Ramping up with 3 months to go

While I'm not following any marathon training schedule in particular, I have read through plenty and have picked and chosen ideas from several. To summarise, there are a few key elements which every schedule seems to contain, and it's on these that I have based my loose training structure.

I'll come back to this in a moment, but first I want to highlight one major change in my approach from last time round. Last time, intimidated by the prospect of running my first marathon, I printed off one of the first training schedules I found on the Internet and stuck to it, as best I could, religiously. It involved running 5 times a week (5 times a week more than I was used to) and, frankly, took over my life. I also, on advice, bought some running magazines and digested as much information on the topic as I felt appropriate, taking on board tips on a healthy diet, the importance stretching, when your body will respond to it and when not and numerous other niche facts which would set me up for a better life. And it was a better life in many regards, but I kind of let it take over a little, and that was a problem.

So this time round, I've decided I'm not running my life around running and that my training schedule can be less strict. Will this mean I'll beat my New York time in the London Marathon? Yes. Indirectly. At least I hope so. Albeit a small amount, I now have experience and experience tells me that the schedule I settled on last time was always going to injure me at some point due to its intensity and my unconditioned body. I know now, that getting injured in the 4 months prior to a marathon, is the one biggest hurdle the marathon runner has to overcome. If you can follow some sort of training plan and get to the start without an injury, you're most of the way there.

And, more to the point, I'll have part of my life back. I knocked drinking and, consequently, much socialising on the head last time, and that was hard and made running less enjoyable. Because it was new, it wasn't that bad, but if I sacrificed everything this time round because "I've got to do a long run in a couple of days", then I think I'd start to look at running as a chore. So my stance is less strict, although I am far more conscious of my (much reduced) tolerance these days!

Back to the key elements that I'm focusing on for training for London:

- Aim to run at least 80%-90% of the race distance in a training run before the race
- Gradually increase distance run per week by around 10%, not more
- Run no less than 3 times per week
- Fit in a longer run at the weekend
- Don't run the day after a long run, either rest or cross-train
- Exercise at least 5 times per week for a minimum of 30 mins per session
- Do everything not miss the long run session at the weekend
- Enjoy a beer and a glass of wine or two, but keep it at that and don't feel guilty

I'll let you know how it goes.

Stomach bug

Without wanting to come across as someone forever making excuses, both my wife and I genuinely got hit by a rather violent stomach bug and it ruled me out of yet another weekend's training. In fact, it took such a swing at me that it caused me to miss my last day at work and cancel my leaving party! Without venturing too heavily into details, it took 3-4 days before you could say you felt better and left us both unhealthily skinnier as a result. Fortunately, we have a week to recover before heading back to work.

I did manage to fit in the following before the bug took over:

• 60 miles cycling
• 0.5 km swimming
• 5 km running
  

Another Sunday missed

No excuses this time, well, only lame ones. Lame in the nature of the excuse, nothing to do with not being able to run either. We went to a wedding out of town on the Saturday and I forgot to pack my running kit, so I decided I'd make the most of it and enjoy the bubbly. One slight consolation is that I exercised for nearly three hours solidly on the wedding disco dance floor!

Missing the Sunday long run aside, I cycled into work three out of a possible four days and sneaked in a couple of mid-week runs and a swim, so I'm not feeling entirely useless. In summary for the week then:

• 60 miles cycling
• 1 km swimming
• 8 km running
• No gym work...again 

The right time to kick into training hasn't presented itself yet. Plenty on in the calendar with weddings, announcements and changing jobs, it suddenly dropping to zero degrees outside (in October!) and then there's our son starting at the childminder's and deciding to come down with every bug possible.

It'll get easier I know, it already is. But I won't be kidding myself, training for London is not going to be straightforward, having to fit it in around looking after a baby and it coinciding with winter. Makes New York's summer training seem idyllic by comparison. But still, I figure that once I have a routine set and my body starts to recognise what it's supposed to be doing, aside from being woken up every 3-4 hours through the night, then the whole process will seem that much easier.

I strongly believe it's all about routine and sticking to it. Writing up what you're going to do, doing it and ticking the box to show you've done it. If you don't do it, write up why to remind yourself. Of course, don't be harsh on yourself either, as with everything, there's a balance to be struck.

Week missed!

It's Monday now and I'm feeling the guilt for not having gone for a single run in the last week. Until this weekend, I'd at least managed to run a long run every Sunday for the past 9 weeks, so I'm a bit gutted to have let it slip.

I did have an excuse, I woke up on Saturday morning with a fluey ache thing and the previous night's intention of doing some interval training amounted to nothing. Why it had to wait until the weekend to make its appearance, I don't know. Still, I managed to hold it together to attend a wedding in the afternoon and evening, an altogether new experience learning to turn down top ups of Moët and wandering and registered a rare alcohol free attendance to an otherwise indulgent and such an occasion.

Sunday was a better day for me, but still had to be kick-started with a lemsip, which doesn't mix well with running, so I made the decision that, this weekend, it wasn't going to happen.

Summary for the week:

• 40 miles cycling
  
• 0.5 hours swimming
  
• 0 miles running
• No resistance training
  

The Mogford

Another week down and another long Sunday run not missed. It was the week of the Asics Run Kingston race on Sunday, where you can either run 8.2 miles or choose the 16 mile double loop option, which is what I did last year, prior to running the NYC marathon. This year, I stuck to the 8.2 miles and I smashed my PB by nearly 5 minutes, despite moderate training of 1-2 runs per week.

I crossed the line in 57:21, although the race results tell another story. In fact, Mr Mogford crossed the line in 57:21 and Mr Moggs finished in 1:08:07. You'll just have to take my word, my watch and my iPod for it that, for that particular race, I was actually Mr Mogford. I don't know what happened, I guess the timing chips got posted out to the wrong people or something.

Anyway, I was pretty chuffed and now just contemplating what that means I have to try and run the marathon in. Of course, that's a different ball game and I'm not getting any delusions about how I'll fair at more than 3 times the distance.

In summary for the week:

• 40 miles cycling
  
• 1 hour swimming
  
• 8.2 miles running
  
• 4 hours shopping!
• No resistance training

Five in a row

I've just completed an 8.5 mile run in the pouring rain, a little taster for what training through winter for a spring marathon is going to be like. Of course, it's totally fine, it does make your step slightly heavier, but it can be quite refreshing too.

Since the Nike 10k race at the end of August, I've completed a run of at least an hour every Sunday, in an effort to build up a good base on which to start my proper marathon training. I've not managed to fit in much in between, but with six months to go, I figured I've still got time.

I had a first attempt at interval style training yesterday, running one lap of the local field, followed by a two minute recovery. I managed the following, loosely based on Yasso 800s:

• 2 x 800m at pace (approx. 3m 15s) followed by 2 minute walking recovery
• 2 x 400m at same pace followed by 1 minute walking recovery

My first goal is not to increase the pace, but to sustain it for longer and do 4 x 800m, rather than having to step down to the 400s. We'll see how that goes and take it from there.

In summary for the week:

• 40 miles cycling
• 1 hour swimming
• 18km running
• 30 min resistance training

A gentle week finishing in Bushy Park again

With the potential marathon still at least seven months away, I'm completely fine with putting in a gentle week, providing I still get the long run in. Ok, so I might have had a couple of beers this week too, but the two things I learnt, or decided to remember, from last year's marathon was not to let training completely take over your life and to build your training up gradually.

I ran 14.5k this morning, at a reasonably brisk pace. I felt a very slight niggle in the shin as I set off, but the pain soon dulled and I settled into an 8 minute mile pace for the 9 mile route. It felt fine, good even. But I'd stop short of thinking I could keep that up for any length of time, i.e. a marathon. Half maybe, but no more.