Post-marathon 'recovery'

That's it. Nearly 4 weeks has passed since the event that consumed most of my tiny brain since October 2013. London Marathon 2014 has been and gone and real life has resumed.

My super-short London marathon
race recap: thumbs up!

After jotting down the 10 lessons that I learned on marathon day I was planning to write a race report. But then I sat down and thought about what I had to say different from the 35,999 other people who ran the London Marathon. And, to be honest, there wasn't much so I didn't want to bore you all! It was a great day: amazing atmosphere, busy course at points, overwhelming and emotional, and I highly recommend it for the experience alone. 

The London Marathon is organised to function like a well-oiled machine. Unlike me, who functioned like an extremely rusty old machine for the last 10K of the marathon, but I'm putting that down to the fact that: a) I spent the last two weeks of taper in the US consuming copious amount of food and b) it was a marathon - the wheels are supposed to come off around mile 20 otherwise you're doing it wrong (there is no evidence for this, just my own marathoning experiment with an n = 1. Statistically the most poorly powered study, you'll find. But this is my blog, so my 'evidence' it is!)

Other than that, yeah. Not much else to say. I did it and I'm unbelievably proud of myself and extremely grateful for all who donated to my last-minute charity fundraising. You guys rock.

So, what now? 

Well, after having to walk backwards down stairs for a while, and eventually giving in to a sports massage which hurt like hell (in the kinda bad-but-good way) to see me right, I laced the trainers back up and took it easy... Ha! Are you joking? I'm not so good at moderation - no, no. Instead laced up the trainers and headed off last weekend with the Team Naturally Run crew, plus special guest 'the boy', to run the Geneva half marathon. Three weeks after a full marathon. As you do.

This race was booked yonks ago before I truly came to understand what effects the marathon has on your body, but it was the boy's first half marathon attempt so I said I'd be happy to take it a little easier and pace him round in about 2h10.

Running through the Geneva countryside was fantastic (if a little chilly), and there was even a pipe band playing - it seems there are no bounds to the reach of the SNP to get YES votes for the independence referendum:

2h10 was what I told the boy we were aiming for, but I had the glorious watch of pace-telling magic (AKA a TomTom), which meant I was in charge and decided that little white lies about pace were OK in this situation. We settled in to a nice and easy '10min/mile' (read 9.40min/mile) pace for the first 10K. The boy was concerned about the level of people overtaking us but I told him not to worry, to trust the pace and wait and see. 

Smile if you know the pace
we're ACTUALLY doing!

I decided we should kick it up a gear a bit to '9.45min/mile' (9.20min/mile) pace until the final 5k arrived, which is my favourite point of a well-paced half: when you get to overtake everyone who elbowed past at break-neck speed at the 3 mile point. Now ye shall feel my elbows people! Mwahaha! 

Crazed half-marathon 'baddie laugh' over, and at 2h03 mins after crossing the start line we held hands and crossed the finish line together (all together now: ahhhhhh!). Not bad for a boy who hasn't run more than 6 miles in the past few months! Celebration was some weird cereal-y stuff (hmm) and some chocolate marble cake (yes!), plus a hug with what we thought was a giant peanut, but turned out to be a tupperware water bottle...

It's a giant peanut, right?! The orange
thing, I mean - the yellow thing is the boy...

All in - a great race and I discovered that a weekend race-cation is not a bad way to 'recover' from a marathon. Well, that is if you don't count the fact that I now have a stinking cold. But I've decided that these events are NOT related to my weekend running. Again, my blog: my evidence. Albeit that in this case there is none.

So yes, onwards and upwards post-marathon. Despite being worried I'd have nothing to talk about once the marathon was over, I seem to have suitably filled my sporting calendar with enough events to keep me ticking over. Next, it's just that small matter of the triathlon in that I'm signed up for. In THREE WEEKS TIME!! What on earth possessed me to do that?!

Katy | City Girl Fit

10 lessons I learned on marathon day

While I ponder my full race report - brace yourselves for that one, it could be epic - let me highlight the top 10 things I learned on marathon day: 

1. Be prepared 

Sunglasses = happiness

Given my intense need to have a full and comprehensive understanding of how I will get anywhere, travel was never going to be a personal problem; however, it amazed me the number of people asking on twitter etc. about how to get to the start site THE NIGHT BEFORE! If you're laid back enough to just rock up to a marathon start line 'somehow' making it on time and go with no nerves then I salute you. In fact, I defy that you even exist! In my opinion, if there is anything that you can do to reduce the pre-marathon nerves and worries then do it - including knowing how the hell you're getting there at least 24h before the start. 

My preparation for travel is not reflected in my preparation of kit, however, and realised that I forgot my sunglasses while on the train to the start. It was scheduled to be a scorcher too. Uhoh. Fortunately, having runner friends who will be on the sidelines comes in useful and a quick tweet to Charlie and logistical planning for a meet-up en route meant having glasses from the 6 mile point. Bonus lesson: if you can't be prepared, then have lovely friends who can be prepared for you. 

 2. Arriving early = no toilet queues. 
OK, so perhaps my '2 hours before the start' arrival was a little eager. Fortunately it was a lovely morning and I could sit on the grass in the sun, watching the weird an wonderful marathon peeople go by, while sipping my Nuun and eating a crunchy peanut butter Clif bar. But seriously - there was not a portaloo queue in sight. I went three times in the space of an hour just because I could! After 9am (1 hour before start), however, the giant snake loo-queues began to emerge. I'll admit it - I was smug. And, importantly, - but perhaps oversharingly - empty. 

3. Marathon supporters are awesome 
Yes, AWESOME. Having my name on my vest, I felt that everyone was there cheering for lil' ol' me. "You can do it, Katy!", "Great running, Katy!", "You're amazing, Katy!" - now, I'm normally fairly rubbish at taking compliments, but on this occassion I lapped it up and I have to say, I felt pretty awesome too (well, for the first half at least, but that's for another time...). I also had a huge grin on my face after spending the first 10 miles high-fiving every child who thrust their tiny hand my way and even some who didn't... 

After one runner robbed me of a child high-five I demanded that he provide me with said high five personally, despite the fact he was carrying a water bottle and four gels. It was messy, required some reorganisation, and almost resulted in a face-first fall, but I got my high five dammit! Yeah!

 4. Balloons are the answer 
Having friends and family in the crowd is great and I'd have been devastated to miss them, so set about planning how to spot them in the throngs of supporters. Answer: a massive yellow balloon, otherwise known as 'Bob'. A quick check of my phone told me my family and the boy were around the 12 mile marker; all I needed to do was keep my eyes above the crowd and BINGO! - there was Bob. Further down the line, another text: Mile 23. Hey presto: there was Bob. I doubt I would've seen them if it hadn't been for the genius of Bob (or myself, for having the idea of Bob, but we'll give him the credit this time...)



5. It's not just a training run 
It had been suggested to think of the marathon as 'just another training run'. I get why that can help, and that's what I tried to think. The reality was, however, that this was not another training run: this was it - everything I'd been working towards since October. During training I never experienced the highs and lows like I did in the marathon - I don't think anything can prepare you for that if it's your first time. It's also further than my longest training run of 20 miles, and while 6 miles doesn't seem that much further, trust me: it is. I hurt a lot in the last 10k and seriously doubted if I could keep going at points. As my mum said afterwards 'I think that's how you're supposed to feel: it's a marathon, not a walk in the park!' So I guess now, in hindsight, she's right. If it didn't feel that hard it wouldn't be a marathon, it'd be just another training run. 

6. Finishing is a mixed emotion 
First: thank christ that's over. Second: exhaustion. Third: where's my medal? Fourth: overwhelming emotion and tears. Fifth: exhaustion. Sixth: exhaustion. Seventh: MEDAL PLEASE! And water. Lots of water please... 

In my mind, this moment would play out in slow motion - the Union Jack flags billowing in the wind down the Mall, the cheers a dull roar in the background, the finish-line colours bright in the sunlight and me galloping over the line to Chariots of Fire. In reality, I was faint for the last 2 miles and felt very dizzy up the finishing straight, struggling to focus on where I was and could only think of reaching that big red sign so I could stop. It wasn't until I went across the finish, gathered myself, got my medal and turned to look back down the Mall that the emotion overcame me - I'd just run the London marathon! Then I stumbled onwards and everything was a blur. But I had my medal, so all was ok with the world again. 

7. Running in warm weather makes you crusty 
Apparently it's the dried out salt from your sweat or something. 4.5 hours of sweat = crusty like a piece of crispy seaweed. Lovely. Bring wipes. 

8. Cold, hard concrete is my friend 
Hobbling up stairs and down a ramp to get to the changing area (I mean seriously?! Event organisers take note for next year: this was just plain cruel!) I was confronted with an empty, shaded underground parking lot with a curtain up. Never before have I been so happy to be cool! I lay face down on the concrete floor, ecstatic at the cold against my skin, and stayed there until another woman arrived and asked if she needed to call an ambulance.

9. A pint will never taste so good. 
Nor will a G&T, a champagne cocktail, a glass of red, or a whisky. I do not, however, advise having all of these things, one after another, directly after a marathon - yes, that is from experience. 

10. Never say never 
Never again is exactly what went through my mind at mile 23. I was at the bottom of the emotion rollercoaster and declared that I will never put myself through this again! But. Well. See. The thing is... Now that it's done, and now that I know what to expect, maybe the next one won't be just quite as bad?! Only one way to find out... Athens Marathon in November it is then!

What did you learn on marathon day?

Katy | City Girl Fit

To run or to give up: fighting through sadness for happy running

So, it's been a while. Sorry about that - a few things have happened and I just didn't feel like writing. Or running for that matter. Sadness does that to you, I think; either you just don't want to function any more or you're someone who goes in to overdrive to cope. I'm the former, evidently.

Training had been going relatively well. I had 17 miles on my plan the weekend of valentine's day, and I'd planned to do 6 miles alone, pick up my friends Georgia to run 9 miles together, then run the final 2 miles home. It was a good run - all smiles at 12 miles form me, 6 miles for Georgia.


When I dropped Georgia off my phone rang - it was my mum. With a heavy heart she had to tell me that my Grandpa had passed away suddenly. I was stunned, devastated, and on the verge of a meltdown 2 miles from home. I needed to be home. I hung up and just ran.

For the best part of the next two weeks I didn't run again - I just couldn't find it in my to lace up the trainers and go. I was worried that I wouldn't want to run again, but slowly I started to come round and set myself a new purpose to run: for Gramps.

Image courtesy of Charlie Brown

Thankfully, I have a bunch of super-amazing running girls who can be relied on to be ready to run together and provide much needed moral support. Leah and Melissa had 18 miles on their plan and decided to do it on a Thursday night after work. A bit nuts, but the lure of company versus a lonesome weekend run was too much and off we went. 18 mid-week miles, starting running around 7pm and finishing about 10.20pm - I have to admit, we (at least I!) felt a bit like heroes when we were done. A major confidence boost.

Twickenham delicacy.
And a hot dog.

I was signed up for Surrey Half Marathon the following weekend but the boy was a bit jammy and won us a pair of tickets for England vs Wales at Twickenham. Getting my legs out versus watching a bunch of fit men getting their legs out - no contest really! So I headed out for a pre-rugby 8 sub-4h marathon miles on Sunday morning instead. Felt good :)

The following week was the last big push before the marathon - 20 miles. Along with Becs, Hilary and Alexa, I'd signed up for the Surrey Spitfire 20 miler. I figured that I was much more likely to actually do 20 miles if there was a medal at the end, and it would give me good experience of actually racing that distance versus training for the distance. If I could just get through this race, I was pretty confident I could run the marathon.

Well, I got through it! Not only that, but I felt pretty strong despite the heat and the hills (oh, the hills!) and even managed a sprint/dance-down-the-finishing-straight finish. Target: 3h20. Result: 3h09. Sweeeeet!! Surrey Spitfire was a great race, helped immensley I'm sure by the sunshine, beautiful countryside, singing birds and support of fellow running friends. I was elated and, even better, full of confidence for the marathon in 4 weeks time. Just another 10k on top of that and I'm home.

Don't get me wrong - while I felt strong and was elated to be finished those 20 miles hurt. It hurt when I had to run up those hills, it hurt at 18 miles when I thought my legs were going to fall off, it hurt when I sat down and tried to stand up again, it hurt when I got out of the car after driving home, and it hurt for 2 days after. A marathon will not be easy, but I feel confident that I can stand the pain and get myself round those 26.2 miles. Will I put myself through it again? Well, that's another question all together...

Surrey Spitfire complete with RAF jet. As you do...
And no, we did not plan the co-ordinated outfits, honest!

As I've written about before, I'm running in memory of my friend Sarg. Now - and I hope Sarg doesn't mind sharing - I'd like to add another on to that and run for Gramps too. 26.2 miles: for Sarg and for Gramps. If you'd like to donate to support two charities in memory of these awesome gents then you can do here:
http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-web/fundraiser/showFundraiserProfilePage.action?userUrl=KatyMalpass

Thanks for your support. Next stop - marathon! Well, actually next stop is Vegas for a vacation, but let's not talk about how that might throw a massive spanner in the marathon success plan...

Katy | City Girl Fit

Training update: head vs heart

I didn't feel like running this week. Despite my heart still being fully committed to marathon training my head told my body that this week was rest-and-be-thankful week.

I'd already cut down the number I runs I planned from 4 to 3 per week - scheduling a short speed session, a medium pace session and a weekend long run - but through the week I just didn't feel it. So I did yoga instead! Ahhh yoga - you make it all ok. 

That said, I had 15 miles on my schedule for the long run and, having ditched my long run last week in favour of a self-planned mini duathlon, I knew I couldn't bail again this week. 15 miles is uncharted territory for me, my longest run being 13.1 at Run to the Beat last September. I was nervous to say the least.

Fortunately, I had planned a trip to visit my good friend Sheila in Manchester for this weekend. Sheila has completed both London and Edinburgh marathons in sub 4 hours - this was the girl to get me through 15 miles!

Runners of Manchester:
I salute you!

A quick check of the weather forecast on Saturday morning suggested that we get out about 9.30 in order to avoid the rain wind and hail that was - as I found out later - presently battering London and the TNR girls on their 15 mile journey and was now Manchester bound. So we quickly got up, dressed and out the door.

The wind. Oh my the wind!! Bitterly cold and at some points strong enough to lean in to and say upright! My mantra in difficult conditions (wind, hail, stitches, skinned knees & hangovers - ideally not all at once) is that I might well experience these things on marathon day (well, hopefully not the hangover...) so I need to man up & plough through regardless. So that's just what we did! And can I just say - the runners of Manchester were super friendly, smiley and lovely. It made the run all the more enjoyable :)

My knees began to groan about mile 11 and by mile 13 my hips were tight and achey, but we made it. 15 miles: DONE! Reward was some retail therapy in Manchester with three bottles of Pinot Grigio & gluten-free pizza for dinner at Dough - delicious!

I'm super chuffed to have run my furthest distance to date, and not to have suffered from aches and pains too badly despite my lack of during-week training. I hope to get in some run sessions this week but have two spin sessions booked so we'll see! Regardless, I have 17 miles on my plan that I will have to see through next weekend. 

Looks like the territory is uncharted from here on out. Hoist the sail m'hartys - all aboard! We're off on an adventure...

Katy | City Girl Fit

Training update: giving longs run a rest

As I mentioned in my post earlier this week, as part of marathon training I've just been running and running and - yep, you guessed it - running. This week, I decided that my long run would be left in the bank so that I could do something other than running with my weekend. 

Run commute success!

But I'm not about to turn my back on the mileage, oh no! After a short but speedy 3 mile session on Tuesday evening, I set the alarm bright and early on Thursday to do my first run commute: a 1.7 mile leg to the train station, 10 mins on the train, then 7.5 miles from the station to work = 9.3 miles total. 

Despite some 'puddles' to navigate and an incident with a mini swamp in which my shoe was lucky to make it out alive, I made it there in one piece! It was lovely to watch the colour of the sky change as the sun came up, and enjoy the peace and quiet of woodland paths versus the hustle and bustle of the train. I'll be doing that one again!

After a prosecco-filled Friday night I knew that a saturday run would be off the cards, so instead the boy and I decided to head out on a London adventure. I bought him a book called 'London's Hidden Walks' last year, and we had yet to go on one - what better excuse than a hangover and need to blow the cobwebs away?

Thames path out east - a quiet spot!

At new year we put together a bucket list of things we wanted to do in London, and on there was the Emirates Air Line cable car. So we picked the east Rotherhithe walk, with the plan to extend this along to the o2. It turned out to be a beautiful day, and a solid 7 miles of walking along a part of the Thames path that I'd never seen before - MUCH quieter than along by London Bridge/Waterloo. As in not a soul to be seen for miles!

At the end of our walk we boarded the cable car. I don't quite know how I managed to forget this, but I'm really scared of heights! When we hit the peak of the cable car ride it was very windy - needless to say I was not a happy bunny. I managed to get over this long enough to take a picture. Sorry it's a bit blurry. That's what shaking uncontrollably does to you....

Given that my Saturday was dedicated to walking off my hangover, Sunday should have been my long run day. However, I'd already booked on to one of the free classes offered up by BOOM cycle at their new site in Holborn. I decided instead to run there, do the 1h15 class, see how I feel and maybe run back. This surely is as good as doing a long run, right?!

I set off from home at 9.30am up towards Vauxhall, along the river, up to holborn - 5.6 miles in the glorious sunshine. It's when I run around these areas of London that I feel like a tourist again. It's easy to forget what is right there on our doorstep. There's no denying - London is a beautiful city.

Descending the stairs on Proctor street in to BOOM, it's clear that they've kept the same minimalist-cool vibes from the other site at Shoreditch. Friendly receptionists welcomed me in and I plonked my running backpack in the free to use lockers (it's the little things that count - free lockers make my day!).

I'd signed up for a 75 minute class with Mark Clarke - one of my favourite instructors at BOOM. He has such a calm nature and really gives you a good insight and instruction as to how hard you should be working at each point. Very useful to stop you going out to hard and dying half way through!! My runner friend Kiera had also signed up for this class - always nice to see a friendly face and catch up on training schedules :)


It was a tough class, some heavy, loooong hills and speed work with heavy resistance. But - as I always feel after spin at BOOM - it was awesome! Shared a 'how sweaty am I?' glance with Keira at the end. Answer: VERY! Ignoring the pleas from my legs, I thought a short trot down to Stockwell station would be just the ticket. A quick call to the boy and found out he was making us some soup for lunch - perfect! Should be ready when I get home... 

2.5 miles in to my run home I realise that weird sensation I'd been feeling was not the beginnings of a stroke but my phone frantically buzzing in my backpack. 5 missed calls from the boy. Uhoh. 1 picture message from the boy. If you're squeamish, look away now:

Soup-making is clearly a dangerous sport! I had to cut my run short and hop on the tube via tescos to pick up TCP and bandages. Nevertheless, as I realised on my tube ride home, I'd completed a mini duathlon today. Not too shabby!

Back to long running next weekend, but was pleased of the break this week. How has your training been this week? Are the long runs getting to you too??

Katy | City Girl Fit

Training update: when the going gets tough...

The week in stats

no. of runs: 4
no. of yoga classes: 1
no. of spin classes taken after running a half marathon: 1 (just about!)

11 weeks to go until 'the big one' and it's been a tumultuous week. A busy one at work, including a few nights away with the inevitable 'client socialising' time - cue too much wine and rich, indulgent food - plus early mornings and late nights. 

Fitting in my training hasn't been easy, and I've been left a bit drained come Sunday evening. Yup, marathon training is really hitting home. It's not easy, but then nothing that's worth doing ever is, right?

My first run was a 1.5 mile speed session en route to meet the boy at the train station - figured I might as well make the most of any spare time I have and, rather than walk over to the station, did a 5min warm up, 5x200m sprints at full pace plus 1.5 min recovery in between. Short and sweet, but productive!

A dark, dark morning in Weybridge

Run number two was an early morning effort while away with our clients. A 6am start and my plan was to head down to the Thames path in Weybridge, but upon arriving there I realised just how dark it is out of the city! 

No Thames path for me, and as the pavements in Weybridge just end abruptly with nowhere else to go, my planned 4-5 miles was cut short to 3 miles. Ah well! 

Thursday night brought an Urban Yoga retreat with the crew from AdventureYogi. I'm keen to head on a weekend yoga retreat in the UK and my research brought me across the Adventure Yogi retreats. They run city-based evening mini-retreats to give you a taste of what their longer retreats involve, and I'd recruited my twitter friends Steph and Felicity to come along too.

Vegan feast

We had a lovely flow yoga class with Sally from Stretching in the City - exactly what I needed after two long days of work! - followed by some lovely vegan food by Tatu. I have to admit, I've always shied away from vegan as I'm a carnivorous being , but our 3-course feast was lovely - lots of food for thought!

A gloomy Tower Hill

Thoroughly stretched and refuelled, I took Friday as a rest day in preparation for my third run, the long run, on Saturday morning with the Team Naturally Run girls, headed up by Leah. Long runs means an early start, and Saturday was no exception. I was up at 6.45 to get my porridge in my belly before heading out to meet the girls at Tower Hill.


Together, Leah, Lissy, Charlie W, Charlie B, Lucy and I set off heading west along the Thames. We met  Sian at Embankment who joined us for a few miles, while the rest of us continued on towards our ultimate destination: our brunch spot at Outsider Tart in Chiswick.

Team Naturally Run!

After 13.1 miles I've never been happier to walk in to a brunch spot! Treated myself to a cranberry and ginger beer juice, earl grey and chilli chicken scramble. Amazing!

Not content with running half a marathon, Charlie and I joined Zoe in attending the NTC week spinning class at Equinox gym in Kensington - more about that later in the week. Needless to say, our legs were pretty tired, and I was happy to get home, have a shower and a well-deserved nap!!

Post-run brunch!

Run number 4: the reluctant run. I've been expert at recruiting friends in to various events that I'm taking part in, and the up-coming Surrey Half marathon is no exception. The boy has signed up (well, I signed him up...) as have two of my friends and colleagues Anto and Georgia. None of them has run this distance before, so when they organised a 6 miler on Sunday I felt obliged to take part as well! 

Despite tired legs, I managed to keep up with them and get round in the horrible weather. That'll teach me for dragging others in to my running craziness!! 

Hope you've had a good week of training. With the distances starting to mount it's tough to fit everything in, and the doubts inevitably start to creep in: will I really manage 26.2 miles??! We've still got time - we can do this!

Thanks to Stephanie and Charlie for some of the pictures used here - I'm still rubbish at taking pics while running/yogi-ing. Must take some lessons from these two blogger-superstar ladies!

Katy | City Girl Fit

Training update - 12 weeks to go!

The week in stats:

No. runs: 4

No. double-run days: 1

No. of face-plants on the pavement: 1

Week 2 of Jantastic and I hit my goal of 4 runs/week again. A total of 26 miles run - almost a marathon in a week :)

My Tuesday morning run was relocated from Clapham to Cardiff courtesy of a work trip. I'd phoned ahead to the hotel to check they had a gym and when it opened in the morning - yes, I am THAT person now. When did that happen? Probably about week 2 of marathon training...

I've not run on a treadmill for ages as for me it just doesn't compare to hitting the road with the wind in your hair. I'm not even a fair weather runner anymore - I love running outdoors so much that not even torrential ran, snow, wind or hail will put me off! I only had a 3 miler on the schedule, so 30 mins on the dreadmill I could just about cope with.

Err... Where is everyone??

I got down for the gym opening at 6.30, figuring it might be busy (it's one of those hotel gyms that's open for public memberships). Well, I've never seen an emptier gym in January! 

I started out on an incline of 1.5 and at a slowish pace (6.30min/mile), increasing the pace every 4mins or so until I was flat out sprinting for the final 2.5mins. And, surprisingly, it was pretty fun! Mixing up the pace and keeping it a short session seems to be the key to enjoyable treadmill running - lesson learned!

Run 2 this week was - wait for it - on the same day! Now, I know some runners are a big fan of double-run day, but this was my first. It wasn't really of my choosing: the boy guilted me in to joining him for 3.5 miles with his puppy dog eyes and complaints of abandonment from the night before! 2 runs down, and it was only Tuesday. I was on a roll... 

Until Wednesday. When tired, tired legs got the better of me and so I decided to give track a miss. I've been known to take on too much and push my body too far only to crash and burn. So, listening to my body, I decided a Wednesday rest day was in order as my legs let out a collective sigh of relief.

Pretty Battersea Bridge

The gods of weather and running seemed intent on punishing me for missing track as the rain was battering down on Thursday evening and the wind was howling. Somehow I managed to find a window of 60 minutes where the rain eased off to fit in my run: a tempo 6 miles. 

The joys of running in bad weather is the quietness of the roads and paths. Battersea bridge stood defiant in the stormy conditions - the view always makes an evening run through Battersea park worthwhile.

My fourth and final run was supposed to be on Saturday but - as I'm sure seasoned runners will know - you have to be ready to change your plans and be flexible with your training: you never know what's around the corner... So, owing to various reasons, Sunday run day it was, which turned out to be a blessing in disguise given that the sun was high in the sky, a slight chill in the air: perfect running conditions. 

There is no reason, therefore, why this should be the day that I manage to trip over myself and face-plant in the streets of Battersea at 5 miles! Fortunately I got my hands out quick and escaped with a skint knee and red face. I had the boy with me for the first 5.5 miles and, theoretically, it should be better to have someone there to comfort you when you fall. Theroetically...

As I lay flat out on the pavement I looked up to find the boy standing with a confused look on his face. "What was that?" he asked. No 'are you ok?'. No 'oh my god, let me carry you home my dearest princess!'. "What was that? What was THAT? That was me making an arse of myself. Help me up?" I replied. What's the saying? It's not the falling that counts, it's the getting back up. So, I got up and carried on. 13.1 miles in total at ideal marathon pace with a war wound of honour to show for it. That'll do pig. That'll do.

So that was that. 12 weeks until London marathon: eeeek!! Weekend long runs are going to be hitting the 2h30 mark soon. Scary biscuits!! 

How has your week in training been? Are you a fan of the double run day?? Or how else are you fitting in the runs that you need to reach your running goals?

Katy | City Girl Fit

Marathon Training: January week 1

January 6th-12th 2014 marathon training stats:-

No. of runs: 4 (23.2 miles total)
No. of new things tried: 3 (Park Run, Kalenji top, Natural Hero Hot Muscle Rub)
No of times told to go to bed because I'm a grumpy little sh*t: 1 

First week of January means first full week back at work after 2 weeks of long lies and too many pies! It also meant return to full time, less-of-the-excuses marathon training. It was always going to be a toughie! Sure enough, the days seemed long and the legs felt tired, but fortunately I not only have the impending marathon to train for, I'd also signed up to Jantastic as part of Adidas Team Boost with a goal of 4 runs per week. 

The competitive nature in meant I wasn't going to go down without a fight, and stubborn-ness got me through my four runs of the week - three TomTom-tracked runs plus a track session on Wednesday night.

Monday: rest (managing to get through first day back at work was achievement enough!)
Tuesday: 3 miles early morning run 
Wednesday: Back to track - Yasso 800's (6 x 800m at 8min/mile pace with 2min rest)
Thursday: slow 6 miles with the returning-from-injury bf
Friday: rest
Saturday: 11.4 miles total...

Saturday was a a good day for running. My running friend Steph has been keen to rope us all in to try a Park Run (they should give this girl a medal for her marketing and recruitment), so I finally agreed to head to Fulham Palace for my first ever one. I had 11 miles in the schedule, so decided to run the 4 miles from Clapham to the race, complete the 3 mile race and then run 4 miles home = 11 miles. perfect!

Saturday brought a glorious chilly, sunny winter morning, with a beautiful sunrise as I headed out along the Thames towards Putney. Arriving at Putney Bridge I met up with Steph, Lissy and Charlie and we headed over to the park at Fulham Palace.

I had always been slightly nervous about Park Run, convinced it would be full of super-speedy folk, but as we arrived it was clear that the park Run crowd is a mixed bag: all sizes, shapes and ages; from some men and women that would be pushing my grandparents age to those not yet able to walk, in buggies! After a brief run-down of the rules and course form the friendly course director we moved to the start line and, with little fanfare, we were off!! 

Having already run 4 miles and with the marathon firmly in my sights I wasn't looking for a PB, just a reasonable pace to add to my long run. Happily, Charlie and Lissy were also happy to adopt this approach and we trotted round together, coming in at 27.45. 

It was only half way round that I realised I had never run a timed 5K race - this can only mean a new PB! And something to target on my next Park Run - yes, I will be back. Plans are already afoot to try out some other Park Run sites around London and, if Fulham Palace is anything to go by, I can't wait for the next one.

To top off a lovely morning of running, we popped in to the cafe at Fulham Palace for some much needed warmth and hot drinks. Showing no end to her talents, Steph had baked us some post-run reward Banana Cake - just the ticket to fuel me for the 4 mile run home!

I also tried out some new run goodies this week. First, the new Kalenji run hoodie that I bought when back home for Christmas from the sport superstore Decathlon. It was perfect for running in the cold mornings we've been having. And it has the thumb hole thingy that I love for that not-quite-cold-enough-for-gloves weather, if you know what I mean?!

Need a hero? A hot one? Here you go!

I also FINALLY got round to purchasing some Natural Hero Hot Ginger Muscle Rub, which I'd been eyeing up for ages after seeing so many great reviews on twitter. 

I massaged some of the cream in to my sore hamstrings after this week's track session, thinking 'it smells lovely but it's not that hot...' About 20 mins later my hamstrings were basking in a lovely warming sensation - it felt brilliant! You can have a look at Natural Hero's products here. The products are also 98% natural products, which is pretty good for something that works so well!


All in, I'm pretty pleased I made it through this week given that I was coming back from post-Christmas holiday excess. I'm not sure the boy as too impressed though, as I was sent to bed at 10pm on Friday night for being too grumpy - a combination of tired legs, a sore head and a busy work week. I reckon he did me a favour though as I really enjoyed Saturday's run AND managed to keep going through to cocktails in the evening with a smile on my face, grump free. RESULT! Thing are definitely on the up. Bring on next week...

How was your training this week? Are you a Park Run regular? I would love to try out other Park Run sites throughout the year, so I'd love to hear where you run and why it's a great course.

Katy | City Girl Fit

Hello 2014!

Happy Days: New Year's Day walking with the family at
Burghead beach, Scotland

New Year is always a time for taking stock of the year gone by and looking ahead to the year to come; setting goals, making plans, new years resolutions. Well, I pre-empted the new year's resolutions a little this time, beginning my 'reboot' back in August 2013. 

That's when I decided to get back in to fitness, set myself some goals and start really living my life to it's fullest. It's also when I started this blog, as a means of accountability and, I hoped, a place for others on a similar journey to come and see, share and enjoy.

Just 5 months on and a lot has changed! Reading back over my previous blog posts I realise how far I've come, how many new things I've tried, what new feats I've achieved (my first half marathon a definite highlight!) and how many new friends I've made through blogging, running and tweeting. Thanks to the things that the latter half of 2013 brought I'm heading in to 2014 - and towards the big 3-0! - with a smile on my face, a strong mind, a warm heart and looking forward to plenty of new challenges ahead.

Runners, bloggers & friends connected
through a love of post-run cake!

New friends should always have great jazz hands...

The biggest challenge ahead, without a doubt, is running my first full marathon: London, April 13th 2014. Training began at the start of December and, in spite of a minor knee-pain wobble, has been going well. Over the next 3 months I'll be posting a weekly training update as I count down to the big one. This will also tie in with my record of runs for the Jantastic running challenge, which kicks off tomorrow - so if you want to join in get signed up quick!

One of the aims I set in August 2013 was to do a triathlon before I hit 30. My swimming and cycling has definitely taken a bit of a back seat to marathon training, but I've bitten the bullet and signed up for a super-sprint distance triathlon in May!! 

Another first in 2014 will be my first 24-hour race experience - the Adidas Thunder Run at the end of July. Along with four other amazing running-blogging ladies in the relay team, we will be tackling 24 hours of trail running come rain or shine, light or dark. I'm really excited about this one: head torches at the ready!!

There are many more races and challenges already in the diary, and more sure to come as the year moves along. As things stand, 2014 is shaping up to be a vintage fit year for this city girl....

What goals have you set for the new year? Are you running a marathon this spring? I'd love to hear how training is going - drop me a message below or come say hi on twitter :)

Happy New Year - hope it's a good one!

Katy | City Girl Fit

My first attempt at: track training sessions

To run fast you must practice running fast. 

OK, that’s pretty self explanatory. But I’m running a marathon, where I’ll be running long and slow, slow, slow so running fast isn’t for me, right? WRONG! 

If you look at any marathon training programme these days there is a lot of emphasis on adding in at least one session a week that involves increasing your pace - tempo runs, hill work – anything that gets you out of your comfort zone and breathing a little bit harder. This approach apparently makes you a more effective runner and will help you to run faster even when you run slow. Even if speed isn’t your no. 1 goal let’s face it – we’d all like to be a little bit quicker and see some progress on those race times! 

Now, I’m not a ‘lazy’ person, per se. I’ll happily kit up and hit the tarmac for a trot round the park and, if I’m training for a longer distance, dedicate my weekend hours to get some decent mileage in. But push myself to the point of hard breathing and inability to chat as I run (say what now??) – no, sorry, it’s not really going to happen on my watch alone. And if I ever try, I do a few short bursts of speed, give myself a pat on the back and then trot on home for a crème egg and a cuppa. 

My marathon training programme, however, says otherwise. As the teachers at school used to tell me, if you can’t be trusted alone then you require supervision! So, I had the bright idea to head along to a track session. Back in the day I was actually a track runner at school and, unbelievably, I used to do track training 2-3 times a week. Sometimes just for fun! Ah, to be young...

Through tips and advice from fellow twitterunners (did I just invent a new label for runners who tweet?? Trademark pending...) I found a session with run coach Karen down at Battersea track on a Wednesday evening. I’d already convinced my friend Josie it was a good idea too, and she’d gone along a few times already – a guinea pig of sorts, in the nicest possible way! – and fed back that it was quite good and she hadn't died yet: always a good sign. So I decided that this was the week to make my return to the track. Ah, dammit! I now have the classic 90s song ‘Return of the Mack’ inside my head... I digress (as always). 

I’d had my first post-school track experience when I went to Battersea stadium as part of my Run to the Beat training and – despite it being really tough – I loved it! The only difference was than back then it was in August, 20-odd degrees and sunny. As I walked to the track on Wednesday it was November, pissing down and freezing cold! 

As I walked along I gave myself a pep talk: “you’ve played numerous seasons of hockey in the Scottish winter, woman! You can do this!” And I’m glad that the voices in my head prevailed... 

At the track there turned out to be 8 of us plus Karen, and the rain died down so it was only freezing cold now and not wet. Relentless positivity, anyone? To try to explain just how cold it was, I had three layers on and an ear-warmer headband, and not one item of clothing was removed over the course of the session! 

A short ‘warm’ up of two laps round the track, some drills (walking on toes, walking on hills, high knees, bum kicks etc.) Karen explained the session. The regulars told me that each week was different and you don’t get told in advance so nobody knew what to expect... Karen paired us up in a two-man team, and told us we were to do non-stop 400m relays. For 25 minutes. Yup. 25 minutes solid. Ouch! 

Once we got going though it actually didn’t seem too bad. That is until after our 3rd or 4th lap of the 400m track when the legs really got tired and the lungs hurt from the cold air. For some reason I always seemed to die at 200m and had to spend the remainder of the lap screaming: c’mon stupid legs, work!! 

Battersea track in sunnier times!

We kept pushing through, supporting and cheering each other on the rounds and getting some tips from Karen while we recovered. For example, it’s much more efficient to run with short, fast strides than with long slow ones – my preferred mode of ‘bounding’ around the track. I tried the shorter strides out on my next few laps and, while I can’t vouch for efficiency or graceful technique, I certainly felt like I was running much faster! 

Team Josie & Katy managed 9 laps each in the 25 minutes, averaging around 7min mile pace. We were knackered at the end, but with happy, rosy-cheeked faces :) Time will tell how much these sessions will help my running, but it was great to mix up the training and to meet some new people; I really enjoyed it and will definitely be back: ‘Wednesday track’ is now a solid fixture in the marathon training plan! 

If you fancy channelling you inner Usain Bolt and getting down for some track action then get in touch with Karen – the sessions are held on Wednesdays at Battersea Millennium Park, cost £8.90: £3.90 to the track and £5 to Karen. 

Have you tried track training or other forms of speed work? Did it make a difference to your running? 

Katy | City Girl Fit