The past few days I’ve been in Bologna, on a weekend retreat organised by the Up And Running women’s online running courses gang. We went in order to take part in the JJ Running Festival, which had a ‘non-competitive’ 6km run, and a ‘competitive’ 10.5km (half-half-marathon) run as well, for women only. I learned a few things about myself this weekend – some of which I like, some of which I don’t. I guess it helps me to understand myself that little bit more.
I was staying in a beautiful bed and breakfast not far from the central touristy area, which was quite stunning with bright sun streaming through the windows. I went with, and met up with, a large group of women I had mostly only known online, and our running coach Julia. It’s funny, the preconceptions you get of people by reading their written word for almost a year; thankfully we seemed to get along well...! This blog post is more about my experiences regarding health and fitness – this other aspect is a different kettle of fish, and I’m sure they know how I feel. :)
The plan for the weekend was to arrive on the Thursday, and have an evening reception with pizza, wine and nibbles. Friday, we would have a ‘boot camp’ running session, about an hour-ish, in duration, followed by a free afternoon, and then an Italian cookery lesson in the evening. We were shown how to make fresh pasta – something I definitely intend on trying for myself (I took detailed notes, but have no idea if they make sense yet!!). Saturday would be entirely free at our own disposal, and Sunday was race day. Sunday afternoon would be when some people would depart, and the rest of us would have a free half day until leaving on Monday.
I’d told myself before I went that I wouldn’t get overawed by being in Italy, and go overboard with my food (and drink) intake. Right from day one, it seemed that everyone wanted to keep talking about gelato (a thick icecream) and it was making my mouth water, but I promised myself I could have some after the race on Sunday, and would have to wait until then. I’m pleased to say I managed to do exactly that!! Of course, that’s not to say my eating was angelic – far from it! But at least I kept that specific temptation under control, and I’m really proud of myself for doing so.
Pizza on the first night was tasty; thin-crusted, and cooked in a wood-chip oven, or something. It tasted a million times different to the type of pizza I’d eat at home, and was fresh and delicious. I had maybe 4 or 5 glasses of wine, which was a bit silly, but I felt a bit overawed by being with people who only knew the online me, and felt slightly under pressure to be... well... it’s the same old story. “Have you met my friend Sarah? She’s really funny...” – no, she’s tired, slightly grumpy, and off to bed, haha.
The following day was the run ‘boot camp’ – consisting of running a number of 570m circular laps of a shaded park in the hot sunshine, various drills to exercise different muscles in our legs, and after more laps of running, some yoga stretching to end. It went okay, though I turned down the opportunity afterwards to have the running coach film my running form and make comment on it later. I was feeling self-conscious enough, being one of the only girls in full length trousers in the bright Italian sun, and clearly displaying personal neuroses and self-esteem issues. Even though the other girls really loved the ability to have Julia give them feedback on their running form, and will undoubtedly take the advice on board, I don’t actually regret saying no – I would have felt extremely uncomfortable watching myself back later on, and it would have put a horrible suffocating cloak over the day, and probably the whole weekend. As it was, I felt quite good after the workout, and headed back to the B&B for a shower and relaxed afternoon.
We did a little sight-seeing – and I ate Insalata Caprese, and a bottle of beer. It was really tasty, and didn’t feel too indulgent. Then we headed back for the pasta-making lesson, which was great; I’ll be trying it for sure, but need to find the right sort of flour, as I want to make wholewheat or spelt pasta, rather than the normal white stuff. I figure if I can make my own very thin, fresh pasta, I won’t want to eat as huge a portion as I normally do when I throw the thick dried stuff into a pan. Plus, watching the way you roll this stuff out, I reckon it’ll burn a few kcals, for sure!
We ate the pasta we’d just seen made, with a tasty Bolognese sauce. Beforehand there’d been a HUGE wealth of antipasti out on the table – I definitely overindulged there. Gorgeous cheeses, meats, and breads... I should have been aware there was a dish of pasta coming, but it had been a long day, and I was mindless about what I was eating. On the plus side, I stuck to one glass of wine, then lots of water! And all the food WAS incredibly delicious, so I can’t exactly complain. I ate about half of the dish of pasta, and shortly afterwards a portion of homemade tiramisu was placed in front of me. Well, it’d be rude to say no, wouldn’t it...???
The next morning I’d decided I wanted to burn some kcals, so said I wanted to go walking. My roommate, who is also doing the Moonwalk marathon with me in June, said she’d come, but as she’d badly stubbed her toe the day before, ripping painfully into the nail bed, we decided to just stick to laps of a 1m block around the B&B, so she could cut the walk short if her feet hurt. But life is sent to challenge us, and we didn’t get out until near 10am – so by 2 hours of walking (7 miles), the sun was shining hot and heavy directly above us, and the tourist crowds blocking our path were getting denser, so I called it a day. Lunch was another salad, and a beer which I drank half a glass of and really enjoyed, and again I think I chose well.
Later we headed over to the park where the races would be taking place, to register, pick up race numbers etc. I had decided to run the 6km, for various reasons, not the least of which is that it’s only 7 days ‘til I run the Glasgow Women’s 10k. I collected the t-shirt for the race, electing for a ‘L’ size as it was evident the sizes were running smaller than expected. It fits.... sort of. Well, not enough to do a workout in, but maybe soon. I certainly couldn’t have ran in it! I wanted to leave the expo early; I didn’t want to eat too late, the night before the run, and nobody seemed to be making a move. Eventually four of us left to get some pizza. At home afterwards I left the rest of the girls to it, and went for an early night, though I was a wee bit more nervous about the race than I’d expected to be.
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| Me on the left (ready to run, but still not ready to wear capri pants in public! lol) |
Sunday, we woke up to drizzle and a slight chill in the air. Perfect!!! I can’t begin to tell you how relieved I was at that. The run itself was... frustrating, I guess. I still walk far too much, when there is no need for me to walk. I ran/walked the 6km (which was actually 6.5km) in 47:50, which is a very mediocre pace for me, and terribly frustating. I know I can run faster, just part of me keeps wanting to stop and walk. And I let it. Today gave me another shining example of this stupidity. While on a walking bit, I spotted some guy with a camera ahead, so decided I'd better run in case he was taking pictures of everyone, so I did. Errrr, so why wasn't I already running, then? *rolls eyes*
Anyway, as annoying and frustrating as this run (as with most runs) was, there are some positives to take forward. Firstly, I ran/walked 6.5km today - that ain't too bad, really. Secondly, I wasn't dead on my feet afterwards, so physically I know I can do better (when I sort the mental difficulties out!). Thirdly, if I'd have continued to 10km, I'd have managed it in about 73 minutes-ish, given my average pace - and the other times I've done 10km (two weeks ago, and back in October) I've got around about 79 mins and 82.5 mins respectively. So, you know, progress…
I was amused, during this run, to get high-fives from people in the streets. Lovely! The moment I'll most remember is some adorable wee old woman shouting something in Italian at me (because when am I ever going to experience that again, on a run?), and my managing to gasp back "Sono Inglese!!" with an attempt at a shrug as I ran, lol. Not a CLUE what she was saying...!! The running festival is only in its second year, but was pretty well organized – road closures being the only thing I felt could have been done better. It’s difficult, running through the centre of a busy city, but I’m under no doubt that if I actually enjoyed running, I would have loved this race. Flat, cheerful and friendly, surrounded by gorgeous Italian architecture. Can’t say fairer than that.
After the race (and a hot shower), I wanted to go get the gelato icecream I’d been promising myself all weekend, but the rest of the group wanted to all go out for a group lunch, so I delayed my prize and spent a couple of hours chatting with everyone over a piadine and diet cola, in a café. It was fun to hear the different experiences with the run (some were doing the 6.5km, some were doing the 10.5km), and experience the joy that many of them were feeling. And FINALLY, I got my icecream afterwards. Tell you what; it was bloody well worth the wait, too.
The night passed by in a blur of picking constantly at cheese and bread and olives, sipping wine, and chatting-chatting-chatting. The next day was a travel day, and I finally made it home last night. The scales this morning show a 2.5lb gain (just over 1kg) for the week – I’ll take that. I won’t KEEP it, of course. :) Back to the gym first thing this morning, and slowly getting back into day-to-day life again. Ciao. x
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