After this week its on the two week countdown to my first half marathon, and I'm looking forward to it. I've managed to complete one long run between 14 - 16 miles each week over the last three weeks with last weekend setting a tempo run over 13 miles at 1hr 45mins complete with bottle belt for the first time and to test the Lunarglides out for suitability on a longer run.

So after Sunday it will be taper time and give the knees a rest, although I am tempted to run a cheeky little 10k on tuesday night around Kingsbury Water Park a week and half before Coventry just because I fancy a competitive trails run.

Once I have acheived this milestone I am thinking about the Birmingham HM around October I think and that should do this year at that distance as next year I would like to go for a full one and probably a 20 miler.

And to think, referring to my training journal I could only run 2.3 miles maximum 3 times per week this time last year, although I was over two stone heavier as well !! A bit of commitment and a lot of encouragement by others goes a long way. 

Well that's another milestone ticked,

Did any of you peeps run the Cov half today? It was really hot and I mean the weather not the pace. Although saying that the winner came in at 1:11 thereabouts.

Hit my 1:40 target nearly on the nail with a chip time of 1:39:38, 183rd out of around 1850 runners which put me in the top 10% of finishers so I quite pleased with that for a first time, although my age grading came in at around 69% which ranked 3rd in all time best.

Surprisingly I understand only a couple of dozen were treated for heat exhaustion, maybe one of them was the tall chap with the pristine designer trainers just in front of me at the start who decided that he wanted to be right near the front at the start in the 1:30-45 zone fretting to his mate that he was going to get boxed in, went off at a sprint only for me to pass him at the half mile stage, didn't see him after that!!!

I'm glad there were plenty of water stations, not for the drink but to tip the bottles over my head and neck, wet lycra don't look good on a 50 year old, good job I chose the black number instead of the white otherwise I'd have been arrested :-0

Although it was probably the hardest run I had ever done, I thoroughly enjoyed the day...... Now onto the next race, a 10 miler next Sunday in Burton upon Trent, the club captain has asked me to run as part of the league, after which I'm having a rest for a couple of weeks then back to the 10k's.

Thanks Helen, I'm on a complete rest until Tuesday morning and then ease myself into a couple of easy paced runs of 5 - 6 miles each, and only one or maybe two hard sessions at a push up to next Sunday's race, with of course the obligatory Saturday rest day.

I'm glad I hydrated on Saturday it paid dividends as I didn't need to take on too much fluid before the event and during most of it went over my head, although I was naughty afterwards I did treat myself to a pint of cider afterwards, the first alcoholic drink since February and I didn't tip that over my head this time.