October 2022

So October was a quieter month than I'd have liked, though I'm not entirely sure why I'm surprised given that autumn has well and truly arrived and the alarm going off in the dark has a way of making the duvet feel like a very reasonable alternative to running kit. Sixteen activities in total, covering around 820 minutes, split almost entirely between running and walking. The running at least showed a small improvement on September — four runs totalling just under 25km at an average pace of 5:38 per kilometre, which is marginally less embarrassing than last month's 5:47 — and I even managed to drag myself outside for a couple of them rather than resorting to the treadmill, which frankly deserves some kind of recognition. The walking, as ever, did the heavy lifting, with twelve sessions and over 62km on foot, mostly morning and lunchtime outings that cost nothing in motivation because they were going to happen anyway.

Comparing this to September is a slightly uncomfortable exercise. September actually had more total activity — 27 sessions and over 1,100 minutes — though it's worth noting that 24 of those were walks, which suggests I was covering ground without particularly trying to push anything. The running mileage is up month on month (24.7km versus 15.1km), which is something, and my average heart rate is marginally lower at the same effort, so the base fitness isn't completely deserting me. So the direction of travel is roughly right, even if the pace of progress is, much like my running, not going to trouble anyone. The question going into November is whether I can hold this together as the mornings get properly cold — historically the answer to that has been "no," but I live in hope.

Summary generated by Claude