What a difference a year makes!

Just came across this Facebook status of mine from a year ago today! I can't believe I hadn't even thought about running seriously then & now I'm about to run 26.2miles of the London Marathon!! 

It's safe to say my achievement so far has just hit me!! Wow! 

I'm utterly proud & emotional now. If nothing else with get me over that finish line then this certainly will! 

- A very happy runner today! 

23 days to go!

I decided this morning to donate another £26.20 to my fundraising as I felt really positive on my run this morning & pushed myself with my pace too. I was also nominated by a friend for a 'no make up selfie' which women are doing to raise funds for CRUK so this was for my donation towards that also. 

When I went along to my donations page a few things struck me...

Only 23 days to go!!

This really stood out for me this morning, it's no time at all & I remember when it was 123 days! Time really does fly! I'm almost a little sad that in 24 days time this journey will be over. 

Over £4000!!

The amount of money that people have kindly donated is just wonderful. It still amazes & humbles me that my friends, family and even people I've never met have been so generous. 

Although I'm still £1000 off target, I'm really looking forward to the final push for fundraising over the next 3 weeks & with every donation that comes in, it really does make me feel great & motivate me to run longer & faster. 

Thank you again to everyone who continues to support me. I don't know how I'd do it without you all. 

20 mile run on the agenda for Saturday then it's all downhill for a few weeks of tapering & resting before the big day! 

x

Call my name!

My running vest from CRUK arrived a few months ago & I had put it away & almost forgotten about it. Then with all the excitement over the past few weeks of the Marathon edging closer I decided to get it out & iron on my name! 

I'd got lots of advice over the past year and one of the main things people had told me is to ensure my name is on my top as it's a massive boost to have the crowd cheering your name. 

For this reason I decided to also have my nickname on my vest, I thought it'd be good fun, something for my massive group of supporters & fun for the crows too. So I now have Clare on the front & Gingey on the back!!

Yesterday I wore the vest (under my jacket!) for the first time, to ensure it didn't itch or snag & just knowing I was wearing it really gave me an extra boost! I'm so proud to wear this vest and support this amazing charity & I can't wait to wear it on the day. 

To hear complete strangers say my name, and nickname, will be just amazing. 

So if you see me 4 weeks today pounding the streets of London then give me a big cheer! It'll make the world of difference to me! 

36036!

Along with my final instructions for the London Marathon by post this weekend I've also had my running number! 

I'm delighted that mine is easy to remember so I can share it with all my supporters! 

Now I just can't wait to get to the ExCel & pick up all my paperwork! It's all getting very real! 

Final instructions!

Well this arrived in today's post & I'm so excited to get reading! I'm off out for my 20 miler this afternoon then it'll be a long bath & read up on my final instructions! 

The nerves & buzz is starting to kick in as I approach sub 4 weeks!! 

Runners chat

Since my marathon journey began I've been talking about it on twitter a lot & thanks to some lovely replies to my tweets I found out about #ukrunchat. 

It's a brilliant community of runners around the UK, people who run short distances to marathons, it really does cover so many people & different walks of life. 

Now everytime I mention running I include this # & I am guaranteed some lovely replies or sound advice. 

When I was injured it was great to put out there how I was feeling & for people to then reply who had been in similar situations. It's really motivating too as there are so many people in the same boat as me. 

Many first time marathon runners who all want to share their stories so we can help each other through. 

Once a week there is the chance to submit questions which then get retweeted out to everyone so you can help each other through. 

It's especially been supportive the closer to the marathon I'm getting. Everyone is starting to get really tired & achy which a lot of my friends may not understand but the runners in the community really do. 

Although I'll be running the marathon alone I do feel like running is a great community to a part off & although I'll probably never meet some of these people, hearing about their motivations & getting their advice really does help.