More rest

It's important to have these rest days to give the body a chance to absorb all the training and recuperate. I'll probably have 2 rest days next week, and maybe 3 in the final week before the marathon.

So today I did very little except chase the kids around the garden. A few beers in the evening along with chocolate Angel Delight and a family size bag of crisps. Nice. I'm often asked about drinking and training. I've tried tee-total training, and having a few beers and I'm of the firm belief that the latter does you no harm. If anything I find it helps you to relax and is a good reward after a tough session. More often than not I will have a few beers the night before a race. Low and behold you sleep better and wake up refreshed and ready to go. Works for me but probably wouldn't recommend it for everyone. Sports scientists and nutritionists will no doubt give you a million reasons why you shouldn't follow my lead. Oh well...

I'm keen to race on the weekend as a final tune-up. There are two 10km options tomorrow - one in Galway and one one in Mayo. The Mayo race would be a better standard (which I would favour) but would involve a 2 hour round trip. What to do...