Brighton Marathon 2014 - My first and last?

BRIGHTON MARATHON 2014

My marathon journey started back in 2014, fresh faced and naively I signed up to The Brighton Marathon after an unsuccessful bid for a ballot place in London. As it turned out it was the worst race of my life and here is what happened …………

Great Expectations
On reflection, my first marathon still feels like a disaster! I have even been putting off writing about it for a while as it’s still tinged with negative feelings. However in writing about the last 4 marathons that I have completed, I have realised that I learnt a great deal from Brighton.
 At first even the thought of running a marathon sent shivers down my spine but I love a challenge and I wanted to raise funds for The Alzheimer's Society having recently found out that my dad's partner Linda had been diagnosed with early onset dementia. 
I purchased a guidebook on how to run a marathon in sub 4.30 hours and I devised a rough plan on how to make it work! I gradually got used to the long runs but I was miserable before, during and after!
I had no one to run with and I hadn’t quite realised how hard it was going to be by myself.
I ate badly with no regard to nutrition and didn’t  include any cross training in my schedule.
However I plodded on with the training and tried to fuel on the go with regular energy gels and soon enough the big day arrived.

Brighton rocks
My friends and family had all made the trip down to Brighton and I felt as ready as I could and lined up with thousands of other runners at the start line. A quick hi-five from my running hero, Paula Radcliffe and I set off.
I started surprisingly well and between mile 1-5 I was bang on target for pace and seemingly enjoying myself. However, I got carried away in the moment and was flying between mile 6-13 but I felt awesome…...I felt less awesome by mile 15! My feet had started to hurt ( I was wearing trainers that were only 1 week old and not been run in before!) and I was hungry, really hungry!
I grabbed and glugged anything on offer so that I could refuel, jelly babies, gels, gatorade, lucozade but it was all too late!
I ran/walked/staggered onto mile 18 and realised I had hit the wall!

Struggling on after hitting the wall.

The Great Wall of Brighton!
I stopped completely at mile 18, I had come so far but couldn’t face the last 8.2 miles feeling so ill but I remembered why I was doing it and didn’t want to let Linda or my family down.
My ITband was on fire but I had no idea what to do, and so I aimlessly taped myself up with some sub standard Kinesio tape! I limped and hobbled through the next 5 miles and became angry that my pace had dropped and every minute that passed meant I was losing sight of my 4.30 hours finish.
At this point all I remember is everyone passing me, rhinos, storm troopers, a man in a diving suit and a man with a tiger on his back! They all whizzed passed unaffected by my state of mind and body, I felt broken and unable to complete my first and maybe even my last marathon.
This girl can.
I called my girlfriend and cried at her! Luckily she was waiting to cheer me on at mile 23 and best of all she had my brother with her ( who may have been on the G & T’s). Caz could see straight away that I was struggling. I gave her my bum bag and my iPod and glugged more fizzy drinks and ate more sugar.
She gave me a pep talk and my brother gave me a hug, it was then that Caz and my brother decided they would both run a mile with me! They were both fully clothed in heavy winter jackets and both had heavy bags, but they were totally committed to supporting me on my marathon quest and so we headed off together.
It was just the boost that I needed. They ran with me to mile 24, where the crowd picked me up! Shouting my name out and cheering me on, they carried me over the finish line much to my relief! The first thing I said to Caz was “ I’m never running a marathon again!”
 I collected my medal and goodie bag. I felt that I had worked really hard for it, but my finish time was 5.47 hours which at the time I saw as a big disappointment, however I now see it as a foundation on which to build my challenge to complete 50 marathons before my 50th birthday.
Thankfully my family and friends saw it as a great achievement which helped me enjoy the moment and as we chatted away on Brighton beach, the rest of my broken body seized up! 

Great support from my whole family.

Learning zone.
As time went by I realised that all the mistakes I had made were ones that I could learn from. If I ever ran another marathon again at least I would feel better equipped.
Looking at fuel and hydration, I never use gels and always run with a hydration pack with SOS sachets to supply essential electrolytes and minerals.
I also eat well and on the go but never again will I eat  jelly babies, jelly beans or any other confectionery! I make my own energy balls from dates/almonds/coconut which my stomach has no objection to and I can fuel happily on these for hours.
The way I train as altered as well, I only run 3 times a week when training for a marathon and use cross training on the other days, I also take a full rest day after my long run.
Running with others is best for keeping my motivation up, so I now run all my long runs with friends, it’s an incredible feeling to have their support and often some random singing along the way!
I found with niggles and injuries it is best to get help from experts immediately and I now have a great support team to consult with, as well as regular sports massages to help with my troublesome ITband.

Sugar & spice.
Now the dust has settled and I’ve put pen to paper, Brighton doesn’t seem that bad after all. With everything I had been through on the day and the negative memories I had attached to it, I had forgotten that I had still completed my first marathon and raised over £3,500 for the Alzheimer's Society and for Linda.
I had showed my family and friends what I was made off , they were proud of me and I had achieved something truly awesome! 
This girl is not made of sugar and spice and all things nice, this girl is made of grit, determination and an unfathomable amount of stubbornness! 
Who was I kidding when I said I’d never run another marathon again! #50before50 


Thank you for taking the time to read my blog 😃

London Virgin Marathon 2015 London Calling part 2

LONDON VIRGIN MARATHON 2015

Part 2

The Aftermath.

Meeting with my friends and family was chaotic to say the least, but we eventually found each other amongst the thousands of other people. I’ve never been one to cry after running and this occasion was no different, all I wanted to do was EAT! Whilst my girlfriend and friends sobbed with emotion I was more concerned with eating the entire contents of my rucksack. Soon after this I demanded more food and we made a speedy retreat to Nandos!

Well derserved Nandos.

Runners high.

After fuelling on chicken, chips and coke I finally felt full and for the entire train journey home I felt giddy and happy. I kept looking at my medal and feeling chuffed with what I had achieved.

At home I relaxed in a bath and ordered more food, this time in the form of a pizza.

My body was still running on adrenaline, so I sat and watched the highlights of the day on the BBC. Still thinking at loud “ Wow I’ve done it! I was part of the London Virgin Marathon 2015!

I actually didn’t come down for 3 days!!!

Rest and recovery.

The week after, I learnt the importance of recovery. I rested initially for 2 whole days and to my surprise my legs were not too stiff or painful, Epsom salts in my bath helped and a recovery sports massage was gratefully received.

A few days after, I did an 2-3 mile walk and by the weekend I went out for a 3 mile jog and it all felt great. I kept the mileage low for another week and used a reverse taper to build back up.

I had sustained a few toenail injuries, but other than that I felt amazing.

Sweet charity

My decision to run for Age Uk was based on my relationship with my Dad's partner Linda.

 A few years previous, Linda had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease which had inspired me to run the Brighton Marathon 2014.

I had made a plan of how and where I was going to collect donations and my friends and family had supported me all the way.

At Christmas, I did street collections dressed as an elf, I had raffled a days annual leave, set up a regular fitness class with all money going to my just giving page and basically bombarded social media every week with progress reports and my just giving link! 

To my surprise I surpassed the Age UK minimum donation required and raised a massive £2,500! 

All the training and fundraising had given me an awareness of how vulnerable and lonely some people are and how lucky I was to have such amazing friends and family.

Lucky to have so much support from my family & friends.

Finally…..

My final thought from running The London Virgin Marathon for Age UK was how precious and fast paced our lives have become. We race around, we work hard, we play hard and we get so absorbed in our own daily dramas that we don't make time for a simple phone call home to Mum & Dad. We can’t spend 5 mins talking to our elderly neighbor and we avoid charity collectors in the streets.

 What if we stopped and thought about these minutes and seconds that we save by doing this, it would be minuscule in the grand scheme of things and hardly worth worrying about.

In the bigger picture you know in your heart that your Mum & Dad would love to hear your voice or see you more often, your neighbour would rejoice in a 5 minute conversation about the weather and that charity worker would have a smile on their face for the rest of the day just because you donated a £1 and acknowledged their hard work.

You don’t have to run a marathon to be charitable, you can start today, right now!

Go on, I dare you !

London Virgin Marathon 2015 London Calling

LONDON VIRGIN MARATHON 2015

Part 1

London calling.

I had vowed never to run another marathon after Brighton 2014, but here I was again signed up and training, this time  for the London Marathon 2015!

I had banished my demons and had tried to draw out all the positives from my first 26.2.

Training had started well but by December my ITband was causing me a lot of pain and by  New Years eve I could barely run half a mile let alone my scheduled long run!

What I had learnt from last time was to get help and fast! I ended up with a little support crew, which included, a physiotherapist, a sports therapist and a biomechanics coach and between them they patched me back up, made me stronger and then sent me back out to train. 

 I spent hours every night rehabbing my legs, foam rollering and strengthening my glutes and finally it paid off. By February I was running 8 miles at marathon pace and feeling strong.

   March was an excellent month and all the cross training that I had added to my schedule was finally working, my PB at Paddock Wood half Marathon provided me with a confidence boost, that was needed and I started to believe I could run London in under 5 hours.

This is it!

My last long training run of 22 miles was amazing and my running friends made it easy, I was happy that I had made it to London with no further injuries. I planned my taper week with military precision, taking into account fuel, hydration and sleep. OMG I was ready!

I found myself at Greenwich park on April 26th 2015, giddy with nerves and excitement. 

Feeling excited but nervous.

The kind of excitement I would've experienced at Christmas as a child, but a new feeling to me as an adult.

I nervously made my way to my starting pen and chatted away to runners and rhinos!

The runners in front, started to shuffle forward and within a few minutes I was running out of Greenwich park and over the start line! 

“This is it, I’m actually doing it! I’m actually running the London Marathon!” I said out loud, to no one in particular. I felt so alive and euphoric that most of the first 6 miles went past me in a blur. Every time I went past another mile marker I rejoiced and shouted “ Yes” and added a little fist pump towards the sky. 

I was up to mile 9 when my girlfriend and friends spotted me, after a quick hug I carried on, determined to keep my average pace up and to keep running the mile I was in.

My reaction on seeing my friends.

The next thing I knew I was turning into and running over Tower Bridge!

On approaching this iconic landmark I was almost halfway round the course, the crowd cheering was overwhelming, feeling slightly emotional, I choked back the tears. I felt proud to be part of one of the World's biggest and best marathons.

Keep your head up, keep your heart strong!

I had run for almost 3 hours by the time I was passing through the Isle of Dogs. I had absorbed the crowds energy, hi-fived children and waved for the cameras. I needed to get the next hour done and dusted and mentally I needed to get some me time! I stuck my iPod on and blasted my specially crafted marathon playlist into my ears! 

Runners and Rhinos.

The London Virgin Marathon is extremely hard to get a Ballot place for but I had decided to  run for a charity close to my heart, Age Uk. By choosing to run for a charity you can gain a place easily and raising money can be great fun!

It’s such a weird and wonderful day, one minute you can be running alongside Forest Gump or Jesus and then the next minute you can be behind a runner in a Pamela Anderson Baywatch outfit! I remember running past one of the porto loo’s and laughing out loud as a runner in a rhino suit wrestled himself into the loo! I’ve no idea how anyone manages to run in such a large and outlandish costume but I have the upmost respect for them.

I had now reached mile 21 and  waved frantically at some more friends and turned my music off. Every time I passed another mile I laughed and smiled to myself.

Raving at mile 21.

The landmarks of London whizzed by which helped to pass the time.

Big Ben now loomed towards me and my heart started to beat faster! 

The crowds roared and cheered, shouting out runners names and encouraging them on the final mile. It was exhilarating and my adrenalin was pumping. I felt like an athlete who had just won gold at the Olympics!

Within seconds I had turned right onto The Mall, Buckingham Palace was a blur behind me and I was heading towards the finish line. I caught the eye of the runner next to me and she asked me “ Is that the finish?” I nodded and smiled and then we both sprinted for it!

Battle ground.

As I crossed the finish line I flung my arms up into the air and smiled! I had done it in style and gained a new PB of 4.28.

I was given an awesome medal and a goodie bag and as I marched through to the meeting area for friends and family, it suddenly dawned on me how much it looked like a battle ground.

Wrecked bodies were strewn everywhere, broken runners, hobbling and crying with silver foil blankets wrapped around them. Blistered and bleeding feet were on full display but generally most of the faces expressed the same emotion as me, happiness.

I felt elated that I had got around 26.2 without hitting the wall or gaining any injuries! 

Absolutely chuffed that I got around 26.2 miles.