Go Hard

After taking a break from blogging I'm back. No break from running in that time. I just wasn't getting what I needed from posting. Not a lot more to it. I'll skip all the ins and out of what I've done and get right into my most recent adventure. On the weekend was the Wilsons Promontory 100km . Included in the event were 44 and 60km options. If you don't know anything about the Prom I'll sum it up as one of the most spectacular places on earth, filled with amazing views and Australian wildlife. It is also the southern most part of the Australian mainland. Do yourself a favour and get down here. Quite a number of work friends competed, and to steal a term from one of the group, it appears we must be a bunch of freaks . All distances were covered. Shift workers and ultra runners made for a massive party house with all in bed by 9pm. The house we were staying at was in Yanakie and that had us about 30km out from the race start. Which sounds like a long way, but if ...

Training now moves away from the generalised style I've been holding recently. Time now to kick in the focus and aim directly for the Surfcoast Century in September. That gives me exactly three months from today. From here on in I will mainly be working on an 8-day week, with a fairly standard weekly structure. Most variation from this will be a byproduct of having to find different ways to get the training in. Of course there will be progression embedded into this structure. Day 1: Easy - Fundamental run 8-10km Day 2: VO2 Intervals: 4x1000m @ 3:45, 1000m rec @ 5:30, progressing towards 4x2000m with 500m rec. Total 12-15km Day 3: Fundamental 20-25km Day 4: Hill Sprints 10km Day 5: Regeneration - Easy 8-12km Day 6: Long 40-60km with race gear/nutrition. Aim for even style pacing, err on easy. Only after distance is covered then push up pace. Day 7: Easy 10-12km Day 8: Fundamental 12-18km on technical terrain. A pace guide for flat terrain is: Regeneratio...

Well I did it. My first 100km trail ultra is done and dusted. In short, it was an amazing experience. This is how it unfolded. I stayed down with my wife, kids and sister in a nice house a short distance from the race. A pretty chilled evening, some simple pasta and disappointing loss in the AFL prelim. In the middle was race registration and briefing. Signing in had me feeling nervous for the first time, but I soon relaxed after catching up with a few people. Though it played on my mind I couldn't check and recheck my drop bags after I handed them over, even though I'd already checked them at least ten times. The sleep was a little disturbed, but that's no problem. I'd slept well during the rest of the week. Up early, liquid breakfast, coffee and a selection of stretches and movements had me feeling loose and ready. Soon enough I got my way down to the start. The weather was brilliant. Bright blue skies, plenty of sun and a light cool breeze. I couldn't ask fo...