on it goes…

So, a few days later and a few runs later, the legs seems to be hanging together ok. There’s still bit of an ache, and I’m not pushing it too much, but so far so good. No distance runs yet, the longest being just under 6 miles. I think I will do a long(er) run on Wednesday morning just to shake things out a bit.

I’ve also got the pleasure of driving down to the south of France on Thursday, a good 12-14 hour drive. Having lived in the US and appreciated a different scale of travel… for us Europeans, that’s a long drive. The upside is that I’ll be down in some nicer weather and where I’m going has some lovely runs and its allllll flat. So no silly hill training, just some sand training instead.

One more side note, no more indian food please. After a weekend of extremely good indian food, my gut is refusing to play anymore. Salad… soups…. milk… lots of nice gentle food.

And only 3 weeks until Challenger, the next event. 4 days of running & cycling around Scotland. Excellent.

phew

Set off on a trial run this evening, just a little under 4 miles, at a gentle pace, and came through without any pain or aches. Looks like the week off has paid dividends in ‘fix time’, and I just have to take things easy getting back up to distance.

Seeing as the Challenger week is a month away, I will be not doing anything to excess like the other weekend (which even though I injured myself, i still think was cool!), a lot more cross training where possible, with a few distance runs thrown in.

You regularly read the benefit of resting and resisting the urge to just get out and run, and yet again, it’s proven right. As soon as you feel that unexpected inury, not the usual pains and aches that runners always feel, take a few days rest to see what happens.

:-(

dam injury… it’s always rubbish being injured. The shin splints have not really improved over the weekend. I’ve not run, kept off anything that involves shock & impact on my legs, but I have been able to get in 2 x 90 minute spinning sessions, so it’s not been a completely exercise free weekend. Just not what I would have liked to do.

I will try a little run this week at some point, probably Wednesday. But really, I will rest it by doing everything else that I can do, mostly biking. Must… resist… the lure of the run…

The weather has continued to be glorious, making it even harder to not go running. There’s something quite satisfying about running in the heat.

Splinting the shins

So, unfortunately, it looks like shin splints has settled in since my weekend effort. No point dwelling on it, so I’ve been resting since Sunday, well resting from exercise, not from work which woul have been much more preferable!

I’m going to not run this weekend, but do a lot of cycling with a bit of swimming thrown in. Hopefully that will allow me to keep up the fitness without impacting the leg.

I was also reading about pose running and chi running which claim to change your posture to one which reduces injuries. I may go pick up the chi running book this weekend and have a read. I’m always open to new ideas and if it works, who’s going to complain?

The biggest frustration right now is that it’s glorious weather at the moment, a rare thing in the UK, perfect for getting out and running.

Da da daaaaa

Weekend over, tick…

34 miles, tick.. well, 35 in fact.

Bank Holiday Monday, tick…

All is good!

So, did that second run yesterday, and got through 18 miles. Never done that distance one day directly after another. There were a few times when I thought I could just stop and ring to get picked up, but pushed through and got home. The thing that really buoyed me up was that both long runs were done at an 8:30 min/mile pace, which puts me on for a 3h42 marathon time. Nice. However, I was flagging by the end of it.

Still, feeling pretty fresh today, aside from some aches and pains, with a little bit of shin splints thrown in for good measure. WIll be taking it easy this week, trying to rest, and to switch back to swimming and cycling for a while.

Putting it all in perspective, my ultra-marathon aims will make this seem like a quick walk. So there’s still a way to go. If I can make this distance regular, probably by cutting down on the frequency of mid-week runs, and doing this long one once a week, pushing it a little further now and then. The longest day on the MdS is the 46 mile day. Got to try that one day… *gulp*

But right now… feeling spritely. Lovely.

Ooof

Half way through the weekend, and just under half way through the planned 34 miles.

Yesterday morning, got up nice and (too) early, and set off for a 16.5 mile run. I haven’t gone that far for probably a year so it was a good run out. Felt pretty good, although towards the end my shin and hip started to ache. it did knock me out for the rest of the morning though, in some strange spacey place needing sleep!

Feel fine today aside from the forementioned leg aches. I’ve got the second part to do today, and looking forward to it. Got the tunes lined up, the gadgets charged, the mind ready and all that remains is the body to be willing.

It’s a nice final push before a quiet week (being the 4th in the usual cycle) where I’ll take it much easier, probably some shorter, faster runs to mix it up a bit. I also need to do a few more cross training sessions, so cycling and swimming.

Generally feeling good, may change my mind in 4 hours or so…

Challenge time

Yet again, I’ve talked myself into a challenge that I feel the urge to at least have a go at. Over on Runner+, I’ve been invited to this challenge. 34 miles in two days. Ooof. It’ll be put the swim tomorrow to bed, and wave goodbye to the bike ride on Sunday. This is a running weekend.

To be honest, 34 miles is a lot in two days, something I’ve never done before. I may do it by splitting it up, one really long, slow run, and a few smaller ones. Don’t know really but it should be fun to try.

So basically, I’ve been gee’d up by an online competition using gadgetry to track me…