LATEST NEWS! (Posted Jan 15 2008)

I'll be running the 2008 London Marathon. Please visit my new web-page at http://www.justgiving.com/angelgurriaquintana 

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(Posted April 24 '06) I completed the Flora London Marathon, achieving a personal best of 4:02:09.

To read my race-day report on BBC Mundo (in Spanish), follow the link to: http://news8.thdo.bbc.co.uk/hi/spanish/deportes/newsid_4939000/4939838.stm

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(Posted April 21 '06...Two days to the Marathon)

To read abouy my marathon effort on BBC Mundo (in Spanish), follow the link to: http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/spanish/deportes/newsid_4930000/4930908.stm 

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  Read my Financial Times article about a marathon training weekend in the Forest of Dean (Feb 2006):  

 I was a sporadic, fair-weather runner until I began preparing for last year's London Marathon. I trained alone, guided by friends' advice and by whatever information was available from magazines or the internet. My regime involved steady-paced weekend runs of increasing mileage, with a half-marathon thrown in near the end. It got me round the 26 miles, 385 yards in a satisfactory time (4hrs 16min 27sec), but left much room for improvement.

This year, hoping to get a higher return from time spent pounding the pavement on cold, dark, wet days, I signed up for a marathon training weekend in the Forest of Dean organised by TrailPlus, a company specialising in adventure and sports activities.

Keith Anderson, former British fell-running champion and an elite marathon runner who represented Britain in the 1998 Commonwealth Games, founded TrailPlus six years ago. "I wanted to put something back," he says, "to help other people enjoy the experience of running."

"It's not a training weekend as much as a learning-how-to-train weekend," says Dave Waterman, veteran of 26 marathons and several 35, 55 and 100 mile races. Waterman and his wife, Jackie, help Keith run the camp with Nick Anderson (unrelated to Keith), one of the UK's leading athletics coaches, and Pete Johnson, Norfolk marathon champion and owner of a specialist runners' shop in Norwich.

Fifty-one of us, ranging from beginners to hardened marathoners, gathered on Friday evening at a converted Victorian ironworks in the village of Parkend. A quick introduction was ­followed by dinner, during which ­initial trepidation dissolved into anoraky banter about running anecdotes, future races and personal bests.

Saturday began with an early morning recovery run offering an opportunity to enjoy the fern-covered forest. The trail looped past abandoned collieries, reservoirs, a scenic steam-rail route and dramatically felled woodland.

After breakfast, Keith - tall, lean, with intense blue eyes and passionate delivery - introduced us to the basic elements of endurance training. "Training for a marathon is like tight-rope walking," he began. "You're always one calf injury away from disaster."

"I don't believe you have to run a lot of miles to be a good marathon runner," Keith says often. "You just have to run smart." His key words are Planning, Patience and Progression. "Top athletes, such as Paula Radcliffe, spend a lot of time thinking about their runs," he explained. "Your plan must be realistic and balanced, based on your present fitness and experience."

Patience is crucial because fitness builds up gradually: "Over-motivation is more problematic than under-motivation." Rest is no less important: "You only get better when you allow your body to recover from the hard training." The appropriate kit is essential: "You're athletes. These are the tools of your trade."

We headed into the forest again for a spot of threshold running - running at a pace of "controlled discomfort". As soon as I began slacking up Keith ran alongside, urging me to increase my pace until I could only utter two syllables: "O . . . K . . . "

"That is your threshold level, now keep it up" he said before shooting ahead to prod other runners.

Lunch was hearty (all meals are of the home-cooked, carbohydrate-rich sort that endurance runners crave) and preceded an animated discussion on nutrition and hydration. The day's final practical session involved slow hill running as practised by elite Kenyan athletes. "Swing your arms. Raise your knees," Keith shouted as I battled with gravity. I obeyed and found myself not quite speeding upwards, but climbing less sluggishly. "Longer strides. Keep those legs straight," he said, overtaking me on the descent. One minor adjustment to my style and I was hurtling downhill.

On Sunday morning my legs were stiff from the previous day's effort. I had, fortunately, booked a sports massage with physiotherapist Jim Insall, who helped to loosen the muscles before the final long run. My calves and hamstrings, said Jim, were too tight - good news, he declared cheerfully, since it allowed for much further stretching.

Like all practical sessions, the long run is designed so that everyone can do it in their own time. No one is ever made to feel they are holding up faster runners. The run lasted from 45 minutes to two hours, depending on individual endurance, allowing us to take in more of the lush scenery as the sun burned away the morning mist.

I learned more in one weekend than in years of running - for instance, that monitoring times and heart-rates is more effective than being a slave to mileage, and that threshold and hill training are as indispensable to successful preparation as long runs. Above all I appreciated the practicality of the advice, the sense that any training schedule must adjust to one's lifestyle, running history and real capability. This was a rare opportunity to share those niggling doubts with fellow runners in a friendly, non-competitive environment. I left with a sharper focus and renewed confidence for the testing weeks ahead. Aching, yes, but elated too.

Info: www.trailplus.com

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(Posted March 30)

For pictures of my Silverstone Half Marathon run on March 19th, follow this link: http://www.marathonfoto.com/index.cfm?RaceOID=19802006W2&LastName=GURRIA&BibNumber=536

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Ángel's weekly training update. Jan-Apr 2006:

Sunday April 23: FLORA LONDON MARATHON, 4:02:09

Mon 10 Apr-Sun 16 Apr: 15.0 Miles

Mon 3 Apr-Sun 9 Apr: 25.3 Miles

Mon 27 Mar-Sun 2 Apr: 46.8 Miles

Mon 20 Mar-Sun 26 Mar: 4.0 Miles (Recovering, mostly)

Mon 13 Mar-Sun 19 Mar: 20.0 Miles (Silverstone Half, 1: 51' 37")

Mon 6 Mar-Sun 12 Mar: 30.0 Miles

Mon 27 Feb-Sun 5 Mar: 10.0 Miles (Including carnival samba parade)

Mon 20 Feb-Sun 26 Feb: 5.0 Miles (In Brazil: 30ºC at 7.00am)

Mon 13 Feb-Sun 19 Feb: 7.2 Miles (Not slacking--just recovering)

Mon 6 Feb-Sun 12 Feb: 33.5 Miles

Mon 30 Jan-Sun 5 Feb: 27.3 Miles

Mon 23 Jan-Sun 29 Jan: 27.0 Miles

Mon 16 Jan-Sun 22 Jan: 20.0 Miles (Training weekend)

Mon 9 Jan-Sun 15 Jan: 22.0 Miles