Highworth Half Marathon

Sunday 18th January
You won't find the Highworth Half Marathon advertised on Runners' World, because it isn't open to the general public - which in some ways is a bit of a shame.

The event is only open to club runners and is usually invitation only. As I like to say to people, I invited myself. This was my second time at the event, running in the Swindon Harriers' team. Strangely, they're always glad to have me - Ashley Fox seems to struggle to get the requisite twelve runners and tells me he's more interested in having people who are reliable than good times.

Highworth is obviously very close to Swindon and it didn't start until 11am so plenty of time for a lie-in. Always a bonus.

And so to the race. It's a very tough, undulating course which I would rate as harder than Swindon or Downton, or probably even the Bourton Hilly Half - but not as extreme as the Hogweed Hilly Half (one of my favourite training runs). It's a very scenic course however, and serves as a nice reminder that there is some lovely countryside and pretty villages on my doorstep. Which is one of the reasons I think it's a shame it isn't open to the public because so many runners miss out.

Also, being a club event and there being generally a fast field, it can be a lonely race for someone like me as I was some way behind the fast boys and girls and some way in front of the much slower runners. So for long periods I was out there on my own with barely a soul in sight.

I didn't find it as hard going as last year, but I did find my legs were very sore and heavy during the race. I don't know if that was from a tough week's training, the massage, or maybe I should have gone for a walk the day before to get the blood moving. In any case, I was pleased by how much faster I was on the hills, and never gave up and walked, not even on the monster hill in the last mile.

I wasn't overly concerned with my time but as I approached the finish line I realised I was going to finish in just over 1 hour 50 minutes - 1:50:17 was the time given to me as I crossed the line. I would have been ecstatic to get under 1:50 on that course, but it was still a respectable time given the conditions (cold and windy) and a good five minutes faster than last year. Nice.

I waited a few minutes to see my mate Kieran finish, then got off home, but not before getting a couple of bottles of wine from the Co-Op (well, I felt obliged to spend some money in there as I'd used their car park).

Stopped at the gym for a stretch and a shower before heading home for a new tradition - a post-race fry-up! This is another ploy to keep myself motivated and while anything fried is not great, there are plenty of nutrients in the meat, eggs and vegetables. Plus it lines my stomach for the celebration beers...

Monday 19th January
8k on the treadmill, nice and steady. Legs were a bit stiff at first but warmed up when I got going. Upped the pace quite nicely, anything under 11kph is really too slow for me now for any period of time. Must be getting used to running faster.

Tuesday 20th January
Speedwork on the treadmill. 2k warm-up, then 10 * 2 minutes with 1 minute recoveries. Did the first two reps at 14kph, but that felt too easy so upped the pace to 14.5 for the next seven and did the last one at 15kph. Glad to find I was able to up the speed again as the last time I did this I struggled at 14.5kph. 2k cool down so 10k in total. Perfect.

Very tired by the time I got home but went to the cinema nonetheless. I've cancelled my unlimited card now as I need to be more disciplined with my training and writing so the plan is to go to the cinema on Tuesdays (when it's cheap) and have that as my "night off". Saw a teen comedy called Sex Drive which wasn't quite in the same league as the American Pie trilogy, but very similar to Road Trip, and certainly very enjoyable. I'm glad I went to see it.

Wednesday 21st January
Just body pump tonight, no RPM or other cardio. Decided to give my legs a rest and in any case, the class on it's own is hard enough when done properly. And as Steph said to me on the way home, with my training being as intense as it is, there's no shame in having a rest day every now and then. Especially with another race (Slaughterford 9) coming up on Sunday...