Did someone say something about running a marathon? The first phase of the house-move seems to be grinding past with reasonable success. The 3rd day of cleaning and scratching have at last taken us beyond the disgusting end of the chores: the bathrooms and kitchen. Now we are embracing the more genteel tasks of carpet cleaning and window-washing and… but just how interested are you in the minutiae of someone else’s domestic sanitation?… READ MORE.... …
Month: March 2002
Well, the Engine Common Lane retrospective and the wistful burst of Tolkien turned out to be a little premature. This morning’s 4 mile run took place back near “the door where it began”, and indeed included a whopping double helping of Engine Common Lane. I couldn’t help blushing a bit as it consumed me yet again. No, nothing went wrong with the move.… READ MORE.... …
As alluded to yesterday, tomorrow we move away from… wherever it is we live, so today’s lunchtime 8 miler had special resonance. It always comes as a surprise to me that running is so hard. I spend most of my time thinking that running is easy and pleasant, like taking a stroll, but then every time I actually do it I remember that it’s actually a bit of a struggle.… READ MORE.... …
Five miles this evening after work, while the sun was still out. Splendid weather, though the run was only reasonable. It must have been last night’s fish and chips weighing me down. Yes I know, I know, but it’s my only digression and it happens only every 2 or 3 weeks. Yes but… aw shaddup. We’re moving on Thursday. This current house in… wherever it is – Bristol?… READ MORE.... …
And so, the fabled three-week taper begins. Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter Here. The encouraging daily emails I get from the Hal Higdon training programme say back-slapping things like "Don’t worry! The hard work is now behind you!" Well perhaps it is: apart from that last tiny detail like the 26.2 miles of the marathon in 20 days time… Yesterday was a big day: the longest long-run of the entire training programme.… READ MORE.... …
I was too despondent to post a message last night as my run had gone so badly. The plan was 10 miles, but I started to droop after just a mile or two. I actually felt sleepy while running – that has to be a first for me. It set me wondering. You hear about people falling asleep at the wheel of a car.… READ MORE.... …
After a week of reluctant rest and that pantomime in Hampshire, today it was business as usual. Five miles at lunchtime round the familiar local lanes. Managed the whole thing at an average of 10.54 per mile. Good for me. Ached a bit. Four weeks to go till the big day. This week I am running 40 miles: the most I’ll be doing in this training programme.… READ MORE.... …
As the list seems to be the medium of the moment, here’s another brief one. More things I learnt today: the humble Ford Focus is well capable of speeds in excess of 115 miles per hour; in the interests of minimising stress of all kinds, get to the starting point of the race before it actually begins; do not underestimate the importance of adequate hydration and carbo-loading in the days leading up to the race; you can protect your feet with the right sort of plasters; don’t overdo breakfast; Yes, despite today’s race not starting till 12:15pm, and despite the lessons so painfully learnt just one week ago, I once again managed to be late for the big off.… READ MORE.... …
Well if John Lennon was allowed his famous ‘lost weekend’, why can’t I have my own, humbler version? All those great things that have happened between last October and today, and all those people I’ve got to know, and all that physiology stuff, and that spirit of tabula rasa… all seem suddenly remote and irrelevant and semi-forgotten. Monday I biked, Tuesday I ran, then nothing.… READ MORE.... …
A more constructive meeting with the podiatrist in Bristol this evening, though the news still isn’t great. This is what I was told during the meeting: the nails of the second toes on both feet will shortly fall off. This isn’t a disaster; I should consider having them surgically, and permanently, removed or they’ll continue to cause trouble; there’s no reason why I shouldn’t run the Fleet half marathon at the weekend, or the London Marathon, but "it might hurt" my right foot is going to be more susceptible to blisters because my gouty big toe is forcing me into a slightly unusual running style the right foot problem might be helped with a moulded orthotic insole though this would cost about £200 I need to lance the blisters as each one "has about a teaspoonful of gunk inside" don’t run before the weekend race that will be twenty eight pounds please sir… All in all, worse news than hoped, but better news than feared.… READ MORE.... …
Today I went to see a qualified sports injury specialist. He took a look at my variegated toes and said: “Forget about running a marathon. In fact, forget about running.” After returning home I checked a couple of websites and discovered there’s a name for the source of the problem: “Morton’s Toe”. It means the second toes are longer than the big toes.… READ MORE.... …