I'm currently on a train bound for Bristol. Not for a race or event,
not to crew or spectate but for a lads weekend! It should be great,
we've known each other for the best part of 30 years and when we get
together it's like we are 13 again. Great lads and proper mates.
This has impacted my training in that I am a run down. I should have 6
miles this morning but with a combination of rugby (I watched my son
and definitely did not play myself) and now having to get a train it
just wasn't feasible. There's no problem as this is week 2 in the
training and while it would have been to get out in the cold this
morning it's not the end of the world.
This was was to be another hard week with the schedule being:
Rest - 4miles - 6 miles - 4 miles - rest - 18 miles - 6 miles
As with last week on the shorter runs I have run the distance as a
whole in the morning taking a shorter run home in the evening. My long
run I did split over 2 sessions in the same day running 15 in the
morning and 3.8 home. This puts me up on my mileage for the week (40.1
miles) and is a nice way of keeping ticking over, particularly as I am
taking more rest days than ever before.
Rest days are a new experience for me really. So while I have heard
about the and read about them I've never really used them properly. I
would normally take a Saturday as a rest day so I could focus on some
other things. Now it's different, I rest on days before my long run
and after my back-to-back session. I feel very fresh when I set out
and do not struggle, my recovery from these runs is also excellent and
backing up runs has not been an issue as yet. This is a good start but
it is only that.
Next week is an easy week with a schedule as follows
Rest - 4miles - 4 miles - 4 miles - rest - 18 miles - 4 miles
Despite being easy there's still the long run in there, I'm going to
look to get closer to that in one run this coming week.
I'm loving the structure of the training and that I rarely feel
fatigued or unable to run. I did use amino acids (SciMX Amino Fusion)
on this weeks long run and will continue that as I go forward. The
scientific evidence to support it may be sketchy but I think it works
and it certainly doesn't have a detrimental effect so I will continue.
The same applies to calf guards. I wear them religiously on every run
(I wear Compressport and Skins a400's) it's gotten to the point where
I think I would feel naked without them. The benefits may be unproven
but, as with the amino acids, I think they work and as they are not
detrimental will continue with them. I remember when I first got them
and used to get a lot of stick for looking like a 6th form hockey
player but over time I see more and more people wearing them.
I'm just pulling into Bristol now and have finished my tea (likely to
be my last alcoholic drink for at least the next 12 hours).
Week 3 beckons like a Lycra clad temptress. Bring it on!
