Turns out, 26.2 miles is a long way

Wow. What a weekend!

Firstly I'd like to apologise for the delay in this write up, but as you can imagine, running a marathon can take a lot out of you. You'll also soon realise I have quite a lot I want to say, and getting all of my thoughts down coherently isn't easy at the best of times!

The weekend started with us travelling up to London on the Saturday and heading to the expo at the Excel centre. The expo is an important part to the marathon experience, with each runner required to attend to collect their race number and chip. Why they can't post them out I'm not sure, but it probably has something to do with all of the sponsors that attend the expo trying to flog you their wares.

With my cynical hat off, the expo was a fun experience. Surrounded by hundreds if not thousands of fellow runners really made it sink in what I was about to undertake. The registration process was smooth, and despite arriving at what was probably the peak time of Saturday afternoon, the queue was only about five minutes long.

Unfortunately my freebie grabbing skills were not quite up to speed on that day, so the best I could muster was the standard goody bag featuring such eclectic items as a Worcester sauce sample, and a krill oil capsule. Tasty.

The hotel we were staying at was based near Waterloo, so after trekking back across London following the expo, Saturday evening consisted of a short stroll along the south bank to an Italian restaurant for the obligatory pasta based carb-loading. With carbs consumed, we spent the rest of the evening discussing the route, and good places for my wife and her friend to spot me the following day.

Rotherhithe and Canary Wharf came out as winners.

Sunday morning came, and with it a nice early start to ensure plenty of stress free time to get ready and have some breakfast. The hotel was full of fellow runners, and was suitably marathon prepared. As we arrived for breakfast we were greeted with: "Welcome to breakfast, the porridge is over there". Fantastic, talk about knowing your audience!

So, all breakfasted up, and suitably kitted up and ready to take on Mo Farah, I said my goodbyes to the wife, and headed to the train station for my commute to Blackheath whilst she went back to chill out and watch the start of the race on the TV.

The first train was rammed to the doors, but fortunately a second train came along only a few minutes later and was virtually empty meaning a well appreciated seat. It was at this point that the nerves finally started to kick in. The landmarks of central London were fast disappearing into the distance, and it suddenly became very apparent just how far I would have to run!

Once at Blackheath there was a great atmosphere, with all the runners descending on the park and onwards to their various start pens. I obliged in my duties of pre-race toilet stop, and dropped my kit bag off to the waiting lorry before heading to my pen to await the start of the race.

The wait went by surprisingly quickly, with an impressive cheer from everyone there for Mo as he was announced, and then, we were off. All in all it only took five minutes for me to get to the start line, and once there, it began. Despite what I had feared, and the numbers of runners involved, the sheer weight of runners didn't really have any impact on my progress, which was a relief!

The supporting crowd throughout the course were fantastic, unbelievably so, and right from the start they were cheering and clapping for every single runner out on the course. The first few miles went very smoothly, and I'd quickly settled into my usual running rhythm. My highlight of the first few miles, had to be the group of highly enthusiastic Italians, who were whooping, cheering, and "oggy oggy oggying" their way around. They were clearly enjoying themselves, and that enjoyment was infectious for all of those lucky enough to be in earshot.

Another highlight of the opening miles was one supporter holding aloft a home-made side disinterestedly, that simply said, "Worst Parade Ever". Brilliant.

The sheer scale of the race was further emphasised when the two main start routes converged, from this point on the supporting crowds only got bigger and louder. Heading up to and around the Cutty Sark at about 6 miles was a massive buzz, and although I personally prefer running past the Victory in the great south, the crowds surrounding it were so loud. Looking at my times they definitely had an impact as my mile pace afterwards was a bit quicker than the pace I'd settled into.

Onwards then to Rotherhithe and the first point where I was expecting to see my wife. Although the process of constantly scanning the supporting crowd for a familiar face can be quite distracting, knowing that there is a loved one somewhere and coming up is a real motivator, after all, you want to look fit and fresh when they see you! I spotted my wife as I was passing her, but I couldn't let the moment pass, so I slammed on the brakes, darted back to her and grabbed hold of her in the crowd for a nice sweaty hug before carrying on my way. I'm not sure she appreciated it too much but never mind.

Tower bridge was the next landmark, and it come into view immediately after a ninety degree bend, and so it was upon me from out of nowhere, a sight I was very happy to see as it marked more or less the half way point. I hit the official half way point in 1:54, and was feeling good that I would be able to get around in sub four hours.

Unfortunately that feeling didn't last too much longer.

When you are embarking upon a marathon there's plenty of good advice that people will band about to try and help, for example...

• Don't focus on the full 26.2 miles, break the race up into short manageable chunks.
• A slow steady pace is better, and easier.
• Find a refuelling strategy that works for you and stick to it.
• Run with your head lifted up.
• Ignore the crowds, run your own race.

...all brilliant bits of advice, all sensible, and all useful. Unfortunately it was about mile 16 upon entering the Isle of Dogs, (now officially my least favourite island),  that for some reason my brain decided to disregard all of these things and started to tell me to do pretty much the complete opposite. It was also the time that I started feeling the cramps start to hit my legs. I'm not entirely sure which one came first.

I'm not convinced that I ever truly hit the dreaded wall, but the initial cramping in the back of my legs was then joined by the strangest cramp I have ever felt, kind of on the insides of both of my knees. This combined with the temperature hotting up, meant that my time was starting to be seriously impacted.

Tired and cramping I had no alternative but to start walking for short stints, I tried to keep the walking down to a minimum, partially through sheer determination, but mostly due to the fact that the crowd were so supportive, that it felt really bad to be letting them down by walking.

They would scream and shout out your name, encourage you to get going again, "There's only a few miles left, don't give up" they would cry. All very helpful, but sometimes, you just need a little moment to get your thoughts together by yourself, or maybe that's just my introverted view.

At the time it felt like these walking periods were far longer than they apparently were, with only a handful of the miles nudging above the ten minute mile mark. Relentlessly I carried on, and as we got off the Isle of Dogs, and started heading back past Tower Bridge I got a bit of a second wind, it didn't last long, but the crowds were building and I knew the end was nearing.

About three out, I know that the 4 hour mark was going to slip away from me, I needed to hit sub 8 minute miles to even have a chance, and with more than three and a half hours of running in my legs, I knew it just wasn't going to happen. I didn't let it get me down though, and made the decision then to stop pushing myself for it, and to relax, chill out and try to soak up the atmosphere as much as possible to the finish.

The last mile felt like it went on forever, the sheer noise of the crowd driving you on through what felt like a tunnel of cheers, horns, banners, flags and charity t-shirts. The determination of hitting the famous turn into the Mall and seeing the finish line silencing the cries of agony from my legs. The thought of all the money I had raised for charity evicting all negative thoughts from my mind.

Like Tower Bridge, the turn into the Mall was upon me almost unexpectedly. The finish line was in view and I had done it. Although the thought of a sprint finish entered my mind, I knew the a slight increase in pace from shuffle to jog was about the best I could muster at this point. About ten metres out from the finish line I decided to make the most of the moment, and raise my arms aloft in true celebratory style. Unfortunately, doing so somehow triggered a sharp cramping in the backs of both my legs, forcing me to hobble and limp across the line, much to the amusement of the runners following behind me.

Not quite the perfect finish line photo I had in my mind, but I had finished in a time of 4h05:22 which despite being annoyingly close to my four hour target, is still a very good time for a first marathon and of course, a new PB.

Once across the finish line, the post race 'funnel' was immense. Apparently as I was finishing they were averaging nine runners across the finish line a second, so you can imagine the logistics. Timing chip removed first, and then medal and goody bag given out. Off to the side for a post race finishers photo, and then down the Mall to try and find your allocated lorry carrying your kit bag.

I was absolutely knackered as you can imagine at this point, and having to walk an extra half a mile down the Mall to do all this, before then turning to Horse Guards parade to the meet and greet point was not exactly welcomed by the legs. Once I'd been reunited, and had the well earned hugs, I just wanted to sit down. The floor was a long way down at this point, but I made it down there eventually.

My wife was particularly pleased to see me, not just because I am generally awesome, but mostly because she had gotten into a bit of a panic. Before the race we both installed a GPS tracking app onto our phones, so that she could follow my progress around the course, and ensure that as I was approaching her viewpoints in the crowd she would know and be ready for me. As I'd finished for some reason the app told her that I was in the medical centre. You can understand why she was a bit concerned!

As for my next challenge, everybody seems to enjoy asking me if I'm going to be entering the ballot for next year. My wife is particularly interested, although she has also already told me my answer.

On completing the marathon I had two words which I was keen to post on Facebook at the time, but my battery had died. "Never. Again.". On reflection, that may have been a bit brash. I'm certainly not intending on entering for next year, but may well convince myself to pick up the challenge again in the future and try to get sub four hours, there's certainly lots of things I have learnt from experience that will help me if I ever am lucky enough to do it again.

The biggest reason for not wanting to go for it next year is not the race itself, just the sheer amount of training that goes into a marathon. If any of you are feeling inspired though, the ballot opens on April 22nd, and you'll have to be quick, there's only 125,000 ballot entries available and they go fast!

I am intending to carry on with my running, albeit slightly scaled back, and am seriously considering entering the Great South Run again this year, as I know I can beat my PB for that one, and in the meantime, I'll probably get back into Saturday morning parkruns, a great platform for anyone wanting to give running a go, and a nice change for my legs to go at a faster pace in an attempt to shave down my 5k PB time.

It wouldn't be right to not mention my sponsorship total in this post, and to thank each and everyone of you that has sponsored me. I now need to collect in all my cash sponsorship, and so the total is not yet confirmed, but I am currently expecting it to be a mind blowing £1,460.83, or in fact an even more staggering £1791.79 once gift aid is taken into account, that's not just enough to send a dairy cow, it's almost enough to fund an entire farmyard!

I know it's unlikely but if you are still yet to sponsor me and wish to do so, the page is still open at www.virginmoneygiving.com/davidjohns and anything you can give will be very gratefully received!

One week to go

Next week I will be lining up alongside Haile Gebrselassie, Mo Farah and over 35,000 other runners. All nervous, all excited, all about to embark on a fantastic 26.2 miles of running.

Since my 20 mile long training run, I have been embracing my taper period. The first week, my legs were shot after the 20 miler, and I didn't head out until the following Sunday. It was a struggle. The day before not only had I played hockey, but we'd been out for a few drinks to celebrate the end of season. Given that we finished second and got promoted, I thought it only right to allow myself a few shandies. 

However, the following morning whilst my team mates were laying in bed, nursing hangovers, I headed out for what would be a gentle 11 mile run. I took it nice and easy, and the fuzzy head and mild hangover did it's best to slow me down and make me want to give up, but I got round and felt a lot better for it afterwards.

This week I have been equally rubbish at running during the week. I know I should be heading out for a few gentle midweek runs at this stage, but I'm really lacking the motivation. I think the marathon has come at just the right time. I'm really starting to get a little bit bored of running now!

To make up for a lack of midweek running, and the lack of any hockey match on Saturday, I headed down to Southsea seafront to participate in the Southsea ParkRun. For those of you unfamiliar with ParkRun, it is a community organised weekly 5k running event, that is free to take part in, with events up and down the country. I really would recommend it for all levels of runners. (www.parkrun.org)

I'd run a few of these a good few years ago in Eastleigh, where my best time was 24:55. Having beaten that 5k time on a marathon training run, I thought it would be fun to head down for a short fast run to see if I could beat my 5k PB, and to give my legs a change from the steady plodding they had become accustomed to. The weather was perfect and I despite starting far too far back in the bunch for the pace I wanted to run, I soon got up to speed and was averaging sub 7 minute miles! Sub 7! A pace I had only ever dreamt of! My previous mile PB was 7:14, and here I was beating that by about 20 seconds, I thought my heart was going to explode out of my chest!

Fortunately I remained a cardiac explosion free zone, and despite slowing a little during the third mile, a very competitive sprint finish saw my finish time hit an incredible 21:51. As I finished slightly ahead of my sprint finish rival, I heard from behind me, "lets see if you can do that when you're 60!". Credit to the guy, he put on a good sprint for a 60 year old, I'll be very happy if I can run like that in 30 years time!

Today's run was another slow and steady run, just plodding around 10 miles to spend a little time on my feet whilst avoiding any injuries. The weather was uninspiring greyness, but it made for ideal running conditions. I took some time to just enjoy today's run, it was after all my last long run before the big day.

During a period of reflection, I even thought about how much I was going to miss my Sunday run, and I have to say, I am now determined to maintain the training after the big day, to some extent at least. I may well have to have a week off though!

To put some perspective on the efforts that have been put into the training, I have (so far) covered over 350 miles, and burnt over 50,000 calories. That's a return trip to Plymouth, and over 100 Big Macs!

In fundraising news, my total has been progressing nicely after another push, and lots of donations from many more kind hearted souls, and I am edging closer to the second cow. (Especially if you include Gift Aid!). I know there are a few people who are yet to sponsor me that are intending to, but with a week to go, time is running out, and so now is the time to do it!

If you are yet to sponsor me, (or would like to do it again!), my sponsorship page as always is: www.virginmoneygiving.com/davidjohns 

Time for the taper

Today was the day of my longest training run, which I took as an opportunity to treat as a dress rehearsal for the marathon itself. I woke up early and unusually for me on a Sunday, had some breakfast. This of course meant that I then had to wait a couple of hours for my breakfast to settle down, so I used this time to take the dog for a bit of a stroll, to simulate the trek across Blackheath park to the blue starting zone.

Today's run was 20 miles long, and it took me up to Tesco in Havant, down to Canoe Lake in Southsea, and then back home.

I'm going to resist the urge to talk about any sort of 'journey', but the last few weeks have been a bit up and down. After completing 18 miles, my legs were absolutely shattered for the run on the following Tuesday, and could barely manage 3 miles. Suddenly the marathon distance seemed very daunting again. Fortunately a few days of rest and they were back to their best. Then the sun came out.

The last couple of Sundays have seen a rise in both sunshine and temperature, and accustomed to cold weather running, my pace had taken a beating and I was struggling to average 9 minute miles on my long runs.

It's not been entirely sunny and warm though. Taking advantage of my works flexible arrangements, I headed out one Thursday afternoon at half two, to get a seven mile midweek run in, and as I headed out into the sunshine, it wasn't long before I was fighting through some incredibly thick fog, good job I knew where I was going because there wasn't much visibility.

I can't tell you too much about what happened in today's 20 mile run, but I do know that I started off averaging a stunningly fast 8:15, and overall this only reduced to 8:22. It was a pace I was feeling comfortable maintaining too which was amazing. I guess that's the difference a drop in the temperature, and no hockey match the day before can make.

After 20 miles I won't say I felt good, but I certainly felt a lot better than I did after the 18 mile run a few weeks back. I was carefully managing my drink and fuel intake today, making a conscious effort to have at least a sip of Lucozade at each mile point, and also a couple of Jelly beans every three miles. It did feel like I was consistently stuffing sticky fruity sugary stuff into my gob, but it did keep me going and the difference was noticeable, so I will certainly be aiming to replicate that on race day.


At the end of the run, I took the opportunity for a cheeky selfie, to capture the effect that 2h:47:34 of running had had on me, somehow I still managed to crack a smile. In honour of the #nomakeupselfie that swept the social networks this week, I also sponsored myself £3 for the privilege. (Feel free to do the same).

So now to the taper, an opportunity to drop down the miles, and give me legs a bit of a rest, so they can be ready and raring to go in three weeks time. Bursting to go.

With the long run behind me, I can now refocus my efforts on my fundraising. My total currently stands at £1088, and I am hopeful that I will be able to raise that up to £1500 before the big day, even if I have to cheat and include gift aid. That would be enough to send not one, but two dairy cows, changing two families lives forever.

I know it seems that everyone seems to be asking for money at the moment, particularly with Sport Relief only just passed, but anything you could spare at all would be very gratefully received, even if it is just £1. I can assure you I am certainly putting in the effort at this end!

It's quick and really easy to do at: www.virginmoneygiving.com/davidjohns

Missing a car and hitting a fence

Running is hard. Beginners on a treadmill will often be amazed at how few calories they burn off with 10 or 15 minutes of jogging. An amazement that will only be furthered when they see the number of calories on the back of their vending machine Mars bar upon leaving the gym.

But it all depends on your sense of perspective. When running, you burn around 150 calories per mile. This may not sound like much on it's own, but when you head out for an 18 mile run, it soon adds up to 2700 calories. Now that is a big number.

Today, as you may have guessed, I headed out for the first of my two long training runs, a nice long 18 miles. Although there was a bit of wind, it wasn't significant enough to upset me, and the bad weather managed to hold off until long after I'd finished.

Knowing just how many calories I would be burning I'd prepared for today's run by filling my waist adorning pouch with plenty of fruity jelly sweets, and stuck the energy gel I'd acquired in last weeks finishing bag into my pocket. With a bottle of energy drink in hand, and a second bottle strategically placed in the forecourt, I set off on the first of my planned nine mile loops.

After last weeks 8 minute mile paced half marathon, I was planning on slowing this run down a bit to something a bit more sensible. To hit a sub four hour marathon I will need to average a touch over 9 minute mile pace. To buy myself a bit of contingency though for the final 10k, I will want to complete the first 20 miles at around 8:40 pace, and so that was my aim for today.

The first 9 mile lap was largely uneventful, except for when I nearly got myself run over. Approaching a usually quiet road, I was surprised to see a car approaching. Being a survival loving kind of human I waited for the car to pass before crossing. Only when I was halfway across, did I spot the car that was following behind it and heading straight for me. Fortunately I crossed fairly swiftly, and so suffered nothing more than a flush of embarrassment. Top tip to anyone out running. Look before crossing roads.

On completing the first lap I slipped open our front gate and exchanged my near empty bottle for a fresh full one and headed out for more of the same. It was at this point I thought I'd give my gel a go.

I'd never tried a pouch of energy gel before, and I have to say it was an experience that I'm not sure I wish to repeat. The taste was incredibly sweet and fruity, but more than anything it was the texture that really disturbed me. The closest thing I can think of to compare it to is a crème brûlée, but obviously without the palette pleasing caramelised sugar. I think I'll stick to jelly beans in future.

The second lap was unsurprisingly much like the first, although this time without any vehicular near misses. Although I was grateful for the refuelling opportunity, I think in future I'll have to find two different routes to split it up into to break up the monotony a bit.

At points, the thought of extended the second lap to make it up to 20 miles did enter my head, but I'm glad I stuck to the planned 18. The last mile was very difficult, and my pace slowed to 9:13. I'm not sure that I was  hitting the dreaded wall, but it was in the very least, a fence. I finished the 18.14 miles in 2:38.13. The thought of running another 8 miles on top of that is daunting to say the least. I have a feeling that the impact that the wall has on me, will make or break my hopes of hitting a sub four hour time.

In other news, I gave my fundraising another push at work at the tail end of the week, what with it being pay day and all, and thanks to some very generous colleagues, my sponsorship total has now broken through the £750 target to fund a cow!

It's fantastic news and I would like to thank everyone that has donated so far, but I'm not going to stop there. With six weeks still to go, there's plenty of time to push the sponsorship as high as I possibly can, and who knows, I might even raise enough to send two cows!

The muddy beach

Today I completed the Portsmouth coastal half marathon, my first ever competitive race over this distance. I have had experience of a handful of runs of that distance, and further over the last few weeks as part of my training, but it was really helpful to have this race as part of the marathon build up.

With a field of of 760, it was a relatively small race, but it still provided me with ample opportunity to practise my race day techniques. Pacing myself to keep to my pace when surrounded by other runners, weaving around the slower runners at the start, and of course hardest of all, trying to drink from a water filled plastic cup on the move. I'm pretty sure at the first water station I managed to get more water in my nose than I did in my mouth.

The weather wasn't kind, although the rain held off, there was a very strong southerly wind. For the majority of the race it was blowing across us, and for section we were having to run straight into it. The only time we had it on our backs we were busy negotiating the muddy beach and puddle strewn gravelly path, not really ideal underfoot conditions to make the most of the tailwind.

At the five mile point, I was cheered on by a my army of supporters that had made it out, well my wife and the dog. Seeing them was really good motivation to keep me pushing as I was about to turn back into the wind. It also meant I got some photos of me actually running.

It was great fun to run on a mix of terrain, mud, beach, gravel, tarmac and a boggy field to boot. Needless to say my shoes are no longer quite the bright colour they were, but I'm sure they'll be back to their luminous best after a couple of good runs in the rain to clean them up.

Overall it was an excellent course, well signposted, well marshalled and ample water / jelly bean stations to keep you going. I would highly recommend this race to anyone considering a half marathon, either as marathon preparation or as a target on its own.

With an eye on the conditions, both meteorological and underfoot, I wasn't expecting a great time, and initially I was aiming for anything sub 1:50. However, spurred on by a couple of fellow London marathon trainees, the first telling me to go for the best time possible rather than trying to run at a marathon pace, and the other laying down the challenge of a sub 1:45 time, I decided to go nuts and try and hit the 8:00 minute mile pace required.

The first few miles felt easy and I was averaging slightly faster than that, however the muddy section of the race, followed by the section into the wind, hit my pace hard, and then I was always playing catch up on the pace. With a couple of miles to go I was certain I wouldn't be able to hit 1:45, but 1:46 was well within my grasp.

As it turned out, the finish line came upon me a lot sooner than I was expecting, and as I stopped my watch at 1:45:07, I realised how painfully close I was to the magical 1:45 target. I feel like I'll need to find a nice fast half after London to give me another go at beating that time. I might have to put my running retirement on hold for a bit.

The finishing pack was full of goodies, including plenty of energy gels and tablets that will come in handy as my long runs kick in. Best of all, there was a running snood in there too, which will no doubt come in handy on my colder evening runs.

The training plan must definitely be having an effect. Compared to the Great South Runs that I have previously completed, my legs feel a lot fresher and less achy after this race, and I completed the first ten miles of this race a full seven minutes quicker then my GSR personal best too. Maybe that's another race I'll have to enter again too!

There are now only seven weeks to go until the marathon and it is approaching very quickly. Next weekend I am heading out for an 18 mile run. I think I'll try and avoid the hill this time though, and do a couple of 9 mile laps instead to help me refuel half way round.

On the sponsorship front, my total is now up to £685, so very close to my target. If you are reading this as someone that keeps meaning to sponsor me, but hasn't quite got around to it yet, please take a minute or two to do it now. It really is quick and easy to do at www.virginmoneygiving.com/davidjohns

Thank you so much.

Every run's a school run

I ran over 17 miles today (in horrendous weather conditions), which gave me plenty of time to reflect on my training, here are just a few of the things I have learnt so far:

• Running gloves are worth their weight in gold.

• Rain is annoying, but wind is much much worse.

• Marathon training is incredibly time consuming, and not just the weekend long runs.

• My clothes are all mysteriously getting slightly bigger and looser.

• Dogs aren't great pacemakers.

• Rest days are the best days of all.

• The fuel you eat makes a massive difference to how you run

• Orange shoes are the fastest of all shoes.

• Nipples hurt when they bleed.

• I will sing-a-along, air guitar, and air drum to pretty much anything.

• I know all the words to Agadoo.

• Running downhill is scant consolation for the effort put in to get to the top of it in the first place.

• When you stomp through an especially deep puddle, your shoe will squelch funny for at least 10 strides.

• Getting pelted by an all encompassing wall of splashed up puddle water, caused by an ignorant twonk in a sports car makes very little actual difference when you've already been running in heavy rain for two hours.

• No-one cares about your training progress as much as you do, so try to talk about other things occasionally.

Over the hill and far away

This week I was back up in Scotland for work. I did my best to eat as healthily as possible, which is not easy in Scotland, and I'd planned to carry on with the training plan so I packed my trainers and running gear.

On Tuesday I headed out on a dark and cold six mile run. Despite being Scotland, the weather wasn't entirely terrible. It was cold, but nothing that couldn't be compensated for with a base-layer.

Previously in Scotland I had headed out on a couple of different 3 mile runs, so I combined the two of those and made it up to the distance.

The run felt surprisingly difficult, the legs felt full of energy and good to go, but I was finding it harder than usual to breathe. I can only assume it was the fact it was a bit colder than I was used to. Once I got going, it did start to feel easier, but I never really felt like I could push the pace too hard. All in all, I completed 6.22 miles in 54:29.

I had intended to head out for a second time on the Thursday, but unfortunately we didn't get away early enough, making it the first run on the training plan that I have missed.

Shame on me.

For today's long run I had a new toy to play with on the way round after treating myself to a Garmin GPS watch off of eBay. Although I can use my phone for GPS it was nice to be able to glance at my time / pace / distance without having to fight with a screen unlock. There is also a far better chance that the battery on the watch will last the time it takes me to get around the marathon distance.

I'd planned today's long run to take me off in about the only direction I had yet to run, north. For those of you that know Portsmouth, you know that this means one thing. Portsdown Hill. Mont Ventoux it isn't, but it certainly hurts your legs plenty enough when you're running up it.

Did I mention the 40 mph winds?

As well as the hill work to make my legs work a little bit harder, my main aim for today was to get around at a pace closer to my intended marathon pace of 9 minute miles, rather than the somewhat brisker 8:14 I averaged on last weeks half marathon run.

The hill was certainly hard work, and to make it more interesting, I headed over the top of it, to allow myself the pleasure of heading back over it again on the way back home.

Additionally it did feel like whenever I wasn't running up the hill, I was running into the wind. Occasionally I had the pleasure of doing both at the same time.

The 14.29 mile distance was completed in 2:06:56. This averaged my pace out at 8:53. Very happy with that and felt like I could have gone on a bit further, which of course I will have to do next Sunday.

As I finished, I spotted the carnage that the long run had inflicted upon my left nipple. Apparently I'm not allowed to post a photo of it, so I won't. Although, for the right donation I may reconsider...

Speaking of donations, my fundraising total now stands at £600 which is so very close to my target. So please, if you haven't donated yet, please give whatever you can afford, to help hit the £750 target to send a cow to Africa.

You can do so quickly and easily at www.virginmoneygiving.com/davidjohns

Half way there

With the exception of a smattering of shingle on the seafront promenade, and some muddy puddles to dance around on the coastal gravelled path, today was a perfect day for running. Sunshine, a cool temperature and a mere whisper of wind. What a contrast from the dreary grey drizzle of last weeks run. 

After the personal best beating 5k run on Tuesday I was looking forward to easing up on the pace, and enjoying the 5 miler on Wednesday evening. The weather had other ideas though. 

I've been told several times during the process how miserable it must be having to train "at the wrong time of the year" on dark evenings with cold wind and heavy rain. So far I've been very lucky, and avoided most of the rain, on the dark evening runs at least. Wednesday however was totally miserable. It wasn't helped by the fact that due to a problem with the connector on my headphones, I was running without any music or distance feedback to keep me going.

I got round the 5.14 miles in 42:18 and had to dig really deep to keep myself going.

On Thursday I couldn't make hockey training in the evening, so instead of taking the easy option and being lazy, I headed out for a lunch time run with Mike. It was nice to get out for three miles in the daytime, and much better then staying at work, stuck behind a desk. The paths were on the muddy side from all the rain we have been enjoying recently, and our dirty trainers definitely looked like they'd been out for a good run by the time we'd got back to the office.

Friday was a rest day, Saturday was hockey which we won, so hurrah for that.

With a fellow marathon trainee boasting about their first of four 20 mile training runs on Facebook, I spent Saturday evening getting twitchy about my training plan. I was undecided about what distance I would do today, and whether or not it was worth upping my planned distances, however the lure of completing my first half marathon distance was too strong to ignore, and wanting to beat a time of 1:50 I didn't want to be distracted by running further than 13.1 miles. I will continue to assess my training plan as I progress, however my main priority will be to remain injury free. This will obviously be best achieved by not pushing the distance too hard or too fast.

Today's run, as already mentioned, was an absolute pleasure. It was hard work, but I was deliberately pushing for an 8:20 pace to get me round in 1 hour 50. The reason for this target is that I've been told previously that to calculate a marathon time, you take your half marathon time, double it and add twenty minutes. As I'm going for a sub 4 hour marathon, 1 hour 50 was therefore my half marathon target.

I decided to run the 10 mile route I'd run a couple of weeks ago, but added on an extension to take me further along the seafront. For those that know Portsmouth, I continued westwards past Canoe lake and turned instead at Clarence Pier. There were plenty of fellow runners out and about, lots of dogs enjoying their walks and an ankle biting terrier which I managed to just about dodge in time.

I completed the half marathon distance in 1:47:44, which meant I was comfortably under the 1:50 target I'd set. Happy days. Absolutely shattered though, and entirely intimidated at the thought of having to do it twice over.

Next week I am heading back up to Scotland with work. I will have to make sure I'm strict with the eating, and training plans as it is easy to slip up when away from home and it's usual routine. Next Sunday I will be doing a 14 mile run, and for good measure I'm planning on heading up and over Portsdown Hill, and then of course back up and over it again to get home. I don't imagine it will be easy but it will be a good challenge on the legs. I suspect I'll be going a bit slower than this week.

On the fundraising front, I have had another bit of a push. The total was a little bit over £300 at the start of the day, so was keen to hit the half way point of my £750 target on the same day that I first completed half the distance.

Thanks to the amazing generosity of my friends, family and an anonymous galaxy hitch-hiker, I am now very proud to say we have broken the £500 barrier! That's two-thirds of a dairy cow!

There is still a fair way to go though, so for those of you that wish to donate, you can do so quickly and easily at www.virginmoneygiving.com/davidjohns

A short sharp burst

Today my training plan allowed me to get away with a mere three mile run. I carefully planned the route to find the flattest, straightest route with the least road crossings possible.

The idea of the occasional short sharp run in the training plan is not only to give your legs a rest from the longer runs, or to provide a fresh mental stimulation, but also to quite literally, get a bit of speed into your legs. I'm not sure how this then goes onto helping you during a much longer race, but presumably it does somehow. We shall see next Sunday I guess.

Well rested and full of beans I set out with the intention of beating every PB possible up to the 3 mile distance. The weather was dark and drizzly, but I'd managed to miss the worst of the rain that had splashed down not too long ago, and had a great time splashing through all the puddles, averaging 7:14 miles in the process.

The scariest thing to come out of the whole run was how short 3 miles felt, a distance that not too long ago, I would have struggled round.

I beat my 3 mile personal best time by 36 seconds, and also broke my 1 mile, 3k and Cooper (distance in 12 minutes) personal bests. Well happy. There's definitely something in the theory that orange shoes are faster than regular white ones.

My 1k personal eluded me by a second. I will beat that at some point even if I have to do just a single kilometre at some point.

Despite running 3.1 miles in 22:26, and having set my phone to target 5k in 23:00, for some reason it didn't acknowledge my beating of that PB. I can only assume that it cut out a metre or two too short?

On the sponsorship front, I have now broken the £262 mark. This, significantly, means that I have raised £10 for each of the miles I will be running. Whilst I acknowledge that there is still a long way to go to hit the magical £750 mark, I would like to take a moment just to thank every single one of you that has sponsored me.

I am truly grateful to all of you, and it really does mean a lot to me that not only have you been so generous with your money, but also that you've been generous with your time. Simply taking a moment out of your life to fill in a sponsorship form, really will help to change someone's life forever.

Thank-you.

(Shameless sponsorship link)

There and back again

Some days are made for running, the sun is out with a smile on it's shine, greeting each bouncy stride with a cheery hello. The wind is light, the paths are dry and you wonder why anyone would be doing anything other than enjoying the wonderful scenery of the world outside the door with a relaxing jog.

Today was not one of those days.

The week started out well enough. On Tuesday I had a "short" five mile run. I dashed home after work to get a quick run in, before rushing into, and out of, the shower to pick up the wife from work. In hindsight I was staggered that not only did the five mile run feel easy, but also that I had reached the point where a distance that used to daunt me, was now just a brief "popping out for a run" distance.

My legs felt nice and refreshed after the rest day, and with memories of last weeks personal best beating run, I decided I'd try and keep the pace up in an effort to beat my 1km personal best which I had only equalled the week before. I failed in that attempt, but I did creep under my 3km personal best by a second which was a nice surprise.

Wednesday's six miler was fairly uneventful, I didn't push it too hard, and concentrated on maintaining a steady pace, around the 8:30 minute mark. The sort of pace I will be hoping to be running at on the big day.

On Thursday hockey training was cancelled due to problems with the floodlights, so I must confess I was lazy and made the most of the unexpected rest day. Friday was another rest day, and the less said about the hockey match on Saturday the better. Needless to say, we're not top of the league any more.

So, on to today's long Sunday run.

I awoke early, and rolled over to check the weather on the phone to see if I could get away with a few more minutes in bed. Unfortunately the rain was coming, so I decided to get up and out there quick sharp, in a bid to dodge as much of it as possible.

Most of my Sunday runs seem to be of significance now, and today was no exception. After last weeks Great South Run equalling distance of 10 miles, this week I was faced with running the farthest I had ever been, an experience I will be repeating quite a few times up to and including Marathon day.

It's a dangerous business, going out of your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to. With the wife's workplace almost exactly six miles away, I took the opportunity to head in the direction of Portchester, on a there and back again type run.

The clouds were grey, and hung ominously waiting to coat me with their watery ammunition. The roads seemed eerily deserted this morning. I'd set off at 8:00 am on a Sunday, but it did feel all a bit "28 days later" until I saw my first car, two miles into the run!

Three and a half miles in I was faced with an unexpected underpass, with a nice friendly blind right angle turn into it. Warily I entered, half expecting a gang of orcish youths to greet me, half expecting someone to be strewn in there following some antics from the night before.

As it turned out, it was completely clear and safe. There's always something worrying about a brightly painted and colourful subway. You just know they're trying to compensate for something. At least I knew it would likely be clear on the way back, of dead bodies at least.

Shortly after, the rain came. Not particularly interesting rain, just the sort of grey horrible drizzling rain, sucking out any glimmer of hopeful colour that had survived so far into the day.

As I reached the turning point, I ran past Portchester crematorium where my grandparents were laid to rest. Reflectively I took a moment to remember them, and knew that if it was at all possible, then they would be doing all they could to support me through the training, and the marathon itself. Failing that, I was heartened by the thought that I would doubtless be thinking of all of them at some point on the day to keep me going. I will after all, need all the help I can get.

Heading back home I realised that I'd had the wind on the back on the way there. On the exposed, wind facing miles, my pace took a bit of a hit.

At the ten mile mark, I really could have done without the footbridge that I needed to summit to make it over the road. My legs really felt that one.

At this point I took a bit of a wiggle for a change of both scenery and terrain and headed for the wood paths that I would usually use for my lunchtime three miles run in the summer.

It gave me a fair few muddy puddles to dodge, but it made a nice change to the relentless pounding on tarmac, and the dreary industrial estates I had been running through.

As I was getting near home, I realised that I'd miscalculated the length and with a short detour I could round it up to half marathon distance. That was, until I spotted the wife walking the dog round the corner from our house. After 12.5 miles in 1:49:34, it seemed like a good excuse to stop running, for some hugs, cuddles and licks. I said hello to the dog too.

Half marathon distance next Sunday.

On the fundraising front I am now very close to breaking through the £200 mark after another bit of a push this week. With pay day looming for most after the long month of January, I have every intention to carry on with that push in an effort to get me closer to my £750 target.

Personal bests and accumulated fatigue

Well it's certainly been an eventful week, who knew that bright orange trainers could be so much faster than regular white ones! I guess that's why they were so popular at the last Olympics.

Keen, eager and rested I headed out on Tuesday evening for a 5 mile run with my new trainers on. They were so very comfortable, and although I was aware I was running at a good pace, I was very surprised for the audio update to tell me I'd completed the first mile in 7:30! Overall I averaged 7:34 for the 5.15 mile run which was phenomenal, given that the previous week I was around about 8:10.

As a result when I got back I discovered that during the run, I'd not only equalled my personal best for fastest kilometre, but had beaten my personal bests for all of the following distances: 1 mile, 3 km, 3 miles and 5km. I'd also beaten my record for the cooper, which is how far can you run in 12 minutes.

Given that all of the PB's were around about three to four years old, and that all of these had been beaten during a reasonably evenly paced 5 mile run, I was obviously very pleased.

I have no idea if it was a result of the training starting to come together, the new trainers giving me an extra spring in my step, the healthier food I had been eating or more likely a combination of all three, but I was absolutely buzzing.

The following evening I had a 6 mile run scheduled, but I upped the distance slightly to enable me to have a crack at my 10km PB, given how well I'd run the night before. Unfortunately, I could feel fairly soon into the run that the previous nights antics had taken its toll on the old leg muscles, and despite my best efforts with a still impressive average pace of 7:58, I was agonisingly 14 seconds shy of my target.

By Thursday I was definitely starting to feel the effects of two longer midweek runs. My training plan up until this point had allowed one or two midweek 3 milers, the increase in distance was telling, but unfortunately for me Thursday was no rest day.

Although I didn't have a run planned, I did have hockey training to go to. Not only does this change in exercise keep my brain from dying of street pounding boredom, it also allows a bit of pseudo-interval training to make it's way quite easily into my plan. Unfortunately, Thursday night was a night when the heavens opened at just the wrong time. On several occasions, soaked through to the skin with nothing dry to change into to, I contemplated jumping in the car and heading home, it was only the thought of looking down the Mall at the finish line that kept me there.

Friday thankfully, was a rest day.

Saturday involved more hockey, and possibly the highest paced, most intense match I have ever played in, as first (us), played second (Petersfield), in the league. With just a point in it, both teams knew that a win was vital to their chance of winning the title. Inevitably it was a 2-2 draw, but again it was a really good interval workout, and better still I didn't pick up any injuries.

So, onto today's long run, and "just" the 10 miles to do. I had a couple of routes planned, one involved following a similar route to last weeks run, but extending it to take me up to, and around Havant Tesco, the other which was the one I ended up doing purely for a bit of variation, was a run down to Canoe Lake, along the seafront and back home, with a few 'wiggles' to make it up to the ten miles.
 
My main target for this run was to beat my personal best from the Great South Run, set in 2011 which stood at 1:27:16. To hit this would need to average about 8:40 pace, something I felt was achievable, so long as I didn't have any stops for walking.

The run felt good, and although there were a few points were I was struggling, the music, or the views, always seemed to pick me up just when I needed it. My pacing was incredibly consistent, with only 15 seconds difference between my slowest mile and my fastest mile. The low point of the run had to be when I had no choice but to run through a muddy puddle, and get my shiny luminous orange trainers dirty. Sad face.

I was cheered up at the finish though when I discovered that I had made it round the ten miles in 1:22:18, beating my personal best by (more or less) 5 minutes. On top of that I'd also beaten my personal best for distance covered in one hour.

Such a great end to an amazing week.

Tomorrow is rest day and my legs are looking forward to it very much!

All I need is a race number

Today I had some lovely presents waiting for me when I got home from work. 

Firstly my late Christmas present to myself in the form of a VERY bright pair of asics gt-2000s. They are so very comfortable with plenty of cushioning all over to protect me as I pound down the miles. I'm so tempted to take them out for a jog tonight but it'll have to wait, need to respect the rest days after all.

Secondly and far more surprisingly was the running vest that had been sent to me by Send a Cow. It looks awesome and very cow like. Just need to find a way of getting my name printed on the front now for added crowd support on the day.

I have to admit, it may be three months away still, but it is starting to feel very real now the vest is here.

The bounce is back

I headed out this morning for my 9 mile run, and I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised at how good it felt. Granted it was only a mile further than the long runs I've been doing recently, but I was dreading it a little bit as it was the first long run I have done with a game of hockey the day before.

Usually on the Sunday after a hockey match, I'm stiff, sore and limping around the house, and with this being the first match back after the Christmas break, I was anticipating even more aching than usual. I have to say though, I felt fine. Certainly during the run anyway, my legs are aching a fair bit now, but then again, there is a reason Monday is a rest day.

My Tuesday 5 mile run this week was a fairly uneventful affair of running five miles in the dark streets, but on Wednesday I got to head out at lunch time at work with Mike for a nice three miler. The usual lunchtime route is prone to muddiness during inclement weather, so we found a new route and it proved a nice change. The only downside was it was pretty much an "out and back" kind of route, involving two bridges, so plenty of work for legs used to the otherwise pancake flat streets of Portsmouth.

Additionally I headed out on Thursday for an unscheduled cheeky little three miler with the dog, as hockey training was cancelled. The main thing I noticed during these midweek runs was how easy it all felt, my training is now in full swing and I have the "bounce". The bounce is something I refer to when training, for the feeling I get two or three weeks into it, where everything just seems that much easier, I'm full of energy and I get restless on the rest days.

On Friday evening, I decided that it was about time I reviewed what I was eating, as I'd come to the realisation that I am only planning on doing a marathon once, and as such I want to ensure I am doing everything I can to get myself under the four hour mark. If I can shift a few pounds, and get the right sort of fuel into my body I should hopefully be able to shave off a good few minutes from my time. Or more importantly, get round in the first place!

The internet, I found out, is amok with eating plans for runners. The key as I found out, certainly during the monotonous training stage, is to keep the fats down, eat plenty of fruits and vegetables, a lean protein source and a good helping of carbs.

The guidance that I have pinned to the front of the fridge was taken from therunningbug.co.uk and I think it appealed to me due to it's fairly hands off approach to telling you what to eat. It doesn't have specific meal plans, with prescribed weights portions, but instead works well as a prompt and a reminder on what I in truth knew I should of been eating all along. I'll keep you all updated with how well I get on sticking to it. The weekend has gone well, but I suspect I may struggle during the week once work gets introduced to the mix.

Best of all, all the fresh fruit and vegetables actually taste nice. Look how yummy my lunch from yesterday looks!

So full of energy, and armed with the bounce I headed out for this mornings 9 mile run. I had toyed with the idea of doing it up and over Portsdown hill, for a bit of hill work, but with yesterdays hockey in mind I decided to leave it for now and see how I got on with something a bit flatter.

I set off with the intention of heading north of the city to do a lap of Farlington Marshes for a bit of a change of scenery from city streets and Southsea seafront. When I got to Farlington marshes I discovered the gates shut and locked. Bummer. Unfortunately it was a bit late to change my route, so instead I just carried on along the cycle path heading towards Havant, and waited for the Endomondo powered voice in my ear to tell me I'd reached four and a half miles so I could turn around, retrace my steps, and return home. Not quite the scenery I was hoping for, but still a nice change.

The run felt good and was completed in a time of 1:17:36 and I felt like I could have gone on a lot further, which is handy given that a marathon would entail another 17.2 miles on top of today's run.

Next week is a ten mile run, and I am looking forward to it, and a chance to beat my personal best of 1:27:16 for that distance set at the Great South Run in 2011.

Shinglegeddon and chains of good

Today I somehow managed to dodge the wind and the rain, and get another nice 8 mile run in, in relatively pleasant conditions.

During the week I was lucky enough to spend a few days in London as a Christmas present from my wife. It was amazing fun, and brilliant to unwind before heading back to work on Monday.

On new years eve I got a 5 mile run in, but the trip to London meant I missed my other 3 mile midweek run. I also ate a bit worse than I probably should have what with the cooked breakfasts, the burgers and the trip to an american BBQ restaurant, but fortunately the trip was filled with plenty of walking, and even climbing the stairs on the underground which was very tough. I flaked out of attempting the 193 steps out of Covent Garden tube station though.

Back from London and back to marathon training reality with 8 miles today. Apparently it was -3 when I set out, but I had my new running gloves and hat on to keep me nice and toastie. (Thanks Luke for the Amazon voucher). I took a slightly different route to last weeks long run, partially to keep me interested, but mostly to take in the sight of Southsea esplanade covered in shingle. Apparently there must have been some strong winds and high tides whilst I was up in the big smoke because the promenade, and more impressively the road, had been turned into a makeshift beach. 

I wish I'd taken a photo really but I was busy dodging pebbles underfoot. So here's one that someone else took instead. presumably as the damage was being done. Fortunately, I missed out on the wind, waves and rain and just got to run through aftermath, still it added an extra challenge to the run.

Anyway the 8 mile run was completed in a 1:09:31, a little slower than last week, but after the eating in London, I was happy with that, and it was a nice change to get round without pushing the pace too hard.

With the new year now upon us, it is only natural to think of new years resolutions. At the moment I have to say my focus 2014 is going to be the marathon. Not really a resolution though, but I'm hoping the training I will have to do will take good care of the usual fitness / eating habits / weight aspects. It better do anyway!

Finally, I need to mention this; before I went to London I saw the following video that has been produced as an advert for innocent smoothies and will no doubt be hitting your screens in the near future, however it's worth pointing out that the advert is a true story of the work done by my charity Send-a-cow.



It sums up so much more simply and coherently the good that the charity does, than I ever could.
(Unsubtle link to my sponsorship page).