Thursday 27th November - 18:15
I left the flat and walked to Waverley Station to get my train to Birmingham. I left myself plenty of time to arrive at the station, collect my tickets, and get my very important pre-bootcamp meal from Marks & Spencer. The train left on time at 18:52 and off I went to Birmingham New St. The journey was uneventful which is the best you can hope for and I arrived in Birmingham on time. Thank you Virgin Trains!
This is not just fuel for boot camp. This is M&S fuel for boot camp.
On time
Once I arrived in Birmingham I walked to my hotel which was actually a hostel. Shouldn't complain, it cost £16, but I learned that a hostel in Birmingham city centre is quite different from a hostel in the Scottish Highlands - not sure I'd stay in one again to save some pennies. I slept fine though and even though I was up and away too early for breakfast (included in the £16!) I arrived at New St again in time to get breakfast at the train station - coffee and bircher muesli, the breakfast of champions.
Fuel
Friday 28th November
From New Street I caught the train to Perry Barr which was a short 12 minute journey, I then walked from Perry Barr to the Alexander Stadium which was a 20 minute walk along a dual carriage way. Not an enjoyable walk but i found the stadium easily enough and arrived in plenty of time for registration and to have my head shot. Yes, my head shot. Shortly after arriving and collecting my boot camp t-shirt (awesome) I had my photo taken so as presumably the good readers of Runner's World will be able to see who they are voting for should I get that far in the process. I hope it doesn't put them off! It might also have been for the benefit of the Target 26.2 team from Asics and Runner's World as an aid to remember who Number 45 was - I hope it doesn't put them off!
You're welcome. Glad to be here.
First order of the day was a welcome meeting and a presentation and video showing last year's winners and their day at the Paris marathon. It was at this point that I decided I really wanted to win. It looked like a fabulous day and each of the runners obviously had a brilliant time and achieved an awful lot. The prize at stake is incredible and this video served to remind us of that. All of a sudden I felt competitive.
Exciting!
10am - Physio
I was signed to Group 2, the sub 3:30 marathon runners. The first main part of the day for our group was a physio session with Sarah Connors. Sarah talked us through a presentation which focussed on injury prevention and strength. It was interesting and I will take away from this the importance that posture plays in running. I also learned that your trainers should last about 200 miles which of me is about 6 weeks! I will be keeping this advice in mind but perhaps not applying it rigidly! Rules are for the guidance of the wise and are blindly followed by fools. :-D My trainers did cause some amusement within the group though due the wear on their soles, and someone did suggest that wouldn't need to run for the fair analysis later in the day, I could just show them my trainers. Fair point. I think I need new trainers - more on that at the gait analysis section.
11:15 - Track Session
Next up was probably the highlight of the day for me. We were lucky enough that Group 2 had bene allocated the before lunch slot for the track session with coaches Sam Murphy and Steve Smythe. Too much to go not in great detail but essentially it was all about pacing. As the 3:30 group we had to pace ourselves to run an 8 minute mile which is how fast we'd be expected to run the marathon. We ran a mile 3 times, once with updates on our pace given at the end of each lap, once with an update half way through, and a final time with no guidance whatsoever. I finished the no guidance whatsoever mile bang on time so that's encouraging. We also had to run 5km at a good pace and keep consistent. Although speed was part of it, the main thing was to complete every 1km in about the same time, so no setting off fast and finishing slowly. I think I did OK. My first 1km was too fast but the other 4 were pretty consistent and I finished in 21:07 which is not too bad. Despite everyone in the team being in direct competition, there was a lot of help and encouragement shared. If someone was going too fast, others would let them know. It was really nice. We had an opportunity to speak with Sam and Steve afterwards and ask advice about training which was really helpful.
Most Runningist Track Ever
Trackside selfie
The 5km run also gave me the opportunity to keep my running streak going and it was certainly one of the more notable runs so far.
13:15 - Q& A with Holly Rush
Holly Rush is an elite runner with a marathon PB of an amazing 2:37. She now concentrates mostly on ultra running and has excelled at that too. Next up was an incredible opportunity to ask her whatever we liked. I learned a lot about psychological techniques, nutrition, training regimes, tactics, and the need or no need to stretch (advised but can be done anytime and doesn't have to be after a run). Holly was really nice, really helpful, and it was a privilege to get such access to an elite like her. It was also really useful to hear the experiences of some of the other runners in the group. We all share the same problems and challenges, even Holly, the only difference is that she runs faster than us. Brilliant - thanks, Holly.
14:30 - Gait Analysis with Asics
Final part of the day was the gait analysis. This was an ideal end of the day as because only one person could have their gait analysed at one time, it allowed me time to catch up with the other members of my group and to share our experiences of the day. I held court for a bit when my running every day for a year was mentioned. A lot of people were really interested and asked questions and encouraged me which was really nice. Oh yeah, and the results of my gait analysis are in and I need more support - my right foot collapses under me. If I win the competition I will sort myself out with a supportive pair of Asics trainers. Might do it anyway even if I don't. Sorry Mizuno, but brand loyalty is being severely challenged by the awesomeness and kindness of the good people at Asics.
Analysing my gait like a boss
So all that was left was to say our goodbyes, collect our amazing goody bags full of cool stuff in a cool holdall (thank you Asics), and to take the train home to Edinburgh. A very short visit to Birmingham but a very full day and one that I'll remember for a long time.
Now, back to Earth, and the running streak runs on.
Team 2. Splendid bunch of people.
