Wednesday 5 September 2018

Cruising - the new endurance event!

Life is about balance. There are 52 weeks in a year and most of us work between 45-48 weeks with the time off referred to as holidays.  But if I am a good example I normally turn up at my holiday so tired that it takes a few days to de stress as the week prior to going is usually frantic as I try and cram everything in before going away.
Leaving work aside, which was manic as always, I still had to squeeze my training in as the 18th November will come around quick enough and I want to give the 65km ultra my best shot - finish the season on a high.  So knowing I was going to be on holiday my coach gave me some serious back to back running before I went off and combined with work and trying to pack a suit case, it meant early morning runs.
While I have no training scheduled when away, I can’t just let my fitness slide as I try and avoid coming off this cruise ship as cargo!  This is a serious endurance event, I’m not looking for sympathy.  Your daily routine is planned around food, the quality of which is staggering.  Then there’s the fine wine that accompanies it - be rude not to.  So I’m trying to be a good boy and choose my food every carefully, drink the wine in moderation, hydrate with water, take the stairs every time (there are a serious amount of stairs) and run 30 minutes most days with yoga every other day.
But running on a cruise ship isn’t easy.  There is a running track on it but it’s also a walk way full of people meandering all over the place. 1 lap takes 50 seconds so it gets boring.  The treadmill is ok except for when the sea is rough.  At first I thought I was drunk staggering to the front of the treadmill then almost falling off the back.  In 30 minutes without using elevation on the treadmill my Garmin reported I had ascended 20 metres - big waves!
So between the lobster, steak, puddings to die for (literally) and fine wine I’m treating my body with plenty of rest, sleep and a few massages.  I think I’ll be lucky to get away with 7 added pounds when I step on the scales but I know it will be back to beans on toast and my coach will ramp up the training again.  It’s good to get a break away from the routine and stress but this cruise could be described as a new endurance event.  Got to go, dinner beckons!