Running 12 Marathons in 2012

Never one to go without a challenge, and having tackled the beast that was my first marathon, I have committed myself to running 12 marathons in 2012.

Yes 12.....

It's not quite at the Run Geordie Run scale, but it will still be a massive personal challenge. The runs will take place from March 2012 - October 2012, and so far I have registered for six.

My running Calender looks like this so far:

March

18^th – Rome Marathon

April

15^th – Brighton Marathon

29^th – Greater Manchester Marathon

May

20^th – Brathay Windermere Marathon

June

24^th – Lancaster Castle Marathon

July

1st – Lakeland Trails Marathon

It wouldn't be a challenge without a bit of fundraising on the side, so I will be trying to raise as much money as possible for Spinal Research UK, who research possible ways of reversing spinal cord damage and paralysis. 

If anyone knows of any big runs that will be available to register for soon in the UK please let me know!!!

My First Marathon...

....was bloody hard. It rained, it poured, it was cold and windy. I wanted to die, I wanted to cry, I was in pain, but it was worth every second.

Pre-Race
Depsite 8 weeks of preparation, training and nutrition, I managed to screw it up in the last 3 days/weeks. My nutrition went to crap, something that will not happen again. My mental state deteriorated rapidly and I would have crumbled was it not for my little Run Liz Run duo that kep me going.

I knew it was going to be a toughey when firstly, I had the most horrendous stomach ache which was partially due to nerves, and secondly, it decided to piddle it down (I had barely trained in the rain).

Another minor point, I hadn't noticed that Kielder Marathon was a trail run...doh!

The Race
The first 3 miles were a doddle, I loved it, thought man this is easy....and then came the signs. No joke, "steep incline" and "steep decline" signs were dotted around the course. They featured in my nightmares after the race and probably will for the next few weeks. I had a blood blister the size of an extra toe and my quads felt like they were going to snap.

I got a buddy at the last 800m at which a spectator shouted "go faster it's only 800m", to which my new found friend and I passed 400m of pain chunnering about the fact that it wasnt "only" 800m, it felt more like 8 miles.

The personal touch at the end was lush, they read our names out as we crossed the line, and despite the fact they got my name wrong, it was still a lovely touch.


Post Race

I couldn't sit down and threw up 6 times (I made it to the toilets, I had too much pride to do it in public).


The day summed up into pictures

1 day to go....

...Until the big day and to put it frankly, im sh*tting myself! Nerves are beginning to get the better of me.

I've done everything in my power (apart from losing my race timing chip) to make sure that the big day will run as smoothly as possible, but the only thing that I can't control is my mind.

It’s been a long journey. Training has sometimes been lonely, frustrating, hot, sweaty, painful, even sometimes agony. Why do it then? Because all those feelings don’t shadow the sense of achievement when you’ve completed another long distance run and pushed yourself an extra couple of miles.

Tapering…

Something I’ve rarely done before a big running event (possibly because I’ve never actually done what could be classed as a loooong run). It’s been one of the most frustrating bits of my training. I’m a go hard type of person when it comes to training, so having to literally cut the amount of hours I’ve done in a week for the past couple, has been a big shock, and I’ve found it very boring.

I’ve carb loaded, run and cycled very little and to be honest am now feeling like a tub of lard. 

I know this is all for a good cause though. My body feels relaxed and rested, and I’m literally bursting with energy and buzzing to get a few hours of exercise, something that won’t be bad for the big day.

All that’s left to do now is wait….

I’d rather the marathon was now. All the possible problems keep popping into my head rather than going with the flow, it really is a mental game!

So in one day, we will see whether it really is possible to train for a marathon in 8 weeks instead of 16! 

Wish me luck.