85 days in summary

Most of you know I have a degree in maths and so, accepting the risk I may be called "statto", having done my final run today he is the last 3 months in numbers:

Number of days trained: 85
Miles run: 388
Hours trained: 62.8
No of trainers used: 2
Furthest run: 21.2 miles (3hrs 32mins)
No of tracks on mp3: 56

And some other observations:

Favourite run: Richmond Park -- it can be quite tough getting up early especially if its cold and damp but the 7.25m cycle track is lovelly when the sun comes up and hits you on the back
Top ten hints:
1) Get a plan -- I used a mixture of runnersworld.co.uk and marathon news but there are loads of plans on the web -- I've attached my actual training schedule below.
2) Get organised -- You will never keep to a schedule unless you plan your life around when you can run and vice versa - never feel that because the schedule says x miles then you have to do it and forfeit a life!
3) Get decent trainers -- its worth the investment
4) Use vaseline - otherwise morning run like Haille Gebressallasse afternoon walk like John Wayne
5) Listen to your body -- if you are really feeling tired and worn out then consider resting -- resting is an important part of your training schedule (as is sleep!)
6) Try different routes --- www.mapmyrun.com great site that allows you to accurately measure routes
7) Use a gym -- In those dark days of January this was a godsend. I have realised that I'm not really very good at "dark,cold and wet", the treadmill allows you to do speed work and interval training and allows you to catch up on episodes of your fav tv shows or footie at the same time!
8) Blister proof socks --- Yes they really do exist!
9) Drugs --- Lucazade Carbo Gel is my choice, but other products such as Go-Gel exist -- experiment to see which ones work for you on your long training runs but don't over do it (max 1 per hour)
10) Race -- use races as part of your preparation to get used to running in crowds and practising in your race gear.