Happiness is a dry trail

Weeks to go: Just less than 6 weeks
Current weight: 15 stone 1 pound
Total lost so far: 15 pounds
... not panicking just yet!

Ahh, the warm sun beating down on your face, the gentle wind on your back, sheep's wool catching in your brake mechanism: nothing beats a mountain bike ride when it's not raining. Plus, it's a nice way to not pound out the miles needed for London Marathon training and weight loss without battering my recoving limbs.

And talking of which: the first foray back into running this evening ended with only a bit of hip pain but no shin splint problems - we're back in the game! Somebody should tell Martin Lel to up his training unless he wants to be hopelessly embarassed in 6 weeks time.

So, with luck on my side, a bit of insider knowledge about injury rehab and substantial analgesia, I should be on track to both finish the marathon and drop the weight needed to make sure I get a bit more sponsorship money!

Til next time, you followers of severe injuries and tales of blissful trail rides. Props y'all.

Shrove Tuesday, My Birthday, any excuse to gorge myself

Weeks to go: 9
Current Weight: 15 stone 2 pounds
Total lost so far: 14 pounds
... that's okay, the running has stopped for a bit and the weight is remaining stable. A solid B minus.

So, the unfortunate consequences of overtraining my legs and getting shin splints has finally come to roost: I may now not be able to run the Eastbourne Half Marathon this coming Sunday morning. Now, whilst this is disappointing (especially to my hordes of fans - no laughing at the back), it's probably for the best. Again, this falls in the category of forward planning to minimise any problems come the Big Day on 26th April as there's is absolutely no option to not finish The London Marathon. The Leonard Cheshire Disability charity (http://www.lcdisability.org/) depends on the generous donations from events like this and my pledge of £2000 will help many of those less fortunate than myself.

Training is planned to start again next Monday with a slow build up of the running miles again, alongside some gym work, cycling and conditioning. That and some data collection and essay writing now that the work placements are only 16 hours from their termination. Sweet.

Some people do actually read this blog and have remarked, as a compliment, that it doesn't read like it has been written by a 4 year old. Very generous praise indeed. So now, if I could remind you that your financial generosity is also equally welcome: please, please dig deep and sponsor me by catching me in person or visiting my JustGiving page at www.justgiving.com/stuyeomans

Thanks and happy running. Report on progress or, by some miracle, the Eastbourne Half Marathon, next Sunday evening. Peace out.

Two legs bad... Two wheels marvelous

Despite shin splints and an annoying hip injury that just won't go away, I decided no to let these get me down on the warmest and sunniest day of the year so far. So, after 65 minutes and 29km of riding my road bike... I didn't get a single twinge in my hurting areas! Quality! So now I know I can do at least something to keep my fitness going while the injuries heal.

That said, I did nearly lose all of the teeth in my head from the vibrations the terrible roads around here kindly provided. The bigger roads are okay, but it's more like cyclo-cross on the smaller country roads. And I'm on an aluminium bike, I shudder to think what it's like if you're on a carbon fibre steed.

So, I can add biking to the swimming, conditioning and core stability work I'll have to do while the legs heal. Fingers crossed the weight gain won't be too much in the meantime. Although the wedding tomorrow could well be a feast.

Think positive, team.