5 of the best Bristol running routes

I've lived in Bristol aaaalllll my life (apart from a 3 year stint in Portsmouth, but I still came back whenever I could) and in my opinion it's the best place to live in the UK. No offence to anywhere else but COME ONNNNN, where else could you walk from an inner-city graffiti festival to a National Trust woodland in about 20 minutes?! NOWHERE (well, probably somewhere but for the point of this blog post I'm going to pretend Bristol is alone in this claim).

Image: visitbristol.co.uk

ANYWAY, when I was a young lass I lived in the 'historical market town' of Keynsham. Some people say this isn't part of Bristol because it costs at least £25 to get from Mbargos to home (via a very difficult negotiation to stop off at the Brislington McDonalds on the way...) but the postcode is BS31, so all you nay-sayers can piss off - we are just as much as part of Skins as you are.

I moved to Bedminster a couple of years ago and lived in a magical little flat with my best friend Nat. It was AMAZING - we were within walking distance of town, developed fake Bristolian accents and showed-off to our sheltered Keynsham friends, pretending that we knew what life was like in gritty inner-city Bristol (haha, we lived on North Street and it was so hipster, the real locals hated us).

Now I live in Frenchay which - until I met my boyfriend - was a mysterious part of Bristol that had a hospital, a bit of a university and surrounded by ring roads... e.g. very boring. ALAS I WAS MISTAKEN. Our part of Frenchay is quite cute and has opened my eyes to the whole Frampton Cotterell/Winterbourne/Coalpit Heath area (I think those three towns are essentially clones of eachother but there we go).

Me running, again

Being the running wanker that I am, I've OBVIOUSLY gone for at least 300 runs in each of these places and have discovered some lovely bits of Bristol along the way. It's always refreshing to find a new place to run as it means concentrating on not getting lost, rather than weighing up the choice between wetting yourself or squatting at the side of the road. Mmmmm.
 
Here are my 5 favourites:

Keynsham - Ring road loop: 6 miles: 
We're going to start with Keynsham because that's where I did the majority of my running when I was getting back to fitness. The thing with Keynsham is that it's kind of in the middle of everything - it's pretty much the halfway point between Bristol and Bath - and there isn't much leeway on where to go for scenic routes. This particular run is one of my mum's favourites, and we trust her because she's ran for England..

1. Starting in Keynsham High Street, run down the hill past the rugby club and up the other side to the ring road. 
2. Follow the footpath on the left-hand side, go roooound the bus route and take a right to the traffic lights. Cross here, follow the road round to the cycle path and then unfortunately it's about a mile and a half of gradual uphill...... Gross.  
3. Get to the top, feel like a hero, turn right down towards Longwell Green and run like hellllllllll until you get to the top of Willsbridge Hill. This is a DREAM as you can basically fall down it, it's that steep.  
4. A short, steep incline up the other side and back along the main road, past Londonderry Farm, past the old Cadbury's factory (RIP) and back round to your start point in the High Street.

Image: caneshum.co.uk

A very unscenic 6 mile run, but it's a loop so you have no choice but to finish. THANKS KEYNSHAM.

Bedminster - Coronation Road bridge run: 3 miles (ish):
When I lived with Motty our evenings together were sacred and we didn't like to leave each other alone for too long (we are very close friends hahah...). To get around this little issue, I started to run before work on easy days. While yes, it is utterly shit to set an alarm for 6am, when you've done your training for the day by 7am and have an evening of Gossip Girl ahead of you, it all feels worth it.

1. Starting at the top of North Street (near the little Tesco), run down towards the Tobacco Factory and take a right when you get to the bottom. 
2. Run along Coronation Road until you get to the first bridge (on your left). Run over the bridge, try not to slip on the absolutely SHOCKING surface that the council have put down and back down the steps on the other side. 
3. (If you are feeling particularly twatty you could run back up and down these steps and pretend your name is Rocky). 
4. Continue along Coronation Road toward The Louisiana.  
5. When you get to the pub turn around and face the AMAZINGGGG sun rise that has been behind you for the first half of the run. In the winter this used to cheer me up everyday, because I'm sad like that. 
6. Run back towards where you came from, but cross at the first bridge (on the left). 
7. Now you're on the home straight and you basically have to bash it out because it is SUUUCH a drag. 
8. Turn right onto North Street, realise how much of a hill it actually is, take a deep breath and sprint the shit out of the last 800m.

Image: flickr.com/photos/mathewroberts

Collapse outside front door until Natalie Mott opens it with a cup of tea and a glass of water in hand. DREAM.

Bedminster - Leigh Woods, Suspension Bridge, Portway: 7 (horrible but very pretty) miles
The crowning glory of Bristol is 100% the Suspension Bridge. I don't want to knock the architectural talents of old Isambard, but sometimes we do milk the bloody thing. Yes it's very impressive but what about THE APPLE?! That rusty boat has harboured years of cidered-up Bristolians and that's a much more impressive feat. Saying that, the Suspension Bridge is very lovely to run over on a sunny evening - picturesque and all that.

1. Again starting at the top of North Street, run down to the bottom, take a left past Ashton Gate stadium and then a right out onto the main road (heading towards the ring road thing - it may be a motorway?!? Driving isn't my strong point). 
2. Follow signs for Ashton Court (you have to go under an underpass - SO URBAN). Run PAST the entrance to Ashton Court and up a rather intimidating-looking hill. 
3. There's a little entrace to Leigh Woods where the pavement ends and THIS IS WHERE THE FUN STARTS!!! Run through the woods like Tarzan (or Jane, all equal here), sticking to the left. 
4. You'll get back to the road after about 5 minutes and if you follow it for another minute or so, you've only made it to the bloody Suspension Bridge. Beeeeautiful.
5. The views from up here are amazing and definitely worth a slow jog so that you can take it all in...  Cross over the bridge as if you're in New York, your name is Miranda and a short bald man named Steve is waiting for you at the other end (Sex & The City reference, sorry guys).
6. Run across the grass and turn LEFT onto the downhill section. Remember to admire the massive Clifton houses as you go about your business. 
7. Take a left at the crossroads and you'll find another hill that you can completely relax on, and down onto the Portway (left here, back towards beautiful Bedminster). 
8. Grit your teeth and really dig in along this section, the Portway is a horrible, horrible road to run along. As soon as you see signs for the CREATE centre you know you are close to home.  
9. Cross the road, run through the park and HALLELUJAAAAH! You're at the bottom of North Street and ready for that horrendous uphill sprint.

Stop at the Tesco Local on your way back and get yourself a triple Bounty and a box of fudge. YOU DESERVE IT.

Image: alexnail.com

Centre of Bristol - Park Street sprints: God knows on the distance but enough to make you vomit
From Bedminster it was quite quick to get to the centre of town (10-15 minute run) but obviously you can drive to Park Street and start from wherever. Do a little warm up jog because this hill is about to destroy you and to get going you'll need supple calves and a bright outlook on life.

1. Rather self-explanatory, but I used to start outside the Marriott at the bottom of Park Street and finish where the road started to flatten out, opposite Koh Thai Tapas.  
2. This is quite a long hill, so more about speed-endurance than a flat out sprint (corrr, I should be a coach). I found it was better to start off a biiiit slower and then really smash the section past Boston Tea Party, as this is where loads of people seem to hang around and it's always nice to look like an absolute machine in front of potential fans.
3. Each hill used to take me around 2.30-3.00 (I can't really remember but it felt like forever), I would jog back down afterwards and aim to repeat three times - I'd go for four if I was feeling reaaaaally good.
4. After the last hill, run back down the other side of the hill, past QEH School, into Millenium Square then homeward bound and back to North Street. 

Thank god I no longer live near Park Street.........

Image: bristolpound.org

Frenchay - Snuff Mills: as long as you fancy
As I said, I did not have high hopes that Frenchay would be a hub of running activity. But how mistaken I was! Our back garden drops onto one of the cutest little wooded areas in the whole of Bristol - Snuff Mills - and it's become one of my favourite places to run on a Sunday when I want to go for aaaages but am also happy to just amble along. Snuff Mills is a haven for Sunday morning strollers, and it's easy to see why. Loads of trees, a river running through it and a WATERFALL make it feel like you're a million miles away from the ever-growing roadworks of Bristol. It's somewhere you can get lost in your own thoughts and all that (sorry, that was a bit deep).

1. There isn't really a route for this, but if you start at the end with the little cafe (just down from the UWE Glenside Campus) then you can run aaaaalllll the way through the woods (across a little bridge and stream thing, SO CAAAAYUTE!) and come out at the bottom of Frenchay Hill. Run up this hill and take a left at the top to find yourself back in civilisation and onto the main road.  
2. Alternatively, after the cute little bridge and stream thing, you can turn right up the ridiculously steep hill (you can't miss it) and come out at the top of Vassals Park. It's such a peaceful place to run as long as you're careful to avoid the dogs, children and vast groups of Pokemon Hunters...

Image: wow247.com

I never really know how long I'm going to spend in Snuff Mills but it always goes really quickly and I ALWAYS come back absolutely covered in mud. Excellent practice for the cross-country season, if nothing else.

Clearly I haven't covered the whole of Bristol because it's bloody massive, but if anyone has any more suggestions of lavly little running routes in this great city then please HOLLAAAAA.

A basic girl's guide to racing

RACE RACE RACE RACE RACE (to the tune of Rihanna's 'Work', of course).

I've written before about my love of racing but the build-up to an 'A race' (e.g. one that you're really after a PB for) can sometimes mess up training, mess up social plans and mess up my bed sheets...

The week before:
I've done a few half marathons but don't intend on doing any more for a while (they are HELL), so the longest distance I'd be racing is a 10km. I like this distance as it's manageable to fit into my life and doesn't require me to pull back my training very much in the weeks before racing. BUT the week before (and this applies to any distance really) I'd probably change my training a bit. Monday would probably be a paced session (e.g. 4 x 1km at race pace/quicker), Tuesday I'd do a normal long-ish run but Thursday's track session would DEFINITELY be planned with the race in mind (thanks Dave) and - if racing on a Sunday - Friday would be a 4 mile easy run and then probably nothing on the Saturday. A 'light jog' as Simone would say won't hurt though. So yeeeeah, the week before a race is quite enjoyable but also a bit stressful because if you don't hit your pace then people start to shit themselves that they are totally slow etc etc etc.

Probably from like Thursday onwards I will try to eat healthy (sweet potatoes, stir fry, bananas etc) and not drink alcohol - although I've had a couple of drinks before races in the past and it's been fiiiiiiine. NEVER enough to feel drunk though (or even tipsy), I've done this too (obviously) and it did not end well.

 
Friday/Saturday eve:
Depending on when the race is/how many photographers are likely to be there, the day before I race I'm likely be found with bottle of fake tan in hand, fucking up the gaff. The pre-race tan is a vital for most of our training group, even when it's cross-country season and is absolutely shitting down with rain. 90% of us will finish with very fetching orange streaks running down our shins and gathering at the ankle but we stay committed to the tan nonetheless. The other bonus is that you can draw on your own abs, hahahha. My favourites are the Garnier Instant Tan (only use when you know it's going to be dry weather!) or St Moritz Spray Tan (this stays on for like a WEEK and looks really natural).

Race morning:
The morning of a race is always super hectic. Even if it's not hectic, it is very hectic in my head. I always set a really early alarm but am pretty much guaranteed to wake up before it anyway. Ben can sleep through anything so just lets me get on with it until Sunday Brunch comes on the TV and he has something to do other than watch me flap around the room full of nerves.

Breakfast:
A BANANA. Every single time. Bananas are my babies. I eat one every single day without fail and once drove to Tesco at midnight because I' didn't have one to eat before my race the next morning. I used to religiously have banana chopped up on 2 slices of GF fruit loaf and a Petit Filous yoghurt, but now I branch out and sometimes have banana chopped up in a bowl of 'toasted buckwheat' (as middle-class and wanky as it sounds on paper) and some almond milk (again, middle-class and wanky. I'm not middle-class, lol). Always accompanied by a green tea and constant sips of water just in case I'm dehydrated (which I won't be).

Other things in my mouth:
I have coeliac, am a female, run lots and have the contraceptive injection so I have low calcium and iron levels and am at high risk of osteoporosis and anaemia. YAY. Everyday I take two MASSIVE calcium tablets, one iron tablet, one vitamin C tablet (to help absorb the iron tablet) and Ibuprofen throughout, just in case anything ever starts to hurt... I always make sure I take all my tablets BEFORE a race, with my breakfast. It probably makes no difference whatsoever but mentally it makes me feel prepared so THERE.

Outfit:
Sometimes I lay my kit out the night before, but me and Ben don't have a massive space to live in so recently I haven't bothered doing that. What I wear to race in is also unlikely to make a difference to my time or position but again, it's a mental thing innit. Comfy pants are KEY. Also, no VPL plz as I'll of course be wearing a tiny pair of Nike shorts and don't want quadruple bum-cheek action going on. I have a few bras that I wear to race in, they are mainly just the ones that don't dig into my ribs - this is so I can breathe properly and also to give my abs the best chance to shine on their big day. From about March onwards I'll wear my Bristol & West AC crop top - hence the healthy eating a few days before - but for horrendously cold winter races I'll wear my B&W long vest. I always wear ankle socks to race in because I think they make my calves look less big.

On top of my racing outfit I will chuck on leggings (2 pairs in the winter), a t-shirt, long-sleeved top, hoody and a coat. I get cold sooooo easily and would rather be safe than sorry before we get to the start line...

Face:
Some of my friends are amazing at doing their make up for nights out etc but I don't really have a clue... I tend to look the same no matter how long I spent doing it, but sometimes I wear eyeliner and sometimes I don't (heheheh). For races I do wear a full face of make up though! I know some people think it's pointless but it makes me feel better about any photos being taken and stops everyone from seeing my ridiculously red race. This is the standard foundation, powder, highlighter, bronzer then OBVZ I fill my eyebrows in, whack some mascara on and if it's a super special occasion I'll put on some lipliner and lip balm. I used to wear lipstick for races but it made my mouth really dry and gammy (GACKY MOUTH, YUCK) and I have quite dark lips anyway so can get away with some baaaaalm. Hate the word balm so much, how do you even say it properly?!?!

Hair:
PLAITS. FRENCH PLAITS. NORMAL PLAITS. HALF HEAD PLAITS. PLAIT AND PONYTAIL. Sometimes I do just whack it in a ponytail but recently I've fallen in love with a good braid or two.

FINAL PREP:
I think Ben can confirm that the morning of a race I am so irritable and angsty. I usually pace around the bedroom like a mad woman before we leave then chuck my entire life into a bag 'just in case'. I have a BEAUTIFUL velvet rucksack that I got as a birthday present (shoutout to Mone & Mott) and I take it to all my races. I used to take a huge sports bag but I'M A LAAAADY and my velvet backpack is just so much prettier to look at. In this bag will be spare socks, a spare t-shirt, more bananas, some sort of snack bar, more Ibuprofen, my iPod and my purse in case I need to reward myself after a craaaaacking race and buy aaaallll the running gear. Once we get to the race its just a 20 minute warm up, all extra clothes off, iPod on and GOOOOO!

RACE RACE RACE RACE RACE

RUNNING & READING

I'm pretty big on reading. I've been known to read all seven Harry Potter books in 6 days, had finished the Lord of the Rings trilogy (and The Hobbit aka the best one) by the time I was 11 and can get through my 3 books and move onto someone else's in the space of a week-long holiday... However my busy life schedule (and addiction to the Walking Dead/lying in bed eating cake with Ben) means that my epic book-reading escapades are now reserved for special occasions only. I've had to find other ways to get my weekly dose of 1 million word, so thank GOD for my favourite invention in the entire history of the world - THE INTERNET!

As trained journalist/social media/digital person I spend a lot of time on the old interweb and although YES social media is frying all of our brains etc etc, I actually have learnt a hell of a lot from it. I follow a fair few amazing writers and runners (and some are both!) on Twitter and they're always sharing interesting articles, opinion pieces and inspiration on loadzzzz of different subjects.

I am a huge geek at heart and love researching topics in depth and basically becoming a bit of a know-it-all about them and telling all my mates while they smile lots and pretend to be interested (hahah thank you girls for your everlasting support).

My saved articles pretty much follow the same pattern because I am a creature of habit and feel like knowledge is power when it comes to running/food/life in general:

I read a lot of running/fitness-based articles (obviously) because it's something I'm always trying to improve at. The HUGE amount of info and different training methods can sometimes get a bit confusing so I try to take it all with a pinch of salt and work out what's best for me. Also I love a good interview or profile on a professional athlete - the work they put in is unbelievable and they always have great abs and mostly great hair. Well done gals.

Another big topic in my internet history is the prominence of eating disorders among female (and male) athletes. I've seen it happen to a few people I've trained with and can 100% understand why/how people can get into a vicious mindset that losing lbs = losing minutes on the track. As one of the 'stronger looking' middle-distance runners in Bristol I know how comments about weight or size can impact you and it's SO important to make sure disordered eating in athletics is a conversation that is had in coaching courses and club meetings across the country (and maaaaaybe this is a rant for another day hahah..).

Also, FOOD! I love food and spend the majority of my day eating, thinking about eating or texting Ben to ask what we'll be eating for din dins. Food food food. I also have coeliac disease which means I can't eat gluten (haha, I can see the eye-rolls from here). Frankly if you think coeliac disease is a 'trend' then you can absolutely fack offfff - nobody would choose to cut out an entire food group and go to their grave having never tried a pork pie. Also, to be at risk of cancer, infertility, osteoporosis and in very real danger of shitting yourself if you eat a piece of bread is at best extremely annoying and at worst a very serious disease. ANYWAY, I also think all these 'healthy food gurus' are making nutrition more complicated than it should be and like to read ranting articles that agree with me.

FIIIINALLY (sorry, this post is going on longer than I imagined it would), I am a big advocate of getting girls involved in sport from a young age. As a little whipper-snapper I tried loads of sports, from ballroom dancing to tennis and it made me some amazing friends, taught me about teamwork and all that kind of stuff and won me a few medals along the way (heheheh). It also made me aware of what the human body is capable of and I think female role models in sport are WICKED. As are blokes, but ladies are more inspiring to me because we all have VAGINAS in common.

Aaaaand now to the actual point of this blog post. Here are a few very interesting articles I've read this week:

• 'The women to root for at Rio' - the AMAZING sportswomen to look out for at Rio 2016: https://www.the-pool.com/people/women-we-love/2016/31/alison-kervin-on-the-sportswomen-to-root-for-in-rio-olympics-2016

• 'The return of Caster Semenya: Olympic favourite & ticking time bomb' - great article about the favourite to win the women's 800m at Rio, and what her high levels of testerone mean for the sport: https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/jul/29/the-return-of-caster-semenya-olympic-favourite-and-ticking-timebomb?CMP=share_btn_tw

• 'The dark side of distance running' - the first paragraph resonated with me SO much (strong thighs) that I couldn't not include this. Still lots more to be done in athletics to stop this type of mindset: http://www.strongrunnerchicks.com/dark-side-distance-running/

• 'Alexi Pappas: The mind of an Olympic runner' - Profile on Alexi Pappas, Greek 10km runner as well as film-maker, poet star of semi-biographical film 'Tracktown' and all-round super-babe: http://www.rollingstone.com/sports/alexi-pappas-the-mind-of-an-olympic-runner-w431532

• 'Hurdling blind' - Interview with Aisha Praught, Jamaican middle distance runner as she tries her first season of steeplechasing. I want to try steeplechase, so this is mega #INSPO: https://spikes.iaaf.org/post/aisha-praught-hurdling-blind

• 'Could you stomach Huel, the food of the future?' - The Guardian tries to live off 'Huel' for a few days, basically a glorified protein shake. NO THANKS MATE: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2016/jul/31/huel-human-fuel-hi-tech-food-powder 

• 'When being Varsity-fit masks an eating disorder' - the sad story of Alex Devinny, a very promising US athlete who died of an eating disorder, and what's been done since: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/14/fashion/14Fitness.html?smid=tw-share&_r=0

• 'The shocking truth behind Clara gluten-free water' - a very good blog from a very angry chef as he kind of explains why everyone has such an issue with the gluten-free crew: http://angry-chef.com/blog/the-shocking-truth-behind-clara-gluten-free-water

(Image credits in articles)

The proof is in the PB

'Why do you run?' people ask, 'Do you not find it boring?' 'Is it like, for a club?' or my personal favourite 'Do you get paid to run?' (I did once win a £5 gift voucher and a crate of ale but I don't think that counts...). To be honest there are SO many reasons but one of them is TO RACE. I turn up to training week in, week out in the hope that I can better my times and realise that it's aaaaalll been worth it (and for the Facebook likes, of course). A PB is concrete proof that you're getting better and all of the training is actually working - so yeah, it's a big deal.

I've always been a competitive gal and I think this is the reason I've stuck with running for so long. Bristol is an amazing city for running and you could probably do 2 or 3 races a week if you wanted to (but this would majorly fuck up my knees, my training AND my entire life so I tend to choose the ones that don't coincide with a hangover) and there is usually something to aim for maybe once or twice a month. I'm never going to be at the front of the pack so these local races are perfect for me. You get to know roughly who's going to be around the same speed as you and if they're spotted at the start line then you can GUARANTEE that you'll get the nod from your mates to stick with them like glue and attempt to glide past them at the finish. Generally this is someone you know (and actually quite like) so it's a bit odd to want to destroy them but HEY life is a competition and all is fair in love and 5km PBs...

When you're not the best runner in the world (or even in the training group), having a little competition with yourself is helpful as well. While my times are a little bit wanky compared to other people's from my club, it reaaaaally doesn't matter. My PBs are exactly what they say on the tin - personal bests to ME, and my main motivation to race is to beat my own times. Not improving can be a bit disheartening and if you've ever seen me after a cross country race where I finished 40 places lower down that I wanted to, then you'll know that 'a bit disheartening' is a massive understatement. On the other hand, getting a PB is one of the most rewarding things ever - liiiiike you've never ran that fast over that distance ever before in your WHOLE ENTIRE LIFE. Your life has basically peaked at that moment (until you get another PB). So this is what we're dealing with here...

 Not sure if you've heard (you definitely would've heard) but before the Bristol 10k I didn't get a PB for 18 MONTHS! That's a whole year and a half of training, trying and racing to be disappointed every single time. If we tally that up, it's approximately 18 races. Eighteen whole races of what I would call utter shite (and I did call them that, out loud, every single time).

BUT my life seems to have turned a corner. I'm not going to apologise for the rest of this blog post but I will warn you that it's basically just one massive brag. Me me me, I'm the best.

I expect you'll all have seen my ultra-braggy Bristol 10k post at the end of May? I maaaaay or may not have got a huge PB but whatever. In the 2 and a half months since that I've got another FOUR! Owwwww yeah...

 

800m, Bristol Open Meeting, June
When I was a young chav I was quite good at the 800m. I represented the school and the county in the distance but bloody hellllll it is not an easy one to run - and it's even less easy when you're a 24 year old woman in a race against several 13 year old boys... The nature of an open meeting means you're literally chucked in with all ages and genders depending on your previous PB. Last year I ran 2.46 for my 800m (fairly average) so was in with a lot of younger athletes, probably racing for the first time. FANTASTIC! Can't bloody wait. The boys were full of puberty and very excitable so went off like absolute loonys. Being the mature woman I am, I let them go and ran my own race - literally ON MY OWN, AT THE BACK. Ah well. I felt really strong until the last 120m when I thought my organs were going to fall out of my ass - Alexa told me after that I looked so terrible she was worried I would drop out - but I made it to the finish line in 2.45! A one second PB two weeks after the 10km, I'll take that. NEXT.

1 mile, Bristol Open Meeting, July
Another open meeting, another mish-mash of runners. This one was a bit more horrendous as there were only 4 girls entered (I knew I was at least the 3rd slowest) and the rest were all proper fast blokes. A bit intimidating but all of the men were lovely and said if they thought they might lap us that they'd go around us, and not to worry too much. Last year I had ran 6.24 at a mile race in Eastville Park but I really wanted under 6 minutes... Bit of a tall order innit?! Again,  I let the blokes run off at their own speed and stuck to my pace plan (ish). Coming into the last lap I knew it would be a bit close to get under 6 mins so tried to put in a bit of an effort. This was clearly too much for my body and bladder to handle and I started to wee a bit (hahahha, I kid you not, this is a true story). The wee continued to trickle down my leg for the last 300m and as I crossed the line in 5.59 I collapsed on the floor to hide my exhaustion and very attractive wet patch. Who cares that your boyfriend has just seen you piss yourself when you've just got ANOTHER BLOODY PB?! Not me.

5km, Bitton, July
The dreaded 5km. Having ran 20.58 in January 2015 and progressively got slower ever since, the 5km has been the biggest mental barrier for me to get over. I've tried SO hard over the past year to get my time down but it just wasn't happening - and not even close. A few 22 minutes, some 21.30s etc etc but nothing that screamed 'YOU'RE AT PEAK FITNESS'. I ran the Bitton 5km in June and somehow ran 21.02 - my fastest 5km in years! This made me so determined to get back under that elusive 21 mins.... July's Bitton 5km was my target and to be honest there is little to report on. I started off with a great group of women (including my mate Lisa Newing - HI LISA) who were all sticking to a good pace and meant I didn't go off waaaay too fast and die in the later stages. I got to 2.5km in 9.54 so knew I just had to get under 11 minutes for the 2nd half to get a PB. This was probably the most comfortable I've ever felt in a race. I didn't panic, kept to a consistent speed and picked off a couple of the women ahead of me. I was 100% concentrating on Lisa - not only was she going at a good speed but she also had a FANTASTIC tan so she was very easy to see haha... I saw the '500m to go' mark and frantically tried to work out if I was on for sub-21 (I was!). I crossed the line in 20.30 and don't think I've ever been happier after a race. FINALLY!!!!!

800m, Avon League, July
After good runs in the 800m and mile at the open meetings, I decided to take the plunge and put myself forward to run for the club (rather than just myself) at the Avon League. The Avon League is a series of meetings between clubs in Avon (duh) and each competitor scores points for the club depending on their race position. The points are then added up at the end of the season and we either go up to the next league, stay where we are or get relagated. It's basically the Premiership.

ANYWAY I put myself down to run the 800m and as mum was coming along with me she put herself down to race as well. Bit weird to not have mumsy screaming at me from the finishing straight but whatever, we train together now so I'm used to staring at her sweaty back. I had been training well so really wanted to better my time from the open meeting back at the beginning of June. There were 11 women in the race and the first 2 girls were in a different class so shot off like little rockets. I was getting a bit stuck in the outside lanes and couldn't get round people so mum (in 3rd place) shouted at me over her shoulder to 'GET IN!'. Instructions noted, I moved ahead into lane 1 and settled into 4th place. Ended up running with another lady which was veeeery helpful as she shielded me from the horrible wind on the back straight. I basically used her (SORRY HUN) and then went past her on the last 150m, willing the finish line to hurry up. I stuck my head down in 4th place and ended up 4 seconds behind mum. She was 2nd A team runner and I was 2nd B team! Excellentttt points for the club. We had to wait a whole 12 hours for the official time but............. 2.43!!! A whole 2 seconds quicker than my time from June, and not a puddle of piss in sight.

So there we go, 4 PBs in 3 months. We could pretend that I'm being really chilled about this but I am absolutely chuffed. I've been training really well but not obsessing - aka have actually been enjoying my life - and it seems to be working. I think I will always be one of those horrendous people that thinks a little competition is extreeeemely heathly and am 100% going to be be a pushy mother when I have children, but it's probably my favourite part of running and when it goes right it does feel gloooorious.

My next race on the track is 3km at the Midland League next weekend. I've never done one before so technically it'll be a PB by default but OH WELL you can still be sure that I'll be bragging about it on Facebook.