This week has been great for training (apart from a slight mis-hap on Weds) and I felt strong throughout my 22 miler- both mentally and physically! With only one more full training week after this before taper time, I’m feeling both confident and nervous about what November 3rd will bring! I think I have finally worked out what my marathon outfit will be, which I’ll share with you soon. I’ve got my fueling sorted, practised with a handheld water bottle instead of a hydration vest, and  am still in love with my Adidas Boosts!

Monday– Rest

Tuesday– 5.2 Miles + 4 X 100m strides and Barrecore

I enjoyed running in the warm evening after work, completing a 5.2 mile loop down through Green Park and into Hyde Park. I then returned, red faced, to take on Sweaty Betty’s free Barrecore class.
The class was really hard, and had my legs quivering and thighs burning. As with the last time I took on marathon training, my flexibility seems to get worse and worse with every long run!

 

Wednesday– Sadly my iphone managed to break- not sure whether it drowned in my sport’s bra, or whether it was just it’s time, but after Siri irritating me all day and the middle button finally refusing to budge, it was time for an upgrade. Said upgrade took about 2 hours, and I left my resolve to run in Carphone Warehouse and I went out to dinner instead.
 
Thursday– 8 X 800m repeats

Took my run to the treadmill to allow me to control the pace, and ran a warm up mile, before running 8 x 800m repeats with 1 min rest between. I ran these at @4.00 min per 800m (8 min mile pace). 10 min cool down for a total of 6 miles.  I find that the miles fly by on a treadmill when I focus one ‘repeat’ at a time, or when I’m alternating speeds/inclines. Check out my Treadmill Workouts pinterest board here!

Sweaty unattractive post-800m sprint face!

Friday– 30 min easy run and Yang and Yin Yoga Class

After last week’s relaxing Friday evening, I couldn’t turn down another opportunity to get down and flexi. Leah asked whether she could join me, and I was more than happy to have a friendly face in class. After sweating and stretching on the borrowed mat for over an hour, I have now added this yoga towel to my ‘must buy’ list. Much handier than lugging around my own mat on the rush hour tube, and more hygenic that lying face down in other people’s sweat (I’m sure they clean the mats after each class, but still!)

Saturday– Carb loading and X Factor.

And geekily laying out all my gear for my run the following morning!
 

Sunday– Kingston Run Challenge– 22 mile training run (plus a soggy 1.5 mile jog)

Read all about the good, the bad and the ugly bits of this race here!

My plan was to run the first 22 miles, then walk the last 2 miles across the finish line, but changed tactics to very light jogging for the final two miles to prevent hypothermia. I tested out my race outfit, fueling strategy and roughly ran at the right pace. All in all, a good run despite the pouring rain.