Dancing on ice!

It was a cracking morning. The below zero temperatures ensured that the snow had frozen in Carnock and the melted water runs from the snow had frozen hard overnight. It was slippy!

So first thing I had planned to run with a friend from the house. On reviewing the conditions we headed down to Culross and set off from the balmy coast. I love running by the sea and this morning was no exception. It was a crisp, clear morning and whilst there was no sun it was pleasant enough when we got moving.

My partner today was Claire. She's targeting a 10k later in the spring and set the pace. It's always motivating to run with someone else, share the chat and catch up on all the news. The time flew by and we were soon at the bottom of the hill that leads up to High Valleyfield. Claire advised that we might need to walk a few sections but we put the head down and made it all the way to the top.

We carried on down the other side of the hill and back to the cafe in Culross. The Biscuit Cafe in Culross is cake heaven and it took all my willpower to step away from the scones. I had a quick cup of coffee, said goodbye to Claire and set off on the run home. I headed back up the hill into High Valleyfield, checking directions from a couple of dog walkers and headed into the forest tracks. The route goes up past the special needs riding centre, which is a brilliant place and then up the hill towards Oakley. By the time I had climbed back up to the top of the hill there was snow on the track.

The snow was frozen on top but soft underneath and made a satisfying crunch with each footprint. It was like popping bubble wrap which for some unknown reason is incredibly satisfying as well - don't know why. It was slightly less satisfying when there was a puddle under the frozen top and my shoes were plunged into the mucky water.

You always need to watch for dogs - most are fine but having been bitten whilst running up in Skye I've always been wary. In that case I couldn't believe it when I heard that the owner put the dog down. In my view it wasn't the dog's fault just a terrible owner - I felt guilty for ages. I have a dog myself who I never let off the lead because of the risks - they are animals after all.

Anyway I weighed in again and have now lost half a stone - a small celebration and positive reinforcement that the work that I'm putting in is working, especially after the weekend in Dublin.

So 9 miles done and my mileage is increasing without any stresses on the legs. I remain injury free and really enjoying the training. 10% increase week on week I was told avoids injury and this seems to work.

Loving it!