Less than 4 weeks and counting

We're definitely into the home straight now, in terms of the training.

I've received the race pack from Virgin, which has got lots to read.  It talks about all the aspects of the race from a runners and spectators perspective, and is a good read.

I had a minor setback yesterday, which required a trip to the doctors this morning.  I've been suffering a bit from blistering and one of my toes was infected (don't worry, no pictures will be shown!).  Anyway, the doctor recommended some cream (not on prescription) so I hope that it will work.  I don't feel I've had a huge amount of luck up until now....my body certainly hasn't particularly enjoyed the training.  As I've blogged previously, I was in A&E on New Years Eve with an infection that didn't clear up until the middle of January, have had recurring knee issues that had me out of serious training in the crucial February month and now this issue with my foot.  I'm still looking forward to getting the event completed, but it hasn't been easy getting this far.  In fairness, no one ever did say that it would be easy though!  I just hope I get to the start line injury and illness free.  Fingers crossed.

Just looked on RunSaturday and I've ran 130 miles in the last 30 days.  Wow...that's alot for me! 

Just over 4 weeks until the big day

It's getting very close now!  I was reading though the London Marathon magazine that Virgin sent out with my race number and I'm getting very excited, but also increasingly nervous.  I'm pleased with my training so I don't think I can do much more.....I just have to try and get around on the day and stay injury free if I can.

Next weekend will probably be my last long run, with a few smaller runs thrown in prior to the big day itself.

I went out for about 8.5 miles yesterday, and another 12 today, which was okay.  There has been quite a constant theme of my knees hurting and today was no exception, but I did what I set out to do, so I'm relatively pleased.

Today and yesterday I went out with in the clothes I'm going to wear on the day, including the NSPCC vest over the running shirt.  There were no issues with rubbing or anything, so I'll get that washed and get my name ironed onto the front and back in preparation!

It's official now.....

I have my race number and it's 43845

Rest day....

Absolutely shattered today, so looking forward to a rest day. Still planning on doing some stretches, but other than that, not doing much.

I must say, this marathon training is taking it toll on me. I know I haven't completed this one yet, but I'm really not sure if I'm going to do another one. It's hard work and my body knows about it!

One interesting thing though is that even though I pulled up early on yesterday's run with a knee issue, my knee feels fine today. Infact, I'd go as far as saying it's the best it's felt following a long run for several weeks.

Sent from my iPhone

Another LSR under my belt

Got another Long Slow Run in today (nearly 16 miles), so I'm quite pleased.  I mentioned in my last post that I missed a session last week, so I had to run today and yesterday.  I don't usually like running on consecutive days, but I had to this week.

There is a lot of debate about the LSR, and the fact that the phrase has the word 'slow' in it isn't really helpful, because the LSR isn't about speed...it's about mile building.  As well as being a physical challenge, it is also a mental one and you have to learn how to run for 3, 4 or 5 hours.  There will be ups and downs along the way, but the LSR's help as you practice going through those ups and downs.

I was a bit worried at around only 4.5 miles as I pulled up with a bad pain in my right knee.  I stopped and stretched it out, and it felt okay so I carried on.  I think, in fairness, my LSR pace may end up actually being my race pace.  As I've said on a number of occasions, my goal is to get around, so I want to try and avoid injuries for the next two weeks.  Not long to go now, with only 2 or 3 more weeks of "serious" training left, before tapering.

I went out with my wife's running playlist on the iPod today, and there are some great songs on her list.  We like similar music, but she has some totally different songs on her iPod.  It turns out that I may be pinching a few tracks for my playlist!

• Midlife Crisis by Faith No More.  I used to love this band, and this song in particular.  I actually listened to this about 5 times today on my run.  Not sure why it was good to run to, but I found my self singing along to the lyrics: "You're perfect yes, it's true.  But without me you're only you.  Your menstruating heart....it ain't bleeding enough for two."  Great song.  There are rumours they're playing at this years Download rock festival, but it's not confirmed from my quick Google this morning.
• Irresistible Force (just audio, no video with this one) by Inspiral Carpets.  This was the first "proper" band that I went to see, when I was 15/16 (getting on for nearly 20 years ago....eeek!).  We went to Glastonbury a few years ago and they were one of the opening acts, but they had lost that 'certain something' by that time, unfortunately.
• Heavyweight Champion of the World, by Reverend and the Makers.  No story with this one, but it was quite good to plod along to.

The weather was good today, which helped.  There used to be a time when on a nice, fine morning I'd be off out in the car for a drive before the roads got too busy.  I hope those days will be back with me again soon as this morning the first thing that went through my mind was "must get out for a run...".

Horrible 8.5 miler

I'm afraid to say that I dodged a training session in the week.  Both Thursday and Friday were truly horrible in terms of the weather, so today I had to go out no matter what.....and it was still raining hard.  It wasn't cold though, which is a bonus, although it was a blustery wind.  The route was on a busy road, so I was getting blown about and soaked by passing traffic. 

Still, I went out and did what I set out to, so every cloud....  I'm quite pleased really as obviously if the main event is like this in terms of the weather, I'll still have to get around.  Plus, as I am back and showered before 10.30am I still have the rest of the day to myself, which is great.

I've found a little widget, which I've put on my blog on the left hand side.  It counts down the number of days until the main event, should for some reason I forget!

Some info for spectators

The NSPCC have various official cheer points along the route, which may make it easier for seeing particular people, although I've been told these areas get very busy.  These times don't include the time it may take for the runner to get through the start line.

Cheer point 1 - Mile 6 (Cutty Sark):
Pace Guide: 
- Elite Women 09:31
- Elite Men 10:13
- 3:30 Pace 10:33
- 4:00 Pace 10:40
- 4:30 Pace 10:46
- 5:00 Pace 10:53
- 6:00 Pace 11:07

Cheer point 2 - Mile 13 and 22 (Wapping)
Pace Guide:
- Elite Women 10:08 and 10:55
- Elite Men 10:47 and 11:30
- 3:30 Pace 11:29 and 12:41
- 4:00 Pace 11:44 and 13:07
- 4:30 Pace 11:58 and 13:31
- 5:00 Pace 12:13 and 13:56
- 6:00 Pace 12:43 and 14:47

Cheer point 3 - Mile 23 (Tower Hill)
Pace Guide:
- Elite Women 11:01
- Elite Men 11:35
- 3:30 Pace 12:49
- 4:00 Pace 13:15
- 4:30 Pace 13:41
- 5:00 Pace 14:08
- 6:00 Pace 15:01

Cheer point 4 - Mile 24.5 (Embankment)
Pace Guide:
- Elite Women 11:06
- Elite Men 11:40
- 3:30 Pace 12:57
- 4:00 Pace 13:25
- 4:30 Pace 13:52
- 5:00 Pace 14:19
- 6:00 Pace 15:15

Finish Area - St James's Park
Pace Guide:
- Elite Women 11:18
- Elite Men 11:51
- 3:30 Pace 13:15
- 4:00 Pace 13:45
- 4:30 Pace 14:15
- 5:00 Pace 14:45
- 6:00 Pace 15:45

Running vest has arrived!

An exciting moment in that my NSPCC running vest has turned up. It's
official now.....I'm on the team!

There are some iron on letters provided for me to put my name or nick name on too.....

There is lots of information available for spectators, which I'll blog about later.

Sent from my iPhone

It's getting close now

I received an email from NSPCC with an update.  Basically, I should be getting the NSPCC/ChildLine Team GO running vest in the post this week, and my "race pack" from the race organisers before the end of the month.  For any spectators who may be going to London to see the event, there is a useful site with a lot of information for spectators.

I swallowed a fly

Nothing too much to say about this, accept it wasn't very tastey.  Runners need protein though, right?

I've blogged about F1 in the past, and the season starts today so I'm really looking forward to that.  Infact, at a leadership course I was on for work recently, we were asked about 'Inspirational Leaders', and I chose Ross Brawn.  He started in the industry early, dominated at Ferrari alongside Schumacher, bought the remnants of the Honda team and won the drivers and constructors championship in the teams maiden year in 2008/9.  He sold the team to Mercedes (he still runs the team) and now has Schumacher back out of retirement this year in what I hope will be a great F1 season.  Can't wait!

Very tired

I'm really tired today, for some reason.  I'm not sure if it's the last few sessions that are catching up with me.  I did run 48 miles last week, plus two shorter runs this week, so I'm definitely resting today.

The rough plan is a possible gym session tomorrow, then a longer run (10 or 12 ish) on Sunday, if I can.

A quick 6-miler after work

I got a quick 6-miler in after work today, which was good.

I was watching the first part of the Eddie Izzard documentary last night.  In case you're not aware, Eddie is a comedian and from the documentary seems like a normal type of guy, who has done virtually no running at all.  Well, Eddie took on the challenge of running 43 marathons in 51 days for charity.  I'll say that again....yes, that's 43 marathons in 51 days, with virtually no training preparation!

From the documentary he had completed 6-weeks training with a team that got him as ready as they could, and then he launched himself into the challenge.  It was actually pretty inspirational watching this as he had a lot of issues early on (I've only seen episode 1 of the 3 part series) with blisters, IT band problems, tiredness etc and seemed to be obviously struggling at times.  OK, he had a medical team with him, but this is truly an amazing achievement.

He is on Twitter and Facebook

7 weeks to go

Well, it's 7 weeks to the main event. That certainly focuses the mind!

I'm following a rough training plan, which means that I've only really got 5 more weeks of training left, before 2 weeks tapering. That will probably mean a couple more long runs, with plenty of smaller runs and gym sessions thrown in for good measure.

Another first for me

I ran 18 miles today and it felt really good!  For some reason, everything seemed to come together today:

• The weather was good.  Not too hot and not too cold and also it wasn't raining.
• I was feeling up for the run.  I'd eaten well during the week, as well as consciously drinking plenty of water.  Also, I had a good nights sleep which always helps.
• On the run my knees were fine, which was a great help too.

My pace was up slightly compared to the last long run on Tuesday as well, which is also good.  After the run, I felt I could have carried on longer, which I always find encouraging as I like finishing a session feeling positive.  I did suffer a couple of times with some cramp in my thighs and today decided to stop and stretch them about abit, whilst taking on water and/or a gel.

I'm not sure what my strategy is going to be for the rest of March and into early April.  I do plan to get another one or two long runs in if I can, hopefully taken it up to around 20 miles if possible.  I'm not planning on another long run until next weekend though.  So, all in all, a great run.

Also, I have purchased another iPod Shuffle, after my old one unsurprisingly didn't survive after being accidentally being put through a full wash in the machine.  I still find the music motivating.  My current favourite track to run to is Rockstar by Nickelback.  It's another great video that I remember whilst out running and has lots of places in New York in the video.  This screengrab is from the video, but I happen to have a picture similar to this of the outside of the New York Stock Exchange.


 Regarding the fundraising, it's going pretty well as it's currently at just over £1100.  The target is still £1800, but I'm making progress and have a few more people who have said they will sponsor me yet.

iPod Shuffle is no more

After an accidental run in with a full cycle through the washing machine, I can confirm that my iPod Shuffle is broken.  It initially gives me false hope because on turning it on, the lights flash......but then it just fizzles out and not a sound can be heard.

I need a new one ASAP, as I now find it difficult to run without music.

A much better run today

I was feeling pretty despondent after the weekend run, but today I had more or less recovered so was up for the challenge again.  My wife was working late, so I really had no excuse to not go out.


All in all, the run was much better than the run on Saturday.  I did just under 15 miles on this occasion, but the important thing is that I really felt I could have carried on.  Also, I got around without stopping, so I am really pleased.  I don't mind saying that I'm writing this with a freshly poured, ice cold beer within easy reach, as a kind of mini-celebration!

Interestingly, the run this evening was at a noticeably slower pace than my normal running pace (not including Saturday's run).  I normally seem to be running at around 9min-9 1/2 minute miles, but today's was up around 10 1/2 minute miles.  This wasn't a conscious decision on my part, but I know I was taking it easy as I wanted to get the miles in if I could.  Also, even though I put Saturday's effort down as a bad run, it was only marginally slower than today's, even though I did literally stop and walk 3 or 4 times on Saturday.  However, I feel a lot better after today's run, so I know which run I prefer out of the two!  Also, the weather today was much colder, which I think helps me alot as I don't have to drink as much.


This evening there was a local running club out.  There were some guys in there that were very quick....literally probably twice as quick as me, which is a little humbling.  Everyone has their own pace though, I suppose.


One minor setback was that today I did suffer from the dreaded joggers nipple.  Don't worry, I won't be posting any pictures....  I've had it before and it is quite painful, but it's not too bad on this occasion.


As an aside, the gels and gel belt that I ordered from eBay on Sunday arrived this morning, which is a great service.  I used a couple of the gels today, to see what they were like.  I'm not sure if they helped me today in comparison to Saturday, or not.  I wanted to try them though as some people do suffer stomach issues with these, but luckily I didn't today.  I think I'll order a few more.

(By the way, I'm not sure why there are random extra line breaks in this post....apologies for that)