I managed to complete the 26.2 miles in a time of 3hrs 23min's and 29seconds coming in a respectable 3,509th position. Proof is available at:
http://results-2008.london-marathon.co.uk/index.php?lastname=harrington&firstname=mat&club=&gender=M&nation=GBR&event_id=MAS&age_group%5B%5D=25&position=&split=FINISHNET&Submit=show+results+%3E%3E&a=d&o=s&start_no=21792&ostart_no=
A Big THANK YOU to everyone who sponsored me, sent me a good luck message or came on a training run with me (even if it was on a bike!) I think I used up all those good luck messages just to get me round the course without doing further damage to my calf. Also a big thanks to the physio who made it possible for me to even run at all. I started the day with one leg taped up and finished with two taped up!
So, how was the race?
Horrible, painful, slightly more painful, then excruciatingly painful. Because i haven't been able to train for 3 weeks prior to it, my legs had no strength in them so by mile 16 they had nothing left & I had hit the dreaded wall. Its strange because in all my training runs I hadn't hit the wall once, & I had reached the 22 mile mark twice, with a sub 3hr time, so I was used to running a lot quicker.
Anyway, from mile 16 onwards I just had to do my best to get round without doing further damage to myself. There were loads of people dropping out all over the place from mile 14 onwards. To those of you that sponsored me, you kept me going for those last 10 miles. I was trying to come up with a good excuse as to why I dropped out but I couldn't think of one so I carried on! It was hurting so much I was doing some pathetic running towards the end and was being overtaken by all kinds of people. I remember a clown going past me, and a man with a prosthetic leg, even my Grandma at 83 could have wandered past me I think.
Ive also been asked a few times if I will be doing it next year:
No thanks! I would have liked to get a sub 3hr time and certain that I could if I stayed injury free, but I think the amount of effort that needs to be put in to running a marathon is a lot more than I ever expected. I think I will let someone else have a go next year, I can think of a few likely candidates to put forward..........but never, say never!
Mat
PS, I will put some pics up when I get them as further proof of my ordeal (Ive not seen any yet but I will be very surprised if I'm smiling on any!)
Mission Accomplished
I managed to complete the 26.2 miles in a time of 3hrs 23min's and 29seconds coming in a respectable 3,509th position.Proof is available at: http://results-2008.london-marathon.co.uk/index.php?lastname=Harrington&firstname=Mathew&club=&gender=&nation=&event_id=MAS&position=&split=FINISHNET&Submit=show+results+%3E%3E&a=d&o=s&start_no=21792&ostart_no=
A Big THANK YOU to everyone who sponsored me, sent me a good luck message or came on a training run with me (even if it was on a bike!) I think I used up all those good luck messages just to get me round the course without doing further damage to my calf. Also a big thanks to the physio who made it possible for me to even run at all. I started the day with one leg taped up and finished with two taped up!
So, how was the race?
Horrible, painful, slightly more painful, then excruciatingly painful. Because i haven't been able to train for 3 weeks prior to it, my legs had no strength in them so by mile 16 they had nothing left & I had hit the dreaded wall. Its strange because in all my training runs I hadn't hit the wall once, & I had reached the 22 mile mark twice, with a sub 3hr time, so I was used to running a lot quicker. Anyway, from mile 16 onwards I just had to do my best to get round without doing further damage to myself. There were loads of people dropping out all over the place from mile 14 onwards. To those of you that sponsored me, you kept me going for those last 10 miles. I was trying to come up with a good excuse as to why I dropped out but I couldn't think of one so I carried on! It was hurting so much I was doing some pathetic running towards the end and was being overtaken by all kinds of people. I remember a clown going past me, and a man with a prosthetic leg, even my Grandma at 83 could have wandered past me I think.
Ive also been asked a few times if I will be doing it next year:
No thanks! I would have liked to get a sub 3hr time and certain that I could if I stayed injury free, but I think the amount of effort that needs to be put in to running a marathon is a lot more than I ever expected. I think I will let someone else have a go next year, I can think of a few likely candidates to put forward..........but never, say never!Mat
PS,
I will put some pics up when I get them as further proof of my ordeal (Ive not seen any yet but I will be very surprised if I'm smiling on any!)15/04/08 UPDATE:
I’ve been told that the money raised will pay for around 40 nursing hours. This could help one person or several people but either way they and their family will be eternally grateful for the support of a Marie Curie Cancer Care nurse at such a dark time in their life.Once again a big Thank You to everyone who sponsored me, because of your donations, tonight there will be a Marie Curie Cancer Care nurse going to the home of cancer patient to look after someone in the familiarity of their own home with their friends and family around them. All this is provided free of charge thanks to the money raised.London Marathon 08
OK, I'm trying to raise as much as I can for charity. I feel like Ive done quite a few charity events over the past year or so, either the Great North Run or various charity events for Water Aid with work & I imagine most people are getting fed up with being asked for sponsorship (or at least some people probably think that its all fun and they are footing the bill for my enjoyment.)
So, I figure that the best way is to show everyone the pain I'm going to go through to get my ass round the 26.2 mile course in as fast a time as possible. Ive never done a marathon before, only a few half marathons which I managed to come through unscathed (relatively - except the last one where I had man flu the week before & felt like I was going to die when I finished - I think the picture says it all)!
Anyway, in order for me to show you all the pain that my brain & knees must go through I thought that I would start a training blog telling everyone the training I have been doing each week. I'm also hoping it will make me stick to the training and not just stay in bed every morning when I need to get up & run in the wind & rain. The other potential bonus for doing this training blog is hopefully it makes some of you feel guilty and lets me feel smug about myself.....and suddenly it all feels worthwhile :)
So...if your reading this, please visit www.justgiving.com/matspage and sponsor me! All money is going to Marie Curie Cancer Care, a very worthy cause. In short:
Marie Curie Cancer Care provides high quality nursing totally free, to give terminally ill people the choice of dying at home supported by their families. Your local Marie Curie Hospice actively promotes quality of life for people with cancer and provides support for their families. The services are completely free to patients. World class scientists at the Marie Curie Research Institute are investigating how cancer develops to find better ways of treating the disease in the future. That's the brief overview but obviously for more info visit www.mariecurie.org.uk (Charity Registration No 207994)
Feel free to add comments or replies (especially if you don't think I'm pulling my weight), although I may just force you to come on a run with me if you do ;)
So, I figure that the best way is to show everyone the pain I'm going to go through to get my ass round the 26.2 mile course in as fast a time as possible. Ive never done a marathon before, only a few half marathons which I managed to come through unscathed (relatively - except the last one where I had man flu the week before & felt like I was going to die when I finished - I think the picture says it all)!
Anyway, in order for me to show you all the pain that my brain & knees must go through I thought that I would start a training blog telling everyone the training I have been doing each week. I'm also hoping it will make me stick to the training and not just stay in bed every morning when I need to get up & run in the wind & rain. The other potential bonus for doing this training blog is hopefully it makes some of you feel guilty and lets me feel smug about myself.....and suddenly it all feels worthwhile :)
So...if your reading this, please visit www.justgiving.com/matspage and sponsor me! All money is going to Marie Curie Cancer Care, a very worthy cause. In short:
Marie Curie Cancer Care provides high quality nursing totally free, to give terminally ill people the choice of dying at home supported by their families. Your local Marie Curie Hospice actively promotes quality of life for people with cancer and provides support for their families. The services are completely free to patients. World class scientists at the Marie Curie Research Institute are investigating how cancer develops to find better ways of treating the disease in the future. That's the brief overview but obviously for more info visit www.mariecurie.org.uk (Charity Registration No 207994)
Feel free to add comments or replies (especially if you don't think I'm pulling my weight), although I may just force you to come on a run with me if you do ;)
Monday, April 14, 2008
Saturday, April 5, 2008
The moment of truth......
Well since my last post Ive not been able to do any running. Ive been to the physio more times that I care to remember & spent a small fortune on trying to get my calf sorted.
Its 3 weeks now since I ran properly and all Ive managed to do is a bit of cycling but Ive even stopped that recently in a bid to rest completely.
On Thurs 3rd I managed to jog for an hour with the physio on a treadmill with my leg heavily strapped. I managed to run about 10k in an hour and my leg was OK afterwards which is a good sign. So, the new plan is to rest up until the marathon, now that I know I can run and just hope that it holds up for the full distance.
Unfortunately for me I wont be going for the 3hr mark any more but as long as I get round in one piece I will be happy. I guess it now means that I can enjoy the occasion instead of trying to kill myself by going as quick as possible. I know I will find it hard not being able to go as quickly as I want but theres nothing I can do about it now.
Thanks to everyone who sponsored me, I managed to collect quite a bit offline too and there are several people yet to sponsor. I think they are waiting to see if I make it round before the cough up....not a bad idea considering the situation!
So, fingers crossed I can tape myself together on the day and drag myself to the finish.
Its 3 weeks now since I ran properly and all Ive managed to do is a bit of cycling but Ive even stopped that recently in a bid to rest completely.
On Thurs 3rd I managed to jog for an hour with the physio on a treadmill with my leg heavily strapped. I managed to run about 10k in an hour and my leg was OK afterwards which is a good sign. So, the new plan is to rest up until the marathon, now that I know I can run and just hope that it holds up for the full distance.
Unfortunately for me I wont be going for the 3hr mark any more but as long as I get round in one piece I will be happy. I guess it now means that I can enjoy the occasion instead of trying to kill myself by going as quick as possible. I know I will find it hard not being able to go as quickly as I want but theres nothing I can do about it now.
Thanks to everyone who sponsored me, I managed to collect quite a bit offline too and there are several people yet to sponsor. I think they are waiting to see if I make it round before the cough up....not a bad idea considering the situation!
So, fingers crossed I can tape myself together on the day and drag myself to the finish.
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