That means there is A LOT of running to do over the next 14 weeks. Now that I am back from a week in Tenerife (making full use of all inclusive food and drink, rest assured), it's now time to move preparation up a notch or two. With that in mind, I plan to write more in the build up for a couple of reasons:
- It's a good motivator
- I can bang the 'please sponsor me!' drum loud and proud
- I can justify the amount of food (chocolate, I mean chocolate) that I will inevitably pile through
In other news, my teeth are looking pretty good at the moment. Dentist Donna reckons the braces will be off at the end of July or in early August so I better start getting those applications ready to be a teeth model (*ping*).
I ran the Ramathon a few weeks back in 1hr 37 which was about 12 seconds faster than my previous best (on a not-downhill-all-the-way route which doesn't really count), so that was good. Was nice to run it with a few mates who also set quickest times for themselves which I applaud. The day itself was clouded by the death of a runner no more than 300 yards from the end which is always massively upsetting. It does pose questions about better health screening being made mandatory before running such distances I think - and I'm not talking about a tick box on website to say you're all fine and dandy, but something more professional and conclusive. It is probably something I should look at doing before Berlin. My thoughts are with the poor family and friends of the runner who died, it's such a terrible shame.
I went to see Springsteen the other week where an acoustic 'Thunder Road' stole the show - knocking 'Never Forget' by a full compliment of Take That in to #2 of the best songs I've witnessed in person.
I joke, of course. 'Patience' was waaaaaay better.
A week in Tenerife was a good way to recharge and freshen up the legs, and there are few better ways to spend time than on a golf course in the sunshine with your mates - even when you're hacking it around like a 52 handicapper by the end. The food was good, the gin was... strong and I flew through a couple of books #takemeback
Berlin, Sunday 25th September
So, getting to it then... 99 days, sleeps and wake ups until running around Berlin for hours and hours becomes very real. Despite now being a relatively experienced half marathon runner, the prospect of doubling the distance is daunting. I never thought I would run a marathon, but then I never thought I would run a half. To complete a race of that distance is still an achievement for me, of course it is, but the initial glow of completing what felt impossible has naturally subsided a little bit. I could have just kept chucking out halfs and improving 30 seconds here and there, but one of the biggest things about being able to do it at all is the motivation.
The motivation to do something as bat shit mental as run 26.2 miles is something else entirely. Not only for the personal achievement and a bloody massive medal, but to do something in aid of the British Heart Foundation means a lot to me and some special people in my life. I've ran for the BHF in the past and raised £850 back in 2014 for my first half marathon which was a r-i-d-i-c-u-l-o-u-s amount of money. This time I have actually got a place in the official BHF 'Heart Runners' team which is pretty cool.
I'm aiming to raise £1,000 which is a lot, but so is 26.2 miles! No rush on this at all but the page is here for those who are interested. Once we get in to September, I'll start knocking on your doors and turning up at your desks with a bucket and my vuvuzela to encourage you to get on board the BQ bandwagon!
Just looking at the route makes me feel sick, but here it is for those who enjoy looking at maps.
Out of all the city's in the world, there are arguably few better to run around. I found German history and the World War's endlessly interesting so I am excited to see some of the most famous sights in modern European history. I'm more excited to finish obviously, but the Brandenburg Gate will be pretty cool.
I'm going to spend some time this week working out a training plan - I'm not having these mad run six times a week online plans. My legs will fall off and I will lose my mind.
More likely it will be three runs a week, a steady 5/6 miler on Monday, with perhaps 10+ on Wednesday and then gradually cranking up the distance on Saturday. I feel like swimming is a good idea too to help with recovery.
The big game changer is the change in pace I'm going to have to adopt. I ran the Ramathon at 7.21 mins/mile. Keeping up that pace is impossible and stupid. I want to run a sub-four hour marathon. If I ran 9 mins/mile, I would come in at 3hrs 56. That shows how massive a drop in speed I'm looking at. I tried to run deliberately slowly the other day, and found that even 8.30 min/miles was incredibly hard. Imagine someone telling you to write really slowly. You're doing it for about two lines before you get bored, frustrated and just go back to normal. That's how running a minute slower per mile felt.
With that said, deliberately running at 9 min pace is not the plan. 8.30's will be the plan (3hrs 43) and we'll see where we are when the distance gets above and beyond the half distance.
