Back to winter training!

Training for an endurance event early in the season is difficult because so much of the hard work is done in the dark, the cold and the rain or snow. We are half way through May now but when I got home It was chucking it down with rain and blowing a whooly as we say in Scotland. I switched my bike ride to an indoor turbo session which was hot and sweaty, ideal for Lanzarote preparation but then went out for my run off the bike into the elements. It wasn't nice but I know in 8 days time I will probably be glad of these conditions because I will be running the marathon element in the 30's! So not long to go now. Today I will be doing my last pool session and on Saturday I have a 50 mile ride and a run off the bike. The rest of weekend will be spent packing and making sure my planning for the day is sorted.

Blind faith

It was a beautiful sunny day up north yesterday and I watched in awe as a blind man with a long White stick negotiated his way along the busy main street in Perth. Tap, tap, tap with his stick gave him the feedback he needed to know where he was in the street so he could "visualise" his route. I thought how difficult this must have been to learn and how much faith you had to have in your own ability but the benefit is he has his independence - what a brave man. The Image stayed with me during the day as I though how important the feedback from the stick was and how having key milestones would let him know where he was. I have employed a similar principle in my last 7 months training to ensure i arrive at the destination (the event) in peak condition. Unfortunately however I didn't bargain on getting a cold but I have 9 days to get over it. As for the blind man, he is making sure that despite his disability he "gets out there" and makes the most of his life. Perhaps we should all take note of this and make the most of our lives because you never know what's round the corner.

Mechanical problems

Another rainy bank holiday although our office was open today so I was able to catch up with a lot of work as nobody rang us. It was also a rest day but my niggling calf muscle wasn't easing off so I phoned the Physio. John is a retired triathlete and was able to identify the problem as mechanical I.e. Not something that is going to be corrected after 1 or 2 visits. Basically I put more weight on my right leg than I do my left. This would explain why my left calf and quad muscles are smaller than my right. This will be redressed when I get back from Lanzarote because it will be a bigger problem when my training starts for Marathon des Sables! He had some great advice for the event; "when you feel the pain ignore it. When it gets worse press on and if it becomes unbearable then grit your teeth, man up and finish the task - you are an Ironman". Good advice and he can pick up the pieces afterwards.

Passion in sport

Another semi-final for my son this morning and they came back from 2 nil down to win 5 - 2 with Ali scoring.  It was a nerve racking game with some brutal tackles going in and the opposition players swearing at us and parents exchanging words - the ref was a joke which didn't help.  The hand shake at the end of the day turned into some ugly scenes with a few punches being thrown.  This is kids U15 football and while I love seeing passionate players, when it gets out of control it's disappointing.  However their hard work now has them in 2 finals - well done Strathaven Dynamos.
So it was a relief, after all that stress, to get on my bike and complete a 25 mile Time Trial.  My fastest ever average speed at 19 mph over the distance which was a good workout.  So now to rest and eat with a bit of stretching. My stats are backing up that the training programme has worked and that as I rest and recover I will be in peak condition for Lanza which is now 13 days away! 

Day off

It seems like a long time since I had a Saturday off but it was necessary today to give my calf muscle a rest.  So instead of training I went shopping, did DIY (unheard off for me) around the house, taxied the kids around, prepared lunch and got in the food for dinner.  I'm knackered!  But it made a nice change.  I've also been making arrangements for Lanza as it's only 9 days before I leave.  In the meantime I will take the opportunity to put my feet up and rest - coaches orders!

Getting down to business

This mornings swim session was short but good, 2,500m.  All my times were fast which shows that the rest I've been enjoying has allowed my body to recover.  This is exactly what my training plan is designed to do.  I then met with my coach briefly and we started discussing my timings for the race.  This was the first time we had discussed the subject but she had analysed all the training data on my long sessions.  We agreed on the swim and run time but have a slight disagreement on the bike time - she thinks I could be 30  minutes quicker.  This is a real compliment but in the end we ran out of time so this subject is to be revisited next week.  In the end there are so many factors that could change everything on the day, but you need a plan.
I then had a sports massage and have been nursing a tight calf muscle for the last month.  It needs a rest so tomorrows training sessions have been cancelled just to give it time to recover.  This isn't a problem as the hard work has been done and now is not the time to take a chance.  The next week will involve short quality sessions with plenty of rest days.  It feels great.

It's not about the length!

It's almost a week since I have been in the pool so I knew I'd be a wee bit rusty.  My session was a 500m  warm up, 300m fast followed by 2 x 1,000m - relatively short compared to my more recent training however that doesn't mean the value is reduced.  Quiet the opposite.  This was a quality session and I focused on my technique, not my time.  I was against the clock but concentrated on my technique and guess what - both were good!
In the pool you mix with a lot of different swimmers and at that time in the morning there are a few 70 year olds who carve through the water giving away there past as a serious swimmer.  One of them mentioned to me that he had noticed the change in my swimming from last week i.e. more relaxed and when I explained I was tapering he confirmed to me the importance of this stage based on his previous sporting experience.  I hope when I get to my 70's I'm able to get in the pool at 7.30am and knock out 2,000m before breakfast.  These guys really inspire me to keep going and they offer a lot of support by just being there and encouraging me.  Thanks guys.