And so it begins

A couple of weeks ago, I heard that Cancer Research UK have offered me a Golden Bond place to run the London Marathon in 2014.  This is something I have wanted to do for nearly 30 years - but for most of that time, that ambition was laughable.  I was severely obese - 22 stone at my heaviest.  Well, that's all changed.  I'm not skinny, by any means - but I am considerably lighter, fitter, and I'm running!!

So, today I heard that I had not got a place in the ballot for the London Marathon 2014 - so that means, I do need to take up the Golden Bond place I have been offered.  And that means I have to raise the £2,500 I said I could.  That's where you come in!

This blog is going to be a record of my training, and of my fundraising.  Cancer Research was my choice of charity, for several reasons:  the fact that both my Mum and one of my sisters are currently undergoing treatment for cancer;  and all the funerals I've taken for people who didn't make it.  With every mile I run in training - and there will be a lot of them - and with every step of the 26.2 miles on 13th April 2014, I will be thinking about the people we've lost, and the people we hope to save.

I started running regularly on 1st April this year!!  Last week I ran 20 miles, spread over 4 sessions, with a longest run of 6.7 miles.  I had previously done an 8 mile run at the start of August  but then I went and sprained my ankle, so had to rest and work my way up again.

So, here's the plan:  Run 4 times a week, 2 sessions in the gym for strength and core training, with a bit of plyometrics and high intensity intervals mixed in.  Build up my longest run to 14 miles, and my total weekly mileage to about 30 by the end of the year.  Just about all of the running will be done at a very gentle pace - I'm using a heart rate monitor to ensure I'm going slow enough.  This will train the muscles in my legs to be more efficient at working aerobically, which is what you need for an endurance event like a marathon.  I will build my mileage each week for 3 weeks, then take a week (or maybe 2) easier, to give my body time to rest and adapt.  Then in January, I'll assess where I'm up to.  I'll still need to build up my longer runs, but depending on how it's going, I may start doing some speed work as well.

I have a shedload of books about running... and I'll probably chop and change my training plan, because that's what I'm like.  But I'll keep you updated with that - I'll blog at least once a week and tell you how the training is going.  Oh, and the fundraising too...  if you'd like to help with that, you could text BGLM50 £5 to 70070 or donate online here

Thanks for reading.  This is going to be quite a journey - thanks for sharing it with me.