. The fleece has been removed from my home. I don't think people could quite understand my aversion to fleece until they see my reaction, anyway I digress. I was unsuccessful in my ballot place for the London Marathon. Secretly I was quite pleased. I mean how was I, as a fatty, going to be able to run a marathon....hilarious.

Still, whilst secretly happy, I was looking through the magazine and noticed there were adverts for charity places. The one charity I wanted to run for was Sands, the only charity I could be entirely passionate about. So I emailed them. They emailed me back an application form for their much coverted gold bond places. I filled it out, emailed it back thinking there's no way I'd be that lucky (or unlucky depending on how you looked at it), to get the place. The deadline week passed by and I heard nothing from them. I was so busy squirrelling away sorting out my house and running to and from London that I kind of forgot about it.

Then I got this email:

Oh wow I'm going to start fundraising for this awesome charity. But crap....I'm going to have to start running. I can barely run 5k, how the hell am I going to run a marathon. My friends mostly laughed and asked how I was going to run it, most people think I'm mad. Many are asking how I'm going to raise £2000 for Sands. Me, I'm just going to up my training, get fundraising and hopefully enough people will feel sorry for me that I'll hit my target.

For those that do not know Sands is the Stillbirth and Neonatal Death charity. They fund training for healthcare professionals and student midwives. They provide support for families who have experienced a loss and they fund bereavement suites at hospitals as well as valuable research into why women lose their babies either before or shortly after birth. And although I have never personally experienced a loss. I have been with women that have lost their babies and it's utterly heartbreaking and I know people that have lost their babies. Every baby is precious and if Sands can either prevent the loss or ease the pain just a little then they've done their work. But it never stops, babies are still dying. Parents are still going home without their son or daughter. Midwives are still quietly crying about the babies that will never be, which is why the work Sands does is so important.

For more information please visit www.uk-sands.org
To sponsor me please go to http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/ShellyLaw