One month later

A very quick check-in one month after the big day. I did get ill, three days after the run. I guess that my resistance was low after the strain of the race, after which it was a good hour before I could get in the shower and change out of the rain soaked gear. Not surprising really that I should catch a cold, which then dragged on in the form of a slightly irritating cough for a couple of weeks. So I didn't get to attempt my personal best 10km two weeks after the marathon that I had planned. It was actually three weeks before I managed to go out for a run again. Next planned race is a ten km in Wales in January. More deetails to follow. I have also registered for the Berlin Half Marathon on 3rd April next year, though I declined the invitation to register for next year's marathon. 

Here is a photo of me close to the end of the marathon running through the Brandenburg Gate.

Two Days Later

Thanks to everyone for the encouragement and congratulations via e-mail, comments to this blog or Facebook. Also a big thanks again to all who sponsored me and helped me to raise money for the new Buddhist centre. (It is still of course possible, just click here!).

Two days after the event I feel surprisingly fit and well. It rained during virtually the whole time, which may indeed have been better than if it had been sunny. Apart from soggy feet, it helped to prevent me from dehydrating. To avoid this hazard I also drank litres of water and 'power drinks' at every refreshments station along the way, where I likewise consumed countless bananas.

Despite all the fears and expectations of hitting 'the wall' around the 30 or 35 km mark I experienced nothing of the sort, which in a wierd kind of way is something of a disappointment! Did I do something wrong? Apart from the super sense of satisfaction of having fulfilled this goal and of having helped raise money for the new Buddhist centre, I am really impressed by the accuracy of the training plan that I followed. The plan was to run the course in 3 hours and 47 minutes and came from 'the book'. In the event I ran it in 3:46:47, thirteen seconds within the limit. Similarly I completed my half marathon in April around half a minute in time. It was helpful to have a pulse meter which helped me to maintain a fairly constant pace, and I could also make sure I didn't set out too fast at the beginning.

The photos were taken by Mokshasiddha at 14km (left) and 40 km (right).

For anyone interested in such things, the split timings were as follows: 

Split	Time of day	Time	Diff	min/km	km/h
5 km	09:36:53	00:25:28	25:28	05:06	11.79
10 km	10:03:17	00:51:51	26:23	05:17	11.37
15 km	10:30:17	01:18:51	27:00	05:25	11.11
20 km	10:56:49	01:45:23	26:32	05:19	11.31
Half	11:02:35	01:51:10	05:47	05:16	11.41
25 km	11:23:32	02:12:06	20:56	05:22	11.18
30 km	11:51:40	02:40:14	28:08	05:38	10.66
35 km	12:18:33	03:07:08	26:54	05:23	11.15
40 km	12:46:37	03:35:12	28:04	05:37	10.69

More statistics:

My overall pace was 5:23 minutes per km

My average heart rate was 156

I finished 10,397th out of 34,027 overall

Of the men in the 50-54 age group I was 1088 of 3322
Among all the men I was 10397 out of 26597

The atmosphere was of course terrific despite the rain, as was the constant encouragement from the crowds. It was wonderful too to see many friends along the way.No doubt many memories will remain with me for many years to come. One of the more bizarre memories is of being massaged after the race in the rain on the lawn in front of the Reichstag! 

Although it was a great day which I will never forget, I do not intend to change my mind about not repeating the experience. I have already registered for next year's Berlin half marathon on 3rd April, but I will stick to halves in future.

One Day...

Ran my last training run this afternoon - an easy four kilometers in gentle rain, followed by four 100 meter sprints. Ate a good portion of spaghetti for lunch. Occasionally experiencing some pre-race excitement / nervousness, which is to be expected I guess. The weather forecast is for rain the whole day, which is probably better than hot sunshine, though I hope it isn't too heavy. Am in the process of preparing  for an early start tomorrow, and will get to bed early, though I don't know how well I will sleep.

Pre-race nutrition

Home-made rhubarb crumble with ice-cream

Two Days....

I survived the crowds at the trade fair in Tempelhof and have collected my number! Having made my way to the far end of the hall where the numbers were strategically situated I managed to get out again with my wallet completely intact.

Three Days....

Another day nearer and another six kilometer training run, more realisticly paced than a couple of days ago, but still surprisingly fast. I'll certainly need to watch out that I don't set off too fast, which seems to be the most widespread mistake of marathon runners.

Tomorrow I have written a big "NOTHING" in my diary, although I intend to bake a rhubarb crumble before collecting my number from a trade fair at the former Tempelhof airport, and making a short trip to Ikea. Otherwise I will be aiming to chill out as much as possible until the start of the race at 9 o'clock on Sunday morning. Just a very short gentle run on Saturday evening.

I have learnt that a small group of supporters intend to meet around the 40km mark to cheer me on. I hope I make it that far!!!

Four Days...

Very tired today, having had a very full couple of days with late nights, which I am about to rectify by going to bed before 9.30. Yesterday evening I enjoyed co-leading a very well attended Padmasambhava Day celebration at the Buddhist Centre, which included four Mitra ceremonies, that is, four people publicly commiting themselves to the Buddhist Path in a short ceremony. I remember my own Mitra ceremony at the Norwich Buddhist Centre in England in 1993, one of the most memorable and significant moments in my life.

And now I'd better get to bed.