I saw the wonderful Matt Stanford again today - Osteopath extraordinaire! Got a bit of a ticking off about not stretching enough - so it's all about the stretching and the foam roller. Ouchy! Wise words from Matt though - not worth not being able to do it because I didn't do more stretching. I am still so surprised by how much time and energy has had to go into everything but the running - mainly the injury management! Matt has very kindly donated two sports massages to the cause to keep my legs going - a lovely gesture - thanks Matt.

Good hour and a quarter on the x trainer today - although am realising I need to seriously update my playlist. Songs I used to love are being skipped because I just can't stand to hear them again. Only the very finest cheese still making the cut - yes folks, I've been reduced to needing Kylie to get me round!! This is not OK. I need song suggestions and I need them urgently!!

Feet are sore but ok. Right shin is very sore - hence the need for the stretching. Bit of pain is alright though - was never going to not be a bit sore. I've got well into tiger balm though - I have no idea whether it does any good at all but that burny thing is marvellous!

My running vest arrived today. With it is a paper you can attach that reads "I am running for...". I cried at that point. Great vest though - hopefully will help you to spot me. Am wondering whether I should find a very very bright cap to help with that too - although am guessing everyone else has the same idea which kind of defeats the object. They also sent some of the right iron on letters for me to add my name to the vest - and some of the wrong ones. I've asked for more as I think people might find it hard to read / shout encouragement to Lizhba?!

I'm on a cupcake decorating course tomorrow - a birthday gift - and Greens cafe have very kindly agreed to sell the results on Friday in aid of my cause. Apparently we'll be learning how to make icing shoes - will be attempting icing trainers then!

See you soon.

L
x

Only 20 minutes?!

Now I am back following the plan I took great pleasure in following it to the letter yesterday. "20 minutes easy run" it said.

20 minutes easy run is what I duly did - and not a second more!

Feet, shins, calves - it all is just that little bit too achey for me to feel safe that it'll be ok - but much much much better than before.

I have taken to wearing seriously unglamorous footwear to walk to the train station. Yesterday I was in my old Toms. All very well as long as I keep remembering to take something to change into - turning up to a client in those would not be a good look!

Thrilled to see donations starting to come in - it's a great incentive to work hard at this. I'm very grateful  - thank you.

Calum has set the bar high on the foot jokes - surely someone can do better? Or should that be worse?

By the way I absolutely get the donating anonymously - I do it too - but please let me know privately who you are so I can thank you.

I am now off to look on the net for some advice about what to eat. Still constantly hungry with this training and really need to vary my response to that with something other than cake and chocolate!

See you soon.

On my feet again

It's been a busy few days on my marathon quest. 

I joined the local sports centre so that I can cross train / cycle / treadmill / swim in order to protect the foot.

So, for the fourth time in this whole process I swam to get the cardio without the pressure on the foot.

I hate swimming!! I really hate swimming. Such a faff!! So boring. So cold. A woman in the changing room summed it up as I was about to head into the pool. She was in a cubicle and calling to her friend: "I'll be ready in a minute - my pants are fighting back!" Getting dressed after a swim should definitely count as exercise in itself.

At least I have now worked out which is the deep end. First swim I got to the end of my first length and did the swimming pool equivalent of a Del Trotter by putting my feet down, straight on to nothing, and sinking like a stone, then spluttering away and trying to look as though I was intentionally ducking my head under in that way that real swimmers do.

Goggles are a conundrum. Don't wear them and I can't see a thing and my eyes sting. Do wear them and they make me look like I've gone several rounds in a boxing ring by the end of it. Not only that, they make me able to clearly see the hairs, occasional tissue and just general bits of unidentifiable yuk that I'm swimming through. Also, got a way too clear a view when I caught up with an older gentleman (who was a dude by the way) doing the backstroke. He was an incredible swimmer - but his shorts hailed from the days before lycra. It was a view I am trying hard to erase from my brain!! Serves me right for getting all full of myself and swimming in the 'medium' lane!

Today was all about testing the foot on a run. I'd been feeling a bit like this was all a bit much and I'd missed too much training due to the foot and was not in a great place about it all. But had a fantastic pep talk on Thursday from my brother Steve, who quite rightly said "You've started thinking about a time...forget the time...this is about getting round it for the cause". He was spot on. ( After the half marathon I'd felt so good I'd started to think about the time I might be able to get through this in. Doing that in combination with then injuring the foot had allowed a lot of negative thoughts to creep in. So now I'm back on just finishing this thing - and if I want to start messing around trying to get times I can keep up a bit of the half marathoning in the future - I'm determined to do the TW half in under two hours now!) Steve also suggested I went for getting my body used to the distance again today and not try and run it all in order to protect the foot. So today was about getting 16 miles on the clock by both walking and running. I also did it on the treadmill in order to give my foot a softer landing.

I can honestly say it was by a very long way the toughest run yet. I found being inside and on the treadmill really really dull. Mentally it felt like it went on forever. I was frustrated not to run it all - and despite my promises to forget about time couldn't help being a bit cross that I was having to walk some. I was absolutely pooped. So much so on the drive home I had a bit of a blub! I also felt really queasy which was not good at all. Apparently motion sickness after that long on a treadmill is a real possibility... great... needed that like a hole in the head! Ah well - I did it - that's the main thing. 16 miles now officially on the clock.

Time taken - bloody ages. Time thoughts really really must go. Not least because on a run that long I'm going to have to make a dive for the portaloos at some point - that much is now very clear!! It also burned 1617 calories. I'm not a great one for calorie stuff - don't really get it - but that does sound like a lot of mini eggs! We'll see how the foot is over the next few days. It hurts a bit at the moment but an ache not a pain - and frankly everything aches.

So my attention is now turning to getting the fundraising things I've been planning in my head actually happening as with today in the bag the possibility of doing this is real again. There have been some kind offers from my pilates centre and the coffee shop I use as my alternative office - and will be having a coffee morning and a pizza night from here - so time to get going on all that.

All good. Bye for now.

xx

I ran today and my foot doesn't hurt! Not far - but it was running.

This is exciting news. No, really - it is!

All thoughts of doing this in a 'time' are even more abandoned than they ever were now - I'll be lucky to get round. But it does at least feel safe to start talking about it as a possibility again after two weeks of thinking this would all get deferred to next year.

So,  waaaaayy behind on the training schedule and new trainers that feel a bit funny, but all in all a good day.

So now the blog is working - but linking it to my sponsorship page isn't.

Oh well.

So this may not be read by anyone, ever, if I can't get it working -but shall crack on anyway.

It's the 11th March. 41 days to go.

At the moment it's touch and go whether I'll run this thing at all due to an injured foot. Getting ahead of myself though. The story so far....

The Alzheimers Society called in October - on the night I was celebrating my birthday to be precise, to offer me one of their marathon places. I burst into tears (I do that a lot) as I know they get a lot of applications for their places and had assumed I hadn't made the cut. I was, and am, so thrilled to have the opportunity to do something to honour my lovely Grandad.

I was also very very scared!

Having kept my fitness up but not started long runs I started to follow (thanks to my lovely friend Faye who is also running this year) a 16 weeks to go training plan in January. I stuck to it to the letter - well nearly - I was swapping in a bit of swimming (which I officially hate - eeeuwwww to swimming!) and cross training (thank you to my lovely neighbour Teresa for letting me use hers) when there was just too much snow meant that even the weather didn't stop me from sticking to my plan! Also had the loan of a running machine from my fab friend George so when the knees have ached too much or the ice has been too dangerous I've been able to run in her conservatory to my hearts content and get a natter and a cuppa afterwards - marvellous! Have had to time it to avoid my wobbly arse putting her builders off their lunch mind you!

And all was going really well. I was even enjoying running for an hour and 45 minutes in the rain. I felt like Forest Gump I tell you. 8 weeks in the plan instructed me to complete a half marathon which I duly did. The Tunbridge Wells half marathon to be precise. Absolutely bloody freezing and an enormous hill halfway through but I really enjoyed it.

All was looking good and then an injury to my foot has seen me limping/moping around since 2 days after the half marathon. I've been trying to keep up the fitness with swimming and cross training but it's been a struggle to fit in - and a horrible cold has only made it worse. So have been on a bit of a downer and fearing I won't make it to the start line let alone the finish.

In the last few days though I have seen a brilliant Osteopath, (thank you Matt Stanford) changed my trainers, sorted out a donating page and am working on the assumption that I will do it. I have yet to run on the bad foot - that's for later this week - but I guess if I can't do it this year I'll just have to defer to next year. So there we are.

So far I have learned...

1.I can run further than I ever imagined and still feel good.

2.I still hate swimming.

3.Goggles make swimming easier and harder. Easier because your eyes don't sting. Harder because you can see what you are swimming in. Bleurgh!

4.Drivers that swerve so they don't splash me are lovely. Drivers that enjoy splashing me make me chuckle because the wicked part of me thinks she might do the same one day. So that's a win win.

5.I am pretty slow. Although not as slow as the guy in the Bagpuss costume. Just about.

6.I will not ever run in a costume.

7. Running a lot means I can eat more cake.

8. Not that much cake. I think I may be the only person training for a marathon who has put on weight. Am reining that in right now.

9. There is a phenomenon known as 'Runner's trots'. I am in good company to have experienced this, am I not Paula Radcliffe?!

10. Music helps.

11. I need to change my playlist now I know every song a bit too well.

12. I am chuffed with how far I've come. I'm scared I can't do it. I'll be seriously hacked off if I don't even get to try.

13. If you stop, it is REALLY hard to get going again. Support is totally brilliant (learned that doing the half - it gives you such a boost) but on the day I will not be stopping to say 'Hi' as will never start again. Apologies in advance to any of you who are there.

14. There is no 14 but however ridiculous superstition is I can't have thirteen.

See you soon for a foot update.
xx

Step 1 - getting a blog started

The first hurdle seems to be getting this blog page to work and to connect to a fundraising page.

Grrrrr!

Glad though, that the marathon doesn't involve hurdles. That would be getting silly!