I’ve had a busy couple of weeks and can’t believe how quickly time is passing. It doesn’t seem like two weeks since my last posting, but the good news is there has been plenty of activity.
I really wanted to start March knowing that I had completed a 10 mile run. On Friday 23rd I ran 8 miles during the day (half term). I didn’t intend to run that far but I was finding it relatively easy and it was a welcome boost. Saturday and Sunday were very wet and I decided to spend a couple of days resting my legs and have a longer run with Carlos on Monday evening.
I’ve found out that giving my legs a break is very important. A long run means aching lets and joints and there must be a period of recovery. Having said that, the aches are much less now than they were a couple of weeks ago. I think that stretching and exercising is definitely helping.
Monday evening I got a text from Carlos to say he would be late, I was meeting him at the gym and I decided to try out the treadmill whilst I was waiting. By the time he arrived I’d already done half an hour so just carried on to see how far I could go…….. well I ran for two hours non-stop at what I thought was a very good pace. The treadmill said I had run for 10 miles but I’m sure it was more, I was certainly working harder that usual (I’ve since checked the pace with my iPod and I reckon treadmill is about 10% under).
It really seems that since I did the 10 miles on the treadmill, we have had continuous rain and storms, in fact part of the garage roof blew off one night! Despite this, I’ve managed to get some good runs in of varying distances. mainly 5 or 6 miles. I’m finding the distances much easier and I’m still happy with the distance travelled.
Looking back to earlier posts, It’s hard to believe that I was working hard to complete 2 and 3 mile runs. I can certainly cope with up to 10 miles now – It can be a bit boring though, running for up to two hours, but I just think that every mile I do is going to make the marathon that bit easier, and that is what keeps me going.
As well as physical challenges, there are mental challenges. I’m trying to run that bit further or faster or go up a hill rather than take the flat option. I’ve been hearing about sports drinks and gels which many marathon runners take on long runs. The gels are in sachets which are easy to carry and give a carbohydrate boost in the latter stages of the race. I ordered some of these up and they arrived today. I’ll try them out in the half marathon and see if they make a difference.
My focus now is on the Half Marathon on the 25th March. Ideally, I want to have completed a 15 mile run before the half Marathon and I’ve got two weekends left to do it in. It seems that the weeks are flying by now, and I’ll need to keep up the schedule. The weather certainly looks better, so it should be easier to get a good run in this weekend.
It’s great to see a comment on the Blog from Geoff Rebbeck. Well done Geoff, you promped me to update the blog – I really hadn’t realised that it was two weeks since the last post.
Fundraising is going well, with over £500 donated or pledged on the charity website. I’ve got another £100 or so on sponsorship forms, so we’re well over half way to the target of £1,000 to provide help and support for visually impaired children. VICTA, (the charity) provide technolgy to help make the childrens and parents lives easier, a worthy cause and thanks to everyone who has shown support so far.
I’ve also been in contact with the local newspaper who are interested in running a story about me, David (work colleague) and Will (Physio) – between us we would like to raise a considerable sum for 3 different charities. I’ll put in a link to the newspaper website as the story should be on there as well.
I’ll let you know how the weekend training goes – Bye for now and please keep the comments coming in.
