I’m sure that no one has failed to realise that the evenings are getting darker and there is a slight nip in the air. With the clocks due to go back shortly, it always seems a bit more difficult for me to motivate myself during the autumnal/winter months. With several months of bleak evenings ahead of us, it’s no wonder that the get up and go I had in those glorious summer months has got up and gone on a cruise around the Caribbean and won’t be returning until the spring of next year. As much as I wish that I could train for this marathon in better conditions, I am afraid a little old Lullaby Trust fundraiser will not hold much sway with the organiser’s. Apparently there are 37,000 other participants and the businesses and residents of London to consider as well, so my one man crusade to switch the event to the summer may fall on deaf ears.
I am traditionally a fair weather runner. I love the warm conditions. For some reason I feel like I have had a real workout if I’m covered in sweat and have acquired terrible sun burn which makes me look like i’m still wearing a running vest several days after the offending garment has been removed. Numb fingers and layers of clothing is not my idea of fun.
Whilst training recently I found myself running into a head wind, I was taken by surprise as to how cold my forehead became. Albeit, I do have a large forehead, which seems to gain extra surface area every year that goes by. Something like this normally drives me into hibernation. I just want to put this into context though. It’s not as if I live anywhere particularly cold, in fact the weather in the south of England is probably milder and more settled than anywhere in the country. I’m not training in the mountain ranges of the Scottish Highlands, I truly am a southern softy.
The motivation to run the London Marathon for The Lullaby Trust and raise funds is generated by the different experiences we have all gone through, whether sudden infant death syndrome has directly or indirectly affected us. I found, in my previous fundraising effort that I managed to channel that motivation, get my backside off the sofa and go out and put the miles in. It was an extremely powerful tool. When times were hard and I just wanted to give in, I would remind myself of why I was training, I was lucky and privileged to be able to do this and raise money for such a worthwhile cause. I would proceed to reprimand myself mentally, which normally added an extra spring to my step and a steely determination to complete the task ahead of me.
This time it will be harder for me, I’m under no illusion. Taking on the training, fundraising and the build up to the big day could be quite overwhelming. To keep me running through the cold winter months, I took the decision to look for a local running club that I could join to help me with motivation, training tips and to socialise with like minded nutters. I approached Ashford & District Road Runners Club in Kent ( www.ashforddistrictrrc.co.uk )by sending them an email explaining that I was training for the marathon and I had certain goals I wanted to achieve. I asked whether the club would be suitable based on my needs and the answer was a resounding yes. They suggested that I come to the club on one of their training nights and try a couple of sessions out first to see if it was the right club for me. They catered for all abilities and many of the active members had competed or were about to take part in marathons all over the UK. (In fact the chairman of the club had just completed his 100th marathon, which is a truly staggering achievement.)
I’ve now been attending club training nights for 6 or 7 weeks and I’m already seeing an improvement in my running. I’ve also met some great people who are warm, welcoming and full of encouragement. So if your situation sounds similar to me and the cold, dark, lonely nights traipsing around your city, town or village just fill you with dread, maybe contact your local running club and try them out. Tuesday night training has now become a highlight of my week.