Week Nine - Big Puddles

Those great, schadenfreude loving guys and girls at London Marathon HQ dropped this bomb on Friday.

Oh good.

Week nine marks the end of CHUNK TWO as the training focuses on the cranking up of the longer Sunday run.

As the mileage has gone up over the weeks, the average pace has gone up too - thank goodness. It's a bit mad to look at some of those distances. Not only because they are genuinely quite big distances, but it reinforces how much further I've got to go.

Anyway, since the 14 miler on Saturday in week eight I've been aware of a little twinge in the danger zone of my knee. I don't think it is anything more than my mind on overdrive thankfully - just got to remember it is ok and perfectly normal to be a bit sore and stiff after nearly two hours of repetitive impact on the roads, and that wear and tear is a thing too.

(Shut up. You're fine!)

After last week I am determined to steer clear of any potentially angry flappy birds, so no canal routes this week please and thanks.

Apologies in advance for the gradual increase in shameless plugging for sponsorship (wait till you see the posters...) but the wheels are in motion now and with 18 and 22 milers on the horizon I need all the help I can get.

Still no big rush, but the page can be found here or just search 'BQ Run Club' on Just Giving if you are so inclined!

(Thank you!)

Run #24 - Tuesday 28th February

SLOWWWW. 

No alarm bells with the knee which is a result. Impressed at managing to go slower than I did last week at 9.07's for 5 miles. Drifting along.

(No geese).

Run #25 - Friday 3rd March

At one point this week Run Club was going to be four people strong. Then I received a sick note and a no-can-do text, leaving me and Kev to stay strong for Run Club and all its fans. 

Thankfully there was no Doris making life hard this morning and within a mile or two it was pretty much fully light. Again, thankfully, now that we chat our way round there is no ludicrous pace going off. Steady 8.22 min/miles for an hour to bring home a tick over seven miles to add to the totaliser.

As a slight aside, the showers were even more weird than normal. Why are people having ten minute conversations in the shower? It's always awkward, but when the only spare shower is the middle of the three and they continue the conversation over me... IT'S WEIRD.

For want of a better phrase, get in and get out as quickly as possible.

Run #26 - Sunday 5th March

Today is a biggun. And the weather is nothing short of a joke. 

After 14 miles last week, a further two miles were required today. SIXTEEN MILES. Gah, it's a long bloody way. I had a great curry last night though, which I am pretty sure is the best meal to have before running this far.

Same route, more or less, as last week just with the added fun of two more miles. The first eight or so miles drifted by without any dramas with the pace coming down from 8.52 to about 8.30 which is all good. Mentally, the step up to 16 was tough. To have to run for seventy minutes before it's even half way is a hard, so it was very much a case of trying not to think about the distance and just settle in as best as possible.

I had a slightly different reaction to consuming the energy gel at about 10 miles than I did last week. Now if you don't know what 'adverse reactions' these sort of supplements can have, well... I'm sure you can hazard a guess. Let's say I was pretty worried for five minutes or so but things thankfully settled down relatively quickly and it did it's job. Definitely good to get the body used to it now rather than having big problems in London.

Once I got past the half marathon distance it suddenly felt like I was going very slowly even though I wasn't. The legs were heavy, and the mind was heavier still but I got to the big one six in 2hrs 17 at 8.34's which I am very happy with. It's the second longest distance I have ever ran and, unsurprisingly, right up there in terms of the hardest too.

Oh, and shout out to the three knobheads who drove through huuuuge puddles as they passed me. You da best, lads.

This weeks very-timely-BANGER was this just before the 15 mile marker. About the same time that Dad passed by on his way to pick me up. Celebrations ensued. 

Silverstone half marathon next week, 48 days to go.