Tales from the Start Line - Marathon Day!

Owwwwww.

Ouch.

Pain. More pain. Stiff legs, sore back, sore shoulder (why my shoulders?), sore legs, sunburned head, the movement of an arthritic 95 year old with gout.

Why did I ever think running a marathon was a good idea?


Hang on - I'm starting from the end, not the best idea. Let's go back to the start - 6am Sunday morning. Actually, when WAS the start? Last year, when I decided to enter? Christmas, when I started training in earnest? How long is a piece of string?

Pre-race

For the sake of argument, let's start on Saturday.

I hate the wait before a big race. I hate the feeling of killing time. I hate the little ball of worry and nerves at the bottom of my gut. I hate the mental games, thinking through the route and wondering how I'll feel.
But I can't manipulate time (at least, not yet - wink, wink), so I endured the wait. Distracted myself with getting my gear ready - pinning my number on, calculating my water and gel needs, rechecking my transportation timings, all the mundane bits that you need to sort in advance.

I slept reasonably well on Saturday night, considering the nerves. And with a 6am alarm call, that was needed! Up on time, had my standard pre run breakfast of muesli, toast and tea and then caught the 7.16 from Staines. I was quite surprised how many marathon runners were at Staines station, and the numbers multiplied at every station en-route. This was just a taste of what was to come and Waterloo and Waterloo East though, as the place was thronged with runners heading to Greenwich - so much so I was lucky to squeeze on a train  - it was like some bizarre running version of rush hour, with technical t-shorts instead of suits and Marathon kitbags instead of laptops
(As an aside - whoever designed those bloody bags needs to try actually USING them for more than 2 minutes.....not best designed for comfortable carrying!)

Onto Greenwich then, and I joined the flowing tide through the park towards the Red start. It was 8.45am, and I now had 75 minutes or so to kill before actually running - such is the joys of a big raceday! Bag was dropped off, sanitary needs attended to (very important!) warm-up done and then it was finally into the start pen.

The RACE

Whenever I wondered what the marathon would be like, I sometimes thought about what could go wrong or make it harder.

Warm day? Possible - but manageable with advance notice.
Carrying an injury? Umm, not ideal , but again manageable with some Ibuprofen.
Garmin watch not working? Very unlikely.

How about all 3? Not something I had anticipated.......but that was what happened! The glute injury that had been nagging at me was still there from the first step. My Garmin quit before I even made that first step. And I think everyone realised the temperature was quite a bit higher than anticipated.

Sooooo - all in all, not ideal conditions for my first marathon. I'll go all philosophical for a minute though, and say that sometimes you learn more when things go wrong than when everything goes right.  Amongst other things....

• I learned that the marathon is hard. A lot harder than I had expected, even with all the training and prep done. It's just bloody hard. It shouldn't have been a surprise, but it still was.
• I learned that NOTHING prepares you fully for your first marathon - all the training, all the advice and research, none of it can truly prepare you, until you've done it yourself.
• I learned that massive race numbers inhibit your ability to run at an even pace.
• I learned that huge crowd support can be a boost as well as a distraction - it can inspire you to keep going when things are rough but can be an intrusion when you're trying to gather yourself
• I learned that changing your strategy on the day to account for conditions is usually the right thing to do, and listening to your body is always smart.
• I learned that seeing friendly faces along the way is such a boost.
• I learned that a young lady at 25.5 miles thought I had "nice legs and arse" (true story!)
• I learned that Birdcage Walk appears to go on for ever.
• I learned that you should give a man with a fridge on his back a wide berth when rounding Cutty Sark in case he nearly takes you out.
• I learned people will make a phone call ANYWHERE - even while running the London marathon!
• I learned I can last 26.2 miles - just!

For me the marathon had four stages. Stage one was up to 10 miles, where I was feeling OK. Glute was causing me discomfort, but was manageable. I stuck to my original hydration and nutrition plan despite the changed conditions. I was doing OK, though I found a lot of the early stages a bit boring and far too crowded, especially when at points round Surrey Quays, the crowds spilled onto the roads and narrowed the route - cue bottleneck!

Stage two started somewhere after Mile 10 - when I started to realise I was struggling a bit. This was concerning given how early it was, but I could feel my legs start to wobble a little and thought I was losing energy. Took my next gel early, gritted my teeth and forged on - over Tower Bridge (which was rather cool, especially when loud shouting alerted me to the presence of my friends Katie, Al and Rachel). Down the Highway, looking longingly at the runners on the other side who were in the home straight. Into through the tunnel taking me onto the Isle of Dogs, where the welcome shade was more than offset by the stink of urine as many runners used the chance of some privacy to relieve themselves!

By now I was focused on getting to Mile 16 and the Missing People cheering point, where my family and friends were waiting. Seeing them and getting an encouraging kiss from my wife was brilliant - but after I left them I had a real mental drop-off. Possibly because my next focus point (21 miles as it was the longest I'd done so far) was so far off, I had a huge dip at this point, and finally made the choice to walk for a bit.

This was a critical point in the race for me. There's nothing wrong in walking for a bit if you then start running again - and using run/walk can be a quite efficient way of keeping a decent pace, without pushing yourself too far and blowing up. I was acknowledging that I couldn't keep running all the way to the end. In theory, there's no obvious reason why this was the case - but whether I physically was struggling or not, mentally I had convinced myself that I was in trouble. What they say is true - so much of the marathon is in the head!

Having made the decision to walk for a bit, I then had to stay consistent and disciplined. It was difficult to accurately guage how long to walk for without a Garmin,. but I walked for a few minutes and then ran to the next mile point, or (more usual), water station. This enabled me to focus on shorter goals rather than thinking about how far to the finish, and meant that when I did run it was at a decent pace - my splits for this section, while not superb, weren't that slow!

I did this run/walk for about 5 miles...through Canary Wharf, Blackwall and Poplar, and back round on the Highway (people were still on the other side of this section, with the sweeper trucks slowly catching them). Then, from just after Mile 22, I started up again and didn't stop.

The final 4 miles or so were, strangely enough, the most enjoyable section to the race. I felt recharged and was running comfortably. The finish was in sight, especially when I hit the "just a parkrun to go" 37km mark. I saw my friends Katie and Al again, waving frantically from atop a wall by the Tower, and fellow runner Ian Wilson around Mile 24.
Coming through the tunnel just before Blackfriars Bridge they had Bruce Springsteen "Born to Run" belting out on speakers = perfect for a rocker like me :-). The last couple of miles were amazing - a wall of noise and cheering, people shouting your name every few steps. I felt superb, and my supporters (Clare, Tim, Mandy and my sister Sarah) at Mile 25 were amazed at the difference in demeanour from Mile 16. My Bedfont Lakes parkrun bunch were out in force too a bit further along, and I delivered my "sweaty hug" to Becky Paton as promised.

Then it was into the home straight - past Parliament Square and down Birdcage Walk. By now my thighs were starting to burn and the 200m signs seemed much further apart than 200m! I was flying past people though, and the official stats said I overtook 1160 people in the last 7.2km, which I really liked! Round the final bend and at last the finish was in sight. Hands raised high in the air I came across the finish line, and ground to a halt, some 4 hours, 42 minutes and 12 seconds after I started.

I had done it. I was a marathon runner.

Me  - just after the finish :-)

Post-Race

I had made it to the end - now I just had to negogiate the post-race madness. Chip off, medal on, post race "goody bag" received and inspected (not particurly special btw - water, Lucozade, an energy bar and a cotton T-short. I met Jess, another Missing People runner, and we recounted our races and staggered to the bag pickup together. There were people everywhere - mainly prone bodies of runners draped all over the Mall. Exhaustion and pain were writ large in most faces - it takes a while for the feeling of achievement to sink in, as the immediate reaction is just relief that it's over and you can stop running.
I slowly made my way to the post race reception hosted by my charity where I met my supporters. Getting a round of applause as I walked in from all the Missing People group was a great highlight - reminding me that not only had I run a marathon, I had also raised over £2,600 for a very worthy cause. (Which you can still donate to btw, link here )

From then on it was a classic sunday - beer in the porterhouse, steak and chips near Waterloo and then a last couple of beers at home while watching the Masters and checking the online results. The legs didn't feel too bad.....

....until I woke up the following morning, and there was pain. Everywhere. Which was where we came in :-)

Kitbag.com Product Review

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I've been asked by the nice people at Kitbag.com to review some of the running stuff from their site.

My first review is of a Nike feather fleece long sleeved top which arrived last week. As the name suggests, this is essentially aimed for winter or cold weather running, designed to keep you warm during the chilly months. The top has a dual layer - fleece on the outside to help keep heat in, and then an inner lining like a technical shirt to wick the sweat away. The sleeves are longer than normal as they are designed to extend over the hands to keep them warm, with a little hole for the thumb :-)

Because of that I was a little unsure how comfortable it would be to wear in the warmer conditions (warmer than winter I mean - I know it's not exactly splitting the stones out there!)  - but actually it was a pleasant surprise. Once I was wearing it, it didn't feel anywhere near as heavy as I thought when I first saw it, and felt more like a standard technical running top rather than a fleece. It was very comfortable - and I speak as someone who tends to over heat quite quickly.



Below is a short video of me describing the top before I first used it

There's a little pocket at the back right hand side, which is just big enough to store some keys, or a gel, or maybe a nano iPod. I took my keys in it and didn't have any issues with rubbing or chafing - always a key element when you're carrying something.

I ran again with this top on a colder day with a biting wind that cut right through - below is my video that I filmed immediately after returning :-)

Overall I thought this was a very comfortable running top - probably not best used during a summer heat wave (unless you really feel the cold!) but perfect for winter running, especially if, like most people, you do your marathon training over the winter and typically run before or after work when it's coldest!

Cheers
Rory

Expo time

Today was my day to take a trip to the London Marathon Expo  - which is basically mandatory for anyone running the Marathon, as you pick up your race number, kitbag and timing chip here. The Expo is in Excel in the Docklands, which is a bit of a pain to get to. I took a half day to go, as otherwise you'd need to go on a Saturday which is bedlam by all accounts, as all the overseas runners and those travelling from other parts of the UK register then.

The Expo itself is much bigger than I expected, and most of it is designed to try and persuade you to part with your cash for running gear. Every possible type and brand of running clothing, footwear, accessory and nutritional aid is present, and it can all get a little overwhelming - especially if you've not been before.
Personally I think it'd better suited to people who aren't running a marathon in a couple of days. There's no point buying any new gear or trying new energy gels as it's too late, and frankly if you're still looking for race-day advice at this stage then you've not done your prep right! I managed to hold back from spending my cash, though I allowed myself one commemorative item than I'll only wear once I've fnished on Sunday :-)

The Expo is a good place to do some celebrity spotting (said hello to Ronnie O'Sullivan) and to meet some running buddies. I met up with a couple of my Bedfont Lakes parkrun core team (who aren't running the marathon but were there to browse and buy!) and had a confidence boosting chat with my coach Karen.

I also spent a fun hour with parkrun royalty - Danny Norman, Tom Williams, Jo and Paul Sinton Hewitt - and was "inside the ropes" for their Virtual London Marathon Mile relay race against several other teams. This ended with me leaving to catch my train - and when I sat on the train I realised I had taken the wrong backpack :-(

I just escaped from the train and hared back to the Excel before
a) they destroyed my bag in a controlled explosion
b) someone wandered off with my bag ( complete with all my race stuff!)
c) the owner of the bag I had left

Luckily none of those happened - turned out I had accidentally lifted Martin Yelling's bag. Martin is one of the more well known personalities in running, married to Olympian Liz Yelling, co-host of the Marathon Talk podcast etc, so this wasn't exactly the best way to be introduced to him! The look of relief when I sheepishly returned his laptop and media passes was a sight!

So - that's the last big piece of prep. Now it's all about resting and conserving energy before Sunday morning. 60 hours until racetime - it's nearly here!

Here comes the FEAR.......

One thing I've learned as I trained for my first marathon is that there's a little voice in the back of your head that never goes away. A little ball of unease in the gut that lingers. A small black cloud that sits on your shoulder and is always there, even though you don't always notice it.

In the words of Ian Brown - "You've got the FEAR"

The fear of injury.

Of course, as a 5k, 10k or half marathon runner, you worry about getting injured, but it's not quite the same. There's not the same emotional involvement in the event, there's often an alternate event that can be switched to if necessary.


But it's different with the marathon. The fear is much greater. And, the closer you get to the day, the fear grows exponentially, as the time left to recover from an injury shrinks  - so the potential impact of any injury also increases.


I thought I was immune.

"I don't get injured" , I said to myself. I've only had 2 injuries in the 5 years since I started running seriously - both of them hamstring strains caused by over sprinting, and that wasn't likely to be a risk during marathon training!
So I was a little cocky, and more so as the training went on and I didn't really pick up and twinges, knocks and strains.

I was INVICIBLE......

.......except I wasn't! Of course I wasn't, and when I hit taper I discovered that the little residual twinge in my glute muscle.from the 21 mile run that I had dismissed was actually an injury.  A painful one, that hampered my running and didn't go away


Cue panic. Cue the FEAR. Cue little men running around in my head shouting "you've messed it up, you'll miss the marathon, you'll let everyone down, you've wasted all that training, you fool!".


After a few days of ignoring it, convincing myself it would get better on it's own, persuading myself the pain was manageable, I finally saw sense. Spoke to Karen, booked an appointment, saw a physio.

His verdict?
"Some stiffness in the glute, a couple of sessions and some rest and stretching and you'll be fine"

Relief washed over me like a flood. The FEAR was banished...for now :-)


Apparently, this is not uncommon according to Karen. The mind and body play strange tricks on you in taper phase especially - you feel like you're losing your fitness, losing your shape, and every twinge is a full blow crisis!
It's normal, and it's natural, and it's mainly in the mind
.

Proving, once again, that the physical side of marathon training is only half the battle.

The rest of it is won inside your head :-)

Kitbag reviews

Apparently I have now made it as a proper running blogger  - the nice people at Kitbag have been in touch and asked if I would review some of the running kit from their site over the next few weeks on the blog!

I have agreed   - so expect to see some product reviews on here over the next few weeks :-)