Random Long Route - 17.3km - 2hours 2min 28sec

This is the last long run before the Half Marathon next week. Perhaps it should have been longer. Still have doubts about added on an extra 4km on the day but fingers crossed that atmosphere and adrenaline will get me to the finish line.

Knee was good during run but pain in head of right 5th MT again which is a bit of a worry. Hopefully it'll be better by the race. Speed was better too 8.47km/h. At this rate I should complete the race in about 2hours 28mins. That would be incredible. As I said before - Under 2:45 I'll be happy, under 2:30 I'd be ecstatic.

Pentland Hills Hike - 10.2km

Did this hill walk today http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=2667979 as I've been meaning to get myself up there for ages. It was pretty nice and I took quite a few pics which is always good. Don't know that it really counts as training but to some extent it is exercise and thus gets a mention!!!

Long Arthur's Seat Loop - 15km - 1hour 47min 10sec

Got up at 5am yesterday to do this. Talk about dedication.

It was quite hard as the weather was colder than I expected but at least it wasn't raining and there was not much wind. I really went for it and it was worth it as I managed to knock almost 5 mins off my fastest time. Although I'm sure I could have gone further I was glad when I reached the end as my right knee was agony (for the first time) and my left achilles was beginning to ache - both of which would get worse over the course of the day.

Anyway, at least that's another long run in the bag and I'm looking forward to seeing how I'll do over 21km - hopefully with no hills.

Bridge Cycle - 53km - untimed

Went for a leisurely cycle this morning down to Leith to meet Simon then we headed out to Silverknowes and Crammond then through South Queensferry and finally over the Forth Road Bridge.

We stopped for about 10 seconds on the North Side of the Bridge and when I asked Simon if he wanted to go further he said, "Nope, I've had my fill of Fife already!" Class.

Cruised back through the various cycle paths in the North side of Edinburgh before heading back soon. Very nice morning without any urgency... but a few hills thrown in for a laugh.

Run to Meadowbank from the Lister - 3km

Just a jog.

Was at the Lister on Wednesday in town so took my running stuff and ran down to the stadium after that for badminton at 6pm. Nice warm up. Took my old shoes though as I didn't want to wear my new running shoes to play badminton and surprise surprise my feet were agony in about 5 mins. I guess I've proved once and for all that they should no longer be used for running.

Gym Cycle - 40 mins

A wee stint in the gym on the way home from work on Tuesday. Certainly worth doing but no replacement for the real thing so I guess it's about time that I get the road bike serviced.

Very sweaty and smelly in there.

Random Route - 17.3km - 2hour 14mins 18sec

Well I don't really know what the plan was supposed to be this morning but as I ran round the north side of Aruthur's Seat I realised that I couldn't be bothered doing the up hill part so I just continued on towards Meadowbank Stadium.

After running over the Bridges and round the town I ended up in the familiar territory of the Meadows and made a token effort to add a bit of extra distance by heading all the way down Morningside road before cutting back towards Collington Rd.

Soon I was home. I really took my time today and the only real goal was to run more than 15km... which I did. However, when I saw the time I couldn't help being a bit disappointed. It worked out at 7.73km per hour which means the half marathon would take me 2 hours and 42 secs (ish).

In saying that, I put down 2 hours 45min for my expected finish time so anything less than that will make me happy. I would be ecstatic if I managed to get less then 2 hours 30mins but I guess we'll see in 3 weeks.

One other good thing is that today I felt that I could manage another couple of kms... I don't know about another 4km though!

Long Arthurs Seat Loop - 15km - 1hour 51min 35sec

Faster again today.

Shoes felt quite good after the first few minutes of tightness but no foot pain like before so I'm happy I bought them! Dry today and less windy and overall the run felt relatively straight forward. However, a particularly upbeat song came on the iPod while I was half way up the seat and I started sprinting which was the dumbest thing ever.

After about 50m I was so out of puff that I thought I was going to puke and ended up running so slowly that I could have walked it faster. Sometimes I wonder about the benefits of not stopping. Perhaps sometimes it would be better to walk. It might even improve my overall time as I guess I'd also be getting a rest.

Don't really want to go down that route but still...

Long Arthur's Loop - 15km - 1hour 52mins 8sec

The weather was shit today but there was no choice but to get out on the road. I awoke to a snow storm and driving winds this morning whic was disheartening to say the least.

Unfortunately, although I've already run 3 times this week the've all been 7.5km runs and that means I was missing a long run. Given that the first half marathon is only 4 weeks away I really had no option but to go for it.

Thankfully there was a bit of a break in the snow and the sun came out for a bit of it. The new trainers felt good even thought they were a bit tight to begin with. I wasn't sure about doing the full 15km with the new shoes on but they performed well and I even managed to knock 5 mins off my time despite the wind and the snow.

Worryingly, I was quite spent again at the end and I still think that I don't have 21km in my legs for the half. I guess I'm going to have to spend the next 4 weeks increasing the distance a bit although I don't know if I've got the time or the inclination. Perhaps if I start putting in 2 long runs and 2 short runs on alternate days that might be enought...

We'll see.

New Shoes

On the shelf...

In the bag...

On the feet...

Big improvement...

Brooks Beasts... Love 'em!

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 49min 35sec

Read it and weep!

I really went hard today and it felt like it was going to be a better time. Thankfully it was and more importantly... it was sub-50 which I've been trying to get for ages. In fairness my times have been so far above that time that I thought it would be a few more weeks before I made it under the 50 mark.

What's also good is that I knocked about 3 mins off my best time so all in all a significant improvement.

The down side though (cause there's always a down side) is that my legs are now really sore. I'm supposed to be doing a long run at some point this weekend but I'm worried that I'll be too sore after todays effort (and the fact that I've already run 3 times this week).

On the plus side - weirdo chest pain thingy was much less today - about 2 mins and feet were much less sore but still causing a problem. Still unsure about the whole new shoe thing but perhaps a trip to the shop with my shoes is merited so the pros can check em out and decide if I need new ones (which I'm sure they will).

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 56min 7sec

Tried to take it slow today but I still had the sore feet thing going on. It was really icy as well and in all honesty my heart wasn't in it. I actually got up at 5am to do a 15km run but it was still snowing so went back to bed until 6am then did the shorter run.

During the Meadows part I got over taken on the hill by FIVE people. First 2 old folk that looked like they were going really slow but I still couldn't catch them. Then I got beasted by 2 girls but they thankfully started walking about 100m later on and I was able to run past them. Finally a guy who looked like a proper runner soared passed me at Holy Corner.

I actually thought that the time I got was going to be longer so I'm kinda happy about that especially with all the ice on the deck. However, the foot pain is really beginning to frustrate me and I'm still getting that odd chest pain. That's coming on more frequently and usually starts at the beginning of the run before fading. The most annoying thing is that it's been there for a couple of years now and although I'm sure it's muscular, it just doesn't seem to be going anywhere.

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 52min 58sec

A wee bit faster again but feet were agony for the first half. I don't know what's going on? Maybe I'm needing new shoes and I'll have to bit the bullet. Perhaps it'll wait till March's pay cheque!!!

Meadows Loop - 7.5km - 53mins 5sec

Not a bad time. Felt I had quite a bit more to give so I reckon that I should be able to get a sub-50 time soon. Fingers crossed.