The time seems to be flying by now, and the training and fund-raising planning is underway. I have a regular training partner, Charlotte, who is also doing the Kiln Sierra Marathon, and we have been working hard to motivate each other and getting a few runs under our belts.

The recent cold snap and snow did put a little dent in our outside running, but we used the time instead to do some interval training and leg strength work inside in the gym.

It's great having another person to run with, we have pushed
each other when one of us doesn't feel like putting in the miles
or feels like skipping the gym. Having trained so well together so
far, and motivating each other, we have decided that we are
actually going to run the whole marathon together.

Some people have suggested that we shouldn't as you should run your own race, but the challenge of doing this race I think needs motivation all the way round. It's unlike the big marathons like London, New York, Berlin etc, as I don't think we'll have hundreds of thousands of spectators cheering us on!! Also, neither of us have ever run 26 miles, so it's a complete unknown to us both.

So we have to prepare….

To help us out, I have downloaded a 16 week training plan which should take us from the level of fitness that we currently are at to the level we need to be to run the marathon. There are 3 runs in the plan during the week, to a maximum of 80 minutes, and then the weekend long run. That's a challenge, to fit in the time and increase the distance week in week out.  But having a plan to work to will help us.

The Kiln group that are running are also going to do some group runs at lunchtime. It's quite a bonding experience for us all. 

It's lucky that we work so close to the river, as it's quite a nice thing to do at lunchtime, run along the Thames and back to Westminster, and as the weather gets nicer (hopefully!) it'll be a much more pleasant run. We are going to look for places outside of London to run for the longer weekend run, as variety is key to keeping the training interesting.

Also, the Just Giving site is now live and my page is here: http://www.justgiving.com/sam-arrowsmith. So the plans to start the fund-raising are underway too…... I have a few ideas which I'm looking into, and again, with other runners from the Kiln contingent we have a plan of a local event we want to hold to raise some cash. Every penny counts!! I also continue to tweet on my @KilnSamRuns account, and will use social media to continue to raise the profile of the run and the fundraising.

It's going to be a busy few months!!