That's better! 21/02/11 - 27/02/11

Well that's been much better! It's been a pretty full on week this week, with a couple of work runs, a full on 50 something miles this weekend, and a random middle of the night run in the week.

And most of this was in my brand spanking new trainers (Mizuno Wave Inspire 7). I've used the same shoes since I started running - if it ain't broke and all that. I'm nothing if not a creature of habit! The new model 7 feels a bit tighter around the midfoot, so I'm just making sure it doesnt affect things. Got some elastic laces as well, in preparation for triathloning in the future, and they work very nicely. All of this was kindly donated by Vivienne at Trisportsplus.

I just couldn't wait to try them out, so when Jen went to bed on Thursday, I disappeared out into the night for an 18 mile run. At 2 in the morning. It was great fun! Lovely and clear night with nobody around. Well, apart from the random police car that I bumped into halfway down the guided busway. I'm not sure who was more surprised - me or them! Jen was worried about murderers, but I figured there are better places to wait for victims than in the middle of nowhere down an unused bus path... My main concern was werewolves.

This weekend has been a full on mileathon, with 28 miles Saturday and 22 miles today. Plus a couple of miles walking on the beach with Jen and Max (and Dan, Zoe and Poppy). Now home for a lazy afternoon! Would you believe I'm on holiday at the moment? Not everybody's idea of a good time I agree! the pace has been pretty good, faster than 9 minutes a mile over those 50 miles, so I'm looking good for the sub-4 hour marathon. I figure 4 hours is a good time to aim for given the warm sown afterwards... I'll wait until Loch Ness in October to go full on for a proper PB.

Anyway, here is the breakdown of the week:

Monday
Cycling 3 miles (park and ride to work)
Cycling 16.5 miles (work to home)

Tuesday
Running 3 miles (park and ride to work)
Running 16.5 miles (work to home)

Wednesday
Cycling 3 miles (park and ride to work)
Cycling 16.5 miles (work to home)

Thursday
Running 18 miles (middle of the night run!)

Friday
Attempted to run with dog but failed miserably, so let's call it a rest day!

Saturday
Running 28 miles

Sunday
Running 22 miles

Total
Cycling 39 miles
Running 87.5 miles

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Training 14/02/11 - 20/02/11

Well the last week has been kind of lazy. In my defence, it has been pretty hectic, with interviews, photo-shoots, and traveling halfway across the country for a fantastic night celebrating my mum's 50th Birthday. Despite all this, I managed to keep my eye in and get some miles on the legs, and things are looking pretty clear in the diary for the next few weeks - so no excuses now! I'm not counting dealing with our little monster (of the doggy variety) Max as exercise! Anyway, here is the training for the week beginning 14/02/11:

Monday:
Cycling 2.5 miles (Park and Ride to work)
Cycling 16.5 miles (work to home)

Tuesday:
Running 2.5 miles (Park and Ride to work) 
Running 2.5 miles (work to Park and Ride)


Wednesday:
Cycling 2.5 miles (Park and Ride to work) 
Climbing (1 hour)
Squash (1 hour)
Cycling 16.5 miles (work to home)

Thursday:
Cycling 2.5 miles (Park and Ride to work)
Running 16.5 miles (work to home)

Friday:
Running 2.5 miles (Park and Ride to work)
Cycling 2.5 miles (work to Park and Ride)

Saturday:
Running 22 miles (guided busway)

Sunday:
Golf (9 holes - doesn't really count as exercise I know!)

Total:
Cycling 43 miles
Running 46 miles

So not awful, but about half of the previous week. Oh well, it pays to avoid overtraining I guess. Just have to work harder this week!

Publicity avalanche!

There's definitely no going back now! What started off as somewhat of a joke has now become more of a reality. The local media that I contacted when I first planned this crazy event have all suddenly got back to me all at the same time - must be a slow news week!

I have now had an interview with the Hunts Post (which should be in next weeks edition), an interview and photo shoot with the Cambridge News, an interview on Cambridge 105 radio. There is also an article in the Hunts News gigs section for the 100 Mile Playlist on March 12th, which I am really looking forward to! There's also an interview with BBC Radio Cambridge tonight, and with Star 107 next week. And more to come I hope! Of course, me being the shy retiring type, I obviously find talking about this very difficult... But I seriously love that this has taken off so well, and I really hope that it helps in some way with the work that the Epilepsy Society do.

112.3 miles or bust (hopefully the former...)

Right, it's probably time that I started actually using this blog for its intended purpose - to document the run up to the London Marathon (that pun still isn't funny...). I think what I will do is have a weekly post about my training for that week (probably not terribly interesting, but it should help me keep track of how I'm getting on), as well as a couple of random posts about other things as and when they come up.

Anyway; training. How does one go about preparing to run 112.3 miles (thanks Google Earth!)? Well, oddly enough, the answer is to run. And run. Then run some more! So that's what I'm doing. I'm currently trying to walk a very fine line between putting the miles on my legs, whilst not causing any permanent damage or suffering from over training, and trying to make sure that I actually see my lovely fiancee Jen (who has been amazing through this whole thing, even though she thinks I'm mad!). The problem with long distance running is that it can make a serious dent in your free time...