Race against time

I'll be running the 2012 Virgin London Marathon on behalf of Mind, the leading mental health charity in England and Wales. You can sponsor me by visiting http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/AndyCraig and follow my progress on Twitter and Facebook. Read about all of the excellent work Mind do by visiting Mind.org.uk.

The lead up to any major English sporting event wouldn't be complete without a metatarsal scare, and I've done my bit to ensure that this year's London Marathon is no different. 

A pain on the outside of my right foot that began a week last Saturday felt much worse after last Thursday's effort. An inconclusive x-ray and an appointment with the specialist later (whose name I initially misheard rather ominously as Mr Butcher - thankfully, it's Mr Bircher), I'm now booked in for an MRI scan next week to investigate a possible stress fracture or some other pediatric loveliness. 

I know that literally some of you may be worried about my participation in this year's marathon, but I'm still confident of being on the start line on the 22nd April - a focus that has been redoubled since reaching my initial sponsorship target in the last few days. A massive thank you to everyone who's donated so far (and to those who haven't - pull your finger out). My projected target times may have to be revised depending on the results of the scan, but regardless of that, I want to make sure I haul myself around the 26 miles to repay the generosity you have all shown.

For now though, it's rest, and there are few places better to do that than the spa city of Budapest. Back on Sunday.

Songs that go run

I'll be running the 2012 Virgin London Marathon on behalf of Mind, the leading mental health charity in England and Wales. You can sponsor me by visiting http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/AndyCraig and follow my progress on Twitter and Facebook. Read about all of the excellent work Mind do by visiting Mind.org.uk.

 

Given that I've asked you all for song recommendations to accompany me on a marathon (and that you're all rather predictable souls), it hasn't been entirely surprising that a number of suggestions contain "run" in the title. With that in mind, I whimsically decided half an hour before an eight mile run last Thursday to put together a completely new playlist, consisting of 65 songs from my iTunes library that feature the word run. My only proviso? It had to be used in the correct context (i.e. the physical act of running), which disappointingly ruled out Keep the car running by Arcade Fire and any track suffixed with ...Feat. Run DMC.

With shuffle pressed, I set off. These were the results:

Delta Goodrem - Running Away: Not exactly the start I was looking for, made doubly disappointing by the realisation that I possess a Delta Goodrem album. You probably don't need to be told this, but warbly Antipodean lady-pop is not very good to exercise to, no matter how lovely her face is. Set the tone for an erratic pace over the eight miles.

Memory Tapes - Run Out: An improvement. The first minute felt as though I was running through the end credits of an earnest 80s coming of age drama, and that's no bad thing, surely? 

No Doubt - Running: A No Doubt song that I have no recollection of ever hearing before, despite it being on their singles collection. Chorus contained the words "running, running, as fast as we can", which makes me think Gwen Stefani is more of a sprinter than a long distance runner (admittedly, "running, running, at a consistent and comfortable pace" wouldn't be as catchy).

Cut Copy - Midnight Runner: A short yet uplifting burst from the Aussie bleep-merchants, providing the perfect backdrop to crossing the Thames over Hammersmith Bridge (admittedly not at midnight).

The National - Runaway: As a child, I was often forced to accompany my mum to Mackay's, a shop specialising in mum-wear in the heart of Formby village. Without exception, my limbs would turn to lead every time we stepped inside, leading my 7 year old self to believe I was physically allergic to floral polyester (a fact I made sure did not escape mum's attention). Overcome by lethargy, I would endeavour to sit down anywhere I could: the seats by the shoe section; the small ledge in the front window display; the changing rooms (much to the annoyance of those trying on dresses. Especially if they were already in there). It was a special kind of fatigue I had always thought was reserved for sulking infants, but then I tried running to this song, and I was 7 years old again, staring at row upon row of houndstooth maternity blouses. The National are a great band, but unless you want to know how it feels to suffer from M.E. for five and a half minutes keep them well away from your gym playlist.

Wolf Parade - You Are A Runner And I Am My Father's Son: Probably just as awful as some of the others on this list to run to, but I was so grateful that the previous song had ended it didn't register. I did, however, notice an alarming similarity to Cold War Kids' We Used To Vacation which was released a year later. 

Kate Bush - Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God): Frankly, I'm disappointed that no one's recommended this yet. There aren't any hills to run up in Barnes, but this is such a belting tune it didn't matter a jot. Lovely stuff.

Beatles - Run For Your Life: Progress! Typical jingly-jangly (albeit a bit dark) closer to Rubber Soul gave me two decent songs in a row for the first time of the evening, although hearing John Lennon tell me "you better run for your life if you can, little girl" was slightly disconcerting, not least for reminding me of my childhood P.E. lessons.

Zola Jesus - Run Me Out: Progress judderingly halted. When exercising, this is the musical equivalent of being spurred on from the wound-down window of a hearse. Whilst running through treacle. In flip flops. There's a time and place for this song. Four miles into a run is not one of them.

Velvet Underground - Run Run Run: If Zola Jesus was a metaphorical sinking ship, The Velvet Underground proved to be an equally metaphorical lifeboat. A lovely lifeboat with a big engine and filled with beer and a complete set of obscure Eastern European Subbuteo teams to keep me entertained during the journey back to shore. Despite being from one of my all-time favourite albums, I'm ashamed to say it took an email from a man who's name isn't Chris Fox to remind me of its value to a running playlist (and simultaneously provide the inspiration for this very blog). Love love love Run Run Run.

Bogshed - Run To The Temple: This mid-80s indie band, whose sound was described as "shambling" by John Peel, were originally known as The Amazing Roy North Penis Band. None of those words are a typo. It's got a good beat to it which is well suited to running, but now you know they used to be called The Amazing Roy North Penis Band I'm pretty sure you won't be concerned about that.

Missy Elliott - We Run This: Samples Sugarhill Gang's Apache (Jump On It), which is all well and good, but this track was rendered null and void for breaking the proviso stipulated in the first paragraph. Spent the entirety of this song annoyed with myself for failing to spot this earlier.

DJ Shadow - Run For Your Life: Sharing a title with The Beatles' entry earlier, this has a furious pace that is perhaps too quick for anyone wanting to avoid heart failure when running long distances. Samples Miles Davis What I Say, and made me think of Wacky Races for reasons I'm not really sure of.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Runaway: Also shares a title with a previous entry, this time with The National. Couldn't really judge it objectively as I was once again grateful that I wasn't running along to The National. Or The Corrs. They have a song called Runaway too. That would have been awful. 

Animal Collective - No More Runnin': Perfectly apt, starting as it did at the very moment I turned into my road.

So there we have it. Some good, some bad, but anything called Runaway should be left on your Songs to cry along to playlist.

Andy's marathon: Black Sabbath and cemeteries

I'll be running the 2012 Virgin London Marathon on behalf of Mind, the leading mental health charity in England and Wales. You can sponsor me by visiting http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/AndyCraig and follow my progress on Twitter and Facebook. Read about all of the excellent work Mind do by visiting Mind.org.uk.

Serendipity: n The faculty of making fortunate discoveries by accident. First usage attributed to English author Horace Walpole, who wrote in a letter dated 28 January 1754 "this discovery, indeed, is almost of that kind which I call Serendipity, a very expressive word". Often used to describe 15th/16th century explorers such as Pedro Alvares Cabral, who was blown off course while navigating the Cape of Good Hope and inadvertently discovered Brazil.

It was with a similar sense of (mis)adventure that I found myself approaching an unanticipated T-Junction on Monday night's run, guided less by stormy waters and ill-wind than by an inaccurate pre-run reading of Google Maps. As Cabral, Columbus et al all proved though, a wrong turning can often bring the greatest rewards. Thus I ploughed on, buoyed by the strains of Robyn's Dancing On My Own as the signpost ahead increasingly came into focus. I squinted. "Right: Mortlake Cemetery. Left: Townmead Road Reuse & Recycling centre." 

Lost: adj Unable to find one's way; not knowing one's whereabouts. Used to describe people such as Andy, who momentarily forgot the meaning of the phrase "go f**king straight on" when running along Lower Richmond Road.

Nevertheless, a swift check of my GPS-enabled 21st century "compass" (read: iPhone) and I was back on track towards Richmond quicker than you can say Santa Maria (albeit via Kew, a diversion which added over two miles to the originally planned route). Robyn soon segued into Over and Over by Hot Chip and my focus was once again firmly fixed on the playlist.

So, to the music. Thanks to all who've suggested tracks for the marathon playlist so far through the blog comments and on Twitter (keep them coming!). These have already made me realise the need for greater diversity than the 100% bleep-and-bass-fest it was previously. 

With this in mind, I set out on Monday evening armed with the updated playlist and subsequently reaped the benefits from the very first track. Despite putting myself at the mercy of iTunes shuffle, Ramones' Blitzkrieg Bop proved to be the perfect song for starting a run, cementing its position in the final playlist with its apt refrain of "Hey! Ho! Let's Go!". As I progressed, my morale lifted with every play of a new addition - Biffy Clyro's Who's Got A Match?, Kanye West and Rihanna's All Of The Lights (Thanks G!), A Town Called Malice by The Jam - they each broke up what was fast becoming the monotony of solid electro that I'd become used to, and more importantly, irrefutably justified my faith in this blog to help me through the 26 miles.

A begrudging special mention must go to Dad for mentioning Paranoid by Black Sabbath (seconded by elder brother Jonathan), which presented a 2min 47 second-long argument at around the 7-mile mark for being included on every running playlist to ever be created. Similarly to Turner, whose comment on the first blog when recommending James's Tomorrow resulted in me grinning my way down Richmond's high street thinking of nothing but Samantha Janus's mid-nineties norks.

My quick finish was ably assisted by liberal finger-gesturer M.I.A.'s Born Free (my increased speed possibly a result of having seen the violently ginger-bashing video - don't watch if easily offended). Total distance covered? A comfortable 10.2 miles, my wayward navigation unexpectedly taking me into double figures for the first time, something I didn't think possible in my current shape. An accidental, fortuitous discovery? Perhaps serendipity was at work after all.

Andy's marathon: The beginning

I'll be running the 2012 Virgin London Marathon on behalf of Mind, the leading mental health charity in England and Wales. You can sponsor me by visiting http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/AndyCraig and follow my progress on Twitter and Facebook. Read about all of the excellent work Mind do by visiting Mind.org.uk.

It was all going so well... After kicking off with a wheezy, lead-booted New Year's Day jog, the post-Christmas training regime in preparation for this year's London Marathon was beginning to go swimmingly (or runningly, to be precise). I was knocking out 10Ks for fun, my 5-a-day actually referred to fruit (not pints or that thing that makes you go blind) and I'd reached a point where any sip of alcohol was accompanied by a crashing feeling of betrayal. The stuff of nightmares? Maybe so, but I was already reaping the benefits. Better sleep, better health, and I I could already notice a tangible improvement to my fitness, ploughing a furrow down the left flank of my Sunday League team, chasing my first touch to my heart's content. I went to the gym too. Twice! I may even have looked like I knew what I was doing second time around, at least until I started doing keepy-ups with the Swiss ball.

And then it happened. Two weeks ago, a night that was to be made up of a run to Richmond, steamed vegetables and a smug sense of self-congratulation metastasized into an evening involving a sofa, a Big Mac and gunning down virtual aliens controlled by fellow no-hopers worldwide. The blame for this sudden shift can solely be placed at the feet of South West Train for selfishly deciding to park a train across the metaphorical driveway of my journey home, resulting in my usual 30 minute door-to-door commute taking nearer two hours, and was no way the fault of my complete abandonment of self-discipline. Yet that was it; five weeks of good work undone by the lure of burgery goodness. The guilt I'd started to feel every time I lost sight of the approaching marathon-sized goal evaporated as I snaked my way back to square one. A combination of inclement weather and some recent unusual round-the-clock work shifts meant that I remained there for far longer than the me of three weeks ago would have allowed.

There is, however, no escaping my impending date with 26.2 miles on Sunday 22nd April, and the panic that set in over the weekend has seen me regain some focus. I was back out for the first time in two weeks on Sunday morning, and forced myself to be excited when purchasing some new running gloves and wrist wallet, removing the excuse of "there's no one in the flat to let me in and I don't want to hold my keys for 10 miles." Despite having a busy February, the intention is to get out 3-5 times a week, perhaps even for some pre-work dawn running (I can already hear the creaking sound of a multitude of eyes rolling when I write this - hence the perhaps).

And this, in part, is where the blog comes in. The main intention of starting this is to create an ideal playlist for the marathon, containing around 4 hours worth of sufficiently excellent bouncy running music to see me through to the finish line. I'll be taking (serious) suggestions by anyone and everyone who would like to contribute through the comments beneath my the blog or on Twitter (@Andy_craig), with the aim of reviewing how suitable a song is for running, and if it's good enough, it'll make the final list for the day. Any contributions from those of you who work in the music industry (you know who you are, fellow runner!) will also be gratefully received. There'll be a lot more on this in future blogs, including what's currently on the running playlist, what's been taken off and mistakes that have been made. I'll even try and be funny, too.

For now though, this first blog is the beginning, seizing back the self-discipline and reclaiming the guilt of not lacing up my running shoes when I know I should. It's all there in the words above for you all to hound me with if I don't abide - 3-5 outings a week? Early morning runs? Eating more fish than Free Willy? It won't be fun, but then it's not really meant to be, is it?