We've all been there....you're training for a specific even and at some point you just think 'what the hell am I doing?' and want to jack it all in... This week has probably been my hardest week in terms of staying motivated throughout my marathon training.  I've felt knackered every day and all I've wanted to do is eat and sleep.  It's made me question how much I'm putting my body through.  However, coming out of the other side of this mindset, it has also made me very grateful and proud of just how much my body is capable of. I have had IBS since I was 18 and when it flares up, which it does and often unpredictably, it can be incredibly painful - inconvenient at best and debilitating at worse.  It gets worse when I'm tired or stressed or not sleeping well.  As I've been suffering from all three of those triggers the last couple of weeks, its not been great. However, rather than giving into it, it's got me thinking about how to sta...

Despite running half marathon/half marathon + distances consistently every weekend for over a month, Sunday was my first official race. I chose to take part in the MK Festival of Running 2018 Half Marathon as it's only a few minutes down the road from where I live, and I figured that MK would be a relatively flat course.  The weather has been utterly vile recently so I was pleasantly surprised to find that Sunday was warm and sunny and finally felt like a proper spring day! The race itself had a nice downhill section to begin with and then felt pretty flat all the way round until...the HILL OF DOOM at the very end.  The last mile required us to run up Campbell Hill and good grief, I cannot imagine a worse hill to do at that point in the race.  Most people seemed to be power-walking or slow jogging up it and I did a mixture of the two.  Thankfully, the finish line was flat so I was able to do a sprint finish...hurrah. In terms of times, I wanted under ...

"How's your marathon training progressing?" That's a question I get asked on a regular basis.  I'd definitely say its going well but it's been somewhat hindered over the last few days with the arrival of the 'Beast from the East' and all its wintery havoc.  We should, by rights, be moving into Spring now; I have definitely seen crocuses poking their little heads up although I'm guessing that they're now completely smothered in about 4 inches of snow! It's also probably worth mentioning that I HATE snow: it's cold, it's wet and it's very slippery!  Yes, like everyone else I coo at the pretty snowflakes when they first start to fall on Christmas Eve but after that, I'm done! Training outdoors for a Spring marathon has been an absolute nightmare this year for me.  My circulation isn't great and I've come home on a number of occasions from long runs barely able to feel my legs let alone my fingers!  I have invested...

If you’ve just started a running plan or schedule, well done!  Whilst running may have initially seemed reasonably uncomplicated – put trainers on, go for run – the more you get into it, the more things you discover!  Here’s 5 things I wish I’d known before I started running: Choose the right trainers 1.   Get the right trainers.   I think all of us have started running in whatever trainers we already owned, irrespective of whether they are gym trainers, running trainers or the trainers we have had at the back of the wardrobe for the past 5 years. As you start getting more serious about running and increasing your distances, it’s really important to ensure you are wearing the right kind of footwear.  Everytime I get new running shoes, I go and get my gait analysed as I know my running style changes with the distances I am building up to or the speeds I am working towards.  For example, I used to over-pronate when I ran.  This means that as ...

Running towards a goal: London Marathon 2018 I' ve been really lucky to secure a ballot place for the 2018 VMLM.  I’m so excited as I used to live in London and watch the marathon runners go past.  It’s also always been a dream of mine to do a marathon but I’ve never been sure I would have the time or tenacity to complete the training. I’m going to start a series of posts focused on my training and what I have learnt/am learning along the way.  Hopefully, this will be helpful to anyone else considering taking up running or increasing their distances. I already run so am not starting from scratch (thank goodness!).  If you are completely new to running, there are lots of beginners schedules and ‘couch to 5k’ plans to try, such as  this podcast based one  from NHS Choices.  It’s worth having a look at the different options and seeing whether you would prefer to follow a schedule on an app or podcast instead of a printed out plan.