Tom Roper's Running Training

Stanmer Park

Weather not brilliant, so another outing to Stanmer Park, through the village and a little way into the country on the other side.
Time: 43 minutes
Distance: waiting for the piece of string (the string subsequently told me  it was 5.1 miles)
I met a lot of other runners (well six or seven), more than I would have expected given the weather.
Forecast for tomorrow is better, so will go over the downs to the hill above Kingston.

Shambledean Bottom again

Wet and muddy, but stayed upright. Chose this route rather than tops of the downs in the belief it would be more sheltered.
Time: 46 minutes
Distance: 4.8 miles

Cambridge

Today a long-ish run but on roads, and urban for the latter part: from Newnham to Granchester and Trumpington, then Trumpington Road, Long Road, and back into town by Hills Road etc, through the town centre, up Castle Hill, Huntingdon Road, Storey's Way and back by Grange Road. There was a pretty rosy-fingered dawn over the fields as I ran along the Granchester Road. By Churchill College I met several escaped cows and helped round them up
Time: 1:27:57
Distance: 10 miles or thereabouts
Average heart rate: 140
14 weeks till marathon
Total distance this week: 33.2 miles

Rest

Rest day (off To Cambridge,but long run tomorrow)

Stanmer and beyond

Over the A27, through Stanmer Park and Stanmer village and up a track to the top of a hill with a fine view of Asda.
Grey, desolate and windy. Saw some interesting looking tracks running off through the woods at the top; may try them another time
Time: 51 minutes
Distance: will fill in when I get home to my piece of string and OS map (PS it was 6 miles)

Swimming

A rest day today: this means a swim instead, usually in an outdoor (heated before any reader gets impressed by my hardiness)  pool at a sports club on the edge of the campus. But the outdoor pool was closed because of a leak, so I was forced to swim 1.25 km indoors with the wets and weeds.

Golf club

Short run this morning (last day of school holidays). Out along track by side of golf course, damp and grey though not actually raining. Views of the Dieppe ferry arriving at Newhaven harbour.
Time: 33:36
Distance: 4 miles
Average heart rate: 142

Shambledean Bottom

Lunchtime run today at a brisk pace, across the A27, then up behind the University of Sussex along wooded paths to Moon's Corner, by road to St Mary's Farm and up over the well-named Shambledean Bottom to the Horseshoe plantation. Nature notes: kestrel, very near. Weather grey and fairly windy, though not as bad as last night.
Time: 42 minutes (no proper stop watch at work, so timings to nearest minute, and no average heart rate for these runs)
Distance: 4.8 miles

Seaford sea-front (short)

A short and easy run over an abbreviated version of the Seaford sea-front trip at 930 this morning, at first in sunshine, but clouds were coming in from the sea.
Time: 38:20
Distance: 4.4 miles
Average heart rate: 141

Firle Beacon

930 on a sunny but very windy morning, to Firle Beacon and back. Hard work, but enlivened by fluffy sheep (time for the Sussex Fluffy to be recognised as a breed, I think) and the friendly attentions of several dogs.
Time: 1:18:34
Distance: 8.2 miles
Average heart rate: 143

15 weeks to go. Total distance this week: 32 miles