I have just received my one month reminder from Bupa. My race pack should be with me within a week and I have been deliberately not running during training for a couple of weeks now. Weirdly, I feel much better for it - and am looking forward to the Great North Run far more.

I hate running. Truly. I neither look forward to it nor do I enjoy it. I feel no sense of achievement afterward. I don't feel better after running as I do after any other form of exercise. If anything, I feel ill and sore and as though I need a heart and lung transplant.

So, bearing in mind how rubbish I have been at maintaining and progressing my training - my last run was under a mile - it is unlikely that I will be able to run 13.2 miles on Sunday 19 September. As a result, I have decided not to run again until the big day.

After a really hard run on Sunday morning, I checked my route for mileage to report to you and found that I'd run less than a mile.

On the positive side, I have confirmed that I will now run for Arthirits Research UK. I will report more next week when I am not so embarrassed by the dire state of my training regime.

I had a run today which started in disaster when I had an asthma attack within minutes of setting off but, after using my inhaler, I got under-way again.

I'm really struggling after all the weeks without training and found even a mile hard work today. I got a pretty good stride and rhythm going but couldn't get my breath - 9 weeks to the Great North Run - eek!

I have just found out that I do not have gout which begs the question, what is the matter with my toe? Although it is less painful than previously, it is still a little swollen and quite stiff.

I have to apologise for my lack of posts over the last month. I have been battling yet another injury. Following my last run, I started to experience pain in the big toe of my right foot. It began to swell and became so painful that i could barely walk.

Cyclists are gearing up for the Great North Bike Ride.

It starts from Seahouses at 9am on August 29 and follows an estimated 50 miles along the scenic coastline down to Tynemouth Priory.

The entry fee is £10 to cover costs and includes a Nike T-shirt, a medal and refreshments. It is a sponsored event for The Chris Lucas Trust and so participants are asked to get sponsorship. Visit www.greatnorthbikeride.com

I am finally back on the road after what seems like months of knee exercises, foot exercises and one very minor operation.

On Saturday I headed out for a short run which stretched from the top of Mile Road, through the old brickworks, through Stobswood and back to the Mile. It was HARD!

North Shields Athletic finished as clear champions in only their fourth season in the league, finishing five points ahead of runners-up Stobswood Welfare.

The Welfare had to stage a late climb up the table to gain a promotion slot and won seven and drew one of their last eight games to achieve their ambitions.

Having lifted the division's Pin Point Recruitment Amateur Cup by beating table-topping North Shields Athletic in the final at Swalwell, Stobswood completed their successful league campaign with a 3-1 home win against Cramlington Blue Star.

The Northern Alliance Division Two title was secured two weeks ago by North Shields Athletic, but the second promotion slot has now been filled by Stobswood Welfare.

Having come up on the rails and worked their way through a challenging fixture backlog, Stobswood have finished well clear of third-placed Forest Hall.

In their penultimate game of a strength-sapping season, the Welfare triumphed 2-1 at wooden spoonists Whitley Bay Town. Paul Smith and Josh Hay were the Stobswood marksmen, Liam Hudson replying for the Bay.