Fat and flabby January

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

The weather here has been hot and very, very humid, so running as a result has been difficult but I am at least getting out there for some short outings to remind my head and legs what this running business is all about and that I am still something of a runner, laughable that declaration may currently be in light of my recent outings.

There is progress of a kind, with the new, leaner, meaner, fitter 2016 version of me about to spark into life with a three-pronged attack designed to relaunch me into serious running once again. These three prongs are new shoes, new orthotics and a brand spanking new treadmill. Although I know all too well the attitude of many of this forum toward the endless beast that is treadmill running, I seriously miss the pre-programmed approach the machine gives in the way of interval training, hill climbs and the like. I've purchased one which can simulate specific terrain too, so I can plug in the Point To Pinnacle route and have it simulate the entire climb with a fair degree of accuracy. Which, erm, doesn't exactly mean I have scheduled another P2P into my running just yet, but I'd like to think there will be another one sometime.

Anyway, none of these three things have yet been fulfilled. I have the shoes, but am under orders not to use them until I've been to the podiatrist and had them properly evaluated along with the new orthotics which are still a week and a half away from being lovingly hand-crafted by the poor sod who somehow thought creating insoles for shoes was a pretty neat career move. Even the treadmill, purchased this morning, will not arrive for a few days yet, so running life here is in a kind of limbo, although given the sticky weather that was pretty much the situation anyhow.

All of it however is a very positive step forward, and I'm keen as mustard to overcome my niggling toe pain and start some serious training again.

Onwards, then!