So Good I Named It Thrice!

Whilst on my run today, various options for the name of this post went through my mind... Most of them with very good reason. Not wanting to let any of them go to waste, I'll see if I can squeeze them in throughout the post! 

Five Ws and One H

As a teacher, I often talk to the children about the 'Five Ws and one H': Who, What, Where, When, Why and How... For me today, my Five Ws and one H were more like Wet, Watery, Wild, Windy, Waterlogged and Hilly, as I completed the 'easy' 5 miles my training plan demanded.

Dedication : A Definition

Having arrived home from work, going back out into the elements was the last thing I wanted to do. But today, if you looked up the definition of 'Dedication' in the dictionary, I am fairly certain that there would be a photograph of yours truly!!

After the longest Monday known to man, which involved me not returning home for 14 hours, I am rather exhausted.. And yes. I am aware it's only Tuesday! But my overwhelming desire to get my half marathon PB in January and raising money for The Home Farm Trust spurred me on and was enough to get me back out of the house, despite the wind and rain! I did ask if the fiance (it's definitely not got old yet) wanted to come with me, but unsurprisingly, he politely declined!  

A Rant and a Moan!

Another line of thought I had whilst pounding the pavements in the pouring rain is best surmised a rant: a long list of things that annoyed me whilst running around the streets of Harrogate. 

For the whole 5 miles, I couldn't quite decide what should come at the top of this list of annoyances, so please forgive the fact that they don't necessarily come in a hierarchical order. 

The first thing that irritated me was puddles. Yes, that's right. Puddles. Now as a rational human being, I understand that when it rains, puddles will form; I even understand the water cycle. But what I don't understand, is why our pavements have to be so uneven that they cause puddles to form that are reminiscent of the size of oceans?! 

Nothing breaks a runner's stride quite like having to suddenly become a long jumper, leaping over the vast depths of water that have begun to pool everywhere you look! 

This irritation actually brings me quite nicely onto the next: Streetlights. Why is it, that even though I was running when it was already incredibly dark (at 4.30!), there were limited streetlights on? This one is on the list for two reasons. Firstly, the most obvious is safety. I don't particularly like running alone in the dark as it is, but sticking to areas with streetlights at least means that I feel a little bit safer in doing so. That's all well and good, assuming that they're actually on! There were a few parts of my running route, where I would go as far as to say, I felt a little bit vulnerable as I was unable to see what may be lurking around the corner. 

For the second subsection of irritation number 2, please refer to 'puddles'. A lack of light, means it's difficult to see the puddles. Not only is it difficult to see the puddles, it is also difficult to judge the depth of the puddles. This equals very wet feet for Miss K! Needless to say, this is not my favourite thing! 

Water on the pavements, water on the road, rain creates a continual issue for even the most seasoned of runners. If you can actually motivate yourself to get out of the door, brave the diminishing light and the puddles on the pavements, you also have to contend with drivers. Drivers and puddles. Not a great combination if I do say so myself. Whilst I was hurtling down Skipton Road, leaping over the gargantuan puddles on the pavements, cars were being less than considerate, motoring through their own lakes on the road, with no thought for where their tidal wave might land. Luckily for me, I managed to avoid a thorough drenching... Although it came very close quite a few times!

The fourth item on this list, is actually all encompassing. Winter running in general. Why do we do it?? It's cold, it's wet and it's miserable, but oh my it's worth it! Especially when I think of the reason why I am dragging myself out on these cold, stormy nights. 

So for that reason, please help keep me motivated in spite of the all of the grumbles and irritations that winter running brings by visiting my Just Giving page and leaving me a donation! 

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/fiona-kitchingman

Miss to be Mrs?!

Well, it's been another interesting week! I really don't know where to start!

I suppose as this is technically a running blog, I should start there.. although I'm not sure that is where I want to begin!

It's been a great week in terms of running and training. I have done a few early morning runs, before going into work, which has actually worked really well; both in terms of timing and the amazing smug feeling I get for the rest of the day! However the one thing that is currently 'grinding my gears' on the running front is that this morning's 6 mile run won't upload onto my Garmin Connect app! Which means, as those who know me will attest, there was no point in doing it at all! I am a big believer in that if it's not recorded and if it doesn't go towards your weekly millage then was it really worth the time and effort? Probably not! I know it's recorded on my watch, but if it's not there for the world to see? Well. Let's just say I'm not happy about it!

But that quite nicely leads me onto the thing that I AM happy about! Very happy in fact! So happy, that I might even fall into the 'over moon' category! No... It's not a new PB, it's even better than that! (Or I think so!) This weekend, I got engaged! G, who will hence forth be known as 'The Fiance!', asked me to marry him! 

I can honestly say that it was totally unexpected and I am still in a state of shock! It honestly keeps taking me by surprise and I find myself grinning every time I think about hearing him saying those words "Will you marry me?" 

For those of you who are wondering "How did he do it?" "Where?" "When?" Well let me tell you! 

The first thing to say is that, I pretty much ruined his plans at every turn. But how was I supposed to know?! 

I woke up on Saturday morning and headed off to Parkrun, as is my weekend routine. I didn't wake G up, instead just slipping out of the house quietly. Something that I didn't think would be a problem! 

I came home after a pleasing Parkrun and we chatted, and I informed him that I was going out to meet some friends for lunch! He always tells me that I should see the girls more, so off I went! I think I did tell him I would only be a couple of hours... 

4.5 hours later I rolled in home, having been chastised by my friends for not remembering all the dates we had set for 2019. Seeing as my diary runs out at the end of 2018, how am I supposed to keep track?! 
Therefore when I got home, whilst the kettle was boiling, I started to write down all the important dates that I need to remember for 2019. Obviously, at the top of that list was The London Marathon! Having completed this task I headed to put my phone on charge, when G called me back to the kitchen, saying "You missed a date." 

Confused, I returned to the kitchen to find G standing with a ring box on my diary and he said those words... "Will you marry me?" 

My response... "Are you joking?" 

Probably not the romantic response that he was expecting! But what can I say?! I was completely caught off guard and had no idea that he was planning this! 

After establishing that this was not a joke, I obviously said yes through my tears! 

So even with me unwittingly sabotaging my own marriage proposal, we got there in the end and can now commence planning our happy day! For now though, I am still waiting for it to all sink in! 

Happy weekend everybody! 

She's At It Again..

She's at it again.. 'Who?' I hear you ask... S of course! My incredible sister, marathon runner extraordinaire!

This time, she has gone even further afield - all the way to The Big Apple! As I type, S is running her 20th mile of The New York City Marathon! This is her 7th marathon that she has completed and I remain totally astounded by her determination and strength. In my previous post about S's marathons, I was struck by what a difficult time she had while running in Berlin, yet she's definitely not let it put her off! Me on the other hand... There's a certain amount of trepidation about the challenge I am undertaking.. But that's natural right?!

Whilst S went to Berlin chasing a time, she has gone to NYC chasing an experience. It's not every day that you go to such an amazing city and take part in a race of this magnitude, so I think she has definitely got the right idea! And what an experience she is going to have had! Not only is she running through the streets of New York, she also took part in the opening parade of the marathon.

Having a seasoned runner like S in the family is incredibly useful for a person in my position... My position being someone who has possibly bitten off more than she can chew! Despite S's busy life and personal training schedule, she always has time to offer help and advice to those of us just starting out on our marathon journey; something which I am very grateful for!



Now S isn't the only one who has been out pounding the pavements this weekend. Mother Dearest has put in the miles too (a little more locally), completing the Guy Fawkes 10 mile race today. A seasonal outing, this particular run is known to be more than a little challenging, comprising of a fair amount of steep inclines that could stop the most seasoned runners in their tracks, or even put people off from entering entirely (Hello! That would be me!), but not Mother Dearest! After being unable to complete this race 15 years ago due to a circumstances beyond all of our control, she had some unfinished business to take care of. And take care of it she did; completing all 10 miles, hills and all in an amazing 1 hour 42 minutes!

So with these two beautiful ladies paving the way, it is time for me to lace up my trainers and troop on!


It is 10 weeks to the Brass Monkey Half Marathon in York, which is the next goal. Having achieved my '10 miles by Christmas' a couple of months early, I can hopefully up the pace and put in a good time in my 4th half marathon.. Dare I dream of a PB? With the support of these two inspirational ladies, I definitely hope so!

Please don't forget to visit my Just Giving page and read about my family's story and why I am completing these challenges. The blood, sweat and tears will be all be worth it to achieve my fundraising goal.

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/fiona-kitchingman

Half Term Halloween!

What a week! 

As teachers, we hear a lot of jokes about 'all the holidays' we get, and how we only work 9-3.30, but this week has allowed for some much needed rest and relaxation (as well as some preparation and planning for the half term that is still to come of course!) 

So far it's been a full week of lunch dates, catch ups, shopping, pumpkin carving, spa days and of course a little bit of running - After all there needs to be some hard work along with the relaxing and I had to take full advantage of being able to run in the day time, when it's nice and light. 

The diminishing day light is something that has been concerning me for a while now, as we all know it becomes harder to stay motivated during the winter months, with the dropping temperatures and the dark nights. But I have been proactive! I have signed up to join a running club so I will always have people to run with! I went to my first 'Club Night' on Tuesday evening and enjoyed my first run around the streets of Knaresborough with my new friends. 

As a club, they also do endurance sessions, which are optional but I am weirdly excited about them. They're meant to be really good for helping you improve your running, so predictably, I can't wait to have a go! I'm also excited to have another community of people to get advice and support from as I up the mileage, as I am more than aware that I need all the help I can get! 

In other news, the ankle has settled down now and I have been reassured that it is a problem of fatigue and not to worry about it too much so I am psyching myself up for a longer run tomorrow and a Parkrun on Saturday. 

Bring it on! 

Don't forget to visit my Just Giving Page and read about the Home Farm Trust in my previous post. The work that they do is so vital to individuals with learning disabilities and they can't do it without our support. 

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/fiona-kitchingman