An approach I can appreciate, plus some physio

I have mentioned a few times on here that I read a lot on the Runner's World forums and I enjoy the banter and posts by a lot of people.  From a running point of view, I think it's fair to say that there are a lot of differing opinions about what is the right or wrong approach to training and I guess it's also fair to say that I am guilty of confirmation-bias!  I.E., I seek to read stuff about running that broadly confirms what I already think....

Over the last 18 months or so, I have come to the firm belief that running the majority of training miles at a steady pace is the way to get faster overall.  I am not saying speed session aren't important because they are, but overall I think running steady is what has helped give me my recent improvements.  By "steady", I mean 60-90 secs per mile slower than marathon pace; I think many people mean steady as marathon pace (or even quicker!), which I think then means people get very tired, which can lead to injury and under performing on marathon day.

Anyway, as part of this confirmation-bias I came across this on Runner's World from a guy who in his time was a very quicker marathon runner.  It is an interesting idea!  He is contactable on Twitter via @gobi_one

When marathon running I peaked at 130 miles a week. 

A simple reality is miles make champions otherwise Paula/Hallie etc would all do 30 miles a week with perfect sessions and be brilliant. 

Here is one for you:
- Benchmark by running 5kms HARD
- Run 40 miles a week all easy with NO speedwork
- Run 5kms HARD
- Repeat until you stop getting PBs
- At this point you have to decide, do I have time to run more?
- If yes repeat the process on 50 miles a week
- If no then start looking at "icing" (intervals/tempo/progressive/alternates) 

It is a journey

Anyway, I have been suffering a bit with sore achilles so I decided to take myself off today for a sports massage which hurt.....A LOT!

Generally he thinks I was in reasonable shape, but suggested some ideas to help:
- cutting down the top of the heal of the shoes I run in to prevent excessive rubbing.
- lots of massage with a golf ball on the sole of my foot.  This will hurt.
- doing a stretch to help with the front of my lower legs/shins, which are connected to the achilles.  I forget the name of the muscle he used now, but I'll look it up.  Basically, the stretch involves kneeling on the and sitting directly on my heals, and then leaning back to stretch out the front of the lower legs.

He did imply that he wasn't overly concerned about my achilles themselves as he couldn't feel much scar tissue there.  In fact, he commented that he would have expected more bearing in mind my age etc.

Other than that, he again reiterated stretching out my hip flexors to help with perceived tight hamstrings:
- squats
- stretching out the quads (lifting heal to bum, holding foot, and pushing out hips).

Hopefully I'll be in shape to run Bideford Half Marathon this weekend.....we'll see,

A couple of interesting sessions

I was really pleased with the session I did yesterday.  It's an 8-mile route where I do 2 miles warmup, 5 miles at quicker than half marathon race pace and then 1 mile warm down.  It was a lot cooler yesterday than it was on the weekend and for the 5-mile block I managed 7:28, 7:26, 7:18, 7:15, 7:24 which is an average of 7:22.  One week earlier, on more or less the same course when it was hotter I only managed 7:50, 7:39, 7:40, 7:36, 7:45 which is an average of 7:42.  I'm really pleased with that and I now have a bit more confidence going into the Torbay Half, as long as it remains cool.

On the Shades thread on Runner's World there is currently a lot of talk about Base Training (BT).  There are various methods of doing BT but the simplest seems to be the Maffetone method of building a good aerobic base, based on a heart rate that is the Maximum Aerobic Function (MAF).  Someone on the thread has seen some great results from this.  When he started, he could run at 12 min/mile at his MAF of 142bpm.  After sometime, at the same 142bpm he was running 8:30 min/miles, so it means that he was going a lot quicker for the same level of exertion.

From the Maffetone site:

To find your maximum aerobic training heart rate, there are two important steps. First, subtract your age from 180. Next, find the best category for your present state of fitness and health, and make the appropriate adjustments: 

1. Subtract your age from 180. 

2. Modify this number by selecting among the following categories the one that best matches your fitness and health profile: 

a. If you have or are recovering from a major illness (heart disease, any operation or hospital stay, etc.) or are on any regular medication, subtract an additional 10.  

b. If you are injured, have regressed in training or competition, get more than two colds or bouts of flu per year, have allergies or asthma, or if you have been inconsistent or are just getting back into training, subtract an additional 5. 

c. If you have been training consistently (at least four times weekly) for up to two years without any of the problems just mentioned, keep the number (180–age) the same. 

d. If you have been training for more than two years without any of the problems listed above, and have made progress in competition without injury, add 5.

So, for me I'm 37.  I don't have any injury and I more less fall into section 2)c).  Therefore, 180-37 gives me a MAF of 143, meaning my MAF zone for base training is between 133 and 143 BMP.   This means that all training should be done between these zones (without exception), which equates to quite a low heart rate for most people which can be off-putting as the pace is slow.

There is more about this here and a good blog post from an ultra runner here.

Anyway, I had an easy 5-miler planned today and I thought I'd give it a go to see what pace I'd be running at if I did try BT.  I'm afraid I didn't manage to stay in the 133-143 range for the whole run but I was relatively pleased.  A screenshot of my HR together with the route elevation is:

You can see I started off too quickly but got into the routine okay.  The average for the run was 143, so I was relatively pleased.

I'm not committing to doing this yet as it means lots of slow miles for a period of several weeks but it's interesting doing a quick test to see what it's all about.   To be honest, I'm not sure if I have the patience for it but I'll definitely be keeping it mind.

North Dorset Village Marathon - done!

I had been carb loading all day Thursday and Friday and also up to Saturday lunchtime and I was feeling pretty full by this point, but all was looking good.  My wife and I jumped in the car and travelled up to North Dorset as we had a B&B booked for the night before the race.  I packed a lot of stuff, but I'm glad I took it all even though some of it I didn't need.

We arrived at the B&B at 3pm-ish and as we had some time we decided to drive the course.  This probably seems like a stupid thing to do, but in a way I'm glad I did as a) it's a nice picturesque course and b) I had a better idea of where the hills were.  It turns out there were only really 2 main hills, and on the day of the race itself I didn't really notice them.  We had a meal booked at Prezzo in nearby Blandford so we went out for that at 6:00pm.  I had the same as what I had at the Bideford Half which was garlic bread and meatballs/pasta but I was still hungry, so back at the B&B I had some flapjack and Jaffa Cakes which went down well.

I got a reasonable night's sleep and Sunday morning the alarm was set for 05:45 as I was having breakfast at 6am.  The B&B owners were great (and even got up with me) and I had my usual pre-run breakfast of shredded wheat, sultanas and a coffee.  Staying at the B&B were 2 South Africans also doing the race, one of who had done the renowned Comrades Marathon (on a year when it was ran going "down").  This year he is to do it on the "up".  Comrades is a 54 mile race and is supposed to be pretty gruelling.  I caught up with the two guys at the end of the race and they had both down really well, one of them bagging a PB.

On the morning of the race, I walked up to the school (which was the race HQ) and picked up my number and dropped of my bag, and then wandered back to the B&B for final preparations.  I was incredibly nervous, but also pleased that the day had finally arrived although it was forecast to be quite sunny which was a worry.  I walked back up to the race HQ at 8:15 and I'm pleased I managed to see Shades from the Runner's World thread I'm involved in.  It was great to meet her and her last bit of advice was to not go out too quickly, which I kept in my mind.  The race start was literally 10 metres from our B&B, so I'll remember that if I do this race again.

Onto the race itself and it was more or less perfect conditions at the start.  The sun was out, but there was cloud cover and there was virtually no wind.  I started off gently just to get the first 3 or 4 miles under my belt and to see how I felt.  Everything was feeling good with no sign of my knee niggle or any stomach issue rumbling so I was going well.  I remember thinking at about 13 miles and also again at 16 miles that I was doing well but to just keep it steady and see how it goes.  

At around this time I had a bit of a strange (very brief) conversation with someone on a moped.  I had seen this moped earlier and then I saw that she had pulled into a lay-by.  She still had her helmet on but as I came up to her she made eye-contact with me and the conversation went something like:

- Moped driver:  "Do you know where the air field is?".

- Me: "Eh?"

- Moped driver: "Do you know where the air field is?".

- Me: "Urrrm...sorry, no"

.....and off I trotted, without breaking stride.

The route itself was very picturesque with lots of nice scenery, cows, sheep, goats, pigs and and some horses all along the route.  The course is quite a rural one so there wasn't that much support along the way, but the marshals were great and in fact the whole organisation was brilliant.  I had a personal drink at the station at mile 19 so I picked that up and carried on.

At around 20 miles I was just about on for a sub-4, which was at the very top end of my expectations but by this time I was beginning to struggle slightly.  The sun was out (I have a red face this morning to prove that!) and by mile 22 my calfs were cramped and I was reduced to having to walk a few times, which is a shame.  At around this time I was running near a fellow Trotter who I later found out was also struggling.  He tried to drag me along, but I wasn't able to go with him unfortunately.  I then reassessed with the true main time goal to finish under 4:30, but kept pushing (firstly trying to do 4:05 and when that slipped by to get under 4:10).

The final mile was tough.  It was a very slight gradient on a gravel track and it just seemed to go on and on.  About 200 metres from the finish I caught sight of my wife and she spurred me on.  She took this picture and I have to say I don't look too bad here!  I was feeling a lot worse than I look as my legs were shot by this point.

I'm pleased to say that my official finish time is 4:08:12 and I am genuinely over the moon by that.  My one and only previous marathon was 5:15 at London 2010 (which admittedly was a pretty soft target for me) but I'm pleased to say that I smashed that time so all the training, weight loss, change in drinking habits etc seems to have paid off.

I picked up my race medal (picture below) and t-shirt and caught up with my wife.  There were a few fellow Trotters at the finish and most of them had struggled in some way, I think due to the heat.  The organisers had put mini-buses on to get back to the start but I decided to walk back as I thought the walk would do my legs some good.  I got back to race HQ 10-mins later, grabbed my bags and had a shower.  I also had some food (scotch eggs, flap jack and Jaffa cakes....) which went down well and also did a bit of stretching.

We jumped into the car and drove home, where I promptly had a large mixed grill and a pint which did go down well, but I was very tired so I did go to bed fairly early and I'm glad it's a Bank Holiday today!

So, what have I learnt from this race:

- There are no short cuts to training.  It helps me to be pretty well organised and disciplined in the marathon training and remembering to ease off a bit if injured.

- Even with the above, the marathon is a distance that has to be respected.  It can smack you in the face, and it's good to expect this to happen and have ways of dealing with it.  For me, it's along the lines of "get to that lamp post" or "get to that spectator" and just trying to keep my form and relax my shoulders.

- I think the carb loading helped a lot.  I may have to practice this some more as it wasn't really right that I was still hungry after my Saturday evening meal so I need to look at what I can eat the night before.  I worry about stomach issues though (which I have suffered a lot with in the past), so I do need to practice this before an LSR.

- I had some Jaffa Cakes with me on the race, and these were an epic fail.  I had practiced with them through the winter months and had some at Bideford but whilst running this race they just didn't want to do down so I didn't eat them.  I had some jelly beans and melon at one of the food stations and that helped kick start me.  I need to look at this if I'm to do another marathon, maybe revisiting gels again.  I have used gels in the past and I didn't get on with them but I need to think about this again.

- I learned that I could dig in when times were tough and get through in a good time for me.  It's a shame that I had to walk a bit, but even this was tactical as I walked up the slight inclines and trotted down the other side, thinking that I as probably walking quicker than I could run at that point anyway.

So, all in all I'm really pleased.  I must say I'm looking forward to going back to the 10Ks and halfs, but I reckon there's a good chance I'll be putting my name down for another marathon at some point!

North Dorset Village Marathon - the final preparations!

Well, this time tomorrow I'll be well on my way in the North Dorset Village Marathon.  I'm feeling nervous already and wondering if I've forgotten something.  I have a long list at the top of this page, which I'm in the process of going through to make sure I don't forget anything.

Over the last couple of days I've been carb-loading for the event, and using the basic rule of trying to get 8-10g of carbs down for every 1Kg of body weight.  Getting that many carbs down me is difficult as I should be looking in the region of 700-800, but I've given it a good shot.  I didn't really measure it yesterday but on Thursday I had 4 tea cakes, a large bowl 75g bowl of porridge, 3 bananas, a large pasta-based meal, garlic bread, flapjack, 2 shredded wheat, juice and a sports drink which came to a mere 550g.  I had similar on Friday, but I'll be easing back a bit today as I am feeling pretty full!

I am having a mild panic about the drinks that I use.  I use Torq Energy which is a powder that I add water to and it comes in big tubs.  I noticed last night (because I stupidly checked...if I hadn't checked, I would have been non-the-wiser) that my current pot is a month or so past its "best before date" and another pot I use I have a very very slight doubt over as there is 0.0000000001% chance it caused a stomach issue I had recently on a run.  I think I'll just go with the pot that is past it's "best before date" as I'm sure it won't be an issue.

Shades from the Runner's World thread I frequent a lot is also doing the race.  I haven't met her face-to-face before, but I'm hoping I bump into her on the start line so I can say a quick "Hi" and wish her well.  That thread has been a great source of advice and general good banter and I check it regularly.

On a light hearted note, there was a thread on Runner's World this week about a guy who seemed to have got a bit confused with his race number.  Having a read through this is good for a bit of laugh.

So, this time tomorrow I'll be about 3 hours through the race, with probably another 1-1.5 hours to run. I know I've done everything I can so I've got everything crossed that it'll go well!

Spring marathon season has well and truly kicked off, plus a bit of a niggle!

On Sunday 7th April 2013, it kind of felt that the Spring Marathon season well and truly kicked off with loads of people from Teignbridge Trotters and Runner's World doing marathons on that day.

I was really interested in the Paris Marathon this year as I knew a few people who were travelling out to attempt the event.  One was going for Sub-3, another Sub-4 and the third out to enjoy.  I'm pleased to say that all three managed their goals!

I watched the event on the TV (it was shown live on Eurosport) and I must admit that as a casual observer I'm not sure if I would travel over for the event myself.  From the TV coverage it looked like a bit of a shambles from where I was sitting:

- I reckon some people must have taken an hour to get through the start, maybe more.  The commentators mentioned that there were no toilet facilities in the start area, so it's not ideal if you've been standing around for an hour and lots of runners end up doing their business in shop doorways.
- For some reason the organisers kept closing one arch off.  I am guessing this was to help with clearing up bin liners etc, so is therefore understandable but you could see people getting frustrated.
- Right at the start there were loads of people (I am presuming media etc) in the middle of the road.  Even the elites had to dodge around them.  It could have been nasty for the "second tier" of elites who would have arrived at the scene unsighted.
- Live on TV, within around 50 metres from the start one runner from the masses who was looking at his watch ran right into a camera. Hopefully he was okay, but he looked like he clattered it quite hard!
- The route wasn't really closed to the public.  At one point, there was a lady out for her run going along on the racing line.  The elites, which at this point were in a bunch of around 25, had to dodge around her.

Having said that, it was well organised in terms of being able to track runners.  There was a free iPhone app available and it allowed you to track runners by their name or number.  It gave you their time for each 5K, plus their half way and the end times so that was really good and added a different dimension alongside watching the race on TV.

As well as Paris, about 30 of my club mates went off to do Taunton Half and full Marathons with a good smattering of PBs achieved as well.

In terms of my running, this week is a big week with a 22 miler (the longest of training) planned.  I do have a bit of a niggle though and I've been pointed towards the following URL as a good source if information.
http://www.physioadvisor.com.au/7652450/injuries-sports-injuries-injury-treatment-inju.htm

My issue is at the back/inside of my left leg, level with the knee.  It doesn't seem like a joint issue but more of a tendon/muscle issue.  I've been doing a lot of stretching and icing and it does seem to be getting better.  I was out for an 8-miler today and nearly turned around after 1-mile, but strangely it seemed to get better over time so I did manage to complete the run okay.  When I stretch my quads or lift my lift my foot up towards my bum it hurts a bit.

Anyway, I'll keep an eye on it but I'm a bit concerned about getting my 22-mile LSR in this week.  Let's see how it goes.

Club session, LSR, results analysis and some rambling before the BH weekend!

It's nearly the bank holiday weekend, so I'm planning on relaxing a bit and enjoying some time off work which will be really nice.

I have quite a bit to talk about today!

Wednesday club session
I got a tough club session in yesterday evening.  It was 5x1m intervals with 2mins recovery.  I haven't done this session before, and my legs were aching afterwards but I'm glad I went.  It wasn't a "perfect" session in that I slowed a bit at the end, but I'm pleased as all the splits were a fair bit under 7min/mile.

1 06:49

2 06:43

3 06:40

4 06:54

5 06:51

This week's LSR
Following the above club session, I'm in two minds about when to do this week's LSR.  I have a 20-miler to do and I could a) try and to it after work or b) do it tomorrow AM?

If I do get time to do it after work, it will be on tired legs from the session last night.  I think it's probably a good thing to try and run an LSR once in a while on tired legs, so I may give it a go and see how I get on.  Also, if I get it out of the way this evening it will mean that I can enjoy the beer festival more tomorrow!

Exeter "wrap up and run" 10K
The results are out for the 10K I did on the weekend, and I'm pleased with the results.  Out of 550 finishers I finished 87th, which I think is my best relative position.  However, although there were lots of quick runners, there were also quite a few fun/charity run/walkers so that has to be kept in mind.  Even so, I'm pleased.

Also, for my age category (M35) I finished 13th out of 36 which I am sure is the best age category position I have finished in.  Onwards and upwards!

Runner's World Sports Psychology web chat 
Every so often, Runner's World have an expert on a particular subject where forumites can ask question sand the expert answers them in the form of a web chat.  This week, there was a sports psychologist and I posed a question about what to do to help avoid nerves on the start line of an important question.

My post/question:

I also suffer with nerves alot before a race that I want to do well in (i.e, if it's an event I've been training hard for and my goal is a PB).  However, the other day I did a 10K and got a PB and wasn't nervous at all on the start line.  I think this was because it wasn't a main goal for me, but I was still expecting I would do well.  However, if it hadn't gone well I know I would have genuinely brushed it off and moved onto the next race.  I do have a routine at the start of each race (which I also practice on my LSRs) around food, loo, stretching etc but even this doesn't help on the start line of an important event.

I know the obvious answer is to try relax at the start of my important races, but I find that easier said than done.  Therefore if you any tips on this it would be appreciated.

A couple of other people asked similar questions and there were some useful tips, including:

• Expect anxiety if you have had this before in similar events.   
• Imagine how you will preform, how you will manage the day, how you will execute your strategy. 
• Recall all your good training. You're ready, aren't you!   
• Food wise, eat what you'd normally eat, try not to over do it, or eat anything that a nervous stomach will not like.  Go easy on fibre - as your stress hormones reduce your ability to digest and increase the need to evacuate (bowel movements).   
• Nerves are normal, they prepare you to fight or take flight.  The marathon is a long 'flight'.
• Tell yourself beforehand that you are going to do your best, stuff may happen, and if it does you will do your best at the time to handle it. 
• However things go, you will be proud of yourself, live to fight another day and seek other goals. This is one, but not the only goal for you in running, activity and life!  Go for it.

This is an important month for my training

This is a very important month for my marathon training, so I hope it goes well.  Time will tell.

I got a 4-mile recovery run in yesterday and felt fine, if a little achey.  This morning I'm fine and think I could got for a long run if I wanted to.  That's good as it means I have recovered pretty well from the weekend's efforts.

(**If you're slightly squeamish, please don't read the next bit).
I think I may lose a toenail though.  I did lose the same nail that is causing issues after London 2010 and it is a bit sore today as well.  I've been advised to Lock Lacing, which will help the laces stay tight and help avoid movement in the shoe.

(**You can carry on reading now...).
A I mentioned, this is an important month for me with a couple of  20 milers in the plan.  I may actually up one of those to 22 if I feel I can.

The rough plan is:
w/c 4th March
5 mile easy
Club speed/hill training
8 mile easy
16 mile LSR
Total:  about 34

w/c 11th March
9 mile easy
Club speed/hill training
6 mile easy
20 mile LSR
Total: about 40

w/c 18th March
5 mile easy
15 mile mid-week long run
8 mile tempo
10K race
Total: about 34

w/c 25th March
10 mile easy
Club speed/hill training
5 mile tempo
20-22 LSR
Total: about 40-42

If I do that lot, it'll be around 163 miles (including the half I did on the 3rd), which I think will be a record.  In a way, the 10K race has come at the wrong time for me as that week's mileage is down a bit on what it should be, but I think it should work out okay.

I'm still on 100% for Jantastic, which I'm pleased with.  The March challenge is to specify how many runs a week I'll do (I've said 4 again) and  say what the longest runs each week will be (I've planned the above and input that into the Marathon Talk website).  The extra challenge for March is to say what I'll do a set distance in.  For that, I'm using the 10K race and I've said 46:30, so we'll see how that goes!

A brush with running royalty, plus other things

A few weeks ago, Marathon Talk interviewed Amby Burfoot.  For those who may not know, Amby Burfoot won the Boston marathon in 1968, has been involved in running his whole life and is editor at large of Runner's World (US).  In running circles, he is pretty much royalty.

Anyway, on that Podcast it was mentioned that Burfoot has a book out and if you email him he'll sign it with an appropriate message and post it.  Yesterday, I went onto the website and emailed the address.  I was expecting an assistant or department to email me back, but the email came from Burfoot himself (within only a couple of hours)!  I do feel a bit bad as he said he won't be able to deal with my request for a couple of weeks as he is on holiday....I'll let him off that!

Another book that was mentioned on Marathon Talk was back in episode 77 (I'm still going through the back catalogue).  It is a book called "Chasing The Runner's High" by Ray Charbonneau and it was only a couple of quid for a Kindle copy.  I'm only about half way through it, but I'm enjoying it.  It's not about running technique or anything - it's just about a guy who is a runner and it's some of his stories along the way and a lot of it rings true with me.


I've been really struggling with my training paces and Shades from the Runner's World thread that I frequent has helped me out with the paces I should be running, following my half time on the weekend.  In an attempt to make sure I stick to them I'm putting them on a separate page on this Blog for all to see.

Easy  9:30 to 10:00
Long 9:30 to 10:30
Tempo 7:45 to 8:00
Marathon pace 8:21

OK - the Marathon Pace seems a long way off, but I guess it's something to aim for!  The important thing for me from seeing those Easy and Long paces in black and white is....I must start slowing down on those LSRs!

In that respect, I did a slow 8-miler last night (I was supposed to do a recovery run on Monday, but I didn't get to do it).  I'm pleased to say that I averaged a slow and steady 09:43 and the splits were fairly consistent.  It did feel slow, but I think that's the point.  I have an 18-miler planned this weekend, so I'm aiming to do a similar, consistent slow and steady pace on that.  If I can get a LSR in and feel good afterwards, I know that will be a confidence booster.

Summary
 1:17:48.6 8.00 9:43
1 9:51.2 1.00 9:51
2 9:41.8 1.00 9:42
3 9:45.0 1.00 9:45
4 9:40.7 1.00 9:41
5 9:44.4 1.00 9:45
6 9:41.0 1.00 9:41
7 9:39.3 1.00 9:39
8 9:41.9 1.00 9:42

Still so many questions about this running malarkey

Running is simple, right?  It's just putting one foot in front of the other after all.  Then why does it sometimes still seem quite a complex activity, with so many variables?

So, what questions have I still got?  A few are below:
- is my fuelling/hydration correct?  I don't think it is, and I need to work on that especially for a marathon.  Before the Half Marathon I weighed myself and I was 12st10lb (which is a good weight for me, by the way!).  After the event, I stuffed myself with kit kats, creme eggs, orange juice, crisps and water and when I got home I was 12st6lb.  What has caused that weight loss.....fluid loss?  If so, those fluids (including salts) need to be replaced.  How am I going to do that on a marathon?  I don't know yet, but I'll work on it.
- what time can I expect at the marathon in May?  Sub-4:30?  Sub-4:15?  At a push, Sub-4:00?  Why does this matter...surely I should just go out and try my best and see what happens?  I will of course do that on the day, but I'm still tinkering with my training paces (LSR especially, which I know I tend to run too quickly).
- after all the preparations I made in terms of food/fuel, why was I still peckish on the start line?  I think this is because I usually run at 8am and I had eaten as if I was running at 8am.  However, with the race starting at 9am and having to leave at around 8am to get there I had my food at home.  Should I look at what I can eat in the car on the way to an event?  Maybe.

What is interesting is that I think the vast majority of runners (whether they are in the middle of the pack like me, at the sharp end contending for places, or nearer the back on their own personal challenges) all continually think about these types of things.  My wife was spectating on the weekend, and people were calling out to runners asking how they were doing.  Every runner, without exception, was moaning about something.  No runner said they were doing really well and were happy….it was all, "I'm too hot", "I'm too cold", "This course is rubbish", "I'm hungry", "I'm thirsty", "My knee is hurting" etc etc.  I know when I'm running I have so much going on my head and I'm arguing with myself about various things.  What a funny bunch we are!

On reflection of my Exeter Half time, I am now happier....a PB is a PB after all!!  In June 2012 I struggled with a 2hr Half, October 2012 I did a 1hr 50 (breaking a 5 year old PB) and on the weekend I did a 1hr 47 so I do know that is a really good improvement.  I wish I had reacted differently on the start line, but I didn't and I can't change that now.  There's always the next event, which for me is just three weeks away.

I do have a bet with myself.  If I do not go out too quickly on my next Half Marathon, I will treat myself to a large mixed grill and a few pints afterwards.  I must not go off too quickly at the next event.  I must stick to my plan, get to half way more or less on target (not under target) and reassess how I am feeling at that point.

The big build up - Exeter Half Marathon this weekend

I now have my place in the Exeter Half Marathon after I transferred a number from a fellow Trotter who can no longer do the race.

Since my PB of 1:50:16 back in October I've shed a few pounds and also I feel I'm generally fitter/quicker so I'm hoping for a PB this weekend.  Getting my excuses in early, but the weather forecast doesn't look good currently, as there is the chance of snow and windy conditions according to the met office forecast.  Obviously if I get any PB I'll pleased, but the real test will be if I can sneak under the 1:45 time, which means averaging 8 min/miles for the race.  I expect I'll come in more around the 1:48 time, but we'll see how it goes on the day.

Unlike the race in October (Dartmoor Vale Half Marathon, which is hilly), this is billed as a pancake flat course so if it all comes together on the day I could do well.  It's funny though, because even with good preparation and improvements I think I've made recently, certain things are still out of my control. I.E., weather, how to handle a congested course and a case of runner's trots can all disrupt the best laid plans but this is the same for everyone so I'll just do my best, as always.

Shades from the Runner's World thread as said that she will look at my finish time and help with me my training paces for the marathon in May.  That will be good as it will then help me to properly focus on the correct LSR pace.  I have a strong suspicion that I'm still running them too quickly so if I see a great coach spell my paces out to me I think I will more likely try and stick to them.

Anyway, I've done my last run before the event which was a slow 5-miler with a couple of shorter faster sections, and it felt good!

First run of the week and Febulous starts

I got a 7 mile run at target half marathon pace and it was okay, but not brilliant.  I think I'm not fully back to normal following the weekend's excesses!  It was good to get the first run of the week out of the way though, and I had pleasure in marking my first run of Febulous off!

I averaged 07:57 min/mile, so on track for the sub 1:45 PB on the weekend, all being well!  It's a tough ask for me to knock another 5-mins off of my 1:50 PB and it's not a given at this stage, but I'm in with a shout if everything goes well (weather, food, drink, race tactics, race crowds) etc.  As I'm sitting here writing this, I'll be a bit disappointed if I don't get a 1:4X time....we'll see how I get on.

Shades from the Runner's World thread has posted a "Noddy's guide to marathon preparation", which is really useful.  It talks about what to do in the taper work, things to keep in mind for the Saturday before the event, preparation for the day of the, the race itself and some important post-race things to do.  I've printed it out actually, and I will take it with me to my marathon in May!

So, tomorrow is a rest day where I'll do some more stretching and to try make sure I continue to get some liquids into me.  I am planning a club session on Wednesday, a slow/easy 4-5 miler on Friday and then the race itself on Sunday.

There looks to be some good sessions on the Wednesday night club session, so I'm not sure yet what I'll choose:

• Churchills 3 hills challenge - 45min continuous running, 2 uphill & 1 downhill
• 10 x 400m - Even paced efforts with 90 second recovery
• Lamp Post relays - Run warm up, lamp post reps and run cool down

It's not big and it's not clever!

I had a weekend off running and my wife and I had a weekend away, which was very nice.  We went out for a few drinks, saw a comedy show, had a nice meal out on the evening and a nice breakfast in the morning.

I did enjoy the weekend, but Sunday was more or less a write off due to the alcohol....!  I think I had 8 pints on the Saturday afternoon/evening and although the ales weren't particularly strong it really knocked me about on the Sunday.  It didn't help that we had some "noisy neighbours" at the hotel, so I didn't get a lot of sleep but it was the alcohol that was the main culprit for me feeling rough.

I had about 8 pints in around 9 hours.  In my previous "non-running" life, this wouldn't necessarily have been a huge amount for a 9-hour "session" so I think it shows my body is changing and it obviously didn't like the booze on Saturday.  I had plenty if fluid and got a reasonable night's sleep on Sunday so I'm feeling much better today and raring to go again.

On to this week.....

I am now entered into a half marathon on the 10th February.  It is a flat course, so I'm going to go for a PB.  We'll see how that goes!  Shades (from Runner's World) has said for me to go for the PB, and depending on the time she will help reassess my training paces (especially my LSR pace) to make sure I'm doing okay.

It's month two of Jantastic (Febulous), and after my 100% in January I'm aiming for it again in February so hopefully I'll stay injury free and keep on the plan.

Talking about the Runner's World forums, there are a lot of posts about people's first marathons and a lot of buzz/fears/concerns etc.  The forum has a competition where 6 (I think) forumites get some "personalised" training via the forum for a target-paced marathon.  I'm currently lurking on the sub-4 hour thread as if I get under 4 hours I'll be extremely pleased.  I'm in a bit if a dilemma as I've said all along that I just want to try and enjoy this one, and that is still the main aim!  However, I want to also do my best.  I think really what I mean is that I want to get through 18-20 and not blow up, but ideally run through the finish line with not much left in the tank...the proverbial "sprint finish" would be great.  We'll see!

11 miler this morning, with iPod

I went out for a gentle 11 miler (at the time of writing for some reason the Garmin Connect site isn't allowing me to upload my run details) from Paignton-Torquay and back, twice.

As I mentioned in my previous post, I was going to out with my iPod and listen to the Marathon Talk Podcast.  I actually enjoyed listening the podcast and this episode had Mike Tomlinson (Jane's husband) on the show.  It was a thought-proving episode, and Mike explained what Jane went through with her illness, including a lot of "hassle" from people questioning her illness etc.  As the episode mentioned, there are some strange people out there.  Mike has this month opened the York Marathon for entries, and after a quick Google it appears that the original 5000 place sold out in 2 days.  At the time of writing, 5500 places have now gone and they are seeing if they can raise it 6000 entrants.  See here for a report.

Another thing about the Podcast is that someone from the Runner's World marathon thread I am a member of was mentioned as she did 2 marathons back to back in January.

Anyway, I'm pleased to see that my achilles seems okay and didn't hold me up or bother me on the 11 miler, although it does seem a bit tight after the run.  I am planning on doing a "normal" week next week, to include the Wednesday club session that will involve a hill/tempo/sprint session of some sort.

I've also logged my four runs this week on the Marathon Talk website so I"m currently on track for Jantastic!

Running plan, plus achilles injury

I took some time yesterday to think a bit about a running schedule that would take me up to the marathon I have planned in early May.  I've been following and contributing to a thread on Runner's World where a marathon plan has been put together by someone (Shades) who has ran nearly 300 marathons so she obviously knows what she is doing!

I've tweaked it slightly to take into account of the following:

• I want to keep a Wednesday session going if at all possible.  This is the main Wednesday club session where I'll probably run either a hill or speed session.  This will be a tough session for me.
• I may move the Long Slow Runs to a Saturday as opposed to the Sunday.  This is so that I can try and get a long to some of the Saturday club social runs which I have enjoyed when I have attended.
• 2 weeks will be down on the recommended mileage due a couple of events I have lined up.  These are a half marathon and a 10K.  I have checked with Shades and she has said I don't need to worry about making up the mileage on these race weeks.

One thing I notice with the plan is that a 5 mile tempo run is included on each week, and the tempo mileage doesn't increase through the schedule.  I did check this with Shades and she has recommended that I do not increase this mileage.  My problem (and it's a problem I think many runners face, and is definitely not an issue with the plan) is that I am worried that I won't know for sure how fast I can run if I don't increase the tempo mileage.  However, I think I need to have faith in the plan and trust that it works with the main focus being on the endurance/long runs.  Also, the Trotters Wednesday session will be a tough and quick session for me as well.  This will take some discipline for me to hold back on increasing these tempo miles.

The plan itself doesn't seem too bad with a maximum weekly mileage peaking at 43.  This is about 8 miles more than my previous weekly highest, and coincides with the longest run of the training plan which is a 22 miler.

Unfortunately, I have tweaked my right achilles slightly so I am actually off running for a few days with the hope that it will clear up in a few days.  I am aware that achilles can be problematic so I am a bit worried at this point, keeping in mind that I haven't actually started the plan yet!  I am hoping that I will be ready to start running again at the start of next week......fingers crossed.

Today was my first day back at work following the Christmas and New Year break, but at least it's a short 2-day week this week for me.  

Looking forward to the New Year, and little look back at 2012

Today is the first day of 2013 so I'm talking the opportunity to think about some running goals for 2013 as well as looking back over 2012 a little bit.

Firstly (and most recently), I managed to complete the December 2012 running streak that I set my self where I ran at least 1 mile each day in December.  I actually ended up totalling 140 miles (off of an initial target of 120) which is the largest monthly total to date.  At some point in the run up to the marathon I have planned in May 2013 I guess this will nudge closer to the 200 mark, but I'll see how that goes.

In terms of 2012 as a whole, it was kind of a year of three thirds from a mileage point of view!  The first third (Jan-April) I did very little running at all totalling about 120 miles in total.  I can't quite remember why this is to be honest, but I know I was going to the gym a fair bit at that time.  The second third (May-August) I did about the same amount of miles but I know I completed two events (more about below).  However, the final third (September-December) are where things really took off for me, and is directly related to me joining a running club - I did nearly 500 miles in that period.

I completed 3 races in 2012.
- The 24th June Torbay Half Marathon.   I did this in slightly over 2hrs and I felt awful!  I was pretty despondent at this time, but I was really proud of my wife who did the course in 1:55:56 which is a 5-min PB for her and is the first time she got under the 2hr mark.  She did brilliantly!  Looking back now, even though I was hoping for a 1:55 or under (which would have been a PB) I know I was no where near prepared for it and I was kidding myself that I was doing the required training.

- The 26th August Torbay 10K.  At this I did a PB of under 50 minutes for the first time (49:39) so I was really pleased (my previous PB was 51:06).  However, I also felt that I had a lot more in me - I remember thinking that I had found it difficult and also when I looked at the results for my age category, I was 21st out of 34 competitors which to be honest I wasn't happy with.  I also remember looking around me at fellow runners and a lot of them seemed to be enjoying their running and because they were wearing club vests (and hence being a member of a club) I made a correlation between "happy running" and "running club" and decided to join a club.  3 days later (29th August) I had joined the Teignbridge Trotters and had been on my first session with them!  Joining the club has been the best thing I've done from a running perspective, and I wish I'd joined years ago.

- The 21st October Dartmoor Vale Half.  At this point I had been in the Trotters for about 2 months and I know that I had already started to improve.  I entered this event which is on quite a tough hilly course got a PB (shaving over 5 mins off) with a time of 1:50:17.  This was 10-mins quicker that my June half and also a 5-min course record.  I was delighted with the time (okay, I was a little annoyed with the 17 seconds!) but I did flag around miles 10-12 so I know there is still room for improvement.   I'm sure the improvement that did come about was due to me joining the club.

Weight loss and drinking habits
Another change in the "final third" of the year is that I have dropped 1 stone in weight.  As I sit here on January 1st (and I confess a little bit groggy from last night), I'm at 13st 2...my previous "bench mark" for a healthy weight was 14st which happens to coincide with just about sneaking into the "healthy" BMI range, and is a weight that I used to fluctuate around quite a lot.  This coincided with the increased mileage but also by me restricting my alcohol intake considerably.  At one point I went 7 weeks without a drink which is a record for me in 20 years of drinking!  I will never be tea-total (and I don't want to be), but for me the restriction of alcohol has been a massive change.

So turning to goals for 2013:
- I would like to get down consistently below 13 stone.  I'm not obsessing about this though....if it happens, that's fine.  The 1 stone weight loss in the last third of 2012 came about very easily and I think with the increased mileage I'm planning I will probably get below 13st.
- Be wary of my alcohol intake and go for "streaks" of being tea-total (probably between holiday times).
- Crack a 1:45 for a half marathon.  I have two attempts planned - one in March and another in June.  This is my main "time challenge" of the year.
- Get around a full marathon and actually enjoy it (unlike London 2010)!!  A time of sub-4:30 would be great and I have a marathon booked in early May to focus the mind in early 2013!
- If I can get under 45-mins for a 10K that would be superb.  As I sit here typing, I think I'll find this the toughest time challenge but I'll see how I get on.  I have two events in mind - one in March and one in August.
- Keep it going with the Trotters.  Try and get a long to as many of the Wednesday training sessions as possible, do as many weekend social runs as I can and also do some marshalling if I am able to.  I think this will help me stay consistent with my training/running and slowly/safely build up the necessary miles for the events I have planned.
- I'd like to think I could rack up 1200-1500 miles this year.
- I really want to try and keep my back healthy, by stretching and generally being careful with it.  I did my back in during 2011 and it put me out for weeks - I really don't want to go through that again as it was very painful.  Although this is the last goal, for me it's the most important.  If I'm not feeling right, I will back off the training knowing that it could impact some or all of the above.

I know that's a long post, but thanks for reading and good luck with your running goals in 2013!

Runner's World forums

To coincide with my new found enthusiasm for running (which was sparked by joining a running club, as mentioned in the last post) I also started reading the Runner's World forums.

I had an account, but had never really used it. However, since rediscovering the forums I have found them to be very useful, with a friendly user base.

All sorts of stuff is discussed there, but I came across a thread to help train for a marathon. It was by an unknown (to me, at the time) person whose login name is Shades. The thread has literally 10s of 1000s of responses. I emailed Shades and she responded with her training plan, which was great. I started posting the odd comment, and it turns out that Shades (and another regular to the thread....Valley Runner) are local to me. In fact, when I went for a run after announcing myself to the thread, I actually ran past Valley Runner on my session!

Both Shades and Valley Runner are pretty inspirational. They both happen to be members of Teignbridge Trotters as well and Shades has ran nearly 300 marathons and VR has recently completed her 100th. What an amazing achievement and it really puts into perspective what is possible through running.