Running Preparation for the Brighton Marathon for Stephanie

I don't know how this works for others but I sort of feel the novelty has worn off, not for me but for everyone else and I'm hoping it'll pick up again as I feel I really am doing this all on my own.

I signed up to run the Brighton Marathon to raise funds and awareness for Bowel research UK and for our daughter Stephanie who died in October 2024 from an Ischemic Bowel which causes the death of around 3000 people a year in the UK.

I've no training plan, no personal trainer, no special diet, no training buddy, no special gear.

Just a desire to raise awareness and to run in Stephanie's memory. 

I'm moving out of running leggings this week into skorts and I'm trialling a camel pack.

I had a free trial with Apple Music that has come to an end, but I found listening to just music boring and I prefer to listen to the radio and have a variety of chat, news and music. I have the free version of strava that I just hit 'record' on and don't check until I get home. 

My wireless ear pods are a little temperamental with my ear piercings and if I tap them more than once when I adjust them they need putting back in the pot to reset. So I'm going back to wired ones and I've been threading them through a hook on my bra strap. 

I also hook my glasses through my bra when I'm running as I need them to set my phone and watch at the start and end.

I've been doing park runs and going to the gym, but most of my training has been endurance training with a mixture of walking and running up and down the Malvern Hills. The furthest I've actually run is 10k which I did this week and it took me 90 mins. 

My 5k times are improving.

I also did a half marathon walk/run around Malvern a couple of weeks ago in 3 and half hours with an elevation of 493ms. 

Next weekend I'm taking part in my 3rd Ultra Challenge in 6 months. I started with a 25k hike in the Chilterns which I completed in 5 hours 30 mins. A 42k walk in London in January completed in 7 hours 44 mins and next weekend I'll be in Bath attempting to run/walk 25k with an elevation of 600ms in under 3 hours.

Week 10 2026 One Daily Positive and Project 365

The Negatives

I like to get the negatives out the way first. Been feeling sick for a couple of weeks now. In fact I've been feeling nauseous since I've stopped smoking. I googled it, it can be a symptom of nicotine withdrawal. It's awful. I've actually been physically sick on a couple of occasions. If it carries on much longer I will see the Dr. I thought stopping smoking would make me feel better, I would be able run more, but it's actually hampering my running and training and my marathon is only 4 weeks away now.

The Positives

Bumped into a friend twice in two different coffee shops in different parts of the town this week which was nice. Work have given me the off after my marathon to recover which is only 4 weeks away now. An early Mother's Day gift from Northern Ireland in the post. Signs of Spring in the garden are really cheering me up despite the recent rains and cold spell.

Saturday 7th March Woken at 6.30am by Granddaughter. Peter took her downstairs and I managed to go back to sleep for an hour. After breakfast we headed down to Keynsham to visit MIL to drop off Mother's Day gifts and popped out to a garden centre for coffee. I had a packed lunch with me being gluten free and the other grabbed a Greggs that we all ate on the go. I left our great nephews 5th birthday gift and an easter treat behind. We stopped at my mums on the way back to drop off her Mother's Day gifts also and picked up tea from Tesco to have with her, then we dropped granddaughter at home, cuddles with grandson and home around 8pm.

Sunday 8th March I took myself out for a half marathon walk/run around Malvern. I managed 21k in 3 and a half hours with an elevation of 493km. I'm rather pleased with myself as this is the same as my last time which was purely on the flat. After a cup of tea and some lunch, I was in the garden moving pots and repotting some house plants. I had a bath, did some washing and we spent longer trying to find something to watch on the TV than actually watching anything before I went up to bed at 9pm.

Monday 9th March Up at 5.30pm, drank tea and stared at the ceiling. Staff meeting after work and home at 5pm. Really hungry and had tea straight away, snacked all evening, had a bath. Hoovered the dining room and back room and moved the cat pole outside and set up the chair pod outside with the cushions. Rearranged books and some things on the desk and in the lounge ready for moving some other things in the week. I was in bed by 9.30pm and asleep by 10pm. Gluten free crackers are impossible to spread butter on.

Tuesday 10th March Home from work and straight down the retail park to pick up some gifts for Peter to take to Turkey with him on Friday. I arrived at the coffee shop early to meet my friend and another friend popped in to say hi, so for a while the three of us caught up on the gossip. We all used to work together so it was nice to catch up. I got home at 7.30pm, got ready for work tomorrow, had dinner, a bath, we watched a new TV show and I did some blogging and had a late night. Moved the chair pod back into place.

Wednesday 11th March Got everything ready for when I got home for a quick turn around. Home from work, got changed and train to Birmingham for the football against QPR. Wrote some letters on the train and ate my tea. Popped into Primark for a gift and grabbed a coffee at Starbucks then the bus to St Andrew's. We scored in the 6th minute and spent the rest of the game clinging onto our 3 points. Bus back to New Street and Train back to Worcester and Peter picked me up at 10.40pm.

Thursday 12th March Where did that rain and wind come from? It was winter when I came out of work. Met Peter in town for a coffee. Got home and quickly put the cover on the chair pod, moved the wooden green house and picked up the cloches that had blown around the garden and got a tad wet. We had dinner and watched some TV, an early bath and bed.

Friday 13th March Dropped Peter at the train station at 7am for his trip to Turkey and just about made it home before being sick. Spent the day in bed. Managed to eat around 6pm. Have been feeling sick on and off for a couple of weeks, no idea why. Watched a lot of TV, didn’t really do anything else. Evening spent on the sofa. Bed at 10pm and straight to sleep.

On the blog this week:

Post Comment Love - Link up with any post written this week

Word of the Week - Rearranging

Days out in the campervan February 2026

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Post Comment Love 13th- 15th March 2026

Welcome back to #PoCoLo with Stephanie from Bosworth.Life and I.

Post Comment Love #PoCoLo is a friendly weekly linky where you can link up any blog post you've written this week. If you're new or a regular visitor we're sure you'll find something of interest.

Please leave a comment with the host you link up with and we'd also appreciate your help spreading the #PoCoLo word on Twitter/X tag us and we'll RT. You can find us here: Stephanie - @BosworthLife and Suzanne - @ChickenRuby Please also add our badge to your post.

I'll be catching up with reading your posts, sharing and commenting over the next few days. 

Happy Mother's Day to those of you celebrating in March. 

Mother's Day in March is the 4th Sunday of Lent and was traditionally a day for Christians to visit their Mother Church.

Mother's Day in May started in the US and is a fixed day founded by Anna Jarvis in 1914 to honour her own mother.

We visited our Mother's last weekend and I was hoping for a day of peace and quiet but I've been summoned to child 4's house by my DIL and grandchildren for the morning.

I walked/ran a half marathon last Sunday with a 493m elevation over the Malvern Hills and I'm taking part in a parkrun at Worcester racecourse on Saturday, before heading off to Birmingham for the football, for my 2nd visit this week after travelling up on Wednesday to watch them play QPR.

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Word of the Week - Rearranging

I've been doing a little bit of rearranging this week.

I started by putting the heavier coats, hats, scarves, gloves and boots up in the wardrobe in the loft. Thankfully I'd kept a set in the downstairs loo which I needed on Wednesday at the football.

The patio was rearranged after Peter gave it a Spring clean and the pod was moved into its summer position as in I can now open the doors fully when summer comes.

The cat pole has been moved outside for two reasons: the cat is spending more time outside and it has somewhere to shelter from the colder weather if we go out and I have some space in the conservatory for this years seedlings which will involve rearranging part of the loft to access an IKEA shelving unit to put the seeds trays on (this will be done Sunday afternoon)

The wooden green house has been moved back to get the most of the sun (when it does arrive) and this temporary plastic one is on it's 6th year and still going strong, not the prettiest but it's doing the job.

And the cold frame has been set aside for the time being. I don't need it at the moment, the cover has been put away, but I've kept the frame up ready for when I transplant the seedlings out at a later date.

We built this cover for the kids bikes originally but it's now used for storing the gardening equipment and this bag stores the plant fleeces and cloche covers.

Peter made me a potting table 2 years ago but it's too big to move around easily despite it being on wheels. It's been on the patio over the winter and needs to be moved back behind the raised beds eventually, but first I need to rearrange all the garden pots that have been clustered together for protection over the winter. I won't be doing this next year. I'm going to pick a spot for them and next year just buy enough fleeces to wrap them individually. 

I made a temporary potting table over the compost bins and if I'm honest I actually prefer this as it's a space saver, it's near the greenhouses and it means I don't have to lug compost around throughout the year.  The only downside is there is no cover so I can't work out in the rain at the moment.

I didn't have to rearrange the pots or tools as I'd put everything away properly at the end of last year and it was all easy to get out and use. 

I've repotted some indoor plants we bought and I had planned to sow some seeds left over from last year. I need to make some proper labels and get the IKEA unit out the loft to put the trays on in the back room so I put that job on hold as I've a busy weekend ahead of me and I'd been feeling a little under the weather and the actual weather on Thursday was too cold and wet to be out at the potting bench.

I almost called this post juggling, but that's to come as at the moment all I've done is rearrange a few things. I think next weeks post will be 'complicated' as I will be having to rearrange things a lot more in the garden followed by 'juggle' as everything slots into place.

I've then to get up in the loft and finish it off as it's become a bit of a dumping ground after we turned one of the rooms into a shared bedroom/craft room for the grandchildren when they come to stay and for me to work in properly. The other room is full of things we need to sell and a little messier than it was before I got the IKEA unit out for putting the seed tray on.

Days out in the campervan in February 2026

I'm aiming to camp out in the campervan every month this year and so far I've camped in January and I've camped in February and I've got 2 camping trips booked for March and 1 booked in April. The only thing that's going to stop me completing the challenge is not having enough days in the year for all the commitments I have lined up.

I travelled over to Northern Ireland for a week and set up camp on child 2's drive. Now they've had a 2nd child there is no room in the house other than an air bed and the bed in the van is far more comfortable plus I have my own space and I'm more than happy in the van. I just pop in first thing for the toilet and make a cup of tea and if they're till sleeping I go back out, stick the heating on and I'm lovely and cosy.

It's annoying being last vehicle on the boat as your'e exposed to the sea water for the full 7 hour crossing.

We've got a convertor so we can plug into the mains and not have to rely on the leisure battery and can use the plug sockets in the van.

There was one morning it was so cold outside that I couldn't open the sliding door and had to run the diesel heater and wait until the door defrosted.

Dry robes were made for days like these.

As there was only me in the van and I wasn't using it for cooking I was able to spread out and I kept my shower bag in the house.

When I travel alone I just pack straight into the wardrobe.

I didn't use the van during the day for the week so I could leave everything set up which made life so much easier, it's not often this happens, in fact I don't think we've ever done this before.

The last night I packed the roof up as it was dry after raining all week, which meant everything inside had to be put away so I could get the lower bed out. it took me about an hour to do.

I had to remember to open a window when I put the diesel heating on for ventilation.

I didn't have a table to work from and I had to keep moving things around so I could move around.

I also lost my head space and kept forgetting when I tried to stand up.

The best thing we like about the Ford Nugget Westfalia conversion and our reason for choosing it over the Volkswagen Campervan is that when the lower bed is is use we can still use the kitchen fully as it is located in the back of the vehicle and although this isn't the best photo we can access the back through the vehicle and not have to go outside to do so as you have to in the VW. The space in the first photo is where the kitchen would be in the VW and you only get one sliding door. In our vehicle you get access on both sides which makes parking a lot easier. Also when the roof is popped up, it pops above the kitchen and not above the drivers seat, giving you full height access above the kitchen.

I think I've camped in the coldest of the weather so far so the rest of the year should be a breeze. I've got a 2 week stay in August which will be my longest stay and challenge as I'm not sure about toilet blocks and shower facilities and I may have to move around to charge the leisure battery if I don't get enough sun light and to fill the water tanks but I do have a portable toilet and and outdoor shower will just need to buy a shower/toilet tent and find a disposable waste point. It'll be annoying setting up and packing away every few days to fetch supplies etc but initial camp site prices for where I'm going are extortinate due to the event I'll be attending.

Week 9 2026 Project 365 and One Daily Positive

The Negatives

It has really saddened me to hear about the escalating attacks in the Middle East. I'll keep the politics out of this, but I know from our 7 years living in the UAE that the Government will be doing everything they can to keep the residents as safe as possible. During covid we couldn't have asked for better support. It was frightening watching the country and the world close down and all the flights getting cancelled while I tried to get out of Dubai to return to the UK so I could be here for Stephanie, knowing that it would be a long time before I was reunited with Peter again. It turned out to be 4 months. So I understand the difficult decisions residents in the UAE are and other countries are having to make. It's not a simple case of just going home when your home is in the Middle East. Peter has ex colleagues who are currently in limbo, unable to get home to their families as they were working away when the airports closed. Something that happened to Peter also when I finally made it back to Dubai and he was unable to get out of Saudi Arabia.

The Positives

Positives seem a bit insensitive after reading the above, but the sun is shining, there has been less stress in work, my burn has healed, the no smoking is going well and everyone we know out in the Middle East is safe, if not very concerned for how long this situation is going to continue and worried if it is going to escalate further.

Saturday 28th February We headed off blindly towards Shrewsbury and stopped at Kinver Edge Rock Cottages then rerouted to Ludlow. neither have visited there for over 30 years and was just as lovely as we' remembered. They have a fab market that runs nearly every day, some amazing independent shops and I had some fab buys from the charity shops. Next trip we'll be exploring the antiques stores. Home in time for the football and I had an early night.

Sunday 1st March Happy St David's Day We went to the Cotswold Outlet Village in the morning just of the M5 in Tewkesbury and Dobbie's garden centre to buy Mother's Day gifts and some new garden tools. I cooked a lasagna in the afternoon but didn't fancy it by tea time so popped it in the freezer. At 4pm I decided to head out on a trek up the North Hill and approaching from West Malvern which is far steeper than I'd anticipated but much better for my training. It was extremely windy at the top.

Monday 2nd March Home from work, changed and on the train to Birmingham for the football. I read my book on the train and went to the Apple Store to buy a new phone, then up to the ground where we lost 1-3 to Middlesborough. I had to leave 10 mins before the game finished to get my train back to Worcester where Peter picked me up from as it doesn't run to Malvern at that time of night. I got home at 11.30pm

Tuesday 3rd March Up and straight into work for the day. Home via the garden centre to buy some new seedling trays, then Peter and I went for a walk up the North Hill and into town for a coffee and getting home at 7pm. We had an oven tea and watched the telly. I sorted out my costume for World Book Day on Thursday, which mainly involved brushing and plaiting a red wig I and went to bed at 10pm and I fell straight to sleep.

Wednesday 4th March Peter spent the day cleaning the patio and the covered area from all the winter debris and cobwebs. We had a practice lockdown while the air ambulance had a couple of practice landings on the sports field. I sat on the sofa and drank tea and watched quiz shows when I got home then went out for a coffee and bought some Easter gifts for Peter to take to Turkey for his friends children next week and I packed Easter and birthday gifts for my son in Australia. Rest of the evening was spent sorting out charging cables and plugs for my new phone. I had a bath and was in bed by 9.30pm.

Thursday 5th March World Book Day I dressed as Pippi Longstockings and borrowed a toy monkey from next door. The maths department dressed as various members of Scooby Doo and most teachers dressed as various other characters. I think most of the students claimed to be dressed a the cast of Harry Potter, just in day clothes. Got changed after work and out for a run via the Doctors surgery for my 8 weekly B12 jab. I managed to run consistently uphill. Peter met me for a coffee and we did some shopping. Home for dinner, a bath and I was in bed by 9pm.

Friday 6th March Felt sick all day. Morning spent invigilating mocks, afternoon 1:1 mentoring and tutoring. Straight home and put dinner on and watched TV while I waited for Peter and granddaughter. Dinner eaten and straight round next door for a play date for an hour. Some dancing, stories and bed. I had a bath and pretty much straight into bed myself. Sand from the Sahara.

On the blog this week:

Post Comment Love - Join in with any post written this week

Word of the Week - Brighter

The best bits of February 2026

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Post Comment Love - 6th - 8th March 2026

Welcome back to #PoCoLo with Stephanie from Bosworth.Life and I.

Post Comment Love #PoCoLo is a friendly weekly linky where you can link up any blog post you've written this week. If you're new or a regular visitor we're sure you'll find something of interest.

Please leave a comment with the host you link up with and we'd also appreciate your help spreading the #PoCoLo word on Twitter/X tag us and we'll RT. You can find us here: Stephanie - @BosworthLife and Suzanne - @ChickenRuby Please also add our badge to your post.

I'll be catching up with reading your posts, sharing and commenting over the next few days. 

Well March snook round quickly didn't it?

This week has marked the start of spring for me. Sunday was St David's Day and I promised myself a walk up the Malverns. I didn't set out till 4.15pm, but as it's not getting dark till later, I was able to get up to the top of the North Hill and home before the sun set. It was a tad windy.

Monday I was off to Birmingham to watch the football and it was the first midweek night match where I didn't wear my dry robe and thermals. I always arrive early and I sat and read my book.

Tuesday I stopped off at the garden centre to buy some new trays so I can plant some seeds indoors and Peter and I headed up the North Hill and stopped for a coffee, it was dark by the time we got home, but we did a bit of shopping also.

Wednesday I planned to pot up house plants and sow some tomato and herb seeds but Peter jet washed the under cover area and I decided my time was better spent having a coffee and blogging.

Thursday I was out running again via the Doctors for my 8 weekly B12 jab.

And not one drop of rain all week.

I'm not being fooled just yet though, it often snows in March, but for now I'm enjoying the warmer and drier weather.

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Word of the Week - Brighter

It's not rained for 5 days and I've not worn a coat for 3 days, although I have taken a coat with me and left it in the car, just in case.

It's still been a little chilly, but I'm indoors most of the day and it's been manageable.

Things have been looking brighter this week. Not just the weather but me as well. Work has been much improved, far less stressful and so far only one stray object has hit me, which was a deflection and so far I've just been called a 'crap teacher' no F bombs, no fights and quite a bit of cooperation from some students who previously have shown very little respect for themselves let alone anyone else.

I went to Birmingham on Monday after work and wore my normal winter coat rather than my dry robe, which has now gone up in the wardrobe in the loft, leaving so much more space in the downstairs loo.

Peter spent 3 days cleaning the patio area, it was full of debris and spiders webs and I'll be spending Sunday putting it back together.

The pots will be moved into their new positions and I'm looking forward to replanting the herbs that have survived the winter under the cloches and sowing some seeds ready to plant out in these beds once they've been weeded and compost from the bins has been dug in.

I'm back out running, no where near as far as I should be considering in just over 5 weeks I'm running a marathon. We've been walking the Malvern Hills after work as it's light enough for a stroll followed by a coffee after work.

I don't actually mind the winter, the cold and the dark evenings, it's the rain and ill health that has caused me the biggest problems, getting out and about. Picking a marathon date for April wasn't my smartest move for someone who hasn't run before with only 26 weeks to train to run 26 miles, but I'm getting there. 

I'll be running longer distances over the next few weeks now the ground is drying up and it's lighter as Malvern isn't the latest of places and a lot of my running route options involve fields which have been waterlogged up to now or industrial areas which I haven't considered safe to run on my own in the dark.

I haven't done half the jobs in the house I promised myself I would do over the winter and most of that is due to being the only one who wants to get anything done. I find I work much better if I'm on my own and I'll have a splurge over the next two weeks while Peter is away in Turkey visiting his friend.

Whilst the sun isn't necessarily shining every day, it's not raining, it's getting darker later, it's definitely warming up. More places are opening up and opening hours are extending. I've a couple of camping trips booked, some park runs lined up and several football matches to look forward to before the end of March.

The Easter holidays are on the horizon and then the summer and more of the above. So it's all looking brighter, all round.

The best bits of February 2026

Lots of grandchildren time and a visit to Northern Ireland and a week in the campervan.

Time with the grandchildren in England also and our other grandson turned one.

Lots of football.

Signs of spring in the garden.

We had a day out in Ludlow after a visit to Kinver Edge Rock Cottages.

We celebrated Stephanie's birthday.

I think we love in one of the most beautiful places in the world, on the Malvern Hills with views for miles over The Severn Valley and the Cotswolds, Herefordshire in the east and in the west the Black Mountains.

I've been enjoying reading when I've been out and about.

My marathon training has improved along with the weather and Peter will often come and pick me up from wherever I end up and join me for a coffee and the occasional gluten free cake.

Lots of plans for March which obviously involve a lot more football, camping, grandchildren, travel for Peter and marathon training and of course, chocolate.