It appears you have to eat a lot when you're training for a marathon!

So it would appear that I am not eating enough. I can tell because I am tired all the time. That coupled with an average of only 6 hours sleep per night, and I’m rather exhausted by the end of each day. Today I managed to sleep in until 10.30, and then promptly fell asleep again at 2pm for 3 hours… A lot of this is due to stress, but I know that eating more will help me feel less tired during training at least.

This is such a typical first world problem right here… That I need to eat more. I mean, I get my normal food intake, and always have plenty to eat, but I’m still eating the same as I was before I began training. In a world where everyone is talking about obesity, it can be hard to change your mind set to actually deliberately eat excess. But it’s not excess, it’s only what I’m burning off through training. The problem is I’m just not hungry. It’s strange how a long, hard training session can actually make you lose your appetite, when intuition says it should do the opposite! Fortunately I have great advice from my dad and from Catherine which I’m trying to implement.

I have iron supplements now, to ensure I’m not becoming anaemic. And I’m adding extra snacks in wherever possible. In particular I’m trying to make sure that my evening meal is full of carbs to give me energy. I've started using sports drinks and protein bars for during and after training. And I’m prioritising sleep. Although I’m not drinking in the week, I’m still going to the pub with friends, and can easily stay until closing. But the past couple of weeks I’ve left an hour earlier than usual to try and get more sleep.

It can be frustrating when you don’t have enough energy to train. My muscles feel strong, but they still tire too quickly. And I feel tired all the time, though that’s pretty normal for any postgrad student. Though after my long sleep today I’m hoping I’m caught up, and feeling much more positive about my long run tomorrow morning :)

Time to Marathon: 2 months, 2 weeks and 5 days.

Feeling totally unprepared

So it's exactly 12 weeks until the marathon. I realised that today and just sat and laughed. Because right now it seems like a fricking impossible task! It doesn't help that my training sessions this week haven't gone too great (is the cold making anyone else feel under the weather?), resulting in having to add extra sessions. So I kinda hate running at the moment, which I hope I get over soon...

Joking aside, I think this weekend is the first time since I set out to do this that I have actually felt genuinely unprepared. The anxiety of the race hit me, along with the worry that I'm not doing enough or that I'll lose motivation and end up not training enough.. Plus I've been getting so bored on longer runs. Fortunately the boredom is something I can change. I bought a new album of running music to listen to with some great songs on it so that will help. And I'm finally co-ordinating with running friends to go out with them to make it more interesting. Because being alone with your thoughts for around an hour a day can actually start to drive you a little insane. Or in my case, a little more insane than I was to begin with..

So if anyone fancies motivating me, or whatever, that would be appreciated! I currently don't feel like my body can physically ever run 26.2 miles (actually 26 miles and 385 yards, but who's counting?)..

Time to marathon: 12 weeks

Small setbacks

So I missed three days of training this week. Totally my own fault. I've stuck to my only drinking at weekends rule. However, Sunday night's couple of drinks in the pub ended far messier than intended. I blame good company and the fact that we buy drinks in rounds on totally losing track of my alcohol consumption. That, and the bottle of vodka that is now no longer in Emma's freezer...
So Monday turned into hangover day, as did Tuesday... And now I'm really paying for it because I have to make up for the missed training.
But it's not the end of the world. I hopefully won't make the same mistake again until after the marathon! Which will be made a lot easier by Lent beginning soon, when I'll be going alcohol free.
Training is a huge commitment, which I'm not sure I fully appreciated beforehand. It's not just the 30-60 minutes of exercise I now have to do each day. It's the lifestyle changes, the not staying out late with my friends, not accidentally getting drunk with those friends, ensuring I eat proper, healthy meals and many other things... It's a healthier lifestyle, granted, but it can be hard to stick to...

Time to Marathon: 2 months and 4 weeks

Progress and achievements

Anybody who knows me well, knows that I have problems with anxiety and panic attacks. So I have no problem admitting that I see a counsellor weekly, to learn how to cope when panic strikes (I personally think more people should have counselling, it can be so useful to talk things through with an objective, non-judgmental person). This week we were discussing some of the harder times that I've gone through in life, and how actually, I've always done my best. It's so easy to trivialise our achievements, but we really shouldn't. When I tell people I'm training for a marathon, the most common response is about what an amazing thing it is that I'm doing. And every single time I just brush it off with something like "oh, it's really nothing". But it's actually not nothing. It's a lot to do for a good cause. I'm not trying to be arrogant, but I'm trying to start actually praising myself, and recognising my achievements. And I recommend that everyone does this, even if its only to yourself. Actually giving yourself some credit for the things you do, even if they seem little.

This journey towards running a marathon has already changed me so much. For example: it's Saturday night and I have coursework due on Monday.

Me before I was training for a marathon:
I'll have a nice bath, get my pjs on early and curl up in a blanket on the sofa for the whole evening to get this work done.

Me now:
I'll go and do a quick 2 mile run followed by some stretching and completely exhaust myself after a long week before having a short shower and curling up in a blanket on the sofa for the rest of the evening and getting this work done.

The route I ran tonight I ran 2 whole minutes faster than I did back in November. Measurable achievements like that make me feel like I'm actually achieving something.

So from now on, I'm going to give myself credit for my hard work and celebrate the small victories I have along this journey.

Time to marathon: 3 months and 2 days

Running with Asthma

I've been asthmatic for as long as I can remember. I have had to take daily medication for almost my entire life. Even as a competitive swimmer I was medication dependent. I've gone a couple of winters with back to back chest infections and multiple prescriptions of antibiotics and steroids. So when I started running a year and a half ago, I was concerned that it was going to be too much for my poor airways.

At first, it was hard, and running for more than ten minutes made my chest feel like it was on fire. But over time it got easier. I've now not had to take regular medication for an entire year. My peak flow is the best its ever been in my entire life (although still lower than a healthy person). Running has actually improved my breathing so much, so that I rarely use an inhalor these days.

However, as winter drawers in, the risk of chest infection increases, as the cold air really irritates my airways. On the really cold days, this means I'm simply unable to run outside, and have to use the gym instead. But mostly it just means being careful. Wrapping up warm is all I really have to do. I have a buff that I put round my neck and pull up over my mouth to warm the air before it hits my airways. This makes running in the cold much more manageable. It still hurts sometimes, especially the first 5-10 minutes while my body is warming up, but compared to two years ago when I couldn't even walk to uni in the cold because I had an asthma attack its a huge improvement.

I may always be asthmatic. I accepted that a long time ago. But it seems finally to be under control. It just shows what can be done with perseverance. I'm not saying that running is the cure to all asthmatics, everybody is different and there are many people out there whose asthma is far worse than mine has ever been. But for me, running has completely transformed my life for the better. And although I'll always be a swimmer at heart, I couldn't imagine my life now without running.

Time to Marathon: 3 months and 12 days