A mental and physical battle but if Rocky can do it so can I…

After a successful first run of the calendar year I entered into week 12 of my marathon training feeling positive and full of confidence. This was a massive positive for me due to the fact I have in some ways been struggling quite badly recently mentally. When you’re feeling low it’s very easy to focus on the negative things around you which In turn compounds the negativity dropping you into a deeper circle of depression. I personally know my triggers but I also know my coping strategies  and when I’m at low points there is nothing better for me than to hit the road. I know it’s a life time battle to stay on the straight and narrow but reminding myself just how far I’ve come helps put me back on an even keel.

I’m 5 foot 5, stocky build (built for power not endurance) and not so long ago I weighed 16.5 stone. My body consisted of 33% fat and couldn’t see my feet to put my trainers on let alone run a mile. After a concerted effort, which was only meant to be 3 months, I now weigh 11 stone, my body consists of 11% fat and I can see not only my feet but also my …. Knees (filthy minds some people!!) since I hit my fitness trail not only has my physical fitness improved so has my mental fitness however there are times that that inevitably dips. Running has kept me sane, given me a release and also given me goals to better myself. A PB in Blackpool gave me the confidence to attack week 12 which was to end with my biggest test yet…22 miles. There’s really  no hiding place now, less than 6 weeks left, so I made a decision to slow myself down to a pace I felt was more sustainable over 26.2 miles.

The first two runs of the week again were to be nice runs but not much to write about. The one thing I will say however was the weather this week around home has been fantastic to run in crisp, sunny and calm-perfect. The first run of the week on Tuesday was to be 40 minutes easy which was welcome after the intensity of my pace in Blackpool. I managed 5.1 miles in 40 minutes through the village and back with an average pace of 7.50 per mile. I’m targeting around 8-8:10 minutes per mile for Vienna so this was a bit better from me and enjoyable.

After core work on Wednesday, Thursday’s run consisted of the following

5 mins easy, 5 mins steady, 10 mins threshold, 15 mins steady, 10 mins easy 

What pleased me most about today was I was disciplined. Easy was easy, steady was steady and threshold I hit it hard! 45 minutes later and 5.7 miles covered I completed my run happy plus the added bonus of a course record on a segment on Strava. A bath, rest and recouperation for my long run on Saturday was all that was planned for the rest of the week.

As Friday progress I started to feel quite nervous and at times I started to question if I could complete the 22 miles I’d plotted. That night I drove the route dropping my water bottles every 3 miles and 2 bottles of lucozade sport at 7 and 14 miles. I hoped this would settle my apprehension but driving the constant climb from 11-17 miles did little to settle the nerves. The reality is the miles need to be done, this is my furthest run before Vienna, everything after it will be down hill till I begin my taper so I had to as they say ‘Suck it up!’

After a reasonable night sleep I woke early had the usual breakfast and I was out in the road by 6:36am. The sun was just beginning to rise, I set Strava on to go, started my watch and Staryed my marathon playlist on shuffle.Instantly  when I heard the first few bars of ‘Eye of the tiger’ I smiled and I began to relax, If Rocky can do it…so can I! Following a route I generally know from my previous 20 mile run a few weeks before I headed down the country lanes towards Bickerstaffe lucky enough to witness a beautiful sunrise (The sun reflecting off the puddle is awesome)

My plan for this run was to average around 8-8:10 minute miles which I figured if I can sustain that over 22 miles I would give myself a fighting chance of beating my previous marathon PB of 3:50:24.

The miles fell and I was feeling strong and as I passed through 11 miles, half way, I was happy, I was dancing at times and  I messaged my wife, who was asleep when I left

‘Good Morning, half way, back in hour and half, run that bath xxxxx’

This very quickly changed as I hit 11.5 miles as this part of my route I hadn’t ran before. It was a gradual climb and that coupled with an unknown route I began to battle my mind. It’s always a good job I’m alone when this happens as I become vocal, I demand things of myself and the air turns blue

“you ain’t stopping now”…”you’ve come too far”…”you ain’t a quitter!! ” 

Eventually as I climbed my final hill at around 16.5 miles I was shot I felt my pace was dropping and I went for the carbohydrate gel to give me a quick boost. The final 10k felt slow but at 19.5 miles when things started to hurt more the boost I got from this was priceless…rocky saves the day again!

For today’s run I had set a goal of 22 miles in under 3 hours so I had no choice but to get my head down and power on through the pain. Surprisingly my pace didn’t drop as much as I thought and as I turned the corner on to our estate 22 miles had been conquered and ultimately under my target time of under 3 Hours.

This was an achievement and more importantly I felt I had another 4.2 miles in the legs. I’d refuelled well during the run taking gels/Jelly babies and dextro tablets when I felt it was needed.  With an 8-8:10 minute pace in mind and a decent start in Vienna my marathon PB is looking threatened however for now I take plenty of positives from this week both physically and mentally. I ended the week feeling much better than I did starting it which is a result!  Back out on the road tomorrow and plan for my second race of the year a small 10k round ST Helens. I will see how I feel about attacking that PB of 43.03 closer to the day and let’s be honest I’m not doing to bad for a mental ex fat lad.

Netty the inspiration, the worst conditions I’ve ever ran in with a PB and the annoyance of dog dirt

As the weeks pass by the reality that Vienna Marathon is now less than 7 weeks away is exciting and slightly daunting. Another week at home meant 3 of this weeks 4  runs had been all around the realative flatness of The village where I live which was a nice change. This was made even more appealing due to the fact I found a new route, through a park, dissecting the village in two. This really helped as I was at the risk of becoming stale running the same routes regularly however as with everything there is a down side. Recently I have become increasing more frustrated during my runs in the playing the game of dodging the dog dirt, even unknowingly trailing some in the house after a 16 mile run. This is even more frustrating as you don’t really want to be bending down cleaning floors of dog dirt after such a distance, inconsiderate and hugely frustrating but less of the negativity. 3 runs through the week with not much to write about other than I have been very disciplined and when easy runs were planned I’ve consciously made an effort to slow down. 

  

As the week progressed I started to focus on the fact my long run on Sunday was my first race of the year the Great North West half marathon in Blackpool. This is when the talking stops and I begin to find out how my training has been going. I’ve been running consistently in training and producing strong times however training and races as we know are different animals. As Sunday grew closer and the weather in Merseyside deteriorated I allowed myself to look at the predicted weather for Blackpool…big mistake. 50mph winds and heavy rain!! Awful, I can handle rain but running through gale force winds is soul destroying. It didn’t matter though, however the weather I was committed to the race and with a mixture of excitement and nerves I went through my pre race routine the night before. 

1) Spaghetti Bolognaise for tea

2) Layout my clothes like the first day of school. Including my new Bolton Hospice Running Vest the charity I’m supporting this next 12 months.

3) Organise breakfast for the morning on the race

4) Reasonably early night.

After a decent night sleep, a pre race bath to loosen the legs and a final check on the predicted weather we headed off up the M6 to Blackpool…it wasn’t looking good

  
I put this to the back of my mind and we arrived in Good time and headed to registration. It was mild and off the promenade front and behind the buildings the wind wasn’t too bad however upon reaching registration this changed. Registration was located on the lower prom and I realised quickly there was going to be no hiding from the fact today’s race would be heavily influenced by the wind. This disappointed me slightly due to the fact of earmarked this race as a potential PB run and secretly I’d harboured hopes of beating my previous 1:38:05 which I’d set at Liverpool half marathon in March 2015. 

I went through my final preparations, said goodbye to my wife And I lined up ready to attck what ever Blackpool had to throw at me. As I was finishing my final stretches and preparations I met a guy I went to university with and had not seen for 16 years stood across from me, bizarre!  After a few minutes catching up on 16 years the race apparently started but I was confused…no real start line…just a mass ‘Off you go’ this left me thinking where do I start my watch?? Where do I start Strava?? Before I’d even started my planning was going belly up and rather quickly!! So I started both my watch and Strava and began to weave my way through the mass of runners where I could. This added more to my frustrations and I’d decided my slight hopes of a PB had definitely gone now for sure! 

The first 3 miles were two smaller loops of the promenade towards North Pier. After  1 mile I’d found my pace and thankfully some space so down went my head and my focus was on the mile I was in. The main body of the race was 2 loops of the promenade up to little Bispam and from approx miles 3-6 the wind was behind us. At this point I was as I say, fair trapping, under 7 minute miles and comfortable. It was at this point I also realised I’d started my watch and Strava around the correct time as my starva notifications and the mile markers I passed were roughly in sync. As I grew into the race I was gaining in confidence as my minutes per  mile were consistent until I turned off the sea front onto the upper promenade! Bang… Here all of a sudden I was hit by a gust of wind that nearly floored me. This was a sign of what the next 2.5 miles had in store, a real eye opener!! The next 2.5 miles were undulating and through the worst winds I’ve ever experienced. People were tucking in behind each other and plodding however I’d eyes on a PB so couldn’t be held back. Now rightly or wrongly I became ill-Disciplined, I left the pack, went head on with the wind and pushed though on my own. Some may say silly however for me to get close to my PB needs must!  

The winds at times were that bad I felt I was going backwards however as I hit 15km at 1:06:30 I knew I was on for a PB. This was helped with my wife encouraging me on and as I battled through the wind past her and another group of fantastic spectators I exclaimed “I’ve paid for this privilege”They found its funny…I didn’t!   
As the corner was turned back onto the lower promenade I knew I had a couple of miles to gain back some ground. So as the waves hammered the sea wall which made the sea spray inevitable I foucssed on the mile in hand and pushed on. It was here I drew inspiration from what I saw in from of me a lady who according to her T-Shirt is called Netty. Netty is 47 and had lost 60lbs of which she was quite rightly proud. As I passed her I shouted well done and high fived her, she may not have been the fastest there but she did it and ultimately it’s not how fast you get there it’s the getting there that counts. People like Netty are an inspiration and she inspired me to push on. Again I turned off the lower prom at little Bispam, up to the upper prom, on my second loop I knew the finish was close if not quite in sight, my battle was nearly won. Battered by the winds, miles 11 and 12 fell by the wayside and all of a sudden the end was in sight, I could see my goal. Every step now was beginning to hurt but my PB was close to being smashed so I had to push on. As I finally crossed the finish line into the funnels a quick glance to my left and I became emotional, again!! I’d done it, through the worst conditions I’d ever ran,I’d broken my half marathon PB. 

 
As I struggled to get my breath and my wife rushed over to greet me I was emotional the announcer congratulated runner 88 Matt Bowman running for Bolton hospice and all I could say was “I’ve bloody done, I’ve beaten it, I’ve done it!” 1:37:39 a good 29 seconds off my last best, absolutely chuffed to bits!! Made sweeter with the fact I finished the 107th runner out of a starting field of 1600 runners.  After collecting my goodie bag, with a great medal, me and the wife made the decision to head straight home. We were both cold and tired, Blackpool had taken it out of us! but we were both proud of what I’d achieved. There was however time to stop at a rock shop on the way home…the wife was even happier then!! 

Blackpool was my first big test this year and with 7 weeks till my first marathon of the year I was hoping for a positive result. There are things I’d probably do slightly different if I race that route again however it’s left me thinking I’m going in the right direction to achieve my goals on 10th April in Vienna. So roll on next weeks runs and 20/22 miles next Saturday however for now I will enjoy the moment and my medal from my fastest half marathon yet!! Happy days 

  

Hills, a comedy road sign and a mental battle

8:30 am Sunday 14th February 2106 as I am sat writing this entry it is 8 weeks out from my first big test of this year, the city of Vienna marathon. On the weekend where I ran the furthest I have for 9 months I find myself in quite a buoyant mood however I know not to get to carried away, I’m keeping my feet firmly on the ground. 

In the next 7 months I will be taking part in 18 races, over varying distances, to get me up to speed for  3 main races which will push me to breaking point both physically and mentally. I am however giving myself the best chance at success by training well and reasonably disciplined. Success for me will be on various levels. Finishing the Vienna and Loch Ness marathon in a reasonable time close if not slightly better than the 3:50:24 I ran in my first ever marathon last year will do for me. Success in the biggest event I have pencilled in my diary, race to the King ultra marathon, will just be completion! Time isn’t an issue for me on that one. 

  
Running wise this week I’ve been receiving confirmation on races, reminders of impending race registration closures and a training plan for the ultra marathon. I’ve also bought a second pair of runners to help me through the next few months, something I’ve meant to do for a long time just never got round to it as my new pair from Christmas have done close to 200 miles already. All the previous aside this week has been quite a defining one running wise, I’ve felt strong recently however I knew that would be tested this week with my long run. Due to race commitments in the coming months I’ve had to shuffle the pack on how I do my long runs in my training as psychologically I want to know I have the miles in my legs. I’m 10 weeks into my plan and 7 weeks left of it but with the races coming up I’d struggle to get the 3 longer runs in 2 x 20 miles and 1 x 22miles. With my first race of the year coming next Sunday, the Great North Western Half Marathon in Blackpool, I had to adjust this weeks planned 18 mile long run to a 20 mile run. Even though this is only a 4 mile jump up at that distance it’s a reasonably big step mentally and physically and could have been problematic for me, needs must. 

Tuesday – 60 minutes interval run – 10min Easy run, 2 x (2min IR, 1min ER, 3min IR, 90sec ER, 4min IR, 2min ER, 5min IR, 2.5min ER), 10min Easy run.

As I’m running from home this week I decided to follow part of a route I know well from my longer runs however to keep things fresh I reversed the route. I left with the plan to head out 30 minutes in one direction turn round and head homeward on a slightly different route. This gave me a loop and that way I wasn’t re-seeing things even if I generally see the same things using similar routes today was a new day and a new route. I made the decision to do the stated easy 10 minutes as they should be, easy, and off I went.  The weather was threatening and the black cloud hanging over head didn’t take long to begin to shed its rain, hail and sleet which coupled with a biting wind made for a psychological battle. One which I’m glad to say I won showing decent form and secretly I thoroughly enjoyed the intervals which did surprise me. I was pleasently surprised I also stuck to actually running the first and last 10 minutes easy!! Is this me learning?? Probably not!!  But 8 miles covered in 1:01:56 will do for me and more miles in the tank. 

Thursday– 60 minutes steady

I like the less pressurised element of these runs. No need to keep an eye on the watch for interval time change. The weather for this run was lovely a crisp day with few clouds in the sky and a bright blue sky! ideal in my opinion to hit the road. 

  
Again I chose a route I know as I just wanted to run and more importantly enjoy it. The run was uneventful and not much to write about however I did throughly enjoy heading out on the road. 8 miles completed in 1:01:24 with my minutes per mile being consistent. A job well done which left me quietly confident for my 20 mile run on Saturday. 
  
Saturday – 20 miles Long Run

After dropping off my water bottles and some lucozade at 3.5 mile intervals across my route the night before I was ready for the inevitable pain the next days 20 miles would bring. With my wife out early for a weekend shift at work I made the decision to get up the same time as her and head out of the door early, this would mean the the run is done and dusted early and I have the rest of the day to do with what I wanted. After a normal breakfast of biscuits and bananas I also had an energy drink and a carbohydrate gel and I was on the road for 6:40 am. The route I’d chosen was a development on my previous weeks 16 miles however I had adapted it due to the fact part of that run I resented and it mentally was difficult for me to run it, the 2.5 mile long road  past edge hill university.From Rainford I was to head again through Bickerstaffe and into Aughton two very quiet and quaint places especially as the sun is rising. 

 
As I hit 10k(6 miles) I was feeling good and confident however I was continuously telling myself ‘run the mile you’re in!’ I couldn’t allow myself get ahead of where I was. The downhill into Ormskirk was a welcome break from the slight uphill terain I’d experienced for the first 6 miles however I knew this was to be a temporary respite as I knew from driving the route the night before when I hit 8 miles the next 5 miles would be a big test. This was to be a battle of wits with myself as the terain became undulating, long steady climbs with slight downhill parts every so often. There was only one solution for me head down, concentrate on the few feet in front of me and breathe. Although the route was scenic it became difficult at times due to how exposed the road was to the elements and there was a slight cross wind not helping my situation.   

 As the miles came and went I weaved my way down the country roads of west Lancashire and as I hit 11 miles I had to chuckle as I turned down here…

 
Now my sense of humour is as such that would make me laugh seeing this sign when driving so the fact I saw it after 11 miles of undulating terain on a 20 mile run helped me massively and enabled me to kick on up the mile long hill I’d forgotten was there. My hydration and nutrition plan was working with water stops well placed and the added lucozade bottles seemed to have an impact but I’m still wary of that. The jelly babies every two miles and dextro tablets when I feel I need them was working and although I was beginning to feel it I was still averaging miles under 8 minutes however this was becoming more difficult. As I hit 14/15 miles I found myself chasing the second half of each mile to keep it under 8 minutes, this isn’t  good I know but it’s my competitiveness coming out, however things started to change when I hit 16 miles. This is the furthest I’ve ran so far on this training cycle and I was now getting into the realms of pain. For some reason my shoe was hurting as if I’d tied my laces too tight, my clad was hurting and slight twinges in my knee but these were small things compounded by my mental state. The part of this point of the run which was the killer was running past my home road still with 4 miles to go! Psychologically this nearly broke me and something I need to address on my planning of my next long route. I also finally at 18 miles succumbed to a 8 minute plus mile (8:01) which prompted me to take my foot off the gas and as I plodded the last two miles home in over 8 minutes each I was hurting but it was a job well done, 20 miles in 2:37:12. 

  
This weeks long run has been a bench mark for me and I head into next weeks first race of the year confident I can do myself justice and get close to my PB of 1:38:05. I can also have some confidence In the fact that I have 8 weeks left till my first marathon and if I can continue the way I am going in my training my marathon PB could quite easily be broken in Vienna! That would be for me awesome and with my form and knowing the support I have in my close family and friends anything is possible!! 
 

The rogue mile over 8 minutes, Mr Pig has friends and going longer…

I am now over the half way mark of my training for this cycle and I’m finding my mind is starting to comprehend the enormity of what I have taken on for this year even more so as I am now less than 9 weeks away from my first marathon of the year. As the miles are increasing I feel I am running stronger than I ever was in my last cycle of training which gives me great encouragement especially with me two weeks away from my first competitive race for a long time. I am really looking forward to it as the course is set up for me to beat my half marathon PB of 1:38:02. I feel I can push my PB close for this race and for that I need to be averaging under 7:30 minutes per mile which won’t be easy but my current form coupled with a flat course I am confident I can at least get close, fingers crossed. Blackpool will also give me more of an idea of where I am with regards race readiness because as we know running alone is completely different as to competing in race conditions when all kinds of different elements come into play. Now don’t get me wrong I am not going to beat all the competition in races and I may not technically win the race however every time I put that number on, lace my shoes and cross the start line of a race I am competing against no one but myself, a onetime fat lad who decided to make a change, every run/race completed is a triumph for me. Having said that I do have goals for every race I compete in and I will talk about them to an extent however for the longer races (Marathons) my goals stay private purely due to the fact running 26.2 miles is pressure enough. For my one and only marathon to date, Liverpool Rock and Roll Marathon, I set myself two targets both sub 4 hours with one at 3:59:59 and the other at 3:45:00 these I felt were realistic but challenging . My pride at crossing the finishing line closer to the quicker of those two times at 3:50:24 was something I’d never expected to feel and I will admit I shed a tear which seems a common occurrence at race finishing lines for me, I’m a fella and we don’t cry however when my wife, my parents and close family are stood at the finishing tape believing in my journey I can’t help but shed a happy tear. 

It’s all too easy to make excuses for not hitting the road and it’s time of year when the new year, new me crowd start to wane and the pavements and gyms become less full of people however the weather recently has tested my mental strength. Here in the North West of England the weather has been changeable and that is putting it kindly however I’ve had to keep telling myself if I can get out and run in the current conditions it will be easier when the weather breaks and spring moves on, difficult but builds character. Having said that I did spend Sunday cocooned on the couch at home only moving when necessary to get supplies which meant I missed a planned 40 minute Fartlek run. The reason behind this was me and the wife had headed for a night away in a hotel spending the night eating fine foods and drinking copious amounts of alcohol on a last date night for a considerable period of time due to circumstance but I’d ran 16 miles before breakfast on Saturday so I felt I’d earnt some down time. This last week has also seen me fighting off some sort of virus which has been trying its best to floor me and put me off my training this has left me with the dilemma of heading out and hopefully banishing the bug or risk making the flu more deep seated and in turn suffering a mental and physical set back due to a bad run. This is a very thin line to walk bit it has been a risk worth taking this week as I can’t afford to let up on the training now .

 

Tuesday – 10 minutes easy, 15 minutes steady, 10 minutes easy

 

Again the weather had been threatening and we were in the grip of our 6th named storm of the last few months, Henry! An easy enough run was planned and I felt this had come at the right time due to the fact I wasn’t feeling 100% however as I headed out from work I found the pace I felt I was running at was easy however Strava informed me I was running at 7:35 minutes per mile. This surprised me and over the last few weeks I’ve felt as if I’d been plodding at an easy pace but when I’d finished runs my pacing had been around the 7:40-7:45 min miles, an indication the training I am doing is working for me and I have found a comfortable pace, two things that make me very happy. As I headed out on my first mile I passed Bolton Hospice which is a place close to my heart and somewhere I care a lot about due to the support they showed my family during the final days of my grandads life. The work the hospice does is invaluable it’s for this reason I will be supporting the hospice by raising much needed funds to help other families like mine. I could speak at length about the hospice, and I will in future blogs, but they and my grandad are the driving force for my 2016 journey and I am proud to wear their badge on my training T-Shirts and race vests. The ladies behind the counter are always welcoming and have a smile for you and when I turned up unannounced to take a quick selfie for my twitter feed they were happy to oblige and wish me well on the rest of my run. After this I felt energised and headed off up the road happy eventually completing a reasonably scenic 35 minutes of running covering 4.5 miles. A decent days work however I was aware that 20 minutes of this run should have been ‘Easy’ I noted more discipline is needed in my runs but thought if I can do it why not push that little bit harder?? A plan is to follow and adapt to your needs…exactly what I did today.

35 mins dinner run  

  

Thursday – 60 Minutes Steady

 

Thursday was time to talk, mental health awareness day which I found quite appropriate for me to be heading out on a run at dinner time. For me personally these two things are intrinsically linked due to the fact I’ve used, and continue to use, one to combat the other. When I started this journey of fat to fit I did it as I wasn’t happy in my own skin, I was suffering mentally due to a number of personal issues and I wasn’t happy in my work. I’m pleased to say I am no longer fat, I no longer have the personal issues I had and I am on more of an even keel that I was 3-4 years ago however work still is the cause at times of some issues. This is one of the main reasons I head out in my dinner break to mentally fly tip the rubbish I have heard, gathered, experienced in the morning and it also takes me to a place where I’m comfortable. Today was a good run and an enjoyable mix of inclines and descents but it was also a source of slight frustration for me as I look back on the previous weeks running as it was the only run where I ran a mile over 8 minutes!! Of 29 miles ran this last week one was 8:04 minutes…this does my OCD no favours and drives me mad ! I was on reflection glad over all that I headed out for my run today as it helped settle my mind of a few niggles and doubts but that 8 minute + mile has left a nasty taste in my mouth 😉 I am however still running strong and hitting the hills of Bolton has left me excited and quietly confident for my loner run at the weekend around the flatter roads of Merseyside. Bring it on.

 60 minutes steady

Saturday – 16 Miles Long Run (Practise Hydration and nutrition)

 

As the weeks creep by I am become increasing more nervous as weekends roll around as I know this is when my runs need to be long. I am not a athlete by a long stretch but I can label myself a runner I’m extremely comfortable running 10k distance and thrive at half marathon distance however even after completing a marathon previously along with all its training I still have a certain amount of apprehension when going over 13.1 miles. I certainly felt this as I sat eating my breakfast at 6:30 am on Saturday mentally preparing myself to go the furthest distance I have been since June 2015. Will I last the distance? Will I be able to sustain a reasonable pace? Will my refuel plan work? Will my water bottle still be there after I placed them at 3.5 mile intervals the night before? I planned my nutrition and hydration as follows

 

Every 2 miles A jelly baby and a Dextro tablet

Every 3.5 miles a water stop ( 3.5 miles, 7 miles, 10.5 miles and 14 miles)

Carbohydrate gel before the run and at 7 miles

 

As I headed out in to the dark morning the sun had not started to get its hat on so I headed out with my head torch on this was essential due to the fact the first 3 miles of the run were to be on dimly lit country roads. The road was peaceful and as I passed from Merseyside into Lancashire heading towards Ormskirk I passed or was passed by very few souls, I was enjoying the tranquillity and I found my pace quite quickly. I was comfortable and as I reached my first water drop I was pacing well and feeling strong however some kind hearted white van driver tried to derail this by driving his van at me as I ran through Aughton towards Ormskirk. This annoyed me as it was now light and there was no one else on the road. Unfortunately I was too slow to take my phone out of my pocket to take a photo but needless to say he wasn’t man enough to stop his van when I voiced my obvious disgust. As I reached the 10k mark I was looking at around 45 minutes gone and still feeling good however I also knew that the biggest mental test was to come as I reached 7.5 miles. At this point I turned the corner onto St Helens road to head out of Ormskirk past Edge Hill College. This road is roughly 2.5 miles to my next turning and exposed to the elements (In my previous training cycle I’d tweaked my knee falling off a kerb due to being caught by a cross wind) It was a constant steady climb and I hate it!!! It was at this point I thought my pace had dropped and I was pleasantly surprised when Strava told me that although I had lost a few seconds I still hadn’t gone over 8 minutes for a mile. This spurred me on and as I turned left off the road I resent a wave of confidence washed over me. Last week’s 14 mile run was a good run however the 5th mile had been run in 8:03, this again niggled at me, and I thought today I’m pushing for none over 8 minutes. I got my head down and vocalised my thoughts “The back of its broken now Matt” “ Keep pushing, you know the route, enjoy it” and my favourite as I began to feel a bit of pain “ Stop being soft!”

 

As 13.1 miles came and went I knew I wasn’t far from home and also a few little quirky things helped me dig deep. As I head out of Skelmersdale onto the Rainford By Pass there is a farm and when I have passed on previous runs there’s been one Pot Bellied Pig in the field. He seemed happy and was snout deep in a pile of potatoes but when I told my wife about this and she seemed concerned that ‘Mr Pig’ was lonely. Today as I passed the field I was pleased to see that ‘Mr Pig’ had many friends and he wasn’t lonely!!! Jenni will be pleased I thought. 

   

 
  
The final few miles of the run were easy and all the questions I had posed in my head before the run had been answered with positive outcomes, today had been a great day! Onwards and upwards and here’s to another small triumph in my ever evolving journey.

  
 

My mind now moves onto week 10 of my training plan and a longer run of 20 miles to come next weekend. I have had to shuffle my longer runs forward due to my race schedule over the next few months however I am hoping if I can get 2 x 20 miles and 1 x 22 miles in as training runs before Vienna then I will be confident. Vienna is slowly creeping up and I want to be as prepared as I can be to do myself justice. This year promises to be a defining one in my fledgling running career!!