Greater Manchester Marathon - UK's Flattest Marathon 2014

ladyfunrun

Sam_Turner wrote (see)

Cool, well it's a good course for a PB so I'm sure you'll have a shot at that 3.45, especially as winter training suits you better. But three marathons in one year, that's a decent achievement whatever way you look at it!

Hi Sam, Thanks for that - I think I need a running buddy to help me stay motivated and to not let down.

15West

Hello all. Not running Manchester myself...and you may know this already, but the presenters on marathon talk are running Manchester next year so may be worth listening to them in the lead up..

ladyfunrun

Excellent stuff - MT has got me through many a long run in the past!!

Chrissi

LFR well done on 3 marathons that's my goal for next year

Going to book Hubby's MU stadium tour this weekend

Kirsty Cooper

Off up to Alty for the weekend to help plan my sister's wedding - spot of route recce while I'm there I think!

Strangely Brown

rockinrockyrobin wrote (see)

Strangely Brown wrote (see)

RRR - great to see you return as well.  That's three of us back for more punishment, reckon there might be one or two other "old faces" cropping up in the months ahead

Indeed good to see some recognisable names and faces , sad to say I am actually looking forward to doing another one, such a buzz at times on the course and as a "local" seeing old faces/friends in the crowd besides complete strangers shouting your name as you go past

Have to say this forum was really useful last time round and (although easy with hindsight) I wish I'd taken on board every piece of advice I was given as 95% of it was spot on and the remainder probably was to more seasoned runners

Redpanda had her baby a few weeks ago and is doing well

Thanks for letting me know that, great news for her   I doubt she'll be running Mancs this year then!

Yeah, the thread really helped me too last year.  Hopefully it'll take off this year similarly to how it did last, it was a good place to be and everyone was extremely helpful and friendly.  It was genuinely heart warming to read about all the successes and achievements in the days following it and then poof - it died it's natutral death within a week.

Good luck with the training mate.  I've started mine in earnest really with my long runs ramping up from 10 miles a few weeks back to 16 this coming weekend and my weekly mileage going from 35 up to 48 this week.

2wheels

rockinrockyrobin wrote (see)

My family walked up from our house in Timperley,

Oh my god I hadn't even realised I had booked a hotel near Timperley - guess my Saturday afternoon might be spent coming to see you statue!

As for the other points, thanks most helpful. I expect I may come up on my own as if she is unable to see me often and likely to spend most of the time on the train it's hardly going to make for an exciting day for my girlfriend.

I did a lumpy half on Sunday in just over 2 hours, and that's on a background of no runs longer than 4 or 5 miles for the last few months. So as a starting point I'm pretty happy with how fit I am. Confident that a solid few weeks training will get me under 1hr 50 on a flatter course at Milton Keynes in December and that beating 3hr 45 is an attainable target in April.

[Deleted User]

Hello All, Another London reject.  Aiming for a pb in Manchester next year which for me means going under 5 hours for the first time. 

Just starting to think about accommodation. 

Chrissi

Claire - i'm hoping to get a sub 5 for the first time too

rockinrockyrobin

Strangely Brown wrote (see)

rockinrockyrobin wrote (see)

Strangely Brown wrote (see)

RRR - great to see you return as well.  That's three of us back for more punishment, reckon there might be one or two other "old faces" cropping up in the months ahead

Indeed good to see some recognisable names and faces , sad to say I am actually looking forward to doing another one, such a buzz at times on the course and as a "local" seeing old faces/friends in the crowd besides complete strangers shouting your name as you go past

Have to say this forum was really useful last time round and (although easy with hindsight) I wish I'd taken on board every piece of advice I was given as 95% of it was spot on and the remainder probably was to more seasoned runners

Redpanda had her baby a few weeks ago and is doing well

Thanks for letting me know that, great news for her   I doubt she'll be running Mancs this year then!

You'd be surprised !! She's already itching to get back into it

Capesthorne Half for me this weekend, bit disappointed it's not chip timed as was hoping to get a new PB prior to ramping up the mileage toward Christmas

Still behind you training-wise Strangely, think I'm around 35 miles per week at the moment and a long run of 13 in the build up to my HM which will probably be up to around 16 by the end of the year (a slow burner)

Lagerman

I'm in!

First marathon for 2 years.  Last one was RunLiverpool in 2011 in a PW of 3:49, so hoping for much better this time on a flatter course.  Having said that, I am 2 years older now, so we'll see!

P.S.  I made use of the £5 off with the discount code:RWEARLYBIRD.  If you're thinking of entering you can use this code up to 31st October.  Go on you know you want to!!

Zirion

I'm in too. Grew up in Warrington, and my parents still live there so will be staying with them. The Travel Lodge sounds great but the free chauffeur, babysitting and made to order meals at my parents' house is just too tempting to pass up. Plus, if you think Altrincham night life is bad....

Fourth marathon for me. 5:06, 4:00, 3:26. Last one was Abingdon where I cramped up badly at mile 20. Up to then I'd been on target for 3:05 and GFA, with it all feeling pretty easy. I'm going to forsake conventional marathon training plans and use a once or twice a month marathon length run to keep my endurance up and pin down what triggers cramps for me, combined with some speed work to edge up my 10k speed. Well that's my plan anyway, but there's a good chance I'll cave. Really enjoyed my longest training runs (2x40k), so that's not as masochistic as it sounds!

Looking forward to sharing the roller coaster with you all...

Strangely Brown

Is Panda going to sign up then RRR?  Best of luck in the HM.  next race for me is in Lytham a week Sunday, just a 10k.

 

Zirion - Good to have you with us.  That is some awe inspiring progress, not sure i've ever seen leaps of that magnitude before.  Very impressed.

 

 

ladyfunrun

Strangely Brown wrote (see)

Is Panda going to sign up then RRR?  Best of luck in the HM.  next race for me is in Lytham a week Sunday, just a 10k.

 

Zirion -  That is some awe inspiring progress, not sure i've ever seen leaps of that magnitude before.  Very impressed.

 

 

Agreed - Incredible! what training plans did you use?

Jim IA Moore

I am in as well , coming over from Northen Ireland, ran it last year and had a nice PB off 3hrs 17mins odd so looking to dip under 3.15 this time round .

Will start my training plan around the Christmas time, and hope I get the luck you need when marathon training avoiding injuries and taken to many colds 

rockinrockyrobin

Strangely B, last I heard she'd been out for a couple of runs and been to a few classes at Alty leisure centre but was finding it hard going, having done nothing since Manchester in April and also the not so small matter of juggling 2 young kids

We're in touch on Facebook so will keep you posted

Love Lytham, The Taps is one of my favourite pubs and I always visit when I'm in that area

Looking for an event in January or February to break up the training plan

Time to dig out the hat and gloves following this morning's run, I think Autumn has finally turned up

Speaking to alot of people who are looking at entering Manchester next year based on last year's feedback be it as a London reject, PB chaser or entering as a relay team. Could be a large increase in numbers on last year's (7000?) if they all turn up at the start

[Deleted User]

hi all,  Manchester will be Marathon attempt no 3. When training for the first 2 attempts  most of my training was at marathon pace or very close to marathon pace. During London 2013, all went exactly to plan for the first 30k, then let’s just say it got tad tougher!

Thus, i need a alterantive plan and have decided I am going with P&D 18 week upto 55 miles programme for Manchester. Hoping for sub 4 hours, PB at the minute is 4h 19.

I have had my nose in the programme for a week or two to understand It and feel comfortable with the theory. Before I start the 18 weeks during my runs at the minute I am attempting to slow down, so I am accustomed to the different paces required in the programme.

However, put simply I can’t slow my pace down enough and find myself drifting along at 8.45-9.15 mins per mile. Feels like a natural pace for me. Do you have any simple and practical advice for me so that I can slow down, long runs need to be 9.55-10.50 per mile and the General aerobic even slower….

Any advice appreciated!

Chrissi

Not liking that evening runs are now all in the dark  

 

yorkie white

Hi all, this is my next marathon having ran my first, the Yorkshire marathon, last week in a time of 3:18:32 and really enjoyed the experience I'm eager to start training again. I was following a runners world 16 week schedule where i was running 6 out of 7 days and knew what i was doing, i feel a bit lost now not having a training plan to follow.

siony

Hi ex egg chaser- I have the same issue can't slow my LSR ( and I confess that I am slightly too lazy at sprints)

sorry that I don't have an ideal solution - tend to study my garmin ( tricky in the dark!)

also tend to pick lower tempo music as a playlist - helps a bit

interested if anyone has found a better solution 

 

discovered new pet hate- dark evenings= running in town. Why can't pedestrians walk in a straight line. I'm happy to dodge them but playing guess where they are going is annoying ! Happy running everyone 

[Deleted User]

I'm in. I'll have been running for over a year when this starts. Hopefully beat my time of  4.58 at Chester - doubt it will be 20 degrees in April.

Here's to a brand new experience of running through winter. The last week has been 'fun' enough as running through a lot of mud and puddles where I live. They were nice solid trails since March.

tishtosh

Hi. I'm another London reject so doing Manchester and aiming to go sub 4 (ideal would be 3:50).  Was trained up and really thought I could get sub 4 at York 2 weeks ago but had a nightmare race so am tryimg to forget that and start afresh!

Strangely Brown

rockinrockyrobin wrote (see)

Strangely B, last I heard she'd been out for a couple of runs and been to a few classes at Alty leisure centre but was finding it hard going, having done nothing since Manchester in April and also the not so small matter of juggling 2 young kids

We're in touch on Facebook so will keep you posted

Love Lytham, The Taps is one of my favourite pubs and I always visit when I'm in that area

Looking for an event in January or February to break up the training plan

Time to dig out the hat and gloves following this morning's run, I think Autumn has finally turned up

Speaking to alot of people who are looking at entering Manchester next year based on last year's feedback be it as a London reject, PB chaser or entering as a relay team. Could be a large increase in numbers on last year's (7000?) if they all turn up at the start

Yeah, it's going to be very tough to get in shape for a marathon with a new born.  It's hard enough sometimes when you don't have kids!

I'll be doing a few events around Jan and Feb too.  I really would like to get two halves done and minimum 1 x10k.  I fancy doing a 10 mile race as well before x-mas, it's a race distance i've never run and will ease me well into the half distance for the new year.

[Deleted User]

thanks siony, managed to slow down a tad this morning, but like you studdying the watch far too much

increasing my pace is ok, but slowing down is so much harder, the pace just feels so natural

Will try changing the music...

keep the ideas flowing if you can!

rockinrockyrobin

ex egg chaser wrote (see)

hi all,  Manchester will be Marathon attempt no 3. When training for the first 2 attempts  most of my training was at marathon pace or very close to marathon pace. During London 2013, all went exactly to plan for the first 30k, then let’s just say it got tad tougher!

However, put simply I can’t slow my pace down enough and find myself drifting along at 8.45-9.15 mins per mile. Feels like a natural pace for me. Do you have any simple and practical advice for me so that I can slow down, long runs need to be 9.55-10.50 per mile and the General aerobic even slower….

Any advice appreciated!

Egg Chaser, completely know where you're coming from. I thought long and slow meant just being slower than the other runs you did during the week so most of my LSR last time weren't that far off marathon pace. Come the race it all went swimmingly until mile 20 and then the last 6 were a bit of a nightmare as I hadn't got the "legs" to run for the full 26 miles and walked a fair bit

Having said that, alot of people are saying that the "wall" can hit regardless so it may be that the plan is not the most important thing.

On a Saturday I go for my shortest run of the week and then when I get back, I then take my son out for another 5K which we run at a pace where we can have a conversation quite easily. Having experienced this slow(er) running, I think it is possible but whether I could do it for a 20 mile training run that then takes much longer as a result I'm not sure, it's also harder when you train on your own

It's all about time on your feet rather than getting your LSR done in an amazing pace

Shazmo

I've done Manchester the last two years, but in 2014 I've got a London GFA place. Some of my pals are thinking of doing Manchester though and I may do the half/half relay option and use it as my last long run (as long as I take it easy), as it would nice to be involved.



Good luck to you all with the training

Cake

ex egg chaser wrote (see)

thanks siony, managed to slow down a tad this morning, but like you studdying the watch far too much

increasing my pace is ok, but slowing down is so much harder, the pace just feels so natural

Will try changing the music...

keep the ideas flowing if you can!

What sort of distance are you doing at the moment through? One thing that might help is if you run with someone else off roughly the same ability you will end up kicking each other up the bottom a little and pace it bettter?

Chrissi

Club run of 6.5 miles last night the dark bits where the road cuts thru woods were very dark on my own but the sky had cleared abit when we came out into the open at the top of the hill and the stars were amazing.

Can't help with the slowing down on long runs sorry definately not something i have to worry about

Bearsted Plodder

Back again 3rd year entered.

[Deleted User]

rockinrockyrobin....thanks for the reply, glad I am not alone in having this problem. 

Cheers cake, I am around 10-12 miles for the longer runs at the minute, but even on short ones I am  attempting to slow down, I need to train my male mind to slow down ready for start of the 18 week plan....   

Search for a training partner has commenced!

tahnsk all, keep the tips comimng if you can.....