London 2014

London Marathon 2014 didn't quite go to plan then. My spreadsheet beforehand had me finishing in 2h52m but I actually finished in 3h14m. Surprisingly, I'm not overly concerned with this... I actually really enjoyed the race and the weekend with Yvonne and Abs was really great. Much more relaxed and Abs loved it. For the build up to the race, I lost all my motivation around 5 weeks out. I'd gone from being fit, healthy and enthusiatic, to... not. I was just wanting the race to be over and couldn't imagine pushing myself during the run. Bit of a pain really. I'm probably not up for writing a detailed description of the race, so here are some bullet points to enjoy :-) Having stuffed my face the previous day, and had a few meals plus Pizza Express on the Saturday, plus 5 gels during the race, I never really felt low on energy and could use this approach again The Good For Age starting pen was ideal. Although there were still a lot of folks ahead, I was mostly able to run at my desired pace without slowing too much I ran mile one in c. 7.20 and mile 2 in c. 6.50.. the plan was then to speed up and run the rest at c. 6.35 My legs just didn't seem much to get working. I couldn't turn them over and didn't have an "extra gear" that I'd like to have when I'm feeling fit I was considering jogging it in from about mile 10... then I caught up with Owen and then re-considered I overtook Owen and slowly pulled away. It felt really easy for a few miles and I considered that a sub-3 cruise to the finish might be possible. I passed half-way in 1h30m10s I kept going for maybe another 3 miles at sub-3 pace but then turned a corner, had a very gentle rise in the road and was simply unable to keep going. The pace just dropped to 7.15 and I knew the game was up I decided just to go at whatever pace I could continue muster and was soon at 7.30 pace with very heavy legs I toyed occasionally with stopping for a walk but agreed with myself to plod on at whatever pace I managed. It was actually quite an enjoyable experience - I just listened to and enjoyed the crowds. Much different to previous marathons where I've blown up! I saw Yvonne and Abbie just outside Big Ben and knew I was home and dry. The last mile or so was straightforward and I looked forward to the crowds at the finish I wasn't too fussed with finish time really. Owen had re-passed but I had no inclination to try to stay with him and probably couldn't have if I wanted. I finished and was a bit wobbly but otherwise not too bad. The rest of the weekend was spent waiting whilst Yvonne and Abs went on the London Eye, followed by a beer or two with Colin and Anne-Marie, then a walk around the Olympic Park with Abs. Despite not quite getting the time I was after (2:52!) I really enjoyed the weekend, had a good time with Yvonne and Abs and would like to do it all over again!