Just Say Yes

Yesterday was very nearly a pyjama day. It was grey and uninspiring, and I ached a bit from too much of this yoga challenge. We’d had the Cycle the Wight event in our calendar for months, but bed on a Sunday morning is a hard thing to quit. I’m so good at saying ‘Nah’, ‘Maybe next time’, or ‘I’ll think about it.’ Sometimes thinking is a really bad idea; what if we just said Yes?

I waved Tom off at the door to cycle the 100k route on his own, and got back in bed. But knowing that he was off playing outside without me kind of ruined my lazyman buzz. It took me all of five minutes to regret my hasty ‘No’ and start tearing around the house looking for lycra, socks, and other sundries. I sent him a quick On My Way! text and raced down the hill.

It was a perfect autumn day: still and clear, damp and earthy. I was glad I’d made it out of bed. Those grey days always feel uninviting, but they’re really rather lovely once you’re out in them. After an hour of hard pedalling (Tom had a fast bike and a half hour head start) I found him sat on a hilltop bench, munching on a banana and grinning at me. We spent the rest of the day riding this familiar route, having a grand old time.

A last minute mad-dash change-of-heart is not the best approach to a long-distance ride. My legs were tired after that first 30k hard push. But I had a perfect autumn day out in the fresh air with my man. I’m at risk of missing all the fun if I automatically say ‘No’ to a challenge. So, I’m going to try to say ‘Yes’, ‘Definitely’, and ‘When do we start?’ before I have the chance to come up with a decent excuse. We’re likely in for plenty more uninspiring grey mornings this autumn, but if we just head outside we may find they’re all still pretty fabulous.

The Shipping Forecast

The shipping forecast: great bastion of the BBC, firm rock in the ever-changing storm of radio content. I love Radio 4 for its variety, but I love the shipping forecast for its consistency. No matter if the seas are peaceful or raging, you can always rely on the stoic voice of the forecast reader. With steady rhythm, this poem of the everyday gives hints of distant unknown waters. Most of the places sound exotic and unknown (Cromarty, Lundy, Shannon). But I get a ridiculous pleasure from the thought that our island is a moniker worthy of a region in the forecast: Wight.

I couldn’t resist this print from the V&A and, after a year of sitting in its wrapper, finally had it framed by the lovely Shorelines in town. Tom brought this mug back for me from a summer trip to Wales. It is my firm favourite; perfectly proportioned and beautifully glazed. And of all 31 forecast regions to choose from, I was especially pleased to see that Wight made it on to the mug.

The shipping forecast has an audience of hundreds of thousands, well beyond the seafarers who rely on its information, its reaches to bedside radios across the land as people drift off on distant waves. (And for those of you who prefer to drift off to music, this is the perfect shipping tune from the talented King Creosote).

How to Run When You’re Not a Runner

I’m not a runner. And before you ask, I’ve got all sorts of very valid excuses: I’m not built for it, my knees sometimes twinge a bit, there was that time when my shoulder seized, and I just get way too red in the face. I know, right? All totally legit. But I am married to a runner, and somehow, bit by bit, very slowly, I’ve sort of found myself running. And I *might* even be enjoying it. Actually, after the first 2k of feeling like an injured rag doll and wondering why the fuck I’m doing it at all, I start to enjoy it a lot. So, for any other determined non-runners like me, I wanted to share a few of my discoveries:

It’s fine to stop. Don’t ‘run through the pain’. Just remember that it’s really hard to get going again. So maybe walk for a bit and agree to yourself you’re going to start running again when you get to the next lamppost.

Finding someone fitter than you is a good thing. If only one of you feels exhausted, the other can keep you both going. You might feel cynical about those motivational words now, but when you’re bloody knackered they do the trick. Just one thing- make sure your buddy doesn’t run ahead of you; that’s just dispiriting.

Decent kit matters. Of course, you don’t want to invest in a whole bunch of fancy stuff, if you’re not going to stick with it. But you won’t ever regret buying a decent sports bra. And those bargain basement trainers need to stay in the basement. Plus, a nice top is good consolation for the embarrassment of running around in public with a beet red face.

Off road is easier. This was my biggest surprise. I thought you could only ‘graduate’ to off road running after you’d really nailed the concrete stuff. But concrete feels like a hard slog. Hopping around in the forest, paying attention to rocks and roots, totally takes your mind off the fact that you’re pooped.

Records rock. It’s satisfying to be able to tell people how far you went. And PBs remind you that you *are* making progress, even if it doesn’t feel like it. Get the Strava app and find some friends to sign up too. Lets use our social media inclinations for some good eh?

Too much advice is a bad thing. There’s a lot of ‘couch to 5k’ podcasts and apps out there. I’m sure they give a well-structured programme, created by the experts, but you know what feels good, how far you can go, and when you should stop. For me, following pre-destined run routines just felt uninspiring.

So, don’t follow my advice, just head outdoors and get your sweat on!

Favourite Knits

Grey skies are setting in and the brolly is going with me to work every day. It’s that time of year when I start thinking about things to make, pinning all sorts and rifling through my Ravelry favourites. The same part of me that avoids ordering the same dessert as my partner compels me to try new patterns every time I pick up sticks. Incidentally, this doesn’t extend to my baking. I made choc chip cookies yet again this weekend. If it ain’t broke, why fix it, right?

These three past knitting projects are my choc chip cookie patterns. I wear them to death. I have the mitts in three different colours. I want this snood in burgundy, and I figure I need another five of these cardis just to give this one a break from daily wear. So I’m going to embrace a good thing, resist my inclination for something new and shiny, and enjoy new colours in an old pattern. Whatever crafty project you get busy doing this season, remember there’s a lot to be said for an old faithful.

Early Riser

As if I needed any more of a reminder that autumn is here, just this week I’ve started rising before the sun. Thanks to shorter days, and a yoga crush, I’ve been breaking my own ‘never rise before 6’ policy. Erin Motz is the cheeriest, most unassuming pretzel of a yogi, who makes all sorts of twists and bends feel doable. Seriously, check out her 30 day challenge.

I like the max-out-your-day feeling of being up with the sun, but in the height of summer the sun rises way too early for me to match it (this sleepless weekend being the exception). So September is a good time to spend 30 days waking up early to salute the sun. I don’t know if this morning routine will last in to the dark wintry mornings. But for now, I’m loving my early stretch.