Running with the bionic man!

Today was a 6.30am start so I could have porridge before going out for a long run with a legend - Chris Moon. Chris lost his lower leg and arm by stepping on a landmine but is an unbelievable ultra runner. During our 23 mile run he talked me through the Marathon Des Sables which he has completed, with one leg! I picked up lots of tips regarding my training and learned that the walk / run is essential. He advised me that you should walk the hills, which doesn't come naturally to me, but carrying a 10kg rucksack while doing 5.5 marathons in 7 days in 40 - 50 degrees may make the walking easier! This was an important run for me as I have gone from 6 miles to 23 miles (15 miles last Sunday)in just over 2 weeks without any problems - not to be recommended though. Normally you'd only increase by 10% a run but I had to get back to the longer distances following my 5 week layoff. Come January my runs will involve a weighted rucksack. Bring it on.

2013 - what will it bring?

Hello it’s me again, wanting to wish you and your loved ones a Merry Xmas and a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year. I also wanted to give you something to think about over the festive period and you’ll be pleased to know, it won’t cost you a penny! It’s that time of year again which seems to sneak up on you – doesn’t seem like a year ago I was thinking the same thing! Can I get my work finished before the break and what will 2013 bring? For me it’s a big year as in 16 weeks time I will be completing in (with 800 athletes / nutters) the Marathon Des Sables; 5.5 marathons across the Sahara Desert in 7 days carrying my own equipment (10kg) – temperature around 40 - 50 degrees! Although I have completed 2 Ironman competitions in the past, this is in a different league so I’m pushing the boundaries. My training schedule is full on and, with the exception of Xmas day and New Years day, I will be training in whatever weather is thrown at us – currently running in the dark in freezing conditions. In January I will be running 50-80 miles per week (with a weighted rucksack) and at the end Jan I am running The Great Glen – 79 miles in 2 days. In February my mileage goes up to 80 miles plus per week and I will also be going out to the Sahara for a 4 day training camp. In addition I will be swimming, cycling and practising yoga to reduce the chance of injury. I hope you will follow my journey including the blood, sweat and tears! Please spread the word, tell others to increase awareness of Maggie's Cancer Caring Centres. I will be arranging a night in March to visit Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centre in Glasgow so you can see first hand where my fund raising efforts go. I’ll publish details nearer the time. Finally I thought you might be interested to see how complex the MdS is from a logistics point of view. Here are a few facts from the organisers of what is required to run the event: 120,000 liters of mineral water, 400 support staff, 100 volunteers for the course, 100 4�4 vehicles, 270 saharan and Berber tents, 2 “Ecureuil” helicopters and 1 “Cessna” plane, 23 buses, 6 MDS specific commercial planes, 4 camels, 4 quads bikes, 3 mountain bikes, 1 incinerator lorry for burning waste, 52 strong medical team, 6,5 kms of Elastoplast , 2,700 compeed blister plasters, 19,000 compresses, 6,000 painkillers and 150 litres of disinfectant, 6 satellite telephones, 15 computers, fax and internet, 1 editing bus, 5 cameras and 1 satellite image station, Unbelievable isn’t it and I can’t wait to get out there. Thanks for reading my post. I am often told I am MAD but I hope you’ll agree that what they really mean is that I am Making A Difference! Have a fantastic Xmas. Derek

Learning to walk!

This morning I headed up Tinto, a beautiful hill in South Lanarkshire. Many years ago I used to fly a hang glider on Tinto but today it was a treck with a weighted rucksack (5kg). The path was rutted, covered in ice and lying water so I had to be carefull. On the steep sections you could feel the weight in the rucksack and it made me wonder how tough it will be going up large sand dunes with 10kg in 40-50 degrees heat! Learning to walk is an important part of the training and Tinto provides me with a perfect training ground. I didn't get to the top as it got too icy but I did reach cloudbase so for safety reasons I turned back. This type of training is active recovery and has loosened off my legs for tomorrows long run which will be between 15 - 20 miles. I'll be back on Tinto soon and hope, in the better weather, to run to the top as this is the kind of fitness I need for MdS.

Ordinary people, extra ordinary achievements

Last night I went to a business meeting of the IOD and met some inspiring people. Not olympic athletes but ordinary people doing extra ordinary things. Whether it was organising the medals for the rowing presentations at the Olympics, to climbing new peaks in Antartica, to changing peoples lives. When I am in company of people like this it inspires me to work harder to achieve my goal of completing MdS. So tonight I was out for a 10 mile run in freezing temperatures. This will be a 4 day block of running with a long distance run of 15 - 20 miles on Sunday. This will be my training pattern till April to get my body used to condensed mileage before I start adding weight into a rucksack. That's when the fun will start but it's amazing what ordinary people can achieve.

High tech feet

Feet are awesome. They take the full burden of our weight and if there are any imperfections it can affect our whole structure. Years ago I realised this and when running I wear orthotics to balance out the imperfections. As I've had a foot and ankle injury recently I revisited my Poditrist to check my orthotics. I ran with "electronic pads" in my shoes which gave a pressure map showing 60 pressure points on each foot. When running with the orthotics the map was well balanced which is good news. However without the orthotics I was like a runner with one leg! Now the poditrist is sourcing a new covering for the orthotics to reduce friction and keep the heat down. He is using me as a case study so it should be interesting over the next few months. However training in freezing conditions isn't very helpful for preparing for the heat of the desert. But there isn't much choice at the moment so I'll just have to layer up and get out there with my high tech feet!

Winter running

The wind was howling when I woke up this morning. Did I really have to go out this morning? Of course I did. It was dry but the roads were a bit tricky in places as I headed out with the "ultra crowd". I was looking forward to a nice slow paced long run - I got neither. They were only heading out for 10 miles so as a result on the second half of the run they upped the pace. It wouldn't normally be a problem except for my lack of running but I hung on. At the end of the 10 miles I tagged on another five on my own as I really do need to increase my mileage. In 6 weeks time I'll be tackling the Great Glen which is 79 miles in two days so I don't have a choice. In 9 days I've gone from 6 miles to 15 and I hope to be up to marathon distance at the beginning of January. When I got home I jumped into a freezing cold bath. The first 2 minutes are agony but it helps with the recovery. Then into my compression tights, not a pretty sight, followed by hydration and lots of food. After all I've burned off 1,800 calories this morning and my muscles need protein to help recover. Now off for a recovery nap!

Hibernation!

It all makes sense to me know - hibernation. I mean, who in their right mind would be outside in this bitterly cold weather? I've tried but had a few "Bambi moments" and headed back indoors. This week has been extremely busy, stressful and involved travelling. My son shadowed me for a week at work for experience. We had a great time but 2 days in London knocks the training out. So I've been on the turbo trainer, which sits next to a radiator, and am delighted to report my "turbo legs" are back. My heart rate is back to normal so I'm feeling good. In London I ran on a treadmill for an hour and although this isn't something I enjoy, it was a good workout. Last night I headed out for a run in the dark and was on my bum before I reached the front gate so back in for another turbo session. But I need running miles in my legs so I'm heading out on the trails this afternoon on this dry, sunny and freezing cold day. Here's hoping I stay up right. But before that I'm off to the local farmers market with my wife to get in the food for tonight we are having friends round for dinner. I'll need to be carefull on the liquid carbs as tomorrow I am away running with the Ultra Runners. Should be fun!