Month: December 2003

This is probably my last ever entry. I’ve spent most of the day in bed, computing famous last words to croak as M dabs my throbbing temples. I expect Death sometime later this evening (after Coronation Street, I hope), but unless M updates this website, you will never know what rib-rattling witticism passed my lips as I drifted away towards that great compost heap in the sky.… READ MORE.... …

And so, my first week of marathon training comes to an end. One 3.5 mile run on the board, followed by 5 days of illness. I wonder if coughing can be counted as cross-training? It can get pretty vigorous when I put my mind to it. I’m convinced that each week of running must uncover some great truth or lesson, if only we can find it.… READ MORE.... …

The Grim Reaper must have had a few sherries this morning. His sickle kept clattering against the window, waking me every hour or so. I woke for the last time at one in the afternoon, my longest lie-in for years. I’m ill. Still. Too ill to run. Nothing serious, just a bad cough and a wheezey chest and a blocked nose.… READ MORE.... …

The pessimist would say that becoming ill just after starting marathon training is a terrible portent, while the optimist dismisses such negativity, pointing out that if you’re going to go down with something, then the first week, and particularly if it’s Christmas week, is a great time for it to happen, as it’s the furthest point from the race, and anyway, Christmas week is always going to be a bit hit-and-miss for training.… READ MORE.... …

More than 1% of the way through this marathon campaign already. Must be time for a run, and for the first outing with this new Garmin Forerunner GPS gadget. When I did the London marathon two years ago, I remember approaching that first day with dread and anxiety. Today was different. It must sound pitiful to more rational ears than mine, but I woke this morning feeling excited and happy.… READ MORE.... …

Day 1 of 126. The best day in the entire Hal Higdon training programme. Why? Because it’s a rest day. Yep, you heard right. Today I have to take it easy to recover from all that heavy deliberation; that long, slow, strength-sapping contemplation of yesterday. Which at least gives me the time to do a bit more of it. 125 days and 591 miles lie ahead.… READ MORE.... …

We’ve been this way before. Next week is the start of a new round of marathon training. Hang on. Next week? Or this week? It depends whether you’re a runner or a normal person. A runner’s week begins on a Monday, not the usual Sunday. Let’s pretend to be normal for a minute. This week. Training begins this week. Readers who keep abreast of current affairs will know that this is also Christmas week, which produces something of a conflict of interest.… READ MORE.... …

Managed 4½ very wet and windy miles this morning. It looked worse than it really was. Blustery rain isn’t ideal, but it was surprisingly mild. Very nearly warm. The funniest thing about days like today is noticing people’s reactions. I sauntered past a bus stop where two old ladies were clinging to each other while their macs and their Co-op carrier bags almost lifted them off the ground.… READ MORE.... …

Another frosty, hostile morning to enjoy. As I left the house at 6am to run, I noticed the water-butt was a block of solid ice. First time this winter. One minor positive about the freezing weather is that the small local hotel now keeps its dining room window shut, so I’m no longer tortured with the smell of bacon and sausages and black pudding and mushrooms sauteed in butter and toast and fresh coffee.… READ MORE.... …

Fourteen hours since my early morning run, but it’s still tingling the parts that other beers cannot reach. When I got into work this morning, I found everyone talking about how cold it is. “It was even colder at 5:45, when I went for a run”, I remarked casually. Extended silence. Someone coughed nervously. Then:” Running? You went running?… READ MORE.... …