It's done; I completed the 2021 London Marathon in 4:33:56, a time that I'm extremely proud of. I felt strong and determined -  I may have floundered a little between miles 18 and 20 but I rediscovered my mojo in the last 6 miles. Motivated by thousands of spectators screaming their hearts out, I shaved 5 seconds off my average pace before crossing the finish line.
It was a truly unforgettable experience. The sense of community was palpable and the atmosphere was electric all day. Thanks to all that have supported me!

I have finally recovered from my lingering cold and recently completed a modest 10x200m interval session and an easy 5k. The weather has been a lot cooler as of late and I've felt relatively strong despite feeling under the weather. I'll be heading to London tomorrow to pick up my marathon swag before running an easy 2mi Saturday morning. I've been reading it's a prudent method to shake out the nerves and keep the legs warmed up before the big race. Good lord I'm anxious now.

Today I headed out for the final long run before the marathon next week. The original training plan I have been following suggested a 6mi run but given that I have missed several runs due to illness, I was keen to increase that if possible. Some online research quickly indicated that an 8-10 mile run in the week prior to a marathon shouldn't result in any adverse effects so I stuck to the bottom end of that. I wore the gear I intend to wear next week and despite some unexpected heat and my lingering cold, everything went smoothly!

So I once again mixed with a large group of people and once again came down with something resembling a cold. It has affected my mid-week runs AGAIN which is nothing short of frustrating his close to the marathon. However, armed with an abundance of painkillers, I made it out for 4 easy miles yesterday on Thursday which didn't feel too taxing. It certainly helped boost my spirits and I can only hope it boosted my immune system as well. I'm now resting up ahead of a 6-8 mile run tomorrow; my final long run before London.

I haven't been nearly as dedicated with this posts as I've wanted to be; chalk that down to waning enthusiasm from doing the same routes over and over again! Last week I only managed a single interval training in the week due to other commitments but Sunday's 17 miler went pretty much as planned. I am so glad to have finished the long runs of the training program; the routes were becoming extremely tedious to say the least. I'm really looking forward to dramatically reducing the miles over the next 11 days and taking it a little easier.

I have learnt that 20 miles seems to the longest run that most training programmes require, so I was chuffed when Sunday's run went without a hitch. Given I was in London for the weekend and didn't head out until late Sunday, I felt surprisingly strong. It was only the last 3-4km where I started to struggle a little with my breathing, probably due to my inconsistent pace beforehand. My route took me to Holme Pierrepoint, back through West Bridgford up to the River Trent, alongside the Trent to Beeston and then a quick jaunt through the town before heading back along the main road.

Apologies for the lateness of this post - it's been a hectic week at my new job followed by a stacked weekend!

My physical health had improved enough that I was about to return to my weekly schedule of an interval run followed by an easy run. Wednesday's interval run was fine but I could feel that I'd lost some conditioning. That feeling persisted into the easy 10K I completed a couple of days later but I did feel some semblance of improvement. I've also started to mitigate some of the knee pain I suffer with some trendy black knee pads (pictured) - these were particularly helpful on my long run which I will cover in my next post.

I was determined to get as close to 18 miles as possible today despite being ill over the previous week and completing a grand total of zero runs. I first ran a 5mi 'Taster' Run to see how I was feeling - check. I continued on with 10 miles being the next milestone - check. However, somewhere around 15 miles, my body began to give up. I doubt I was at 100% anyway and it was also unexpectedly warm but the pain set in something chronic. I threw in the towel at 17 miles, content with what I had achieved.

When You Can Feel The Absence of Training

So after the triumph of Sunday's long run, I developed a rather nasty cold for the rest of the week which pretty much floored me. Consequently, I haven't been able to do any training runs this week which is making me anxious. I've recovered to a certain extent thanks to Meetal's chicken soup (pictured) but 18 miles on Sunday looks pretty unlikely currently. My intention is to run around Colwick Park (about 3 miles) to gauge my stamina and then continue from there. Who knows how far I'll go?

By now I sound like an old record going on about the anxiety I have faced not being able to train recently. However, after copious amounts of stretching, I finally headed out for a long run on Sunday. My original aim was to complete the sub-2 hour marathon I was meant to attempt last week, but I'd decided I would have been happy completing it sub 2:10. I felt well rested and pain-free, able to run the majority of the distance averaging a 5:30min/km pace. In the second half, it even became clear that I had the potential to beat my half marathon PB of 1:53:23. I focused as best I could and ended up shaving 1 minute and 30 seconds off my record. Chuffed is a gross understatement.

I'm starting to grow a little concerned over my running output over the last week or so - I haven't achieved a target distance in a little over 7 days. I attempted a 10K in Malta and while the views were spectacular, the sun was far too punishing. I managed about 5K before I was forced to stop due to a mixture of the heat and knee pain. I've since been reading up on some more advanced stretches. I intend to do some strength training upon my return, a short warm up run to get me back in the zone and then I'll attempt to recreate the sub 2:10 half marathon on Sunday again before jumping back into the training schedule.

Given my ongoing back pains, I was forced to cancel Sunday's half marathon effort, much to my dismay. However, better than having to cancel a ran half way through which is much more demoralising. I'm feeling considerably better and enjoying a green list holiday in Malta. I've already mapped a potential run route (pictured) which I'll be exploring either later today or early tomorrow when it's much, much cooler.

My training schedule has gone to hell this week, partly due to my busy social life but also because of some recurring back problems. I ran 3x1.5m intervals on Wednesday which went well but I wasn't feeling particularly up for Thursday's easy 7 miles. I decided to postpone the run until Friday. I figured because Sunday's effort is meant to be a half marathon rather than building upon last week's 16 miles that I'd still be good to go for along run. However, the Friday effort didn't happen either due to some lingering aches and pains. I've been resting up with the intention of running the sub 2 hour on Sunday as planned. Finger's crossed!

Almost two full days have passed since I completed Sunday's 16 mile effort to Attenborough Nature Reserve and back. I nearly threw in the towel early on due to calf pain but decided to soldier on in the end. Recovery since has been... slow. I've done some stretching and some low impact exercise such as cycling and walking but I think even that has been a little too ambitious. Today I will endeavour to do more stretching, dose up on painkillers and enjoy a scolding bath.

I'm a little late writing this blog so apologies to all my avid readers. On Thursday my intention was to follow a trusted 10K route which takes me to Holme Pierrepoint Watersport Centre along the River Trent and back along the Grantham Canal which runs alongside Radcliffe Road. However, I've done this route to death so tried my best to add in the odd twist and turn to keep it interesting. This plan didn't pan out as I had hoped and I ended up a being a kilometre behind, so I took myself through The Hook recreation ground for a change of scenery. I felt strong throughout this effort - the odd twinge from Wednesday's interval session but nothing I couldn't manage.

Yesterday I went to visit my old friend Colwick Racecourse for some interval running. Given the fact I am running a day less each week compared to the original training schedule, I added a bit of extra distance to both the run and recovery phases to compensate. My body felt strong after recovering from the weekend's long run and an interval session certainly helps to break up the monotony of training. I ran 3 x 1.25 miles at a 5min/km pace with ease, but the recovery segments still felt wonderful.

I spent the remainder of the week psyching myself up for Sunday's long run; a sub 2:10 half marathon with a warm up and cool down. I was worried that I hadn't recovered sufficiently and that my body would like me down in some way but those fears were not justified thankfully. A rainy 2:06 on the Nottingham Half Marathon route felt perfectly manageable, moreso in the second half where my pace inexplicably increased. The recovery since has been quite speedy too!

After a sports massage, some much needed rest and numerous calf stretches, I headed back out yesterday for a rainy 12x200m interval session with a 1 mile warm up and cooldown. It felt.. alright. I felt a twinge every now and again on both calves but nothing that couldn't be handled by the 200m recovery segments.

Ahead of Sunday's attempt at a half marathon (/w warm up and cool down), I'll be stretching and foam-rolling my legs regularly. The weeks are counting down quickly!

Sunday's run was meant to be a 14 miler. I'll be frank, I wasn't particularly feeling it in the first place but just shy of 4km in, both of my calves weren't having any of it so I made the decision to retire. Rather than feel sorry for myself for too long, I jumped straight into a hot bath and quickly booked a sports massage for the coming Tuesday.

I feel this is the result of poor recovery from Saturday's 10K and inadequate calf stretches up until this point. I plan to head back out tomorrow but until then I'll be deep in stretching research.

I wanted to give myself ample recovery time this week before my 10k marathon pace, but I also had a number of social plans that mean my training schedule needed a little tinkering. After walking around the NEC all day at a boardgame convention on Friday, I was in no mood to run when I got back, so I pushed it to Thursday.

Good lord, I did NOT want to run on Saturday but ironically I ended up running at a faster pace just so it would be over quicker! I'm really struggling with motivation recently; here's hoping it returns soon!

Words can't describe how little I wanted to run today; my limbs felt heavy and my whole body just felt so stiff. However, I dragged myself out for 9 x 400m intervals with a warm up and cool down. I think I experienced every form of weather barring snow in the hour I was out, culminating in a brief shower at the end.

I had a great time all told. My legs had fully recovered from Sunday's long run and I felt light on my feet despite my initial doubts. I explored a new route around the fringes of Colwick Park which took me briefly into the village of Colwick itself.

Yesterday played host to a gruelling 12 miler which seemed to go on and on. However, with about 6km to go, I joined one of my usual riverside paths which turned out to be part of the marathon route for the 2021 Nottingham Outlaw Triathlon. I must say, hijacking the applause from the bystanders was a great spirit boost and I even managed to pick up some pace on this final segment! I did feel a little like an imposter though so I was sure to reject any food or drink offered to me by the race officials.

I'm in quite a bit of pain today but a hot bath and plenty of rest should have be raring to get back out soon.

After Tuesday's catastrophic failure, I gave myself ample time to recover. Yesterday, I completed 5 easy miles on a scenic route via the banks of the River Trent and Grantham Canal. The weather was considerably cooler this and running by water always heals my spirit. Tuesday's experience knocked me for six, I won't lie, but this easy 5 miler did wonders for my motivation.

Tomorrow will play host to an epic 12 miler. Wish me luck.

I'm confident that yesterday was one of the hottest days of the year and I left it as late as I feasibly could before heading out for a scorching 10 mile run. I planned the route earlier that day, making sure to take advantage of shade and waterside for the cooling breeze, so all I need was the willpower.

All in all, it wasn't too bad at all! I followed the Big Track towards Beeston before running inwards and back along the canal home. Praise goes to my water bladder for keeping me hydrated throughout and a medley of nu-metal hits which boosted my spirits.

It's no secret that my body never feels up to all four runs on the weekly training schedule, so I've decided to condense Wednesday and Thursday's training into a single 'compromise' run. This week, a 5mi easy and a 4mi marathon pace became a 10K marathon pace!

I paid a visit to Holme Pierrepont (pictured) for yesterday's 10K - the sun was out and the place was bustling with rowers training for.. something. A little sore today but I'll be sure to take it easy ahead of Sunday's 10 miler.

After my 10K success on Sunday, I enjoyed a well-deserved day off. Today, I made my triumphant return to Colwick Racecourse for a 30min fartlek run, more commonly known as an interval run. 6 x 3 mins fast pace, 2 mins rest, with a 1mi warm up and cool down. Good lord it was difficult, especially as the sun decided to make an appearance too, but I was proud to average just over 4:10min/km for the run intervals. I was a dripping mess by the time I made it home.

I'm back home from my holiday, just in time for a sub 55:00 10K with a 1 mile warm up and cool down. I decided to return to Colwick Racecourse for today's effort to ensure the best conditions for maintaining a consistent pace.

Despite the flat elevation, the first 4 kilometres were nothing short of arduous but I soon found my groove and managed an average 5:13min/km pace. I ended up completing the 10K split in just under 52 minutes - I'm pretty chuffed and surprisingly pain-free!

I've been staying near Loch Lomond since Tuesday and yesterday I completed a 10K easy. As one might expect, the terrain was equally if not more mountainous than Windermere but some of the views were simply breathtaking. Winding pathways over rolling hills, gently flowing rivers, luscious forests; it had it all. The cherry on top was actually managing to run pretty much a complete loop of the correct distance!

I'm visiting the Lake District until Tuesday which means my 8mi Sunday long run took place in a brand new location. To say it was dominated by hills would be a gross understatement - parts of it were truly gruelling. However the landscape and terrain were breathtaking and a welcome break from the familiar routes in and around Nottingham. Plus I managed to pretty much finish where I started which is always a victory in an unfamiliar place.

Recovery has been quite slow this week - several poor sleeps and some ill-informed diet choices. I've ended up having two rest days and moving my Thursday activity to this morning. Thankfully, it was a 3mi easy run which is basically the 5k I would do weekly under normal circumstances. A quick jaunt by the River Trent in the rain was enough to tick the box!

I'm off to the Lake District today so the next week's run should make for a welcome change in routes and landscape!

5mi easy run along the canal today but I was suffering with some incredibly tight calf muscles after recent activity. The first 3 miles or so were relatively painless but shortly after, I was forced to stop for a 10 minute rest. I very nearly threw in the towel but I mustered enough motivation to reach the finish line.

I'm beginning to feel like I need to adjust the training schedule to either give myself at least one rest day between runs or drop one of the less productive runs. The Wednesday run is always agony.

Back on it today with a 1mi warmup, 3mi tempo and 1mi cooldown round Colwick Park. However, I failed to pay attention when setting the tempo pace and ended up with an obscene target of 5:00 to 5:20 per MILE rather than kilometre. Thankfully, my watch was still measuring in mins/km so all I had to do was ignore the incessant notifications that I was running too slowly and all was well.

On a positive note, today felt really quite strong. I feel like I'm recovering from longer runs much quicker now which can only mean good things for the future!

I was back in Buckinghamshire visiting my parents this weekend but the training never stops. I was supposed to run 7mi today, so I meticulously planned a nice rural route and headed out. About 3 miles in, I bumped into an old school friend who also happened to be out running! We accompanied each other for a short time and then she headed back.

With about 3 miles to go, I decided the road I was running on was too treacherous and dove into the first bridle path I saw. After several wrong turns and increasingly vague definitions of the term 'footpath', I eventually found my way back home after 9.6 miles. I was a hell of a lot of fun.

Today was a 1mi warm up, 2mi tempo run, 1mi cooldown. However TWICE I pressed the Lap button (which also happens to be the 'Back' button) on my watch when I was navigating through the stat screens to try and return to the main view. This basically skips the remainder of the current phase. The first was about half way into the warm up, so I just started again, whilst the second was just at the start of the cooldown so I estimated the distance to finish and ended up about 4.1 miles

The pain was.. manageable. A quick date with the ice pack was all I needed to start feeling better!

It was the training plan's turn to be defied today. As predicted yesterday, I was still a little too sore to run another 4 miles today, especially at tempo pace, so I've postponed this until tomorrow.

Going forward, I may end up swapping Thursday's activity for Friday's rest. This way, I would only ever run two days consecutively (Tuesday and Wednesday). Also I intend to dial back the pace of the easy runs so they're a little easier still. This should hopefully alleviate some soreness in the future and more importantly, prevent serious injury.

Today, my watch was like 'You should rest' but I defied it and instead for an easy 4mi run as per my training schedule.

It was excruciating. Not only were my calves and knees sore from yesterday's tempo run but I was also wearing basic shorts rather than a pair with inner lining. This, combined with today's sunshine, resulted in a lot of thigh chafing which was almost unbearable by the end. However, I made it and immediately wrapped every painful area in ice.

Back on it today with my first tempo run - 1mi easy, 2 x 1.5m threshold (with a short rest), 1mi easy. These runs are designed to increase my stamina and endurance when running for long periods of time (apparently).

I had a little mishap programming this session into the watch. The rest periods between thresholds were EXTREMELY brief (like, a matter of steps instead of 400m) but it nonetheless felt challenging, especially with the higher temperature today. Plus, I find running alongside the river really boosts my spirit! 

Apologies for the late post. Yesterday was another rest day but I've been experiencing some residual pain in my knees; yesterday it was the right one, today it's the left one. The knee is one of the first body parts that starts to flair up following a long run so I've been doing some resistance band strength in an attempt to strengthen them. I bet you all thought the picture was a ninja headband - sorry to disappoint you.

A person favourite is squatting with the band between my legs and side-stepping around the house like a crab. Trust me, it's great fun.

By the end of yesterday, my legs were absolute agony so I made sure to do very little today in terms of physical activity. However, a few inadvertent trips up and down the stairs of my 3-storey townhouse seems to have helped a little. Perhaps my body treated them as mild strength training which can only be a positive thing.

I spent most of the day watching films with my cats and playing videogames; just what the doctor ordered.

Today was supposed to be a rest day but several months ago, I signed up to a friend's charity running event doing laps around the estate where I live. In the hour slot I signed up for, I covered just over 6 miles which equalled 23 laps of the estate. Conveniently, it's the same number of miles I was supposed to run tomorrow as part of my training plan(!).

It was a fantastic day, full of positive vibes and community spirit. However, my legs are truly spent now so I intend to take the next couple of days off to recuperate.

Today is a rest day so there's little to report other than this one feels a bit more deserved than the first(!).

My legs are feeling pretty good which can be attributed to the easy pace of the runs in this first week. I intend to do some light strength training at some point today to build muscle stamina and help prevent injury.

Tomorrow I'll be doing some light training as part of a local charity event. More details then!

As discussed yesterday, my intention was to change training plan. I couldn't find my original sub 4:30 plan or the sub 4 plan online anywhere, which suggests they weren't much cop and have been removed/replaced. However, I found a more challenging sub 4:30 plan on Runner's World which I will be following as of today.

Today was a 2 mile run at marathon pace, which for me should be just shy of 10min/mile (apparently). This felt a lot more productive than the earlier runs this week and I feel like I've actually accomplished something. Roll on the next run!

Today was a 35 minute steady run, achieving 60-70% MHR. I know the purpose of these lighter runs is to increase my aerobic fitness and heart efficiency, but I don't find this pace challenging in the slightest. Perhaps it's because I'm not accustomed to the concept of training my heart (usually I just go and amble around for an hour or so), or maybe I need to do them for a longer period of time. With this in mind, I'm going to consult the 4h training plan to see how much more difficult it is and potentially switch, starting tomorrow.

In other news, I got trapped in the racecourse today and had to jump a fence to escape. Good times.

Today's training consisted of 10 minutes easy running at 50 - 60% MHR (basically a brisk walk), 10 minutes steady running at 60% - 70% MHR (A light jog) and 10 minutes threshold running at 70% - 80% MHR (A steady jog - pretty much my normal long distance pace).

I found it quite difficult maintaining the lower heart rates for the first 20 minutes, but I was in my element during the threshold interval. I'm fortunate enough to have Colwick Racecourse on my doorstop which was perfect for today's session.

Welcome to the inaugural blog post of Chris Runs! I will be sharing my thoughts and feelings on training for my first marathon every day for the next 16 weeks. Today is the first day of the plan. Ironically, it is a rest day! I think there are two every week with an optional third on Wednesday. I'll probably be using the Wednesday to focus on strength training - one of the best ways to avoid injuries when long distance running (apparently).

I'm currently nursing a blister from a particularly hot run from Sunday morning. I'll check back in tomorrow!

Apologies avid readers, I neglected to keep you informed of the run up to the race! Sufficed to say while my fitness remained constant, the two weeks leading up to the marathon were plagued with lower problems which I tried futilely to stretch out. Having said that, running almost acted as a natural pain killer despite almost definitely exacerbating the problem.


The penultimate week played host to a 1hr easy run and an interval session, both of which I enjoyed in the blazing Austin sun. The former took place around part of Lady Bird Lake - a gorgeous area in the city's downtown region and clearly a popular area for local runners. Other than that, I focused on recovery spin sessions to ensure my legs were well rested before I flew to Chicago.

The marathon itself is almost a complete blur. I was so focused on a new PB that I got tunnel vision and failed to take in the smaller details. It was a much earlier start than I'm used to - I was through security and stretching in the Grant Park by 7:10am for an 8:30am start(!). Once we set off, we ran a snaking route taking us past many of the city's architectural highlights (which we had learnt about on an architectural boat tour just one day earlier) and popular suburbs before ending up back in Grant Park. Meetal has planned to see me at miles 4, 12 and 21. 4 and 12 were practically next to each other and to our hotel, so we would have both been familiar with the landmarks. However despite our best efforts, we only saw each other at mile 4 sadly. The crowds were chaotic and crowd control was almost non-existent, meaning spectators were several lines deep and slowly started to moving into the course, narrowing the route quite drastically in some areas.

It wasn't all moans and groans though as I finished in 4:16:07 - a 17min+ improvement over last year's London time! I had noticed an significant improvement in my fitness compared to this time last year and I was so happy this translated into a faster time on the day.

I've been hopeless at writing blog entries this year. I suppose because the training regime and the trials and tribulations that come with it are largely the same as last year. Regardless, I will endeavour to give you a brief update.

Several weeks ago, I set a Half Marathon PB at Solihull Half Marathon! The sun was punishing but the picturesque surroundings and children blasting the runners with water guns made it a great experience.  I would have given anything for even just one additional water station though - I was absolutely parched by the time I crossed the finish line!

I attended a Runners Day Retreat at Loughborough University a couple of weeks ago, where I took part in a lactate test to establish my lactate thresholds and the different paces I should be training at. It turns out I'm a lot fitter than I realise (aerobically at least) and I should be running a lot faster than I am, even for my easy paces! However, I continue to be hampered by pain in my left calf and right SI joint, to the point where I've had to bow out early from more than one run recently.

I've spent the last week or so focusing a little more on stretching and strength training, swapping out some of my easy runs for spin classes to reduce impact on my legs. I have a 20 miler coming up in a few days - fingers crossed it's been worth it(!)

It's been a while, as Staind might say, since I lost posted a blog, and for that I apologise. The content management system I use to manage this website doesn't have an intuitive mobile version which means I have to sit at the computer to post updates. However, this time I went to the effort of including an image for the first time in this training program, so there IS that.

The picture is from yesterday's 12 mile run to Cotgrave Country Park and back which ended up being quite difficult on my legs. Despite that, there's been a noticeable decrease in my average heart rate which I'm quite chuffed about. I attribute that to the 2 x 30min cycle recovery sessions per week that I've added into this program - keeping my heartrate up during low impact activities appears to have really helped!

You're probably wondering how the Nottingham Festival 10K that I mentioned in my last post went. It went as well as could be considering the incredibly high temperatures. This was a day before the 40C heatwave hit the UK so the temperatures were already beginning to soar, so despite the flat course I wasn't able to beat my 10K PB. In fact, it was about 40 seconds lower than my last attempt on that ridiculously hilly course! Oh well, there's always next time.

I'm feeling quite confident about this year's marathon. I'm hoping I can discover new long routes to quell any feelings of boredom because I don't relish the thought of doing the same ones over and over again. I'll check in again very soon.

The last week or so has been one of the strongest weeks in recent memory. Having swapped the Friday/Saturday run with a bike session, I find that I'm able to recover more effectively whilst keeping my aerobic fitness up. It also means the runs themselves are less of an exercise in searing pain. However, the weather over the last 5 or so days has been punishingly hot - my 9mi run last Sunday was particularly gruelling. I've been keeping as close to bodies of water as I can so the breeze cools me down.

I had a look at the training schedule for this week's long run (Week 4) and I need to complete a 10K at race pace (less than 5:30/km). I thought I'd have a quick look in the local area to see if there was an official event I could enter to make it more of a race experience. Well, it turns out it's the first annual Nottingham Running Festival this Sunday at Colwick Racecourse which is about a 10 minute walk from where I live - talk about a result! I'll be heading there to attempt to beat my 10K PB. Given that it's a completely flat course, I reckon my chances are pretty decent!

It's been difficult adapting to four runs a week, so much so that I've had to substitute the Saturday run for a spin bike session to mitigate injuries/soreness. The Chicago Marathon organisers provide a training schedule which includes five runs a weeks and I simply don't know how people do this without injuring themselves(!). However, some of the reading I've done suggests a sudden change in the intensity or volume of workouts can cause a lot of damage to calf muscles, which is exactly what I've been suffering from.

I'm feeling a lot better today, and I'll be heading out for my first run of the week later on. My running schedule now reflects the Weds/Thurs/Sun pattern from my London training, with bike sessions on Tues and Sat to keep my aerobic fitness in check.

Well, it seems like only this time last week I was gearing up to train for London Marathon! However, this time round, I'm far more seasoned and come equipped with the wealth of experience from last year. Or so I'm telling myself.

My first week of training did not go swimmingly. After sitting down and finely crafting a robust training timetable for the first 4 weeks, I forgot to take into account my abnormally high training load from the week before. That, coupled with some incredibly high temperatures, meant that I was pretty much exhausted by Wednesday. After rejigging the rest of the week's activities slightly, I feel much stronger and confident going into my first long tomorrow: an easy 7 miles. I've checked the weather forecast and looks like we're in for pretty moderate temperatures.

The training leading up to race day went as expected, consisting of two easy runs and a 3mi tempo run, the latter of which went very well. I was quietly confident that I would be able to beat my 10K PB, but Nottingham's geography decided otherwise.

The first few kilometres of the race went quite well. I started between the 50 and 55 minute pacers with the intention of catching up with the former over the first 5K. However, despite studying the elevation map and having actually been to the venue before, I still wasn't prepared for quite how hilly the route was. The hills just kept coming, one after the other: up and down, up and down. Gradually, the 50 minute pacer got farther and farther way. I resigned myself to the fact that I wasn't going to beat my PB, but I'd give it a bloody good go regardless.

The venue was the University of Nottingham and their grounds are absolutely stunning. Despite battling the morning heat and multiple hills, I thoroughly enjoyed the landscape. I finished with an official time of 50:39 which I was more than pleased with considering the terrain (the finishing line was on the top of a hill too - what sadist planned this route?!). Time for some well deserved rest now!

I'm well aware at this point that most of my pictures are variations of the River Trent or the lakes at Colwick. Better those than my sweaty face, I suppose(!)

After some waning inspiration, I feel like I got my mojo back this week. I've been sleeping better and the runs have been much more successful, even if I have to drag myself out of the door to do them sometimes. This week has involved a couple of easy runs and an intense 30min spin session on my bike - those are never fun. I've also been inching ever closer to my 10K PB on my Garmin's race time prediction - as of right now, I'm only 4 seconds off at 49:08. Here's hoping today's interval session will push it over the line.

The last week of running has been nothing short of arduous, both mentally and physically. I feel like I've made some progress, cardiovascular-wise, particularly during the interval sessions. However a lot of my body continues to ache, and no amount of stretching seems to alleviate it even a bit. As a result, I've had to miss the odd easy session which is quite dispiriting.

Yesterday I completed a steady 10K in just under an hour which helped restore a bit of my mojo. Oddly, a lot of the calf pain I had experienced in the days prior subsided pretty quickly. I revisited a familiar route along the River Trent and Holme Pierrepont Country Park which I've always enjoyed.

This week will be a little easier as I begin to taper for the race in a couple of weeks time. I'm hoping to get lots of rest to recover from this nagging aches and pains.

Yesterday, I paid a visit to my dear old friend Colwick Park to run 4 x 1km intervals at race pace, which I intended to be between 4:30/km and 5:00/km. However, they actually ended up being 5-10 seconds a kilometre faster! I really enjoy the variety these sessions provide, and I can feel them becoming gradually easier, both in myself and in my average heart rate which seems to slowly dropping. Sometimes it's very easy to get discouraged when fitness improvements aren't immediately obvious but small measures like this keep us on the grind.

Taking a day off before a long easy run on the bank holiday Monday. Until then.

Apologies for the delay in posting. In truth, the end of last week was hectic at both work and home. I managed to squeeze in a moderately successful interval session on Friday, running 3 x 1km at the target race pace, but the heat on that day and a subsequent weekend away made recovery incredibly slow.

However, I am back now and it's clear to me my body needed a little break. After a very scenic yet painful 30min easy on Monday, I switched to my spin bike on Tuesday to give my legs a rest from the impact of running. I now hurt in a multitude of other ways but I think my legs are grateful.

I should be heading out for a 45mins easy session today, mostly likely in the evening!

Yesterday, I embarked upon a 3 mile run at "tempo pace" which I decided to interpret as "race pace". Sufficed to say, I was not able to maintain a 4:30 pace continuously for 3 miles but I wasn't too far off, breaks notwithstanding. In addition, it didn't feel as horrendous as the last tempo run which means I'm definitely moving in the right direction. I'm quietly confident I'll be able to come close to my 10K PB at the very least, maybe even beat it.

Today is an impromptu rest day because my legs feel like absolute shambles. Until tomorrow!

The last couple of runs have been nothing short of arduous.

Friday's interval session of 3 x 2km at 4:30/km pace became two sets rather than three due to the heat and insufficient recovery. It was tough and a bit dispiriting, but there's still five weeks until the race so I didn't want to get discouraged so early on.

Sunday's 60mins Easy was easy only in pace, and difficult in every other conceivable way. My legs felt like lead pipes and at some points it felt like I was dragging them across the floor. However, the riverside views and good weather kept my spirits up and I powered through. Now for some well deserved rest!

This picture makes me look like I have a thousand chins. I love it.

Nothing remarkable to comment on today. I REALLY had to drag myself out of the door for yesterday's 45min Easy, which became a 50min because I was too far from home once again. I am dreading today's interval training - my legs are incredibly stiff after some sub-optimal sleeps. I'm one of the first ones to preach that a lot can be solved in life by a decent diet and a good night's sleep, but I don't exactly follow my own advice!

Tuesday played host to another easy run. It was supposed to be 30 mins but I was still a little far from home so it became a 5K easy at around 34 minutes. I took the opportunity to try a slightly different route by the edge of Colwick Park and I'm pretty sure I hadn't seen some of the trails before. It was pretty much 5K door to door so I'll be adding this into the rotation!

Today was supposed to be interval training but I'm feeling a little under the weather, and I'll be away at the weekend so that will make Saturday's 45 minute easy difficult to complete. So, I'll be doing the 45 min easy later today and the interval training tomorrow morning before I head off. Talk about project management.

It's good to be back writing running blogs! In six week's time, I'll be attempting to beat my 10K personal best of 49:04 at the Run for All Nottingham 10K, the same race where I achieved the PB 6 years ago (albeit on a different route).

I've combined a 4-week program I found online with the experience I gained training for the marathon to produce a rough 6-week plan that should give me a fighting chance. Yesterday I enjoyed 45 mins easy which took me alongside the River Trent and into the memorial gardens on the embankment. I covered just over 6K all told and am feeling pretty decent today.

Chris Wickham

Extremely Average Runner

5K

23:11

10K

49.04

Half Marathon

1:51:21

Marathon

4:16:07

Activities

Afternoon Run

Afternoon Run

Blogs

2022 Chicago Marathon

21 October 2022

Marathon II? Completed It, Mate.

7 September 2022

It's Been A While

1 August 2022

Time to Touch Base

14 July 2022

An Impromptu Race

6 July 2022

Remembering the Strain

25 June 2022

Here We Go Again!

2022 Nottingham 10K

23 May 2022

A Hilly Destiny

13 May 2022

Hello Mojo!

9 May 2022

Inspiration, where art thou?

1 May 2022

Intervalling

28 April 2022

Getting Back Into It

20 April 2022

A Whole Load of Ouch

18 April 2022

Hello Lead Legs

15 April 2022

GGEZ

14 April 2022

Taking it Easy

12 April 2022

Welcome Back, Everyone!

2021 London Marathon

4 October 2021

Marathon? Completed it mate.

30 September 2021

The Penultimate Entry

26 September 2021

And So The Tapering Continues

25 September 2021

Forever Battling The Ailments

21 September 2021

Struggling with Momentum

15 September 2021

The Longest of the Long Runs

13 September 2021

Bringing Back The Training Runs

5 September 2021

When You Can Feel The Absence of Training

4 September 2021

Foiled By My Body Once Again

31 August 2021

Breaking Old Records

26 August 2021

Battle Against The Sun

24 August 2021

Preparing to Head Back Out

21 August 2021

Catching Up With Aches and Pains

17 August 2021

A Long Road to Recovery

14 August 2021

Running a Familiar Route

12 August 2021