Yasso 800s

I wish there were more things in life like Yasso 800s. Things that are actually 'one amazing trick to success'. Like when the internet tells you to click on this link to find out the one crazy thing to do to get rid of belly fat - only for real.

Yasso 800s are a running training regime which can predict your marathon time. If you run your Yasso 800s in 4 minutes, you can finish a marathon in 4 hours. If you for Yassos are 3 mins 30 seconds, your marathon time will be 3 hours 30 minutes. Crazy but true (by all accounts).

The 800 refers to 800meters, half a mile or two laps of a running track. Run that as hard as you can, ten times over, with one lap (400m or a quarter of a mile) between each set for recovery and collect your times. The average is your marathon time.

Last year when I was training for the Loch Ness Marathon, the Yassos defeated me. I don't regularly run on the track and doing the session was nerve-wracking. I usually run first thing in the day, and you can't do that at my local running track. I felt anxious and uptight throughout and didn't peform well at all. After that, I decided to throw in the towel on my sub 4-hour marathon hopes for Loch Ness in 2013.

Today I was really anxious about the Yasso 800s my coach had set for me. Combine it with husband going away for work for 2 nights, son leaving on a three-day school skiing trip (first time away alone!) and I was almost hysterical. It troubled my sleep and left me really uptight all morning before I got to the track.

However, I knuckled down and got on with it. The track was cold and windy but at least I was alone (unless you count the people in the gym who have a birds-eye view of the track while they're on the cardio machines!). The last two sets were performed in sleet which at least made sure I didn't linger on the track!

My average time was... (drum roll...) 3 minutes 48.7seconds!!

I am over the moon! I was exhausted for the rest of the day and my glutes are killing me. I don't think any of my previous Yasso 800s were this good - plus I ran 20 miles five days ago, so I'm not what you'd call fresh. It feels great to know I'm at the top of my game!

My next marathon is 2.5 weeks away at The Meadows in Edinburgh, and I'm getting my fundraising going. I am now REALLY excited that I can finally beat four hours!!

Running - spreading the love!

Sometimes you just have that *really good run* when you feel so lucky to be alive and priviledged to be able to run? That was me this morning.

It was the first meeting of the Leith Primary School Running Club. I was taking a team of primary 6 and 7 pupils running, in advance of their inter-schools 'cross country' (i.e., twice round Leith Links - which nobody could ever really describe as 'country'!) race. It was a small group and the atmosphere was great - we met before school started, so everyone who participated was really keen!

It was sunny and warm, , the sky was blue, and the trees round the links were heavy with pink cherry blossom. We ran past the running club of the other local primary school, Leith St Mary's RC, and cheerfully waved - they've had a running club for a few years now and there must have been about 40 of them! Not as intimate as ours... although we all know, from small acorns grow big nuts. So I'm hoping we'll end up with lots of running nuts at Leith Primary in a few years!

We warmed up with 'funny running' in the playground, we ran follow-the-leader across the Links to the race route, and then covered half the distance of the race before walking back to school in time for the bell. There was a range of abilities, but everybody seemed happy - I got some lovely feedback, including one chuffed boy who said he'd never ran so far before and felt proud of himself. That made me grin.

Can't wait till next week for more!