Challenge Running Flitch Way New Years Day Marathon

My main target for 2018 was to complete my first ultra marathon (MudCrew RAT) which I did in August and then followed up with my second in October (Stort 30). Having started my training early in the year with a spring half marathon, the sensible thing would have been to give myself a pat on the back and take the rest of the year off running. We all know that the sensible option is often the least appealing so instead I thought rather than waste the endurance I'd spent the year building up, I'd continue with my training and enter the Flitch Way New Years Day Marathon hosted by Challenge Running.

I took a week off after the Stort 30 and then began my 8 week training plan. I enjoyed the shorter runs in the first week, 5km felt like a real novelty after a heavy few months of training, however it was soon back to business with back to back long runs over the weekends. Half way through the plan I had a bit of a crisis of confidence and questioned whether I'd be better off doing the conventional one single longer run as I was unsure the back to backs were giving me the required resilience over the longer distances. I approached with some caution as I know from past experience that I have struggled with niggles on the longer stuff hence opting to spread the load over back to back runs instead. However with disciplined stretching, rolling and some targeted strengthening exercises I survived two 18 mile runs and one 20 miler in my build up to the marathon. Psychologically this was a real boost knowing I could get to 20 miles in one sitting, as it was during the Stort the wheels began falling off big time at 20 miles.

Fortunately we had a quiet night planned New Year's Eve. Earlier that day Paul had run the Flitch Way marathon and would be doing the double running New Year's Day too. It was a perfect excuse for cooking a big plate of comfort food to help fortify us for the following day. As the name of my blog suggests, it's not just about the running it's about the food too (the real reason I run)! We have recently moved towards a plant based diet, so I made a mountain of vegan macaroni cheese (yes this is a thing and it was EPIC!), garlic bread and some nutrient dense green veggies to accompany it. Suitably fuelled we sorted out our kit for the next morning and got to bed early knowing we'd probably be woken up at midnight by fireworks.

Macaroni 'cheese' - pre marathon fuel

Over the festive period I've been religiously taking my multi-vitamins and echinacea, fortunately I seem to have dodged all the colds and stomach bugs doing the rounds so I was pleased for it to finally be marathon day, I was feeling good (although not exactly confident) and ready to see what I could produce. Despite having done two 50k races over the summer, my last marathon was in 2015. In 2015 I ran 2 marathons (both along the Flitch Way), neither attempt was pretty! Both I had started training with the best intentions but with little experience I ended up injured and then had to abandon training and just hope I could complete it.

My marathon personal best is 4:48:26 set at my last attempt in 2015. I knew I was capable of beating my PB as I had been far more consistent in my training. However, much of my training had incorporated the strategy of running for 25 minutes and walking 5 minutes. I knew if I stuck to that strategy from the off a PB may be close or less likely. After chatting to a friend I took some advice to run to the first check point 6 miles in and then take a 5 minute walk break, that would at least see me an hour in before walking. From there I'd see how it goes. I always set myself a few realistic targets when running so my target would be to beat my PB with an expected time finish time of 4:40-45 (bronze target), with the further options of 4:40-4:30 (silver target), sub 4:30 (gold target).

Paul and I at the start

The New Years Day Marathon is always quieter than the New Years Eve race. However, I still saw lots of friendly and familiar faces including Karen who was attempting her first marathon. I had the pleasure of sharing a couple of training runs with Karen along the Flitch. Having done this marathon before, I accompanied Karen on a recce run only to get us lost at the tricky Dunmow Industrial Estate section before re-joining the Flitch! In fairness this mistake probably meant that neither of us were likely to forget the way on the day!

Karen and I ready and raring to go!

We gathered at the start for the race briefing and Lindley gave us the news that this years race would not be finishing at the top of the 'Hill of Doom'. I didn't mind to be fair, however I am sure this was a relief to some. At 10am the race started and we and headed over the bridge out of the Great Notley Country Park to pick up the Flitch Way. At Rayne Station cafe I gave a wave to my in-laws who were out to give my husband and I a cheer.

The conditions underfoot were pretty decent, we'd not had much rainfall for a couple of weeks so it had dried out quite nicely. I settled into a comfortable sub 6 min/km pace and found myself nestled in a group of 3 ladies. I got chatting to Maud (who I recognised from my volunteering at the Essex 100 in the summer) about ultra marathons and our running goals for 2019. I was maintaining running at a steady pace but then remembered Maud had won the 50 mile race at the Essex 100 and she was a far more capable runner than me! I backed off a little and let Maud go ahead as not to get carried along.

In just over an hour I'd made it to the first check point at Dunmow. I stopped long enough to grab a bag of salt and vinegar crisps and fill up my soft cup with some coke. Conscious not to waste time I soon left the check point and decided to use my 5 minute walk break to eat and drink before running again. One thing that had been good about practising walking in training was when I started running again I found no issues in settling into a steady pace again. In the past (before attempting the longer races) walking felt like failure and I knew once I gave into walking I'd struggle to find a rhythm again. The next check point would be the turn around at Takeley at 13 miles, I decided to see if I could make it without needing to resort to the 25/5.

A few kilometres out from the turn around the lead runners were starting to pass me on their return leg. It wasn't long before Paul appeared, we exchanged a very quick hello, a check on each other and high five. I could see Takeley Station appearing in the distance only to then remember that the turn around was about another kilometre on. I had taken a bit of a gamble and was wearing new socks that I'd not done a long run in yet in the hope they'd resolve blistering on the end of my toes which I've suffered with on a couple of long races. However, I was beginning to feel a hot spot forming on the ball of my foot. At check point 2 (turn around) I decided to briefly stop and address my hot spot as it's be another hour at least before I had the opportunity to stop again. Some Body Glide applied and another cup of coke grabbed I left the turn around and was on the home stretch.

I'd not eaten a lot at this point, I'd mostly been sipping on my bottle of Tailwind. So I took a walk break out of the check point to eat some Nakd nibbles. After 5 minutes I got back to running again with the view not to stop until I reached the next check point in approximately 6 miles. The Flitch was quite busy with lots of dog walkers, families and cyclists making the most of the weather on a fair New Year's Day. I'd not long passed Takeley station when I caught a figure in the corner of my eye. This figure was the other side of the path behind the bare trees and hedge line. My focus was on the path ahead but they started making some disturbing noises so I looked over only to see a hooded man with this pants around his ankles pleasuring himself!!! I immediately averted my gaze back to the path trying to make sense of what I had just witnessed. Perhaps it was just a mentally disturbed man who had chosen a really bad spot to have a trail wee? I passed two walkers heading in that direction and didn't warn them, I was still in a state of shock. In hindsight (which is always a wonderful thing) I should have stopped, given him some verbal before taking his picture and reporting it to the police. I feel dreadfully guilty that I didn't do anything, I just hope someone else had also seen and reported it.

I soon found myself all alone, no one behind me and no one in front. All of a sudden I felt very vulnerable after my unwanted encounter. I was wondering if this guy could run and may be lurking somewhere ready to jump out on me! Powered by adrenaline my pace suddenly picked up and I didn't feel the need to walk until I got to the next check point.

At check point 3 I'd caught Paul up who was having a rest and something to eat. A little surprised to see him I (he was seeking a 4 hour finish) I asked why he'd slowed down. His hamstring was sore from the marathon the day before and was therefore not pushing it and taking it easy. Paul told me not to wait for him and go ahead and get the time I wanted so I didn't think twice about implementing Top Gear rules and leaving him behind!

I again walked out the check point to eat some food and finish my cup of coke. I started running again after a short hill taking you back onto the Flitch. With 20 miles under my belt, I started trying to work out my finish time. The usual suspects (my knee and foot) were not really causing me any problems much to my relief, I decided that I may as well now run for as long as I could and walk the last bit if I had to. Maths is not my strong point and multi tasking running and counting certainly isn't! From what I could figure out a 4:30 finish would happen if I could minimise my walking, if I continued running I'd perhaps manage a 4:15-4:20 finish. This was massively exciting but I tried not to get carried away with myself.

Much of my training had been along the Flitch which could have been both an advantage and disadvantage. However, it worked in my favour in the late stages of the race. The Flitch given that it is an old railway line is pretty straight and can be a bit featureless. There are few landmarks but when I reached these I knew the approximate distance to the finish which made it a little easier to judge. I decided that I'd walk over the bypass bridge before coming into Rayne, my legs were beginning to feel lead like.

The possibility of seeing someone I knew at Rayne Station meant I continued running with purpose. I now knew I had just over a kilometre left and despite my legs screaming at me I had to continue putting one foot in front of the other as fast as I could. Looking at my watch I was wondering what time I could cross the line, I knew that I was minutes away from it being finished so started to increase my pace. Along the final road section before entering the park I spotted someone I knew, I had to put on a brave smile despite the fact I was blowing out my arse at this point. After crossing the last bit of uphill taking me back into the park, I cashed in on the downhill of the bridge in the hope I could let my legs unwind and propel me to then finish line. Squeezing every last drop out of the tank I made a sprint to the finish line (sorry for the audible grunts to those watching), I couldn't believe it - the clock read 4:21:48!!! What the actual fu*k?! All I could do was drop to my hands and knees to take a moment to process what had just happened whilst gasping for oxygen.

After I scraped myself up off the floor!

I collected myself and had a drink, still no sign of Paul. I caught up with a couple of friends who had come out to watch the finish. My words to Paul at the beginning of the race was not to wait for me to finish and to go and get changed and warm. So I did just that! Once indoors I got chatting to a friend who had also been running then thought I'd better go out and see if I could catch him finish. I missed him by a minute, Paul finished in 4:47:35. He'd felt the affect of running a marathon the day before and was nursing a tweaked hamstring. All 39 runners finished within 6 hour cut off. A massive thank you to Lindley and Maxine and all the volunteers for putting on another superbly organised race.

Despite living just over 2km from the finish line, we opted to bring the car so it was not long before I was home and soaking in a bath of magnesium flakes. In my pre vegan days my post race treat was usually a Papa John's veggie pizza. Having given up all dairy and eggs I opted for a lazy dinner (realising neither of us would be up to cooking) of vegan 'chicken' nuggets, oven chips and baked beans, washed down with champagne - classy! It was perfect.

Winner winner vegan chicken nugget dinner

Having had a few days to reflect on things, I am still over the moon with my time, I far surpassed what I thought I was capable of. It just goes to show that if you trust the plan you will be OK. Special thanks to Paul for helping me with yet another training plan. I feel in a good place to start thinking about what my goals will be for 2019. I am not that bothered about chasing times, I feel a lot of people put way too much pressure on finish times and ultimately feel disappointed when they fail to improve. Provided my recovery from the marathon is good I will probably start looking for progression from 50km.

Just in case I hadn't already mentioned it...

 

Club 26.2

Tapering is about winding down your mileage, replenishing energy stores and healing any injuries. In my case, injury meant I went from running a total of 21 miles in a week to 0 for the next two weeks. This bought on a mild panic as I knew I was already behind with my training but in reality there wasn't much more I could do to change that. Two weeks rest was probably exactly what my body needed, during this time I got treatment for my shin splints and I ate a lot of carbohydrates!

The carb loading was in full swing by the Thursday before the marathon, no foods were off limits as everything we ate would be fuel to ensure our glycogen stores were full. We started to think about increasing the carb intake not just at dinner but for lunch too. As a lover of carbs things couldn't have been better but the closer we got to Sunday, the fuller and more bloated I started to feel! I think we may have taken this part of our training a little too seriously! Saturday may have been a carb too far, lunch we had gnocchi with mozzarella and a tomato and basil sauce. Then in the evening we went round to our friends Joe and Anne's where Paul and I shared a large Papa Johns pizza and ate a lot of crumble. A couple of weeks before we had given Joe and Anne some rhubarb from our allotment and at that moment 'crumble wars' was conceived. We made a crumble (ours was rhubarb and strawberry) to bring round with us, although in my usual fashion I managed to get something wrong. I grabbed the first bag of flour in the cupboard which happened to be self-raising an not plain. I was concerned that I would end up making a cake rather than a crumble but somehow it worked out OK! There were 3 crumbles on offer in total and of course we had to try a bit of everyones to judge the winner (it wasn't mine)!

Gnocchi, mozzarella and basil for lunch

The morning of the race I was awake at 4am, I don't know why, it may have been the anticipation of the day ahead or that was the time it started to get light and the cats were stirring. I lay in bed as long as I could, we had house guests who weren't running so didn't really want to get up and make noise too early. I started preparing myself for the race, applying KT Tape to both shins and for my IT band. The physio had advised to tape both of my shins and wear compression sleeves over the top to provide some extra support. I wasn't hungry but I knew I couldn't skip breakfast so forced down some porridge and started sipping on Lucozade. Despite having laid out all of my kit the night before I was still running around and finding additions for my running vest. Mum arrived to pick us up, she had kindly offered to drop us off and collect us expecting us to be incapable of driving ourselves later on!

Almost mummified in KT Tape!

We arrived at the Great Notley Country Park which was the start/finish for the Flitch Way Spring Marathon. We bumped into Lindley (Run Director - Challenge Running) who was putting out some signage and promptly gave me some stick for getting my excuses in early in my previous blog post! Excuses or not I still felt massively disadvantaged by injury and lack of training. 26.2 miles seemed like a massive mountain to climb from where I was standing. We headed in to collect our race numbers and get ourselves ready to run. Paul had said some while ago that if I was going to go ahead and run the marathon that he would run with me as it was my first. I was really grateful that he was going to be by my side, he'd run two 30 mile races so was aware of the common pitfalls and was there to ensure I finished.

Around 20 minutes before the start we decided to go outside and begin our warm up. I started to jog with some trepidation as it was the first test for the shin splints. It was a little painful to begin with but nowhere near as painful as it had been 2 weeks ago when I had stopped running, however I was still unsure if it was enough to get me to the finish. As we were stretching other runners began to gather ready for the race briefing. It was going to be a small field of runners, around 50 in total. I scanned the field and felt vastly inferior, the crowd looked full of experienced runners who made running a marathon look like a stroll in the park. There were a couple of people sporting 100 Marathon Club gear, one lady I overheard was running marathon 199 that day! Then there was little me, first timer and not even sure I was capable of finishing.

Looking fresh at the start!

The briefing was pretty standard given that we were more than familiar with the Flitch Way although we did listen carefully to the instructions for when we reached Great Dunmow as the route was slightly different to how we knew to rejoin the Flitch Way and at the New Years Eve Flitch Way Marathon some runners had got lost at this point. We headed to the start line and waited for a few minutes for the clock to strike 10, I said goodbye to Mum shortly before the airhorn sounded and we were off.

We had placed ourselves nearer the back of the pack to avoid getting carried along and going off too quick. The first part of the race takes you out of the park, over the Braintree bypass bridge before joining the Flitch about a mile out. The first mile was clocked 10:08, more or less spot on pace. I had said that I wanted to aim for around 10 minute miles as this was roughly the pace I had been training for. We were soon at Rayne Station where we were expecting to see Paul's parents. Paul's Dad was hiding behind a tree with his iPad ready to catch the moment (it turns out his thumb was over the lens though). Also cheering us on were the group we run with on a Sunday, who gave us enthusiastic cheers and shouts of encouragement. Then just a short way further along we bumped into Joe and Anne who were out walking the dog and also gave us some cheers. We were not expecting to see so many people, we were really grateful for the support from everyone.

The Flitch Way was engorged in sunshine and looking glorious, spring was in full swing with everything in a perfumed blossom and looking green and lush. We had certainly been given the pick of the weather. Although it was slightly unexpected, according to the Met Office it was supposed to be cloudy from 9 am so we had left the running sunglasses at home not wanting the extra baggage and we'd not even considered sunscreen! Still it shouldn't cause us any issues, we just had to ensure we were taking on plenty of water. Fortunately much of the Flitch is covered by trees and hedgerows so we were given a break from the sun periodically.

We were passed on the run by approximately 25 scouts out for a bike ride, the Um Bongo vests got noticed by a couple of the kids. I love how these vests bring a smile to so many people. Around 4 miles I took on the first gel. I didn't want to wait until I had already started depleting the body's glycogen stores before trying to replenish. At this stage everything seemed to be going well, a quick scan from head to toe and I was probably the more comfortable I'd felt running in a long while. A short while later we had a slightly strange encounter! We found a man at the side of the Flitch stood in a field playing blues on the harmonica. I say it was strange but then we were the ones running 26.2 miles for 'fun' on a Sunday morning, so it's debatable exactly who the strange one is! Just after Felsted we reached the first check point which came as a welcome sight, it felt like a long 5.5 miles to get this far. One of the volunteers was dressed in a chicken suit which bought a smile to my face! We stocked up on some fig rolls, grabbed a Freddo Frog for later and refilled our water bottles before being on our way again.

From here we headed towards the town of Dunmow. We emerged from the hedgerow to cross the road and run a short part of the run on pavement before picking the Flitch up again through a hedge at the back of an industrial estate. This was probably the muddiest part of the course which was still covered in puddles from the weeks earlier rain, it didn't cause the road shoes too much trouble, it just made my pretties a little dirty! Paul was fantastic, he was constantly on the case asking if I had been drinking enough water and managing my energy intake. Although I have to admit at this stage I was getting a little sick of eating, I was starting to feel like I was being force fed, I was feeling bloated and full. In fact I couldn't wait to feel hungry again so I could enjoy eating. Paul had asked me to think about what I'd like to eat post race but I couldn't bare to think about it, I would have been quite content with a piece of toast for my dinner at that moment in time.

At mile 9 I started to feel some minor issues, my calf muscles started to tighten just enough so that I was aware of them. This was to be expected with the issues I'd been having with the shin splints. I also had a very painful kneecap which seemed to be a new problem. When we reached check point 2 at mile 10 we stopped, took on some food and water and had a stretch out. Check point 2 was manned by the familiar faces of Dan and Mark from Great Notley parkrun. Not that there was any competition between the check points but it was a welcome stop, they had some music as well as a few additional goodies of gels and electrolyte tablets which they had kindly provided themselves. I had a few cheese and onion Mini Cheddar crinkles, whilst the flavour would most likely repeat on me for the next few miles I figured eating something salty at this point may help my tight muscles in case it was a bit of cramp.

I was really enjoying the route, I was on parts of the Flitch Way that we rarely venture out to so it provided me with a welcome distraction. We passed Takeley Station and knew we were close to the check point 3 where we'd have our numbers recorded and turn around. I could see the Challenge Running flag in the distance and knew we had made it! I also spied our friend Chris who had decided to surprise us, he also very kindly had bought some Jaffa Cakes. Unfortunately I was feeling too full to take on any food of substance and just ate a couple more Mini Cheddars to try and help replace lost salts. We allowed ourselves a good 5 minutes rest to ensure we were ready to tackle the next half.

Feeling good at the halfway point

We set off from the check point knowing that every step we took was one step closer to the finish line. On the home stretch I had said to Paul that I will be walking all hills as a way to conserve my energy as I was becoming very aware that if my body was going to break down it would be anytime soon. We reached the 15 mile mark, I knew anything above this and I would be in unchartered territory and this terrified me slightly. When we reach check point 4 we stopped again for a breather and I gladly took up the offer of the electrolyte tablet knowing that cramp could be setting in. The miles started ticking down until we hit the dreaded mile 18. I had heard many runners talk about the 'wheels falling off' at this stage of the race and I do believe this was starting to happen to me. By mile 19 I was exhausted, my muscles were feeling tired and like they'd been rinsed of any energy they had left. I don't think this was down to my fuelling strategy as I had been piling in the calories with each mile but more likely the effect of having only ever reached 15 miles in training. I knew that to get to the finish I was going to have to adopt a new strategy, I walked at pace and ran for as long as I could before needing to take another active recovery. It made the final 7-8 miles of the race really drag.

We were soon back on familiar territory between Felsted and Rayne, a stretch of the Flitch we run regularly. Psychologically I felt strong as I knew exactly what was ahead of me, however the fatigue was getting the better of me. All of a sudden I found myself getting confused about which landmarks came next as I tried to picture how close I was to home. The final 4 miles felt longer than the previous 22 I had just run as I continued to walk/jog, by this stage I felt like I was wading through treacle and I could tell my form was getting sloppy the more tired I got. Had I been alone at this point I could have easily drifted into a bad place. The burning sensation on my kneecap was making itself known with each stride. Paul kept telling me how proud he was of me and what a fantastic effort I had put into running this marathon. With the adage "pain is temporary, pride is forever" I persevered and pushed on knowing that I had got this far and I wasn't going to allow the last few miles to defeat me. Plus I knew Mum was waiting for us at the finish and I didn't want to keep her waiting for us too long.

We reached Rayne Station and I knew we were just a mile away from the finish. The station was buzzing with families, cyclists and walkers taking advantage of the glorious sunshine. Although there was no one there cheering for us it still gave me a temporary lift as this was probably the most people we'd seen over the past 5 hours of running! I could just about see another runner ahead of us who was also walk/jogging and there was the temptation to try and catch him up. I quickly realised there was no chance and turned my focus onto the finish. Paul suggested that we hold hands as we crossed the finish line just as Paula Radcliffe had done weeks previously at the London Marathon (paying homage to the 1981 finish). We walked the final bridge on our way back into the Great Notley Country Park saving one last burst of energy for the hill of doom. As we ran towards the hill we spotted two familiar figures in the distance, it was Colm and Michelle from the Sunday running group who had waved us off in the morning! Seems they had tracked our progress through Mark (one of the marshals) on check point 4 (mile 16) and timed their arrival for the finish. Paul and I were truly touched by the gesture as it was completely unexpected.

Conquering the hill of doom hand in hand

Given a boost we started our ascent up the hill of doom and joined hands. Colm sped up the hill ahead of us to get some photographs which just seemed like showing off as we put every last ounce of effort into making it up the hill. Mark also captured us on video crossing the line, you can watch it here:

We crossed the finish line and touched the bird sculpture to stop the watch at 5:09:53. I had half expected to be crying like a baby especially as I saw Mum at the finish line waving and cheering us but the only emotion I felt was joy, I did it, I was a marathoner! With a smile beaming from ear to ear Lindley presented us with our finishers medal, the second in a collection of 3 for the Flitch Way series.

Happy, relieved and proud!

For what I had anticipated to be a journey to hell and back actually turned out to be one of my most enjoyable race experiences to date. It wasn't to be underestimated, it was physically very tough and for me an ultimate show in my stubbornness! I don't think I could have done it without Paul's help, he was a star and ensured I was at the best I could possibly be to concentrate on running and completing the race. The show of support from my family and friends was really touching and helped us through the race, I can't thank every one of them enough for being there for us. The volunteers were all amazing, friendly and supportive. I have done a few trail races now and found it to have a much more pleasant vibe than there seems to be in road racing, you really do feel part of a family. Even Mum commented on what a pleasure it was to watch the race, she had arrived way too early for our finish and enjoyed sitting at the top of the hill watching the other runners finish. A huge thanks to Challenge Running for putting on another seamless, well organised event, everything was perfect and I could not have wished for a better first marathon.

I have no shame in admitting I spent the evening wearing my t-shirt and medal!

Seeing as this blog is about food as well as running, I thought it would be fun to work out what I had eaten for the race so here it is:

The fuel

• Porridge with chia seeds, banana, honey
• x1 bottle Lucozade Sport (Caribbean Burst)
• x1 Banana
• x2 fig rolls
• x3 Freddo Frogs
• x2 cups of flat coke
• x4 energy gels
• x1 packet Honey Stinger energy chews
• Handful of Mini Cheddar crinkles
• Handful of salt and vinegar crisps 
• Handful of salted Hula Hoops
• Electrolyte tablet 
• 1.8 litres of water

My Garmin reliably told me that I had burnt 2291 kcal. I worked out that this equates to the equivalent of 81 Party Rings! I have had a little bit of an obsession this week with Party Rings as I discovered that they are now vegetarian so have been scoffing rather a lot of them, is it me or have they gotten smaller?!

I got home and dived in the shower before I seized up too much. I needn't have worried about my appetite as it soon came back and my mind turned to the victory dinner. Given that we had pizza the night before it had to be a Chinese takeaway so we placed our order and impatiently waited for the delivery. After we'd eaten, the rest of the evening consisted of me sleeping through films on the sofa before we decided to call it a night at 9:15 and head to bed!

Victory dinner tasted so good!

I had booked the following day off of work as I had expected to be unable to walk. I wasn't doing too bad to be honest, I expecting a lot worse. I didn't need to resort to bum shuffling down the stairs which was good and even managed to hobble out to Tesco to do the weekly food shop. To my total surprise my shin splints had behaved themselves throughout the entire race, not the slightest whinge from them. A week of physio and the KT Tape really did the trick! Here is the recorded damage:

Triage list

• Armpit chaffing
• Boob chaffing
• Matching blisters on inside of each heel
• Swelling and redness of right kneecap 
• Sun burn
• Plantar Fasciitis grumbles
• DOMS of all DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness)

It was always about the finish line and not the finish time but a little bit of me can't help but think had I not spent so long resting and chatting at the check points (approximately 20 minutes) I would have probably got a sub 5 hour finish time. That's perhaps my goal for the next one. Just a couple of days on I am already looking for my next marathon, preferably another in 2015...

Home Run

After several weeks seconded to the Hatfield Forest parkrun I thought I was long overdue a return to my home parkrun of Great Notley. It also happened to coincide with the monthly parkrun outing of Michelle's Running Group who I train with a couple of times a month. Each month usually has a theme and it had been decided that we'd wear something yellow for spring. I pulled back the curtains Saturday morning to be greeted by overcast sky, it wasn't looking promising, hardly the image of spring I had in mind! Yellow isn't exactly my colour but it just so happened that I had a race t-shirt from the 2014 Hatfield Broad Oak 10k, I may have finally found a use for the countless race t-shirts I seem to have accumulated over the years! I was running solo as Paul had been struck down by flu and despite being desperate to get out and run, his hopes were purely aspirational.

An excellent turnout of runners from the Michelle's Running Group

I decided to run to parkrun to add on some extra mileage. At just over 2 km it makes for a good warm-up and is far easier than taking the car and forking out the £3.50 parking. It's also a good indicator of how I am feeling, after almost a week off of running my legs were feeling pretty fresh for the rest. However, I didn't feel capable of pushing for a parkrun PB (set back in September 2014) as my recent times would suggest I am way off.

I met up with the group who had congregated by the cafe sheltering from the wind and rain, they were not difficult to spot dressed in yellow, we certainly brightened up the park! It was a fantastic turnout for the group with 24 runners in attendance, some of which were making their parkrun debut! After a catch up and chat we headed out for a warm-up, this is one benefit of running with a group as I am totally hopeless at having the discipline to give myself a proper warm-up and stretch despite being more than aware of the benefits!

By the time 9 am came around the rain was lashing down, luckily I had opted for trail shoes which made the recently soaked park a bit easier to navigate. I set off at a comfortable pace and found myself going along with the crowd dodging a few runners on the narrower sections of the start. Great Notley is a 2 lap course with the second lap sending you up the infamous 'hill of doom'. I find it sometimes difficult to get the pacing right for this course as you have to take into account the hill and that it's going to add time to your pace at kilometre 3. Looking at my pace it was more or less consistent which is an improvement as I often have a habit of going too fast on the first lap only to find myself unable to keep up the pace on the second.

Descending the 'Hill of Doom' on lap 2

Kilometre 3 and 4 usually involves a lot of looking at the watch trying to work out if a PB is on or not, this time I couldn't tell so decided it was best to keep pushing on as hard as I could. I passed Michelle who was coaching her daughter Angelina around the course, they were looking really strong and they egged me on to catch Rob, Michelle's Husband who I had in my sights but catching him was unlikely. I then passed a young girl who must have been no older than 10 and she complimented me on my running! Taken back a little by her comment I responded by telling her to keep up with me which she did for a short while! With half a kilometre to go I knew I had roughly 2 minutes to finish if I was to be in with a chance of getting a PB. Despite my spirited sprint finish I crossed the line at 26:02, 27 seconds off of a PB time. I was a bit disappointed as I had wanted to ring the old fashioned style school bell to indicate I'd got a PB (I think this must be a new feature of the Great Notley parkrun, it's pretty cool), but to take a positive away it was the fastest I'd gone around the course this year so perhaps some progression is on the cards. I keep telling myself that I'll go around the course faster once it's dried out but I know there are several other factors slowing me down at the moment.

Sprint finish - another dreadful running face photo to add to the collection!

Paul unable to help himself had dragged himself out of bed to come along and support. We stood at the finish together cheering in as many people in yellow as we could. Unfortunately having been soaked through and not having anything dry to put on meant I got cold very quickly and opted for a lift home with Paul rather than running home. It was fantastic to see so many of the group taking part in parkrun and enjoying themselves, another great effort from everyone with quite a few setting new PB's!

Conscious I am supposed to be running a marathon in a matter of weeks, Sunday was an opportunity to stretch my legs a little and register a long run. Training for this marathon has been far from ideal. When I signed up in January I had ample time to put in the training, however it seems that the past 5 months have been nothing but a struggle with injury. Up until Sunday I had never run further than 13.1 miles, a half marathon. I knew this was going to be a problem if I was going to go ahead with the plan.

Sunday morning I set out to complete 15 miles. I met up with a few people we regularly run with on a Sunday from Rayne Station, we headed out along the Flitch Way in the direction of Dunmow. I became aware within the first couple of miles that my pace was far slower than the rest of the group and insisted that they pushed on and I would run with them if I was able to catch up, I knew though that this was unlikely as my strategy was to walk/run to achieve the target of 15 miles. I decided that I would run 2.5 miles in one direction and then return to Rayne Station before running the 2.5 mile to Braintree Station and repeat until I clocked the ambitious 15, this meant I wouldn't be far from home should injury disrupt my run. Seemed like a good idea at the time but it made the run really drag on and quite mentally testing!

Flitch Way a pretty straight and lonely run!

The weather hardly helped, it was one of those mornings where I was unsure what to wear. It'd probably be cold initially but would warm up rapidly as I was running. I decided on wearing a long sleeve top and shorts which was fine until I got soaked through and the wind started blowing. I like to be organised when I run as being unprepared just stresses me out so I had thought ahead and packed my new Inov8 waterproof into my hyration vest (or bottle bra as a friend called it!). It probably seems an overkill to wear a hydration vest on a 15 mile run but I refer to my earlier point about being unprepared, at least I can carry all the stuff I think I need and get some practice using it. I decided to stop and walk for a moment during mile 4 to get my waterproof out and give me some chance of holding onto some body heat, I honestly thought I would overheat and end up stopping in around a mile to take the jacket off but as it happens it was exactly what I needed on the more open parts of the Flitch where you can get caught in a cross wind. Feeling comfortable again I pressed on.

Brief stop at 7.5 miles to refuel and catch my breath

When I got to the halfway point at Braintree Station I rewarded my efforts with a quick break and took on an energy gel. Again debatable whether I really needed one but wanted to give myself every opportunity to complete the distance and it also gives me practice using the gels. After a quick breather I turned myself around and headed back in the direction of Rayne Station. Along the way a few of the guys that I had started the run with powered past me, they were out with the aim to run for 2 hours, it was evident that they were a lot quicker than me. The rest of my run was fairly lonely, I was missing my usual running partner, Paul. From around 9 miles I seemed to throw in a walk every mile, it was around this time I could feel my hamstring pulling and all my injuries complaining. The final 3 miles was a real challenge to take me over my furthest distance, I focused on finishing and telling myself how pleased I'd be once it was done! With a bit of determination I made it back home, 15 miles in 2 hours 36 minutes, hardly world beating but it was still 2 miles further than I have run before.

A new record!

The rest of the morning was a bit of a write off which wasn't unexpected. After a shower I crashed on the sofa and managed to catch some of the London Marathon coverage on TV. Knowing how I felt after running 15 miles made me really question whether my body was strong and resilient enough to take the beating of 26.2 miles with the limited training I have had. With 3 weeks to go I am still undecided but have an inkling that I already know what my decision will be. I managed to see Paula Radcliffe complete what would be her last London Marathon as a professional athlete and was slightly taken back at just how emotional I felt as she crossed the line. What a woman and what a career she has had, a true role model and inspiration to all. It is amazing that her world record marathon time of 2:15:25 still stands to this day, 12 years after it was set and I wonder how long it'll be before it's beaten. I was unaware of the extent of the injury setbacks she has faced since her withdrawal from the Team GB squad for the London 2012 Olympics which made her marathon time of 2 hours 36 minutes (slight coincidence that this is the exact time it took me to run my 15 miles) even more incredible. It gave me some hope that if Paula could do it perhaps I could too... Then I realised I am not a professional athlete nor do I have the team of physiotherapists, coaches etc helping me along the way!

One of the best things about a long run is the feed afterwards! My Garmin informed me that I had burned 1500 calories during my run and I was going to try my best to feed my tired and aching muscles. Paul is a total sweetie, not stranger to distance running himself he sympathised with my post run slump on the sofa and served me food and drink for pretty much the rest of the afternoon. He had even been to do the food shop and foraged me some post run treats of Bounty cookies which were delightful with a cup of coffee. Lunch was a spicy corn chowder soup with some jalapeño and three cheese bread which was just what was needed to warm up from my run.

I may not have made my mind up on my forthcoming marathon but watching the London Marathon has inspired me to enter the 2016 ballot which opens on Monday for the second year running. I'll be keeping my fingers crossed with no doubt hundreds of thousands of other runners! All in all it was a good weekend of training and what was satisfying was it was all on my doorstep, no cars or travelling required. I feel privileged to have such enjoyable running routes close to home.

Team Um Bongo does the Flitch Way 10k

I was pretty excited when I heard that Challenge Running were organising a series of new races for 2015 along the Flitch Way. The Flitch Way for those of you who are unfamiliar is a former railway line running for 15 miles from Braintree to Bishops Stortford. It's flat, free from traffic and covers some beautiful Essex countryside. It is also where I do most of my running these days as it's on my doorstep.  

Paul and I were not going to miss this one so signed up right away. Our friends Chris and Alec also signed up, Team Um Bongo assemble! Chris some while ago bought himself an Um Bongo running vest. I am pretty sure at the time we laughed at him as it is a pretty mad vest. Now we all own these running vests and enter events under the name Team Um Bongo (when not Team BBQ)!

The days leading up to the race were less than ideal. Paul and I had been doing some decorating and were moving furniture on the Thursday evening. We were lifting a sofa which wasn't at all heavy just a little awkward to grip when I felt my upper back twinge, I shook it off and thought nothing more of it. Then Friday morning I got up to go to work when my back twinge went into spasm. Back to bed I went! Then Friday evening I started to feel like I was coming down with a lurgy. I felt like it was a conspiracy to stop me from running on the Sunday. I didn't want to see those dreaded letters against my name DNS (Did Not Start) so did everything in my power to get myself better. A bit of gentle yoga, some natural anti-inflammatories and every cold/flu remedy known to man seemed to do the trick.

One of the best things about running is that it gives you a license to eat, especially when you have an event coming up. That's an excuse I use probably far too often to justify my eating habits! So Saturday lunchtime I had a tough decision to make, go to the supermarket to do the food shop on an empty stomach or make Marmite pasta for lunch. I chose the pasta of course! To most Marmite pasta probably sounds a little random and like something from a student cookbook but I assure you it's flipping awesome. My dear friend Patsy put me onto the recipe (it's from Nigella Lawson), it's so simple that if you're a Marmite lover then you'll probably already have the ingredients to make it - spaghetti, butter, Marmite and some Italian hard cheese (vegetarian).

Sunday morning provided us with some glorious weather conditions, spring finally felt like it had sprung. The race started and finished at the Great Notley Country Park which is just off of the Flitch Way. It made a great race HQ and provided all of the essential facilities. It is also the home of the Great Notley parkrun, our local parkrun so we were in familiar surroundings and felt like we were at home. We caught up with a couple of other people we knew who were also running, Matt from Michelle's Running Group and Helen who we run with on a Sunday. We listened to race briefing given by Lindley (the Race Director) before heading to the start line. The race was a straight out and back course, starting at the Great Notley Country Park, picking up the Flitch Way along to Bannister Green Halt where we'd turn around and come back on ourselves. The start was just outside of the park and the finish at the top of the hill, affectionately known to Great Notley parkrunners as the 'hill of doom'. Luckily I was already aware of this (I volunteered for the New Years Eve Flitch Way Marathon and this also finished at the top of the hill) and it didn't come as a surprise but the reaction from the 200 field of runners would suggest that they were shocked why anyone would end a race at the top of the hill! The same sort of person who makes a 10 km course 10 km-ish (10.3 km according to my Garmin)!

Team Um Bongo L to R: Alec, Chris, Paul, Emily (and the hill of doom in the background)
(Photo credit: Katrina Leamey)

At 10am the air horn sounded and we were off. I started with a steady pace trying to keep myself around to 5 min/km, I wasn't aiming for a set time as I knew the hill finish would mean that I'd have to bank myself a couple of minutes to be within a shot of a PB and I was well aware of the niggling injuries I have. The first km the field started to spread out a little and I registered a 5:03 km so all was good. Then a girl next to me tripped and took a nasty tumble, she looked like she landed on her shoulder and grazed her knee. I stopped to check she was ok as did another chap who helped her up to her feet. She was just a bit shook up and was able to carry on. I was unexpectedly greeted by cheers at Rayne Station where the group I do my long Sunday run had finished their run and were enjoying a cup of tea. This gave me a boost and I tried to pick up my pace a little before I hit the bypass bridge which on a bit of an incline.

One of my reservations about the race was as it is an out and back race, before you get to the turn around checkpoint you'd be passed by other runners coming in the other direction on the home straight and I thought this could be a little demoralising. The first few runners who passed us were cheered on by the the other runners and given words of support and encouragement, it added a great vibe to the race. Then to my surprise I was passed by Paul who was on the home leg, he must have been 2 km ahead of me at this point and was looking strong considering he'd had issues with his achilles a few days earlier. I'd not been paying much attention but I was sure he was in the top 10 at this stage. Every runner I knew and passed going out or coming back got a high five, I forgot to mention to Chris that he must be less enthusiastic with his high five as I think he almost dislocated my shoulder! At the checkpoint I grabbed a much needed cup of water. I decided not to run with water as it was a short enough distance not to need any and if I'd hydrated well enough I should be fine, however in hindsight I wish I'd carried a small bottle.

On the return 5 km I really found a good rhythm and found myself getting faster and slowly making my way up the field passing a few runners. I even managed to register a couple of sub 5 min/km. Passing Rayne Station the running group were still there and again gave me some great encouragement. With just over a km to go one of the runners said to me "I could really do with a carton of Um Bongo right now", all I could say in reply was "me too!", I was gasping. The last km was torture, all I could think about was how thirsty I was feeling and how close yet still so far I was from the finish line where water awaits. I tagged along with a couple who were clearly going for a time, keeping up with them pushed me on and before I knew it I was over the bridge and back into the park nearing the finish. Just the hill of doom to conquer!

Climbing the hill of doom to the finish line
(Photo credit: Katrina Leamey)

The hill was lined with people cheering and supporting which really helped me find that final bit of effort needed to keep on going. Then I spotted Paul and his parents and my Mum, knowing that they'd be waiting for me at the finish line had really motivated me throughout the race. "Touch the bird to stop the clock" was all I remembered so I crossed the line and reached out for the concrete sculpture that sits on top of the hill. Lindley awarded me with my finishers medal (which is super cool) and I grabbed a much needed drink. Then I went to see Paul and Alec who had already finished and were waiting, they asked if I had stopped my watch, of course I hadn't I'd been too distracted!

The race medal was designed in the style of an old railway ticket

We waited at the top of the hill to see all the runners we knew home. Being a local race it was nice running alongside some familiar faces we know from parkrun and the circle of running friends we've grown. The whole event had a really nice and friendly atmosphere to it. Once Team Um Bongo were all accounted for we headed to the shelter of indoors at it had been quite breezy on top of the hill. Chris had put on a special treat by making some 'non-sausage rolls' especially for Paul and I as a thank you for the volunteering we'd done at Hatfield Forest parkrun (of which he is Run Director for).

Finishers with our race bling

It was never going to be a PB course due to the 0.3 km extra & the finish hill, besides the day was about enjoying myself in the company of friends. The official finishing times for Team Um Bongo were: Paul 43:19, Alec 50:14, Emily 52:42, Chris 58:54. Annoyingly, according to my Garmin my time at the 10 km mark WAS a PB of 50:58 (beating my 2014 Hatfield Broad Oak time of 51:12). However I was pleased with my efforts for the first 10 km race of the year and to my surprise I finished as the 10th female. Paul did fantastically well finishing 9th overall.

Huge thanks to Challenge Running for a fantastically organised event and the volunteer team who were always happy and helpful! If you fancy one of their Flitch Way events they've organised a Marathon in May, a half in June or if you're totally insane a New Years Eve/New Years Day double header of marathons! (Edit: an Autumn Flitch Way 10 km has just been added for September).

A special thank you to Scimitar Sports who were able to arrange a bespoke vest for me so that I could run with my fellow Um Bongoites. It was great fun wearing the vest and it attracted may comments and smiles from the crowd. The power of advertising is strong, I am sitting here drinking a cold glass of Um Bongo whilst writing this blog. Ever since someone had mentioned it to me on the run it's all I've fancied!