Rose-tinted glasses for off-road running were removed today

This morning I was up at 5.30 am, and 20 minutes I was doing my five mile off-road fasted run on the local farm fields, although I picked a new one to do as it looked like common land.
It had a downward slope to the back of the land, and naturally I picked up pace only to run into a very grassy area where it was as much stinging nettles as there were grass......ouch.

Other than that it was a decent run, and I did it with the backpack, that I had slung some clothing into to give it some weight but not too much.

The real test is to repeat it tomorrow at 5.30 am and then again on Thursday morning.


Yesterday, according to Garmin Connect (Exercise) and My Fitness Pal (Food eaten), I consumed 1751 calories out of an target 1840 but in addition the 10,000 steps meant I had burnt an additional 208 calories, so I was under my target by just under 300 calories.

Today it is currently (with no intention to eat more before bed) 2490 calories consumed  so 650 over target but because I ran 5 miles, I am allowed an extra 775 calories plus another 80 for steps walked, so I am under target by 200 calories.
It should noted that I resisted temptation to eat a fresh cream cake at work, only because a colleague reminded me of my challenge to not eat cakes, otherwise it would have been well over target......

Enough is enough, time to focus on training for the 100km race

Well today's long run (10 miles) did not happen because I went to bed too late, and just didn't have the willpower to get up but no more.

I got away with it this time because it could be classed as post marathon allowing my body time to recover but it's a flimsy excuse.

11 weeks today it will be all over so from tomorrow onwards I will be committing to the training plan both on this blog, and on my blog at work.  I will be doing this by declaring what my training plan is for the week ahead, and each day revealing what exercise I did, and equally important, what food and drink I have had.  I will also weigh myself each day just before bed.

So this week there is no running on Monday, 5 miles easy pace on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, no running on Friday, 6 miles easy on Saturday, and 15 miles on Sunday.

Sound the guns, I'm off to Salute....

So no running happened yesterday morning as I went to bed too late the night before, and to compound matters I have eaten very unhealthy since the marathon.

It is what it is, so time to get back on that healthy eating wagon.

As mentioned before today I go to London for the Wargamers event called Salute, so there will be lots of walking - it will be interesting to see how much.

As also mentioned, tomorrow I will watch as much of London Marathon as I can, after my 10 mile run off course, and as I am doing housework.

I noticed a few days ago a BBC news item about some new research that exercise is not a key factor in weight loss which caused some noise but I understanding of it is that if you want to loss weight then you need to change your eating habits, and that if you have two identical people eating the same number of calories, their weight loss would be different because of what type of calories they are eating I.e. If it is high-sugar, highly processed etc then you will lose weight than someone eating vegetables, and healthier foods, and the bigger irony is that latter person would also eat more because those foods tend to be lower in calories than highly processed foods.

Exercise is still important in terms of your general health but if you want to lose weight, change your eating behaviours as well - easier said than done but we can try.

Post Marathon - Time To Go Off-Road

With the road-based marathon out of the way, it is time to train for the off-road 100k Ultra in July, The Race To The Stones.

I will do a 5 mile off-road run around the local farmland tomorrow morning, then on Saturday I will be at a Wargamers event (Salute) so there will plenty of walking, followed by a 10 mile off-road run on Sunday.

Salute is next door to the London Marathon expo, and as Venn diagrams go, these two groups would have the smallest sliver where you would find attendees for both - one year I hope to get lucky with the draw for the London Marathon and be in that sliver.

I look forward to watching some of the Marathon on Sunday, especially to see Paula Radcliffe's farewell Marathon.

Bungay Black Dog Marathon complete - now we go off-road until July

The weather was cool/cold this morning, and with heart-rate monitor, I along with 250 competitors set off at 9am.  The "hills" were between mile 2 and mile 5 (and then 14 and 18 as it was a 2lap course.

Mile 6 to 13 (and 19 to the end) is in comparison flat but the damage is done by doing the hills.

It was tough.

By the time I had cleared the hills for the second time I realised I was in last place, as there was a slow moving van behind me.  I resolved I was not going to be last and/or scooped up due to running too slow, so I pick up my pace and half a mile later I overtake the next runner.

For the next few miles I extend the gap between me and that runner, and around mile 21 I caught sight of the next runner, so I decide to run longer than that runner, and a mile later I pass that runner.

At mile 23 I overtake another runner and put some distance between me and him thereafter.

At mile 25 I realise the second runner I overtook was catching me up, and this panic helps me to keep going despite how I am struggling to ensure I do not get caught.

April's Healthy Eating Hit Another Bump In The Road

My 10 mile final big run ahead of the Bungay Marathon became 11 miles as I had mis-judged my off the cuff route but in some ways this is a good thing as I caved into temptation and had dessert with my roast pork lunch, and a pint of beer (Black Beerd) - if you are going to fail, fail in style.......

Sticking to my 140 bpm heart rate target for the run today was not too hard, and it does feel like I am getting more miles that are at the right target pace.  The last mile was the only one where it went above target pace.

Rucksack ordered

Second to decent socks is the need for a rucksack that is practical for long distance running and therefore is lightweight and compact.

After some research, I have gone with the Salomon Trail 20 rucksack that holds 16L and importantly is not a hydration pack.  It is not water proof but as one of the many positive comments said, you can line it with a plastic bag.  It is lightweight and so when it arrives, I will have plenty of time to work out what to pack to ensure I then do not overload it with nice to haves.

Tomorrow will be a 10 mile easy run as I taper for a week - it will be the longest run under the max aerobic heart rate limit approach before the Marathon a week on Sunday.

What a slow run really means

This morning I did my first ever run where my running pace was dictated by trying not to exceed my maximum aerobic threshold, which Garmin has decided is 140 beats per minute.

It was a six mile run, and the last mile it became harder to maintain a run without having to brisk walk occasionally to keep it below that threshold - I however then put the hammer down for a short distance as I like to finish a run at a fast pace.

The concept I am seeking to follow is the Maffetone approach, which is about building a base through training slow as slow, and not what I tend to do is one pace for all runs.

Going to weigh myself tonight to see if my eight days of eating sensible/healthy has provided a weight benefit.   I will declare that yesterday I had some dark 70% chocolate, which I had no real taste enjoyment from as I effectively shovelled it down - it was only half of it so I will eat the other half very sparingly. 

The Last Big Long Run Before The Black Dog

Because the Black Dog Marathon is only two weeks away, I needed to get the longest last run out of the way, so yesterday I got up and did 18 miles using the fasted approach.

I recently listened to the Talk Ultra podcast where their training section was talking about the need to run in a fasted state, and to not fuel up until you effectively have exhausted your body reserves.  Up until this I had been pre-loading with a banana, refuelling at regular intervals which meant I was never forcing my body to learn to fat burn.

The run was surprisingly easy for the first 12 miles but gradually after that the need for run-walking became more and more, and miles 17 and 18 were really tough but I was determined to get to 18miles no matter what.

The next run will be on Monday when I aim to clock up 10 miles.

Who am I and Why Call The Blog "London Marathon Reject"?

Hello, my name is Mike, I am 43 years old, and I have been running on and off for about three years.

To date I have done three 10k races, one 10 miler, three half-marathons and two marathons.

Marathon number three is in just over two weeks time but more importantly, in July I will be doing my first Ultra Marathon, The Race To The Stones.

The blog name came about because during the 10 mile race in January, one of the race marshals kept calling me the "The London Marathon Reject" because she recognised the mid-layer top I had on, which I received when my second attempt at getting in for the London Marathon was unsuccessful, and because I had chosen to donate the race fee to their charity.

The aim of this blog initially is to be about my preparations for the Ultra Marathon, and then after that about my running in general.