As an intellectually engaged runner, I am aware of and frequently remind myself of four facts;

1. The recovery period is as important as the workout.
   
2. It is during rest that the body is able to build, repair and physically respond to the stress of the training in such a way that you become stronger and fitter
   
3. If you overtrain you are putting yourself at increased risk of fatigue, injury, a whole host of related health problems and at very best you’ll probably plateau and not get any faster/stronger/fitter anyway.
   
4. You are only really as good as the workout you recover from.

As an increasingly passionate and historically obstinate runner however, I fully act upon this knowledge pretty much only when it suits me. Juneathon has obviously swung the balance more towards the obsessive than the rational and the Longest Day Run certainly cemented that over the weekend.  Regardless of this tendency to ignore my own good advice however, I am firmly of the opinion that if you are going to be silly you should probably be silly sensibly. It is for this reason that this morning (I’d have liked to leave it until this evening but I am in work late again tonight) I skipped the 30-40 minute easy session on the training plan and instead did the (very slow) minimum mile required to maintain the runstreak before spending an hour granny-swimming in the pool. Thankfully, despite having completed a cheaty mini ultramarathon at the weekend (37.8 miles in 24 hours but there was an overnight stop! See more about Day 1 and Day 2 if you missed it) my legs didn’t feel like they wanted to drop off, collapse under me or ping their tendons like frayed cables. I didn’t particularly see a reason to try and get them to that stage though, so a mile was good for me.

I then treated myself by pre ordering a copy of The Terrible and Wonderful Reasons Why I Run Long Distances by The Oatmeal author and illustrator, Matthew Inman. Aside from his cartoons on some of other obsessions that I appear to share with him such as eating cake and exposing incorrect punctuation, he has produced these wonderful online comics about distance running that never fail to cheer me up and make me actually laugh out loud. 

I’ll have forgotten I even ordered it by the time it arrives in September so it’ll be a nice semi-surprise for the start of the new academic year!

The plan for today was a nice, gentle ten miles with a friend (who put me on to Longest Day Run in the first place!) around Dovestones and Chew Reservoirs near Greenfield. She had told me though, that she had been unwell yesterday so it was a sad but not entirely unexpected text over breakfast this morning that let me know I'd be running alone again. This was confirmed by a failed attempt to rally a few troops. So what, am I the only person who leaps out of bed eager to run at 7am on a Sunday!? I decided to take on a bit more fuel and have a rethink - I didn't have to go out to Greenfield and in fact, saving that run for when we could do it together another day seemed a nice idea and saved me the hassle of getting the train there and the indignity of the sweaty train back!

I plotted a vague route along the Irwell out past Broughton and back down through Salford. Possibly not ten miles but easy enough to add a couple of loops round Manchester on if needed. Anyway, I told myself, I only really needed to do 4 miles to get myself to my target of 30 for this 24 hour period so perhaps it was wise to not plan too much and just go by feel, especially given yesterday's mileage! Unfortunately (or maybe not!) I had spent so long trying to memorise some complicated bits later in the run I hadn't properly worked out how to drop down onto the footpath by the river from the city centre so this plan never germinated. Taking this as an intervention by Atalanta, I decided it might not be a bad idea to stick to an easier route for today; I hadn't yet determined how well I'd warm up and avoiding unexpected navigational errors was probably wise.

I made it back home at about half past 11; 45 minutes to spare before the end of my 24 hour period and having clocked 11.3 miles! Unfortunately, it didn't occur to me until I was in the shower that if I'd have pushed just a little further I could easily have done 2 more miles; a half marathon, which would have taken me to close to 40 miles instead of the 37.8 I've managed. Still, I have decided recently that miles are like pints (once you've done one it's hard to stop; the more you have the worse you feel afterwards but by next weekend you've forgotten the pain and dive straight back into the joy again!) and that last mile may well have ended up being the one I shouldn't have had! Feet up and tea with home made Lavender Scones and Strawberry Jam on the balcony was not a bad idea!

So that's that for the Longest Day Run 2014. I've run a second, albeit unofficial marathon, had fun pushing myself to see what I could achieve physically and massively enjoyed being outdoors in the English summer. I'm so lucky to live close to such lovely running routes and it always seems to be such a good way of connecting with a landscape, which seems quite appropriate for the summer solstice, even if there were no stone circles involved! I've also clocked more miles in 24 hours than I ever have before as well as peaking at over 65 miles in one week; my longest distance ever. Many thanks to all at Longest Day Run for the organisation! So glad I participated and hope the event was the success you hoped for! See you (virtually at least!) next year!

One of the things I often tell people when they state with horrified certainty that they could never run 26.2 miles is that it takes training and preparation and that you don't just jump out of bed one morning and decide to run a marathon. I might have to slightly revise this statement for future conversations however, as it would appear that is exactly what I did today. It wasn't a complete non sequitur of course, there was something of a reason for it. Today was the Summer Solstice, the point in the astronomical calendar when the sun is at it's highest (in the Southern Hemisphere at least) and we have the most hours of daylight as a result. It was also therefore the Longest Day Run weekend, and an event I had agreed to participate in. As the challenge spans the 21st and the 22nd and you can choose to spread your runs over any 24 hour period on those days, I had already agreed to a ten mile run with a friend tomorrow, on Sunday the 22nd.

I had in my mind that to challenge myself I'd like to do a distance I'd never yet run and 30 miles seemed the next benchmark after the 26.2 of a marathon. that would leave me with 20 to run today. I decided to start at about 12pm as that would be the time by which we'd probably have finished our ten miles tomorrow and so allow me to fit all the miles in to the specified period. I also had it in the back of my head that if I felt good, tacking an extra 10k on the end might not be such a bad thing to do... but that was the optional extra, the goal plus one. I had a kind of notional route in mind; out towards Altricham, down on to the Mersey and along to Stockport before heading back into town with the option to bail out at Didsbury if I felt rough, or even get the train back from Stockport if needed. With no more than that to go on, I made the most of an excuse for a hearty cooked brunch and laced up.

I'll admit my legs did feel a little heavy to begin with, still full of yesterday's hill reps no doubt but the first chunk of the route went pretty much with out a hitch at a fairly steady, roughly eight and a half minute mile pace. When I got to the point at which I hoped to drop down on the Mersey however, things went a little skewiff; I could easily see how to get down and head out towards Urmston... but that was completely the opposite direction to the one I had planned. I used this as an opportunity for a pit-stop at a local garage and by that point a welcome loo break. Unfortunately, as I had to queue for the toilet I made the decision to save, not pause, the Garmin in case it had a GPS fart and reset itself so the record of my day out is split over two sessions. Hey ho, better than the device crashing and totally losing the data!

Half a flapjack and an apple later, having reviewed the map, I was back on my way. I couldn't help wondering if stopping had been a bad idea though; heavy legs had turned to slow legs and I'd only done six miles! Thankfully, I warmed up again and the speed returned. The weather was glorious and I just sat back (mentally at least) and enjoyed the scenery, so many lovely gardens to run past! Eventually, I recognised the road name I had been looking for and made it to a junction I recognised as well as to the Mersey. It was a relief to realise I was back on what passed for a planned route. I always find it very draining when I get a little misplaced on one of my 'mystery' runs and knowing I could now return to the initial idea encouraged an energy boost that was much needed!

Thankfully, I do prefer running in warm weather and am not adversed to a bit of sunshine. I was aware though that I needed to be careful to stay fuelled and hydrated so I sipped frequently on the water and sports drink I'd brought along. I tried to be friendly but not annoying to other runners; some people seem to be running like they're enduring some kind of personal torture and I imagine it must be really irritating to see me with a grin like a slice of water melon and brimming with enthusiasm. I couldn't help wondering how far they were planning and if there were any more Longest Day participants! When I got as far as Didsbury I felt good enough to keep going but decided it was probably time to crack open an isotonic energy gel before I felt like I needed it rather than waiting to crash.

Thankfully, I had walked this section of the route (albeit about 4 years ago!) so it was now pretty familiar and I felt like the hard (unknown) bit was behind me. I knew the instinct that I was almost home now was a little optimistic but made the most of it to spur me on! Nonetheless, the familiarity, pleasant weather, beautiful scenery (and sugar kick no doubt) carried me on happily to Stockport. where I really did feel like I was almost back. Close but not so fast... Still the drop back down into Manchester through Longsight and Levenshulme! Past the McVities Factory (Mmmm Biscuiiiiiits..!) and down in to City Centre, I started to see the tall architectural landmarks of the universities, Beetham Tower and Arndale Centre get ever closer. And yes, I started to feel a little tired.

The hardest decision of the run but I turned a sudden right off the 'home straight', away from the shower, away from the cold drink, away from the toilet and kicking off the trainers and sitting on the balcony and off for a final 3.2 lap round Ancoats to hit that distance! Why wouldn't you? Off, as it turned out, to a frustrating sequence of closed tow paths and minor diversions, but on the plus side all that snaking back and forth just added to the miles without taking me too far back out of the city centre. Upon returning home with a total of 26.47 miles under my heels, the Garmin now suggests that I should be 'recovering' for 24 hours. Yeah. Right.

So, this evening is all about chilling out and re fuelling for a little jaunt in the countryside tomorrow... I won't pretend I can't feel the miles in my legs but I think I'll be OK. We'll be taking it slowly anyway and it's only ten miles after all. The weather is forecast to be as good as today and I'll enjoy the company tomorrow too, as well as an even more rural route so as the sun set on the longest day, it was with a sense of only vaguely weary anticipation that I look forward to it rising again!

Now where's that cake...?