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Tuesday: 15 Km

I'm back from my first run in 2½ weeks. My initial title for this weeks blog was 'What not to eat for lunch before a run' - but I guess that everyone else than me knows that eating 3 samosas, 3 pork sausages, a chapati and a Mars bar 4 hours before a run is not a good idea. So I'll concentrate on other, hopefully less obvious and more interesting issues.

Sunday is the big day. 42,195 meters in the hills of Kampala is no small challenge, not something to be taken lightly. I look forward to it with equal parts excitement and dread. I'm dreading the last 10 kilometers. They are going to be tough. Time wise I'm satisfied with anything under 4:30, and very happy if I make it under 4 hours. Am I ready? Mentally, yes. Fitness wise, not really. Another 3-4 weeks of training would have been ideal. To be honest, I'm expecting that by the time I cross the finish line the guy on the photo will look like a turbocharged Duracell rabbit in comparison.

My strategy for the run is straight forward. The first half I hope to run with Ole and/or Alex, provided they are not too fast..... or too slow. I'd like to run it in around 2 hours. From there I'll be on my own - and that suits me fine, I'd rather not have anybody I know next to me when it starts to get tough. Hopefully I'll make it past the 32 kilometer mark before it gets ugly. And once the fatigue sets in, I'll just have to lower the pace a bit and suck it up. No matter how hard it gets, Comrades is bound to be a lot worse.

So, it's time. It's show time. It's time to pay the price for lack of training. It's time to man up and get it done with. I hope I've got what it takes.

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Marathon Madsen

What is the right approach?

This week:

Saturday - 21.5km
Tuesday - 11 km
Today (Thursday) - 26km

Last night, my friend Alex said something along the lines of:"You look very tired Thomas - if you don't mind me saying so. Are you sure it's a good idea to run 26km tomorrow considering that we're going to be in the mountains on Saturday?"

I was tired. I was very very tired. It had been one of those days where it felt like Kampala had conspired to make things as hard as possible. Normally I cope well with it. Yesterday it got to me and when that happens it just sucks all energy out.

Anyway, Alex's very kind and polite suggestion, made me consider my options. To make a long story short, I decided to man up and give it a go anyway. I set out at 6pm. In the first 13 kms I made two 1 minute stops to drink some water and to have some energy gel, ran until it got dark and then put on my head torch. 2 hours and 19 minutes later, I was back. What a great run.

But all that is not really that interesting. No. What's much more interesting is the dilemma I am facing because of my wife. Not only does my wife look better than me, it turns out that she's also a better runner!!?? Yes! On the 10-13 kilometer distances she is definitely faster than me. Not more than around 2 minutes, but that's enough. Now, what does a man do in this situation? What is the right approach. Should I ignore it, deny it or face it? I would be lying if I claimed that it doesn't bother me. OF COURSE IT DOES! Not much, but a bit. Why? I don't have to tell you why. You know why. But I am not going to come up with sorry excuses and far fetched explanations. The fact is, my wife is faster than me! I've chosen to face it. And because of that, I can honestly say that I am very, very proud of her. In the last few months, training for the half marathon on December 5th has made her run distances beyond 10 km - something she has never done before. And every time she comes back from a new personal distance record she's as proud and happy as anybody is when they have pushed themselves beyond known limits.

It's not a matter of who's faster than who. Running is about personal achievement and having fun. And my wife's definitely proven that.

Well done babe :-) Ad finem!

Marathon Madsen

Running (out of time)

Last week:

Tuesday - 11 km

Thursday - 11 km

Saturday - 21.5 km

Kampala Marathon is now only 4 weeks away. The half marathon I ran on Saturday evening left me with one big question:"Will I be able to run twice as far a month from now?". I thought a lot about that yesterday.

Reasons why I may not get ready:

• - 2½ months of training instead of the usual 4 months
• - not following a recognized training schedule
• - bilharzia up until a week ago
• - too much drinking and smoking

Reasons why I should be able to pull it off:

• - A week in the Rwenzoris is comparable to high altitude training and should boost my performance in the last two weeks of training and on race day
• - There still is a month to go. I can get in better shape between now and then.
• - Í have decided to concentrate on completing the run and not care about the time.

The bottom line is that time is running out. I could have and should have started training earlier. I should have followed a professional training schedule. I should have taken that bilharzia treatment long time ago - I knew it was coming. I could have and should have blah blah blah blah blah blah. All that doesn't really matter now. Lessons learned for next time. Now it is about Sunday the 5th December. I'm expecting it to get ugly. Surely this is going to be the hardest run I'll ever have done. Right now I'm pinning my hopes on some carefully planned training runs, a lot of determination and a week of altitude training. If you ask me, the odds are still good.

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Marathon Madsen

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Last week:

Monday - 11km
Wednesday - 11km
Friday - 17 km
Sunday - 6.5 km

I don't know how many of the fuckers displayed on the photo below have been living inside of me the last 6 months, but judging by the way I felt after taking the medicine last night, it was a lot.

Bilharzia is treated with a medicine called Praziquantel. The treatment is taken in one go. One big tablet for each 10 kgs you weigh. They are incredibly bitter so it is essential to swallow them whole and very quickly. And if they make you feel really sick shortly after eating them, then it means that they are killing the parasites.... As a bonus, an extremely unpleasant and bitter taste stays in the mouth for the entire day after taking the tablets. Bon appetit Ole.

My 17 km run on Friday was an exercise in willpower. I had felt heavy all day and a few minutes into the run, an intense heart burn decided to accompany me. Whether is was the veggie curry I had for lunch or the bilharzia, I don't know, but the heart burn surged back and forth and put me on the verge of vomiting a couple of times. I passed by our house 4 times on that run. Each time the temptation of stopping had to be overcome. It turned into one of those runs where completing it without walking becomes the only objective and finishing time and style, completely irrelevant. I got myself, my lead shoes and my heartburn back to the house in a little more than one and a half hours, feeling exhausted and nauseous. For me it is absolutely crucial to complete runs like these. Not only does it provide a unique feeling of accomplishment, it puts the determination and will power to the test. And if anything, that's what distance running is about. Determination and will power.

I'm not feeling great today, but I'll go for my scheduled 11km run this afternoon anyway. If nothing else just to prove to myself that I've got what it takes. Ad finem!


Marathon Madsen