Today!

Hazel

Today is the day!

We had a crazy week, getting ready for the arrival of my wonderful brother from Australia and super-new-mum sister Hannah. We also had to haul ourselves to London for the expo to pick up our numbers. But we did manage to get two more lovely, easy short runs in. Final things we noticed were that, when she gets nervous Gillian doesn’t sleep or eat: whoops, and that a year of running one handed with the buggy and the tether really has given me the biggest guns ever!

The expo was the most exciting day ever, and we had a blast. Baby Arthur even ran the marathon course which was drawn on the floor.

So this morning, I’m sitting eating porridge with treacle, and scrambled eggs on toast, with the running husband and I assume Gillian is doing something very similar at her house with my brother. We’re about to leap on a train into London, to be followed by the two men plus my dad plus the baby for their spectating mission. The ever brilliant mother-in-law is on baby-sitting duty for the day, in a park somewhere in west London, and super-mum sister is ground 0 in Windsor watching the TV coverage and acting as a communications portal. Houston, if you like.

Gillian and I have a new extended tether, and I have some instructions courtesy of the London Marathon Disability Co-ordinator (as of yesterday!). The only thing left is for us to go! Wish us luck!

 

More Marathon Fuel

Hazel

Tuesday was a quick 3 miles. Gillian looked veritably disappointed at such a short distance, but I put my foot down: this is the taper. Relax, turn the legs over, that’s all we need to do. We can’t get any more fit from running this week, the only thing we can do is overdo it and ruin our chances. So light runs, and food are our focus. With that in mind, I planned a three miler to end at the Eton Fudge Shop! We arrived looking quite daft, tied together and blinking from the bright sun. But the wonderful man in the Eton Fudge Shop made a donation to our fundraising efforts (Thank you!) and gave us some hints and tips from his own marathon running experience. On top of that he sold us some of Gillian’s secret weapon. The silver bullet of long distance runners: fudge.

In the name of good science, Gillian has been systematically trialling every brand and flavour of fudge she can throughout our year of training. And we have settled on the clotted cream flavour and salted caramel flavour fudges. By brilliant coincidence our local fudge shop in Eton has the finest we have ever tasted, so if we keep running after the marathon I can foresee quite a few ‘runs’ which end at their front door….

So on the big day we will be fuelled by homemade brownies, fudge and Clif shot blocks. Not the most traditional of marathon fuels, but in my opinion a much healthier set of options than most people’s yakky energy gel pouches and wee-flavoured isotonic drinks! We’ll take water from the water stations, and hopefully get parachuted a flask of tea in the final miles from our able bodied assistants.

Fuel preparation sorted.

 

Motivation

Hazel

This week should have been horrific if our previous post-20 week was anything to go by. However, the gods of running are finally smiling on us. We reduced the Tuesday 7 to somewhere between 4 and 5, and ran without a watch. My aim was just to turn our legs over and prove that we felt better. I know what happens to heroes in Greek tragedy who show signs of hubris. It’s not worth the running equivalent of murdering your father and putting your own eyes out just to say that we managed 7 miles the day after a tough 20. So it was a nice no pressure run. We both ran in relative silence (aside from commands of course) and eventually I cracked and said ‘you know, I don’t want to jinx us, but I feel a lot better than I did after the last 20’. Gillian burst out laughing and said ‘I had literally just opened my mouth to say the very same thing!’ Buoyed by this positive revelation we cautiously cruised through the rest of the week, clocking up a respectable 33 miles for the week.

Sunday’s run was a 13, immediately following a 7 on Saturday. Gillian suffered somewhat, but soldiered on despite some knee niggles. Now that I look back, however, I’m not sure that the encouragement she received at mile 11 was quite what she needed. It ran along the lines of ‘look, if your pain is increasing we need to stop the run immediately, but if this is just will-power failing, the last thing I want to see on my final long run is your grimace. Look positive or I’ll assume you’re injured and we’ll have to stop’. Yes, probably not the sympathetic motivation she needed. Well, she looked brilliant by mile 13, so she’s either a very good faker, or the discomfort in her knee settled.

Next week definitely looks like a taper. 5, 4, 5, 8. This is the time to cut our miles, stay injury free and start banking sleep and confidence. The week after that we start eating for England. ‘Taper’ holds a lot of connotations. Personally I find it really exciting, especially since I love an excuse to eat everything in sight. I think Gillian is dreading it though, since it means she has only two weeks to go till the terrifying big day. She’s probably rocking somewhere or mainlining tea to try to calm down right now, but I am looking at a blank sheet of paper with the words ‘meal plan’ scrawled across the top. Good times.

An off-road EPIC! Hazel’s view

Hazel

What an epic Sunday run. There is not much detail I can add after Gillian’s account. 20 miles across country, with the added difficulties of navigation (thankfully this only troubled me, and just slowed Gillian down), terrain (by which we mean ankle deep sloshy mud with surprises hidden in it to catch the unsuspecting blind runner), hot weather (this must have been the hottest day of the year so far, I got a suntan), and the unexpected issue of tourists on the path through the popular towns. Added to this Gillian had to battle with the fact that she had forgotten to take any antiinflammatory drugs for her horrible arthritis, so she was going solo pain-wise. The main thing in the second half of the run was the crazy bridges. They were unforgiving to say the least, and one of them was so far past hump-backed it actually went to a point then straight back down. It would have been funny if we didn’t have slithery, mud covered feet and four screaming knees…

We have developed a passable technique for getting moving again after a stop or walk break. Unfortunately these are sometimes necessary when you come up against pedestrians and other hazards, as well as for navigation breaks when your guide is a moron. But starting up again after stopping is the hardest thing when you’ve got over a dozen miles in your legs, and especially if you have arthritis. The technique involves me being completely unsympathetic and telling Gillian that pain is all in the mind, and asking her to resolutely focus on how she felt just before the stop. I’m working on a watered down psychology technique of visualisation, based on no scientific research whatsoever, but it seems to be working in practice. We also run with very small steps to reduce the pain of each heavy step, which is a technique from my barefoot running style. Two little hamster wheels is the effect I’m going for. It’s not stylish, but it is effective. If anyone wants to hear me give a sermon on barefoot running techniques, just ask, but you will probably be in a minority!

Anyway, we managed 20 miles, against all the odds, and I am so incredibly proud of my unstoppable mother. We crossed into the next County for Pete’s sake! What she didn’t mention is that she also had a rough fall, which really pulled at her ankle. I take full responsibility; I warned her about the dip in the path but simply missed the rock sticking out over the lip of the hole which caused her to trip. Hence the frozen peas at the end. She also didn’t mention that on arrival in Henley we were informed that the baby had been an angel in the car and had been sick, so she then spent an hour playing with us in the park to cheer him up. No rest for marathon runners. We did finally get a lovely break in the Chocolate Cafe by the riverfront, with absolutely necessary tea, and lovely sandwiches and soup. I would strongly recommend this cafe. The staff were lovely, the food normal and not faffy but excellent quality, they gave the baby some crayons and paper, and seemed very forgiving of the fact that we looked like lunatics with bright red faces and fell on our food like a pair of scavenging birds. To the staff in the cafe, I am truly sorry for the mud we left under our cafe table, and I hope you like the picture we left you.

Marathon Fuel Recipes

Hazel

Gillian and I talk about cake a lot. Some of this is because we are vegetarians, so you have to take your culinary kicks where you can get them, but it is also because we need to find good calorific snacks to get us round those 26.2 miles.

With this in mind I have been practising and perfecting recipes I trialled on the running husband when he was training in Snowdonia last year. The first is pre and post run flapjack, and the second is mid run brownie. Both recipes are adapted to incorporate as much calorific benefit in the smallest number of bites while still being inherently ‘good-calories’. So I use a lot of dried fruit and nuts. To all you dieters out there, nuts are not evil. Nuts are brilliant, and they pack protein in huge quantities into something that tastes like cake, you can’t lose. Why chow down a big ugly slab of dead animal when you can eat cake instead?! So I won’t pontificate too much, but suffice it to say, I love these recipes now. Flapjack is perfect for pre-run fuel crumbled over or dipped in yoghurt, or immediately after running with a big mug of tea. The brownies can be gobbled down while running, as they are so soft and just shy of gooey, but they are crammed full of nuts, fat, salt and sugar. Perfect for long runs.

Flapjack

3 tbsp golden syrup (get a grip, you’re going to run the calories off)

250g butter

140g sugar

220g oats

30g flour

300g fruit nut and seeds

I use various combinations of cherries, cranberries, figs and dates, walnuts, pecans, pumpkin seeds, almonds, sunflowerr seeds, hazelnuts, Brazil nuts. All of these needs to be chopped up small enough that you don’t lose your dentures, but since the flapjack isn’t intended for mid-run fuel, I don’t worry about a bit of interest as you don’t risk choking.

Melt the syrup, butter and sugar in a pan, and don’t leave it too lo so it starts to go dark. Then throw in the oats, flour and nuts and mix like crazy. Keep the fruit aside. Lay half the mixture in a lined, greased oven tray (mine is about 6 inches by 12), then sprinkle the fruit evenly on top and put the rest of the oat mixture on top of this. It will need a good bit of pressing down and around with the back of a spoon. The aim is to ensure the fruit isn’t sticking up out of the top where it will burn and inflate horribly.

I put put mine in the oven at 140C for around an hour, checking every 20 minutes and adjusting if it looks like it is burning on the edges too much. Make sure there is no wobble in the middle, but keep the edges from burning. Stick it on a wire rack and chop into your required slices before it is completely cooled otherwise you’ll have to use a chainsaw.

Fruit and Nut Brownies

75g dark chocolate

150g butter

3 eggs

300g self raising flour

1tsp baking powder

200g nuts and dried fruit

I strongly recommend ground almonds for about 50g of your fruit and nut allowance. Cherries are also wicked. Because it has to be soft and easy to gobble on the move I use: 50g ground almond, finely chopped pecan, walnut, pistachio, cherries, figs and maybe dates. I avoid raisins, cranberries, brazilnuts, hazelnuts and whole or flaked almonds and seeds, because they are too crunchy and risky on the run, but it’s all personal taste.

Heat the chocolate and butter in a bowl over hot water, then mix it into the rest of the ingredients. Pour this into a lined, greased baking tray to a depth of about 1 1/2 to 2 inches. Put in the oven at 170C for 35 to 40 minutes. Because they should be gooey, you won’t get a clean skewer when they are done, but it shouldn’t wobble in the tray.

You’ll see in the photo of my brownies that in the background are also some packs of Clif ShotBlocks. These are our other mid-marathon fuel of choice. Running husband recommended them, so we are sticking to those, the brownies and fudge. On a personal level I know I have faded in previous marathons in the last two miles and lost a lot of time compared with my relatively good pace in the early miles. My biggest fear on marathon day is holding Gillian back when she could be running faster, so I am not prepared to let my energy levels drop this time. Food is the answer. I know we have done all the training we can so the only mistakes we can make now are not eating, sleeping or drinking enough. I will reveal closer to the time what Gillian and I intend to eat the day before and the day of the marathon, but the gist is high protein, high carbs, no fear of sugar for a few days, and plenty of liquid.

Peaks and Troughs: a tough few weeks: Hazel

Hazel

Last week neither Gillian or I had the energy to write our blog entries. It was just one of those weeks where everything was a bit underwhelming. The plan was 5, 7, 7, 14, and we plodded through the miles, mainly recovering from our frankly amazing 20miler. We were both understandably sluggish for the first run back, but we started to get worried when Gillian still wasn’t back to her usual speedy self by Thursday. Huge relief by Saturday when she felt better, and Sunday went without incident. I messed up the preparation for the 14, so had to give my brownie to Gillian, so I was severely lacking in calories by the end and found it worryingly difficult to keep up with her pace in the last mile. Some of this is because we are still running when the baby naps, and the clocks changed sending his sleep into alien mode. So by the time we got running it was too close to lunchtime and I already needed food let alone making up for the calorie burn on the run. We also got caught up in the Devizes to Westminster canoe race, so we had a couple of specataor-dodging moments on the Thames path. We leapt manfully around hazards like old women with golfing umbrellas and men wielding toolbox-trays full of food to dangle into the river. It was quite odd.

Altogether last week will count as one of the troughs. Not dire, but not inspiring. Following that we did an uninspiring 5 and 2 to bring us through to Saturday. So it’s time to give this training plan a bit of a boost. I’m going for a multi-pronged attack. Determination, cake, beautiful countryside and an impending deadline. Baking on Saturday, planning only lovely countryside runs, and the terrifying sound of ‘1st day of Marathon Month’ pretty much guarantees the determination we need. Off we go.

20 Miles!

Hazel

We did it! After three weeks of disruptions and worry, we got round 20miles, which will be the longest run in our training plan. And, I’m still being very cagey about this, we both felt really good. It is definitely the best 20miler I have ever done in terms of feel. Obviously the pace was a bit slower than my old pre-baby pace, but to be honest the huge difference in comfort meant I was incredibly pleased with our time. Rocking. I will let Gillian give you the blow by blow account and let the pictures do the talking. I have looked worse than that some days getting out of bed, so I’m pretty pleased with our post-20 appearance.

Some Guiding Tweaks

Hazel

On Sunday I decided to practice race preparation, so I ate a good breakfast at the right time, got into the exact clothes I hope to wear and then paced the house nervously. I can guarantee we will be doing some nervous pacing on the day of the Marathon, but it doesn’t seem very sensible given that we should be preserving energy. Either way, at least I was being thorough in my trial run. It all fell apart though when I got a call from my dad to say that the old lady was as sick as a pike. After my initial concern for her welbeing I confess my first thoughts were that it was a real shame we wouldn’t get our 18miler done, especially since I was all ready and pumped for the occasion. I felt deflated and lacking enthusiasm, but the running husband made me go on my own anyway. So I did a quick 10k, which was remarkably boring without my running buddy. I have come to rely on her as much as she has on me. It will be odd to see what happens when all this marathon training is over.

The following Tuesday she managed to drag herself admirably round the planned miles, and continued to improve through the week. Quite impressive. A couple of guiding things came up that I thought I would update you on. One of my commands that has developed out of my natural talking style has been nipped in the bud. I have been saying ‘slow it down’ in a firm voice to indicate a hazard that we need to slow to just above a walk for, usually with about four strides notice. This will include old ladies slowing to chat, or a crowd suddenly getting denser to mean that we can’t keep up our current stride length and pace. Less of sight issue and more of an arthritis issue, but this doesn’t work for Gillian. She has requested I either give a lot more notice that we need to slow our pace, or just say ‘stop’ if we haven’t got time to ease into it. Aparently I have forgotten that it is harder to change pace quickly when your joints are fighting the ageing process with gritted teeth.

I should also note that on the Long Walk and other smooth ground when I can get into my stride with the buggy in one hand, Gillian has to swap sides. One-handed the buggy veers very slightly to the right, and just enough to endanger her progress. One trip would be too many at this stage, so on the Long Walk we have started changing sides. Apart from this scenario, we are still sticking doggedly to our original plan of always running with me on Gillian’s left. This puts her non arthritic wrist in control of the tether, and puts me on her blind side.

 

Unforeseen Obstacles

Hazel

Of all the things I worried about for the marathon plan; commands, the tether, dogs, exhaustion, I did not factor in my own ill health. Better that I miss runs now than closer to the marathon itself I guess. I missed the Saturday run, and decided to go away for the weekend since I wouldn’t be running anyway. What was the terrible culprit, when ankle injury, ITBS and flu have left me silently pretending to be fit as a fiddle next to Gillian? Out of date ham sandwich. There is nothing you can do about food poisoning, except curl up and pray for a swift and silent death. Good lord it is miserable. Plus you feel like a malingerer, since you’re not actually ill. No virus, no germs, just food that doesn’t like my stomach. I was fuming. So no run on Saturday, and to be honest I shouldn’t have even left the house on Sunday. But I was determined that Gillian wouldn’t be forced to run her first 16miler on her own. And, I gamely announced, I had held down breakfast for more than an hour, so I must be better.

 

I set off, fully intending to run the whole distance. Within 300metres I realised my mistake. How to aggravate an upset tummy? Shake it up and down a bit. I carried on, giving what I am sure were slightly more pithy than normal commands. After three miles or so I had got used to the magimix in my abdomen, but then I realised that not eating for 36 hours leaves you short on calories. I would have to stop at the end of the first lap. I tried to convince Gillian to take the running husband with her for the remainder of the run, but she would have none of it. Something about not being able to adjust to someone else’s gait. I think she was just looking forward to mocking me in years to come about how she had to run 16 miles alone because her guide can’t stand waste and ate out of date food. Either way, I knew that she couldn’t do the last lap on her own, even if she could manage the middle lap ok. Not only would she be more tired than she’s ever been on a run so far, so less able to concentrate on watching everything, but also at the pace we set off, she would be running at least three miles in the dark. Back to the house and I had 35 minutes to get this turned around. Kill or cure, I would have to get some fuel. Battenberg truly is the queen of all cakes. I stuffed as much of that delicious, sugar filled, nutritionally awful substance in as I could and then spent the rest of the time sitting next to the toilet hoping not to be sick. Off we went for Lap three, and somehow I managed to drag myself around. I have never felt so dreadful on a run. Ironically Gillian flew the whole run. Every vomit has a silver lining.

Ignoring the Guide: Hazel’s Notes

Hazel

15 miles is a big leap, so I was nervous about guiding over that distance. My main concern was that when I got more tired I might make guiding mistakes and cause a tired running partner to fall or get injured. I need not have worried, as both of these were mitigated by my crazy running partner.

Firstly, she didn’t get tired, she bounced along looking wildly happy, while I frankly felt like cack. I secretly felt heavy legged and exhausted, presumably caused by a toddler-related issue of some kind. But I kept my mouth shut, since this is supposed to be her training plan, not mine. If I can’t keep up with the old nutter I will have to ask my running husband to stand in for me for the marathon itself. Shame. I know I am fit enough, I just need to ensure that I get enough sleep.

Secondly, she’s a barm-pot! With two miles to go she was full of confidence, and we ran towards a stereotypically drippy group of tourists outside the castle gates. I said ‘slow it down’ in a very firm voice, which usually means ‘we are avoiding a collision’, and she pulled on the tether, sped up and called ‘No, we can plough through!’ I was not prepared for this at all, and with about three inches between us and the back of a middle-aged Asian man, had to yank on the tether and shout ‘stop!’  Perhaps having run for two hours I had less energy for diplomacy, but Gillian did receive a bit of a telling off. Knowing that there is always space for a cheesy pun, I must simply have reached the end of my tether. In future I will describe the crowd earlier so she has more notice, and I have more notice if she decides to go off the rails again!