Despite waking up this morning feeling less than enthusiastic about my impending participation in today's Newbury Duathlon, it turned out to be a really fun race - challenging but very enjoyable.

And very pleasing to see that I again seem to be making progress - in the run at least! (difficult to compare bike legs as this was my first event on open roads with.... hills!).

Still, 1hr 32min for the 5km/25km/5km event wasn't too shabby, especially with a new PB on the leg #1 run. Good enough to secure me 14th overall in the male category.

Well done Team Kennet for organising a fun event, I can see this becoming a firm fixture in the future.

Today was meant to be a rest day (from running, at least), but this strange golden orb appeared in the skies above Newbury and suddenly the temperature lifted a few degrees, meaning you could actually stand outside without thermals...

Needless to say the temptation was too much, so a gentle recovery run was hastily decided upon, along the canal towpath towards Thatcham.

Now usually when I'm running, I'm in my own little world. Eye contact with other runners is studiously avoided as I plough on with that day's task. Today, however, was a little different.

Since I was plodding along at a nice gentle pace, the sun was out and I was running in shorts for the first time this year(!), I took the highly unusal step of acknowledging my fellow runners out on the towpath.

And how refreshing it was that every single one of them responded with at least a wave, and in many cases a genuine broad smile. It seems we shared a little secret - that getting out for a run in the lunchtime sun is something really quite special.

So who cares that it took me 41 minutes to do 8.5km. Today wasn't about training; it was about feeling good. :-)

I knew it was coming, but still the reality seemed to hit faster than I was prepared for.

This week we moved offices 30 miles or so down the road from Swindon to Newbury. Big deal you say, so what's a little extra commute? All true, but I hadn't quite anticipated quite how much it would bugger up my training routine!

Despite fitting out our new offices from practically a bare shell, my wonderful employer deemed that putting in even a single shower was going to be too expensive, hence we have now have no way to wash up after a morning or lunchtime run / cycle. I have to confess that part of me is being selfish and thinking 'tough luck!' on my fellow employees (I've bought a pack of baby wipes... we'll see how good they are for a quick clean up! Does anyone else have any clever tips for cleaning up without a shower?!).

Of course, the other option is to join a gym that's local to the office (and to be fair, there is a good Nuffield Health in Newbury with a decent gym and a 25m pool), but that's an extra £50 a month on top of the additional fuel for commuting and existing gym membership near home. It's a shame the company won't even entertain the notion of contributing to either the increased commuting costs or health club membership.

For a single working parent, the lunchtime workout / training session is invaluable, and I have to confess I am concerned what effect it will have on my performance if my training time is cut in half each week. I actually also firmly believe that a good workout at lunch makes me more focused and productive in the afternoon - there's nothing worse (in my opinion) than not setting foot outside of the office all day.

So where does that leave me? Well I guess I finally need to get more 'clever' about my training and actually form a plan, rather than winging it as I seem to have done thus far. A decent coach is probably also a good move (but also extra expense... you can see the pattern here...).

Whoops; that appears to have turned into something of a rant. Didn't intend that. Seriously though - I'd be very interested to hear from other people in similar situations who still manage to fit a decent training regime.

Bye for now.