The first step

I'm quite often terrible at making a start on successful habits - I procrastinate.

I came back from my week's holiday determined to reinvent two versions of me that have been missing since the pandemic began:

• The runner

• The writer

Yes - I exercise regularly on my Wattbike or road bike - but I've missed the guy who rose early and ran around cities before the day began.

Yes - I'm at the keyboard most days - but I've missed the opportunity to take time and create significant work, rather than racing to get a blog post out or chasing inbox zero.

The first step is always the hardest - replacing not running with running, not writing with writing.

I took the first tentative steps as a runner along the Thames pathway at 06:00 yesterday.