Amongst the very limited and controllable options of the early pandemic last March, I decided to plan and develop a running routine in an attempt to keep connected to the outdoor environment and, of course, not to lose touch with London. Only had I known that running was my newfound passion ...

It started with 8-10km runs every few days and before I even realised I was practicing for a ½ marathon. 2 months in I registered with a friend for the Edinburgh Marathon Festival (EMF) in September 2020. For a month or so I had a clear a date and a target that I could look forward to and plan my runs accordingly, which made the prep even more exciting. Unfortunately Covid and the organisers had other plans and the event was postponed until May 2021. Nevertheless, I kept extending my running distance and frequency every week and managed to run 2 half-marathons in June. Honestly, and I hope I don't come out as arrogant here, but it was easier than I expected! I suppose doing something you enjoy comes easy... okay maybe these views played their role too 😉

Along The Serpentine, Hyde Park - 8th May 2020

Prepping for EMF - take 2 🎬

• 15.01 km - Average Pace 5:04/km - Total time 1h 16m
• 22.07 km - Average Pace 5:23/km - Total time 1h 58m 🏃🏽‍♂️🥇(below)

My ½ marathon route back home in Nicosia, Cyprus (aka Route OG) - 1 kilometre highlighted in blue for scale.

Core to keeping fit and being away from any injuries were the post-run stretching exercises and the yoga sessions in between. Without wanting to sound very cliche, these two runs (and the time in-between) made me realise that good rest and the right mindset can do wonders. Diet and sleep should not be neglected either of course, but prioritising my body's recovery was fundamental. Saying that, I’d like to share more about my diet and other habits during my marathon prep but it'd probably be wiser to do so in another post as I can divulge into more details.

Road ahead (no pun here either) 🛣🎽

Here we are now, in the anniversary week of the first lockdown with all the prep and pace targets still on track. Looking at the road ahead, the EMF unfortunately got deferred to May 2022(!) ...bummer really but on a positive note, I just signed up for Leiden's ½ marathon in October!! Honestly I'm reallyyy looking forward to my first marathon event, and of course enjoying these beautiful views in Leiden 🇳🇱!!!

Leiden, Netherlands

PS. Secret weapons 📘🎧👟🟠

• Ali On The Run Show 🎧 my post-run go-to (usually during my cool-down, Ali and her inspiring guests talk about their journeys to becoming pro runners and present refreshing insights into what's happening 'in-between' the runs. Certainly the good vibes and the excitement also attracted me here 😎  
• Endure: Mind, Body, and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Performance 📘 my post-run-post-podcast and weekend audible book. Alex Hutchinson provides insights and cool stories on how to improve running performance. He lays scientific facts and with his own unique way of writing, he lets you, the reader, form your own conscious decisions. I specifically liked the science behind improving your VO2max - the maximum amount of oxygen your body can consume during exercise. Admittedly it's the first metric I check on my smartwatch after my runs.
• ON Running Cloudswifts - my first researched pair of running shoes. I was curious to try this trending Swiss shoe brand last year for its pioneering CloudTec technology and honestly I’ve been amazed - needless to say I’m highly recommending them. I'm currently on my third pair of ONs - all different models though because as I found out you should choose your shoe according to your intended running distance (per run) and more importantly shoes should be replaced after 500-600km as the integrity of the shoe may be affected leading to increased risk of injury. The Cloudswifts 'served me' whilst doing my 10-15 km runs in the first 3 months of my prep and have certainly been the most used ones with just over 600 km covered. They're so light and, as all ONs are so far, super comfy - which are kinda important in long runs 😉 

It's been fun writing this on my marathon-prep journey and looking forward to sharing more updates for the Leiden-prep ✌🏼🏃🏽‍♂️ Stay tuned and on track (PUN INTENDED)!!