The Long Road ahead... by EmilieT

Four weeks of injury and several hundred pounds worth of physio & sports massage later and I AM BACK IN THE ZONE!!!!  I finally got to the big SEVENTEEN mile mark yesterday so my confidence (which had hit rock bottom...) has been restored and I'm actually feeling - dare i say it - excited...

On Tuesday I had taken half a day off work to try to fit in a decent long run having lost so much time to injury, but at the 8.5 mile mark I had searing pain through both my left glute and the back of my knee so had to stop (and flag a cab home!) which was hugely demorolising. So it was with a lot of apprehension that I set out on the run yesterday.  Thankfully, my physio (who I can't recommend highly enough - Tim Galliver at Six Physio in Kensington if anyone needs a London based physio - they do amazing sports massage too - GREAT lady called Yushiko) really sorted me out and yesterday, armed with my jelly tots, I really felt in pretty good form - only normal levels of aches and pains which seemed fine with a few anadin and ibuprofen.

Another AMAZING thing I discovered yesterday was the Audiofuel download - they advertise it on the Virgin Marathon newsletters. It's perfectly selected music with a voiceover guy who 'coaches' you throughout the run with encouraging words etc - sounds ridiculous but I can honestly say it is AWESOME!!  I don't think I'd have got through the 17 miles without it.  I'd always thought I liked running to my cheesy pop tunes but this music was for some reason a million miles better for helping you 'zone out' and detach which was a massive help mentally. 

I also tried the dreaded ice bath for the first time post-run.... MASSIVE difference.  In actual fact it was a 'cold water' bath rather than proper ice, but still flipping freezing.  Stayed in for about 5 minutes and it seems to have really done the trick.

I've also decided that runners really ought to smile at each other encouragingly as they're running.  Might be a London thing that people don't even acknowledge anyone else as they pound the pavement, but I'm launching a campaign for runners to smile on the banks of the Thames! I entertained myself a fair bit yesterday by trying to get fellow runners to crack a smile as they went past - a fair number were very responsive - though I must admit that by the time i got past the 13 mile mark that little excitement had passed and my own mood and expression was probably more misery/desperation/pain with ZERO interest in any sort of interaction with other human beings.

So final 'LSR' next weekend... It's my sister's wedding on Saturday (yay!) so I'll be doing mine on Easter Monday.  I'm aiming to get to 18-19 miles if possible, but even if i only get to 17 again, according to my RW 'just get you round' schedule, I've now done enough to get through it on the day.  Fingers crossed!