End of year (2022) review

Date: January 10, 2023

Distance: 4 miles

Listened to: Two halves of two podcasts

I do a running review at the end every year but was a little reluctant as we headed in 2023, as I did not feel I had much to report. I decided that was a terribly defeatist attitude and gave myself a talking to! True, my mileage dropped off. Having crawled to 1,000 miles in 2021, I did not even get to 1,000 km (621 miles) in 2022. It was the Year of the Virus. A bad cold at the start of the year grounded my Run Every Day (RED) January attempt before it had even started, a virus in April, Covid in July, followed by a cold almost every month for the rest of the year brought me to standstill. Every time I tried to start again, I would get another virus. It was soul destroying at times.

But there were highlights! Nothing as stupendous as the three marathons of 2021, but little bits of joy that have made me want to come back for more.

Top five 2022 running highlights:

1. Swansea Half: This was the first half race I have run without stopping or walking. Even got a flying feet photo (my first)!
2. Exeter Half – the flat one: I ran this with my friend Marissa. It was her first half and she was awesome. We had a great day.
3. Kingsbridge 10k: Took 10 minutes off my previous time. Great to see friends at Goldings’ Corner and at the finish line. (FYI It is still a hideous course).
4. Running in Central Park: It’s an iconic thing to so and I did it four times! It’s a bumpy old park though. I somehow thought it would be flat.
5. Running with friends: I am finally managing it without having a nervous breakdown!

Notable absence is the Great West Run in Exeter (not the flat one). It is gross. I will never do it again, although it was lovely to see my work colleagues at the end though. The end of the race is always good.

I also failed to run at least a half marathon a month. This did make me sad but I really was not well enough.

I have gone backwards from 2022 in terms of fitness, speed and distance, but am hoping I can get it back. Now at the grand old age of 50, I have other races I want to do, but more importantly, I just want to be able to keep running. I like it… I’m such a weirdo!

I have signed up to Doddie Aid to remind me that being able to run at all is a privilege. Today was day 10 of the six-week challenge. I was tinkering with the idea of RED January but my sensible physio husband reminded me that due to my lack of running in the last six months, my body would not thank me for continuous pavement pounding. Instead, I am doing something active every day. I will run four days of every week (usually in the rain at the moment), do Clubbercise one day, and then add in all the dog walking for the other two ‘rest’ days. I have racked up 58 miles so far and will end it with the Exeter Half (the flat one). I have another half booked in March and I am eyeing up a few other races.

If 2022 was the Year of the Virus, I hope 2023 is the Year of Wellbeing.