BBC - London - Features - Marathon Man

Entry 4

April… the month I was to run like I had never run before.

Not only pounding the streets of London in the marathon, but also as a torch bearer for the Olympic flame as it made its way through 10 boroughs around the capital.

The latter became too political to be a part of as a BBC newsreader and sadly with the other, I am to be nothing more than a bystander for another year.

Although I breathed a deep sigh of relief as I watched the pictures of protesters making their feelings known during the Torch Relay, I feel less satisfied with having to pull out of the marathon due to a knee injury.

I have fought off medical opinion as much as I dare as I am convinced I could complete the marathon – but the risk of permanent injury is too great according to experts.

I had rested my knee with the first sign of trouble, but there came a point where I had to see if I was up to a long distance race.

Things were going surprising well. I was feeling strong and my pace was good – but 12 miles was my absolute limit.

excruciating

This was not through feeling exhausted, but because the pain in my knee would turn from minor to excruciating.

So that has blown it for another year. I cannot even describe the huge feeling of disappointment and the even bigger feeling of guilt for not running for Water Aid and having to tell them the bad news.

When I finally plucked up the courage to break it to them, they only made me feel worse. Not by shouting at me and making me feel like a complete and utter failure – but by being so incredibly understanding, supportive and sympathetic!

I felt humbled by their reaction and I feel the least I can do on the day is to go and shout some encouraging support to the other competitors and in particular the fellow Water Aid runners I trained with in February.

So as I look in awe at the thousands of runners and spot all the people I know, including some colleagues and fellow presenters from BBC London 94.9 – I’ll think of what could have been and dream that next year, WILL finally be my year.

Entry 3

Oh dear, Oh dear… one month to go and things are not looking good…

I should be able to run about 20 miles by now, had my training gone to plan. I am actually slightly short of that target. I do not want to reveal how short (I will do that after the race) but I am accepting the reality of not making it to the winner's podium this year!

Last month, I went to a training day arranged by Water Aid in order to get us geared up and prepared mentally and physically for the last few weeks before the London Marathon. I knew it was going to be a tough day when I spoke to one of the other runners first thing in the morning, as I waited to go to the loo. The polite greetings were over in a flash before I was asked "so what's the furthest you've run?"

I found out very quickly that this is the question of choice amongst smug marathon runners who have fulfilled amazing training schedules over the winter months and glow as a result with great skin, bright eyes and sparkling smiles.

I was about to answer but as I scanned the runner from head to toe and took in the semi-professional gear she was wearing – I was honest to enough to say "well, it's not going as well as I had hoped – what about you?" (when in a tight spot ALWAYS turn the question onto the questioner). "Not great either" came the reply from a beaming smiling face, "I only managed 18 miles at the weekend and I run the 6 miles to work every day." The polite smile on my face struggled to stay on.

Similar conversations took place with everyone I spoke to. Adding to the embarrassment was the fact that I got the impression that the Water Aid runners thought I was playing down my actual level of fitness and training regime to be modest. Little did they know, I was actually playing it up!

Rewind 14 days and I had started to get into the swing of things. I started training early in the morning by running a few miles here and a few miles there. I even managed a bit of a spurt on the Isle of Skye during my week off work.

As my confidence began to build, my right ankle (which I injured 3 years ago) gave way, followed quickly by my knee. It has not looked good ever since. I am told to rest the injury whilst at the same time I think how I can rest when I am just weeks away from running 26.2 miles!

Fortunately the Water Aid training day in South West London was useful. Simon – who is a seasoned runner and manages to complete miles effortlessly, was great with telling us what to expect on the day. Sadly, some of Simon’s good work psyching us up was undone by his sidekick who made us feel like we were volunteering to go into a den of hungry lions with a sprinkle of Oregano on our heads for good measure.

When asked about "hitting the wall" at the 20 mile mark, Simon began explaining how to get through it and how to deal with it. The sidekick decided to throw his two pence in and simply say "it feels like you've suddenly had both your legs cut off…" Thanks! I've decided to try and trip him up on the day if I see him.

It was great to see double Olympic Gold Medal winner James Cracknell pop in for some words of advice. I have met him a few times, and his charm was the antidote we all needed. Incredibly fit, witty and full of wise words, James told us his experience of his first London Marathon with some great stories thrown in.

Unfortunately, I couldn't build on the training we did that day as I have had to again rest my ankle and knee and now I am starting to panic. A couple of days after the training day, I bumped into James Cracknell again. He popped into work and whilst I told him how I was struggling to run down to the end of the road – he filled me in on his cycle and swim to Africa which he was doing for Sports Relief.

I don't have to tell you how that made me feel – but it's hard to begrudge James and he has my total respect for what he does and the discipline it must take.
So that's it. I wish this was a more motivating update – but I think I need the motivation right now.

The former Premiership footballer Mark Bright has done his bit to pick up my spirits by telling me to jog and walk the course (dropping out is not an option – which was Mark's first suggestion). Mark has done the London Marathon a few times and manages to smile all the way through waving at people. I think I'll have enough trouble lifting up my feet after 13 miles, let alone managing a wave.

You can see a bit more of the training day by clicking on the video icon at the top of this page. You can hear Simon and James parting with some words of wisdom and you can also see how badly my training is going! Anyway, heads down for the last few weeks. Runners are told to start winding down their training in the last few weeks before the race. I think I still need to find my wind up button!

Entry 2

It is two months to go and I have to say my training regime can hardly be called a ‘training regime’ at all. My greatest fear has reared its ugly head in the form of the realisation that I just have not been putting in the number of hours I have needed to by this stage to complete the London Marathon 2008 in anything less than 10 hours!

My excuse: just before Christmas I was on a reporting assignment in Saudi Arabia and so running in the desert was not really an option. Despite that, we had to walk for miles on end in 40+ degree heat which hopefully should have built up some stamina but I got out of the routine of training and it has been hard to get it back.

However, the real work has to be done here in London and like a lot of people, finding time to get my running shoes on, is just not coming easily.

As I was reaching the point of despair, this week, I got the boost I was looking for. I was attending an event at No 10 Downing Street (not an opportunity that usually comes my way) and I quite literally bumped into a woman with a walking stick. As I blurted out a thousand apologies for nearly knocking her over, she pleasantly smiled at me. We started talking for a while and after she left I found out her name was Gill Hicks and she has lost both her feet during the London bombings in 2005.

Apart from making me feel even worse for being so clumsy, I learned that she was planning to walk from Leeds to London. The destinations were  chosen because Leeds was the home of three out of the four bombers who had come to the capital to kill innocent people on the 7th July.

Gill’s planned walk is in the name of peace and it will be a slow walk. I had seen how slowly Gill had walked through the Prime Minister’s home and I thought of her walking hundreds of miles for a cause she believed in and it made me realise that it wasn’t too late for me to train so that I could run, walk or crawl a miserly 26 miles for the thousands of people dying every day through a lack of decent sanitation.

2008 is the United Nations International Year of Sanitation. A year dedicated to trying to bring down the massive number of deaths caused daily by a lack of clean water and sanitation. Five times more children die every day from bad sanitation than from HIV/AIDS, but yet the awareness to act quickly to provide facilities and clean water for 40 percent of the world’s population is poor.

I was therefore glad to see David Beckham in his capacity as a UNICEF Ambassador followed by a mass of cameras (including a superb report by the BBC’s Fergal Keane) in Sierra Leone, drawing attention towards the need of millions of people who need decent sanitation. 

Sometimes it takes a football icon or pop star to make people sit up. Let’s face it, right here in London 150 years ago, nothing was done about the capital’s sewage problem until the Great Stink of 1858 when parliament was suspended because the stench of rotten sewage filling the nostrils of MP’s. As a result, emergency action was taken which we still benefit from now.

Anyway, back to training, or lack of it. Thank you for your emails with tips on how to best cope with practicing for the big race in April. Do keep them coming in. I am now starting to look at getting sponsorship to reward the miracle (if it happens) of me crossing the finishing line. Money raised is obviously for the End Water Poverty Campaign by Water Aid. They are being tremendously supportive and I am determined not to let them down by having a Jade Goody moment. Jade did not train once last year, ate a kebab the night before the Marathon and keeled over somewhere near Tower Bridge (which was still pretty good going)!

For all those people who I see training hard every day as they run past me – I’m on my way!

Entry 1

The London Marathon means a lot of things to a lot of Londoners.

I remember the first ever London Marathon in 1981. My school was across the road from the starting line at Greenwich Park and I thought it was amazing to see so many people (7,500 runners) lining up to  run 26 miles through London.

As I watched the race that day, I decided that one day I would run it too.

I make sure I wait for all the runners to pass as my respect grows for those left behind, struggling to carry on as they practically walk along  the whole circuit.

Admittedly a part of me feels sorry for them too… and I wonder whether I would be any better?

Well in four months time I should find out. I have been asked to run the marathon for Water Aid.

The charity provides safe water, effective sanitation and hygiene education to some of the world’s poorest people.

According to the charity 5,000 children a day die because they don’t have access to clean water or proper sanitation.

On a personal note I recently returned from a reporting assignment to Darfur, Sudan where I saw for myself the importance of having clean water in areas of extreme climates and poverty. So it seems right to do my bit to raise money.

That’s the theory behind running the 2008 London Marathon but I fear the practice will be a challenge of mountainous proportions.

With a little over four months to get into shape and get my stamina up from being able to run a quarter of a mile to over 26 miles, the prospect of competing in the race is daunting.

The pressure to not moan too much is also increasing. Last week BBC London reported on a man training for the Marathon at the age of 101! (See the video report on Buster Martin using the weblink below)

As I watched the report I realised that Buster Martin looked fitter than me and was already running faster than me! So that’s it - the training starts here - but where exactly do I begin?

Do I start by walking briskly? Maybe running as far and as fast as I can before I collapse in a heap or shall I spend a couple more weeks getting into the right frame of mind?

Well, I’ve decided on a light jog around the park with my dog, a chocolate Labrador called Daisy.

I don’t know if she realises what the next few months hold in store for her – but I hope she’s feeling energetic!

I certainly need to be more disciplined when it comes to eating. This week I attended a Chocolate Charity Auction for Medicinema (the charity provides cinemas in hospitals for patients and carers so they can watch films for free) where mountains of chocolate were on offer and it seemed so rude to refuse.

My mince pie count will also have to drop significantly if I stand any chance of running to the end of my road before Christmas.

The added incentive to get in to shape and do this properly is that a week before the London Marathon in April, I have been asked to help carry the Olympic Torch as it heads through London on its way to Beijing in time for the 2008 Olympics.

I feel flattered to be asked to help carry the flame and I just hope I don’t manage to drop it, singe my hair or accidently extinguish it!

So all in all, it’s going to be a busy few months trying to prepare for the two events in April in between presenting and reporting for BBC London and trying to lead an already hectic family life.

“HELP”

Your emails

I was at the training day at Twickenham and I am also running for Wateraid .
Running a marathon is very challenging. You watch people do it and imagine how they keep going non-stop till they get to the finish line. You never imagined one day you could be one of them, but hey!!! It’s all in the name of Charity.

The first time I ever did a Marathon was last year (2007) and I must confess I felt the same way as you do now. Most of my friends thought I was crazy.”Insane”!! Is the word?  Starting out by doing a couple of 5k & 10k runs was very helpful. This made me get used to the marathon environment, which could be very intimidating. With the professionals charging past and the likes of slow runners like me struggling to finish.

The Reading Half Marathon in 2007 was the first major one.  I broke all the training and diet rules.  I was so excited about running 13.1miles and was so quick at telling anyone who cared to listen. Come race day, it was for real. The crowd alone was intimidating. Amidst all the stretches and warm up, I was so nervous and scared; I started eating up all the jelly babies I was going to use as energy fuel during the run. Not good!

As soon as I heard the gun shot, I could barely move my legs. The guy who stood next to me asked if I was going to run all through and I said yes. He said he had been running marathons for 5 years and never ran/jogged all through. In essence he said “walk it” if you can’t” run or jog it”. Hmmm!!! That actually made me feel a beat more relaxed. I realised it was not a competition and I was not going to be marked down for  “walking it”.  With a lot of people along the way and all the cheering from friends and people who I never knew and would never know, shouting my name and encouraging me to go on. I just kept going until I saw the finish line. I could picture myself in slow motion crossing that line and holding that medal so close to my heart and saying to my self…. yes!!!!! I just saved so many lives.

…I could go on about my marathon day’s vibes. Every marathon is a new experience. I just concluded the Reading Half Marathon on the 2nd March and I am still recovering from achy muscles.

Here are some few tips I feel helped me get by;

Joined a running club in my area was very helpful. We train ones a week in addition to “my train alone” sessions”. That way you don’t get to run alone all the time and you could share ideas and training tips from other runners.

With your very busy schedule I assume it is very difficult to go out running all the time. But if you can get hold of a gym at any location you find yourself the following could help:

Use various equipments as directed by an experienced instructor to do a lot of leg strengthening exercises and on the treadmill, speed endurance. My gym instructor put me on speed of 10 x 2min & 14 x 1min – 6times. Starting with a 2mins warm up at level 6 = total 20mins.

Yoga, I understand helps strengthen the muscles. I have noticed the difference in my endurance while running since I started doing yoga, especially going up the hills.

Swimming and cycling are two forms of exercises I understand is useful for making up those days you miss out going out to train.

Most importantly like we were told at the training… listen to your body.

I hope this few tips from an amateur like me helps. Don’t worry you will be fine.

All the best!!

Ginika Okoye

The best tip I was given whilst training for last year’s marathon was: “Keep yourself warm when out running!” – I see people outside in the late evening, in the depths of winter, persevering in long sleeved tops and skimpy running shorts; who I feel must certainly be putting themselves at risk from sprains and strains. Personally, I didn’t move out of my full set of thermals, tracksuit bottoms, t-shirt, long-sleeved top and wind shirt until well into February last year. Good luck!

Jonathan Giles

Hi Asad,

Running on my own (I haven't yet found anyone crazy enough to join
me!) and with few people to ask I've found a wealth of information online. Although I suppose there's no one way to train I settled for this one:

Admittedly it's a six month schedule (I started training at the beginning of October) but I've had to take a few weeks off already due to ill health so it's something that can be modified if you stick to the underlying principles that are laid out.

There's one rule that seems to crop up again and again - only increase the distance you run very gradually week on week. Also, my own personal rule is to remind myself to listen to my body - that's important for me because I had a back operation seven years ago, but it's important for everyone else because the knee's are so easy to damage.

I also wanted to say that it's a bit weird you're running for similar reasons to me - I've lived on the Marathon route for 20 years of my life (Charlton), went to The John Roan secondary school (which I believe is the same as you... and Des Lynham, so I've been told), infact it was the school that offered me a place once my application for the public ballot was unsuccessful.

Plus, I stumbled upon your post while looking for information at the BBC about WaterAid as I'm thinking about running for a charity and think the cancer and heart organisations are a little over represented (clean water is definitely the place to start in my view).

Anyway, I hope some of this helps and if you're still living in the area and happen to drive past a red faced mid twenties white guy running with a look of sheer determination - that's me, I did Charlton, all the way around Blackheath and back again on Sunday night
(8m) and I could still feel it during this morning's run (only 3m).

best of luck and don't let anyone say you can't do it

Nick