Countdown is on

Monsoon season has arrived and every morning there is massive thunder and lightning which has me pull the sheet over my head, roll over and go back to sleep - I will head out training in most weather but not lightening.   On Tuesday I had got 4 Kms down the road when the thunder and lightening started so needed to get home as quickly as possible to avoid a lightening strike.  The other life threatening challenge being faced here at the moment is an outbreak of Dengue fever - my boss was hospitalised with it earlier in the week - here is the notice in our neighbourhood reminding us about it:

So despite the challenges there is still a marathon to run.  This week I wondered whether my running shoes may be contributing to the running injuries being experienced so I headed out to running lab which is similar to shoe science in NZ to see what I could find.   The first pair of shoes I tried on felt amazing so despite never having run in this particular brand I headed home with them - amazingly they match my camelbak perfectly :)

Its not perfect buying new shoes 2 weeks out from the marathon but the way things were going it was unlikely I would make the startline - so I figure there is nothing to lose by trying new shoes.

This morning I headed out for my last long training session - 3-3.5 hours was the aim.  I wanted to eat breakfast this morning as a trial as there is no way I want to start a marathon without breakfast.  I am still eating Paleo and love this - I have it every morning.  1 apple and then a handful of each of these nuts, seeds, goji berries and coconut - into the blender and then a topping of Greek yoghurt - yum - nutritious and delicious!

Once I had eaten and loaded myself up with all it that I take with me (who knew you needed so much gear) - hat, sweatband, camelbak, iPod , iPhone, garmin, money and waistband to carry my chocolate gu):

I headed off towards Mt Faber which offers a great running trail to Kent Ridge.  Here are some pictures I took along the way:

As always I did have a bathroom stop - wow talk about the call of nature - look at this awesome bathroom I found along the trail - definitely worth a photo!

The new shoes were feeling good and pain levels from injuries was about a 3/10 so not really enough to complain about.  I walked and jogged for 3 hours 20 mins only covering 23 Kms but I finished the same distance 15 mins faster than last week.  I am definitely ready for a half marathon but as we all know I am signed up for the full marathon.  I am hoping one of the guys at work who is doing the half marathon changes his mind so I can take his spot!  The training miles are now all in the bank and its time now to rest up and freshen the legs up a bit - now I am heading off for a 60 minute massage.