As Shaun has alluded to, Paul the Trainer has upped the ante this weekend by making us commit to two events in May that we can get our teeth into and train for properly.
The first of these will be a 32-mile ride from practically outside my door at the end of the Union Canal in Edinburgh to the Falkirk Wheel which we are going to try to do in 5 hours or so on May 14.
The weekend after that we are going to attempt our first 10k, being held as part of the Edinburgh Marathon Festival
The bike ride should be, in all honesty, a bit of a pootle. I am thinking birds singing, hampers by the side of the canal at Ratho, lashings of ginger beer, lots of waving passing slow-boats. All very jolly.
Doubtless Paul the Trainer will have different ideas.
The route itself is pretty lovely, no matter what Paul does to us. From the centre of the capital west out through West Lothian and up into Falkirk to see one of the modern engineering marvels of the country, The Falkirk Wheel.
To my shame I have never seen it up close but I am genuinely excited about it. I hope we can hook up with the families there because I am pretty sure I know of at least one little boy who would like to see it.
If you want the full schmeer including a map of the route click here.
We reckon we whould knock it off in between 4-5 hours tops but we will defo record it on an app just so everybody knows we haven’t cheated.
Just seven short days after that we will be doing a challenge that is making me a little queasy simply contemplating – our first 10k.
Although they don’t know it yet I shall be running for Macmillan Cancer Support, one of the official charities of the event.
The route itself is pretty reasonable. Round and about Holyrood Park. If the weather holds up then who knows, it may even be pleasant.
View Edinburgh Marathon Festival – 10K – Hydration in a larger map
Those are the two we have bolted down for May but also, even before then, we are hoping to arrange some Bikram Yoga for a bit of light entertainment and also a bit of sparring in one of Edinburgh’s most illustrious boxing gyms.
Stay tuned.
