May. No... will.

[marathondan]

Indifferent race preparations continue, with my first outing for a week this morning. I gave the kids breakfast and then nipped out at 8am for a handy 5-miler. It was quite hard going, not only due to a strong sun putting in a late-season appearance, but also because I ended up posting my fastest time on that particular circuit for some two years.

TdJ: a couple of editions of Simon Mayo's 5 Live podcast, a regular commuting favourite for me, and highly recommended if you fancy a mediumweight diversion.

NB - I think the faster time and the use of the mp3 player are related. I don't like running to music, unless the bpm is a perfect match to my running cadence, but spoken word seems enough of a distraction to forget about how I'm running.

[marathondan]

Sun 30th Sep

Race report for the HCG 10K here. Finished in 47:01 - or was it 45:23?

Total miles for September: 37, highest monthly total for the year. Once upon a time I was doing that per week...

Wed 3rd Oct

With the Henley half marathon 11 days away, and a PB-pace 10K just completed, for some reason I thought that a hard session was in order. Looking back, the logic escapes me. I made the rare decision to go out at lunchtime, with 5 miles of tarmac fartlek in mind. However, in the changing room I was quizzed by a Frenchman named Stephane about good local routes, and I ended up taking him down to the canal towpath. Turns out he's a couple of months away from the Marathon du Beaujolais (a possible future addition to the RC travel brochure?), shooting for 3:20 (ouch), and so was just hitting peak fitness. After a warmup, he was planning 10 x 1 min speed intervals, and I foolishly joined him. After initially pulling away on the first rep, he blew me away for another 6, until I gave up. Don't know what I was thinking there. For me, running is about control, and the way to stay in control is to run alone...

Wed 10th Oct

For a while I thought Sunday's Henley half marathon might be in doubt, with really sore calves and hamstrings after the misguided speed session. But after a week's rest, things seem back to normal - and of course the net result was less training, not more. Idiot. I'm struggling to find time to get out - just back from a 24hr trip to Munich - the best I can do is a gentle loosener before Sunday's race.

The organisers have fallen foul of the postal strike - they're looking at handing out 2000 race packs on the day. Kudos to the organisers for taking that on.

Edit - Henley race report here.

[marathondan]

Hmmm.... I might do the London Marathon next year. I'm starting a plan, and will see how it goes for a few weeks before I decide. I know that sounds like a recipe for failure, but it feels OK somehow.

My weekly mileage has rarely got into double figures this year, so I'm starting from a pretty low base. Up until Christmas I'll just be getting back into the routine of running three times a week. Assuming I don't get a ballot place, I'll grab a Golden Bond place as I did last time.

Out for a brisk three miles last night. Sore hamstrings and back twinges today, but hopefully that's just the standard creaks and groans after a two-week layoff.

[marathondan]

Hello all, thought I'd check in and say a quick hello.

Unsurprisingly, the above-mentioned marathon dream died before Christmas. The minimum target was a sustained three sessions a week up to the end of the year, and I failed to achieve that.

Meanwhile, life is, if anything, getting busier, and I'm learning to accept that I can't do everything at once. We're expecting the third member of our junior relay team in August , so once again all non-family activities will drop off the bottom of the priority list for 6-12 months after that.

I'm currently managing a couple of short 6am runs per week - far too knackered in the evenings. Right now these are something of a source of dread, as I set the alarm half an hour early and chug up the motorway in shorts and runners, then emerge into the icy blackness, my body wondering what the hell I'm about to do to it. The run is a bit of an uninspiring slog at that time of the morning, but I'm definitely buzzing for the rest of the day. And when the sun finally gets its act together, and starts putting in an appearance around that time of day, it could become quite a spiritual experience.

I've also experienced my healthiest winter for some time - at least since 2004/5 - helped no doubt by my lack of long runs. I can't help thinking that hard winter training is a bit unnatural, and that when / if I ever get around to another marathon (2009? more likely 2010) then Robin Hood (Sept) might be a better bet than London. Anyway, that's but a distant dream...

No race plans at the moment - I'm still feeling some odd back / hip twinges that I think could have something to do with running a HM in November on very little training. It was fun at the time, but probably not a good idea to repeat. So anything over 10K will only be attempted if I have time for proper preparation. If not then I'll no doubt manage to fit in a couple of summer events before August.

Well, keep up the good work everyone - your exploits are an inspiration to keep going, in whatever small way, and a reminder that Running Is The Answer.

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

Congrats on the third Mini-Dan - quite a support crew you'll have for those future marathons. Anyone who can run pre-dawn mid-winter is undoubtedly capable of anything. Well done, sir!

[Sweder]

Good news on the new team member MD. Those morning runs are pretty special, even if yours are starting in darkness. It's a time when the Earth belongs to runners, foxes and eagles. And mad fools

[marathondan]

Anyone who can run pre-dawn mid-winter is undoubtedly capable of anything.

Not so much run, as drag sluggardly arse around suburban streets. But it serves its purpose for now.

It's a time when the Earth belongs to runners, foxes and eagles.

I saw a fantastic Mr Fox just this week, only yards away and bold as brass. He was in no doubt that the front drive he was occupying very much belonged to him.

[Bierzo Baggie]

Congratulations MarathonDan and family.... an even busier time ahead

Massively impressed with your early morning forays. I've been trying to do something similar for years but my headtorch remains unopened in the wardrobe :mad:

2 runs a week sounds ideal to keep ticking over. Keep it up and let us know some more about those foxes.

[marathondan]

Today was the day that the sky turned orange.

When I set out this morning, the sky was black. By the end of my half-hour plod, our ball of rock had rotated through 7.5 degrees. This let in some of the photons that had been emitted 90 million miles away earlier in my run. As these interacted with the thick layers of water molecules on the cars around me, many of the latter got excited and were liberated from the solid to the liquid phase.

Other than that, nothing much happened. By my next outing (Thursday) I expect that I'll be setting out in half-light. And then in a few weeks' time, I'll get an action replay when we put the clocks forward.

[stillwaddler]

To you and to Mrs Marathondan, lovely news. Glad to hear you are getting in a plodette or two in early hours. It's good that the shy February sun is beginning to rise a little earlier and stay with us a little later in the day isn't it. Role on June :-)

[marathondan]

Another pleasing 6am session this morning. I have to record this, just to remind myself that it was really quite enjoyable, and again the buzz lasted all day. Managed to talk myself out of my second early run last week, deciding that I didn't need to put myself through it, and could go out at lunchtime instead. Noon came around... far too busy, so the miles were lost. Moral: stick to the plan, and only change it in the cold light of day...

No spectacular sunrise this morning, just black turning gently to blue glow, as the moon looked on. If I can handle the sleep deprivation - which I'm gonna have to get used to again pretty soon - then I might even try for three sessions this week.