THE hottest marathon I have ever run, said triathlete Emma Sowden after completing the Paris Marathon (April 9th) as part of her training for UK Ironman in July. The temperature hit a scorching 26-degrees by the end.

Emma approached the event not as a race, but rather as a long training session, getting used to running in a crowd rather than ‘slogging alone’ over a long distance. In her own words ‘… getting into the Ironman way of thinking…’

She ran to keep a friend company and while she never set out to achieve a personal best, the heat did slow them down; Emma finished in five hours, her slowest ever marathon. Many competitors dropped out due to the conditions with 42,500 finishers out of 43,754 starters.

“It was a wonderful experience and great memories running past some of the iconic Paris landmarks,” said Emma, who came down to earth with a bump (literally) a few days after returning home. A freak accident saw her trip in the street and fall into a stone wall, grazing her head and bruising one shoulder.

Badly concussed, after hospital treatment she spent two days quietly at home and missed a further week’s training on doctor’s orders. This enforced rest meant her schedule was re-arranged but she bounced back to complete a 79-mile cycle sportive followed by the Shakespeare Marathon in beautiful Stratford-upon-Avon.

This was a last-minute entry in line with her strategy of completing longer runs with large crowds. Not only are these more motivating they also remove the need to carry a backpack with water and first aid kit as these are provided along the route.

As always, Emma enjoys a bath in Bexters Soda Crystals at least once a week and applies them with our applicator wrap after each event to relieve aching muscles and prevent the puffiness which has previously been a problem. She has noticed recovery after training or events is noticeably faster.

Tag: Stamford Striders / Ironman UK / applicator wrap / Bexters Soda Crystals