Saturday, September 3, 2016

Getting back the legs after holiday running!

The Summer holidays are well over, and those new routes and unexpected views are a long car journey away. Memories of hitting new trig points and having my own back yard run everyday in Wales, a 1.8mile fell run with around 600ft climbing through the farmers fields (with permission) to the trig point, where every day there was different light and conditions, just awesome. I even got to run with some foxes on one day. This run unexpectedly prepared me for the Burnsall Classic Fell race better than I could have planned where I came in 40th position in a respectable 22:09.



Well I'm back in Leeds and on this Saturday morning when writing this and it was back to normal...raining! I'm was conscious of races coming up fast.

The Dales Trails DT40 trail marathon which was to be in 3 weeks time...a race which has been extended to full marathon distance will be my first marathon distance race since the Kielder marathon last year. The DT40 would be closely followed by the Coastal Trail Ultra marathon in the North York Moors a week later, and possibly a charity marathon a week after that with Brendan Randell who did the #RunMalawi recently. I must be mad, the prospect of 3 marathons in 3 weeks is daunting but I believe I have done the training this year and it will be more the mental endurance required to keep on going, perseverance in the face of physical and a willingness to recover in between.

I just need to get the legs back after holiday running and too many chips and burgers. when I got back to work 2 weeks ago... I was determined the first day back at work was a lunch time hill repeat session 3.5 miles of about 1000ft, its amazing what you can squeeze into life when you want to. I have put in some longer runs and one of my own #EastChevin10 hill repeat sessions which is 4200ft climbing (x10 reps of about 400+ft ) in Otley with a distance of 13.5ish miles. This prepared me really well for the Round Sheffield Run in June.
Come on legs!



Boom! (Poem)

Pouring over the ordinance
Surveying the possibility
Of a cracking run,
Measuring short or far?
There is no question,
Fuelled, so go on, go long.
Time to go...laces tied,
Fire at the ready, 
Pull the trigger,
Boom!