The lead up to the London Marathon was not ideal for me. I’d been ill for about two weeks, was suffering from a bad cough and was almost feeling better but not quite there yet. Basically I needed a few more days and I’d have been absolutely fine. But no, I decided to run the marathon.
Look, I know it was a silly decision but it’s the London Marathon, which is pretty damn epic. We’d also already paid for the Airbnb and the trains – non-refundable. So off to London we went!
With Isaac staying with my parents, Kyle and I headed to London on Saturday morning on the train. Kyle’s brother, Adam, was joining us on route. This was really lovely as it was, of course, nice to have Kyle there but to have Adam as well, it made it even more special.
We grabbed some lunch at Waterloo. We had some wraps and chicken bites from a place called Pure which was rather tasty and then headed straight to the Expo. Lots of tubes and DLRs later, we go there.
I picked my bib up and moseyed about a bit and then we headed to our respective hotels/Airbnbs. We met up later to get dinner at Franco Manca. We had a pizza each and a pizza to share as well as a vegetable platter. Exactly what was needed for the race ahead.
The next morning we woke up and got ready and had my little porridge pots for breakfast.
an Despite the email saying we should arrive at 8.44am for my wave 2 start we decided to not go that early. I’d only be standing around getting cold as my start time wasn’t until 10.05am. However we definitely left it too late.
As we headed on the tube and train we quickly realised how ridiculously busy it was. Then the final train to Blackheath stopped because the platform was too busy. While I was having a lovely chat to a girl who was running for the Guide Dogs (she gets to play with puppies after the race!!), I was starting to get worried. It was now 9.45am. Whoops.
Finally the train arrived and I kid you not, we ran to the blue wave. I had literal minutes to spare. Got a quick photo and then said goodbye and off I went.
I arrived at my wave just as they started moving off. No time for a pre-race wee!
So to the race itself. I didn’t feel my usual hype. I felt sick with worry. This was obviously not the right thing to be doing when I didn’t feel 100%. Running this would definitely not make me feel better.
The first few miles are quite boring. It actually reminds me a little bit of the Reading Half weirdly. A lot of residential buildings and people standing on pavements cheering. My main focus as I began running was to find a portaloo on the course. It started raining but I wasn’t cold thankfully.
I had such a low level of dread during this whole race. Basically knowing I wasn’t feeling well and knowing that was only going to get better. So I didn’t feel like I could fully embrace the euphoria of the start. I really didn’t know if I was going to finish or not. I was so worried and felt so sick, whether by nerves or just feeling ill I wasn’t sure.
Anyway, I found a portaloo. So that was one stress gone. As I was running I was finding I needed to cough a lot though. I couldn’t properly cough while running so decided I’d keep stopping in the portaloos so I could have a proper cough and wouldn’t freak out other runners. I did this 4-5 times during the race. It was funny because the first time I was like “be quick, be quick” but by the third time I was like “yeah just take your time, no stress”. Time was not something I was going to be worried about today!
Kyle had told me that Adam and him had planned to be at mile seven. In my mind I was just trying to get there. Don’t think of anything further, just get to mile seven. We got to Cutty Sark which was a great experience. Lots of crowds, the cool boat and just general atmosphere was like “YOU ARE RUNNING LONDON”.
Then finally I got to mile seven and I amazingly saw Kyle and Adam. It was so lovely to see them. It definitely picked me up. Though they were utterly soaked, I felt so sorry for them to be supporting in the rubbish weather. True legends that they were.
Kyle rung me a while later to say that would try to get to mile 14 to see me. At this point I wasn’t feeling great. Running was hard work. I felt like I was at mile 18, not mile seven. It just felt like such a monumental task to get to 26.2 miles.
I kept my focus on halfway though, knowing that it was just after Tower Bridge, which would be epic. I decided to put on a podcast. I wasn’t really taking in much around me, I was just looking down at the road and keeping myself moving forward. Let me tell you, so many gel wrappers! I basically just went into myself, like I was in my own little bubble.
To be honest, I didn’t really listen to the podcast. I couldn’t hear it properly anyway over the crowds. It was more something I could listen to for a bit and then fade out of. I just needed something else to focus on at times. I wish I’d have had my name on my bib because I really needed the boost. I was jealous of other runners get cheered along. I saw a few people along the course I knew, which was so lovely, but mostly I was in my own head in a little world of hell.
We went across Tower Bridge and that was amazing. The crowds were incredible and so loud! I felt such a buzz which was great. And I knew I was almost half way and that in itself was incredible considering how I was feeling.
Sadly Kyle and Adam didn’t get to mile 14 – the trains were just rammed. He rang me and let me know. I updated him on how I was doing and said I would try to finish. I’d made that decision at mile 11… in a weird way I thought “well it’s only 15 miles, I can do that”. Obviously that’s a long way still though!
My next focus was getting to Canary Wharf. We’d been to dinner there last night and I knew it would look cool with all the high-rise buildings. It was also around mile 18 and that in itself is a great milestone. So that was my next focus.
I’d say around this point, from miles 13-18, I was probably feeling my best. I’d stopped going to the portaloos to cough and I was feeling like I could do this. My pace was fairly stable and I wasn’t declining. I got to Canary Wharf and of course my watch satellite went crazy with the high-rises. As if I was running a 6 minute mile!
My watch then went a bit doolally and became a mile out. So when I hit mile 20 my watch was telling me I was hitting mile 21. This was very depressing! Anyway Kyle’s next point was mile 21 so I was really looking forward to that. Especially because it was only around five miles before the finish! In fact as I’d hit mile 20, 10k seemed very doable. Hard doable but definitely doable.
I tell you what though, those final miles were tough going. My legs, which had originally felt absolutely fine during the whole race now were feeling really ropey. They were feeling very battered and like they could seize up. This was crazy to me because I wasn’t even running that fast compared to some of my other races. And yes despite not running that much during my two week’s of sickness, I had done decent training leading up till that point. Clearly this illness was really taking it out of me.
Anyway, the final miles seemed to crawl by. I’d switched to music at this point and was really trying to draw strength from the songs and crowds. When I finally saw Big Ben I knew I was almost there, a mile! But my God that mile really took it’s time. I saw the “600m to go” sign and it was like I was running through porridge. I couldn’t get my legs to move any quicker. Normally at this point during a marathon I’m all hyped up and speed up, but Jesus I absolutely could not.
We got to the Mall and all I cared about was that finish line. As cool as everything looked, I just wanted to finish.
3:47:59 – an utter slog and my hardest marathon.
Kyle rang me and told me he was stuck at Tower Hill because of the trains. I burst into tears. I just wanted to hug him and go home. It had started to rain again and I was getting cold. I had the aluminum foil blanket clutched round me but I was still so cold. I didn’t know where to go because Kyle wasn’t nearby. I just hobbled along, my legs in pieces, in a forward trajectory to just keep moving.
I found someone to take my photo and just as they were doing it a woman who worked at Sweaty Betty handed me some flowers which was lovely!
Then I stumbled to the Admiralty Arch, which was the only shelter I could see around me. I literally stood there looking like a sorry soul having no idea where to go. Eventually I was getting far too cold (after enviously watching people with their families putting on layers on GoreTex coats and hoodies) I decided to head towards a tube and make my way to Waterloo.
Communication between Kyle and I was tricky because he was stuck in the underground and had no signal so I just text him explaining what I was doing and hoping he’d head my way. Eventually, after I crawled towards Embankment we met up. Thank God! It was so lovely to see them both. They’d had a nightmare with how busy the tube had been and it sounded very chaotic. I was so grateful to see them though.
We headed to Waterloo and then squeezed on a rammed train to get home. At this point I was still so cold and feeling incredibly sick. My legs were in pieces as well. Basically I was not having a good time. The train was so full we had to stand/sit in the doorway of the train. There was just no space. It wasn’t ideal but at least I was warm and I could hear about their adventures – always more exciting than me just running!
Anyway long story short, I definitely shouldn’t have run the marathon. It was unbelievably hard work, I didn’t feel my usual marathon joy as I ran and finished. I just felt utter relief for it to be over… but then the realisation that I now felt so much worse. The sickness I felt continued overnight and even the next day. Food was the last thing I wanted, which is MADNESS as usually I’m ready to eat all the foods immediately after finishing.
I wouldn’t recommend running a marathon when you’re ill. Despite saying all that, I don’t regret it. It was an experience and I had a lovely weekend with Kyle and Adam. Just another lesson learnt!
Have you ever run when you’ve been ill?
Have you ever run the London Marathon?
I got to meet my friend Mike’s ADORABLE new puppy as well, Luna. Oh my god she was cute. Her fur is so so soft. It was her first time at parkrun (not running, supporting) and she’s only just been allowed outside for walks, so as you can imagine she was quite excited. I look forward to Alfie meeting her! I only managed to snap this photo of her… 
Anyway, it was nice to see lots of my running friends and catch up briefly. My friend, Mark, had recently had a knee operation so was easing slowly and sensibly back into running. His plan was to run 15 minutes and then walk the rest. He’s also one of the casualties of the change in GFA times for London, having got 3:04 at Chester in order to do London next year. I’m gutted for him.
The legendary Carlo (who raises so much money for charity running as the Cookie Monster and just being a general legend above next to James)
My legs felt good post marathon (SOMEONE TOUCH WOOD IMMEDIATELY). Just a bit tired and heavy, but no niggles and no issues. Jesus, who even am I? It felt tough though running at a less than comfortable pace and I wondered just how the hell I managed the time I did at Brighton. Mark, precisely to the minute, stopped to walk and I carried on. I managed to get faster as the run continued and finished in 21:35 and second female.
James smashed it and came first (18:24). His first ever first position so he was chuffed. Six days after a marathon PB, not too shabby eh.
New Brighton Marathon t-shirt – an actual female small that looks good and fits nicely. Happy days.
It was hard though to choose just one piece of cake. The lure of chocolate won me over and I had a chunk of rocky road. Omg it was good. Big chunks of biscuit, cherries, marshmallows. Gooey, sticky, melty… heavenly. James had a slice of crunchy chocolate cake which was apparently delicious too (we rarely share food. This is a rule I’m very happy with).
The towering many-layered lemon cake looked immense though so we both got a slice of that to take home of course. We decided though that as it was pretty much summer (let’s ignore the bit of rain we had on our walk…*cough*), ice cream had to be done too. I got a scoop of white chocolate brownie and a scoop of rocky road (obviously the chunk I’d just eaten wasn’t enough). Ahh exceptional.
I’m such a sucker for anything white chocolate really. To think I used to not like it. I mean, what!?
Daaaaamn it was good. I mean, yeah probably horrendously bad for you blah blah blah but I don’t do this every day (God I just couldn’t. I’d die). *Cough* we then headed to Sprinkles. In retrospect, this was unnecessary.
I got the “Sticky Situation”, which is essentially a whole lot of cookie dough, ice cream, white chocolate and cream. I couldn’t finish it. WHAT IS HAPPENING TO ME. It was just too much sweetness. My body rebelled and said no. I enjoyed what I ate (which was probably 75%) but it really pushed me over the edge and I needed a little lie down and a quiet word with myself. Why do I do this to myself? No regrets though because I’d been craving one of these for ages. I think I’ve had my fun though… time to get a bit less piggy. At the weekend I do enjoy my treats but this weekend was a little bit overboard.
Happily for us we didn’t get too hot. My legs felt good, still a little heavy and tired, but no niggles. In fact it was a nice run to just zone out and enjoy. We followed the Stubbington 10k route for about five miles and then ran along the coast from Hill Head to Lee-On-Solent and back round to Stubbington again. It was a nice quiet run.
Then it was action stations to shower, have breakfast and watch the London Marathon. It was a good watch but I truly felt for the mass runners who had to endure such hot temperatures and sunshine. What troopers. We were so lucky with Brighton and how cool we had it. I’m almost certain I wouldn’t have done as well as I had if it had been as hot as London was.
So another solid weekend with a bit less running but lots of food. And time to think about some new running goals I think…
My alarm was set for the ridiculous time of 4am. My dad and I had to drive into Southampton to meet the coach at 5.30am. I could have gotten up a bit later because I was taking breakfast with me to eat on the way and wasn’t having a shower (does anyone on the day of a marathon?) but I wanted to get in a coffee straight away to encourage, well, a happy comfortable marathon, if you get my meaning! 😉
We got to the coach a teeny bit late – entirely my fault for not knowing precisely where we were meeting. Obviously I’d left it to the last possible moment to realise this. Standard Anna Behaviour. But we arrived and weren’t the last so that was OK.
Bless him, he’d printed out possible times I’d be passing through the areas he was going to head to, mile by mile breakdowns and the course route. Very organised!
We arrived at Blackheath around 8am and then walked to the start areas. It was quite chilly and overcast so I was glad to have one of my dad’s jumpers on that I could throw away at the start. There were loads of coaches and runners everywhere and you could just feel the nervous energy flowing about the place. It was amusing to see all the police officers having coffee and breakfast though before the real mayhem began.
I got to the Green Start easily. All the starts were well sign-posted and there were coloured air balloons in the sky per area so you could easily head in the right direction. I said goodbye to my dad and my running club and parkrun friend Aurelio who’d be spectating with my dad.
I was early enough in the starting area to get into the toilet queue and only have about 20 minutes to wait which was good (when it was about 30 minutes to the start the queues were RIDICULOUS. I think people were just queuing for something to do). I also saw my lovely friend, Sarah, who works from Xempo and I’d met at the 
They had their own tent and a fenced off area but they came out to sign autographs and get photos so it was quite fun to spot the different people. Though a lot of them I had no idea who they were! (Not sure what Chrissie Wellington is doing!).
The main celeb I really wanted to see was Adele from the BBC Radio One Early Morning Breakfast Show. I listen to her show in the mornings when I go to the gym (from 5am) and I’ve Tweeted her a few times and text in the show. As sad as it sounds, I was really chuffed she gave me a shout out on the show to wish me luck for the marathon. It’s her first marathon and she was never a runner before training so I was interested to see how she did. ANYWAY, I saw her and said hello, SO awkwardly, and was like “it’s Anna…AnnaTheApple” and she was like “Anna! Hello!” and then hugged me. It was lovely. I know it’s such a pathetically small thing, but it really made my day.
I didn’t get a photo but a hug was more than enough! Then I head to my wave. Everything seemed very organised and easy to find, but it was ridiculously crowded.
After some hanging around, we started moving forward. It didn’t take that long to reach the start and then we were off.
As seems to be common theme for me, I realised I needed a wee. It wasn’t a critical situation but it was just annoying. I settled in to the best rhythm I could given how busy it was. I mean, I’ve been to busy and popular races but this was another level. There was just no space around me. It was good I wasn’t wanting to hit any sort of specific paces or wanting to go faster because I literally couldn’t. To be honest, I was quite chilled. My pace felt comfortable and I just spent my time looking at other people, seeing all the crowds and just zoning out. I did some legging-spotting as well as you do 😉 Always a great way to pass some time!
My first milestone to get to was Cutty Sark, around 10k. My dad and Aurelio were going to be there so I was excited to potentially see them. I got to Cutty Sark and realised that wasn’t going to happen. The crowds were like four people deep. I scanned and scanned but just couldn’t spot them. My eyes were so fixed on the crowds that I didn’t see the water bottle on the floor and I turned my ankle on it. I felt a sharp jab of pain and hobbled a bit and then started running again and MIRACULOUSLY it was fine, though a little sore. But it did make me suddenly think “right, eyes on the road”! I was a little deflated having not seen my dad. Not because I needed to see him to boost me along, but because I know how much effort he’d have put into getting there. It’s stressful being a spectator and he prides himself in getting to good spots. But London is clearly just another level.
So I carried on to my next milestone, mile eight, where I had my first gel (SIS Blackberry flavour with caffeine). It was now at the point that I really did need to stop for a wee. I’d passed a few portable loos but I’d seen people queuing so I decided to wait until I spotted a free one. At around mile 10 I spotted one and jumped into it. Then I was back out and running again as fast as possible. I probably lost 30 seconds? No issue.
Going across Tower Bridge was incredible. INCREDIBLE. I didn’t think I’d find it that amazing. Everyone talks about how good it is and I was a bit like, “yeah yeah”. But honestly, I got goose bumps. It was fantastic. I had to take my phone out to snap a few pictures of course 😉
The views across the bridge were amazing too. After that I knew it was supposed to get quiet as we headed towards the Isle of Dogs. Apparently this is a tricky area. But the crowds were still thick as anything. I almost wanted to have no crowds for a bit. It was quite mentally overwhelming. In other marathons there are times when there aren’t any crowds and you can kind of just put your head down and plod on. Then when the crowds appear again it’s like a big boost, but the boost effect was wearing out now. I was also sad because I’d apparently missed seeing my dad again. He was going to be around mile 13. I wondered what kind of day he was having while I was running and hoped he wasn’t feeling stressed.
I just wanted to get to mile 18. It always feels like such an achievement to get to that mile. I ran through Canary Wharf before this point, though I only realised this from seeing a sign. The views of the skyscrapers started to appear around me which was cool. I still felt pretty good. I’d say the only struggle I was having was mentally feeling tired of running. I questioned why I was running yet another marathon. I felt in myself that I needed a break. I love marathons but running this one so close to Tokyo was wearing my brain down a bit.
As soon as I got to mile 20 I felt like I was in the clear. I know that might sound cocky but I still felt comfortable, like I had energy and my legs felt alright. So I switched my podcast to music and got into the zone for the last 10k. In my head I kept thinking “just two more parkruns”. Now the crowds were even thicker and louder. I looked at my watch and worked out that even if it took me an hour to do the last 10k I’d be within the 3:45 target I’d vaguely set myself. I was in a happy place.
At this point I started scanning the crowds to see if I could spot anyone I knew. There were several people from Instagram, Twitter and my running club that I knew would be spectating around these points so it really kept me occupies to look out for them. When I did spot someone it really boosted me when they cheered me on. It was very much appreciated. I got uber excited when I saw someone from my club, as it was just so nice to see a friendly face. London had felt a little lonely so far.
I was now feeling very marathon weary. My legs still felt OK but my mind was done. I just wanted to get to the “last parkrun”. I remember looking at my watch with the actual time of day on it and remembering that I said to my dad I’d see him before 2pm if all went well and it was now after 1pm and I felt very close to being finished. At some point I heard around mile 21 my dad shout to me and I turned to see him and Aurelio in the crowd. Ahhh it was so good to see them! I was so pleased we’d both seen each other at some point during the race!
Then suddenly Big Ben was in front of me to the right and it was like, “wow!”. It was just one of those “this is why I run marathons” moment. Then we turned the corner and I could almost SMELL the finish, despite still being almost a mile away.
Then signs appeared counting down the metres to the end. 800m…600m… but it seemed to take FOREVER to run the 200m between. I kept trying to smile but it was now quite tough and I’m sure I was grimacing more than smiling.
Then we ran under a sign that said “385 yards to go” and you saw Buckingham Palace and turned the corner to run the final iconic road down to the finish along The Mall.
SUCH a fantastic finish. I couldn’t quite believe it. I saw the time ticking and realised I could squeak in under 3:35 which would technically be a Boston Qualifier (and another Good For Age).
And then I was done! 3:34:01. I am so chuffed with that time as I felt like I was fairly comfortable running (as comfortable as you can be really in a marathon). I think my main issue was mental weariness. I know I need to take a break now from excessive long runs and marathons. It was, dare I say, a bit of a mental grind. So different to Tokyo where I didn’t feel such a mental struggle – mainly because I was running with good company. This felt a lot more lonely and tough going.
I collected my medal almost straight away (Tokyo could learn a thing or two about this…), my goodie bag with the technical t-shirt in it (X-Small – awesome!). I took a few selfies and then followed everyone in the standard marathon march (i.e. slow shuffle) to the meeting area.
I met up with my dad and Aurelio fairly quickly. They’d had a mare trying to get to all the different places but we both agreed it was nice to have seen each other at least once! And my dad got a good amount of steps in walking about the place, so it was good for him and he felt proud of himself.
I was now starving. The TINY apple in the goodie bag disappeared very quickly. Aurelio headed off to support some of the others that he was supporting and my dad and me headed off to find somewhere for lunch. We chose the Byron Burger as frankly it was close, it didn’t look heaving with people and the menu looked nice!
It was so good to get some food in me. My dad and I shared some buffalo chicken wings. So tasty but my poor dry and cracked lips were destroyed by the spicy sauce. It was definitely a hardship to eat them! I then had a Cobb salad with some sweet potato fries. Honestly it was just what I fancied (mmm bacon and blue cheese…). I went from being very hungry to very full very quickly. I didn’t fancy pudding at all (weird marathon stomach) so we headed off for a bit of a wonder. We had a lot of time to kill before 5.30pm when the coach would leave!
And then we got the coach and headed home! Another Major ticked off the list, just two more to go: New York and Chicago…
I guess this should be the post where I say what my goals are for running the London Marathon. Hmmm. Survive uninjured. No change from usual I guess! I hope to get around 3:45 but under that would be nice. It really depends on the weather, the crowds and how I feel. The 
Basically, my first and foremost marathon mantra for anyone and everyone is: RESPECT THE MARATHON. Otherwise it will eat you up and spit you out. You could argue that my not-so-great training and clustering of marathons isn’t quite respecting the marathon…but I’m aware of this and aware of my capabilities. I’m not going to take off at the start like a loony. I mean, I imagine I won’t be able to anyway as it’ll be so busy but in an ideal world I have a list of paces I want to target (i.e. not go faster than) for the first 10 miles, the second 10 miles and then the final 10k will be “see how you feel” as to whether I step it up (unless I’m crawling at that point…).