SURRENDER

Since 15 November: 120 hours 48 minutes, 1150.8 kilometers
Weight: 76 kilos

This is a sad post.

Ever since coming back from India/China, I've been feeling particularly not fit. The family's chickenpox epidemic seems to have affected me a bit, too, in spite of childhood exposure. The trip wore me out completely, because of the mad schedule and a horribly irritated right eye. My GP had stuck to his diagnosis of conjunctivitis, in spite of me telling it felt like there was a tiny object in my eye and in spite of seeing me again after his prescribed medication had failed to work. Finally, when I went to the hospital they removed the folded-over wing of an insect from my eyeball.

So I have been spectacularly weak for weeks now. It became fully apparent during the much-awaited 10k in my mother's town which had turned into a family happening: I struggled to get to the finish line in a bit over 56 minutes, whereas I've done a 10k previously in 50.

Also, I've lost the will to run. Knowing that this is the period where I should be doing my most extensive training for Amsterdam, but also realising that it is equally crunchtime for getting the new house in order for moving in at the end of October, there's only one solution possibly. I'm giving up on running the Amsterdam marathon this year. Sad, but necassary.

Instead, I will pick up running again slowly after giving myself a break, and I'll play a bit of football. I can still meet my target of running - and completing - a full marathon before I turn fifty. No need for pushing myself completely over the edge now.