London Marathon warts and all

Sunday, 25th April 2010

I suppose “training” for the London Marathon really started back in September 2009 when I looked at my running blog. (Yes, I have a blog as my training diary – try it – it means I can update it anywhere, anytime.) I saw an average weekly mileage of less than 12! By the end of 2009 my weekly mileage had still only averaged 13 ¾ a week. Hardly the base you need for a successful marathon attempt. Being rejected through the ballot for London and waiting/hoping for a place through other avenues didn’t do much for my motivation.

But that all changed when Kerry Eccles pulled my name out of that hat in October and there I was: in the London Marathon with a serious lack of running inside me. Things had to change, and change they did. I decided that the serious marathon training would start in January but I wanted to be comfortable running 15 miles by Christmas. This proved trickier than I planned. By “comfortable” I meant I’d have done at least 2, probably 3. The one 15 miler that I managed was hard work and I remember wondering how I would ever get up to 26 miles.

 

The New Year saw a fresh start and I set out the stall early. Whatever else happened between January and April, I was going for this. I set out a challenging plan that had not only running more miles than ever, but also cycling and gym work. There would be at least 6 or 7 x 20 mile runs in this plan because I’ve learned from each of my previous marathons that I really need the long runs. Not everyone needs so many really big runs, (most schedules suggest 1 or 2 x 20 milers) but I definitely got the benefit of these runs.

 

The plan:

Monday: morning gym session and Wesham club run at night.

Tuesday: cycle to and from work (6 miles each way)

Wednesday: Gym session

Thursday: 8 to 10 miles with speed work in the middle.

Friday: run to work and back with a 3kg backpack (carrying my work clothes)

Saturday: Cross Country race or 6 miles hard run

Sunday: Long run up to 22 miles

 

It was a tough schedule that I had set myself and in most weeks something had to give simply to give me a rest. The variety of work allowed me to rest as and when I felt I needed it but there was always a new challenging session to do. The one thing I didn’t do was slack: I worked hard in every hard session. I did all the long runs, ending up with 8 runs of 20 miles plus. Thanks to John Bertenshaw for putting together a 21 mile off road on tough hills, and for an even tougher 23 miler.

 

I remembered George’s words on the Message Board after I was a little disappointed with my run at The Great North West Half Marathon.

“What you need is a more positive attitude; it's not all about fitness you have to believe in yourself. Dismiss today start thinking of racing next weekend where hopefully you will be happier with your run! Most of us have had a horrible few months of training because of the weather. Some of us have been injured. Today was the farthest I have run since New York, this week 6 miles the farthest this year! Get as many 10 milers, halves and anything longer you can before London. One good run and the world looks so much better. Remember you where involved in today’s race, that does not do you any favours. Turn up just to run then you can concentrate entirely on racing. Do races outside your comfort zone such as Dent 14 on Saturday 13th March real toughie run that London will be easier!!!!”

 

From that moment on there were no more negative thought and I just got on with the hard work. The more I worked hard the harder I wanted to work.

 

George: you are responsible for me choosing a tough 23 off road with John when I had the choice of the flat Trimpell 20 race. If it hadn’t been for George I wouldn’t have done the Calder Vale 10 either. But I did it after doing the “fun run” as a warm up. Thank you George. Thank you also to Richard Jones at Garstang RC, Dave Rigby at Lytham and David Twizzell at Blackpool, who all organised long runs in different places. I never ran a long run in the same place twice. (I don’t count John’s off road as being the same run because I’m always lost on those hills!)

 

That’s about it really. There was no brilliant formula. It was just a recipe of hard work, enthusiasm and being positive about it. I’m sorry to all those people who saw me at the first Inter Club and were shocked by how far up the field I was (27:07 for 4 miles) and I am still highly amused by the people at the Chernobyl 5K (20:46) who asked me in all seriousness what I was taking.

 

When I lined up in London I knew I am in the best physical and mental shape I’ve been in for a very, very long time. Mentally I’m better than I was before my illness and that pleases me more than anything. For once I had a plan of how I was going to run the race. Set off at 8:45 per mile and go for it from 22. All my long runs pointed to this and I was confident I could do it. Thank you Jenny Salt for your phone call the night before London and for telling me if I felt the first half was too slow than I’d got the pace right and not to panic. I’m sure those words kept me focussed on running well.

 

So if I set off at 8:45 and was going to get faster in the last 4, I’d have got under 3 hours 50, which would have been a lifetime best. But I got 4:06:35 - my fastest marathon as a VET), so where did it all go wrong?

The first thing to say is it didn’t go wrong. The time was actually the third target I set myself. The first target was to finish, (and raise £2000 for The Anthony Nolan Trust). Job done. The second target was not to walk. This was marathon number 7 and I’ve walked in the other 6. I didn’t walk until 22 ½ and it was only for a hundred yards or so and I might have got away with it if there wasn’t a photograph!! But this was much better than all my previous marathons. The time was the third and final target and the more I reflect the happier I am with it, particularly with everything else that was going on. I took 20 students to provide massage for The Anthony Nolan Trust and drove a minibus to London and back then had the students to look after for 2 days. (What was George saying about “Turn up just to run then you can concentrate entirely on racing.”)? The start was the worst I’ve experienced at London. No control over who went in which pen so there were far too many slow runners too near the front. I was off the pace at 4 miles and worked a bit too hard too early to get it back. I knew I should have worked harder in Maths at school than I could have adjusted my pace better to claw back the time. Finally, once I knew 3:50 and 4 hours had both gone, I just enjoyed the atmosphere and the commentator cost me nearly a minute on The Mall. Well, have you ever known me to turn down an interview, especially with such a big crowd???

 

Thank you Brenda, for asking me to write this piece. It’s made me look at the whole training and think about it. With everything I put into the weekend – organising the trip for the students, looking after them and making sure things were right for the massage for the Sunday, and to then run 4:06:35; yes, I’ll take that. There are things I can do differently. I’ll work on my maths so if I’m 90 seconds down after 4 miles I can do my sums better! I’ll go to other marathons to get times and just do London for the occasion. Leaving the students at home is not even a question. They were incredible and I am so proud of them. And we’re going again next year to work for The Anthony Nolan Trust.

 

Next up for me is The Kielder Marathon on 17th October. Anyone fancy a 20 mile of road run this summer?

 

Written by: Brian Porter

Submitted: 6th May 2010

Edited by: Brenda J Earnshaw WRR Editor