Well done Beardy
If it's useful to anybody, I've found my Garmin watch an excellent motivator. I started running in January, just using Strava on my phone to record and log and vaguely following a plan to very slowly build up miles.
Once it was clear I wasnt going to fall apart, I invested in a Garmin 245 Music, which does all the usual stuff as well as music (meaning no need to carry phone). It is the integration with Garmin Connect that is great. It has Garmin Coach, and you can choose a goal (building up to 10k race, or just getting faster), set you frequency of runs, and it works out a program. I did a 5k one first and the beauty of it was that it stopped me overdoing it. Now half way through a 16 week 10k race programme. The pattern is two drill sessions (3 miles, with high cadence and walk-jog-run drills after a 10 minute warm up) then the third run of the week alternates between a Magic Half mile session (10 minute warm up,
run 3 miles, run 0.5 mile really fast, 10 minute warm down) and a long run session (10m W/up,
5 mile run, 10m w/dwn).
The distances highlighted have gradually increased.
So I now find myself really looking forward to the long run, in which I can run all the way to, and around, a hidden roadless valley with forested sides, and an abandoned gothic mansion in the middle, and back without too much bother. 8 miles all in.
It takes the planning out of it and removes the danger of trying to do too much too quickly
It estimates my vo2 max, which also motivates me to increase it and not let it drop. Love it.