Of all the different forms of weather, I find running in the rain can be one of my favourite. I don't just mean a bit of drizzle, but a full-on, torrential downpour. This may sound very odd, and I do get a lot of strange looks from passers-by and my house mates when I return home, soaked to the skin. They look at me as though I am completely crazy when I announce that I am off for a run, just as the heavens have opened. There is something about it though that for me, amplifies all the joy I usually get from running. It makes me feel invigorated and alive to be pounding the streets in the middle of a downpour and that knowing smile you get from the (usually only one or two) other runners you pass. I also usually find I feel stronger than when running in warm or hot weather, and a good run always makes me happy! However, this is only the case when I go out knowing that it is going to be raining, if it begins to rain when I am already out and unprepared for it, then it is not quite so much fun, strangely. Instead I plod along, wishing it to be over and wondering why I run in the first place. In reality though, my willingness to run in terrible weather may just be because I have spent the majority of my life living in the UK and most of the last year in New Zealand. If I refused to run when it was raining, I'd probably hardly ever get to go out at all, certainly not in the winter!

One of my more memorable runs was one wintery Sunday morning while I lived in Sheffield. I was out for a long run in the Peak District with a group of friends from the University Athletics Club and it was horrible weather. It wasn't so bad as we ran up through the valleys, mainly under the tree cover, but once we reached the moorland plateaus it was definitely very noticeable. It was freezing cold, heavy rain slashed sideways at us and the ground was completely water-logged. I was soaked to the skin and couldn't feel my hands, at one point I managed to fall over in the mud as well, just to top it off. However, it was also kind of fun. Afterwards, as I sat in my warm living room with a cup of coffee and lunch, I felt a sense of satisfaction that that was how I had chosen to spend my morning.