6 weeks to go.....

Hello Fudgey Friends,

How are you all? I hope you've all had a great weekend -it's been gloriously sunny here and I suspect there may be a few sunburned folk in the office tomorrow.

Yet another week has passed and it's been another busy one but my training has been good & I have a new weekly distance record again this week recording my first 60km week (about 37 miles). The training is getting tougher now and the next 3 weeks will probably be the toughest before I start to taper & then I'll be more irritable than usual!

So here's a quick run down of the week

Monday Recovery
I was surprised how good I felt after last Sunday's 19 miler the only minor negative was my black toe nail on my right foot which I know I'll lose so that will be one from each foot. No strappy sandals for me this summer - I'll be hiding my ugly runners feet in shame.
I knew that I needed to get some form of movement in today but had a sports massage booked after work & then a family meal for Dad Smith's birthday so it had to be lunchtime. I opted for the treadmill as I then had the choice of hopping off & onto the bike or the cross trainer if my body objected after the 19 miler - but bizarrely it was fantastic.

Tuesday Torture
Yes PT day - just when I think it's getting easier he increases the weights or finds some new cruel way to hurt me LOL - I love it. PT is the highlight of my week especially as I'm constantly seeing progress.
3 single supine rows - god these are tough
3 sets of 2 almost unassisted pull ups
4 supersets of underarm grip cable pulls down 6 reps 45kg & 15 swiss ball tricep dips
4 supersets of 8 straight arm cable pull down 25kg & 10 alternate bicep curls 9kg
3 supersets of 15 squats 50kg (I suspect this may go up next week) with 20 high bar lunges 15kg bar.

Wednesday - Resting
Total rest day - just what I needed

Thursday - back twice as strong
After my rest day I managed not 1 but 2 sessions today. Sprint intervals at lunch time which really burnt off some of my tension and then after work a slightly longer steady run - aim was for about 10km & I managed over 11.5 and still felt I had more in the tank.

Friday - not my usual commute
Decide to attempt to run to work rather than take the bus. This was fine when I lived closer but now it's over 12 miles - still it seemed to me like a good way to get the miles in especially as I knew I'd be pushed for time at the weekend.
An effort to get up & do this but I said I would so I did. I didn't fuel the way I normally would for a run of this distance partly as I didn't want to get up at 5am to eat. Up at 6am, had a lucozade sports carb cereal bar (yummy) and was ready & out by about 6.35. I wanted to quit & get the bus between km 5 & 10 - just didn't feel good but by km 10 the cereal bar & the lucozade body fuel gel I'd had at 5k must have kicked in because I started to feel good & the pace picked up & I was in cruise mode till about 18k - struggled a wee bit but picked it up to run my last km as the fastest of the day. Super impressed with myself after the 10.5 miles in the legs from Thursday. 23 miles in less than 24 hours a new achievement for me - now just need to manage 26.2 all at once on Marathon day!

Sunday - Short Long Run

As I was pushed for time this weekend my run was going to be slightly shorter than I'd have done if I had more time. I was going to run a hilly 14km but first 2km my legs told me NO. I felt crap :-( and I'd had an upset stomach this morning so decided to alter my route & run along the canal that way I could turn back whenever I wanted. 5km into the run I started to feel good but I had a wee stop to take some photos on my phone - OMG why have I never run down here before it's so lovely - helped today by the glorious sunshine. Ran for an hour & then turned & headed back. Not a great run by any means but so glad I did it & my first ever 60km week :-)

Fudgey goes to London
I'm writing this post from my hotel room in London. I'm here for a course for a couple of days abandoning Mr Fudgey and the fellas.I miss them already. It was a bit of an eventful journey including a fire alarm at Edinburgh airport and a magical mystery tour on the DLR rail replacement bus service - still I got here eventually and in one piece. So will 2 days in London halt my training? Not too much I have my kit with me & the hotel has a fancy gym so I'll be trying that out but I will also be having a mini taper ahead of next Sunday's kilomathon.


Well that's my update for this week - will be back soon but off to get some sleep now - going to be very odd in a big bed on my own
Take Care everyone

lots of love
Fudgey xxxx

Further than a Fudgey has ever been before

Hello Fudgey Friends,

Well today was the long run - longer than I've ever gone before - plan was 18 miles which I knew to be about 29k.

Originally I intended to get up & be out for 8am but it didn't happen as planned. I never slept well last night so what I did was get up at 7.30am eat my cereal, have some juice and a small cup of tea & my omega 3 & got ready to go. Plan was to lie on the bed beside Mr Fudgey for a an hour to let the food digest and then head out about 8.30 / 9ish but I ended up dozing off. Must have been what I needed though. Got up just before 10am & finished getting ready. Filled my new hydration pack & filled my SIS belt with SIS Go Gels.

SIS are my gels of choice. I have tried both powerbar & lucozade gels but I find both too sickly & too thick. I also tried lucozade jelly beans and whilst I like the taste of these I don't like or can't chew on the run so a gel or drink is the best option for me, but I think it really comes down to personal choice and trying out what does and doesn't work for you & training runs are the best time to do this.

The new hydration pack was a gift from Mr Fudgey and it worked really really well. It saved me having to carry water, had a section for phone and keys, and the mouthpiece worked much better than the last pack I had - little effort required to get a good drink.

So off I set. First couple of km I didn't feel very comfortable at all - convinced myself I had a sore left knee - which I didn't. Decided to give it 5k & see how I felt. Took on my first gel just after 5k and was running really easily, not fast, but today was about distance not about pace, 12km done - still feeling strong & second gel in - I didn't really want this but I decided I'd take on 1 gel every 6km or so rather than waiting till I felt I needed to & this system worked for me. Ran for 15km which took me to the zoo & was still feeling good & turned to head back. Not so easy on the way back - strong wind right in my face. Third gel at 18km still feeling good and still nice steady consistent pace and not the least out of breath so I could have pushed harder if I wanted. 24km in took on my fourth and last gel but was starting to struggle - calves were tight, sore left knee & sore right glute - sore maybe not the right word - uncomfortable. Kms 24 - 27 were really tough & the wind was right in my face but I dug in and stuck with it though pace dropped a fair bit. But before I knew it I was at 27km and the home straight and I picked up the pace again I realised it actually felt better to run faster than slower but i could feel the blood pumping in my lower legs - felt so good I never stopped at 30km but ran an extra km to make it 31km (19.3 miles) in total for the day.
Though I was feeling stiff and sore physically, mentally I felt fantastic & a small glimmer of self believe is dawning on me that maybe just maybe there is a Marathon in me after all.

Into the house - SIS Rego Recovery drink, ice bath & then shower followed by juice, cheese & broccoli mash potato & a cup of tea. I'm surprised at how good my legs actually feel - yes I'm a bit tender but no where near as bad as I expected. Very very very much looking forward to my sports massage tomorrow now - think I've earned it.

Last but not least
Happy Mothers Day to all Mums



Take Care everyone
lots of love
Fudgey x

Marvellous March

Hello Fudgey Friends,

Hope you are all well and having a good weekend - as promised I'm back with a catch up of my last 3 weeks training.
March has been really really good - my running has been consistent, not fast but I've felt really strong and in control most of the time.

I've ran more at this point this year than I did in the first 3 months last year & in March clocked up my highest amount of km run in a month since I began running. Not a lot compared to many other runners - but for me a massive achievement.
Some numbers below for the stats lovers amongst us



So the training since 14th March (apologies as some of this is duplication from daily mile).....

Monday 14th March
Long long day travelling to Florida - torture for some one as active as me to be on a plane for 6 and a half hours! Enforced rest day

Tuesday 15th March
5.01km run. I never headed out till around 8.30 and by that time the sun was up & it was getting hot so called it at 5k.

Wednesday 16th March
10.22km run - up & out earlier to try & beat the sun & the heat.

Thursday 17th March
Rest day before long run - but swam 710m

Friday 18th March
24.39km run. Up & out in the dark to get the weekly long run in. The holiday was not going to halt Marathon training! It was great to run past people's sprinklers & get a refreshing shower. Mr Fudgey also came out for a but to take some photos and give me moral support. This was my longest run so far this year and though the latter stages were hard and it was getting really hot I enjoyed it so much.

Saturday 19th March
Rest day after log run but swam 1km. Swimming a km is so much harder than running a km.

Sunday 20th March
11.29km gentle recovery run. Legs felt awesome and pace was cracking which surprised me after the long run on Sat.

Monday 21st March
1km Swim

Tuesday 22nd March
1km Swim before starting the journey home.

Wednesday 23rd March
Exhausted - another enforced rest day

Thursday 24th March
Had to split this into 2 runs - 5.8km & 5.5km one at lunchtime and one after work. I had hoped for double that after work but the jetlag got me and I had to listen to my body and stop at 5.5k - before than 0k though.

Friday 25th March
5.65km pre work run to energise me and to make up for the previous day.
After work PT session
Fab session till the end when I was so wrecked I could no longer hold weights!

3 sets of 1 pull up - so nearly nearly there - I can do about 3/4 & my trainer puts his hands on my back to help me that last bit - soon I'll manage 1

4 supersets of 8 assisted pull ups (12kg) with 12 upright row (15kg)
4 supersets of 6 wide grip pull down (40kg) with 8 bicep curls (15kg)
3 supersets of 15 squats (50kg) & 15 squat jumps with 10kg dumbbells
1 set of single leg dead lift with 10lb weight 12 each leg - struggled to maintain grip on weight
hanging leg raises managed about 8 in 3 attempts again grip just not working
2 supersets of cable hamstring curls (25kg) 12 each leg, 1 attempt at hanging leg raises just not happening so we switched to a medicine ball crunch, twist & pass combo - I have no idea how many reps
and then I was done :-)
carrying my gym bag home was real effort!

Saturday 26th March
Implementation weekend for the project I have been working on so also a training rest day - which was good as feeling very lethargic and jetlagged still.

Sunday 27th March
Had to go into the office as part of the implementation weekend but thankfully it was only a couple of hours. After a brilliant training week in Florida I decided to take this week as a recovery week & cut back the distance. This was a wise move as I was still feeling really washed out.
Manged to battle it out for 11.29km but it was an effort a battle of the mind v the body. Mind said YES today but body said NO way - 36 minutes in managed to convince the body it was ok & it started to feel easy & pace picked up which was good - overall slow pace though as the first 36 minutes were a real plod - so glad I stuck with it though I was giving it 45 mins & then the body would have won. Felt so tired the last few days but I think it's a stress thing & the running actually helps

Monday 28th March
Enforced rest day 7am start at work & 6pm finish with no break so couldn't get a workout in. Did feel better when I got home about 7pm and now that we have lighter evenings I'll be able to go out running later after work.

Tuesday 29th March - Bestest PT session ever
Don't you just love it when you are so damn tired & you go for a workout & amaze yourself by doing better than usual :-) I'd not slept well for the past 4 nights & wasn't really up for this yet more press ups & hanging leg raises than ever before and heaviest weights ever too....getting stronger :-)

quick cross trainer warm up
3 sets of 2 full chin ups
4 supersets of 10 squat thrust & jumping pull up with 8 underarm cable pull down
3 supersets of 10 wide grip cable pull down with press ups managed 35, 25, 20 & 21 = 101 :-) best ever
3 supersets of lunges with 26kg bar 12 each leg with hanging leg raises managed 18, 14 & 13 - best ever
3 sets of 15 squats 50kg

Wednesday 30th March - Overdoing it!
Lunchtime circuits class
Tough class today
bicep curls 10kg, french press 10kg, chest press 15kg, reverse flyes 2kg dumbbells, agility ladder + slalom + sprint, supermarket sweep + overhead walking lunges 10kg + sprint, weighted bosu hops, 10 step ups + 5 jumps, weighted burpees, double oblique twist, swiss ball plank & punchbag

Accidental 10.3 mile run
Accidentally ran 10.3 miles after work. I just knew I needed to run but had no plan, no expectations, no pressure on myself & I just ran. I felt really strong, really in control, had a stupid big grin on my face & just loved it today.

Thursday 31st March
After PT. circuits & the accidental 10 miler getting up today was an effort - arms wrecked, abs wrecked, legs like 2 dead weights. Indulged in mac cheese for lunch & then a short recovery run after work - legs felt awesome afterwards - shame abs & arms were still agony! still 2 days rest before Sunday's long run when I hope to go further than I ever have before - here's hoping for 18 miles :-)

So guys that was Marvellous March! It really helps me to see my training laid out like that & how I'm progressing all the time.

So here's now hoping for an Awesome April....

Friday 1st April
Total rest day - absolute heaven - how liberating not to lug my gym bag to work, had to carry a very nice bottle of champagne home though - pity I can't drink it for another 50 days! Arms were still wrecked but abs were better and legs feel great so looking forward to Sunday's long run.

Saturday 2nd April
A pretty lazy day today, catching up on some chores and doing the laundry, starting to get anxious about tomorrow's long run but I know I can do it. 7 weeks tomorrow till the Marathon - getting closer but have the Kilomathon up first in 2 weeks.

Will let you know how I get on tomorrow - here's hoping for good running conditions.

Take Care everyone
love
Fudgey
xxxx

I'm back!

Hi Fudgey Friends,

Sorry it's been nearly 3 weeks since I last posted. I have been away having a well earned holiday. Mr Fudgey & I were in Florida :-)
Since I've been back I've hardly stopped. Work has been busy we had our project implementation last weekend & I was working and then was in at 7am each day for the first part of this week & here late too - it hasn't held back my training though.
I'm feeling really really good at the moment.

The holiday didn't halt my training either.

I ran


I swam


but I did also relax :-)


It was great to have a holiday but it was also great to come home. We still have our 'honeymoon' to look forward to later this year as well.

I'll be back soon with a training post for the last 3 weeks & this Sunday I'll be attempting my longest run to date - hopefully 18 miles. Only 51 days to the Marathon :-$

Take Care all
Lots of Love
Fudgey
xxxxx

2 hours of Tedium

Hello Fudgey Friends,

How is everyone? Good weekend?

Well I was up at 6.45am today forcing down 2 Belvita breakfast biscuits which my body didn't want so had to quit at 2, then out of the door for 7.20am to get the bus to my gym.

As you can imagine is was very quiet when I got there - only 4 other members there & not one of them under 60.

Onto the dreadmill I hopped with my bottle of lucozade lite - plan for this weekend was 15 miles but due to the snow yesterday I opted for the safety of the gym, as I have a lot of other stuff going on at the moment and didn't want to risk getting a chill or injuring myself in the snow / ice / rain - the irony of it is that it's all now cleared up. Aim was for 16km (10 miles) if possible. I've never run for that long on the treadmill and I knew before I hit the start button it would be me against the dreadmill in a battle of wills. It was tough going and all I can say is Thank goodness for my ipod. Physically I felt really strong but mentally it was torture. Still I managed 16.16km so that's a minor victory to me :-)
As I still had some time left & the legs still had juice in them I 'skipped' off to the bike for a 11.2km cool down. By the time I was finished I was a lovely soggy, tired mess but I felt fantastic and all this before 10.30am. At least I know now that if I have to the treadmill is an option and I can do it.

After my workout I met fantastic Mr Fudgey who took me for cake & coffee - very much needed.

This reminded me that I hadn't shared the picture of the luscious cupcakes I got on Friday from Bibi's bakery. I blame KMac as she told be flavour of the day was gooey chocolate beetroot & I practically leapt out of my seat & had my coat on before she'd finished telling me - I love love love beetroot in any way shape or form so in a cake has to be good.



I knew Mr Fudgey would prefer the banoffee cupcake so that's what I got for him and both were amazing.

Apparently Bibi's make giant cupcakes too - so the thought of a giant chocolate beetroot cupcake could be enough to get me 26.2 miles ;-)

Since my trip to the gym we've been busy pottering about the house and have had a really fab leisurely day.

Hope you have all had a great weekend.

Take Care
lots of love
Fudgey
xxxx

Training Catch Up

Hello Fudgey Friends,

How are you all? I'm good - busy as ever. I'm so sorry that in the last couple of weeks I've not posted much - the time vampires strike again.
This week has seen me working till 10.45pm Wednesday & 9pm on Thursday to try and get everything done and I'm please to report it's been a really productive week with my to do list finally getting some ongoing items scored off:-)

I have been training too and this is really just a catch up of the last couple of weeks training. Sorry if it reads a little strange but it's my training from 28th Feb to date so tenses may be a little muddled.

slow sore recovery run 4.11 km Monday 28th Feb
After Sundays long run I was carrying a tension in my right ankle. I have been having intermittent problems with my shin but massage, doc & xrays show nothing so I was told I could continue running which I have been, I then realised in the last week or so it wasn't the shin at all but the ankle & releasing the ankle relieved the pain in the shin :-) till today :-( shouldn't have ran at all I know but I wanted to see if a short slow run would ease it off.....it didn't though but when I was sat at my desk it was fine - it was only putting weight through it that hurts. When I came home it was feeling fine again so planned to try & be sensible no way was I missing the half marathon on Sunday (6th March)

Personal training Tuesday 1st March It's gonna hurt tomorrow :-)
warm up set of 15 assisted (33kg) pulls ups
3 single full pull up attempts - getting better
then onto the session proper
4 supersets of 8 assisted (12kg) pull ups superset with press ups managed 30, 24, 20,19
4 supersets of 12 wide grip cable pull down 30kg with 12 bicep cable curls
3 supersets of 15 leg extensions 22.5kg with 12 swiss ball crunches with 25lb plate
2 supersets of 15 squats 45kg with 12 medicine ball lunges 6kg

Then I came home & tried on the tankini I treated myself to for our honeymoon later this year & cried - can't believe the shape I am in. I don't see in myself what others tell me & when I occasionally do.... I'm blown away - very very very happy :-)

Circuits Class Wednesday 2nd March
Arms & abs now completely brutalised
2 circuits first 1 min per station & second 30secs per station
we had:
bicep curls (1st round 10kg, 2nd 15kg)
tricep dips
2 squat thrusts & press up
clean & press into squat (15kg - I can squat double that but can't clean & press so much)
ski sit with shoulder height dumbbell hold (1 min is a long time even with 1kg weights)
supermarket sweep with 10 bunny hops
bag drag, overhead walking lunges (10kg bar) & sprint
burpees with 5kg dumbbells
10 fast step ups & 5 jumps
crunches & punches
paddles & scissors
punch bag

yes this is my idea of a fun way to spend my lunchtime. Arms were mildly sore after yesterdays PT - are now completely done as are my abs :-)
Ankle feeling good. Hope to run tomorrow.

Thursday 3rd March - REST day
Had to take a rest day - just so tired & upper body & abs feeling the pt & circuits class - unfortunately people kept making me laugh which hurt the abs even more! Hope to get in a wee run tomorrow to see if the ankle is ok before Sunday's half marathon

Out of the comfort zone 5.2 km - Friday 4th March
slow warm up for a km & then 4 very fast ones - faster than I have run in a long long time, well beyond my comfort zone and it felt great :-) Happy Friday & Race day Sunday Woo Hoo

Meadows Half Marathon - Sunday 6th March
Official time 2 hours 9 minutes 44 seconds.
Read my race report here
Resting again
Cheeky wee complete rest day - a little tired after the half marathon but will be back out & on my feet tomorrow

Leg Torture - Tuesday 8th March
Lunchtime resistance session
Legs felt worse today than yesterday so knew I had to sort them out & planned a run for after work.
Nipped to the gym at lunch to do a quick resistance workout
3 supersets of 15 squats 20kg superset with 12 calf raises each leg
3 supersets of 15 jackknifes with 10 hanging leg raises
1 set of 15 leg press 65kg superset with 20 medicine ball lunges 6kg - was waiting for assisted machine to be free
3 supersets of 10 assisted (12kg) pull ups with 10 bicep curls 6kg dumbbells

After work Treadmill recovery with KMac at gym 7.5 km
Hard going but knew that I needed to get this run in & that I would feel better for it

Circuits class - Wednesday 9th March
Oh my poor legs were so sore this morning & I was so tired - but no way I was missing circuits.
2 circuits of 1 min each station today
punch bag, tricep dips, military press (10kg), bent over row (15kg first circuit, 20kg second circuit), Lunges (15kg first circuit, 20kg second circuit), Squats (30kg), 10 squat thrusts, duck walk & hurdle, I surrender (3kg dumbbells first circuit, 4kg dumbbells second circuit, bicep curls (10kg first circuit, 12kg second circuit) weighted sprint & 10 bosu ball side steps, box jumps, skipping, chest press (10kg first circuit, 15kg second circuit) and walking press ups

Personal training Thursday 10th March
good session but think I've hurt my wrist :-(
warm up set of 15 assisted pull ups (33kg)
3 supersets of 8 assisted pull ups (12kg) & 14 alternate bicep curls 8kg
3 supersets of 8 underarm grip lat pull downs 37.5kg with 8 deadrows 10kg
3 sets of 15 squats 50 kg
3 tri sets of 12 lunges each leg, 12 swiss ball hamstring curls each leg & hanging leg raises 11, 11 & 9

cheeky pre work run 5.2 km Friday 11th March
just enough time before work to squeeze this in - it hurt but it still felt good - I am definitely not normal!

Today - Saturday 12th March
No training today - had planned a 15 mile run but woke up to snow and decided to postpone running till tomorrow as it was awful out there. I've never stopped all day though, doing laundry, baking banana bread, scrubbing the kitchen, hoovering & washing the floors in the kitchen lounge & dining area. Scrubbed the downstairs utility toilet, the main bathroom and the ensuite as well as a bit of hoovering upstairs. Now going off to prep dinner - roasted veggies :-)

Will let you know how my run goes tomorrow - it may need to be in the gym - but better than no run.

Take care all

lots of love
Fudgey
xxxx

Meadows (half) Marathon - Race Report

Hello Fudgey Friends,

How are you all? Again apologies for lack of blog action - things are just so busy right now but it's all good. Training is going well & I'm working hard as usual both at work & outside work. This is my race report but there will be a weekly round up from last week too - soon I hope.

This weekend saw the second running event of 2011 for me & my Bliss vest. It was kind of bizarre as it seems ages ago I signed up for this & then suddenly it was here - In a strange way I felt like I'd not trained for it as my main focus is the marathon and I was approaching this as a training run rather than a race.

Last year I ran the 5k race & really enjoyed it & thought it was a really well organised little event.It's cheap & cheerful and organised by Edinburgh Students Charities Appeal. This year my 2 amazing friends Kmac & Smurfy signed up for the 5k whilst I signed myself up for the half marathon - 11 weeks before the big one seemed perfect.
This year my gym was one of the event sponsors so there was a good contingent from there signed up too.
This year the registration process was changed and you had to pay through virgin money giving which wasn't as easy as it sounds & myself and a few friends really weren't happy about the whole registration process & then all the chaser emails from the organisers about had we paid, were we running for charity & if so which one etc. Hopefully they will iron out these issues for next year based on the feedback they've had. They did update the website with guidance on the registration process and were very friendly & helpful even when I complained a bit.

Pre Race
Really wasn't in the best of form on Saturday & was munching the pain killers like they were sweets - very severe abdominal pains of the female kind made me uncomfortable and grumpy. I also hadn't slept at all well on Friday night so was shattered but couldn't manage to get a nap in the afternoon even though I wanted to. I was also a little apprehensive about the day itself due to the registration issues - I hoped the actual event would run more smoothly (and it did). Having had ankle pain after the previous long run I was also worrying how it would hold out over 13.1 miles, but I took some good advice & decided I'd zip up my man suit & just get on with it!
Dinner on Saturday night was yummy pasta with garlic, onion, chicken, chilli, broccoli & mushrooms.

I 'checked' my garmin was charged. Took the battery out of my camera to charge, made sure I had extra safety pins for race numbers, a banana, a lucozade recovery flapjack, lucozade recovery powder & put lucozade light and lucozade body fuel into the fridge. Then it was off to bed as though the half marathon wasn't till 12.15 I was going to support my friends in the 5k & had made them these banners

Race Day
Up early & fuelled up on my traditional Marks & Spencer apple & cinnamon porridge - this is now race day ritual, small cup of tea, plenty of water & more painkillers.
Mr Fudgey & I arrived around 10.30 to meet the rest of the gang and for me to pick up my race pack.
The registration was painless - really well organised & the girl I got my pack from was really friendly. The pack contained race number. timing chip, safety pins & finishers certificate. I love that we got our certificate before we ran!
I was going to take some pre race photos only to discover that I had packed my camera but hadn't put the battery back in - I also realised I'd left the lucozade drinks in the fridge - blond? who me??
At 11am the 5k warm began. 11.15 was the start of the 5k. We cheered KMac & Smurfy off - I hope they liked their banners, then we all went across the road to a cafe. Lorna, Rob & Hubby were ordering breakfast, but I wouldn't eat anything now till after the run & didn't actually drink anymore either - just in case. The smell & sight of the food made me feel really nauseous so I had to go outside - so decided to run the last 200m of the 5k with the girls. They did brilliantly & ran it in 30minutes. Once they were finished we headed back to the cafe - I used their loo! & then I went out for the half marathon warm up only to discover my garmin wouldn't switch on - I was pretty certain I'd charged it - but now I'm questioning if I did or not - I am seriously losing the plot.

12.15 and off we went. The half marathon was 8 laps round the meadows. The benefits of this are that it's quite good for pacing and for supporters it means they can see you several times. There were 2 parts of the course I didn't much like - same as the 5k last year - the cobbles - though I handled them really well this year - now getting an expert at running on them! & the slow incline up quartermile - not so bad the first few times round but after 4 laps not so much fun. On the plus side as it was laps & I had no garmin I was able to check my pace on the race clock each time round & I think I ran good consistent lap splits - still waiting for chip time - that's a small negative - still no official time.
On the positive side I was able to just switch of my mind & run as the laps were the same & there was no looking ahead to see where the course went next, where were the runners in front turning etc, but I have to admit after 4 or 5 laps it became quite tedious. Some of the marshalls on the course were brilliant - there was guy on the bottom corner before the turn back up towards town who was really great as were the group of marshalls on the next section. It was quite cold too so Thanks to them for standing out there for hours at least we were running to keep warm. Another downside of the laps was that it was inevitable that the really fast runners would lap me - I actually found this quite demoralising especially when some of them passed me about 3 or 4 times. In a bigger event where you from A to B at least the fast guys are out front & I don't see them! At Bristo square it was great to have people cheering us through each lap.
The water station again this year was plastic cups which I still haven't mastered so again ended up wearing the first cup, so then didn't have anything for another 3 laps when I managed to drink about half a cup & then didn't bother again till the end. I did take on 2 gels though as I was conscious I hadn't eaten since 8.30am
When I came through the 7th lap I saw Mum & Dad Smith who had come to run us home they cheered for me so I waved & shouted I had one more lap. Had enough left in the legs for a sprint finish though didn't quite manage to catch Chris from my gym who was just ahead of me. I came across the line in 2 hours 9 mins 56 seconds I think as I say still waiting for the official times.


Post Race
Felt really dehydrated & a bit shaky but got my banana from my bag & my running jacket on. I collected my goody bag which again this year I didn't expect and to be honest most of it is in the recycling bucket. There was a bottle of powerade, a bag for life & a load of leaflets for student discounts - no use to me :-( I think the girls who did the 5k also got either a lip balm or a pen but my bag didn't have.
either. I'd have been happy just being handed the powerade and no bag. Into the car & got my lucozade recovery drink & then home and into an ice bath. I was back at work this morning -first time I haven't taken the day off after a half marathon. I was a little tired & grumpy this morning as I'm not sleeping well again - too much in my little fudgey brain I think.

So would I do this race again? I don't think I'd do the half marathon to be honest as it was quite tedious after about 4 or 5 laps and the lunchtime start meant it took up pretty much the whole day by the time we got there & got home. I would do the 5k again though & I would recommend the event. Given the budget that the guys have they put on a really good fun event and the organisation on the day was really good - everything seemed to run really smoothly and it's a fantastic charity fund raiser too.

Thank you
Mr Fudgey took fabulous photos as always & was the best support crew a girl could have & he wore his Bliss t-shirt. I must get a picture of the support team in their Bliss tshirts for the next race report. It was fabulous to see KMac & Smurfy run & to see Rob, Lorna, Jane & Graham & all the Bannatyne's crew - it was quite a wee social outing. Thanks to Mum & Dad Smith for coming to get us - that certainly saved us a long journey home very very very much appreciated.

Well I think I've babble on long enough - I 'll say good night for now.

Take Care everyone

lots of love
Fudgey
xxxx