Perfer et obdura

On the marathon route, just after coming under Kingston Bridge heading towards Canbury Gardens, there is a nightclub with latin sayings and their translations painted above entranceways. I spotted this one and it seems particularly appropriate as I grind out the miles on training runs:

Perfer et obdura; dolor hic tibi proderit olim.

A Different Approach to Marathon Training

In recent years I have been given all sorts of advice about running, often by people who have read some book by some "expert". I can't say I've ever taken much of the advice I've been offered. Firstly because I'm a bit too old and set in my ways to change now. Secondly because I've been virtually injury free for all my running career, and would like to keep things that way for as long as I can. Trying to change my running style seems too much like tempting fate. And finally, for the reasons expressed elsewhere in this blog, the goal of running faster just isn't that important to me.

Last year when I ran my marathon route it didn't go quite to plan. After tapering my runs for 3 weeks as per the regular marathon training schedule, I felt completely off the boil on the morning of the run. When I finished my longest training run, I felt ready to run the marathon the following week. So this time I have decided to give that approach a try. It flies in the face of conventional wisdom, but I intend to continue ramping up the mileage week by week until the marathon. I have completed 20 miles, next week will be 22, and if I can, 24 the week after that, and then the big day. If I feel too tired to do the 24 miles, I'll listen to my body and do what feels right.

So in a few weeks time I will know whether my approach has worked or not. I will post something to say whether or not it has as soon as I can after the run.

Why do I do it?

As I was running through the grounds of Hampton Court Palace on a long training run recently, a woman called out "Is it worth it?" as I passed her. "I hope so!" was all I could manage to reply, but it got me thinking of all the things I should have said.

I was obviously looking too haggard for her to believe that I might actually be enjoying myself. It was a beautiful, bright autumnal morning, I was in wonderful suroundings, keeping fit and getting into that state of mind where my mind can roam freely, untroubled by the pressing concerns of my working week. I had just come through Bushy Park, where great majestic stags were bellowing their challenges to each other across the grass and bracken. I had seen serene swans gliding on ponds while smaller waterfowl squabbled and chased and dived around them. I had watched a kestrel being chased off by 3 crows. There are always all kinds of beautiful and interesting things to be seen whenever you go anywhere where there is some wildlife. It doesn't have to be remotest Wales or Scotland either. Wildlife is returning to our cities. You can see peregrine falcons in central London. Just keep your eyes open.

Then there's the other issue of the physical effort. Yes it can hurt sometimes. 2 weeks before, I had a terrible run. But that is balanced by the sense of achievement. I still managed to get myself round without giving up completely. And the following week I increased the distance and ran it feeling OK all the way round.

So to that woman in Hampton Court, and to anyone who wonders the same thing, Yes it emphatically is worth it. Nobody is making me do these training runs. I'm doing it for fun.