Marathon anyone?

I have only one word..........
........
.......
admiration !

That's brilliant Caramac - I've a few friends who did it last year and had an amazing time! I guess the only advice is to enjoy it - alongside the necessary care you need to take regarding your T2 diabetes.
Oh and follow everyone else - that way you won't get lost
My longest run has been 10k so I would be delighted if I could manage a half marathon this year.
I will be watching this space with interest and happily offer encouragement and support throughout your training

Well done Caramac for getting a place my daughter has been trying for one for several years. She regular runs halves and metric marathons despite her asthma and has done the Manchester one and will do it again this year. She is so disappointed at never getting a place for London despite raising a lot of money for Water Aid. Her best advice to anyone is to join a Running Club then you train properly with good advice and support to keep you going. Here's my girl flogging away.

My son and his partner have both signed up for the Edinburgh marathon in May.
He has done a couple before, but she has only ever run a half marathon.
He actually asked for that for a Christmas present! She signed up yesterday, before having any alcohol. She wants to do a marathon before she is forty.
I'll be doing marathon baby sitting. That'll do me.

Their advice would be to start training now. They have started today.
They regularly do park runs. My 13 year old grandson can run faster than his mum, although she is very fit. Download a training plan and stick to it.

Thanks everyone :-)
I am going to follow the VLM training plan and I know I should join the local running club....just not sure about that. I like running solo so a club would help prepare me.....just not ready yet.
I too am asthmatic but the mild winter has allowed me to maintain running.
I recently started full time work after years of 4 days term time . This plus granny duties has curtailed me somewhat but work is flexi so I will start late twice a week as I prefer morning runs.
I love trail running but my local patch is too muddy at this time of year. Pavement pounding is good practice for London though.
I have been so very lucky to get a place on my first application and am determined to make the most of this amazing opportunity.
I hope to post frequently as part of my psychological preparation as this feels a good safe place.
Oh I meant to say I am 55, mother of 4 and Granny to 3. Loving life but need something more. Running is my zen place :-) #plodder

How old are you Caramac?

Crossed posts.

Oh. 55. Ok. Well done.

Caramac, can you do park runs?
Saturday morning, 9.00 a.m. all over the country, 5k.
Some are flat, some are hilly. You sign up online, download a barcode, and just turn up anywhere they do them.
You do not need to belong to any club, and can join in as much as you want to. Some of them are more like social clubs.

I am feeling pretty good this morning having got up at 0615 to run with my dogs. I have to get up early as DGD arrives about 0745. On the plus side I am happy to run in the dark and I beat the rain!
My stamina is definitely improving although I have a long way to go.
I bought a new (cheap) phone this week to use for emergencies (well you never know) and to sync with my bluetooth earpiece for the mp3 facility. I don't like running with headphones as I like to have awareness of things around me so a single earpiece with no wires is brilliant.
Sooo disappointed that actually the bluetooth function doesn't support audio files My mp3 player hasn't got bluetooth so it looks like I will have to use my usual smartphone (dismal battery life so not ideal) or have headphones (2) with wires. I will try both and see which is best.
Running is definitely my thing - I really am a nicer person for it.
Oh and on my rest day i did 2 lots of Davina Fit in 15.......that woman is evil! I ached for 2 days !!!
@durhamjen I might do a ParkRun next week as a new one local to me has started, my daughter wants to join me too It will be good for me to run in a crowd as I have only done 2 five mile runs wi

Well the snow has stopped me running outdoors but at least I have my treadmill. Following the VMLM training plan I walked, ran, walked, ran and walked just shy of a quarter marathon (sounds longer than 6.5miles) in 70 minutes. Lots more training required but I'm feeling good

Does anyone else remember the chocolate bar called Caramac? I used to love them. I think I'd find them a bit too sweet now, though I do like salted caramel in a choc.

I love it that there is a chocolate bar (Marathon, aka Snicker) in the title too ?

Chocolate on the brain? Who, me?

I remember Caramac bags - didn't it have a red and black paper wrapper? Or is my ageing memory playing tricks? I can remember the sort of toffee coloured chocolate though. And the taste.

I don't remember the wrapper but, like you, gaga, I remember the colour and taste of the chocolate.

Sorry for temporarily hijacking your thread, marathon! As you were

It was more like white chocolate with caramel flavouring and colouring added. Delicious, but a bit sickly after a couple of pieces...

I was going to make a chocolate joke but bags beat me to it!

Good luck Caramac

Well done!
I did a half marathon last year and decided that I had just left it too late for a marathon, but I am older then you.
As long as you stick to your training plan you should be fine.

IT feel as like a marathon to me to walk from my lounge to my kitchen.
Does that count?

My moniker stems from my love of caramac chocolate as well as my name.....you can still buy caramac bars but I rarely do.
Training is going well but I suspect that the cold weather which forced me onto the treadmill has made it much easier. 5 miles on a treadmill is not the same as 5 miles outside. Tomorrow is 6-8 miles outdoors.
I still need to go for a gait analysis but full time work plus granny duty has kept me busy. DGD is due to arrive soon for the day whilst DD works.

Although Caramac bars are still available, they don't taste the same anymore!
DH was an addict, so was delighted to see them in the shops again, but very disappointed with the taste.
Good luck with the marathon, I'll be with you in spirit! x

My sister was just a bit younger than you caramac when she started running. She joined a club local to her and we used to joke about her doing the marathon. Well she did the London marathon 3 times before she was 60!! I went to support her, and the crowds on the pavements are amazing, especially through West Ferry Road and up to Canary Wharf. They cheer you on and hold out bowls of sweets and trays of fruit all beautifully cut into bite sizes chunks. It is also very well organised with regards to leaving your belongings in large vans at the start, which then drive to the finish ready for you to collect at the end.
Well done to you and good luck.

To mark reaching the grand old age of 60 (8 years ago), I decided to enter the Bath Half Marathon.
Prior to that I used to do an easy trot round the lake in the local park now and then when it was sunny.
To my surprise I loved the training over the four months leading up to it. I lost a bit of weight in the process, but more important to me was my feeling of well-being. My mental health more than my physical health improved and it helped me cope with being in a job I disliked, and the divorce from my then husband.

The feeling of euphoria on completing the half marathon was one of life's highlights I will always remember and be grateful for.

Sadly my knees started to object in a big way and I had to stop running after a couple of years. Even now, when I am out on a walk, and I think no one can see me, I set off for a short jog. It never fails to make me smile.
I now live in a rural area, with no gyms locally. I am wondering whether to invest in a jogging/walking machine, or are they a five-day wonder?

Very best wishes to Caramac. I will look out for you on the TV. Will you be the one looking very pleased with yourself!! Have fun.

Well done, all you really brave people! I'll walk for ever, but my body just doesn't do running, so I don't think I'll be doing even a "fun run" in the foreseesble future.

I'm having a bit of a crisis! I had the flu which stopped me running for 3 weeks and the cold snap meant that ALL my training up to the half marathon 2 weeks ago had been on the treadmill. The half marathon was a real test and I found it really hard - new shoes and cold temp meant I needed ventolin a few times during the run. My time was 3 hrs 19 minutes - much slower that I had hoped but I did walk the last 4 miles due to a painful foot (new shoes - silly I know but had just been too busy to buy a pair).
Since the half marathon 2 weeks ago I have had a productive cough and am using ventolin most days. I ran with the dogs today and stamina not really up to the mark. On Sunday I need to run 15 miles if I'm to stand any chance in the London marathon in 4 weeks time.
I am tempted to use steroids but my peak flow isn't low enough to justify this course of action.
Oh well, let's see what Sunday brings - fingers crossed!

Did you run the London marathon, Caramac?