We are having the most amazing weather this summer. It’s been warm and sunny with blue skies and barely a cloud. Today’s temperature is due to hit a balmy 28°C here in the East Midlands and my office is like a small greenhouse.
Not great running weather – it’s still expected to be 26°C at 7pm tonight when our running club meets. Coupled with high pollen counts, it’s making running difficult for many of us who have the summer joy that is hayfever. Wasn’t quite expecting to find breathing an issue though.
If you suffer from asthma, you have my greatest sympathy as I now understand how it feels to try and suck air in when your chest is tight and you feel like you’re breathing through a straw. I wasn’t running when this happened and got a GP’s appointment that afternoon. A week’s worth of steroids and an inhaler later I was home and starting to feel better.
Over a week later, and I’m still struggling at times. I’m slowing everything down and cutting the distances I’m running. I’m keeping hydrated and the inhaler goes where I go. I’m trying to run when it’s cooler, but that’s not always easy when you’re fitting it around kids, work and husband’s training (he’s recently taken up running – that’s for another blog).
It’s frustrating as I was hoping to increase my weekly distance over the next month, not reduce it. But this isn’t a ‘poor me’ post. If I have to slow down for a few weeks I will. I’m still running, just spending more time enjoying the view.