My official 18-week Marathon Training Schedule starts today. It specifies four runs a week and one cross-training session. One of the runs is a 'long run' every weekend, which gradually build up to a 20 mile run (fuck!) three weeks before the marathon itself. It works on a kind of three-weekly cycle; two weeks building mileage, one week cutting back, for recovery. Today, and all other Mondays, are officially rest days. But because I'm out Thursday and Friday this week I'm having to squash all three weekday runs together at the front of the week.

So, my first proper training run tonight then - 3 miles. I felt amazingly ok. It didn't even hurt at all. I feel a real sense of relief after what I wrote yesterday.

I am really getting into the Editors album for running with, even though the lyrics are dismal.

Steph & Jules (in neither Manchester nor Halifax)

Been up in Manchester / Halifax all weekend with Steph and Jules. Dragged them to the gym in Halifax yesterday so I could get a run in. I can't believe how obsessive I'm getting about it all. I wonder if this is a good thing or not...

Other than that only ran twice this week, on Monday (5.5k) and Thursday (6k), Found both really tough. In fact, am finding every single run really tough at the moment. I don't seem to be getting any better at all. I've increased the distances I'm running, but it kills me. I really struggle and I hate every bloody second of it. My feet go numb, my calves always feel really tight and painful. It's as much as I can bear just to keep putting one foot in front of the other. I absolutely refuse to stop until I've run the distance. Sometimes I feel like crying, especially when I look down and see I've only been running for 15 minutes or so and I know I've got ages to go. Time seems to come to a complete standstill when I'm running. Every normal second seems to last for a whole minute.

I just feel like I'm getting nowhere at the moment. I'm starting the proper schedule tomorrow, and the one thing it states, is that before you begin, you should be able to comfortably run 3 miles at the very least. Comfortably is the word I have a problem with here. I can do it. But it's extremely uncomfortable.