Not every run has to be special

Busy wasting time looking at running stuff on t’internet. Everyone seems to be doing some impressive run in the most beautiful places on Earth. Everyone’s smiling and full of energy.

Except for me. I’m grinding out the same couple of loops around Attenborough Nature Reserve and Beeston Canal 5-6 times a week. Not sure about smiling, busy trying to keep the rain and the cold wind out more like!

This piece of canal track I must see at least 8 times a week atm, once on the way out and once on the way back:

It’s not pretty, it’s not glamourous but it’s what get’s the job done as this time of year. To be honest, there’s not really that much I want from a running route in the UK during December and January

What I want in a winter training route

I want is a route that I know I can run out of the door no matter what the weather is.

I want a route that’s safe for me in the dark.

I want a route that doesn’t mean running through puddles

I want a route that has enough space that I’m not playing dodgems with other people

I want a route with a bit of shelter

I want a route that’s flat as I’m just building base

I want a surface that’s not likely to turn an ankle

I want a route that can work for intervals

I want a route that doesn’t mean having to stop for drives/junctions every 80 metres

I want a route where I’m not dodging lamp posts and random trees

And this nice piece of track along Beeston Canal provides all of that. Just down from home, good solid flat surface, wall/bushes on one side, no junctions, I can see for 800 metres, wide enough that there’s plenty of room to accomodate 2 way traffic

So I’ll be happily sticking with the unglamourous Beeston canal while clocking up the miles that wil let me get out and do some more fun running once the sun returns.

That said, on the bright cold winter morning in January when I stopped to take these pictures because I was actually running in something approaching daylight it doesn’t look so bad does it!