Sandra in "no running" shocker

Ok it was only 3 days but it was probably longest break I've had in while.

I didn't run on Thursday because of funeral, i guess i could've got up early and ran beforehand but i rarely get chance to lie in til 7.30 so i took it.

Friday i was heading through to Glasgow with Jemima for a Spa break. We'd bought it for each other for combined Christmas/Birthday pressies. Did same last year and went to Norton House it was just fabulous. This year we thought we'd venture West, not often in go to to the Weej voluntarily :p We went to here www.townhousecompany.com/blythswoodsquare/

So instead of getting up early and doing my usual run/gym i decided to wait til i was at Hotel. Major fail. Arrived to find out they had no gym. Oh well, relaxation time it was then! We headed down to spa and took full advantage of all the facilities. We had treatments booked for early afternoon and after that it was up to room to chill out and crack open bottle bubbly which J had brought with her.

We were shown to room and provided with ice bucket and glasses and told nothing was too much trouble.

Room was lovely, service great, spa fabulous. Really cant fault it at all.

We decided to drink the bubbles then head out for bite to eat, investigate bars etc then come back and get changed for night out. By time we'd finished bottle and faffed around it was getting near 5 and neither of us had eaten since breakfast so we decided to just get into glad rags and head off for early dinner instead.

after asking a girl outside the directions to Bath street, we headed off down a VERY steep street. This wasn't entirely easy in the heels i was wearing, i was hanging onto Jemima for dear life thinking i was about to topple over. After getting to bottom of hill and not finding bath st we checked Map kindly situated on street corner ,only to find the stupid bint had sent us wrong way ffs. Quick decision made to head to bar halfway back up hill to break it up a bit, going uphill is much easier in big heels thankfully.

So we Bar hopped until we found someplace to eat, had cocktails, wine, vodka and Jagermeisters. Saw some dodgy bars and dodgy people, danced, laughed and generally had bloody good night out. We stopped off for Kebab on way home (chicken for me, athlete i am lol) and arriving back at hotel found the cocktail bar open. Sensible thing to do would be to head to room with said Kebabs, pity me & J aren't sensible though eh.


So there we were in 5 star hotel cocktail Bar with carrier bag at our feet being served french Martinis & Mojitos. We know this because we have pictures.

Woke up in morning to find carnage on duvet cover. Eating Kebabs in bed & superwhite duvet covers do not mix, do not try this at home folks.

Breakfast was served til 10 and checkout at a civilised 11 (12 on a Sunday for those interested!)So we headed downstairs around 9.45. Up we go to buffet table to get cereal, juice etc only to find a bottle of belvedere Vodka! it was next to Juices and had bottle of tabasco next to it clearly intended for Bloody Mary's. I was so shocked to find it there i knocked it over lol. I headed back to table and J followed, she thought I'd poured one (i hadn't) so she had poured a Vodka & OJ hahaha. We shared it. Then waitress came to take our hot food order, after asking us about our night out, she directed us to said vodka,we told her it was nearly finished (true) so she replaced it with a full bottle. oh dear. We actually only had one more, even we know when not to push our luck.





Anyway, that's my review of Blythswood Square Hotel, go there if you get chance!





Ian was out running on WHW on Saturday so kindly came and picked us up in the Weej , i was bloody exhasuted by time got home and was falling asleep by 9. I am seriously turning into a lightweight....help


Sunday i decided that 3 days of drinking and no running would turn me into a crazy/weeble so i decided to head out for wee run in case my legs had forgotten how to. After quick thought about route i decided to go out and put flowers on my Mum's grave for her Birthday. First 2 miles were uphill, rest of route was undulating or hilly. Quick stop off at sainsbury's to buy flowers, carefully packed into backpack i had another mile til Graveyard with flowers sticking out top of bag, i must've got few strange looks.

By time got home i'd done 13.5 hilly miles, got good av pace going overall with few 7.30mm kicking in which was great going. Clearly i hadn't forgotten how to run at least.

Or so i thought. Up at 4.30am Monday for run to gym. I stupidly decided to head up the hill I'd beasted the day before. The hill chewed me up and spat me back out in disgust. By time i got to gym i was knackered. I usually throw myself into my gym session but i had nothing. Everything was a massive effort and i was sweating buckets. I half heartedley went through routine and left there thinking run to work would be better, cant be worse. hmmm. Ok, it wasn't worse, it wasn't too much better either, i did manage 8mm for last mile but i was just desperate to get to friggin work by then!

So after a particularly bus day at work. I got the bus home. I guess we have to have those bad runs to remember all the good ones.

And if we're patient, the good ones come along pretty damn soon. Cue Today's run, stonking it was. 6 to work, 3 home. And even though the run home was wet & windy at least it cleared the streets of annoying people getting in my way, gotta to be thankful for small mercies!

After Karen mentioned on FB yesterday that she'd hit 200miles for the month i had a look back at my Month compared to last yr. Vast Difference. This time last yr i did 238miles, this year i did 177. That's 61 miles of a difference for anyone out there who isn't an accountant or doesn't have a calculator to hand ;) 61! that's a lot. I looked at where the differences where at i actually did the same amount of runs. The difference was in my morning runs to work, sometimes i was doing 10miles before getting to work. But..... i am now cross training. A lot. Time will tell if it makes a difference but although i groan a bit about going to gym i do enjoy it once I'm there. And going before work is working better for me as it's easy to have a hard day and say i CBA.

GeorgeR is a wise man, he said it's all about quality, not quantity and he is of course right. So i quickly stopped berating the "lost" miles and took comfort in the good work I've actually put in so far.

Forfar Multi Terrain Half on Sunday to look forward to. Forfar reminds me of 2 things
1. Bridies
2. East Five 4 Forfar 5

Onwards & upwards!