15:1 x 2

Thinking back to the beginning of our training, and how tough it was to run for a minute, ten times, I should be feeling chuffed that we are now running 15 minutes straight.

But boy was that awful.

We went to Green Lake, walked briskly for 5 minutes, and then set off. I felt as if I was running super slowly, but my pace says differently. Still, it was hard going. I refused to look as my watch as time passed, thinking instead about songs and what would come next on the playlist, and how long it was. I barely made it through the first 15. Then during the minute walk, we stopped to try and use a drinking fountain while I discovered that I'd set my timer wrong. So that was a distraction. And suddenly it was time to run again.

The second fifteen... ick. I was aware that my timer would stop a minute before I was supposed to, which was unpleasantly distracting. I also started the 15 with a stitch in my side. But on I plodded. Wil was smooth and fast, and had to keep slowing down so he didn't lose me. At one point a woman passed me and came up behind Wil. He turned, expecting to see me, but was a little surprised when I had shrunk a foot and become a teenager.

Passed the swimming pool with 7 1/2 minutes to go... torture... and it was getting increasingly crowded at the lake, given the glorious sunshine. Wil says he almost stopped at one point. But we didn't. We made it!

So in the end, I think we're doing well. I'd like to get smoother, get a little faster, and feel better at the end of a run. But that will come, with time. Two weeks to the Jingle Bell Run!