As you all probably know, registration for the London Marathon 2010 filled in record time this year. 2 days and 16 hours after the website opened the ballot places were already filled, a full 15 days quicker than the previous year. I check twitter very regularly for those talking about the London Marathon and the number of people raising money for charity with JustGiving is phenomenal. With so many trying to raise money it can be easy to forget the reasons that these people are inspired to do what they do.

If there ever was a frank reminder of those, not just running the marathon, but who decide to perform magnificent feats in the name of charity, then the JustGiving awards was it.

Last year, JustGiving came under some scrutiny in the media. The spin was that people were claiming to be emotionally blackmailed into donating via online charity sites such as them. An unnamed Daily Mail columnist (no surprises there) would not be bullied into donating via the web when she could just as easily donate her cash and know that all of her money was going straight to her charity.

But when Major Phil Packer manages to raise over £1.3 million for Help for Heroes, or a campaign to stop X-Factor from claiming yet another Christmas #1 raises over £100,000 for Shelter in less than 2 months, you have to face facts. Since its inception in 1999, JustGiving has helped over 8,000 charities raise over £450 million. None of this would have been possible without the ease and speed at which users are able to donate online.

But, JustGiving admit themselves that they would be nothing without their fundraisers. So what better way to show their appreciation than by throwing their first ever awards ceremony in London to celebrate the amazing people that give up their lives for others.

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There are many advantages to marathon training. Some run for weight loss. Others run for that sense of self-accomplishment or for the benefits of being that little bit healthier. But these all come at a cost; the state of your feet.

Nothing will prepare you for the first time you lose a toenail because you forgot to trim them before a long run. Or for the number of blisters your feet can accumulate in an hour. I actually can not get rid of one of my blisters, which I now affectionately refer to as the ‘grape’. Apologies to those who are eating while reading this.

There are three ways to combat blisters.

1. Run so hard and so often that your feet callous up to the texture of sand paper.
2. Buy a big pack of sterilised needles and get popping.
3. Wear the correct socks for you.

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I’m writing this post from the comfort of my bed this week. A culmination of the cold weather, over doing it at Christmas and marathon training have resulted in a sustained period of man-flu and (eventually) two days off work.

After my doctor basically told me to stop being an idiot, stop training, take some paracetamol and go to bed, I’m now halting my marathon training until I’m back up to full strength.

It’s a tough little conundrum. Like last year, I’ve taken on a 16-week training plan for this year’s marathon. Some don’t think that’s enough but 5-6 runs a week for 4 months will do me plenty.

I’d kept up a fairly decent 10k pace before beginning my training so it wasn’t too much of a shock to the system once starting. But how in the name of all that is holy am I supposed to train in the worst snow Britain has seen for decades, not get a cold and have any chance of beating my time last year?!

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A huge thank you if you’re still reading this blog 1 whole year since its inception!

Sir Jog A Lot was started to keep friends and family interested in my 2009 London Marathon training while trying to raise money for the MS Society. I quickly realised while training that there are plenty of running-related foibles to write about and a ton of things to consider before taking up a marathon.

SJAL has changed quite a bit since January 2009, turning from the original Wordpress blog (still live here) into what you can see now. One big change was the introduction of reviews after the 2009 marathon. I was deeply concerned about losing the die-hard fans, who were reading the blog purely for its penetrative look into the psyche of an amateur runner. But I’ve tried to use the PR industry as much to your advantage as mine by giving away as many of the products as I can in the 6 competitions we ran last year.

Although you’ve been able to see advertising on this blog for some time, I can safely say that Sir Jog A Lot has made absolutely no money (not for the want of trying). I wasn’t taught economics at school! The only money I’ve made off the back of this blog has gone straight to charity, either by indirect sponsorship for the MS Society or through the Sponsor this block! campaign, which is on its way to making the Lymphoma Association £1500!

One year on and I’m back where I began; training for the London Marathon (2010). Best of luck to those who are training for the first ever Virgin London Marathon and I hope you’ll get touch through the comments on this blog with any tips, advice or well-wishing to your fellow marathon runners.

James

Another lovely PR got in touch and has provided me with a pair of Nike LunarGlides to test out. Now I’m a big fan of Nike’s work. Their website that allows you to custom design your own trainers is awesome (that’s right, you can be just like Michael Jordon). I also own a pair of Nike 90 football boots which I have scored many a (own) goal in. But I’m afraid, this time, Nike get a C+ from me. Could do better.

Like a pair of football boots, the LunarGlides only seem to come in dark colours*. Now you may disagree, but I don’t associate dark trainers with a jog-loving athlete. I associate dark trainers with the kind of person that likes to play music loudly from a mobile phone at the back of a bus.

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I’m always keeping an eye out for new running-related tweeters and posting anything interesting/funny/useful on the @sirjogalot twitter account. But for those of you who can’t be at a computer 24/7, here’s a round up of 10 gems from the world wide web (all running related of course!).

If you have any gems like to contribute then please leave a comment!

1. The 50 Best Costumes At The 2009 London Marathon: http://bit.ly/2BXuqe

I recognise a few of these! I remember being passed by the Baywatch Hotties.

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So I’ve managed to claw my way back into the London Marathon for 2010. Thanks to the Lymphoma Association, I’ll be donning a fluorescent green running vest in April 2010 and running around London with 40,000 other nutters (some of you may have noticed a new purple twinge to the site).

If you were lucky enough to have been given a ballot place, then count yourself lucky indeed! You had less than a 1 in 5 shot. 100,000 entrants will have been turned down to run in 2010. I was one of them so thank your lucky stars you even have a shot.

If you managed to grab a charity place then count yourself even luckier. To grab one of the 12,500 guaranteed places you have a 1 in 8 shot!

Unless you’re a celebrity, the hardest part of the London Marathon is getting in!

Guaranteed (Golden Bond) places come at a cost. Sponsorship targets range from £1000 – £2500 and most charities will make you sign a form to say that you will have banked the money by a certain date. For the 2009 marathon my target was £2000, which I smashed by over £400. But in order to do that I had to win an amateur video competition, beg my company for a sizeable donation and rely on the huge generosity of my friends and family, who will no doubt be suffering from ‘donor fatigue’ this time around.

I’ll be covering off unique ways to raise money in this blog in the months to come. But before that I have to plug my own!

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