Still running

I'm still plodding on, clocking up a few miles here and there. On Saturday I headed out to Richmond Park and now that winter has really set in it was really quiet - almost nobody but me and the hundreds of deer roaming around.

I really enjoyed my run on Saturday. Maybe it was because I've been trying to fit short runs into a working day recently and running has become more of a chore than a pleasure. Maybe it's because I'm not training to a plan at the moment and can do what I want, when I want. Either way it was nice to rediscover the enjoyment you can get from running and not have anything hurting or aching for once.

Marathon training starts Monday 14 December for me so running and posting will greatly increase as of then.

Cold days and lead legs

It has suddenly gotten a few degrees colder in London. I've finally had to turn on the heating in my flat and add a hat and gloves to my regular running wardrobe. I noticed that Paula Radcliffe had the same pair of blue Nike gloves on at the start of the New York marathon but I'm yet to decide if this is a good or bad omen for how my marathon training is going to progress. Unlike hers, which were presumably one of many free items items she gets off Nike, mine came from my favourite discount retailer.

Long leggins, thicker socks, two t-shirts (one long sleeve wicking top under short sleeve bog-standard t-shirt), hat and gloves - this is how I'm currently facing he winter cold.

I've been on a couple of runs in the past week where my legs have felt really heavy and I can't decide if it's the cold or that I'm getting back into running regularly after a rest. Either way, with a month to go before marathon training begins in earnest, I'm hoping my legs aclimatise to the cold and or running in it.

Falling in and out of love

It's been a few weeks since my last jubilant post-half-marathon posting. After the customery resting period I went out for a couple of tentative jogs to get my legs working again after a good few days of walking like John Wayne. But something was missing, running didn't feel right.

I ran at the weekend round my usual haunts and I ran at lunchtime along the Thames (more on that later), but neither felt comfortable. My legs were fine, nothing hurt and I wasn't getting tired - it just didn't feel right, like sleeping with a lover once you know it's over.

But I didn't want my love affair with running to be over - I was going to fight for this relationship. So yesterday, with a calender alert set on my work computer for 10am, I boldly risked the dissappointment of not getting into the London Marathon repeating itself and logged onto the Brighton Marathon website.

Now, the people at Brighton marathon had been quite clever. The first ever Brighton Marathon is being held in April, a week before London, and when they put their places on sale back in the summer they offered those who had entered London the chance to apply to Brighton with the guarantee of a refund if they were successful in getting into London. So although the Brighton event sold out, the places that were refunded to London runners went back on sale yesterday morning. Are you still with me?

I'm not great at maths but I estimated that there wouldn't have been a huge amount of places going back on sale. So yesterday, debit card in hand I furriously logged on and hit the refresh button until... success! I have a place in the Brighton Marathon.

So today I headed out at lunchtime, in the rain for a run with a purpose. I'm training for a marathon after all. And as several other runners overtook me on my 3.5 mile route, I told myself it didn't matter that I wasn't going as fast as them, because I've got a long way to run... but I will get to the end.

Half-marathon: tick!

2 hours and 4 minutes. There's quite a few things that you could in that time. Watch a film, clean the bathroom, eat a nice meal. But are any of them as rewarding as running 13.1 miles cheered on as though you're a celebrity... if there is I'm yet to discover it.

On Sunday I completed my first half-marathon - the Great Eastern Run in Peterborough. While the magical sub 2 hours target escaped me, I'm very pleased with my performance. I had stomach cramps from mile 10 but managed to carry on and not walk even one step.

Having family a friends to wave me on made a real difference. I'll be back next year to try and shave off those 4 minutes.

Email

I've just recieved this...

Commiserations
By now you should have received the news that your application to run in the 2010 Virgin London Marathon was unsuccessful. This news was contained in our Marathon News “Rejected” magazine which should have been delivered to you by post along with your Virgin London Marathon Rain Jacket.

Thank you for donating your entry fee!We are aware of some postal difficulties in certain parts of the country and if your area has been affected then your magazine and Rain Jacket may be delayed a little.There is still a chance to run however as the magazine contains details of charities that have Guaranteed Places through our Golden / Silver Bond schemes so why not consider runningfor them.

Dave BedfordRace Director

Waiting for the postman

Nearly six months ago I entered the ballot for the 2010 London marathon. Those months have gone quite quickly but the last coupe of days have dragged on. A letter is somewhere in the postal system on its way to tell me whether I have a place or not.

For the past few days I diligently waited for the post only to find that the wait isn't over. The London Marathon, realising that postal strikes in various parts of the country have delayed some of the letters from getting through, have said that on Monday they will send out an email to let all of the 120,000 people who entered the ballot know whether they've been lucky (or unlucky depending on your point of view) enough to get one of the 30,000 ish ballot places.

But Monday is two whole days away!

The beginning of the end

With two weeks to go until my half marathon this weekend saw the last of my long runs before the big day. I ran 11 miles on Saturday around Richmond Park and am now looking forward to a big reduction in the amount of miles I'll be doing and a big increase in the amount of eating I'll be doing as I prepare my body for the race.

I'm hoping for a sub 2hour performance but this will be quite a big ask of myself. I'm trying to tell myself I can do it while not setting myself up for too much disappointment if I trot across the line at 2.07. That's still pretty good going.

At the moment I'm just really pleased that I've made it through most of my training without picking up any injuries and hoping that I don't get ill in the next two weeks.