Prepping for London Marathon
Thursday, March 11th, 2010
By Nicole Wright, FGA UK SPECIALIST, London, England
On April 25th , 30,000 runners will flood the streets of London, aiming to complete the grueling 26.2 miles that make up the world famous London Marathon. I will be somewhere in those thousands trying to make it to the end without needing to use one of the 500 stretchers that will be on hand to pick up those not quite so lucky to make it over the finish line.
Unlike some people who have a very clear aim of completing a marathon in their life time, I was adamant that a marathon was not for me. I like my 10km races, going fast, getting it over and done with, no hassle of hours of training and feet so sore that you can’t walk the next day. However, in the true spirit of adventure, (something I know Nick Fluge and his Global Adventure team understand well!), when a charity running place needed to be filled urgently I did not hesitate to sign myself up.
So now it is early morning runs before work, track and hill sessions after work and long weekend runs. Motivating myself to run 15 miles on a Sunday morning, a time usually designated to a long lie in or a cosy brunch with friends, is hard I can’t deny it. However, surprisingly I have found myself enjoying all of this, feeling satisfied when I have already completed a long run when the rest of the world is only just waking up.
So in less than 2 months I will be putting all my training to the test and be proudly taking part in the 29th London Marathon, running as part of the UK Youth charity team, raising funds to help disadvantaged young people throughout the UK. Reading Nick’s account of his Portland Marathon experience I know that it is not going to be an easy experience, but where would the fun be in that anyway? I know that I can do this and I look forward to letting you know how it all goes!