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Monday, 29 December 2008

Going somewhere...

If you ever lose the motivation to exercise then try this tactic: run/cycle back from wherever you are. Of course, you need to be realistic about this (running back from you parent's house 100 miles away ain't very sensible) but I find that it can work a treat. 

So on Saturday, after dropping my  daughter in Glasgow at the train station (to meet her dad who lives in England), I ran back home. It was an amazingly pleasant 6 or 7 mile run in cold, wintry sunshine along the River Kelvin (dodging more than  the usual number of dog walkers) and even bumping in to a couple of tri club pals coming the other way. 

Then on Sunday I cycled back from Bridge of Weir after visiting friends for a lovely meal and sleepover. I'd planned ahead for this one, popping my bike into the back of our car the night before and relying on my husband to drive back the next day. I found a  cycle path from BoW to Paisley that I'd never cycled before (thank you Sustrans) and then joined the roads to head into Glasgow and back to Bearsden on the Kelvin Cycle Way (again!). 

The weather was fab also. Sunny but cold and no wind. If you live in B0W and work in Glasgow then there can hardly be an excuse for not cycling into town, or at least cycling to Johnstone to get the train in. It almost made me think about moving house (but not quite!).

One thing, though. I overheard a Glasgow dog walker offering his opinionated view to another dog walker in Kelvingrove Park. "I mean, if parents have kids who are afraid of dogs then they shouldn't be in the park, should they?" he was opining. "This is our park ain't it? Where there are dogs all the time. I mean, what were the parents thinking of, bringing kids here who are scared of dogs. My dogs were only jumping up a bit and I can't see why I should have to have them on leads, should I?" Hmmm. Isn't it lucky that not every dog walker thinks the same?

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