Negative splits and motherhood

A negative split means running the second half of the distance of your choice faster than the first half. It's a way to preserve your strength and finish your run without crying and moaning. It's also a way to prevent you from peeling off whilst schouting to other runners 'Eat my dust!', only to end up calling a cab because you couldn't take another step if it killed you. Which it very well might.

As a runner I do negative splits all the time through no fault of my own. Because when I start running, my body gets all huffy and sulky, saying things like: 'Whatcha doing?! I don't wanna!' So I stumble along until, in spite of itself, my body starts to feel more supple and my feet lighter. Without effort I run my second halves much faster than my firsts.

Now I'm wondering: can you do negative splits as a mom too? They are very much recommended when running long distances and marathons, which motherhood is often compared too. So I think the answer is a resounding yes.

In days gone by, when my kids got up around four at night, one unpleasant morning I looked at the time and saw it was only seven in the morning. Already I had crafted the universe with the kids, baked muffins and played monopoly. I didn't have anything left for the rest of the day. An obvious case of a so called positive split, where you just let rip, and hold nothing back. Which as a mom I do not recommend.

So in conclusion: I think negative splits are beneficial as a runner and as a mom!