Go Hard

Wow, I've reached 40 years old. It's been suggested that I'm now old, but I don't feel it. Not a bad milestone to stimulate a little thinking. One question I have been asked a lot is why run? Some things just feel right. They can be different for every person. Some are lucky they find what elevates them early. Most will have to try many activities to discover what clicks for them. What resonates within you may also change over time. For myself I had the first indicators running was for me back in primary school. I wasn't fast, sprints were almost embarrassing, but I ran the school cross country (2-3km). I wasn't in winning contention. I don't think I could have run any faster, but there were two things that stuck out in my mind. Firstly, on finishing I felt like I could just go and run the race again at the same pace. More importantly I absolutely loved the running itself. From there I didn't go into heavy running, but off and on I dabbled in i

It feels really good to be back into the routine of running. Everyone has different things that just click for them, and running is something that works for me. I've managed to put together two 58km weeks. The volume itself doesn't seem a problem. I've reached a long run of 2 hours and nothing feels particularly hard. As predicted it is trying to push the speed that creates problems. The slightly faster runs are where the hint of problems show up. During the runs are fine, but once I get down to anything faster than 5:00/km I'm getting some swelling and a bit of that awkward feeling around the injured ligament afterwards. Nothing major and it subsides quickly, but it is an indicator that's where my current limit lies. The good news is if I hold the pace I seem to be able to keep adding distance. When preparing for ultramarathons that's the main priority. I'll keep my focus on that and let the speed follow up behind as my body allows. At least I'm n

These posts are mainly a reminder to myself to not go too hard yet. On half my runs this week my legs have been itching to just open it up. Maybe I can get away with that. Maybe it will add to my fitness. Maybe it's just what I need. Unfortunately the down side is there is a big risk that it will put me back many weeks in injury. I'm not taking that chance. Ligaments take a long time to get back to full strength, and that's only if you do the right work. Two months isn't long to get ready for a 50km trail race. To make sure I can do it I cannot afford the down side of taking risks in training. On the up side, consistency with regular mild progression usually reaps some rewards in running. It does take time, so patience is a virtue. It helps to look back through the weekly run volume over the last few weeks. The magic isn't in the numbers. It is what you do within and around those numbers. That said, the weekly totals do tell a good part of the story. 4.7km 18.0km 3

In theory I'm out of the rehabilitation phase and starting my training phase. Of course the reality isn't that clear cut. Once ligaments have been injured they take a very long time to get close to their previous strength. This has to be taken into for months. A better way for me to think about this is that this is now part of my training. At least I've now reached the day where I can run daily and now start pushing my boundaries back out. A race that's become a must-do on my race calendar is the Surfcoast Century . It was my first 100km race back in 2012 ( read the race report here ). Since then it's developed into a great get together with some friends from work. This year the plan has been to take part in a 2 person relay. 50km each. At the start of this year we were hoping to see really challenge ourselves and see just how fast we could go. At this point I confident I won't be breaking any records. To ensure I get to the start line will require training sm

Past 6 weeks for rehabilitation of my high ankle sprain. By the text books it says I can now return to my sport. I am back running, but I am taking an extra conservative approach. It is possible I could be pushing the running a lot more, but the consequences of getting it wrong are too big if I do. I don't want another month on the sidelines. There's no pain from at all from the initial injury. Which can be a problem in itself as the ligaments are probably only at 50% of their previous strength at best. So there isn't a warning system built in that stops me from doing damage if I push things too far. Once pain shows up it is already too late. My approach is to make time my friend and take it bit by bit. Just gradually increase the run loading while doing a significant amount of strengthening, mobility and other exercises around it. Hopefully I can increase my agility and proprioception to well above pre-injury levels. The runs are very short by my usual standards, but supp

Some good timing for the family holiday. With Winter highlighting its arrival with some very cold mornings it was time to head to a warmer climate. This part was purposefully planned. The timing had nothing to do with fitting into my ankle rehab plans. Yet this part also fitted in quite nicely. Relaxation, pools, beach, sun, heat, drink, food and no work drew us out to Khao Lak, Thailand. Amongst the usual holiday stuff I continued the progression in my ankle. On holidays I usually enjoy getting up early and exploring the area with some morning runs. Obviously this wasnt happening this time. No problem and surprisingly to me, not too disappointing. So far the mornings involve an early rise without an alarm. Down to the beach for some breathing exercises, meditation and yoga plus some exercises for my ankle with some walking. Then into the resort's gym for strength training. There's a good amount of walking interspersed throughout the days that there's no need for a dedicate