Run, run and run some more

I've been in limbo the past two weeks. I had a nasty, sleep-deprived week of housesitting (two words - "Jack Russells"), got home on Saturday and have been recovering since. Three to four hours of broken sleep a night, over seven nights, broke me. As did picking up dog poop off the kitchen floor at 04h00 - every morning! I can't quite figure how they (I have a feeling it is just the younger one) manage to poop on the floor when I put them to 'bed' at midnight and then I'm up at 00h45, 02h00, 03h00 and 04h30 to let them out (in response to yipping, which I took to mean "please let us out").

What was great about my week with these terrors was taking them for walk-runs every evening. Their dad says that the younger one isn't great at running/walking and that he just sits when he's tired and waits to be picked up. Whenever he sat down I'd talk to him, give him a reassuring stroke and off we'd go again. After a week of daily runs he blossomed into a most lovely little walker-runner and on out last run he didn't sit once! I do find great pleasure in running dogs and watching their transformation. After my dog outings I'd drop them off and head out again for a longer run.

Last year I sat the same house (there was only one Jack then) and I met a fellow runner. Jason lives a block away. A few days before getting to the house I dropped him a note to say I'd be back and we hooked up for a super run the one night. It's fun running in a different area. I invited him over this side on Wednesday so I could show off one of my favourite runs from my home. He really enjoyed the route.

December is usually a good running month for me. There's no rush, the weather is generally very good (I've had a few glorious runs in the rain), friends are often available to join me and I log decent mileage. I've had big chunks of continuous running days and I always feel so much better for it. I'm finding that even three days on and one day off doesn't do it for me as much as when I run seven or more continuous days, even if the shortest run is only 30 minutes. My body thrives off running more and more and more and it just loves running every day. This is a good thing with the five-day Namib Desert Challenge coming up in late March. I don't often run continuous chunks like this with other activities (and laziness) in the evenings, which break up the streak, but I certainly do feel better for it - worth prioritising.

I'm cooking up a run route for New Year's Eve - I'm thinking of a 18h00 start. It will be about 15km at a casual pace and will take in some great viewpoints and sights around the Bedfordview area. If you're in Jo'burg and you're keen to join, please drop me an email so I can let you know final plans (lisa @ ar.co.za).