Week 7/8/9 Review
Highest weekly mileage ever
Week 7: 42.5 miles; Week 8: 52 miles; Week 9: 47.8 miles (384.6 total training miles ran so far).
Another three weeks passed, another three weeks running. Week 8 was the highest weekly mileage I’ve ever ran at 52 miles and week 9 contained the longest single run I’ve done so far in this training schedule at 23 miles. I managed to achieve a new mile PB of 5:30 during that run which I did down the long hill by Otley Chevin. My previous mile PB of 5:38 was also done downhill so it shows some progression. Bear in mind that, although achieved downhill, both of these PBs were in the middle of 20+ mile runs so that’s not bad.
Now for the negatives: I don’t think I’ve made the sort of progress I should have. I look back at the running I was doing in August-October last year and I’m still not there. I’m going to let myself off the hook a little because I have been ill for 2 of the past 3 weeks with a chesty thing. I’m hoping now I’m feeling better, I’ll run better. Luckily, through all this I’ve managed to avoid injury but I’m not without pain.
I’ve had a weird tension in my left hip/groin since week 3 that I really feel during my stretches and occasionally when I extend my leg during day-to-day life. It doesn’t appear to cause me any trouble when running, though I wonder if it’s causing issues that aren’t so obvious.
The muscles around my shins and knee feel so tight, especially after long runs. They ache constantly when I move that I’m like an old man. Fortunately, my recovery routine is the best it’s ever been so I don’t hobble for as long as I used to (I never used to stretch). I’ve slacked off on the yoga since week 4 so I reckon if I start that again and keep up my protein and water intake (I’m rubbish with water) I can get rid of some of these niggles.
The next few weeks will see me continuing to push on long runs and overall mileage to the highest it will be during my training. I previously wanted to run 24 miles as my longest but part of me wants to do the full 26.2 marathon distance in a training session. I’ve only ever ran that distance once in my life during my first (and only) marathon race, 18 months ago. Considering I want to try and knock 33 minutes off that time, I reckon it would be useful to let my body know what that feels like once more.
I’m running the London Marathon 2019 with Kidney Care UK and have already raised more than £3,500. This is a cause that’s very close to my heart as my four-year-old son has chronic kidney disease.
I’m worked-up to donate my left kidney to my son later this year. This is another reason why I’ve set myself such a hard goal for this marathon as it may be the last chance I get to run at full health.
If you want to make a donation, awesome. If not, that’s cool too. I’m sharing my training to make myself accountable and to inspire others to push themselves and reach their own goals.
