If the weather’s fine (although honestly I’m praying for a slight chill in the air and maybe some light rain) and you’re up to nothing this Sunday, why not pop down to the river a give me a wave as I pass by.

I’ve added a “Spectating” page to the menu bar above with a few tips on how you’ll best find me. If I can persuade Kat to pop downstairs with the camera, I’ll also update it with a picture or two of my running kit this weekend when I go for my final (shorter) long run.

I’ll also be using this last proper run to test drive a shopping basket full of dietary supplements I bought from Waitrose on the way home this evening. All the advice I’ve read says it’s critical to not try anything new on race day, so although it’s a little late in the game I’ll be trialling a pre-race breakfast of super-caffinated coffee and chicken breast, and taking a variety of food stuffs with me when I run.

Apparently it’s best to keep the glycogen stores topped-up throughout the race, and at under 100 calories each the go-gels just aren’t sufficient, even if I’m glugging one every recommended 5 miles. So this weekend I’ll be out running with a backpack full of energy bars and a banana in my pocket…

Updated the training plan courtesy of Runner’s World, it’s on the Training Schedule link above. Let’s see if I can stick to this through the final eight weeks. Today was a rest day post half-marathon, tomorrow is a gentle 6 mile cruise home from work.

Jumped on the treadmill at Runner’s Need and bought a pair of new trainers this afternoon. The latest model Saucony’s with over pronation correction, in fact exactly the same as the ones I have now - just fresher and nowhere near as flat. The current ones are only eight months old, but I noticed that I seemed to have lost the bounce in my step. Apparently decent trainers only have about 500 miles in them, and I’ve done at least a third of that just since buying the iPod. They say don’t change anything immediately prior to a big race, but there’s just enough time to run these in before the big day. Also bought a selection of gels so I could give those a trial on the next few long runs.

Looking great on the sponsorship front, am almost within £500 of my 2K target and I’ve still not chased for a donation from the family or colleagues. Will knock out a few sponsorship forms and have a wander around the office a bit closer to race day.

Many thanks to all my current sponsors. Every little helps, and having spent my Christmas vacation volunteering for another homeless charity, I can assure you that the money is going to a well deserved cause. Would like to send a special thanks to my recently out of work friends who still saw fit to add to my collection. You’re stars, guys…

Much love,

fLuke.

Hey, checkout the cool new profile widget in the sidebar, courtesy of the Nike marketing department’s effort to sell more sweatshop shoes.

Seem to have picked-up a bug at Kat’s “six degrees of separation” party in Charterhouse Bar on Friday. Looks like a few of us have it. Training is off the cards while I spend my days either huddled under a duvet at home, or buried under a big furry coat at my desk in the office…boo!

In a moment of motivation this morning, I booked the Brands Hatch half marathon for 9th Feb and the Beacon Brighton half marathon for 17th Feb. Reuben tells me he’ll join me for both, but there’s plenty of room for any of the silent readership to sign up as well. Let me know if you’re coming!

Last work trip of the year, this time to Universal Studios in Orlando for the PegaWORLD 2007 conference. Great to be here, but the planned running schedule is taking a battering. Travelling light, so didn’t even pack the trainers for this short sojourn. The mileage needs some serious attention when I get home next week to make up for the general lack of effort over the last fortnight.

As a minor incentive when I get back, have a £50 proposition bet with Mike Wilkinson that he can’t run a 50 minute 10K. It’s a pretty easy time, but I’m struggling at that pace still, and I’m not sure whether he’s got it in him either with the seemingly similar lack of exercise over the last few poker focussed months. Will be donating my winnings to this good cause if he doesn’t make it, so fingers crossed hey.

This evening’s planned long run was rudely interrupted by a neighbour emailing to tell me that I had a gas leak at home!! Dashed out of a team meeting and home to meet a nice man from the gas board. Seems that Kat may have left the hob on a low setting after cooking dinner last night!

Slightly baffled how we managed to (a) wake up at all; (b) not smell anything the following morning - but in the end no harm done and only a slight inconvenience. Lucky don’t have any pets, and the recently monsterously tall aloe vera plant doesn’t seem too bothered by the temporary change in atmosphere.

Will make up for the lack of running in the gym tomorrow, hopefully I’ve snuck to the front of Naomi’s Wednesday yoga waiting list, so can hit that and then charge out a few fast kilometers on the treadmill.

Have set a first Nikeplus training goal to bring my pace up to a 50 minute 10K (seeing as I keep knocking out 51’s and 52’s). I calculate that as an average 8 minute mile, so the goal is to average this speed over at least 5 runs in the next month. Let’s see how I get on!
You can track my progress in the training goal sidebar.

Went to Cormac’s yoga class today for the first time in six months after breaking my wrist snowboarding - in fact the very injury that got me running in the first place.

Extreme pain putting any pressure through the right hand, but I figure it must be doing my healing joint some good.

Planned to run home afterwards, but the class was so tough after six months off that I actually fell asleep in the Shavasana relaxation posture at the end…zzzzz. How embarrassing…