How on earth do you fit in all that training?

I started training in earnest around January. I panicked about following a training plan and became confused by how many options there were before ditching them all and deciding to run when I wanted to. I committed to a half marathon with more than a month still to go, the Vitality North London Half , which I found really difficult but felt was important in forcing me to run that distance.

Build the mileage slowly. Running home once or twice a week from work was the easiest way for me to fit in around five miles, with the option of going round the houses and increasing that mileage to about eight (though rarely did I do this with the lure of dinner pulling me home). It meant I felt less like a smoke and glass of wine as soon as I got through the front door – not least because a shower and making something to eat took priority – and it also forces you to sidestep those after-work drinks, the leaving do you might have called into. You also sleep better.

Increase to three times a week and you’ve got an impressive weekly mileage early on, while weekends are still free.

Does it completely take over your life?

As marathon day creeps ever nearer, Friday and Saturday nights out are often swapped for big plates of pasta and a night in watching Netflix, tucked up in bed well before 11pm with the next day's long run playing on your mind.

In that way, it does take over your life, but the pay off of feeling brilliant come Sunday lunchtime having nailed a 17-miler around Richmond Park is well worthwhile. And this tough end part of it probably lasts around six weeks realistically, which is pretty achievable for even a hardened Champagne ligger like myself.

How do you get through a 20-mile run?

The final slog passes quickly, thankfully. After the half, I increased my mileage quite quickly: with only about six weeks to go I did 15, then 17, and my biggest, 20, leaving a seven- or nine-day gap between them if I could. Use these long runs as a rehearsal: wear the same kit and carry what you will on race day (minimal amounts ideally).

Use energy gels (or sweets if you prefer) every 40 minutes – they really helped give me a boost. And don't forget to take water, an Oyster card or debit card in case you're lost or need to get on a bus or train. Your immune system will take a bit of a battering at this point too, so stock up on plenty of vitamin C, make sure you rest and sleep between big workouts and treat yourself to plenty of massages.

How do you ignore that voice in your head telling you to go to the pub?

I'm not saying it isn't really hard, especially when it's freezing, hailing or pouring down. Get a good podcast (I listened to Serial on the move), a mate to run with you or to meet you after for coffee (or cider), and some sightseeing pit stops – pausing on the river in front of St Paul's was my fave and perfect for a Sunday morning smug Instagram snap.

“I was convinced it would all end in humilation” A love letter to the London Marathon from a former scaredy-cat