May. No... will.

[marathondan]

Hello all, thought I'd check in and say a quick hello.

Unsurprisingly, the above-mentioned marathon dream died before Christmas. The minimum target was a sustained three sessions a week up to the end of the year, and I failed to achieve that.

Meanwhile, life is, if anything, getting busier, and I'm learning to accept that I can't do everything at once. We're expecting the third member of our junior relay team in August , so once again all non-family activities will drop off the bottom of the priority list for 6-12 months after that.

I'm currently managing a couple of short 6am runs per week - far too knackered in the evenings. Right now these are something of a source of dread, as I set the alarm half an hour early and chug up the motorway in shorts and runners, then emerge into the icy blackness, my body wondering what the hell I'm about to do to it. The run is a bit of an uninspiring slog at that time of the morning, but I'm definitely buzzing for the rest of the day. And when the sun finally gets its act together, and starts putting in an appearance around that time of day, it could become quite a spiritual experience.

I've also experienced my healthiest winter for some time - at least since 2004/5 - helped no doubt by my lack of long runs. I can't help thinking that hard winter training is a bit unnatural, and that when / if I ever get around to another marathon (2009? more likely 2010) then Robin Hood (Sept) might be a better bet than London. Anyway, that's but a distant dream...

No race plans at the moment - I'm still feeling some odd back / hip twinges that I think could have something to do with running a HM in November on very little training. It was fun at the time, but probably not a good idea to repeat. So anything over 10K will only be attempted if I have time for proper preparation. If not then I'll no doubt manage to fit in a couple of summer events before August.

Well, keep up the good work everyone - your exploits are an inspiration to keep going, in whatever small way, and a reminder that Running Is The Answer.