I did it!!!!  It was the hottest London marathon on record (or equal hottest depending on which paper you read) but I finished in 3 hours and 51 minutes and can honestly say that I enjoyed it!  I ran the whole way, didn’t even think about walking which is probably the thing I am most proud of.  Here is a brief account of the big day….  

Start – mile 6:- I was quite near to the start line so it didn’t take me long to get across.  Thanks to my GPS watch not managing to pick up a signal (in London?!) I had no idea what pace I was running at until I reached the 1 mile mark.  I went through the first mile in 8 minutes and 15 seconds which was a bit quicker than I was planning so slowed down slightly.  It wasn’t as congested as I’d expected and I managed to get into a good rhythm

Mile 6 – 12:- Finbarr had made a huge banner saying ‘Go Jo C Jo’ and I saw him from about 200m away in Greenwich (mile 6) perched up on top of an electricity box, it really spurred me on!  The next few miles were not too eventful, although the crowd support was amazing, so many people calling out my name (which was written on my vest) and cheering me on.  As I turned the corner and saw Tower Bridge ahead of me in mile 12 I had a huge lump in my throat, I nearly cried!

Mile 13 – 19:- After I had turned from Tower Bridge I saw Mum, Dad and Auntie Bee but they didn’t see me.  I shouted out to them, but they didn’t hear.  It was great just to see them, but I was worried that they would be worried about me as the time ticked on.  I went through the half marathon point in just about exactly the time I had hoped to and was still feeling pretty good.  At 16 miles just outside the City Pride pub I saw Sooz who shouted really loudly!  The next few miles around the Isle of Dogs seemed to take forever but towards the end of mile 18 we passed the City Pride again and once again Sooz spotted me and shouted encouragement!  Just before mile 19 I heard my name called and looked up to see the ‘Go Jo C Jo’ banner and Finbarr, Dai and Rach were there cheering me on.  I shouted out ‘call my Mum’ as was worried about them having not seen me.  Rach told me later that half the crowd shouted back to them ‘Call Jo’s Mum’ in case they hadn’t heard!  The route looped back around and they saw me again on the other side of the block.

Mile 19 - 23:- At about mile 20 I told myself I was into the home stretch.  I passed the Cancer Research support team in mile 21 who were shouting my name, and then at mile 22 I saw Mum, Dad and Auntie Bee again.  This time I shouted and Auntie Bee saw me and then Mum and Dad – I was so glad they had seen me this time!  The crowds just kept getting thicker as I headed towards Blackfriars.  At this point my brain felt slightly disconnected from my legs and it was like I was on autopilot – I wasn’t really in any pain anywhere (even my knees which had given me trouble in training hadn’t hurt at all) and I felt tired but still focused.  Lots of people had started walking by this point, but it never crossed my mind to stop and walk, I wanted to run the whole way!

Mile 24 - 25:- Getting onto Embankment felt good as I knew I was close to home.  I looked at my watch going under the 24M marker and realised I was outside my sub 3.50 target, and wondered if I could pick up the pace. All I could think of was Jeremy telling me in the last London marathon he had done he had seen someone passed out in Birdcage walk, literally 800 metres from the finish and I just wanted to make sure I finished.  I spotted Big Ben which seemed so far away!  Mile 24 to 25 was the longest mile ever.  So many people were calling my name, but I couldn’t even acknowledge them as I was just so focused on getting to the end.

Mile 25 – Finish:- I saw Finbarr, Dai and Rach again with 800m to go, they shouted “You are nearly there!”  That last 800m felt quite a long way though.  As I turned at Buckingham Palace and saw the finish line on the Mall it felt great.  I even managed some smiles and waves for the cameras.  I crossed the line to see Sally Gunnell having her picture taken having just crossed the line ahead of me so felt good that I had finished just behind an Olympic athlete!

Thanks again to all of you who came out and supported and to all of you who sponsored me!

Monday - Sarah and I did 6M hill training.  It was about 1.5M jog, then 12 x 200M hills with jog/walk down, then 1.5M jog.  It was quite tough and my bum killed the next day!

 

Tuesday - 5M gentle. 

 

Wednesday - 5M gentle.  We had the whole gang out - Sarah, Jeremy, Mikey, Pete and me.

 

Thursday - day off.  Had an appointment with Mandy.  The legs were feeling pretty tired, but she reckons that she has brought them back to life!  Lets hope so.

 

Friday - 4M with Sarah and Jeremy.  We spent most of the run disagreeing about the pace.  Jeremy said we were going really slowly but according to my watch we averaged 8.25 mm.  It is taper week so meant to be slow, but we all have different targets so hard to run at a pace that suits everyone.  I've been doing most of the "slow" runs faster than my marathon pace!

 

Saturday - 4M gentle.  It was a really warm evening and there were lots of people out on the beach.

 

Sunday - 10M dress rehearsal!  I wore my Cancer Research vest, gel belt etc. to test everything out.  The gel belt really annoyed me, but I think I managed to get it adjusted OK.  I passed a lady wearning a Leukemia charity vest and she called out "see you in London"!  The run was fine, I think I averaged about 8.30 min/mile. 

 

On to the last week!! Only 2 runs to go til the big day

Monday - Day off.  It was a full moon so Mandy was on good form and reiki-ed my legs.  She said when she'd finished that I could run two marathons... hmmmm!

 

Tuesday - I came down with a cold so decided to take the day off running to make sure it goes away.

 

Wednesday - 6M with Sarah.  I wasn't feeling too good due to the cold.  6M felt like a real struggle.

 

Thursday - 5M.  Again I wasn't really feeling great.

 

Friday - day off

 

Saturday - 18M.  This is the last long run before the big day.  It went OK except for it being a very sunny warm bank holiday weekend so the path was packed with people who I had to dodge, and a few cyclists who nearly ran me over. 

 

Sunday - day off.  Legs were a bit stiff from yesterday, even after my ice bath!

 

Overall it wasn't a great week due to the cold which I've been trying to fight off.  The proper taper starts now and I need to be eating healthily and lots of carbs next week!

Monday - day off.  Mandy said my legs were tired but she says she apparently put loads of energy back into them as her Reiki energy was in force!

 

Tuesday - 7M speed training.  1M jog, 4 x 1M fast with recoveries, 1.5M jog.  The plan said 5 x 1M fast, but I didn't want to overdo it after Sunday's half marathon.

 

Wednesday - 7M.  I aimed for 8.30 min/miles and kept that pace for the whole run.  I need to decide if I can do that pace for the marathon so might try it on my long run on the weekend.

 

Thursday - 6M. 1M jog, 4M 'brisk', 1M jog.  It was the third day in a row so my legs were a bit tired.  I still managed to up the pace for the middle 4 miles to just about 7.45 min/miles... the really strange thing is that I was doing around 7.45 min/miles in the half on Sunday and it felt much easier... probably just tired legs.  Oh well they get to have a rest tomorrow.  Have been running on my own this week as running buddies are AWOL.. Sarah fighting off a cold and Mikey on holiday.

 

Friday - Day off :-)

 

Saturday - 5M.  I had my photo shoot(!!!) with the Swansea Evening Post (don't ask...) and then went for a run.  It was quite windy on the way back.

 

Sunday - 22M.  Longest ever, and it will be the longest until the big day!  I did the run in 3 hrs 9 mins and although my legs were feeling pretty heavy towards the end (and the thought of 4 more miles was not appealing) I'm hoping that the adrenalin on the day will carry me through.  I ran up to 13M with Sarah and Jeremy and then decided based on the split time that I wanted to slow my pace down a bit to make sure I could finish the distance.  I was fine up until 18, but then had a really strong (prob about 20 mph) headwind for the last 4 miles which made it really difficult - especially as 20 to 22 were new territory for me!  I took my energy gels every 4 miles and had my ice bath afterwards.

Monday - I had my regular appointment with magic Mandy in the morning.  She concentrated on my knees and has said that I need to ice them 3 times a day.. eeek!  I don't think the 10 years of netball has helped them much.  I did 4M on the treadmill at the gym in the evening.  a) I hate running in the evenings and b) I hate running on the treadmill... it was hell!  Why on earth don't they air condition the gym more? I couldn't wait to get out of there... I think the 35 mph winds and hail would have been preferable

 

Tuesday - 9M speed training.  1M jog, 4 x 1.5M fast with 1/4M recoveries, 1M jog.  All of the running buddies are a bit out of kilter this week so I did this on my own.  I saw both Mikey and Sarah who warned me of the imminent doom... on turning at 4.5M there was a massive headwind all the way back.  I got through it though and managed to keep up a reasonable pace for the fast bits.

 

Wednesday - 9M gentle.  Ran with Mikey and we averaged around 8.20 min/miles.  It was a nice morning again, been very lucky lately.

 

Thursday - 5M gentle.  I met Sarah and we did a gentle run, averaging about 8.30 min/miles.  It was a bit grey and drizzly, but not too windy so that was the main thing!

 

Friday - Day off.  My marathon magazine and registration form arrived last night.  My numer is '35500' which I'm really pleased with - nice round number and easy to remember!  The magazine contains all the info you need to know for the day and included ariel photos of the whole route so it is seeming very real now!  Needless to say I had a dream/nightmare that it was the morning of the marathon and I had forgotten to register, and had brand new trainers that had never been worn... etc. etc. (Incidentally I do have brand new trainers but I'm planning to wear them in over the next 4 weeks!)

 

Saturday - Day off (extra day off before half marathon)

 

Sunday - Bath Half Marathon.  I was really pleased with myself :-)  Not just because I beat my previous PB by 10 minutes, but also because I felt like I'd run a really controlled race which was great preparation for the marathon.  I had made a plan to go at a steady pace until 9 miles and then pick it up if I was feeling good and that is exactly what I did.  Felt really comfortable through the race, managed a sprint finish at the end and still had energy left... which is a really good thing when I have to run a marathon in 4 weeks!!

 

Only 4 weeks to go and this week will be the last hard week and long run befor the taper!  If you haven't sponsored me yet, please do!  The more money raised the easier those last 6 miles will be.....  www.justgiving.com/jocjo

Monday - Day off.  I woke up feeling dreadful but hauled myself out of bed to make my appointment with Mandy.  Legs have been fine except for the knees.. she rubbed loads of oil in them.  I got into work and felt horrendous so turned around and went home.  It seemed to be a flu-type thing trying to attack me as I was all feverish and shivery.  I spent the day in bed.

 

Tuesday - Extra day off.  I felt much better, so fingers crossed kicked the bug.  I decided to take the day off running just to make sure I was healthy again.

 

Wednesday - Met my running buddy for the first run together in weeks!  We did 10M at just under 8 min/mile pace so that was good.  Good practice for Bath half next week.

 

Thursday - 7M run with Sarah and Mikey.  My right knee is still twingeing (grrr snowboarding!) but legs feel otherwise OK.

 

Friday - Day off

 

Saturday - 20M run with Sarah.  Sarah had a few issues with her camel back (water carrier) leaking so she came up with a cunning plan of stashing it in a tree at a location that we managed to pass 4 times!  The run was OK, we were averaging around 8.20 minutes/mile which was a lot faster than I had been doing the long runs in.  I had a bit of trouble with my knees seizing up around miles 15-18.  We finished the 20 miles in 2 hrs 48 which I was pretty happy with but felt like I didn't have much left.  It was a really good exercise in thinking about pacing though, cos just 30 seconds/mile makes a HUGE difference.  I also had experimented with taking just jelly babies instead of energy gels.  I found it a bit of a struggle eating them and was not getting enough energy from them so will go back to gels.  I had a long ice bath afterwards and although I was having issues moving for the rest of the afternoon, it must have done some good as I had no pain or stiffness on Sunday.

 

Sunday - Day off.

Monday - day off.  Technically a 2nd day off in a row... but hey I did 20 miles so who's counting?  Also the wether was AWFUL.

 

Tuesday - 7M speed training.  I met Mikey and did speed training.  He is injured so my pace (during speed training!) is nice and slow for him!  We did 1M slow, 3 sets of 1.5M fast with 400m recoveries, then 1M slow.  I did the 1.5M fast at somewhere between 7.15 and 7.45 min/m pace which wasn't too bad.  1.5M has never seemed so far..!

 

Wednesday - 9M run with Mikey and Jeremy.  This was supposed to be sllooooww according to the training plan, but I was with the two speedy ones so it didnt' quite happen like that.. ended up doing 8 minute miles.  Oh well.. feel OK!   

 

Thursday - 5M broken down as 1M jog, 3M 'brisk', 1M jog.  The plan said to do the 3 miles brisk in about 23 minutes.....  Well I was with the Speedy Brothers again so they took off at a pretty quick pace.  I was pleased with my performance - I did the brisk 3M in 22 1/2 mins averaging about 7.30 min/mile.

 

Friday - day off! I'm soooo tired - I need a lie in....

 

Saturday - nice gentle 5M run in Bristol.  Ran around the downs.  Lovely evening, nice run.

 

Sunday - 20.5M run.  I spent ages trying to work out a route and eventually decided on one which took me up to the downs and did a big figure of 8 around them for about 6.5M, then over the suspension bridge and through Ashton Court park, at the bottom of the park I joined the Avon Gorge path and followed that all the way to Pill harbour and back again.  It was a really nice run but really hilly and really muddy!  The Mumbles run will be a piece of cake after that!

 

All in all a really good week, I stuck exactly to the training schedule and am feeling quite good.. except for sore knees and being tired all the time, but I'm guessing that goes with the territory.  I'm also enjoying being able to eat lots of Ben and Jerrys (3 tubs in the freezer at the moment ;-) )

 

Monday - First run back after the holidays.  I did 8 miles and felt OK, except for the fact that I could feel every bruise from snowboarding (some I hadn't known about!) as I ran.  My lower left leg is feeling a bit strange - I think a mysterious snowboarding injury.

 

Tuesday - 5 miles speed trianing broken down as 1M jog, 15 x 45 second sprint with 1 min recoveries, 1M jog.  I was on my own as running buddy is off on holidays on Wednesday so our schedules are different at the moment.  Speed training wasn't too bad, but need to get my left leg sorted.  Going to see Mandy tomorrow.

 

Wednesday - Day off running.  Went to see Mandy.  Have a slight twist in my lower left leg from snowboarding (grrr!) but shouldn't be too serious and bruised knee is coming on well. 

 

Thursday - 9 mile run with Mikey.  I started having a pain in my right lower leg..!  Exactly the same pain as I had in my left.  So now have pain in right and left lower legs plus a bit of knee pain (to be expected with all the pounding!) and left ankle seems slightly weak.  I'm still not sure if the lower leg pains are a result of snowboarding.  I felt fairly tired by the end of the run and am wondering how I will cope with a long run on Sunday - the plan says 20 miles, but I might do 18, not sure yet!

 

Friday - 5 mile run in the pouring rain.  I was absolutely drenched... it was one of those runs where I was wondering why I hadn't just gone to the gym and run on the treadmill (even though I hate running on a treadmill)  Character building though.

 

Saturday - 20 mile run!!  My longest run ever (so far...)  It actually wasn't too bad.  I ran to Mumbles and back twice.  It was quite hard turning around and going out again after the first lap, but luckily I was distracted by some people having their wedding photos taken along the path by the marriott... I had to dodge the camera man and I think I might be in the background of one or two shots ;-)  I tried energy gels for the first time.  They tasted DISGUSTING, but I think they probably did some good as I felt OK for most of the run, it was just the knees going towards the end.

 

Sunday - day off :))  Didn't think I'd be able to get out of bed as my legs were so stiff, but they have eased off as the day has gone on.  I am SO glad that I read the weather report and decided to do my long run on Saturday as it has been raining solidly all day and is very windy too.  Phew!

 

Another week down... 7 to go!

Snowboarding holiday and a whole week off running.  I was paranoid about getting injured so my snowboarding wasn't great.  I didn't damage myself too much... just a bruised knee on the last day!

Monday - day off (saw the fab Mandy - sports therapist - legs generally OK but my left knee is a bit unhappy!)

 

Tuesday - 6M run with Sarah and Jeremy.  We were supposed to do hill training like last week but after Sunday's 18 miler we were all rather feeling it in the legs and decided to just do a normal Blackpill run.  Mikey was very good and did his hill training!  My legs felt as tired at the end of the 6M as they had at the end of the 18... what are we doing??!!

 

Wednesday - 8M run (4M with Sarah and Jeremy).  The plan said 10M but as I am going on holiday on Saturday I will have to do a long run on Friday so didn't want to overdo it.  S and J did the 10.  Legs seem to have recovered and I felt quite good.

 

Thursday - day off

 

Friday - Half marathon (13.1M) in Bristol on my own.  I had intended to go further but ran out of time (and light!) and it was a bit spooky on the avon gorge path. It was very muddy too and the surface was uneven.  My left ankle and right knee were twinging.... eek!

 

Right I'm off on holiday now, snowboarding... great marathon preparation I know!!  So a whole week off running, hope I can still do it when I get back!!!

Monday - day off

 

Tuesday - Hill training with Sarah, Jeremy and Mikey.  We did a 1M jog to Singleton park then did 10 hill circuits totalling over 5M - basically running fast uphill and then jogging back to the start.  Finished with a 1M jog - 7.5M in total

 

Wednesday - 9M run.  Set off with Sarah, Jeremy and Mikey.  Mikey was doing 11M and Jeremy had to get back for a meeting.  It was a really beautiful morning and we felt quite good doing 9M before work.

 

Thursday - day off.  I had intended to run but it was absolutely torrential rain and I needed to get to Bristol for Kick Off.

 

Friday - day off.  BAD me - two days off in a row :-(

 

Saturday - 5M run with Sarah.  Neither of us felt our sparkling best, but at least we did it!

 

Sunday - 18 miles - (yes 18!!!) with Sarah.  My longest run to date.  We ran up to Blackpill, then took cycle path to Gowerton, then back to Blackpill, then to Verdi's (Mumbles) then back to the Marina.  Found the last few miles quite hard, but not surprising since my longest run until then had been 15M.  Speacial thanks to my running buddy for getting me through it!!  My reward came in the form of a huge burger and hot dog from the dive club BBQ stall afterwards.

Monday - day off

 

Tuesday - a 7M fartlek with Sarah and Jeremy.  Broken down as 1M jog, 5M fartlek, 1M jog.  We took turns calling the sprints e.g run flat out from that rubbish bin to that signpost.  It was quite funny and we felt really good afterwards.

 

Wednesday - 8M run with Sarah and Jeremy.  Nice gentle pace, beautiful morning!

 

Thursday - 5M run with Sarah and Pete.  The legs were feeling it after the previous 2 days!

 

Friday - day off :-)))

 

Saturday - Gentle 4.5M run on a beautiful sunny Swansea morning

 

Sunday - My longest run ever to date! (on my b'day...!) 15M with Sarah and Jeremy along Swansea Bay and then up the cycle path to Gowerton.  Both my and Sarah's fancy high-tech GPS watches failed.. so we only had Jeremy's to go on.  According to his timings I beat my half marathon PB (we did 13.1M in 1:45.45) and did the 15M in exactly 2 hours, so not bad going.  It was a really nice run as well, we all enjoyed it! 

Monday was a rest day after a half marathon on Sunday.  I was fairly pleased with the half marathon as a) it was only the third time I'd ever run that distance and b) I only did it 2 minutes slower than my PB and wasn't even trying for a time!

 

Tuesday was speed training 6 miles broken down as 1M jog, 6 sets of (0.5M at 7 min/mile pace with 0.125M recoveries) and then 1 M jog.  It was really tough, especially on the 5th and 6th speed set.

 

Wednesday we did an 8M run before work... felt great going into work after that!

 

Thursday was another day off

 

Friday I did a hilly 4M in Bristol

 

Saturday I did a gentle flat 4M

 

Sunday I did 1M jog, then 10k race, then 1m jog.  Was really pleased as I beat my PB for 10k by a minute, which was hard as I was running on my own.

Hi all,

I thought I'd start this training blog so that those of you that have kindly sponsored me lots of money can hear how my training is going.

I'll keep it updated so check back and hear the cries and screams, ice baths, blisters, 3 hour runs - all that and more in store for me over the next 3 months!