I decided I would run to ardleigh reservoir, loop around it, and come home... I thought it would be a nice scenic run- lots of beautiful scenery etc, and a nice alternative to the Wivenhoe trail I've come to rely on for my long runs as I don't really like running on busy roads with lots of cars.
Instead, getting to the reservoir was exclusively along busy roads, and I even had to cross the A12. I spent so much time looking at my iPhone for directions that I hadn't even completed 5 miles within an hour of leaving home. When I got to the reservoir, what I thought was the footpath hada loads of signs saying private, farm only, so I gave up trying to find a way round. I was only 5 miles in so had to find an alternative. I got back to the top of Ipswich road (crossing A12 again and decided on going into castle park and around a loop that would take me home. Turns out my running route today was particularly devoid of nature, but flush with car dealerships. I saw mini, BMW, vauxhall, Ferrari, Maserati, Alfa Romeo, fiat, Saab and probably others that I don't remember!
By the time I reached castle park the cold had ensured I needed to empty my bladder, so I aimed for the toilets. On the way, I saw a squirrel sitting on a post, looking very cute. I decided to stop and take a picture- he decided to run right up to my feet!
Whilst the first few miles of this run were quite tough- my left leg was hurting, the middle miles actually felt quite good. I took a couple of gels on board and thought I may as well stretch out to 15 as its going so well. Around mile 11, the bottoms of my feet started to feel quite sore, and I could feel the beginnings of a blister. The loop I took I could have got home by 13.5 miles, but I decided to tag a bit on to make it at least 14. I ended up with 14.16 before I gave up. I probably could have eeked it out to 15, but I'm not sure what training benefit I would have gotten from that extra mile when I was clearly already in the fat burning vs glycogen burning zone.
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