Confusing lessons from the marathon training so far: Right, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, right for the wrong reason, and wrong.

✔ ✖ ✖ ✖ ✖ ✖ ? ✖

Learning from the marathon training so far (all 3 weeks of it):

1. Right – my guess that a sad consequence of ageing is slower recovery. After 52 miles on the bike on Saturday and 7.5 miles running on Sunday, Monday’s 5 mile run was harder than the speed should have suggested

2. Wrong – I thought my weight would sort itself out quickly once I increased the miles a bit. Sampling a range of possible dishes for last Friday’s dinner party, the dinner party itself and eating left-overs since have given the lie to that notion for the time being

3. Wrong – I though that, at least, I’d be good at rest days and I discover I’m even bad at them – taking a maximum of one a week instead of two

4. Wrong – I thought the speed for a sub 4 hour marathon would be OK but that the endurance would be the problem. I’m not sure about the endurance but it looks like the speed is going to be a bit of an issue

5. Wrong – I thought it would be getting easier, but it isn’t. I know the Greg LeMond ‘It never gets easier; you just go faster’ quote – but I’m not yet getting noticeably faster either

6. Wrong – I thought I couldn’t run on consecutive days because of the Achilles tendons – but I did manage it

7. Right for the wrong reason? – I thought I shouldn’t yet run on consecutive days because of the Achilles tendons … it’s right that I shouldn’t, but it’s probably more because of simple lack of recovery time rather than the tendons

8. Wrong – I thought that, as a rational person, I would be taking sensible decisions, but:

• having identified the need for more rest and recovery time, and not running on consecutive days, and
• having cycled on Saturday and run on Sunday and Monday ….

…. I ran on Tuesday morning (10.64km – 6.6km).

In my defence, the rest of the day was spent at a fine lunch for 18 former work colleagues, hosted by a friend, so it would otherwise have been a complete bust (or ‘rest day’ as more sensible people might call it).

With Wednesday off and Thursday for a gym session, I’ll be ready for my long slow run at the end of the week … or that’s the theory.