The final week has come around very quickly and in the lead
up to a marathon you start to get itchy feet. So much of your previous months
have been filled with waking early to get the extra miles in, checking over
previous plans for a comparison with a recent session and generally building up
to the day. Yes that day. The upcoming 2 and whatever hours it may be.
I know that right up to the last fleeting moments, before
the starter will cast their gun-shot into the endorphin filled air, I’ll still
be slightly edgy. However, after the gun sounds it’ll be all on. The time for
worry and concern has past. There’s no need to waste what is potential energy
on such thoughts. We need to relax, stay focused on what is in front of us and
stay in the moment.
Although I’ve run a few marathons I still feel that each one
is a big learning curve and experience. One of the most important experiences I’ve
taken from running a few is that the race is long. There are going to be highs
and lows. Reducing the low parts as much as possible is very achievable in a
marathon, and something we strive to do each time. I enjoy the concept of
staying in the moment, and continually updating/checking myself by using series
of little reminders and prompts. Form, core, head and shoulders and the main
regions I target, while chanting a mantra ‘light and strong’. Recently I’ve
read about other athletes who continually do this, with their own variations of
course. Consequently I find this interesting so here are some –
This is what you came for
Scott
Jurek, ultra runner.
Thing
strong, be strong, finish strong
Renee
Metivier Baillie, indoor athletics runner.
Mind
over mileage
Kara
Goucher, elite marathon runner.
Concrete,
meet courage
Paula
Radcliffe
Last
Sunday was my final hit out before Frankfurt. It was a ten mile race in a
quaint little town called Tiptree. Tiptree is famous for its Jam Factory. The
race was run around quiet country lanes, with minimal traffic. Conditions
proved to be ok, despite lashings of overnight and early morning rain, it did
manage to subside before the start.
I
wanted to take confidence out of this race and feel strong at the end of it.
Both of these boxes I ticked off. I even went through 10km in a PB time. I
ended up winning the race in a time of 52.39. A slightly slower final 5 km’s
but I feel I was thinking about Frankfurt in the back of my mind.
Speaking
of which, I can’t wait to get another taste of a big city marathon. I believe
that this will be another step up from Seoul, although they are both Gold label
races, Frankfurt seems to have plenty of pre and post marathon hype! I’ll be
busy taking plenty of snaps and getting them online!
Rest
this week, that’ll be the key for me! Plenty of it and plenty of good food!
I’ll
touch back post Frankfurt!
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