I Never Told You about Those 12 Months

A tiny life moment of starting over

The Moment

Two days ago, Michael Johnson’s voice kept ringing in my ear. ‘You can do this,’ he said. I knew I could. So I huffed my way down a gentle slope for what seemed like an eternity. Then I heard his voice, ‘slow down to a brisk walk, well done, you did it.’

I walked briskly, painfully for five minutes, arrived home, took off my headphones, straight to the kitchen for a drink. I was sweaty, tired and breathless.

It was day two of my ‘couch to 5K in nine-week’ exercise program using the BBC app with Michael Johnson as my coach.

The Reflection

This time last year (September 2019) I was training for the Richmond Half Marathon. My morning run was ten kilometers (circa 6 miles), and this was a breeze. I challenged myself running 18–20 kilometers (12 miles) at the weekend. I was a runner, free, light, and fast.

Fast forward 12 months, I cannot put my finger on what happened, but I am heavy, faltering, and slow. I tried a light jog 2 weeks ago, and it felt impossible. Where was that person? I was now a walker. Running belonged to a time long gone. No one told me about those 12 months. What happened?

On one of my numerous walks in the woods, I stopped to ask a lady for directions and we got talking. She asked why I was walking, I mentioned how difficult it was to run. She mentioned the BBC Couch to 5K app, and I said I would try it.

Couch to 5K?

I was angry with myself. How did I fall so far? When did I fall. How come I did not realise it? From a Half-Marathon runner to a slob in 12 months. I was still that person, reliving my success. That person never mentioned what would happen 12 months down the line.

So I took a long hard look at myself. Downloaded the app, selected Michael Johnson as my coach, and once I finish this reflection, I am out on my third run this week. I may not be a half marathon runner, heck, I am not even a 5K runner yet, but I sure ain’t remaining on that couch.

Lessons

1. You lose what you don’t use. There is no way around this, no cute way to say it. Use it or lose it
2. It took 12 months to get from a runner to a slob, where was my awareness? It’s easy to disregard the signs. Learn to pay attention to.
3. Past laurels are just that, past! Move on. See today for what it is
4. No one can tell the future, just because you are on top today, does not mean you will be on top tomorrow, but the good news is. If you are at the bottom today, does not mean you’ll remain there forever. Nobody can tell you about the next 12 months.
5. You did it before, you can do it again, just start
6. There is no success on the couch. You can dream all you want but you will never achieve anything from the couch
7. If you want to run a half marathon, do it with someone who has already run many half marathons
8. Sometimes you have to focus on the smaller goals before the bigger goals, and
9. There is nothing wrong with starting all over again. Nothing.