With only a few days remaining for 2016 it is time to refocus and look forward to the year ahead.

From the 1st of January, my 15 week training plan for the London Marathon kicks in along with a big change to my diet in order to help me cope with the increase in training.

Although the Marathon is my core focus for the first part of 2017, there are plenty of other events I have signed up to to keep me busy.

London Winter Run – 5th February – My sole aim for this race is improve on last years performance. With an illness developing that I was not aware of at the time, I struggled with every step. This Winter, so far, I think I have done a better job of looking after myself and listening to my body. Therefore, if I continue to train and look after myself right, this time round I should improve.

Hampton Court Half Marathon – 19th February – My first time running this route. Originally booked to give myself an idea as to where my running progress is for the London Marathon, my goal is to get round and see what time I can get. With the course being a “flat, fast route” I think this will give me a good indication on timing and progress in the next few months.

North London Half Marathon – 12th March – I have been told by others that this will be a hard race. Starting from Wembley Stadium this route is rather testing with the hills of North London. I will not be worried about time for this one. This is simply to help with the stamina and endurance. Being a North London girl at heart, this route will see me running some of the areas I grew up in.

London Marathon – 23rd April – The big one! The one I am petrified of. And the one that takes all my focus from now until the big day. Running for the Willow Foundation means I also have a £2,000 fundraising target. Lately, the smaller runs have been tough – so trying to get myself in the mindset to run 13.1 miles more than I have ever run before is rather hard. But with the training plan due to kick in any day now, i’m hopeful that some of my fears will dissipate in the coming months.

Hackney Half Marathon – 30th April – Just a week after the London Marathon I have planned to sign up for Run Hackney for the second year running. I should be in the best place to run this for the second time. My hope is to improve on 2016’s performance. I’m keeping my fingers crossed with this one – with the date being moved forward I hope we will avoid the unexpected heat wave we saw this year.

Rat Race Dirty Weekend – 6th May – This I am excited about. After running London Rat Race in 2016, friends recommended the Rat Race Dirty weekend. A weekend camping, with a 20 mile obstacle race, followed by an after party in the evening. With a group of friends going, this is set to be a little adventure.

Nuclear Rush – 13th May –  After lots of fun running Nuclear Fallout in 2015, I return to Nuclear races in 2017. This time running the early summer event instead of the colder event in November. A 12k obstacle race I am looking forward to. Nuclear are the best for OCR races so this should be lots of fun. And as it is the last race before I take a nice two week holiday I shall be very cautious to ensure I don’t get an array of OCR kisses.

Great Newham Run – 2nd July – New entry for 2017. I saw lots of friends running this in 2016 and had race envy. One lap round the Olympic park, this one finishes in the Stadium and has a very snazzy medal. Lets hope I can still run at this point of the year.

Born Survivor – 9th September – Another new entry for 2017 sees me travelling further afield to the Lake District. Hearing good reviews and jumping at the chance of a cheeky weekend getaway I was very quick to sign up for the early bird prices several months ago.

Commando Series – 11th November – Not yet booked, but definitely on the schedule for 2017. I am looking forward to returning to Commando Series at Hever Castle. By far the best OCR race I completed in 2016 I am hoping that I will be able to complete the water obstacles I bypassed this year due to health reasons.

So that’s it. My 2017 line up. Returning to runs I have previously participated in and including new races in the mix will definitely keep me going, give me new goals and focus for 2017.

I hope to keep the adventures coming throughout the year. So please keep reading and following my journey.

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