It's not your pace that makes you a runner....

 It had  to happen eventually. Everyone said that if you don't take care of yourself or if you increase distance too quickly you'll end up with an injury. But did I listen?

For anyone who knows me in the real world you will know full well that I never listen to good advice.

 I approached my marathon training plan with my usual level of enthusiasm and completed an above target 16.5 miles and felt amazing. I kid you not, at the end that run I was certain I was heading for some sort of bright future in running, maybe a late call up to TeamGB for 2012.

If I could increase my distance that quick and maintain pace surely I could achieve anything. For one bright and shining moment I felt invincible. A god among mortals. An athlete among amateurs.

So excited was I that I set up my playlist for the next run a week in advance and went on to a couple of 60 minute interval sessions during the week, looking forward to topping 17 miles the following Sunday.

But that Sunday never came. Tuesday and Thursday (now known as Bastard Thursday) saw to that.

Long story short I limp home from both runs with a knee that feels like its been bent forward at 90 degrees. There is no flexibility and no strength there whatsoever.

Over the following two days I pitched wildly between never running again and planning ultra marathons to prove my knee wrong. But however I tried to look at it I was still a frustrated runner who could barely walk let alone run.

It took 48 hours for me to stop seeing this as a tragedy and start seeing it as what it is.

It's just another challenge. I have faced a lot and I will face plenty more.

And if there's anything that running has taught me it's that you can accomplish anything with determination and stamina. I'm not racing to complete my first marathon any more, I'll go when I'm ready. I've cancelled Eden and realised that for now my goal is recovery and focusing on the 10k I'm running in October.

I'm working on strength and flexibility in my legs and core to compensate for gammy knee and will be back on the trails soon.


One thing I learned this week was how great the running community is. Lots of people have wished me well but Twitter has proved an invaluable source of support and information with one guy @100mara100weeks being a constant source of inspiration and support. He is an ex-soldier and is running 100 marathons in 100 weeks to raise awareness and funds for Help for Heroes. He's a legend and well worth a follow/mention. I've decided to donate my entry money from the cancelled run to him as I think he is amazing and a  true inspiration having never run a marathon before!

There's a lot to be said about the benefits of running, mentally and physically. For me it's an opportunity to unplug my brain and let subconscious sort things out. Difficult decisions seem less daunting and somehow trivial once you spend some time under the sky with the world passing you by, realising what a small part of it you really are. It's a huge destresser for me and speaking to friends recently I know others feel the same.

And it doesn't matter how fast you are. It's not your pace that makes you a runner, but your ability to put one foot in front of the other, over and over again.