Winding down to retirement.......

And winding up to Marathon training !!

I have 18 more working days (ok that finishes in about 40 days) and then I wont be working shifts anymore. I cant tell you how relieved I will be to be able to concentrate on my Marathon Running plan without worrying about going to work at 10PM or getting up at 5:45AM.

I am also looking at different training plans now too. When i started this mission I was a total beginner and when it comes to marathon running I still am but looking at all the training plans that are out there if I start one as a beginner then i will be walking and running 2 miles to start me off!

Well Im a seasoned athlete now!!

So I am looking at training plans that start with 5 mile ish runs as there doesnt seem to be any point in going backwards!

Unless you know different then please shout - there are so many really varying training plans out there but when I find the one that suits me I will post it here.

https://www.justgiving.com/Noahschair/

Massive thanks to Kate, Gary and Georgia

The plan is to raise as much money as possible for Caudwell Children as they have been so wonderful to little Noah Wall by paying for 80% of the new Wheelchair he has been breaking in for the last few weeks.

Our lovely friends Kate and Gary with their daughter Georgia organised a coffee morning with homemade cake, a raffle and stocking fillers that they made up and sold to friends and neighbours.

The final total isnt in yet but it is well over £200 which is an awesome total which will take me to over £1700 so far towards my target of at least £2500.

So massive thanks to you all xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Wow the last run hurt !

I am trying to maintain a reasonable level of running until after Christmas so that I can then start on one of the half dozen or so training plans I have been sent. So it is a case of getting out when it isnt throwing it down with rain and doing what I can.

The last 8 miler really hurt though. Why does one run hurt and another run doesnt?

Going back to the experimenting with Energy Gels post i made a few weeks ago, I only took 1 with me yesterday, because my intention was to just run 5 miles and 1 gel would have been fine so maybe I just ran out of energy?! I did feel ok up to around 5.5 having taken the energy gel as i turned round on the 4 mile point. (my runs are always out and back to get the right distance/time).

So i felt good at the 2.5 mile point so thought I would go another mile and a half and make it an 8 miler. I will have to make sure I take at least 2 gels, maybe 3 with me in future and see if the pains in my upper thighs were a lack of energy or my body saying  "you are getting old Richard what the bloody hell are you doing this for?".

Im hoping it was the former obviously !!

Back top the fundraising - Our lovely friend Kate held a coffee morning in Plymouth which we traveled down for and we were all delighted that lots of people turned up and at the last count Kate thinks she has got over £200 for the total! That's awesome and I am so grateful.

I had my tablet playing a really funny video of Noah laughing and pulling funny faces the whole time!!

See all about Noah and follow him at https://twitter.com/HugsForNoah

This weather is rubbish !!

I am still working full time and shifts too (only for another 7 weeks though :-) ) and traveling to and from work I really admire the dedication of the runners I see pounding the streets at all hours in all weathers.

Lately it has got colder and wetter and the motivation levels are always tested - it helps having a Springer Spaniel to remind you its time Dad !

As the start of the Training Plan date gets closer though I am really happy with the progress so far, with previous convictions for starting and giving up (or getting injured) I am happy that I have got past that point now and do look forward to the next run but i still couldnt get out of bed at 0500 and run in the pouring rain and driving wind !

This little fella is enough motivation to run for - https://www.justgiving.com/Noahschair

The training plan says - "Strength Day"

I have been working up to starting the training plan, which starts just after Christmas. The running part isnt too hard to fathom, even the timings and the speed requirements, its the "strength day" section that pops up a couple of times a week.

I thought about joining our local Gym, that might be an option because no doubt the weather will be getting colder and wetter (if you read the Daily Express there will be an Ice Age before long) so the Gym might be an incentive to train even if I dont want to run. This might be an option but......

A few days ago i walked into a couple of guys at work doing a training routine and it made me think about an alternative and it seems to be fitting the bill.

Checkout this video on YouTube -


Now im not quite up to the press up challenge just yet (although never say never) but doing Squats to the same instruction is an absolute killer on the thighs and is definitely getting easier to go farther the more times i do it.

The first time i tried it was after an 8 mile run, i only managed 2:23seconds into the first play but yesterday after a faster 5 miler i managed to go through the whole thing twice with a 2 minute break in between.

Try it for strength in those legs - that is what is going to get you round the 26.2 miles i keep telling myself !!

https://www.justgiving.com/Noahschair/

Energy Gels - Not really got a clue so experimenting!

Another 8 miles under the belt yesterday and not feeling too sore today. I am sort of measuring my fitness improvements by how bad i feel the next day at the moment !

I have been reading a lot about energy gels and drink supplements and clearly I know nothing and it seems that there are some really varied pieces of advice out there.

An experienced and good friend who I trust reckons that on a long run I should be taking a gel every 20 minutes or so, and yet I was reading yesterday that your stomach closes down, diverting all available resources to the other vital organs so gels are less effective unless taken with plenty of water, and maybe liquid energy might be the way to go. But i suppose it all has to go through your stomach. This article suggested a gel every hour would be sufficient for most people.

So I dont really know is the answer and I suppose the best way to find out is to experiment a bit, so I have bought a box of  Energy Gels, which seem to come highly recommended and will give them a try. It may be that they work differently for everyone so perhaps experimentation is the key but if you have any experience or advice I would be happy to hear about it.

http://www.hugsfornoah.co.uk/

https://www.justgiving.com/Noahschair/

This is what is is all about - Noah gets his Chair !!

On Friday night little Noah Wall got his new Wheelchair presented to him at his Gala Dinner at The Halston Hotel, Carlisle Cumbria. We were so proud to have been there to see this and spend some more time with my pretend Nephew !!

 Me and Noah - Copyright Helen Barrington

The incredible Caudwell Childrens Charity have paid for almost all of this chair and it will make such an incredible difference to Noahs life. We saw this first hand this morning as Noah moved around the house, from bathroom sink to kitchen table (via the incredible lift installed by the DIYSOS Big Build team). His beaming smile tells the story, although I expect his face must ache permanently because Noah rarely stops smiling.

There are loads of pictures from the night which will follow soon and a link to where you can buy more pictures from Helen Barrington who gave her time for free along with so many other people on the night.

Finally as always what this is all about - every penny donated is doubled by Caudwell Children and all of it goes to  great and deserving children like Noah.

https://www.justgiving.com/Noahschair/

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Spina-bifida/Pages/Prevention.aspx

The Great West Run - Now this is getting real !

I finished The Great West Run today, the Exeter Half Marathon in 2:20:47 (chip timing) and feel absolutely elated. It isnt a fast time but there were loads of people behind me and im really chuffed that i didnt walk a step!

Here are a few before and after shots, i have missed out the one of me queuing for the loo at the start in case you are eating whilst reading!

It was great running with friend and colleague Sammy Squirrell and crossing the line hand in hand !! Also meeting the lovely Jo Pavey was great too, she wasnt as horrified as she look in the picture honest (well im not sure now i have looked again!)

Here is a reminder of what this is all for: https://www.justgiving.com/Noahschair all donations however small are doubled by the amazing Caudwell Childrens charity.

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Spina-bifida/Pages/Prevention.aspx

My first post - hopefully not "The last post"

Noah in the demo chair with me and family !

#HugsForNoah is what it is all about. Little Noah Wall grabs your heart and hangs onto it so you have to give him a hug and smile back, because he is always smiling.

Noah Wall is 3 and a half years old, he was born with Spinabifida and is paralysed from his chest down. He was also born with only 2% of his brain due to a porencephalic destructive cyst. He currently has both legs in plaster after having reconstructive surgery on both of his feet. After his operation a few weeks ago he had an MRI scan and Doctors were amazed that his brain has expanded to a size which is close to normal. This would account for his phenomenal progress and means he has the potential to have a wonderful life ahead of him.

Despite this however, Noah will always have a life threatening condition in the form of hydrocephalus. This means he will have to undergo a number of operations throughout his life, to lengthen the tube that drains the excess brain fluid, to stop pressure building in his head.

So that is Noah in a couple of paragraphs which is pretty unfair but a tiny clue into why i'm going to run The London Marathon next year. In a nutshell, Noah needs a very wizzy wazzy electric wheelchair and it is going to cost over £18k, There are very few families that can afford such a purchase so I am going to pester and persuade as many people as possible to sponsor me to run 26.2 miles on April 24th 2016.

I am 50 years old and havent run more than 5 miles in the last 30 years up until a few weeks ago when my training runs ticked up to 6 miles, so its going to be a struggle but not as much of a struggle it is for Noah to haul himself around his house without his wheels, so that will be in my thoughts when it hurts a lot!

Shelly, Noahs mum has persuaded me to write some stuff here because she is convinced someone might read it - I am less convinced so if you have got this far then let me know or it might not go far from here !