So here we are, approaching the end of 2020, with my running goals for the year long since fallen by the wayside. Like so many of us, I found the early lockdown quite a struggle, trying to work effectively from home whilst home schooling my two little boys. One by one, my dream races were... Continue Reading →
Berlin Hasenheide parkrun – and the day before the marathon!
I’m in Berlin for the weekend for the highlight of my autumn race schedule, tomorrow’s Berlin Marathon! But it just wouldn’t be a Saturday morning without a trip to parkrun. Fortunately, Berlin joined the parkrun family last year, setting up a new run location in the beautiful Hasenheide park, a short metro ride from the... Continue Reading →
Victoria Dock Parkrun, a Huge PB and a Lesson in Mind Over Matter
I was back on the parkrun tourist trail this week for my 95th parkrun. Victoria Dock is just a few miles away from my home run of Walthamstow, and I had heard reports of it being a fast, flat course, ideal for a PB attempt! I had set my parkrun PB of 26:03 a few... Continue Reading →
Five Highlights of the London Marathon!
I'm still in the process of gathering my thoughts enough to write a full review of the total epic-ness of Sunday's London Marathon - my first marathon! So in the meantime, here are five of my most memorable highlights of the day: The pacers I absolutely love pacers in races. Experienced runners who give up... Continue Reading →
The London Marathon is tomorrow!
So here we are! Tomorrow is a big day for me, my first marathon, and what a way to start, with the 2019 London Marathon! On Thursday I went to the running show at the Excel centre to pick up my official race number and timing chip. It was great to be surrounded by so... Continue Reading →
Reaching 30km!
It's six weeks until the London Marathon, and I am reaching the peak section of my training plan. This week, my planned long run again took me into previously uncharted territory, with a scheduled 30km run for the Monday! I planned out a new route, an out-and-back stretch of the Lea Valley canal, where all... Continue Reading →
The long lonely road – Marathon training long runs
It’s 10 weeks until the London Marathon 2019 and I am well into the heart of my training plan. It’s at this point that the weekly long run starts getting into the previously uncharted territory of greater than half marathon distance. This Sunday, I headed out nice and early for for my longest run to... Continue Reading →
Six things I LOVE about marathon training
When I first told people that I had a place for the 2019 London Marathon the most common reaction (after ‘How exciting!’) was ‘Oh but the training will be a total nightmare‘. People couldn’t wait to tell me how gruelling it would be, how time-consuming, how isolating, how painful. So it was something of a pleasant... Continue Reading →
Running in all weather – spring marathon training
Training for a UK spring marathon means that the bulk of your training miles need to be done in the somewhat bleak, wintery months of January – March. In reality this means running in the dark, cold, rain, and sometimes the snow! Now, before this year I was a bit of a fair weather runner.... Continue Reading →
London Half Marathon – 10th Feb 2019
It’s week 5 of my London Marathon training plan – the time is flying! I’ve been roughly following the Virgin Money London Marathon 2019 training plan, which this week called for a long run of about 6 miles. I’ve been doing well so far, managing to stay a few steps ahead of the plan, so decided... Continue Reading →