Denmark Schmenmark. A comfortable 3-0 win and a match against (probably) Brazil on Friday morning. A great relief to get to the quarter finals. I can now regard the World Cup as a triumph for England. The fear is getting knocked out early on.
I watched the second half from the saddle of an exercise bike. It’s a tedious way of training but it slips by with a World Cup match to follow. I did 40 minutes. Tedious yes, but a good form of cross-training. The sweat was splashing off me, and I was beetroot-red by the end. Always satisfying. A quick shower, clean clothes, a lovely feeling.
Tomorrow sees the first long run of the campaign. Only 6 miles to start with, but the longest I’ve run since marathon day in mid-April. I’m looking forward to it. Last time round I used to fear the long runs, and would doubt whether I could do them. Strangely, I slightly miss that sense of apprehension. It’s great knowing I can do the distance, but perhaps the challenge isn’t quite there. Hmm no, that’s not correct. It’s a different kind of challenge this time. This time I want not just to run a marathon, but to run a good marathon. It will still be slow by the standards of most runners, but if I can crack 5 hours I’ll be delighted.
