Finished?

So I've done it. It's over. Yesterday I ran 13.1 miles (well 13.3 but more on that later) for Rainbows Childrens Hospice. A massive thank you to everyone that has sponsored me - it's not too late to do so if you've got a spare £1 or two, you can use this link.

I was nervous yesterday morning, I woke up much earlier than the alarm and lay there thinking of miles and hills. At breakfast, where I was very pleased to find the hotel had porridge, Flino & I discovered we'd both dreamt of trying to get through a tunnel but things kept blocking our way - weird anxiety dreams!

We'd booked shuttle bus tickets to the start of the race so had to leave the hotel at 7.50am. This got us to the start area far too early so we had a wander round, covered up in some Asics foil blankets that were being given away.

Nerves are strange things, I couldn't stop yawning and had to go for a wee about 5 times. Why, at events where there are portaloos do us British only form 3 orderly queues outside a row of about 15 portaloos? Why don't we queue outside each one - surely that would make the whole process quicker? Or at least seem quicker.

It was soon time to get to our allotted start 'pens'. There were huge screens between the pens so we could see the start of the wheelchair race and the elite athetes. When they showed the Elite Mens start line I was proud to see my brother's friend Jon Gilby!  He finished 32nd in an amazing time of 1hr 7mins 36seconds ( I was at around 6.5 miles then!).

Once the gun had gone off it took us about 12 minutes to actually cross the starting line. The race has to start on a motorway as it's the only 'space' big enough for 50,000 runners.

The first few miles seemed to fly by despite the rain and I was surprised how quickly we got to 6 miles. I was feeling good and the supporters, bands and other runners served as a great distraction. It was at about 10 miles that I started to feel the pain. My legs hurt, the course started to incline and I could feel myself starting to panic. I think if it hadn't been for Flino motivating me I would have stopped to walk. But I didn't stop, I reached the 12 mile marker and could see the sea where I knew the finish line was.

The last mile is all downhill which on paper sounds great but in reality hurts your knees! There were so many supporters on the sidelines, the noise was incredible. Those 1600 metres lasted a lifetime and I admit that I cried for most them. I managed a very pathetic spint over the finish line and thought I was going to throw up.

So these were my splits:
Mile 1 - 9.12
Mile 2 - 9.45
Mile 3 - 9.51
Mile 4 - 9.52
Mile 5 - 9.55
Mile 6 - 9.34
Mile 7 - 9.29
Mile 8 - 9.39
Mile 9 - 10.10
Mile 10 - 9.57
Mile 11 - 10.23
Mile 12 - 9.36
Mile 13 - 9.49 *and a bit

Final time 2.09.47
My watch clocked me at 2.08.13 at 13.2 miles but that was before the official finish.

If I hadn't been such a drama queen I probably could have finished a minute or two quicker!!

We got our finishers goodie bag, put the t-shirts on and then went to meet the other Derwent Runners at the Rainbows tent in the Charity Village. A lovely woman from Rainbows gave me a cup of tea which made me very happy. It was great to see the other Hoops and find out how they'd got on. We'd all done well especially Matt who had done a new PB of 1.18! Brilliant.

So that was it. Finished, training done, half marathon in under 2hrs 10minutes, goal acheived.

I couldn't have done without help & support from a lot of people  - Flino who puts up with the majority of my moaning & whittling, Rob for writing my training plan, Rachel & Lee for looking after Frank and the Hoops - Matt, Suse, Carolyn, Adel, Bee, Rachel, Matt B. Also thanks to everyone that sent me a message before or after the race yesterday, I've got such lovely lovely friends & family.

I'm at home today, my legs hurt but I'm feeling pretty pleased with myself. And thinking about how I can get to run under 2 hours.....

Pre race nerves....

So it's Saturday night, almost 9pm and I'm sat in a hotel room near the Metro Centre. My number is pinned to my vest, my watch is charged up, I've eaten noodles & chicken for dinner and I've been drinking lots of water all day. 

I've done every training session that was on The Plan. Every mile that Rob planned for me, I've ran. I've stayed in when my friends were going out, I didn't drink alcohol for a month & my jeans are definitely feeling bigger.

I've done everything I can to prepare which is more than I can say for any other race I've ever done (about 5 in total!). All in all I'm pretty excited about the 13.1 miles ahead of me tomorrow. Let's see how I feel at the end...

Getting Hooked

It's Saturday morning, 7.30am and I've been up for 2 hours already. I'm not even planning on doing a long run today. Frank the wake up call dog is the culprit. Now he's back asleep in his basket & I'm too wide awake to go back to bed. I've been Googling 'How to get your puppy to sleep longer' ......

I've not ran much this week. 35 minutes on Monday and then 8 miles on Thursday after work. I had to really motivate myself to do the 8 miles. It was sunny, I'd not had the greatest day at work and a week of 5.30 alarm calls had taken it's toll. I left the office with heavy legs, ran a mile, did some stretches and then things started to feel better. I just ran up the river path for a couple of miles, round the empty roads of what I think will one day be a business park (strange at the moment, roads are ready, there's a pub but nothing else!) then I turned around and headed back into Derby. I got into town and thought about running straight home but that would only have got me to 6 miles so I ran into Darley Park. A drunk man walking past me told me to 'never stop believing' so I took his advice and managed the full 8 miles!

When I stopped I thought about the first time I ran 8 miles which was about a month ago. It seemed like a bit deal then, a long run. And I'd just done it after work. Just a little jog on the way home! 

I've got to do 35 minutes today, a couple more jogs in the week and then it will be time for the Big Day. I get butterflies thinking about it. In some ways I'd like another month so I can get a little bit faster but then again I'd just like to get it over with. To have done it, to be sat down next Sunday thinking I've just ran a half marathon. 

A couple of people have asked whether I'll stick to running regularly afterwards. I'd like to say yes, I like what running has done to my body, I'm thinner, I look more toned, I'm proud that I've stuck to the plan, I feel like I'm  becoming a 'runner' rather than someone that just pretends now & again. I'll need to find a new challenge though, having a training plan and something to aim for is what has pushed me. Maybe this is what people called 'Getting Hooked'. 

The Running Rollercoster

Monday - went running, in the rain, got soaked, felt terrible and wondered if this was really a good idea.


Today - went running, in the sunshine, felt much better, went to the pub, drank fizzy water, ate a burger - all's good with the world!


It wasn't the rain that was the deciding factor, I ran in the rain last week and felt ok. I ran further & faster today than yesterday. I was in a better mood yesterday before I started running that I was today. Maybe that was it, maybe I took my frustration out on my run today. Maybe I was just more determined to get on with it.


Anyway, today I had to run at 9.15 a mile pace for 3 miles. I don't have a fancy watch yet so I used my initiative. There is a loop on Pride Park that is exactly 1200m all the way round. Someone has also marked out 100m splits on this particular loop so you're able to work out 1600m (which is a mile). Armed with this knowledge & the stopwatch on my i-phone I figured that I could run at the prescribed pace. 


I did a mile loop warm up jog, started the stopwatch and started running at what I thought would be slightly faster than usual. Mile ends, I'd ran 8.22. Slowed down a bit, carried on running, next mile 8.46, slowed down some more ran half a loop, got worried I was running too slowly, sped up, last mile 8.56.


Got home, decided I needed to buy a watch after all. Will obviously buy it from The Derby Runner. Rob recommended a Nike GPS. I will find out more about it tomorrow. It's great having a brother sometimes! Rob also told me that I averaged a pace of 8.42 per mile tonight, if I did that for every mile of the Great North Run I'd be able to finish in 1 hour 54 mins. That put a huge smile on my face - for a couple of minutes at least until I started to think of the other 10 miles. It's a possibility though.


I've noticed that running is one of those hobbies that sucks you in to buying accessories. Watches with GPS, special waterproof socks (amazing), lightweight waterproof jackets, matching vests & shorts. I've always been the kind of girl that dreamt of buying designer accessories from here  - now I have to decide between Nike & Nicole Fahri!

Witness the Fitness

I love Mondays. Start of a new week, a good day to start things, a day of good intentions. Did I mention I don't work on a Monday? I like my job but it's great not having to go to work on a Monday!

I wrote a list this morning, last thing on the list - 3 mile run. I put it off for as long as I could by doing mundane, necessary jobs in the house - washing - running creates washing, silly little socks, shorts with built in pants that get tangled up & t-shirts of races that Flino's ran. When it got to lunchtime I'd run out of excuses & I decided to just get it done.

I ran with my headphones & i-pod today. I felt like I needed some company on my run. This is what I listened to -

Bring the Noise - Public Enemy
Bang Bang You're Dead - Dirty Pretty Things
Breaking Down - Florence & the Machine
FML - Deadmau5
Witness - Roots Manuva
Alive - Pearl Jam
Please Please Please  - The Smiths

It wasn't too hot, it didn't rain and it's one more run ticked of the list. A woman with a dog ran past me in the park. She smiles and waved - acknowledging me as another runner. That made me smile. We booked our hotel for the Great North Run weekend last night. Non refundable. Can't back out now.