Lee Griffiths' Marathon Blog

It was emotional! The day has come and gone and as time passes I’m getting more of a sense of achievement. I didn’t get close to what I had hope for a time but the experience was worth all of the winter effort. The support before, during and after the race has been brilliant. I went for my first jog around Beantowm last night wearing my BM shirt with pride. Despite the injuries I’m gunna keep trucking. I have really enjoyed the running and so expect to do a couple of half marathons now and through the summer with the hope of running a full marathon in the fall. I have the bug back and would love to qualify for the BM next year.

I would like to thank everyone for the support given to me and the rest of us. It was a pleasure to represent the theatre and to share this experience with four great lads.

so, the previous 23 miles did a little number on right leg. I have a hip flexor strain which is sending a sharp pain under my quad on my right leg when I plant my heal. The cure? Stop running, stretch and ice. This has been a tough couple of weeks laying off it but it’s getting better for sure. With just two weeks left I’m a little panicked because I really want to go out and test it before the big day. I have gotten all of my long runs in so I’m told that I’ll be ok. I wish the marathon was coming a week earlier.

23 miles yesterday in the searing 70 degree sun. Not the ideal conditions to run but I wanted to test my legs in heat. I didn’t load enough water and so had to stop at mile 17 for a few minutes to hydrate at Starbucks which was a welcome break. I’m sure it also enabled me to push through the 21 mile barrier which has been both a physical and mental one. I was really quite strong finishing and I believe could have kept the pace going for another 3.2 miles. The physical toll on my body is changing week to week. My ankle is longer an issue. It is holding up remarkably well and is getting stronger which I did not expect. last week I had left knee problems, this week it’s the right. My physical therapist suggested popping copious amounts of ibuprofen regardless of whether I’m running or not. He says that it really works in an accumulative way and so far I have to agree. I recover much more quickly. I’m now protecting my feet from blisters using duct tape which works. It’s not the most comfortable thing to wear but nor are the blisters. I’m not wearing ladies’ ankle nylons as some have suggested…

With just a month to go I’m in a good place and so will likely only do one more 20+ run. having done some research reading other people’s BM experiences I must say that Heartbreak Hill is fast becoming a worry for me. It has destroyed many a marathoner! I have run up it several times but not after 18 miles so I need to work a good hill into the back end of a long run.

What a difference running in the warm. At last the rain has gone and I’m back in the sun.  I just feel fresher, quicker and much happier. It also brings out loads more runners and now most say hi, at least around Southie anyways. After taking a week off it suprising how hard it is to get the mileage back up without suffering. I thought a week off would do me go but it appears my running legs had degenerated so what. I ran 10 Sunday, 5 miles yesterday and 11 tonight. before getting sick I found the more I ran (during the week) the better my long run was at the weekend. Hopefully this coming one will be sunny and I can finally break through that 20 mile, I’m shagged barrier because I gotta say that when I’m at 19-21 miles, I’ve had enough running.

yep, I’ve been feeling like crap this past week. Sore throat, aches and shivers but today I feel tons better. It’s a rainy day out so I’m gunna hit the treadmill at put in some miles, hopefully…

This past weekend was tremendous! Running in shorts and no hat was just tremendous! I wondered where I was going to run this weekend seeing as Mike’s calf strain was keeping him from coming out to play so I decided to visit my mate Dan in Hingham. That was tremendous. Hingham is only 15 miles down 3A so I had to do a lap around Castle Island in Southie first for a total of 21 miles. I got my now frequent blisters and my knees are starting to give me jip but on the whole I’m really please about where I am right now.

I certainly deserve more votes…

my blisters are healed and I’m back on it. mike and I did the Bm reverse again going back out down heartbreak hill. There seem to be more runner in the city now I guess because the weather is getting warmer and we are getting closer to D-day. Yesterday’s run was close to 18 miles and I was glad it was finished when we finished. I’m seeming to recover a little more quickly these days only limping around for 1 day afterwards instead of two…

I have been on the road the past two weeks working  and so  last weekend I stayed with a close friend of mine who lives in Monterey, CA. I spent some time in a good runing shop purchasing a hand heldwater bottle and some “gu” . My long run would take me north along a beach road for 10 miles turning around for a total of 20. I followed the instructions on the “gu” packaging sucking one down before running, another at 7 miles and then one more at 14 miles. I was also hydrating with an energy drink. Well, I was very suprised…. not only did I feel great through the whole 20 mile  run but found myself pushing the last 4 miles instead of being in conservative. That being said, I couldn’t imagine running another 6 and my left leg was starting to break down, 2 miles in the skies opened and I got soaked. This resulted in getting  my shoes wet and big blisters. I need to take a few days off to let my feet heal but considering we are 8 weeks out I feel I’m in a good place right now.

So 20 miles takes a long time and covers a lot of real estate. Running around Boston I can pretty much visit all of the neighbourhoods twice. It makes me realise how small the city really is. I did struggle this week with tight calves and that is becoming more of a problem as I go up in miles. I don’t plan to go much further during training  instead I’m going to focus on doing the 20 miles better.

you’re just fine mate.

I was reminded that only 1 in 100 people who break their Talus bones will run again. My X-rays show that I have very little  arthritis, I’m doing no further damage by running and that 7 years after surgery,  I have the best case scenario. I got the sense that my doctor was very pleased, even proud of the results and that I’m very lucky!

I’m elated. I’ll have some futher PT to figure out how I can really stretch my Achilles and maybe a cortisone shot a week before race day.  The reason I have much more recovery time when running on the road is because I have very little lateral movement (roll) so uneven surfaces do a number on the joint. Unfortunately, I’m going to have to live with that.

Roll on Sunday. 18 miles around Boston with Mike…