by Julie

A slightly hungover 5k

When I started marathon training, Mary, my coach, said that we would have to make some sacrifices to incorporate marathon training into our lives. For some it was Friday nights out with friends or time with family. For me it was the Saturday morning lie-on. It is a testament to how much I wanted to do the marathon that I gladly sacrificed my lie-ons, getting up very early most Saturday mornings over the summer to run, firstly at 9am and as the runs became longer, at 8am.  However another sacrifice was also required: the Friday…
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by Julie

A moonlit run

A beautiful moon kept me company tonight on my 2 mile run. It lit the way. Couldn't stay in on a night like this.  The photo doesn't do it justice. 4 degrees, felt like 1, but fine once I warmed up. I really could feel last night's run in my legs and found my pace naturally much slower. I was glad I could just do 2 miles and go home. But equally glad that I went out.  
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by Julie

No more excuses

Rather than make excuses about the weather or feel depressed about the size of my belly, I decided to go for a run, raining or not. I just wanted to get out. Luckily the rain stopped as I got home and it turned into a nice clear night, 4 degrees, feeling like 2 according to my phone. However there was no wind so it was actually very nice once I got going. I ran 1.5 miles and then turned back as it was a nice, well-lit, leaf-free route. My luminous running jacket was a little…
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by Julie

My marathon regrets

While overall I am really happy with my marathon experience, I do have some regrets. Two really. This first is that I didn't focus more on core strength. I ignored my own advice on this (http://www.thecrankyblog.com/?p=616) and paid the price. I had an issue over the summer with my glutes and piriformis but I sorted it with stretching and exercises and the help of a physio. I was too complacent on the other core areas ie stomach and back and it came back to bite me on marathon day when my back started acting up.…
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