Drinking it in (a bit too much)

My wife and I celebrated our second wedding anniversary on Saturday. I decided to break my no drinking during training rule. We had a great night, fancy food, fancy wine, followed by more wine when we got home. This led to the mother of all hangovers the next morning. I had forgotten how bad hangovers can feel! I had to shelve my planned 10 mile run and spent most of the day recovering on the sofa.

I struggled out of bed this morning and managed a very laboured 8 mile run. I'll run the 10 miles that I missed yesterday on Wednesday instead of my rest day.

This Sunday I will be running my last 16 mile run before tapering starts. The Hanson method does reduce the amount of running in the taper but it doesn't seem to reduce by as much as other training plans. But I've put my trust in their plan so far, it would seem odd to question it now.

For my last 16 mile run I'm going to run a lap of Richmond Park. I love Richmond Park but it's always just a bit too far away to be included in my regular runs so it always feel special when I get to run there. It's also nice to run amongst the deer and parakeets, as well as the mamils (Google it).

My weight has dropped again. I'm now down to 77kg, and on course to get to 76kg by the time of the marathon. My weight loss compared to my marathon best time is roughly 5kg. This equates to about a 9 minute improvement, which considering I ran a 3:37 means I would be under 3:30 comfortably. The signs are good at least.

Some days are diamond

My long run on Sunday proved to be one of those glorious runs that come once in a while where everything aligns like a solar eclipse and you feel like you could run forever.

My route took me 16 miles down the Uxbridge Road towards Hyde Park. It was a bright cool Sunday morning. Not much cloud but not too cold. I wore my new Hoka One One running shoes that I'm getting more and more used to. They really are much lighter than my other shoes and I think that helps in how I felt running the longer distance.

I ran from Ealing through Acton, Shepherd's Bush, Holland Park, up the gradual incline that announces the arrival of Notting Hill and then into Hyde Park. Lots of runners seemed to have the same idea and I lost count of the numbers I saw.

I ran down the road that separates Hyde Park from Kensington Gardens, past the Albert Memorial and Royal Albert Hall and over the road into the area surrounding South Kensington.

Anyone who knows London knows that this area is full of museums and so it was that I ran past the Science Museum, the Victoria and Albert Museum and the Natural History Museum, all within the space of a couple of hundred metres.

Just across the road from the Natural History Museum is Baden Powell House which is the headquarters of the scout movement. I remembered staying there over 35 years ago on a cub scout trip from Swansea. It doesn't look as though it had changed much.

Anyway, I then followed the A4 road all the way back to the Chiswick Roundabout that announces the joining of the North and South Circular roads that surround London. A quick run through Gunnersbury Park and then back home. I wish all runs felt that good. Unfortunately most don't.

Not that I'm complaining. I run because I enjoy it. If I didn't then I'd stop. I don't do it for the health benefits, they just happen to be extremely nice side effects. No, my pure reason for running is for the enjoyment. It sets me up right for the day.

This morning was a strength session of 2x3 miles with 1 mile recoveries. Not too taxing which hopefully means my legs are getting stronger and stronger. There's only one way I'll really find out though and that will be in four and a half weeks' time. I'm looking forward to it.

Weight loss was zero this week, although I did measure myself correctly which probably means there was some loss as compared to last week when I measured myself too soon after running. I'm hoping to reduce my weight now down to 77 or 76kg before the race. We'll see how that pans out.

Final third

Six weeks left of my eighteen week training plan.

Some days I get up and don't feel like running, but as soon as I get outside my legs know exactly what to do. The body is willing even if the mind is weak.

On Sunday I ran my first out and back run. 5 miles up the Uxbridge Road toward Hayes, turn around and then 5 miles back. I liked it. Not sure I'd do it too many times but at least I know it's another type of run I can add to my repertoire.

I also ran it in a new pair of running shoes. These are the pair that I intend to run the marathon in as they are solid and offer stability but are 40% lighter than my other pairs of running shoes. I liked how they felt, lots of bounce and good feedback. I took a picture before I headed out, they are called Hoka One One Clifton. Not a make I'd heard of before but Runner's World recently rated them as the best debut shoe on the market so I reckoned that if they're good enough for them then they're good enough for me.

This weekend I'm running the second of my three 16 milers. I think I'll head off down the Uxbridge Road to Hyde Park and then go down to South Kensington, past the museums and back to Ealing via Chiswick.

My weight has hit the magical 78kg figure I wanted to reach. Although I think that it's probably not a fair reflection as I measured myself too soon after running on Saturday so I think that my weight next weekend will be a bit higher.

Tomorrow is a rest day. I always find it tough to rest, my legs twitch while I lie in bed. They are desperate to get out there but I know that resting is as important as running. Once I finish the marathon the Hanson method proscribes two weeks off running completely. I have no idea how I am going to cope with that since the only time I've not run that long is if I've been injured. Still, that's a problem for a different day and before then I've got to run an actual marathon!

Sweet sixteen

There are no more surprises.

I've run my first sixteen mile long run on Sunday. There are no longer runs. I know I can get to the end of the training plan slowly improving and strengthening. Stick to the plan and the plan should pay dividends. That's the idea.

I was planning on running down the Grand Union Canal to Paddington but instead ran a similar route along the Harrow Road instead. Why? Well, for variety really. I haven't run this route for a year or two and I really enjoyed it. I got to see London waking up on a Sunday morning as shops opened and some people made the walk of shame on their way home.

With my headphones in I find myself in a bubble, impervious to those outside of it. I know I'm not but it feels that way. More so if I wear a running cap to protect myself from the rain. I like it. Sometimes I am yanked out of my bubble by someone asking directions. But it's rare and a whole run normally passes with me, my podcasts and my bubble.

Fewer than seven weeks to go until the big day and I keep feeling strong. I'm running a 10k four weeks after the marathon. I'm not sure whether I'll be able to run it full out but if I can aim for sub 45 minutes then I'll be pleased. Then three weeks after that there is a half marathon in my home town of Swansea that I am very tempted by. I'm hoping that by then my body will have recovered and I could make a good challenge for a PB (sub 1:36).

I wasn't able to measure my weight this week but I don't think it's changed much either up or down.

This weekend is another double 10 miler; I've got a regular route for the Saturday 10 mile, I'm yet to nail down a good Sunday route. I might just go on a random run and see where my legs take me.

Give me strength!

This week was the first week of strength training. Speed is out, strength is in.

This involved six repeats of 1 mile at slightly faster than marathon pace. To be honest it's not much different from the tempo run on Thursday except that is a sustained effort at marathon pace. They both feel about the same amount of effort.

I'm definitely feeling stronger. Tomorrow is a rest day but I want to go out running. I know I can't because rest is as important as running. My first 16 miler of the training plan is coming up this weekend and I can't wait. I have three such sessions in the plan and have identified three different routes to run. I'm not sure which one to run first yet, I think I may run down the canal to Paddington although it may be dependent on the weather.

It's starting to feel normal to run 10 miles. At the moment any run less than that feels like a nice easy run! I suppose that is what the plan is meant to do; make longer runs feel like the norm so that a marathon doesn't feel like much more of an effort even though I'll have run a maximum of 16 miles.

My weight has dropped this week, which is good. Also, my waist has dropped to 90cm which is very good. Another cm or two would be ideal.