Hello adventurers, I have already shared my passion for adventure and with this comes a desire and need to keep fit. This has wained somewhat during the years since Covid lockdowns meaning I have gained a little more weight than I would like. So in order to boost my fitness level, loose a couple of kilos and make other adventures more enjoyable it was time to get back to running.
I find the first step to driving any activity is to set a goal or challenge for yourself to achieve. I therefore jumped in feet first and signed up to run the Great North Run on the 8th September 2024. Also to give myself more of an incentive and drive my training without backing out I have done this through a charity place. This should keep me motivated on getting fit enough to run the whole distance.
It seems running has very much evolved since the last time I ran any long distance. There is a massive variety of equipment involved and lots of training options to tackle as I navigate the world of running and get my current running level from “just for a bus” to the 21km’s required to run the race.
My first consideration is who among my friends or family is daft enough to run the race with me as due to my vision impairment I need a helpful guide to get me round the course safely. Luckily for me Chris has recently restarted his fitness journey by taking up trail running, the only downside to this is I live in the North East and he lives in Cornwall. This means we will need to train separately and hope that running while tied together works well at a later date.
With my Guide runner in place it was time to choose a charity and find a place. There are so many great charities but I wanted to choose something close to my heart and that both Chris and Myself could really get behind. As I have been supported in my sight loss journey by Blind Veterans due to my service in the Royal Navy and Chris is still a serving member of the armed forces they would be an excellent choice. You can see more about the great work Blind Veterans do here https://www.blindveterans.org.uk/
Run challenge set. Guide Runner found. Charity motivation in place. It was time to get out and run. My first run took me from the house and out on a 5km loop that would take me down towards the river path and back up to the house. It’s a route that I often walk with the family and our dog so it should be very familiar to me. Something that I felt was important given my desire to run solo (mainly so no one would see how unfit I had become). My first run showed me two things firstly I was not fit enough to run the distance and secondly that I would need a less technical route due to my latest level of sight loss.
It seems there are many issues to adapt and overcome with my running ability but let’s start with the ones driven by sight loss. My route was not ideal, it had multiple surfaces to navigate with steps, kerbs, bollards and paths that have street signs and posts on them. There were woodland stretches where the ground underfoot has potholes and trees with branches to avoid. As for them pesky rabbits digging holes in the riverside path well they must be the size of bears given the width and depth of some holes. All things my guide cane or a companion can steer me around in normal life like when out for a walk or hike. Another issue was it was busy with people to avoid, who can be unpredictable at the best of times. Even with a 6 foot tall bloke running towards them covered in sweat people seem to stand there ground. Again something my cane or a companion would help me avoid.
Back to the running training plan drawing board so to speak. How to adapt and overcome the latest challenges was order of the day. The search for a better way was on, but that can wait for the next instalment.
If you want to follow my progress with my training and learning to run while I get ready for the race you can always follow me on Strava https://www.strava.com/athletes/134879567
If you would like to help me raise money for Blind Veterans as I continue on my running to get fit journey the please use this link https://AJBellgreatnorthrun2024.enthuse.com/pf/steven-holliday
Keep on running!
Steve
Blind Steve Adventures 
Leave a comment