On giving a little back

Running is a bit of a self-absorbed sport, really. It's ultimately a solo venture and most thoughts revolve around me, myself and I: What will I wear? How will I get there? What time will I do? I'm no exception - I tend to focus on my race and have rarely stopped to appreciate all the people other than runners who are needed to make a race happen. 

Now, having completed some fairly big events, I've come to realise that so many people contribute to the race being a success and to my enjoyment of the run: the marshals on the course who give you that much needed support; the bag drop and pick-up people who, in my experience, have always been super efficient; and you have to give it to the people who sit there cutting people's timing chips off what can only be pretty sweaty and smelly shoes!

Brainstorming at LiRF

That's why I decided that if I'm to take part in an event a month, which seems to be my average at the moment, then maybe I too should give something back to the running community. 

So I took the first step and signed up to take a Leadership in Running Fitness (LiRF) course, which would enable me to become a run leader for the brilliant charity A Mile in her Shoes. 




The charity encourages women who are at risk of homelessness or affected by related issues to try running as a way of exercising, socialising, lifting confidence and boosting self-esteem. To be able to organise new sessions, however, the charity needs qualified group run leaders, which is where the LiRF course and volunteers - like me - come in.

LiRF is taught by Run England, and takes place over one day where you learn everything, from how to lead the session from warm up to cool down, to how to overcome barriers that people may have with running. It was quite an intense day with lots to take on board and practical sessions to learn the most appropriate way to lead an engaging and useful run session with appropriate care and safety. 

Leah (top) and Charlie (bottom) leading the mini sessions

But it was a really good laugh as well, helped by the fact that two of my run buddies, Charlie and Leah, were also there, as was Charlotte from fab fitness site lunges&lycra. 

We had a fun afternoon in the park with our respective groups, leading mini sessions to demonstrate the skills we had learned throughout the morning. I definitely learned a lot and am looking forward to taking my first group out later this year.


To enable the ladies who attend the sessions to go out and run at these sessions, A Mile in Her Shoes also provide appropriate clothing and footwear, most of which come from donations of kit from the public. If you have unused or worn but in good working order running clothing or shoes then the team would love to hear from you so please get in touch and share what you can.

Give a little back - it'll make you bloody ecstatic!

To keep my 'give a little love' halo shining a little longer, I also decided to volunteer for the first time at my local parkrun in Brockwell Park - a free, weekly, timed 5k run. Unfortunately for me, it was the wettest Saturday morning that London had seen in quite some time and I cycled along to the park in my waterproofs in the driving rain fully expecting nobody to be out to run. How wrong I was! 

Dedicated parkrun runners
in the rain

I was assigned the prestigious role of 'barcode scanner', and loved playing a small part to ensure that the run could go ahead smoothly. 

The runners were so friendly and appreciative of the volunteers, with some specifically coming back over once changed and dry to say thanks again. I enjoyed volunteering so much that I've signed up to do it all again next week! Hopefully the weather gods will be kinder to me this time..



As big races are often on a Sunday I don't tend to run on a Saturday, so volunteering at parkrun it's a good way to rest your legs but still be part of the running community. Why not have a look on the parkrun website and see if your local group needs some help? It's a great opportunity to give a little back and share the running love :)

Katy | City Girl Fit

10k training with the BHF and some athletic superstars

Now that marathon is over (did I mention that I ran a marathon??), I can get back to doing some of the other fun stuff I love to do like swimming, spinning and running shorter distances that 26.2 miles. 

While I love half marathons and they are probably my 'goldilocks' race - just right - I do love a swift 10K. As a beginner runner 10K is a great distance to set your sights on, which is exactly what I did back in the day and worked my way down from about 60 mins to a recent PB of 50.39. Now I've had more experience of longer distances, I realised that 10Ks are a fun distance and great to really sink your teeth in to when it comes to working towards a new PB. 

Post last year's Mo Run 10K - good times!

I've made a decision that, although I will most likely run another marathon in future, I'm not going to chase a marathon PB beyond the 4h23 I ran at London. Not because I don't think that with dedication and commitment I couldn't - I'm sure if I dedicated my life (possibly quite literally!) to it I could - but because I don't want to. I just don't have the time on my hands or the drive to do what is needed to achieve a close-to- or sub-4h marathon. With 10K, however, I have a goal that is clear, definite and - most importantly for me - realistic: sub 50.

Fortunately I have friends who share in this goal AND who are lucky winners of competitions. Enter Josie, who was jammy enough to win a 'you plus one' 10K training session, organised by the British Heart Foundation, with Laura Fountain (of Lazy Girl Running fame) and World Championship heptathlete Louise Hazel. Possibly the best 'plus one' invite I'll ever have!

Smile for the camera!
(My technique is horrible - but let's ignore that for now...)

We rocked up to Regents Park on a sunny April evening and met with the other 4 people who made up the training guinea pigs. We started with a dynamic warm up of jogging, high knees, side-stepping, then a 10 minute warm-up run over to the track that's hidden away at the back of the park. 

Don't get too excited now: it's gravelly, like what you'd have played hockey on at school if you're from my generation - a 'don't fall in it or you'll be picking red grit out your knees for weeks' kind of terrain. But it's oval shaped and almost 400m round. Who needs an exact 400m anyway? If you're sprinting round that then high five to you, even if it is only 379 metres long. PBs for the '800m' all round! I digress.

Laura led us in some sprint sessions, which she suggested we incorporate once a week into our own training plans to help speed us up and hit those 10K goals. Our session was:

4 x 400m at a little below target 10K pace (for me this was around 4.8min/km or 8min/mile) with 90 sec rest between sets
2 x 60m sprint @ 90-100% effort, 150m jog, 60m sprint @ 90-100% effort, 150m jog. No rests between.

It seemed like we were all playing a game of 'stalk Louise Hazel' at times - she was so fast and it looked so effortless! 

The most conspicuous stalkers ever

This was the result:

Trying not to spew. At least Louise Hazel looks a bit puffed too!

As if all that wasn't enough to knacker us out, we then moved back in to the park where Louise took us through our paces with a fast, full-body workout.

Moving from planks, to mountain climbers, to back raises, to side plank, to crunches - there were 15 moves in total and each was completed one after the other, again no rests, for 30 seconds each. Oooft! We all survived though, and my abs reminded me of my effort for at least 3 days after.

Josie and me - being put through our paces by Louise

It was a tough but great session, and reminded me that effective running doesn't always have to be about pounding the pavements for hours. If I want to hit that sub-50 goal then my abs, glutes and arms are going to have to get used to a bit of hard work and pain with some full body workouts. It's a little different to the endless miles of road running I've been used to over the past 6 months, but it's time to shake things up and get this body back in '10k fit' mode. 

Thanks to the BHF for putting on the event, to Louise and Laura for their excellent advice, and to Josie for letting me be her plus one. The BHF have tons of running events going on around the country, so why not get some speed and strength work on the go along with some running sessions and get involved - find out more here. 

All images courtesy of Jordan Curtis Hughes.

Katy | City Girl Fit

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

Happy 1st Marathon Eve!

This is it. My last night before I run the London Marathon 2014. My first ever marathon, first ever time beyond 20 mile in fact! Am I nervous? Yes. While training went well overall, on Sunday I arrived back from a 2 week holiday in the US where I ate my weight in food and consumed copious amounts of booze. This, I'm pretty sure, is not what they describe in the 'how to taper' handbook...

Nevertheless, back at the end of March I completed the Surrey Spitfire 20 miler in 3.09, and felt pretty strong. I also managed a treadmill sprint session and three outdoor runs on holiday:

Run 1: 6 miles along the Vegas strip

Run 2: 4.5 miles in Mammoth, CA

Run 3: 10 miles from downtown San Francisco to Sausalito.
Yep, including over the Golden Gate Bridge!

So thank you, marathon. Because without this race to train for I wouldn't have laced up my shoes and experienced these places in the unique way that running provides. Each was individual and awesome in it's own right and I LOVED it!!

Tonight, I sit here finalising my marathon playlist, laying out the kit and generally being a bit excited. While nerves definitely play a part, I have been lucky enough to avoid injury and know that I will be on that start line tomorrow ready to run the London Marathon, and adding some London-based selfies to my running pic collection :)

Whatever comes my way, however slow or fast I run, I aim to take in what is happening around me and ensure that I take the time to focus on what's important - the fact that I am even able to run, the fact that I am privileged to be part of a race that many will never get the chance to run, and the fact that by doing this I am raising money for two great charities in memory of two great men.

If you're running tomorrow then good luck! Enjoy! I can't wait to meet all 36,000 of you :) Number 5097 - come say hi!

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