Now the End is Nigh and I’m fretting about not being fit enough and all that jazz, I thought it might be nice to look back and see how far I have come and review my journey from bedrest to where I am now. A “clip show” before the finale!
So, taking “My Starting Fitness Level” as a guide, here we go:
“The last year has seen pregnancy, not only with the four months of strict bedrest, but I was confined to a wheelchair on the few times I was allowed out. Worse, I suffered from SPD as I did in my first pregnancy, which is when the body produces too much of the hormone relaxin in pregnancy, which makes the ligaments relax and can cause intense pain in the pelvis and lower back. I needed the wheelchair even without the bedrest, and could hardly sleep at night due to the pain. I gained a lot of weight with this pregnancy. Add to that the associated exhaustion and responsibilities of a newborn (and my toddler) so I am not as fit as I would like to be. Still, I have been walking a lot, and I am getting some fitness back!”
Here I am in my wheelchair and stick in September 2008
My first “run” near the start of July:
“I warmed up by walking to the edge of the Thames. We live about half a mile from the river, and there are plenty of great trails alongside the river to run on. The walk was my warm-up. Rather conveniently, the Thames has a series of big red signs which are sort of evenly spaced (anywhere between 50 to 250 yards between them, usually averaging 150 yards) which presumably are used for people to give to the emergency services to help locate them should disaster happen. So I base my run on how many red signs I can run. I manage 3 red signs right off the bat, but as I reach the third one I’m starting to feel dizzy. Okay, I’ll walk for a few. Then run another one. Walk another one.
Thus my first “run”. A run-walk-run-walk-run-walk based on those red signs. After a while I decide I’ve hit my halfway point and head back home, run-walking again. Including the half mile warm-up there (and the half mile warm-up back) I’ve covered 4.21 miles in 57 minutes. “
Exhausting! So as you can see, I managed about 400 yards before collapsing on my first run, and ran/walk the rest, not running for more than 150 yards at a time. However by pushing myself so hard (running until I felt dizzy and then a little bit more) I was actually rapidly improving my fitness levels, far more so than if I’d just taken it easy.
Things got better quickly. By the time I’d been out five times at the end of July, I’d invested in a Garmin, and wow, what a difference!
“I got to try out my new GPS watch with heartrate monitor. Wow, what a difference! As I suspected, it opens up a whole new interesting world of statistics. You’ll be pleased to hear that including my warm up and warm down sessions, I am jogging or running for over 80% of the session already. Things can only get better! Looks like I did the 5K middle bit (without the warm up or warm down) in around 33 minutes 50 seconds.
I am also proud to announce that I ran for a third of a mile without stopping with my first stint. That is a new record by far. After that first stint I only walked for a very short distance before doing 0.2 mile and so on and so forth. It’s a huge improvement on the maximum 0.2 miles without stopping I managed on my first time out, and I ran/walked it 50/50 then. Now it’s more like 80/20. This is only my fifth time out!”
Then I had a breakthrough at the start of August. After reading a few books, I realised I’d been running too fast all along. I decided to slow right down, and immediately managed 5K without stopping. A miracle!
“I did the 5K in 32.5 minutes.. there is definitely room for improvement there and that is what I will be working on. I would like to beat the 30 minute barrier by the end of the month but I have no idea if that is ambitious or not. I’m so new to this I can’t even set my goals properly. On Sunday I wanted to run a mile without stopping and four days later I did 3.11 miles. The whole couch to 5K programme is supposed to take 9 weeks and you’re supposed to go out 3-5 times a week. Well, I started running on the 11th July. It’s not even four weeks later, and I’ve only been out six times and I cracked it. Not sure I could have gone a lot further, mind, but still! “
Not long after, I entered my first race.
“I did it – I’ve put myself down for my first ever grown-up race! As opposed to the cross-country ones I did at school over 20 years ago, that is. My race of choice is the 5K Adidas Women’s Challenge in Hyde Park on the 6th September – three weeks on Sunday. My aim will be to run it without stopping.. less than two months after I started running! I’ve managed 5K without stopping already so in theory it’s very possible. “
I also picked up an ankle injury, as I’d basically just picked the first pair of running shoes that had good reviews. I soon remedied that with better shoes – what a difference!
“Secondly, on Saturday I decided, after reading lots of books and so on, to get my gait analysed. This was something I had no clue about before I started running. Essentially is seems that we all run in our own way, and it is not a case of one shoe fits all. Different shoes are aimed at different types of runners. I took pretty much a guess based on what felt comfy when choosing my running shoe. It’s a great shoe with great reviews, but what is the point if it just injures me? Given my recent ankle injury, I realised I needed to be sure I was wearing the right sort of thing.”
In mid August, I started swimming.. first time out after not swimming in forever, I managed 2500m!
“Alas, today I only managed 2.5K (1.55 miles) without stopping, compared to last Thursday’s 5K (3.11 miles) without stopping. Not only that, but it took me 90 minutes to do it. However, I am utterly delighted! Why?
Because I did it in the swimming pool!”
Towards the end of August, my 5K speed really picked up with all the training (2-3 times a week)
“But the big thing is my 5K time – I shaved 3 minutes off my personal (and only!) best from two weeks earlier – 30:38! The last mile was very hard as I had been pushing myself a little harder than usual at the start (yay heartrate of 200.. I know when I’m getting near that as I start feeling sick!) and I lost a lot of momentum there, but still. It was a good time!”
Now I’d figured out that slow and steady gets you everywhere, I decided to drastically up the stakes, and at the very end of August, I went for the 10K!
“I did the 10K in 67:12, which included having to get through the odd gates here and there and probably losing a bit of distance on the GPS when I turned round. Not bad for a first 10K. I did a little extra just to be sure and it occurred to me that I’m only a few hundred yards short of a quarter marathon without stopping – not bad for 6-7 weeks training! However I do ache, and despite attempts to minimise the pain (I took a cold bath and later applied ice to the sore areas) I think I will be sore tomorrow. Still, from past experience it’s the runs where you really push yourself that you make the most progress.”
Just before my race, I finally cracked 30 minutes for a 5K in training:
“It was practically pitch dark when I arrived back at my start point, 3.11 miles later, staggering for breath as my heart rate went 4bpm above the threshold I try to stay under (although the average for the whole run was 3bpm under the threshold, so not bad!). My time?
29:18!!
Yep, I’ve beaten the 30 minute 5K barrier at last! Knocked a few minutes off my previous best time from a few weeks ago too. I would guess that the rain helped a lot, but also probably the nasty interval training I did on Sunday too. ”
The 5K race came round, and I was disappointed to not finish in under 30 minutes as it was so crowded.
Running the Adidas 5K Challenge
“So! Two months ago I could barely manage a few hundred yards without feeling my eyes were going to pop out of my head and I needed to throw up! And now, less than two months later? I’m getting grumpy because naughty people ruined my 5K-in-30 minutes challenge which I ran at under a 10 minute mile pace the whole way (that’s 6.1mph – around double a fairly brisk walking pace!)
Really, I shouldn’t be too disappointed, given the bigger picture, should I?”
I was disappointed though, and ran the London Peace Run the following week, determined to beat the mythical 30 minute barrier. Again, I failed, thanks to the crowds and the fact the race measured long.
“If it wasn’t for the crowds on the South Bank, the hot sunshine or the stairs then I probably would have officially timed under 30 minutes. After all, when I ran 10K last week the *second half* of my 10K I did the final 5K in under 30 minutes, so I sure as heck can do it in 30 minutes with nothing tiring me out beforehand. I just can’t do it under race conditions. Now whether my races have been unfortunate or whether random obstacles are something I should expect for every race I don’t know, but it is starting to get very frustrating now!!
If the race was 3.22 miles then I would have beaten my 30 minute target by a second if I take a 5K split time (i.e. the first 3.11 miles). But all the same, my official recorded time is a disappointing time.. so yet again I have to run another 5K to beat my goal. “
So whilst still training furiously (and getting abuse from the locals for it!) the next week, I entered the Epsom Dash, determined to crack the 30 minute barrier!
“The course was EXACTLY 3.11 miles – 5K. Perfect! This time will count.
So what was it? Bearing in mind my 30:51 for the Adidas 5K Challenge, and 30:52 for the London Peace Run (surely more than 5K) run just last weekend..
28:10 by the official chip time, 28:11 by my Garmin. (I think I started the Garmin at the wrong moment!)
That’s well over a minute off my best ever time in perfect conditions in training – cool and flat and in the evening and perfectly healthy. Today I did it on a hilly course (lots of people complained it was a hard course!) with lots of sunshine and I had a cold and was behind on sleep, and on a morning run too. My average pace was 9:04 minutes per mile, that’s 6.6mph.
I’d done it!!!!
And even better.. I was 59th. Out of I am not sure how many people, but I saw numbers of at least 200, and last year 250 ran. EDIT – preliminary race results here suggest only 149 ran. Boo! Still, it’s not bad!
And even better still, I was the 14th woman to finish! 14!! Last year there were 135 women, and I know there were at least 75 this year, probably a lot more.”
Getting my medal
A week later, it was the Petts Wood 10K. I was delighted with 62:28.
“So, exhausted from holiday, fighting a virus, not much sleep and aching from several unfortunate encounters with a cable ski, some violent flumes and a whole lot of pole climbing, I was never going to be on top form for this race, my first ever 10K race! It was also a hilly race, through bits of woodland with narrow paths.”
The home straight
Not long after that, I invested in a Camelbak so I could take on water during long runs. I went for an 8 miler for the first time, and to my surprise during that 8 miler:
“I decided to discount the first half a mile as a warm-up, and to find my real 10K time I took 10K from half a mile in. An average 9:18 minute mile pace. For 57:54 altogether. Not only have I beaten my 1 hour 10K goal, I’ve thrashed it! I *can* do a one hour 10K! Admittedly in perfect circumstances and taking on fluids and jelly babies, but, my body did it!”
I then did 9 miles (stopping and starting for lunch) with the double pushchair. Then I even squeezed in a 10 miler (on my own without stopping).. it was really hard going though.
“As for the 10 miles? Well, once I hit the magic 6.22 miles (10K) I no longer needed to worry about pace so I really let it drop. Within a mile I’d dropped it by a minute a mile, and the final mile my feet were really aching. Not blisters, just soreness, as if I’d been out shopping for hours! That final mile was one of the slowest I’ve done without the pushchair in a long time. It’s safe to say by the time I got home I could not have gone any further. Guess I am not quite ready for a half marathon yet.. “
I did a 10K race – The Movember 10K – with Steve off the back of a virus. Appalling time as I was still unwell, but worse was to come.
Running together ** Official photo (c) IES Photography
“But yes, it looks like I’ll be out of action for the next 2-3 weeks as a bare minimum.. that’s on top of the 3-4 weeks I’ve been out already.
My fevers weren’t abating and my cough was getting worse and worse so I went to see the doctor again on Monday who immediately referred me for a chest x-ray. Turns out I have a shadow on the lungs, which indicates an infection. I forgot to ask if this meant pneumonia, some people say it does, some say not necessarily. Anyway I am on my second type of antibiotics already in the vague hope of shifting this infection.”
As it turned out, I was out of action for 3 MONTHS! By the time I started training again in late January, I’d lost a lot of fitness.
“Glancing through my previous runs I would estimate my cardiovascular fitness is somewhere around mid to late September time (so I’ve lost around a month to six weeks there) BUT my bones and joints and feet and so on? Back to August time at least. Hopefully they’ll catch up quickly. On the plus side, according to Runners World, I was supposed to run 10K today in preparation for the London Marathon. It’s just I’ve missed out on a quarter of the training already, whoops!
It goes without saying that my previous plans for hopefully doing a sub 4:30 have gone out the window and I would be happy with sub 6 hours now.”
The next week was even harder.. mentally. The enormity of the task in front of me was a huge challenge, as I attempted 8 miles:
“My times were quite a bit slower than normal.. heck, I ran 8 miles back in October and it took me 15 minutes less. I was out there for close to 90 minutes, running continuously. For the last 45 minutes of that, not only was I not enjoying it, it was first uncomfortable and then horribly uncomfortable and heading towards super painful. It felt like running through treacle, especially when there was a head wind. I felt dizzy at times, especially if I had to slow down to run through bushes to avoid large puddles. I got snowed and sleeted on. Some dogs savagely attacked each other just feet from me as I ran past. And when I got home I was too exhausted to even have a shower at first. My blisters are back. My foot arches are sore. I’ve killed my regrowing toenail that I killed last time. I know I am going to ache for the next few days, then I’ll have to go out again on Wednesday evening.
Foolish doesn’t even begin to describe it. I need my head examined. But I am not quitting, whether I get support or not.. I am far too stubborn for that – when I make a promise, I make a promise especially when it comes to other people’s money and charity. It’s just more moral support would make it a lot, well, more tolerable!”
In the middle of February, I finally hit half marathon distance. Still not loving it.
At the end of February, I went for a 16 miler. Officially my worst ever run.
“That’s another long run in the bag. Well, I say “run”. This time I pushed myself too far, and for the first time ever in training since I worked out how to run, I had to walk. Admittedly in total it was only a mile’s worth, and I only started doing it at mile 13, but I think I’m pushing too much, too quickly. It didn’t help I was only supposed to run 15 miles but in a moment of insanity I decided to try for 16 miles.”
I had two weeks off due to a bad neck, and then it was time for the Silverstone Half Marathon. It went better than I was expecting, and I ran it in 2 hours 22.
“All in all, an enjoyable race, in very interesting (albeit dull for non-F1 fans) surroundings, with good opportunities for personal bests. If I ever run again in the future, I’d definitely want to do this race again.
I was particularly pleased with how well I managed – I am wondering if perhaps my times were getting so dreadful with my other long runs because I was over-training. Certainly my knees caused me no bother and after the first half a mile my feet behaved themselves too.”
Waving my misbehaving phone at Steve
The good times weren’t to last – the following week at the end of March, I aimed for 18 miles but found myself in the most pain I’ve ever had from running. I only managed 16, and ran/walked 3 miles of that.. but learned a lot of valuable lessons.
“Horrible, just horrible. That’s the polite way of describing my long run today. I have never been in so much pain before when running, and I failed to run the distance I set out for as well.
In a vague attempt to see the silver lining, I learned a lot of valuable lessons though, lessons I won’t have to learn on marathon day.
I intended to do 18 miles, but would be happy with 16. Glad I stuck that caveat in otherwise the whole run would have been a write-off.”
Thankfully, April started out better, with my final long training run. I wanted to do 18 miles.. and do more than 13 miles without stopping. Well, I did better than that!
“Home was in sight, and 20 miles and 3 hours 56 minutes and 58 seconds after leaving home, I reached that front door – the final mile 12:20. So not only had I run the whole darned twenty miles without stopping (four miles further than I’d gone before, and amazingly SEVEN miles further than I’d ever run in one go before) but I’d managed to do it without dropping my pace too horribly – my pace varied by 1 minute 40 altogether, more like 1 minute on average if you take away the extreme data points. My average pace was 11:50.. compared to the 9:25 I’ve done for 5Ks before it’s shocking, but this was 32K so yeah.”
Which has left me feeling very positive about the race THIS SUNDAY! Not a 5K, not a 10K, heck, not even a half marathon. Or even a regular marathon, but it’s The London Marathon itself! The whole point of this journey and this blog. Erk.
I have one final visit to the sports physio on Thursday, but aside from that and a lot of carb loading, I am DONE!
If you’re going to be watching on TV or at the sidelines, I’ve set up a Facebook Event with the full details. Feel free to say you’re coming even if you’re only watching on TV!
Bringing me onto the final topic which I’ve got a bit behind with! A HUGE THANK YOU to Ruth, Bea, Steve Haslam (who is also running!), Nikki, Sheri, victoria, Laura, Christine, Joe, Sarah-Ed-Kitty-Tia, Vicki, Michael (second donation, and wow- thank you!!), Claire-Ian & Lewis, Arkady, Jessica, Marina, Laura (a second one!) and Rachael. So many people, so much generosity. I am extremely grateful and humbled by how kind everyone has been.
If you’ve been meaning to sponsor me and haven’t got around to it yet, here’s the link again!
There is a tracking system provided by the marathon that reports on every 5K I’ve completed but by all accounts last year it wasn’t very reliable.
