The London Marathon: reflections on a frustrating race

Is it possible for me to miss my target and still feel some pride? Turns out it is.

If you read my pre-race blog, you'll know that I was in some pain prior to the race and worried about whether i'd be able to run. Add that to the fact that my build up was far from smooth and perhaps you can understand how i'm still happy on some level despite missing my 2.35 aim.

I finished in 2.38.04, 3rd woman off the mass start. Yes, I was three minutes off of my target time. Yes, I feel pretty gutted about that...but i'm not completely disappointed with myself.

Here's why; 2.38 is my second fastest marathon on an arguably tougher course than my PB...and it hurt...Effort-wise I felt fairly comfortable the whole way...but the pain in my bum limited my stride and was horrible throughout. With that in mind, I'm somewhat proud that I completed it one of my best times. That doesn't mean I'm not upset to miss out on 2.35...but it gives me confidence that, once I am pain-free, 2.35 is very achievable.

Despite a slightly painful experience, I really enjoyed the day. There were some absolutely amazing results; to name just a few, I am so proud of my friend Tracey's performance (2.33 and first lady in the mass race) and David's fabulous 6 minute PB for 2.30!

The race definitely made me even more hungry to smash my personal best...Bring on an Autumn marathon :)

A real pain in the bum?

This is a fairly difficult and emotional blog to write. Even more so when I'm not sure whether it'll have a happy or sad ending. Pain is something everyone has experienced and something which I find fascinating. My experiences with pain are way too much to write about in this one blog but I thought i'd share this start of a short story, if only to make people aware of the multi-faceted and complex nature that pain has.

It begins like this. I arrived back from Portugal feeling a lot more confident; 2.35 seemed a lot more likely. Then, suddenly, a couple of days after I got back, my butt started to hurt...I literally developed a pain in the bum...and it's been there ever since.

Some advice I have received on dealing with pain is to try and see it as an interested observer. It's a great technique and one that if I employ, I do actually see my 'pain' as mildly amusing. Given my interest in pain's complex nature and how the mind can create, modify and relieve pain, I'd think that literally having a 'pain in the bum' was a great metaphor. My sore ar** has caused my sense of humour to go on a bit of a run so it's a bit lost on me currently.

If anyone is interested in the pain and the brain, I'd urge you to watch this Ted Talk. It's fantastic and one of my favorites. Lorimer Moseley does a much better job of explaining how the mind can create pain than I could.

This is a fantastic article on pain, which I also find very interesting.

Here's how I see it; Pain can entirely be created by your mind and the level of your pain is not directly correlated to the level of tissue damage. 'Pain receptors' at the tissue level are modified by many influences; these could be your 'fear' about the pain, the 'value of the pain' (i.e. what consequences the pain has for you) and the attention you are paying the area. Here's a good example; a pianist who breaks their finger might experience a lot more pain with it than someone who has the same injury but perhaps doesn't use their hands much for their job.

Having been a runner for most of my life I can with absolute certainty say that I have experienced this effect many times. I've had 'injuries' that have miraculously felt better after being told it was 'nothing serious'. I've had stomach aches, headaches, back aches, all related to stress and anxiety at certain times in my life. I don't need convincing that the brain can be solely responsible for pain in the absence of tissue damage.

However, I'm sure you can see that this creates a bit of a problem for a runner...we push our bodies to the limits...is the pain the result of some self-induced tissue damage or is it linked to fear and anxiety? For me, is my current pain minor irritation made worse by taper - induced paranoia? Or have I done some damage, which I could make a lot worse by running London?

So, this leaves me in one of my least favorite places...limbo. My next step is to get it checked out by my awesome physiotherapist on Monday...someone who fully appreciates the impact stress can have on the body. Hopefully, this will shed some light on whether there is actually something to worry about. I guess i'll have to wait and see if he can get to the bottom of it...

Escape to Portugal: one month to go!

It's amazing how I go through so many ups and downs in one marathon training cycle. This one has seems to have been even more undulating than usual; I've had so many moments where I have thought my target seemed totally out of reach, only to later find myself thinking "ok, so this might actually be alright" not too long after. There are up and downs within the whole marathon training period, within a week cycle and even within a session. The training during my recent trip abroad for a spot of warm weather training was no different.

I've just returned from an amazing 12 days in Portugal with the fabulous Running with Us lot. It's remarkable how much easier it is to train hard when you're surrounded by the right people and the weather is good. I headed out feeling a bit anxious; Bath Half had felt terrible, the time wasn't what I'd hoped and marathon pace was feeling way faster than i'd have liked.

My first long run in the Algarve was a continuation on this theme...I felt unwelcome negative thoughts settle in as I completed one of three 5k blocks at marathon pace and felt like I was running near maximum pace towards the end. I tried to remain positive though (okay, a small temper tantrum may have occurred, sorry Nick...) and completed my longest run, 23 miles with 3 x 5k at marathon pace.

The next week included a couple of tough sessions interspersed with a good amount of easy running; I ran roughly 96 miles in the first week and 90 in the second. The first session we did was 12 x 800m, which seemed like a ridiculous number but actually went by pretty quickly with alternating threshold and 5k intensities. The second session included blocks of faster 400m reps followed by 2 miles at marathon pace. I actually felt decent in these two sessions; the extra sleep and relaxation (along with a talk with Nick) started to pay off and I could feel my spring returning.

Then...Saturday...another one of those lower points on the rollercoaster track; I struggled with the long run again; a progressive 20 miles where, i'll be honest, the 10s slower than marathon pace portion felt pretty close to maximum. Then...still riding the rollercoaster...by the last portion of the run I was actually feeling strong!

Another down came later on...After the long run, I developed a really annoying blister problem, which got a bit infected, making my last few days sore running. (Although, in hindsight my slightly hyperchondriac panic that I needed to go to hospital to avoid losing my feet was probably overdramatic...sorry, everyone ;) I don't think i'll ever be allowed to live that one down....Then, up again...I was really pleased with the final session I did on the Monday before I left; after a tough couple of weeks training, the combination of 1200m and 300m reps felt surprisingly good. 

Now back in the UK, I'm having a few days of easy running to recover from the camp and the infected blisters. Unsurprisingly, I was welcomed back with a lovely wet and windy run yesterday evening. Thankfully, I've got some Scottish countryside to look forward to as I'm heading there for a short break this weekend. A change is sometimes as good as a rest when it comes to running and different running locations is fabulous for breaking up the monotony of all the miles!

Bath Half Marathon

Sometimes races don't go to plan. In the mind-still-racing period following usually a few possible reasons come up. Often though, these are things that you wouldn't have even remembered if it had gone well. A poor nights sleep (perhaps a couple), a tough week at work, not adequately fuelling the few days before, the wrong time of the month if your female...

At Bath, all of the above applied. Alone, perhaps it'd have been fine, but add the factors together and maybe they are enough to explain my sub par performance?

Bath wasn't awful. Not at all. I didn't feel great throughout but perhaps that's to be expected when your first mile is at 5k pb pace. In fact, I was quite pleased to come third and second Brit. It was an awesome day for the Running with Us team with Tracey Barlow running fabulously to take top Brit and second overall.

I finished strongly and recovered from the fast start. My concern is my time. I'd hoped to run close to 75 minutes but ended up over a minute and a half slower. I can't help worrying that it wasn't much quicker than marathon pace despite a near full on effort. I can hope that the combined factors can account for the time but with less than six weeks to London I still feel anxious.

Luckily, there's still time to put in some hard work. Today I'm off to the Algarve to get stuck into some marathon specific training. My next blog will hopefully be written in a much sunnier climate! I'll try to blog more regularly with hopefully, a lot less to do.

My running role model and 7 weeks to go!

This week was a little less spectacular energy-wise (although still better than pre - iron level improvement). I felt pretty good getting two days of decent easy miles in two days post Cambridge Half so I was a little surprised when my Wednesday session didn't feel great. I guess you sometimes can't tell how you've recovered until you try and run fast...

The session was 7 x 1mile at tempo pace. I could feel myself returning to a slightly negative attitude when I struggled to even reach half marathon pace on a couple in the second half. We did determine later on that these ones were slightly uphill and into the wind (the dangers of an out and back...). It was also very muddy (so naturally I ended up covered...).

My next session was supposed to be 2hrs with last 20 mins at marathon pace on Friday but due to labs (for my Exercise Physiology course) I moved it to Thursday. I was a bit apprehensive about this the day after the slightly disappointing tempo session and I did feel pretty tired to start with but my silly backwards legs did their usual and ended up feeling good after 1hr45 of running...

My other key run for the week was 20k alternating tempo and steady pace on Sunday. I was pretty pleased to feel good again on this one. I was satisfied with the paces on a muddy footpath and felt positive again after this.

Sunday was also mothers day so I thought i'd include a little bit about my mum here...

She's a runner too...and for her age (which she'd kill me if I disclosed) is rapid (aiming for 3h15 at London). She's also my inspiration; she doesn't let age, injury or stress keep her down. She's still getting PB's and I do think if she'd have started running when she was younger she'd have been exceptional. Her support is one of the reasons i've been able to keep improving. She always put her things on hold to take me to races (often 100 miles away for a 2.5 minute race...the joys of a failed 800m career...) and still comes along to support me whenever she can.

A rare non - running photo...she's not a natural blonde!

We're both doing Bath next week; she's had some injury problems so is using it as a measure of her fitness. I'm also keen to see where I'm at and will be backing off training this week to sharpen up a little :) I'm really excited to see how we both do.

NB: I probably should also mention here my dad is equally awesome/ supportive (and running Bath Half too)...but it's not Father's day so he'll have to make do with a sentence ;)

Cambridge Half Marathon and 8 weeks to go!

With roughly 6 weeks of training left until London (eek!), things seem to be continuing to move in the right direction :) Given last year's occurrences, you'll understand that I'm basically hugging my wooden desk whilst I say this...

I had a good session on the Tuesday; some 400 m intervals, followed by a tempo. I actually really enjoy this session but the interval/ tempo combination is a pretty tough one. It's great for teaching you to run hard when tired and one Nick often sets me. This time, I was pleasantly surprised with it, especially as i'd had an interview in the day (my sessions following mentally tiring days are usually sub-par).

The weekend was also a promising one; a few weeks ago, Nick and I decided to target the Cambridge Half Marathon rather than doing the National Cross Country. I would say it was a tough decision for me to make but my cross country leaves a lot to be desired...mostly some extreme showering but usually results in a ban on entering the house. 

So, on Sunday I headed to the Cambridge Half Marathon following a slightly easier few days (although I didn't taper as such). After, a steady start I eased my way into the race and felt pretty good throughout. I ended up 1st women in 76.14. The course was great and I really enjoyed the day. 

My only concern was that the time wasn't amazing. However, it was so nice to feel more like myself again and I was enjoying feeling good so much I didn't push as hard as I perhaps should! I know that sounds a bit silly...but I've spent so many runs in the last few months struggling along and feeling terrible so it was amazing to just enjoy the run :) In any case, hopefully i've saved up some energy for Bath in two weeks time!

Beating my caffeine addiction and 9 weeks to go!

Last week was a better one; it included three decent sessions and over 80 miles of running.

The sessions included:

- 6 x 1 mile, alternating between threshold and 10 k effort

- A 90 min run including 6,5,4,3,2,1 minute efforts in the latter half

- A 30k progression run incorporating 10k at marathon pace and 5k at tempo

I wouldn't say I felt amazing but i'm definitely noticing an improvement on previous weeks. I'm putting this down to the iron, feeling a bit less stressed, better sleep and one more thing...

This may come as a shock to people who know me...but one other thing I've done recently is significantly reduce my caffeine consumption. Until recently, I was a self-confessed caffeine addict. This was only worsened by the fatigue i've been experiencing since my last marathon training period. I'd constantly use caffeine to perk myself up after life stress combined with training made me feel run down. In the end, though, I realized that I wasn't really getting much of a lift anymore...it was just bringing me back to a normal energy level.

I found this quite worrying and, along with my sleep and iron problems (both of which are worsened by coffee consumption) I began to wonder if my caffeine dependence was actually contributing to my worsening running performance. Around this time, I came across this guest post by a runner I look up to, Esther Atkins. For those of you who don't read the post (though I strongly recommend you do), Esther restricts herself to caffeine only before long runs and workouts. I found I could really relate to Esther's honest article and it motivated me to try this strategy for myself.

So, I'm happy to report one month on the wagon...I have somehow managed to limit myself to having caffeine only before long runs, workouts and races. Now, as someone, who was an absolute coffee addict before, I had my doubts. I thought that without coffee my life would be miserable. I'd somehow assumed I needed coffee for my creativity, happiness and energy. In the end though, none of this happened. What happened was totally positive:

1. I no longer NEED caffeine to transform me into a functioning human being when I get out of bed. This feels very liberating.

2. My energy levels have actually improved. Caffeine really was just bringing me back to a normal level rather than perking me up.

3. I'm much more in tune with my hydration and nutrition needs; without caffeine to make me feel better I'm finding I ensure I snack healthfully and drink enough water throughout the day.

4. When I have my caffeine before races, long runs and workouts I can actually take advantage of it's benefits. It's generally well accepted that caffeine improves endurance performance by reducing perception of effort, i.e. your race pace feels easier. Before, I don't think I was getting the full benefit of this as I had desensitized myself to caffeine from so much overuse.

5. I am sleeping a lot better; as someone who has suffered from sleep problems my whole life I'm finally finding the good nights outweigh the bad. I'm no longer waking up frequently every night and wake up feeling more refreshed.

So far, I'm pleasantly surprised with the results of my study of one :) I strongly recommend trying this if you are a bit of a caffeine addict, and/or, struggle with insomnia and iron problems. I must say, I thought it'd be impossible, but in fact it was pretty easy after the first few days. Of course, I still have my beloved Starbucks Cappucinos..but i've realised I still enjoy them just as much when they are decaf!

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