Still Crazy After All These Years

 Yep, that's definitely me - Crazy.  

Any cursory glance here will see that I seem to only post once a year. That's mainly due to the fact that there has been little to write about regarding any ramblings about running. Those who know me, are well aware of the issues surrounding my health over the past few years - Thankfully, although carrying a few minor side effects, my health is pretty good for someone on a pension, having managed a full working life (no snide comments about work please!) - So, that's not really been an excuse I can continue with.

What has been the real reason for my lack of "real" running, or comments thereon, over the last year or so? Being brutally honest, it's a combination of laziness and when I do run, frustration at my inability to run anywhere near as fast as I was running before 2018 - generally struggling even to run 1km under 6 minutes, and I don't mean in a 5K or 10K race, I mean just 1Km - Mentally it has had me struggling and feeling embarrassed, with myself, at how slow I am - that plodder on the pavement - Totally irrational I know, but after a few runs with little improvement, I have returned to the Couch, "5K to Couch" rather than the other way around!

Well, as they say, or did many years ago in Music Halls, a "Funny Thing Happened To Me On The Way to the Forum",  or rather heading back from my 2Km run this morning, I had a Flash of Self-Belief. I realised that while my head still thinks of me as being in my 30's, my body has come to terms, and sent a message to my brain, that it's now 67, nearly 68, and showing it, so don't go out feeling crap that you can't run sub 5 minute pace, just go out there and say "Thank Goodness You Can Still Run At All" - many of my age, with my health record or without, can't run at all. So here I am, back posting here, at least for now, and with plenty of running, even slowly, still in my legs, and NOW in my head too.

Part of this change in process came about, as ever, when cheering on friends and my son, Liam Og, in the Dublin Marathon a few weeks ago, and then sitting at the computer and entering the lottery for next years event - And then actually obtaining a place for October 2026....   Given my longest run in 2025 has been 5Km, and not many of those, a steep hill to climb. So what to do about it.....

Given I'm retired these days, it's easy to spend more time away from home, and with my better half Paula able to work anywhere with an Internet connection, few problems on location come about. With Paula being originally from Argentina, and with us having an apartment there, (or here as I am writing this from Crucecita where we are presently), it makes sense to spend the summer in the Southern Hemisphere, escaping an Irish Winter (and spring too!), and using the far more runner friendly climate to my advantage, I have started on the first steps to DCM26 - So far only two runs of 2Km this week, but today's run felt the same as the first on Monday, but some 16 seconds quicker without noticing! 

Now I don't expect that having the sun on my back, short sleeves and shorts throughout January and February, and carrying on until returning home in May, will have me back running sub 5 minute Kms before long, that realistic Brain Defrost still hopes I can be running happily under 6 minutes per km for far more than 2Kms by the time I get home - Time will tell - Laziness may kick in from time to time, but No More Excuses, No More Embarressment in my Head - Yes, I still feel I'm 35 at times, at least mentally, but I'm probably more determined now at 67 than back then - I have ALWAYS been a Little Crazy, and now I'll prove it, by setting my target for DCM26 as close to 4 hours as I can, hopefully 3:59:59 - Yep, Still Crazy After All These Years........