Back in training

It's been a bit of a break since my last decent run. I picked up a cold in the week after "Feel the Burns" so missed out on running the following weekend, then got busy and couldn't shake off its final vestiges. I did manage to get out on 9 Feb for a brief 5km sprint round the Penicuik Estate, and felt quite lively. Unfortunately there was a bit of a reaction in my left tib-fib ligament. 

Despite still coughing a bit, took the opportunity of the first really sunny day in weeks to do a standard "Three Hills" run from home on 16 Feb. I felt really sluggish for a long time and really couldn't run much of the ascent of South Black Hill. The cold wind and patchy snow cover didn't help. After turning towards Scald Law, though, the wind was behind me and I sailed up the few metres to the summit. Coming down was another matter, picking ground where I could be sure of grip was tricky. Down at the col I wondered whether to drop off down to the road, but saw a runner (100m?) ahead of me so gave chase. I overtook him on the final few metres of Carnethy: he was running and I was walking. Just about found enough grip on the drop down and round to the path to to lay-by and was feeling more like a runner on the way home than I had on the way out. Not a great outing but very much the "run that had to be done" if I was to keep up some semblance of the form of last month.