Day 443

1.  Feeling like some sort of Pavlovian experiment Dougal and I headed out for our first run-walk-run together, changing from run to walk and back again at the clanging of a bell.

2.  The interval was different from Saturday - run two minutes, walk one, instead of run two minutes walk 30 secs, and I found it harder going, but I don't think three miles of each ratio really counts as an adequate sample to say what my preference is!

3.  Dougal was spectacularly unimpressed with the whole notion of the stop start approach and once walking I almost had to drag him along when the bell rang and we'd to start running again - but I have it on esteemed authority that he'll get the hang of it eventually!

4.  Two more bags finished and uploaded to Etsy...  For a wee look at how busy I've been please click on the link below!

marathongirl750 on Etsy

5.  Lesson today in being careful over what you wish for...  for some inexplicable reason my very very sharp pointed sewing scissors flew out of my hand this afternoon and up into the air, before landing point first, piercing the skin as they went, into an area of soft tissue on the front of my body! Oh for a pin in finger injury instead!

M - 293

Glasgow - 89
Distance covered               3.4 miles

Total Distance covered   705.5 miles

Day 442

1.  The trouble with having your oldest friend read your blog is that little by little the truth will out!

2.  Thus I must confess that the Barnardo's training day will not be the first time I have met Daley Thompson, as schoolfriendofMG750 and I once queued for his autograph at the opening of Olympus Sports in Glasgow.  The fact that I am now preparing to run a marathon in order to meet him may be viewed as a sign of desperation, at which point I would like to make clear that I haven't attempted to see him in the intervening thirty years!

3.  Still better be looking my best when I do... whatever works as motivation to get me to the gym!

4.  Tried so hard to be organised today and get through all the things on my to-do list.  Didn't do badly, gym and two bags made! Dougal slightly less than impressed with my new found focus - he'd to wait for Al to get home to walk him (thank you Mr L).

5.  Having a bit of a crisis of confidence over actually selling the bags once my hours and days and weeks of sewing are done.  Trying hard to keep the faith and some skin on the end of my fingers...I'd forgotten how many times I inadvertently stuck pins in myself last time I had a sewing spree.

M - 294

Glasgow - 90

Total Distance covered   702.1 miles

OMG!!

HMG is coming with me to London!

A little over a year since she was given the pseudonym Half Marathon Girl, and a little less than a year since she signed up for her first half marathon, HMG has been accepted onto Team Barnardo's for the full twenty six point two miles of joy that awaits us in London and shall therefore, from here on in, be referred to as FMG!


As with me, she has met the news with a mixture of excitement at the thought of going and anxiety at the momentous task ahead of us - but with the rather lovely added sweetener of a training day with Daley Thompson to look forward to!

Having had a little longer to get over my initial wave of panic (I am expecting it to return) I am able just to feel elated by the news! I am so fortunate to have her as my training partner, especially on the cold dark winter mornings when a lesser (and possibly more sane) individual would pull the duvet up, roll over and go back to sleep, FMG can be relied upon to be up and raring to go - the knowledge of which gets me up and at least out of the door.  I wish you lived near enough to come with us sis, but then again I have a suspicion that the thought of getting up to go running with two chatty people first thing in the morning might be amongst your worst nightmares!

At this point in reading Al is now wondering why, if I'm feeling elated by the news, am I not showing any outward signs of being anything other than preoccupied and a little bit glum?! It can be summed up in one word - Etsy! The more I look at my shop the more disheartened I get.  I keep hearing about success stories from other Team Members who have done the 'Search Engine Optimisation' module and there's nothing to suggest that I will be any different when I finish it, but I am in free fall on the old transition curve (referenced many moons ago) with no confidence left in what I am doing.   Instead of getting on with finding out what the necessary changes are, I keep looking at my viewing figures in the vain hope that they are going to magically increase just because I've taken some new photographs, when in fact the best photographs in the world won't make any difference at the moment because if I don't come up in any searches then they aren't going to be seen! The daft thing is, if there was a sudden influx of interest in my shop and heaven forbid should that lead to orders, I won't have anything to take with me to sell at my barking mad craft stall in August!

Time to get sewing, just as I need to start training for Glasgow! There may be trouble ahead....

M - 295

Glasgow - 91

Total Distance covered   702.1 miles

Day 440 - Parkrun 81

1.  In the end I decided to go for it - or rather go to parkrun and not go for it!

2.  Determined to start as I mean to go on, I was all set to trial my new run-walk-run regime.  What I hadn't factored on was quite how many things I then had to press at the one time when they said 'go' - music, interval timer and Garmin!

3.  This saw everyone else disappearing off up the hill whilst I struggled to get my interval timer to start! On a normal parkrun morning this would have sent me into a blind panic and seen me running as fast as I could to catch everyone up - not so today! I am rather proud of myself for sticking to my plan and trying to learn how to run without it being about the time. I actually rather enjoyed it and (as spotted by Mrs M) finished smiling for a change!

4.  My choice of song from 1981 was so nearly Bucks Fizz with 'Making Your Mind Up' dedicated to all those who wished I would decide if I was running or walking this morning as I over took them, then they overtook me, then I over took them....  But for my new found run ethos I've decided to go with this (yet another one you'll switch off Mr L)....

parkrun 81 - 1981

5.  Clearly awash with post run euphoria in the cafe afterwards I was sitting with two very experienced marathon runners and found myself showing interest in taking part in a fifteen mile run a few weeks after the marathon and making a mental note of which half marathons provided the best cake afterwards! It appears the road may not end on The Mall... HMG you have been warned! (sisterofMG750 I know better than to even think about going there!).

M - 296

Glasgow - 92
Distance covered            3.1 miles

Total Distance covered   702.1 miles

Day 439

1. Twelve thousand page views.... whooooo hoooooo!

2.  In an attempt to feel like I'd been a bit more productive today than I was yesterday I remembered a top tip from sisterofMG750 to do the one thing that would make the biggest difference to me today...

3.  Consequently ALL THE BAGS AND LININGS HAVE BEEN CUT! All I've got to do now is sew them (ahh yes and then sell them!).

4.  A phone call to Barnardo's this afternoon brought good news - they might have public liability insurance that would cover me at Bark in the Park, keep your fingers crossed!

5.  I'm really glad I rang them, made me remember why I'm doing this, and for a while this afternoon I managed to forget about all the hard work and hours of training and Etsying ahead, and just look forward to the experience of being part of and finishing the London Marathon! I can't wait and wish it was sooner, and am (when I stop to think about it) getting rather excited.  Which is odd seeing as I'm not sure I can motivate myself to get round three miles in the park tomorrow!

M - 297

Glasgow - 93

Total Distance covered   699 miles

Day 438

1.  I've had a nice few days.... too hot to walk the dog until the evening (and Al was home to do it!) I've been able to immerse myself in all things Etsy.

2.  Bubble burst on that one today with a drop in temperature meaning the afternoon dog walk was on, and an ironing pile the size of a small mountain.

3. I am so close to having all bags and linings cut and ready to start sewing but it looks like it's going to have to wait until next week, as if you think the ironing was the only job around the house that I've neglected you are very much mistaken but I think you know me better than that.

4.  Embracing my new running regime without actually going out for a run, I have downloaded an app for my phone (get me!) which I can set to 'ping' at me for my run - walk - run  intervals and it will 'ping' over the top of my Spotify app! All I need to do now is test it out on the move.  Last night Al was put to the task of working out the maths for how long it should now take us to run a mile HMG so that we can attempt to combine new strategy with old enjoyment of running to parkrun!

5.  Only one slight flaw to my plan - the more excited I get about trying it all out (new trainers on!) the more my hips seem to hurt and I am seriously thinking of not running at parkrun for what will be the forth week in a row. New regime or otherwise I think my body may be telling me I'm too old for all this!

M - 296

Glasgow - 94

Total Distance covered   699 miles

Day 437

1.  Spoke to soon when I considered myself one of the artist's community.  I am not professional enough to get insurance through that particular company and am going to have to seek cover as a market trader, and no doubt adopt the longer hours that goes along with my fall in status.

2.  The cost of the insurance is making me wonder whether or not I am barking up the wrong tree so to speak with launching my trading career at a dog show! I'm hoping for not a lot of competition but lots of dog owners desperate for a beautiful fully lined shopping bag! (Struggle with the word tote!).

3.  Which is a shame as my next module is all about key search words, and so far 'lined tote' is the only one that's been used - once!

4.  My marathon book, had I had time to read it today is also dealing with key words! This time the ones to practice that will motivate me most.... Strangely enough I didn't see 'Chocolate Digestives' as one of his chief motivator options!

5.  I did however make it to the gym this morning, and tested out both my new trainers and my new running regime... 2 minutes run 1 minute walk - I like! I also watched a video on how to do the 'arm running' exercise and had a quick go, but as I couldn't hear the commentary I missed the bit where he mentioned how many reps and sets I was supposed to do... Such a shame! I also missed the opportunity to ask my "strength expert" whether or not I should be doing this exercise - that'd be you then Biomechanics Man!

M - 297

Glasgow - 95

Total Distance covered   699 miles