Edinburgh 2014 - chasing the hairy haggis

[Mitchy1nge]

thread for anyone training for the full marathon or the half or any of the other events

it's my first marathon so am very excited, I know that in theory if I can do 21 miles then 26 (plus 385 yards) is achievable but only started running again a few months ago, it's so much more addictive than it used to be

(I have a target of 8 miles, in instalments of 2 miles, all week so nobody can accuse me of overdoing things )

I have check the training plan and you guys are right of course. I only have two more longs runs to go, and then just 3 x medium 15 km runs. This is because I'm doing a 10km race on 11 may so I have to taper down before it, then up afterwards before tapering for the HM. Fortunately the tapers are much quicker for the shorter races, I'm hoping it will be ok.

Mitchy -at least you are out there. 8 miles isn't nothing, especially when you are recovering from injury

Hi fellow runners

I had an educational experience in my run today which I thought I would share . Now I'm in the last phase of my training plan I've started tempo runs ( new experience for me )

Today I was to do 15km medium speed of which 6km fast. I did my first 5km at a nice slow run pace . Problem was the fast 6km. I was aiming to run at my HM pace, which I reckon is realistically about 5:20 or even 5:25 ( I'm just guessing as I've never done one before )

Instead I ran at 5:09 ( 8.17 mile pace ) . It went fine. It doesn't sound too fast to me. I can do a 10km at 5:00 pace. But ( a big BUT) I'd gone too fast for my current level of fitness and ended having to jog bits on my final " medium " 5 k .

If I'd done that in a race I'd have been stuffed. It didn't matter that the 5:09 felt fine while I was doing it. And if I can do that while running alone on my usually route, it would be super easy to do it in a race. Especially the HM with no pacers.

Lesson learned.

Note to self - Make race plan and stick to it

Pacing is so difficult to judge isn't it? I always start too fast!

Did my half marathon race at St Andrews today...lots of probs with the organisation of the race....BUT I knocked 15 minutes off my previous time for a new pb of 1:57:02 (my garmin..waiting for official time). The race was about a third of a mile too long as well so I am delighted but bloody knackered!
Now need to try and work out what pace to aim for in the full marathon.... 6 weeks to go!!!!

Brainwashed -that's excellent!!! 15 mins off your PB is fantastic , no wonder you are delighted. Did you run along the beach, or is that the marathon at St. Andrews?

At least you have plenty time to recover this week or so and get some more good training weeks in before the end of May . Plenty time to wok out your race strategy . Interesting to see that even the great mo Farrah became unstuck when the race didn't go to plan

Sorry to hear the race organisation was a shambles, it's very annoying when you've paid good money and trained so hard.

It was 4 laps of just over 5k each, so mentally tough running the same bits but good that you could see other folk and cheer them on! Each lap had approx 750m on the sand so just under 2 miles on sand in total...some of it very soft and very tough going,wouldn't have wanted any more on the sand!
It wasn't an expensive race but I think there will be a lot of folk that wouldn't run it again given the organisational problems. I looked upon the rubbish organisation/communication as a way to improve my mental toughness

That's a very positive attitude . Y'see, I know that I would have got really REALLY pissed off about it and let it spoil my race

I should let this be another lesson learned I think

In the past so would I Kristina....my first marathon was a disaster mentally..have learnt so much from that!

How many marathons have you done????

Onl

Only

Sorry tablet gone mad. Only one marathon in 2012..felt I had to do another to get a better time, more representative of what I'm capable of.

I'm still impressed as that's one more than me

I note that even Mo Farrah was disappointed in his time

Does that mean you have some marathon tips to share?

OK my marathon tips.....
1.Don't have multiple panic attacks the night before because you think you are going to die at the side of the road...that's very unlikely! I used up all my mental energy before I even started and as a result plodded around the course.
2.Don't rely on running it with a friend...if they pull out at the last minute it throws out all your plans and can lead to point 1.

1. Have an emergency keep running playlist to listen to in the last few miles even if you never usually listen to music when running.
2. It will hurt a lot...but remember it will stop hurting quite quickly once you're done so keep going!
3. Make sure you will have access to warm layers and food as quickly as possible once you're finished

6.Enjoy!

< takes careful note >

Re music -I notice that the official edinburgh marathon festival rules state that you can't use earphones because it's against SAA rules /health and safety / blah blah blah. Would I be correct in assuming that no will will bother if you do actually have headphones?

I ALWAYS listen to bbc radio 4 podcasts when running. If my brain was allowed free range I would start to worry about how much it hurts /how far I have to go / the bills I haven't paid /reports for work I haven't done /messy house / neglected children etc etc.

Don't know how strict they are about headphones at Edinburgh tbh...in theory you could end up disqualified if found out. I imagine loads of folk do though. I plan to maybe use them in the far reaches of the course...less likely to be spotted...and take them out at the end. That's what I did as loch ness as I wanted to savour the cheering!

Where is everyone? Getting worryingly close now. I just have one more long run then a 3 week taper...which I am really looking forward to.

Hi brainwashed, I am still here

Have bought new headphones that I can put inside my shirt . I only listen to podcasts not music so I can still hear anyone speaking to me.

I've now done my last long run, although I don't start to taper until next week and I'm doing a 10k race in 10 days. I don't feel remotely ready for the HM. I know I can run the distance as I've done it 6 times in training , But only really slowly. I'm not at all convinced I can do it at my race pace.

I know I won't be last but I'd really like to make one of my target times .

It seems such a waste of time to cut down the training now. But my plan says so and I have to trust it

How are you feeling?

Is there anyone else left from the original group?? Are we < whispers > the survivors?

I am feeling nervous...went shopping to 2 running shops this morning in an attempt to allay the feelings of impending doom!

Ha ha,does shopping make you calm? Or just looking for that elusive item that will make you faster?

My running shoes are about to die as I've now done about 800 miles in them but I can't find another pair the same in my size < crisis> .

I tried a different one a few months ago and they have me pain in my foot, even with super duper insoles. So I'm looking for exactly the same as the old ones that I know suit me

Will arm warmers make me faster?! Bought socks and gels too plus a copy of runners world with Mo on the front for inspiration :-)

Ooh what kind of gels? Have you tried the Hi 5 ones that they are using at Edinburgh ? And how many do you plan to take and when ?

My Arms don't get cold but I'm happy for you

But I'm sure the mo mag will defo make you faster. I got my photo taken with the mo gold post box on Sunday < boast >

Hi 5 gels are lovely :-) I will probably use a mix of gels and jelly babies starting from about 6 miles in.So prob 3 gels and as many jelly babies as necessary!!