I've adapted the training session for more endurance running focus, but not forgot to add a weekly speed (interval) session it to keep it balanced. I'll continue to use a 7kg pack, but I will taper over the weeks by 25%, 50% and then 75%.
I did my hour long session today. I did plan a 10k route, a very easy and flat one. I drove to the place I intended to start, but the car park had some really suspicious looking young guys in a knackered BMW. When I drove into the small country park car park the car looked empty. I was just parking when I saw the window was half open. I thought that it was a bit strange then a lad poked his head up. They had tilted the front seats right the way back. One of them sat up, but put his arm up and kept his face looking away. Smoke drifting out of the window, so I figured they were off smoking joints. How not to look suspicious: Sit in a car park in a clapped out BMW, tilt both front seats back and wind the windows half way down to let out your joint smoke. Obviously not the smartest of cookies and definitely not the kind of people I wanted around my car for an hour whilst I was out running.
So, I pulled away and drove back home, and made up a running route as I went along. The problem with running from my house is there is a hill in any direction to get you started. I was supposed to be doing a light recovery run. This quickly became a tricky and hilly cross country over the deep cattle-divoted-ankle-breaking field route. This was then followed by a dash across a very busy dual carriageway using to reach the other side of the footpath and into a pretty woods called, somewhat bizarrely, Parrot's Drumble. It's a Bluebell wood nature reserve that I have not run in for a long time. It's a nice woodland route with wooden steps and footbridges crossing lots of bright orange streams. They are contaminated with iron-oxide from long abandoned mine works you see.
Anyway, this route requires maximum concentration as the path is very narrow and every step the roots of the trees are raised on the path. One slip and that's your ankle done! Not a wise choice of route given I am doing the event in a month! Once I exited the wood, I then had knee high grass and barbed wire fences to negotiate before finding my way back to the road and the 3/4 mile slog up a long hill, before the last 700m down hill to home. It was only a 5 mile route, and I stopped a couple of times for several minutes to do a full stretch routine. I also felt a little fatigued from the 35 mile effort at the weekend, which is understandable I guess. This wasn't the recovery run I had intended for today! However, overall I feel fine. A couple of sore tendons behind the left knee from Sunday, but none of the knee pain I have been having, and no ibuprofen needed. Yay!
Intervals and more running tomorrow.
Until next time.
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