Fundraising Event No.1

One of the most difficult things about fundraising has been thinking of events to do that target different groups of people. For the first event we thought we would keep it fairly low key, and so we had a drinks party for my parents village in the run up to Christmas.

Luckily it wasn't too snowy, and their very talented neighbour Juliet Howland agreed to sing.

Everyone seemed to enjoy the mulled wine and the singing, and we raised nearly £300, which is a brilliant start!

Don't forget if you want to sponsor me you can click on the link on the right.

Best run: 7 miles to Westminster Bridge and back. Weather was decent if a little windy, and it felt pretty easy

Worst run: 5 miles pace. This felt like hard work the whole way round, but I guess that is the point! Managed to average 8 minute miles though, so not too shabby.

Regular Routine

It's a little difficult to know what I should be doing at the moment, since it is a bit early to be embarking on a formal training plan for the marathon, but at the same time I don't want to lose the fitness base that I already have. This, combined with the deteriorating weather and the fact it seems to be dark all the time, means it can be difficult to find the motivation to go out running.

At least I am not working at the moment, and so I can make the most of the daylight that there is. I am running about four or five times a week, which roughly breaks down as:

1. Long run (10-ish miles), normally on a Sunday
2. Sweaty Betty running club (4-ish miles) on Tuesday
3. Two other short-ish runs (3-4 miles), incorporating some sprints and also some squats/lunges/ab work etc
4. Slightly longer tempo run (about 6 miles)

I am also trying to go to either hot yoga or pilates on a Monday, since this is normally the day after my long run, and I think it's a good idea to incorporate some deeper stretching.

It's working OK so far, and my routine won't change too much once the marathon training kicks in after Christmas. The runs will just get longer...