Packing for a marathon Most of us will find ourselves travelling away from home for marathons and half marathons. Whether your race takes you to the other side of the world, or just to a budget hotel down the road, many of the things you'll need are the same. I still use the packing list [...]
Marathon training weeks 7-10 Weeks 7, 8, 9, and 10 have been full of ups and downs. Twice I’ve accepted that the marathon isn’t going to happen and been ok with that, only to then have it put back on the table (and calendar). If you need to catch up on the first 6 weeks, [...]
Baby to BQ: November running update I finished my half marathon last month, disappointed with the time on the clock but happy with how training had gone. It really couldn’t have been better. The week after the Royal Parks Half I paced the Great South Run, and despite still having the cold I carried round [...]
Marathon training is hard. This is something I realise as soon as I start training for one of these things and then immediately forget as soon as I cross the finish line.On Saturday I spent the morning giving a talk to a group of 60 runners taking on the London Marathon for Breast Cancer Care and the [...]
They're a demanding bunch the gods of the marathon. Not content with taking your weekends, your sofa time and your money they demand more. This weekend I've prayed at the marathon altar and made two significant sacrifices in the hope of marathon glory.Friday night, it was time for a new pair of heels. But black [...]
"Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, start all over again." Those are the wise words of another famous ginger - Ginger Rodgers sings them in Swing Time. But they're easier sung than done. How do you bounce back after failure and disappointment?Last year I ran the Robin Hood Marathon in Nottingham. I wanted a sub-4 [...]
Guest blogger Mr Nice Guy updates us on his progress as he trains for the 2012 London Marathon.So, just shy of two months to go until I take on the London Marathon and I've just completed my first 14 mile run. I know for you pros out there 14 miles sounds a little short but [...]
I've made a sacrifice to the marathon gods: for the past 11 days I have drunk no alcohol. This could have been a challenge, but luckily I have supportive friends and colleagues who, when we went to the pub on Friday night, spent the whole five hours I was there offering me shots, pints of [...]
Despite the best efforts of a tree root in tripping me up and a bus driver in trying to run me over, I made it round my final 20-mile run on Sunday. Now mileage starts to wind down as I slide down the slipppery slope of the tapering with nothing but a tea-tray that is my [...]
Training plans are rubbish aren't they? It's the way they stare at you making you feel bad, inadequate and underprepared that I hate. It's difficult to argue with them because they don't compromise, however long you stare at the words "8 miles steady" they don't change.I've tried to avoid crosses on my training plan by using arrows, annotations, [...]
