28 days to go

I am having to defer :( After losing nearly 4 weeks of training through injury I am not able to take part in the London Marathon 2015. I could have done it anyway and just walked most of it but I think I would have felt cheated out of the opportunity. I can defer and tackle it again in 2016 with a lot more training behind me hopefully.

This isn't to say I'm going to stop running (or writing!). I have already booked onto a half marathon for July (my first ever one!) and am planning on doing a few more over the next year. 

Hopefully this way I will be more prepared so I am not last minute with my training. So if I do get another injury I will hopefully still be able to continue as I will be a lot further on in my training. 

Also, this isn't to say you can't still sponsor me. I'm not going to be asking for any sponsorships next year so everything that is given to me and Andrew this time round (before this London Marathon) will count for my marathon next year too. 

Andrew's Dad (Bill) was diagnosed with chronic Sarcoidosis not long after I had met him and been accepted into the Windle clan. I have seen his struggle over the years, not only with the condition itself but with the lack of research, knowledge and understanding. This has caused many frustrations along the way, with many doctors being baffled and managing the condition becoming trial and error and complex. Sarcoidosis is related to abnormal behaviour of the immune system causing it to attacking healthy parts of the body. It causes granulomas to form in any part of the body, in Bills case, his lungs. With the condition having got so bad that stairs become a mountain, every day tasks become the impossible and his Northern Soul dancing passion has become a far distant memory, me and Andrew wanted to do something to help awareness of this condition and how devastating it can be. You can read more about the condition here www.blf.org.uk/page/sarcoidosis 

Thank you for all your donations so far, they are very much appreciated, and there's still time to donate here http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-web/fundraiser/showFundraiserPage.action?userUrl=AndrewWindle&faId=527939&isTeam=false

Any amount will go a long way to tackling some of the hurdles my father-in-law and the Windles have had to face so please just donate what you can.

Read More

9 Weeks To Go

Well, I've had a rough couple of weeks. After running 10 miles at a speed obviously too fast for me to handle I have suffered. I tried getting back on the treadmill last week but my legs were just giving way so had to switch to the bike to keep up some form of exercise. I was supposed to be aiming for 12 miles the following weekend, but without being able to do any running I felt it was far too great a challenge to attempt. I allowed myself a contingency week in my training for moments like this so I decided to take a rest week. It was my sons 6th birthday so I had a busy weekend anyway. 

On the following Monday I was feeling a bit run down but got on the treadmill and just ran for half an hour, my ankle was feeling a bit niggly but wasn't very painful just hurt when I bent it. However after half an hour I was ready to stop I felt exhausted. On the Wednesday I was still not feeling 100% so just did 20 lengths in the pool as I didn't want to aggrevate my ankle any more. Feeling suitably tired I went straight to bed. I woke up in the night with severe heartburn so got out of bed to get a glass of milk. I then had to rush to the bathroom to be sick. The last thing I remember is being violently sick in the toilet. Then I woke up on the bathroom floor with my husband asking me what had happened. I must have blacked out and I was bruised all over from hitting my chin and chest and arm. I went to the doctors who listened to my heart and suggested an ECG, routine for any unexplained blackout. 

Feeling fine the next few days I figured I could still attempt my 12 miles. If I didn't do it this weekend then I would be behind my training plan and it would all go to pot. So I made sure I ate my porridge on Sunday morning, got ready, did my stretches then set out. I could feel my ankle but with anything I felt it just needed warming up and would feel fine soon. However after a mile it was getting worse, every impact was really sore and felt myself almost trying to avoid striking it. Defeated I stopped and limped home. 

This was the worst possible thing that could happen. I burst into tears when I got through the door, after everything I had been through I felt I could still go out there and achieve but there was always something stopping me. I'm so angry and frustrated right now, I can't afford to have another rest week. It means my marathon aims are set back and looks like I'll be walking it like I said I would in the beginning. Totally gutted doesn't even cover it, for the first time in my life I actually want to run. That night my ankle kept me awake, every time I twisted it it hurt, it obviously didn't do it much good with the impact on it. 

Next step I have to rest my ankle! And maybe get it checked over by a physio to know the quickest recovery method. I'll still be exercising but it will be on those horrible elliptical trainers or swimming. 

Bummer.

Read More

11 weeks to go

I have finally got round to updating my blog again. I had a well deserved break after my 10 mile race in December and didn't do any running for 3 weeks over Christmas. I have finally got back up to 10 miles again building up slowly so I thought this was the opportune time to start writing again on the run up to the marathon. 

From the beginning of January it is 16 weeks to the London Marathon so it was perfect to start a training plan, I have been following the Nike Finish A Race marathon training plan. http://www.nike.com/runningfeatures/facebook/facebook_web/eventprogram/pdf/en_US/marathon_pr.pdf

We received a gift of family gym membership from my parents for Christmas which has been invaluable for keeping motivated during the cold. Having never run on a treadmill before it took a bit of getting used to and any longer runs do feel very difficult, I think it was more to do with being forced to watch either Columbo or Jeremy Kyle for entertainment, it doesn't really compare to being out in the open. 

January is always an easy month to commit yourself to something 100%. No one is going out, there's not much you miss out on or any reasons to fall off the wagon. It hasn't been without its wobbles though, and not just the fleshy sort. The weekend of Blue Monday I hit a downward spiral. I do struggle with depression and sometimes it just hits me even though I am on happy pills for it. I want to hide away from the world and the thought of having to get up every day and face the world is a struggle. Its the mental battle of knowing that I have to get up at least three times a week every week until April and run until it hurts, when it feels all I want to do is pull the duvet over my head and stay there until I feel strong enough to emerge. Everyone always tells you that doing regular exercise is good for depression. The only trouble is that if I miss a training day I am then racked with guilt about it and it makes it all that harder to get back out there. A million questions are asked. Why am I doing this? Is it worth it? Will I feel better for giving up? 

But I have managed to find the motivation from somewhere and have always hit my long run targets at the end of the week so far. I think what makes it harder is knowing how stubborn I am and I know that once I start I won't stop until it kills me, which sometimes feels like it is, so starting is the most difficult part.

On Saturday I ran 10 miles and took a whole 14 minutes off my previous time. However I am still recovering 2 days later. I went out way too hard and I have suffered because of it. I just wanted to prove that I have come a long way again. But now I have proved that I can get back into my normal routine and my slow plodding pace just to ensure I get round. My target is 12 miles this Sunday so I will report back with how that goes. 

Read More