I’m very nearly 19 weeks into my 20-week marathon training plan. The first half went perfectly. The second half has not. I have pulled it back in the last three or four weeks, but I do wish I had been able to do a few more long runs than I did. I also wish I did not now have the additional worry of trying not to get caught by the fire-breathing demon that is the sweeper bus (every slow runner’s mortal enemy).
I have my strategy ready (it feels like it changes day by day and it may well do so again by race day, but it does make me feel better when I think about it).
I’ve been having a lot of stomach issues in recent weeks (which have been affecting my longer runs) so I’ve started drinking two extra pints of water a day this week. I already feel considerably better for it.
I’m so ready for these nerves to be gone. I hope to glean some amount of enjoyment from the race (it is meant to be fun after all!) but I can’t deny I will be really glad when it’s over and I can start gathering all the lessons I’ve learnt for the next one. (Spring 2023. I’m not doing back to back seasonal marathons again!)
I’m volunteering at parkrun this weekend. No more running it until after the marathon – I’m too ‘maranoid’ at the moment to risk doing any damage to myself with sprint finishes etc.!