Training For A Marathon!

Hello Blog lovers.

I bet that got your attention, didn't it!  Well, it's not me that is training for a marathon, it's my mate Jenny!  She is doing the Brighton Marathon in a couple of weeks.  She needed to do at least 15 miles today!  Last week, if she had asked me, I could have done 10 miles in the broad daylight, but not anymore.  I don't have '10 mile' running time during the day now, not during the week anyway!  But I said I will try and plan something that would incorporate a longer run for her, meeting up with me and then she could finish off by running back home.

So I planned it last night, I got on to plotaroute, planned a route from hers, which then came down to the rec to where I would be, and then I planned what I though was about 8 miles or so which would get us back to the rec and then she could run on back home.  Sounded pretty good really!  But what I should have thought about was that it was dark, and there are woods and dark spots where she lives (which I didn't know, but do now) and really, a lone woman running at night in the dark is not the best of things to do!

Anyway, in the end she decided to drive to the rec and we will just do the bit in the middle.  I am hoping this would be about 8 miles!  I tried to make it at least ten really, but I just ran out of roads to choose from while I was plotting my route, and I just didn't want to go back and do it all over again!  Besides, it was quite complicated route anyway!  I was hoping I didn't forget any of it!

Once we met up we started our run!  Already it seems a long way.  We will be crossing places that we are going to be running along later.  I didn't tell Jenny the route, I sent her it via Facebook, but she said she didn't look at it!  I think that if it was me I wouldn't want to either actually.  Jenny just needs the miles, so anything we do this evening, she is not worried about, she just didn't want to run by herself.  She has been running on one of those dreadmills things!  You can't experience marathon conditions on one of those!  They are ok if you just want to get fitter running 5k maybe even a 10k if the weather outside is sh.......ocking! It's always nicer when you are running with a buddy too!  And for me running with faster runners pushes me a bit too!  She wasn't as naggy as NaggyNeighbour though!  In fact she wasn't naggy at all!  In fact I found myself apologising for running too slow, for walking, for anything really!  Hmmm, maybe that's her method, make me feel guilty so that I will run fast!  But actually she didn't have a plan, her only plan was to get out from the dreadmill and run with a buddy!  The Brighton Marathon is not far now! Nor is my half marathon, the Paddock Wood Half!  I think I will be pleased when it's all done!  And again, I feel pleased that I didn't actually get a place in the London Marathon this year!  A wise decision to not throw my hat in the club's ballot too! What if I had actually won a place!  I would be so under trained!  I would be panicking by now and totally stressed out by it!  The half marathon is just about doable for me!

Blimey, that really is what I was thinking on just that first mile!  I think it was because was trying to keep up with Jenny with the long legs!  JennyLongLegs!  Well, now she has a nickname! The thing is I know we were still running slower than what she normally does anyway, but I think it's what she needs to do, training for a marathon, a long slow run (albeit it's shorter than what she wanted to do). We ran up to the main road and then turned left to run up to Crofton school and beyond!  We were going to run around group 2's Tuesday night route.  In fact this route incorporates at least 4 routes which I have 'strung' together!  When we got to Kelvin Parade we even did the longer route around!  I think I have only ever done this once before!  I usually shy off and go around on the shorter route on pretence of sweeping! Shhh don't tell anyone!

So the next route that I used was the Shepperton route, a favourite of mine for group 1. We were going to run until we get to Diameter Road.  This is the only deviation from plan that I had on plotaroute.  Because JennyLongLegs drove down from hers I needed to add a little bit more distance. As it happened it was probably just as well as my calculations would have put us to far from the 8 miles that I thought we would be doing.  Going this way is going to be blimmin hard!  Because no only is it my manor, but we will be running right pass my house! I mean, I could pop in for a pee, a cuppa, have a nap!  I could so easily do that, my house was right there!  But of course I didn't have my keys and the Old boy was out on his bike, BigSon will be glued the playstation as he relaxes before he goes to work this evening, so there was no way of getting in!  So, it's carrying on running!

We ran through the estate, well, me desperately trying to keep up with JennyLongLegs while she just meandered, meandered I'm telling ya through the estate!  We had to keep our cool going passed the local young 'hoodlams' What does 'Wargwam' mean!  I think I just said "Jog on!" in response!  So we rejoined the usual group 1 route and ran around Crestview Drive and through the carpark and over the troll bridge!  I did not tell her to 'Run like scooby doo' today!  I actually said "I don't think I will be running quietly over here"  My legs were like lead pipes filled with lead pipes!  I was beginning to flag to be truthful but we still had at least anot 4 miles to do!  When we got over the bridge I suddely realised that I needed to loo.  Let me tell you, when I think about going to the loo I need to find once ASAP.  I looked over to the One In The Wood and it was closed!  Darn it.  But then I head music and tap dancing to my left and I realised that I could quickly pop into there to use the loo! Oh perfect!  I almost didn't make it as I desperately grabbled with the tie strings on my running pants!  After starting up the Garmin (yes I paused it!) I ran along to the memorial and then looked along Petts Wood Road! "Oh yes!" I thought to myself "I remember what was coming soon"

The next part was still the same route that we would have done had we gone down Shepperton road, it was Hazlemere and Great Thrift and then we ran up Towncourt! I know! Up Towncourt, because I didn't want to run by my car, I ran passed my house, that was torture, but to run pass my car as well! Nah!  Not going to happen.  But then what was coming up next was even worse!  Yup Petts Wood Road.  We were going to run down (brilliant) but then straight back up to the round about!  Another one of group 1's routes!  Oh my goodness.  JennyLongLegs seemed to have got into the 'Zone'  She was just running and running, She was not stopping.  I think she knows that the run will be over soon and so don't need to save any energy! She was going for it!  I looked on as she started to pull away again.  I ran after her, caught her up and then flaked out again!

Once at the top I checked my Garmin and that's when I realised that trying to get 8 miles from the roads we got left is not going to happen.  Running down the lovely steep road of Wood Ride was on the plan but again, a slight deviation.  We were going to a little bit further along to Birchwood and then down Crossways, to my car, to her car.....to our cars and home!

Well, that was that!  JennyLonglegs (now that I have named her I am not sure if I have used this name for her or someone else before! but what the heck!) JennyLonglegs went her way  and I went mine!  My dinner was ready, the Old Boy had texted me.  He knew how long I was going to be because he had been tracking my every movement!  He knew when I had stopped for a pee! Although he thought we were in the pub!  So now, I will go home and shovel my dinner down my neck, I was starving!

JennyLongLegs had forgettn to turn her Garmin back on after the loo stop!  That is so enfuriating!  I am just glad that I had remembered.  I am quite pleased with the average running pace actually, quite pleased indeed! I don't think I could have squeezed any more miles in, not within the time, it was already 9 when we finished, so really perfect timing.  It's good to finish at the usual time our club run's finish! Here is our Geeky stats!