Matt Miller
I am a Partner at Bolt Burdon and a veteran of the 2005 Three Peaks Challenge team and the 2006 New York Marathon team. I have always been a bit of a 'binge' runner - I have run 5 marathons before but, in between, I actually did very little running at all, and so generally went from being unfit, to quite fit, to unfit again over the course of a year. So one of my aims, this time, is to break that cycle and keep my running going after Florence. I also want to break the 4:00 hour barrier, which has so far eluded me (by a whole 7 minutes) and which, frankly, is beginning to slightly annoy me. Why do I enjoy running? Well, firstly, I almost always come back from a run feeling better than when I left. And secondly, within reason, you can justifiably eat quite a lot (or, at least, more than usual) when you are training for a marathon. I like my food, you see, though even I have given up Pret a Manger egg & bacon croissants since I started training this time around. The training itself is hard but, so far, its going pretty well - compared to when I did my first marathon (in 1999) the emphasis now, in terms of marathon training, seems to be on quality and variety, not just quantity. That suits me fine. I did most of my training back in 1999 on a treadmill in a gym, staring out of the window at a white concrete wall, churning out mile after mile at the same pace, then wondered why I couldn't run any faster on the day itself. I must have been mad, or stupid, or both. Anyway, crossing the line at the end of a marathon is an amazing feeling (try it, you'll see) and I reckon I have got a few more left in me. Let's get this one out of the way first though...wish me luck and dig deep for the NSPCC