Completed Tuesday's 5 mile and Wednesday 8 mile. Those two distances will be the staple for the new few weeks now.
Did an 11.5 mile walk on Saturday. It was a nice day, really enjoyed it. Used my Injinj toe socks. I'm impressed with them, but due to their being cloth around every toe it means than I'll probably need a slightly larger shoe, as after the 12 miles my little toes were beginning to rub.
I've been wearing my Raidlight rucksack since the start of this training, but usually empty for runs. I load it up a little for walks, with food and drink. A Railriders adventure top arrived for me this week too. These are used by a lot of competitors in the MDS. They are long sleeved and have buttons on the collar and cuff. You could probably wear one under a suit and get away with it! It's very comfortable, keeps you cool and most importantly has a slightly raised collar. This should keep the rucksack from rubbing against my neck as I load it up with more weight. Even running with just a few pounds you notice how the rucksack swings left to right with the natural running action.
I may go and see my Orthotic maker this week. I'm still getting a little discomfort in my left knee; well actually just below it now. It may be that I need a little more height adding to the left heel, or perhaps I just need shoes with a little more cushioning? I seem to have less of a problem when wearing my Inov8 Flyroc 310 trail shoes, than I do with my Saucony Grid (motion control) road shoes.
Sunday I got up early and completed the first 10 mile run of this schedule. All the distances from now on are new territory for me. I also took something to drink whilst I ran, for the first time. I was fine, had not stomach problems, so that's good news. I've got a couple of saddlebag's (1.5 Litre) arriving this week hopefully; they are Raidlight too - designed to fit in the rucksack and have tubes that feed through and up the straps to the top of the shoulder.
I'm going to have to either do a walk, or do my long run on Saturday as I'm doing a track day with my car next Sunday. Bye for now.
Sunday, February 19, 2006
Sunday, February 12, 2006
Lost electronics and Footcare!
I did 5 miles on Tuesday, my woodland then up to the monument route. Really enjoyed it. 5 miles on Wednesday, a road route. I'll post the Data recorder output from that run below. This will be the last time I post the data recorder output for a while... see below.
Friday I did my regular Gym session, but instead of intervals this week I did a 4.5 mile steady run.
On Saturday I walked with my girlfriend and baby son around Rudyard Lake in Staffordshire. It was a cold day. Barely above 0C...brrrr. It was only a 5 mile walk around the lake, so I carried my son in his carrier-rucksack the entire distance to compensate. I'm not sure how much he weighs, I'm guessing about 12kilos. It was intesting to note how much more strain that weight puts on your feet. After just the 5 miles the ball of my left foot was just starting with a hotspot. More of that later. Somewhere on the walk I lost my Timex data recorder. I left my phone number at the visitor centre, but there's no chance i'll see that again. They're £50 as well...ouch. I'll do without one for now maybe and just post the results straight from the timex watch instead.
I got back to the house after the walk and I'd had a delivery...a book from Amazon; "Fixing Your Feet, by John Vonhof". I've been reading this for the last couple of days. It's highly recommended. It deals with all proactive and reactive measure to help keep your feet in shape before/during and after an event. Blisters are a big focus as you can imagine. It lists countless methods of prevention and suggests trying a few to find out what works for you. I ordered some Injinji socks from the USA too about 10 days ago. These are toe-socks so each individual toe is covered by the coolmax wicking cloth, as well as the rest of the foot as normal. Be interesting to see how I get on with them. I've also found that the Asics socks I've been using are excellent too. They have a left and right foot, with cushioning matching up in all the right places on each foot. They are quite thin, much thinner than the 1000 mile socks i've been using. I'll trial a few different pairs and see what works best.
Today I ran an easy 9 miles. It was a trail route and was very wet indeed. My shoes and socks got quite wet and after about 4 miles I could feel that hot spot returning. Rather than push through and risk a blister I remembered some advice from the book. I took a minute to sit down and take off my shoe and sock. I got rid of all dust and dirt from the sock and shoe. Dried out the sock as much as possible and dried and wiped the foot clean. After than I had no further problems whatsoever! I'm sitting here soaking my feet at the moment and using a pummice stone to buff hard skin away. Reading accounts of all the ultra distance athletes in this book (including some from the Marathon Des Sables) makes you really appreciate just how important foot care is. I'm going to make a lot of effort to keep them in good shape now.
Same time next week...the last data record below..from Wednesdays 5 mile.
Friday I did my regular Gym session, but instead of intervals this week I did a 4.5 mile steady run.
On Saturday I walked with my girlfriend and baby son around Rudyard Lake in Staffordshire. It was a cold day. Barely above 0C...brrrr. It was only a 5 mile walk around the lake, so I carried my son in his carrier-rucksack the entire distance to compensate. I'm not sure how much he weighs, I'm guessing about 12kilos. It was intesting to note how much more strain that weight puts on your feet. After just the 5 miles the ball of my left foot was just starting with a hotspot. More of that later. Somewhere on the walk I lost my Timex data recorder. I left my phone number at the visitor centre, but there's no chance i'll see that again. They're £50 as well...ouch. I'll do without one for now maybe and just post the results straight from the timex watch instead.
I got back to the house after the walk and I'd had a delivery...a book from Amazon; "Fixing Your Feet, by John Vonhof". I've been reading this for the last couple of days. It's highly recommended. It deals with all proactive and reactive measure to help keep your feet in shape before/during and after an event. Blisters are a big focus as you can imagine. It lists countless methods of prevention and suggests trying a few to find out what works for you. I ordered some Injinji socks from the USA too about 10 days ago. These are toe-socks so each individual toe is covered by the coolmax wicking cloth, as well as the rest of the foot as normal. Be interesting to see how I get on with them. I've also found that the Asics socks I've been using are excellent too. They have a left and right foot, with cushioning matching up in all the right places on each foot. They are quite thin, much thinner than the 1000 mile socks i've been using. I'll trial a few different pairs and see what works best.
Today I ran an easy 9 miles. It was a trail route and was very wet indeed. My shoes and socks got quite wet and after about 4 miles I could feel that hot spot returning. Rather than push through and risk a blister I remembered some advice from the book. I took a minute to sit down and take off my shoe and sock. I got rid of all dust and dirt from the sock and shoe. Dried out the sock as much as possible and dried and wiped the foot clean. After than I had no further problems whatsoever! I'm sitting here soaking my feet at the moment and using a pummice stone to buff hard skin away. Reading accounts of all the ultra distance athletes in this book (including some from the Marathon Des Sables) makes you really appreciate just how important foot care is. I'm going to make a lot of effort to keep them in good shape now.
Same time next week...the last data record below..from Wednesdays 5 mile.
Sunday, February 05, 2006
Got lost, but a still good week
This weeks schedule should have been 4 miles Tuesday, 6 Wednesday, Intervals and Gym on Friday, Walk on Saturday, 8 miles on Sunday.
I got myself lost on Tuesday! Virtually all my routes are off-road trails. I headed for the fields a couple of miles away, onto a public footpath. Sadly, they footpath signs were mostly missing and I got very lost. I ended up wandering round in circles in a small wood before finding my way out. No sooner had I 'got found', then the footpath signs let me down again and I guessed left when I should have gone right. I was heading for a monument high on a high (highest local point). I ended up wallowing almost up to my knees in mud (and cow sh1t!) climbing a very steep hill up to the monument. I totally lost the path and had to cross some really hazardous terrain (over barbed wire etc). Additionally, the cows deep footprints in the ground made my progress difficult as it's really easy to turn your ankle, which I almost did on a couple of occasions. I eventually made it up, having done 6 miles instead of 4!
I also had a sports therapy session on Tuesday, focussed on my legs. This really helped, and Mike gave me some additional hamstring strecthes to do after a run. He advised it's likely to take a long time to stretch the area, but it should benefit me.
On Wednesday I redressed the balance (of going too far on Tuesday) and only did 4.5 Miles on a familiar route. I made good time on that route.
Friday I did 10x intervals, followed by a workout at the Gym. Handed back a copy of Survival of the Fittest by Mike Stroud, to my Gym trainer Clive. An excellent read, highly recommended. It even has a chapter on the Marathon Des Sables.
Saturday is my walk day. I followed the same route as Tuesday (when I got lost). However, I used the opportunity to explore a little and I now have my bearings and will run there in future. My broke my GPS before I left, so I'm not sure how far I walked. It took me 2 hours 34, so I'm guessing 7 or 8 miles.
Sunday; I got out the soldering iron and fixed the GPS. Ran just over 8 miles over nearby Cannock chase. I felt very comfortable throughout. The course was very undulating, starting on a very long hill that winds slowly for about 1.5 miles. As Sunday is my long slow run it was no problem at all. I did some hill work a few months ago and it really helped too. I could have easily done more than 8 miles, but I was disciplined and returned to the car. I'm trying to be careful and not increase my mileage anymore than the marathon schedule, so as to avoid injury.
I got myself lost on Tuesday! Virtually all my routes are off-road trails. I headed for the fields a couple of miles away, onto a public footpath. Sadly, they footpath signs were mostly missing and I got very lost. I ended up wandering round in circles in a small wood before finding my way out. No sooner had I 'got found', then the footpath signs let me down again and I guessed left when I should have gone right. I was heading for a monument high on a high (highest local point). I ended up wallowing almost up to my knees in mud (and cow sh1t!) climbing a very steep hill up to the monument. I totally lost the path and had to cross some really hazardous terrain (over barbed wire etc). Additionally, the cows deep footprints in the ground made my progress difficult as it's really easy to turn your ankle, which I almost did on a couple of occasions. I eventually made it up, having done 6 miles instead of 4!
I also had a sports therapy session on Tuesday, focussed on my legs. This really helped, and Mike gave me some additional hamstring strecthes to do after a run. He advised it's likely to take a long time to stretch the area, but it should benefit me.
On Wednesday I redressed the balance (of going too far on Tuesday) and only did 4.5 Miles on a familiar route. I made good time on that route.
Friday I did 10x intervals, followed by a workout at the Gym. Handed back a copy of Survival of the Fittest by Mike Stroud, to my Gym trainer Clive. An excellent read, highly recommended. It even has a chapter on the Marathon Des Sables.
Saturday is my walk day. I followed the same route as Tuesday (when I got lost). However, I used the opportunity to explore a little and I now have my bearings and will run there in future. My broke my GPS before I left, so I'm not sure how far I walked. It took me 2 hours 34, so I'm guessing 7 or 8 miles.
Sunday; I got out the soldering iron and fixed the GPS. Ran just over 8 miles over nearby Cannock chase. I felt very comfortable throughout. The course was very undulating, starting on a very long hill that winds slowly for about 1.5 miles. As Sunday is my long slow run it was no problem at all. I did some hill work a few months ago and it really helped too. I could have easily done more than 8 miles, but I was disciplined and returned to the car. I'm trying to be careful and not increase my mileage anymore than the marathon schedule, so as to avoid injury.
Sunday, January 29, 2006
My ailments!
Ailments.....
This week I had a sports therapy/massage session, as recommended by the makers of my orthotics and my trainer, to help me adjust to wearing them. I had the orthotics to hopefully cure some of the problems I have running. The bio analysis done when I had the orthotic made identified I have a short left leg. It's about 8mm shorter than the right one! This was a suprise to me and explains why I overpronate on my right foot. I also put 60% of my weight through my left leg. I get left knee pain when running and also at times I lose the feeling in my right foot after several miles of running. The loss of feeling looks to be 'back' related. I have a very slight scoliosis (curved spine) caused by the leg length difference it appears. I get quite a bit of lower back pain from time to time, but the chiropractor usually sorts it out. They usually cure the 'numb' right foot, which is something to do with the sciatic nerve. I'm hoping the orthotics will be a magc bullet and cure (or at least go a long way to cure) all these problems.
The sports therapist identified a lot of tightness in my back and legs. He concentrated on my back this week and wasted no time getting to work and sorting it out (ouch!!!). Afterwards I had lossened up considerably and was able to lie on my back and raise my legs far higher than before. I'd been suffering from tightness in the back on my legs (hamstring). It felt much better after the session. I'm going back on Tuesday to let him have a look at my legs. He did a few tests on my knees in this session though. My left knee was shown to be suffering overuse. I cannot tell you how much one of his tests hurt. I had to lie on my back straight and raise my left leg slightly. I then had to tense my quads as he pushed down on my kneecap. This was agony, and showed the overuse injury. I guess this is because I have been putting 60% of my weight on that side for the last 31 years! I've no idea what I can do about this right now, I'll ask on Tuesday next week.
I picked up some supplements which are widely used by runners with knee issues: Glucosamine & Chondriotin. I've not used them before, but some studies have shown they can help. Fingers crossed eh.
Ailments aside...on Friday I did 8x1min intervals, with a 1 min walk break in between, at the Gym on the treadmill. Alternating between 4mph walk for 1 minute, then up to approx 9mph for the interval. After the intervals I did my usual weekly strength session with my trainer Clive. This session typically lasts an hour and works on all the main muscle groups. I'm looking to be more focussed on leg extensions and curls, to build the right muscles for climbing hills (or even dunes!). I'm fairly flightly built at only 70kg but I can currently leg press about 230kg. In the past I've had it up to 260kg, so a little more work to do there.
I did 6 mile walk yesterday up to Mow Cop in Cheshire. It's quite a climb, especially when you have a 25lb baby in his rucksack on your back! I am going to make Saturday my weekly walking day. Eventually building up to some serious long distance walks.
On Sunday I ran 7 miles (easy pace). I felt very fresh afterwards, but didn't go any further as I want to stick to the marathon training schedule. Tomorrow's my rest day. See you next week!
This week I had a sports therapy/massage session, as recommended by the makers of my orthotics and my trainer, to help me adjust to wearing them. I had the orthotics to hopefully cure some of the problems I have running. The bio analysis done when I had the orthotic made identified I have a short left leg. It's about 8mm shorter than the right one! This was a suprise to me and explains why I overpronate on my right foot. I also put 60% of my weight through my left leg. I get left knee pain when running and also at times I lose the feeling in my right foot after several miles of running. The loss of feeling looks to be 'back' related. I have a very slight scoliosis (curved spine) caused by the leg length difference it appears. I get quite a bit of lower back pain from time to time, but the chiropractor usually sorts it out. They usually cure the 'numb' right foot, which is something to do with the sciatic nerve. I'm hoping the orthotics will be a magc bullet and cure (or at least go a long way to cure) all these problems.
The sports therapist identified a lot of tightness in my back and legs. He concentrated on my back this week and wasted no time getting to work and sorting it out (ouch!!!). Afterwards I had lossened up considerably and was able to lie on my back and raise my legs far higher than before. I'd been suffering from tightness in the back on my legs (hamstring). It felt much better after the session. I'm going back on Tuesday to let him have a look at my legs. He did a few tests on my knees in this session though. My left knee was shown to be suffering overuse. I cannot tell you how much one of his tests hurt. I had to lie on my back straight and raise my left leg slightly. I then had to tense my quads as he pushed down on my kneecap. This was agony, and showed the overuse injury. I guess this is because I have been putting 60% of my weight on that side for the last 31 years! I've no idea what I can do about this right now, I'll ask on Tuesday next week.
I picked up some supplements which are widely used by runners with knee issues: Glucosamine & Chondriotin. I've not used them before, but some studies have shown they can help. Fingers crossed eh.
Ailments aside...on Friday I did 8x1min intervals, with a 1 min walk break in between, at the Gym on the treadmill. Alternating between 4mph walk for 1 minute, then up to approx 9mph for the interval. After the intervals I did my usual weekly strength session with my trainer Clive. This session typically lasts an hour and works on all the main muscle groups. I'm looking to be more focussed on leg extensions and curls, to build the right muscles for climbing hills (or even dunes!). I'm fairly flightly built at only 70kg but I can currently leg press about 230kg. In the past I've had it up to 260kg, so a little more work to do there.
I did 6 mile walk yesterday up to Mow Cop in Cheshire. It's quite a climb, especially when you have a 25lb baby in his rucksack on your back! I am going to make Saturday my weekly walking day. Eventually building up to some serious long distance walks.
On Sunday I ran 7 miles (easy pace). I felt very fresh afterwards, but didn't go any further as I want to stick to the marathon training schedule. Tomorrow's my rest day. See you next week!
Wednesday, January 25, 2006
The Marathon Programme
The marathon programme i'm following is from here:
http://www.runnersweb.co.uk/indextrn.htm
As I said. I jumped in on Week 3 as i'm up to about 6 Miles already. I'm now on Week 4. I did the slow 6 mile on Sunday. Keeping my heart rate down to 75% proved difficult. 141bpm that would have been. In the end I settled for 145 - 150 when possible. As a result of running to that heart rate, the 6 miles took me about 66 minutes! Still, i really enjoyed the run. I actually got to look around and enjoy my surroundings whilst doing that easy pace. Normally I'm too tired to notice! I'll go for 7 miles this week, instead of 6 again.
[I subsequently ditched that programmme and formulated my own, which I posted on the blog each month for the next 2 years, starting here]
http://www.runnersweb.co.uk/indextrn.htm
As I said. I jumped in on Week 3 as i'm up to about 6 Miles already. I'm now on Week 4. I did the slow 6 mile on Sunday. Keeping my heart rate down to 75% proved difficult. 141bpm that would have been. In the end I settled for 145 - 150 when possible. As a result of running to that heart rate, the 6 miles took me about 66 minutes! Still, i really enjoyed the run. I actually got to look around and enjoy my surroundings whilst doing that easy pace. Normally I'm too tired to notice! I'll go for 7 miles this week, instead of 6 again.
[I subsequently ditched that programmme and formulated my own, which I posted on the blog each month for the next 2 years, starting here]
I'm in
Today i've received notification that i've been accepted into the 2008 Marathon Des Sable.
It's a 6 day event over 244Km accross the Sahara Desert. The equivalent of a marathon every day. For detailed information see www.saharamarathon.co.uk .
I believe everyone should set themselves an impossible challenge at least once in their lives. This is mine.
I've never run a marathon before. I've run in events for the last couple of years, but no more than 10k off road. Now I have to not only train to run a marathon. I have to train well beyond that distance. One stage of the MDS is 80Km. So I need to be an accomplished ultra-distance runner in 2 years time, to stand a chance. Did I mention temperatures reach 125F, oh and that you have to carry all your own food and equipment for the 6 days.
I've been running 2 or 3 times a week for the last couple of years, but only short distances (up to 10 miles). Now everything changes.
For the next 13 weeks, i'm doing a marathon training program. I'll post that in at some point. I've jumped in at week 3 on the program as that's about my level at the moment.
When I can run 26 miles, i'll start ultra (over 26.2miles) training. I'll then start to add weight to a back pack up to about 10 or 12 Kilos. Then I need to get some climate training in!
I use a GPS with Heart Rate Monitor and data recorder. I'll post my results from the week in as often as I can.
I'll need every day of this 2 years to give myself a fighting chance of making it. Wish me luck.
It's a 6 day event over 244Km accross the Sahara Desert. The equivalent of a marathon every day. For detailed information see www.saharamarathon.co.uk .
I believe everyone should set themselves an impossible challenge at least once in their lives. This is mine.
I've never run a marathon before. I've run in events for the last couple of years, but no more than 10k off road. Now I have to not only train to run a marathon. I have to train well beyond that distance. One stage of the MDS is 80Km. So I need to be an accomplished ultra-distance runner in 2 years time, to stand a chance. Did I mention temperatures reach 125F, oh and that you have to carry all your own food and equipment for the 6 days.
I've been running 2 or 3 times a week for the last couple of years, but only short distances (up to 10 miles). Now everything changes.
For the next 13 weeks, i'm doing a marathon training program. I'll post that in at some point. I've jumped in at week 3 on the program as that's about my level at the moment.
When I can run 26 miles, i'll start ultra (over 26.2miles) training. I'll then start to add weight to a back pack up to about 10 or 12 Kilos. Then I need to get some climate training in!
I use a GPS with Heart Rate Monitor and data recorder. I'll post my results from the week in as often as I can.
I'll need every day of this 2 years to give myself a fighting chance of making it. Wish me luck.
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