Paris 2013 marathon training notes – week 3 of 14

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Another week and I’ve managed to stick with the training schedule. Yeah!

Some new acquisitions this week:

I also sorted out my accommodation and transport for the event. I still need to purchase a new pair of trainers.

A couple of things to note this week:

1. Running in snow

Both yesterday and today I ran on snow. I’d prefer not to, but I don’t have a gym membership so wanted to get out there to put the miles in.

The temperature itself was no issue – just wearing lined jogging bottoms, several layers on top and a hat does the job. I wore my Saucony Peregrine trail shoes which have brilliant grip on everything except for wet drain covers, as well as my waterproof Sealskinz socks. My feet stayed warm and dry – my only issue is the shoes are fairly tight fit and since the socks are fairly big, my toes got a bit squashed.

Otherwise I just took my time, and ran on non-compacted fresh snow where possible. And most importantly, I stayed upright, and with the exception of a some slightly bruised toes, injury-free.

2. Energy gels

I had my first go at eating on-the-run today. I had some Powerbar gels left over from a cycling tour I did last year, so I took those with me. I had the first one after 45 minutes and then subsequent ones every 20-25 minutes after that. I had no problem with eating the gels. I didn’t feel nauseous as some people do, and I didn’t get a stitch. Each time you have one you also have to drink 150ml water, and I found that this was sufficient for my run – I had no issues with thirst and my energy levels felt fine (considering it was a long run).

I might try some other brands of gels out – in particular the SIS Go gels, because these will fit nicely in the utility belt – for the times when I don’t have pockets to carry them in.

The past week’s training activity

Tuesday 15 January – Fartlek 4 miles, plus 1 mile warm up, 1 mile cool down
Wednesday 16 January – Slow 5 miles
Thursday 17 January – Steady 5 miles
Saturday 19 January – Easy 5 miles
Sunday 20 January – Slow 11 miles

Achey knees again today! Otherwise, feeling great and looking forward to the next run. I did’t think I’d ever say this, but I hope the snow clears up soon :)