Aug / Sep – The Road To ?

[El Gordo]

TEMPO-TASTIC!

My long run is now long enough to make a short run feel short. Plus I'd concluded that once a week isn't enough. The obvious answer was a swift 2.5 mile circuit. Out at 9.30 pm into a mild, starry night; a half mile warmup then I stepped on the gas. Very nice.

The jury's still out on FLM - with the broken sleep and early starts I'm getting, a marathon may be a bridge too far this season. But a weekly routine of a 10 miler plus a tempo / fartlek session midweek wouldn't be a bad cardiovascular fitness regime, would it?

Don't give up on a marathon yet, Dan. The standard 16 or 18 week training schedule means a start in mid-December for the FLM. Not trying to persuade you either way, but as long as you keep up this sort of routine and level of fitness you can probably leave a marathon decision till near to Christmas. That said, the closing date for the FLM is much sooner than that, so it might be worth applying anyway. It's statistically unlikely that you'd get a place in the ballot (about 1 chance in 5 I believe) but if you did get a place you could always defer.

Or even better, compensate your other half for the hassle of your training by going for Paris instead. No ballot to negotiate, and you can leave the decision on entry until the new year.

Changing the subject, I entered the Cliveden cross-country online today. A long way in advance, I know, but places do go quickly. It seems to be on New Year's Eve this year, which might be a bit inconvenient but may see you there.