Another 19 miles in the bank

My friend Liz, who is also running the marathon, said once that long runs are like making a deposit in the bank. Every time you go out on a long run, you make a bigger deposit, and on race day, you withdraw all those miles you had in the account to make it across the finish line. The analogy, which was created by Liz's partner Patrick, kept me going today because I know I'm going to need as large a savings account as possible and today's deposit was a really difficult one to make.

It was hot in London. (Yes, I'm back to the weather. I'm going to apply for a job at weather.com next.) I know it's hard to believe, but it's true. Women were walking around in flip flops and sundresses. When I left the house at 11 a.m., it was 15 degrees (that's in European Celcius). By the time I returned, it was 22!! (For all of my American fans, 15 degrees is roughly 60 Farenheit and 22 is 74).

Now in normal circumstances, I'd be loving such weather and I wouldn't think it was so terribly hot. But as I had to run 19 miles in it, I just wasn't happy. I ran out of all of my Lucozade when I was only on mile 9, forcing me to make an unscheduled stop to buy more water. By mile 16, I gave some serious thought to using my last £2 to grab the train home. But I persevered, thinking about how important these long runs are and how every mile counts. So the 19-mile deposit got made.

I finally returned to Greenwich, 19 miles richer in my marathon bank account. The village was full of people out enjoying the beautiful weather (I could appreciate it now, as my run was finished). While I waited to cross the street, three blokes were sitting in the front seat of their van waiting at the red light. The one closest to me gives me a long look and says, "You look knackered, love!"

[And honestly, it really is very unusual for strangers to talk to you in London. I must give out some sort of vibe that makes people talk to me.]

"That's because I just ran 19 miles," I said.

"You should have taken the bus!" he said.

Advice I will be able to take in one month's time, when my marathon bank account will be empty, but the hard-earned deposits will have been put to good use.