So This Is It Then.

After all the meanderings in the Shropshire hills the old foot and ankle were a bit sore. In keeping with the rest of this minimalist training I thought it wise to rest up a bit and didn't run till last Thursday. I could have done one more longish 60 minute run, but decided it would be better to do shorter speed sessions. I could have also gone to my running club and done a final time trial. But since we were going away and this running lark depends on the good will of my lovely husband, I thought it simpler to run from home. So on a sulky glowering evening, full of black clouds with the occasional glimmer of light, I set off on a run that mixed fast and slow. Ten minutes gentle jog down to Florence Park then 5 lots of 3 minute sharp bursts and 2 minute breaks in between. These sorts of runs always start off fine for me, I am full of enthusiasm and don't mind that I can't breathe after the fast bit, but by the time I am on the 3rd or 4th time this has all palled. I find I am struggling to remember how many I have done already, my legs work less well and I am desperate for the slow 2 minutes to catch my breath. My mood was not improved at the end of the 3rd session when I passed someone on the slow bit who said "Not going fast tonight then?" "I'm about to" I replied loftily and determinedly rushed off for my 4th fast bit, but he had long gone and doubt he saw it. Still it was nice when I did the last one and as ever with these kinds of runs I hope it will have some impact on the day.

My final pre-race run took place on Saturday. We were away at our biannual gathering of "Unite for Peace" a small group of like minded people who meet to reflect about peace issues. I had hoped for an early run in the morning, but it never quite happened as I was the only parent up for quite a while, and the children are still a bit young to be left to their own devices. Luckily, I had a window of opportunity in the afternoon when the schedule was reorganised and off I trotted on an exploration of the local roads. It was a little worrying going off down a road I had never been on before, and after a couple of fast vehicles went past me I jumped over a stile and did a short bit of footpath, but it went back to the road fairly quickly and I decided to just run out for half the time and back again. This was a good move as I turned around at 15 minutes and then pelted back in 13, so felt very satisfied that somewhere along the line I have developed some ability to accelerate. (Though of course these things are all relative. Whilst I would be delighted if I achieved 135 minutes, a colleague of mine did 112 at the weekend and wants to get to under 100, whilst my super fast colleague is aiming for under 80!! As I've said before, running is good at putting you in your place....)

But this is it. I had toyed with the idea of one last run on Monday, but my foot has really hurt so I am trying to let it think I love it, so it will manage the 13 miles. And apart from the odd bit of cycling to get from A to B, I have been resting ever since. I feel quite slow and sluggish as a result, but I seem to remember this being the case for the London Marathon, and I am hoping that my body is just getting itself ready for Sunday.

So if there is anyone out there in cyberspace reading this (you are allowed to leave a message you know) this is it till after Race Day. I head down to the New Forest on Saturday with my 3 cheerleaders, to join Chris, my 4th, and get those feet out on the road.

And when I do so I will be thinking of:

Zoughbi Zoughbi and the peace and reconcilation centre in Wi'am
The Community of San Jose de Apartado in Colombia
The Peace Healing and Reconciliation Programme who work in Sudan and Uganda
Netsai Mushanga and FoR Zimbabwe

May their work bear fruit, and peace flourish in their lands.