I’ve had a very interesting weekend with the Brathay Trust at their hall in Ambleside. But before I talk about that I feel I need to talk about my ankle and running.
My ankle is getting better albeit not as fast as I would like. Since I first injured it I have spent 20 days without any running. Then last Sunday I managed 3 miles with a small amount of discomfort and then 4.5 miles on Thursday which wasn’t too bad at all. Today Brathay were offering us 10 in 10ers the opportunity to run the Windermere marathon or as much of the course as we wanted. What could I manage? What should I do with an ankle that still wasn’t 100%. I know the doctor would advise me to run very little. I thought I would go out and run very slowly and see how I felt and how my ankle coped.
If I did 10 or 13 miles then I suppose that would be an achievement but in my mind and the rest of my body I was really up for much further. I do need to give my ankle time to heel properly but I have put my fund raising for the Brathay Trust on hold worried that I wouldn’t be fit enough to run 1 marathon never mind 10 in 10 days. I wanted to know in my mind that I can run, train and most importantly run the marathon distance. Then I would be confident enough to continue with the fund raising. I don’t want to be collecting money for a challenge that I won’t be able to complete.
The weather was awful, windy and non stop fairly heavy rain. The only consolation was the temperature, it was fairly mild for the time of the year. I started off very easily at around 9 minute miling. 5 miles passed and then 10 without too much of a problem. The ankle was giving a minor amount of pain but it wasn’t getting worse from running on it so I was happy enough to continue. I though if I got half way it would be an accomplishment. Half way came and passed and I felt strong with no change in the ankle’s status.
Bowness came and passed, the ankle seemed to be holding up well. I got to 20 miles and I started to think “I’ve got this far surely I can complete the whole marathon”. The hill at 21 miles put a huge dent in my positive mind set as I walked the latter half of the hill. Then coming down the other side was no easier as the jarring of my ankle and the tiring legs started to make the run really tough. Aly and Mac who were supporting us in vehicles with drinks and food made it very tempting for me to want to cadge a lift to the finish but I dug deep and plodded on. I hate to admit it but I walked for a short while just before reaching Ambleside had my third energy gel before continuing to jog. I think I better use the word jog and not run at this point. My legs were feeling very heavy and tried. Maybe I was asking too much from them after only running 7.5 miles in the last 26 days.
With my head down I focussed on getting to the finish which I managed in a personal worst and for the first time ever over 4 hours.
Some new records for me:-
First time I came last in a run.
Finishing time 4 hours, 25 minutes and 24 seconds a personal worst.
The longest time I have ever run in one go.
I think this a real triumph. The body made it but the mind knows I’m still able to run a marathon.
Lets see how I feel tomorrow and how the ankle is affected by today’s pounding of the Lake District’s tarmac and puddles.
