Meeting up with friends, old and new..

Friday 24th October
Complete rest. I was due to visit Anthony in Bridgend tomorrow, and wanted my legs to be fresh as I knew he'd want to see what I'm made of these days.

Settled down to a night in front of the TV, and particularly enjoyed Friday Night With Jonathan Ross. I had no idea at the time that it was quite possibly for the last time..

Saturday 25th / Sunday 26th October
I'd been hoping to meet up with Anthony for quite a long time by now. Apart from wanting to catch up with a good friend, I'd lost count of the number of times I'd said to my various running buddies how much I wish he could see the improvement in my running, and the weight loss that has been a major contribution, since he left Swindon over two years ago.

I had a fairly pleasant train journey to Bridgend, but started to feel nervous as the train pulled in. Would he be chuffed to bits with the change in me, merely satisfied, or even a tad disappointed?

He soon put me at ease, however, and drove me to his home in one of the villages on the outskirts of the town. We had a coffee and a brief catch up, and then got ready for our run before it got too dark. Then we jumped in the car and made our way to the infamous "big dipper" - Europe's largest sand dune, and the start of the Merthyr Mawr Christmas Pudding 10k (which I have signed up for).

We did a 10-minute warm-up, and then it was time for a real test of my physical and mental toughness. About two-thirds of the way up, I didn't feel too bad at all. A bit further however, and things were different; my legs were feeling the effects of running on sand and my lungs were on fire from the stress of the uphill struggle. I was reduced to walking more than a few steps, but feel I can be proud of making it to the top without stopping.

We carried on for about another fifty minutes, across more sand dunes, and out to the beach before heading back to the car. As always, I struggled on the downhill stretches, and I could tell Anthony was pushing me along - I was sweating profusely by the time we finished. He described me later on as "a massively different" runner from the one he had coached a couple of years ago, so I must have done something right.

Later, we had a very pleasant evening, sharing a bottle of wine and having a lovely chicken salad dinner before heading to one of the local pubs for a good catch-up and a couple of beers. Well, that was the intention - we ended up having about five or six pints each, playing on the fruit machines and at pool (I lost 2-0 - I never was any good).

It was a cracking evening and I think both of us were sad when it had to come to an end. The next day, before I caught my train home after lunch, we talked more in depth about training and my race schedule in the build up to the London marathon. He made it very clear that the only thing stopping me getting very good times now is my weight, and if I can get my body fat down to a minimum then a 1:30 half marathon and a 3:30 marathon should be well within my capabilities.

I didn't manage to get out for a run when I got home however, I was rather tired and felt a bit listless and depressed, mainly due to the realisation that my weekend had come to an end and it was back to reality. The clocks going back and the onset of winter nights didn't help much either.

Monday 27th October
Running club tonight. 7 miles approx with Terry, Kev and Marie. They picked up the pace after the first couple of miles and I struggled to be honest. It may be that I was tired from the weekend, it could also be that I struggle with the change in temperature until my body gets used to it. It's not as if I've no insulation..

Tuesday 28th October
Complete rest and time to meet up with another friend, only this time it was one I had never met before! Mike Gayle, one of my favourite authors and a facebook friend, was doing a reading in Reading which I found about from his myspace blog, and I wasn't going to pass up the opportunity of meeting him, getting some books signed, and maybe picking up some useful advice.

As it turned out, it was an almost surreal experience. When he entered the room he recognised me immediately (impressive when you consider my profile picture on facebook is normally one of Daniel Craig in his speedos) and even came over to say hello and shake my hand! I was too pre-occupied to notice at the time, but I wonder what some of the other attendees made of that?!

He proceeded to give a reading from one of his books, Mr Commitment (I'm hard pressed to pick a favourite - but if I'm pushed I would have to say this would probably be top of the pile), then talked in some detail about his career and how he came to be a novelist - which I obviously found particularly interesting - before finishing with an excellent short story and a question and answer session.

I hung around to get his latest book signed (which I will probably save for my holiday after the London marathon) and ask a few questions. He had a few questions of his own, about my novel, which was a bit mind-boggling; not long ago the idea of writing a novel was little more than a pipe dream, but here I was, chatting to a best-selling author, who almost spoke to me as if I was a fellow novelist, and a member of a fairly elite club.

But then to be fair, in a way I think it's fair to say that while I've got an awfully long way to go before I'm published, in a way I've already earned that sort of kudos. Mike mentioned in his piece on becoming a writer that most people either talk a lot about writing a novel and do nothing about it, or they start writing with great enthusiasm, manage about 15,000 words and then run out of steam. Little and often, he said, is key and that's exactly what I've done.

It's been awfully hard over the last six months or so, holding down a responsible job, doing my training, and then coming home in the evenings and having to sit down and try to knock out 500 words of a novel. But that's what I've done, and if there's one thing I'm bloody good at, it is the ancient art of not giving up. It occured to me later, as I enjoyed a few beers in a pub in Reading before making my way through the snow to catch the train home, that people like Mike Gayle and Matt Dunn must get a plethora of people asking for advice on writing a book, but they probably come across precious few who actually go away and get the first draft written.

It's precisely for that reason that I feel I can look forward to the future with a fair amount of cautious optimism.

Wednesday 29th October
Time to start burning calories, and it doesn't particularly matter how I do it. Body pump tonight, followed by 5 miles (8k) on the treadmill, steady. Managed to up my weights on a couple of the tracks which was good.

Thursday 30th October
I kind of feel obliged to go out with the running club on Mondays and Thursdays, but I need to be aware exactly where my priorities lie and protect my own interests. It doesn't make sense to work late needlessly or hang around the gym for ages waiting for 6.30 to arrive and the others to show up. So I got to the gym, had a coffee and a quick read, and got on the treadmill before 6pm. I know running outside would be better, but like I say, it doesn't matter how I burn calories as long as I do.

Knocked out 7 miles (11.2k), again at a steady pace, so plenty of calories burned, and got home at a decent hour which enabled me to get on with some editing. I've realised that this part of the writing process is not something I can do late at night when I'm tired, I need to have my wits about me when I'm doing it.

Friday 31st October
Complete rest. Had my kit with me, but I was itching to see the new James Bond flick, Quantum of Solace, and there was a showing at 5.30, giving me an ideal opportunity to see it straight after work.

I certainly enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone who likes an action flick, but a follow up to the outstanding Casino Royale was always going to be fraught with danger. It was very entertaining, but seemed to lack any depth, both in terms of the plot and character development, and just felt too short for a proper Bond yarn. Or maybe I just need to see it a second time..

Saturday 1st November
Had a good lie-in this morning, and nearly didn't make it to the gym for 10am, but I had made a pact with Andy and Steph to do both classes, RPM and body pump. I was glad I did - no disrespect to Rich Jones, but Shaun from the Eldene gym was covering for him and he makes the class a lot harder. I guess some people are just naturally better at motivating others.

Enjoyed body pump, still using good heavy weights, and after a brief chat I also managed to get on the treadmill and knock out 5 miles (8k) even after both classes. Was tempted to make it 10k, but my dodgy hamstring was starting to hurt so I played it safe. Even so, good session and a massive amount of calories burnt - by the time I got home I should have made some inroads into those fat stores.