The positive effects of running a marathon badly...

So London Marathon is done.  4:46.  Over an hour slower than Edinburgh.  But, I made it to the start line AND I ran every single step.

Too much stress the week before was not good timing and I felt exhausted before even getting down to London.  I had also noticed that I was a bit anaemic which I tried to compensate for my restarting my vitamins and iron.  It was probably due to my bout of flu combined with the extra stress of the other stuff in my life.

Friday was great though.  K and I set off for the train with our million bags because we were also flying out to Abu Dhabi and Dubai the day after London.  We met up with Nicky and Kay and we all managed to sit together on the train which was great.  Kept me calm.

When we got to London we got a taxi to the hotel and I got a huge hug because John had already arrived from Abu Dhabi and been able to pick up some paperwork for me from the UAE Embassy.  Having not seen him for 7 weeks it was so lovely to see him again.

The expo was great fun.  Having not been to anything like that before, it was very interesting.  K won a tshirt and a Club La Santa voucher which I hope I get the chance to use.  I bought myself a lovely green VLM 2011 climalite jacket.  Picked up loads of free stuff on the way round and got some t-shirts from Breakthrough Breast Cancer for K and John to wear on the Sunday.  Bright pink in the hope that they would be easier to spot in the crowds.

Saturday morning Kay, John, K and I went to Brockwell parkrun in Brixton.  Having been determined to do a parkrun because she is trying to get her 50 t-shirt before we leave, K created all the way round.  It's at times like this I swear to myself I won't run with her again!

Saturday afternoon I had a nap and put my feet up for a bit.  We went out for tea on the Saturday night with Kay, Nicky, Chris and Liz.  Didn't feel panicked at all, which is most unusual for me.

Sunday morning and up early for porridge.  Then downstairs to meet Kay, Nicky, Chris and Liz.  Liz and Chris were running a bit late so Kay, Nicky and I set off to London Bridge station where we were supposed to meet Harp.  When we got there, Harp wasn't there so Kay and I left Nicky to cram ourselves onto the train.

It was a long walk from the station.  Kay was at a different start so I left her after about 10 minutes and carried on.  Immediately, I spotted the lady walking next to me had a Brass Monkey top on so I got chatting to her.  She was also from Leeds and runs for Valley Striders.  It was nice to have someone to chat to because it was at least another 10 minutes before we got to the Green start.

The Green start was tiny and not very busy.  I put my bag in and went to the loo.  The queue was short when I started queuing, but by the time I came out of the loo the line was massive!  I sat down and got chatting to another lady.  I heard people shouting for Tony and seeing as K loves Tony's Trials on Marathon Talk, I went to get a photo of him for her.  There was also a Corrie actor she likes so I took a pic of him for her too.

The start came round really quickly.  I didn't feel nervous, but had a weird wave come over me that definitely wasn't nerves.  I ignored it and focussed on the start.  Over the line in less than two minutes and we were off.

I was quite good with my pacing and kept it between 9 and 10 mins although it was probably a little too close to 9 in retrospect.  My legs didn't feel good and I knew it was going to be tough.  I kept my fluids up and think I got my nutrition right.

I had a tracking app on my iphone which allowed me to post to a website where I was at various points meaning that John could see roughly where I was and hopefully get to various points to cheer me on.  I had my phone on my arm but used it for the gps and so John could send me texts telling me where they would be. It worked and I ended up seeing them at all 3 points which was lovely.

By 8 or 9 miles I was struggling.  It was a warm day, but not as hot as Edinburgh and I didn't need my sunglasses on (I was sunburnt, but didn't feel it at the time).  I couldn't understand why my legs weren't working.  I ran 10 miles in November for Guy Fawkes and it didn't feel as hard as this race!  I checked my heart rate and it was so high at 174 (I normally run a half in low to mid 160s).  No wonder.  I realised that the raised HR was probably due to not being fully recovered from the virus.

So I began a new strategy of damage limitation.  This involved not walking under any circumstances because I knew I would not get going again along with trying to keep myself cool and well hydrated.  It seemed that I must have looked worse even than I felt because other runners kept asking me if I was okay and a couple of people threw some water on me to cool me down.  I have noticed that if you want the support from the crowd you must look in difficulty because the harder it got the more times I heard people shouting my name!

Apart from seeing John and K, I also saw Rich K twice and got a lovely hug from him at mile 22.  Apologies to him and Jaz and Tess who I was also pleased to see not long after mile 22 for the sweaty-ness of my vest at this point although a lot of it was probably the water I threw on myself!  I was also so pleased to spot my mum and dad in the crowd.  They had never seen me run before and I couldn't see them at the charity cheering points I had said they should wait at so I could spot them.  It was about half a mile after the second cheering point I spotted them and got another hug.

The last couple of miles was really me putting my determined head on and just aiming to finish. Which I did.  Managed to stagger to the charity post race venue put had some nasty toilet issues.  Obviously marathons affect me badly in that way.  Forced myself to drink the protein shake I had put in my kit bag because I knew I wouldn't be able to eat probably for the rest of the day.

So I did it.  I did London.  But I actually hated every minute of it.  I just wanted it to be over.  It was lovely seeing people, but the race itself I hated.  I don't want to do another race where I suffer like that.  So I am back to my original marathon premise that I started with when Tom initially suggested to me that anyone can run a marathon: I will not do one again unless I have the time to train properly.  Running a marathon when you know you are not trained properly is not nice.  I did say I would NEVER run a marathon again.  It certainly will not happen next year.  Maybe not the year after.  We'll see.

Next target = get my half marathon time down.

PS The positive point btw to not running as fast is that I could walk the next day and have been able to spend the whole week walking (a LOT) and apart from tired legs, there has been no muscle soreness.  So I can get back to it quicker this time.

Thanks again to everyone who has supported me during this London Marathon journey.

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU

Denial and lists

So here I am with one week to go until London.  I am definitely in denial.  It's not happening!  Brain will not let me believe that I am running a marathon in 7 days.

I have been making lists because of our Dubai/Abu Dhabi visit.  K has had three lots of packing to do and I have two.  So the lists have been made...

Now, the eagle eyed ones of you will spot that most of this list is written in pencil, but a few items are added on at the end in pen ie not on the original list.  Some of you who know me well will now be passed out on the floor when you saw what I left off... MY GARMIN!  That thing that has governed my running since I got it two and a half years ago.  Hmmm.  Not entirely sure what that says about my mental state going into this race...

Had a lecture from my mum this week as she tried to persuade me not to run.  Not done enough training, been ill with flu, look at how long you were ill after Edinburgh, shaking for a month etc etc.  It didn't work as she knew it wouldn't.  I am doing this race even though I am not totally in race frame of mind.  More run and hopefully fun :)

Had a good run at parkrun yesterday.  Ended up running with Helen, who despite being four months pregnant made the run look easy whilst I was huffing and puffing and feeling sick on the last lap.  She really kept me going though and it was nice to have someone to run with.  It was also nice to see my time was 25:37.  Whilst this is not quick, it is the fastest I have been able to run since November, so that's fab.

So in a week's time it will just about be over.  I know where the cheering points will be so know where my mum and dad will be.  I have just sorted out a GPS tracking device so that John can see whereabouts I am on the course and hopefully get there.  Hopefully I will manage to remember to pack everything I need for my adventure.

Roll on Friday and then roll on Sunday...

GOOD LUCK to all my friends who are also running London on Sunday x

PS If you can spare a pound or so to support my chosen charity - Breakthrough Breast Cancer, that would be great.  Loads of women now survive, but I know of several more who won't.  Still a long way to go folks! Thank you. http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/VikkiKing

3 weeks to go...

I feel very much like these buttons at the moment.  I just don't seem to have managed ANY consistency in this London training at all.  Any time goal has gone out of the window and legged it off down the road and I have absolutely NO chance of catching it any time soon!  My goal is now to finish with a smile (or grimace and hope nobody notices the difference!).

I wish I could say that I have enjoyed the training, but I really haven't.  I didn't much like the training when I did Edinburgh, but it was nothing like this.  Take the last two Sundays.  Two weeks ago I was up and off at literally the crack of dawn and then spent three hours in the rain running 18 miles.  I was so cold when I got home, it took me two hours to warm up again.  Last Sunday I was looking forward to my 20, but struggled to move from the outset and by ten miles was down to a shuffle as every step produced agonising shooting pains down my left leg.  When a person was blocking my path at 17 miles my vision was so blurry it took me ages to realise it was Russell and he had his camera phone out to take a picture of me running!  Monday I realised I had a form of sciatica and tried to use my foam roller to massage it out.  Thanks to Ned for his nice elbow work on Saturday morning helping to release it (OW!).

The rest of this week I haven't run a step due to illness.  There has been so much stress in my life that my immune system has totally packed up - it was a migraine all last week and this week has been flu (which explained why my 20 had been ridiculously hard).  I have had to permanently postpone my 22 miler and now I am just hoping for the best... and the end of the race!

I am not being negative about the race, just my training.  I am looking forward to taking part in the London Marathon.  I am looking forward to seeing John again and seeing him and K at various points on the course.  I am looking forward to my parents seeing me running as they never have and probably never will again.  I am looking forward to the finish line and never having to run a marathon again if I don't want to.

I think that after this I will stick to shorter races.  I don't want to have to give up my life to a race at the moment.  There are too many other good things going on.  I want to be able to enjoy my running again and not feel that I HAVE to run because it says so on my schedule and I want to finish in a certain time.  I know I can run a marathon.  I know I can do it in a reasonable time.  I just don't want to at the moment.  I am looking forward to running again just for me.  I long to be able to get up on a Sunday morning (although it will be Friday or Saturday when I move!) and go for a 10-15 mile run just because I enjoy it.

I want to say a HUGE THANK YOU to everyone who has been supporting me through this training and the other stuff and keeping me positive.  Without you all I would have given up on the race itself and my stress levels would have been a million times higher.

One more thing - it's been a while since I have done a big race - what might I have forgotten to put on my list of things to pack?!  

7 and a bit weeks to go

Have to count down from 7 weeks now for different reasons and I am hoping that my running will be able to remain consistent enough to be able to keep me distracted enough!

So my body gave up after Brass Monkey.  Too much too soon.  Didn't finish Jantastic and didn't register for Febulous.  The reason - I need something to DEmotivate me not motivate me!  If I have a target for something like that I am too bloody minded to take a rest when I need to and will get out and run no matter how I am feeling.  Either that or beat myself up about it.  Hence being sensible.  Well, sensible for me and not having a schedule to keep to.

I have had achilles problems since January when I upped my runs and I also managed to pick up a cold and chesty cough.  So, I had to back it off and rethink London.

New training plan:

• Tuesday - run club.  I had decided to not go except for the first of the month runs because it's too difficult to do what you need to do for a schedule when somebody else is deciding the run.  I don't have the luxury that some people have of being able to do different runs at different times.  As a full time working mum, with no childcare options most of the time, I have limited time and have to do what I need to do when I can.  However, run club will be some running and I get to see my friends too. :)
• Thursday - medium run.  K is at Guides on a Thursday evening so I have almost two hours to run.  I am thinking of 8 to 10 miles each week depending on how I feel.
• Saturday - parkrun.  Just short run.  Maybe a bit quicker.  I will see how tired I am.
• Sunday - Long run day.  Start this week with 14 then 16, 18, 20, 22, 18.  That plan means I have to miss Trimpell 20, but hey ho.

So, my schedule involves some running 4 times a week.  Not much compared with my normal running schedule which told me exactly how many miles and what speed I needed to be.  My Garmin was even programmed to beep at me when I went too fast or slow!  But, I need to get to London.  John is flying back from Abu Dhabi to support me; my parents have booked accommodation to come down and support me.  No pressure there then!  

I have to do London.  There is no choice.  Now get moving girl....

Week 4 - A Brass Monkey

Week 4 seems to have gone well. I have been able to up my training and although my legs have complained during running, they actually seem to have coped with it quite well and have not ached the day after a session.

What I had forgotten was how hungry running makes me. I was woken up at 4:30am one day this week by my tummy rumbling very loudly. Today, after the Brass Monkey yesterday, I just couldn't seem to be able to eat enough despite eating a reaosnable amount yesterday too.

Monday I rested.

Tuesday was a 35 min tempo session. True to how I have been since returning to running, I was 1 min per mile down again. I was a little disappointed when I downloaded my Garmin because I had felt like I was flying. Not going to go very far flying at 8:27 per mile though...

Wednesday was a recovery run but up Stonegate Road again. I cut it short at 4 miles - partly because I had to get back to pick K up and partly because I was very aware that my legs had a longish run the next day.

Thursday was medium length run day except medium is actually quite long at the moment. It was an easy 8 miles. My legs had that weird thing they used to do where they felt fine to about 5 miles then turned to concrete then were fine again for the last 2 miles. I came to the conclusion that it was a switch in energy systems that used to cause it. No idea if that is right though!

Friday was another rest day. Following Tom's advice of resting the day before the day before a race instead of the day before.

Saturday I thought I was not going to be able to run as it was a busy day, but John stayed on Friday night which meant I could sneak out for a quick one before K woke up. And I do mean a quick 2 miles by the way! Then it was time to be proud mum as K powered round the school cross country race and came in 11th out of over 100 girls. Her friend came 4th and the team came 2nd. P R O U D :)

Sunday was my first half marathon since GNR in 2009 - 16 months! I had really not been sure whether I should do it. Not because I didn't think I could, more that I wondered whether I would be able to rein myself in enough to not wear my legs out and wipe out a week or more of London training. I decided that I would take the first 2 miles easy and then up it a bit and see how it went.

The day started strangely with a surprise phone call at 7am when I was in the shower. The call distracted me and I found it very hard to get my racing head on and even had to be reminded to have my breakfast.

To keep myself a bit in check during the race, I decided to start closer to the back than I would normally and luckily I found the Hyde Park Harriers ladies' group and they kept me calm. Off we went and I just aimed for around 10 minute miles...ish. I had set my Garmin for 2:09, but didn't follow that at all (there's a surprise!). Actually, I didn't do too badly and my first 4 miles were done around 9:30 pace. It then got a bit faster, but still around the 9:15 mark. It was really nice not pushing myself so hard that I couldn't breathe. I actually enjoyed catching people up and slowing the pace to have a natter to them. In fact, it was brilliant! My heart rate didn't want to get above 160 for most of the race. Special mention to Rich K who it was a lovely surprise to see - thanks for your cheers.

When I reached mile 10 I cheered outloud because that was officially the longest I had run in well over a year. It was only when I got to mile 12 that I decided to push it a bit. I wanted to start to train my legs to run when they were tired. So I pushed it and they responded - much to my surprise! The last mile I decided to really push it and I managed. I must have overtaken at least 30 people in that last mile and it felt really good. It was wonderful to turn into the racecourse and see John and all the Hyde Park Harriers there cheering. It really lifted me and I sprinted faster only to feel sick on the corner and have to slow it back down again!

Officially a pw at 2:02 - I managed 1:50 as part of my 22 miler when I was Edinburgh training, but it's done now. It has given me the confidence boost I needed that I can still run distances and suddenly a marathon seems more doable than it was a week or so ago. My legs are fine today and stairs have not been an issue. FAB.

I am not racing during this marathon training. Partly because there isn't a half marathon that is at the right time within a reasonable distance, partly because I need the longer distances and partly because I know that racing takes up so much extra time that I need to focus on my masters. It's going to be weird because I love racing so much, but I have to try to balance my time carefully.

I have adjusted my schedule for this week. I had 16 miles down as my long run on Sunday, but thought it was probably sensible to not have a 4 mile increase one week followed by a 3 mile the next so have decided to make it 14 instead. It has meant moving my first 20, but I think that is best. I am getting better at listening to my body (HURRAH!)


PS My 'super fast' last mile at the Brass Monkey was actually 8:31 pace which is slower than I ran the whole of Edinburgh at. Ho hum.....

MILEAGE FOR THIS WEEK: 32:49 MILES

Week 3 - Finally!

This week seems to have been much better training wise.  I managed to successfully keep my migration to the next age category at a low level and still have a lovely day - phew!

Luckily the ice disappeared and I was even able to get out for a run on my birthday.  I did 4 x 1   miles although the pacing wasn't fantastic.  Still, I got out and it made me feel better by actually being able to run.  I got some lovely new earphones for my iphone so I could really distract myself from the pain of intervals.  They weren't very consistent in pace at all: 8:47, 7:58, 8:43, 8:05.  In my defence, it was just on the road which is rather undulating in places.

Wednesday I went out from school again up Stonegate Road (again).  It was meant to be an easy 5 miles, but the hills meant that even though I dropped my pace, it wasn't very easy.  Surprisingly, I managed to be slower on the way back (ie downhill), but that may be because I remembered it was supposed to be easy and running fast was not easy!

Thursday was K's first evening at guides so I could get out and run a longer run.  We cycled up there - well I tried to cycle whilst K pedalled at such a slow speed I am sure it would have been faster to walk!  I then did close to 7 miles at an easy pace with not too much in the way of hills.  It was nice to get out and do something longer even though my legs felt tired.

Friday I decided to give my legs a rest because they are just not used to running three days on the trot at the moment.

Saturday was a slow parkrun meant as a tempo, but not quite quick enough: 26:16, but I am not too concerned because I have to see the bigger picture.

Sunday was a get up early and get out quickly morning.  I was out by 7:45 and 9 miles later I returned quite pleased and a bit more chilled.  It wasn't fast - I am about one minute down per mile compared with Edinburgh training, and it certainly wasn't easy as my legs took about 4 miles to get warmed up, but it is done.

Still can't decide about Brass Monkey...

TOTAL MILES: 29 - RESULT!

Week 2 - Ice Skating

My second week's training seems to have been a complete disaster. 

I finished my first week with a long run on Sunday in Dubai.  I had got 8 miles down to do, but the time change was affecting me badly so I decided to do 7.  However, I ran along the Marina and eventually hit a building site (not that that is hard in Dubai because they are everywhere!).  No problems I thought, I will just go round and back on to the Marina path again.  Except, it took me over a bridge and I was terrified of getting lost, so I turned round and came back again.  I managed to eek it would to just under 6 miles before my brain had had enough.  The above picture is from my Garmin showing this run.

Monday I did some intervals on the Marina.  I ran and John walked.  So I ran in front of him, turned round and ran back (total 2 mins), then walked for 1 min.  I did that 8 times.  My pace was mostly reasonable, although there is a long way to go to get back to full speed.

Tuesday I got up early before our flight home and forced myself out to run 5 miles easy.

Wednesday was a rest day.

Thursday I ran from school for the first time for ages.  I decided to go up Stonegate Road.  It nearly did me in!  Still, hills make you stronger...

Friday it snowed so I abandoned my run because it was slippy.  Friday night it rained, but because it was so cold, it turned the pavements into ice.  We slipped our way to the bus stop on Saturday morning for parkrun.  Now, since my operation I have been terrified of hurting myself and not being able to run again.  Because my legs are so dodgy I know that a slip can cause big problems higher up and it's just not worth the risk.  So I decided to see what it was like at Hyde Park before running.  It was not brilliant and as I was umming and ahhing, Sam said he needed a time clock person so that decided it for me. 

Sunday was a disaster too.  I went over to John's to run as he had to help his uncle and we were going out for lunch after.  The pavements were horrendous.  Every second step I slipped and my heart rate went through the roof as I tried to hold myself rigid in an attempt not to fall over.  I gave up and ended up doing just 2 measly miles when I needed to do 9. 

So now I have a tough decision to make.  Do I do the Brass Monkey or not?  I needed that 9 so I could do 11 next time then 13 would be fine.  Can I do it as a training run and walk 2 of the miles?  Can I jog the 2 miles slowly?  When is it best to do - beginning, end, spread out?  Decisions decisions decisions.  Ah well, still a little while to go to decide :)

I am also a little miffed that I missed out on my Jantastic target of 5 runs last week.  I only managed 4 and had planned 6.  Not a good start when I need to rebuild my consistency.

TOTAL MILES: 14.7