I don’t know about you, but I only feel inspired to write things if it’s something positive and upbeat. With that in mind I should apologise for not having posted any blog updates for a while. Lots of people have been asking about my progress so I felt it time I should write.
The last month has been a real challenge. At the start of February I began to suffer from shin splints. For those of you that may not know, shin splints are aggravation of the soft tissue that connects the muscles to the shin bones (I’m not a doctor so forgive me if that’s not a great explanation). In laymen’s terms it hurts when I walk and even more when I run. Causes vary between increasing training too quickly, over use, tight calf muscles, incorrect shoes and other factors.
The recommended treatment in my case is rest, so I haven’t been able to run. At such a crucial time in training this has been particularly hard to bear. I’m seeing a running injury physio and following his advice with regards to exercises to do to, and he’s reassuring me rest is the right thing. Fortunately he’s been very positive but still it’s hard.
Doing a marathon for a charity adds so much pressure as you have to publicise you’re running it to raise awareness and get sponsorship. In doing so you build up a lot of hype. With that hype comes questions. People ask you how you’re doing, and when you’re doing well that’s great. But unfortunately when you’re not doing well it’s not nice to have to tell people that. People’s reactions can be very different, some are very positive and reassuring, whereas others can worry you with talk of 'running out of time' or telling you horror stories of other runners who have tried and failed. I know they have good intentions but it still adds to the pressure. Training for a marathon with its highs and lows really is like a rollercoaster ride I’ve not experienced before.
As time has gone on the pain in my shins has decreased. There’s still a mild ache but following the physio’s advice I will try my first short run tonight. I’m full of fear. With any luck tonight’s run will go well and I’ll get back on track soon, but I’m scared running again will make things worse. This is probably the tensest time in my training programme so far.
Keep your fingers crossed for me.
X
http://justgiving.com/paul-raybould
Thursday, 25 February 2010
Wednesday, 24 February 2010
Halfway through training - 25 January 2010
As 25th January will be exactly halfway through my marathon training programme I wanted to send an update to say:
A) Thank you again to everybody who has sponsored me
And
B) To give you an update on my training progress in advance of my reaching the halfway mark in my training programme.
My first day of training back in October already feels like so long ago. At that point the most I had ever run was the occasional 20 minutes on the treadmill.
In December I was fortunate enough to go to the Terrence Higgins Trust's pre-Christmas drinks party. It's an annual event to thank individuals who have donated over £1,000 and also their top fund-raisers. I was really pleased that night to discover that I am officially THT's biggest fund-raiser. At that point donations were already at £3,500, so almost double the total amount their marathon runners usually manage to raise. I even got to meet Dannii Minogue that night, and seeing how grateful and happy the staff at THT were with my fund-raising progress made me so happy and buzzing with pride, so thank you again to everybody who has sponsored me :o)
Since then the weather has gotten increasingly worse, but I'm very pleased to say it hasn't stopped my training. As well as the occasional run home from work and regular mid-week treadmill runs, I've been fortunate enough to be able to manage most of my long runs outdoors at the weekends. It being the coldest winter in decades does add an extra level of challenge, but I always knew winter training wouldn't be easy, plus my friend Humberto has joined me on a few long runs too which makes them more bearable. My weekly Sunday run is now 7 miles, and my total mileage each week is around 18 miles. That is still increasing every week until I run the Brighton half marathon on 21st February, and will of course continue to grow each week after that until the marathon on 25th April. I'll continue to provide updates nearer the time to keep you up to date on my progress. In the meantime, if you're aware of somebody who was intending to sponsor me but hasn't gotten round to it yet, please feel free to forward this link to them and encourage them to sponsor me at http://www.justgiving.com/paul-raybould
I'm currently at £3,800 of sponsorship but I'm aiming for a grand total of £5,000 to make a massive difference to the Terrence Higgins Trust charity and the lives of every HIV+ person who is relying on their support. Thank you again for the sponsorship and support you have given me to help me achieve this xxx
A) Thank you again to everybody who has sponsored me
And
B) To give you an update on my training progress in advance of my reaching the halfway mark in my training programme.
My first day of training back in October already feels like so long ago. At that point the most I had ever run was the occasional 20 minutes on the treadmill.
In December I was fortunate enough to go to the Terrence Higgins Trust's pre-Christmas drinks party. It's an annual event to thank individuals who have donated over £1,000 and also their top fund-raisers. I was really pleased that night to discover that I am officially THT's biggest fund-raiser. At that point donations were already at £3,500, so almost double the total amount their marathon runners usually manage to raise. I even got to meet Dannii Minogue that night, and seeing how grateful and happy the staff at THT were with my fund-raising progress made me so happy and buzzing with pride, so thank you again to everybody who has sponsored me :o)
Since then the weather has gotten increasingly worse, but I'm very pleased to say it hasn't stopped my training. As well as the occasional run home from work and regular mid-week treadmill runs, I've been fortunate enough to be able to manage most of my long runs outdoors at the weekends. It being the coldest winter in decades does add an extra level of challenge, but I always knew winter training wouldn't be easy, plus my friend Humberto has joined me on a few long runs too which makes them more bearable. My weekly Sunday run is now 7 miles, and my total mileage each week is around 18 miles. That is still increasing every week until I run the Brighton half marathon on 21st February, and will of course continue to grow each week after that until the marathon on 25th April. I'll continue to provide updates nearer the time to keep you up to date on my progress. In the meantime, if you're aware of somebody who was intending to sponsor me but hasn't gotten round to it yet, please feel free to forward this link to them and encourage them to sponsor me at http://www.justgiving.com/paul-raybould
I'm currently at £3,800 of sponsorship but I'm aiming for a grand total of £5,000 to make a massive difference to the Terrence Higgins Trust charity and the lives of every HIV+ person who is relying on their support. Thank you again for the sponsorship and support you have given me to help me achieve this xxx
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