Building the base

Now the serious training starts. The weekend was about getting the mileage up in my running legs. Today I had my 1-2-1 yoga lesson and for 1 hour I worked myself into a pool of sweat. I'm loving it and it is so intense which is right up my street. I love learning new things especially when I can see the benefits. After a busy day at work I needed to fit in a short run before my swimming session. The September run challenge involves running 6 days a week for the month with the minimum run time being 20 minutes. So being time pressed I did the minimum and then went for my swim training. There won't be any swimming in the desert but it keeps my legs from stiffing up after the running. This is a coached session so we were worked hard and looking at my times, my swimming has slipped. But I'll pick it back up in the coming weeks. I think I'll sleep tonight!

Recovery is essential

After a big training weekend it is important to recovery properly. So with every glass of wine to ease the aches and pains I drank an equivalent galss of water! I slept like a baby but woke with legs as stiff as a board. So I went downstairs at 6am and did my 15 minute yoga practice and realised my legs felt fantastic! With hamstrings like mine this was a real surprise and it makes me realise how important that early morning yoga session is. So no more exercise for the remainder of the day and plenty of good food and hydration, without the wine! Tomorrow morning my yoga teacher will be putting me through my paces in a 1-2-1 session which will set me up for my return to swimming training in the evening.

Endurance training

What a fantastic weekend of playing at being an athlete. It's amazing what you can do when you "park life" and concentrate on running. After our morning session yesterday we went out for "efforts". That involved a 2 mile run out and back with 12 minutes of hill climbing in the middle. This was followed by a wonderful hour of yoga. That would be a wonderfully difficult or relaxing hour depending in whether or not you are "bendy". I'm nt so it was tough but hugely beneficial - thank Mark. This morning we woke up to horrible weather. 18 miles across beautiful countryside. That's double the distance I had ran this year. But it was brilliant. Day off tomorrow and a well earned rest.

Honesty

Generally speaking people either say I'm mad, daft or wish me well when they find out I am training for the Marathon des Sables. However when talking to a bunch of runners at the training camp last night one of them was brutally honest. "You won't finish it" he said - there was a pause in the conversation as the others looked at him. DK is known for his frank views but this one seemed too honest. People may think I won't make it but nobody, until last night, had actually expressed it. So a bet of £10 was made and I am looking forward to collecting it. Apparently my "continual positivity" annoys some people but that's not my problem. If people want to limit themselves then that is their choice. We didn't fall out over it as everyone is entitled to their opinion. So yesterday we did a wee 5 mile warm up and this morning a 9 miler with a very big hill! It's brilliant. I also started the morning with my yoga and will have another yoga session today after we have completed another run this afternoon. This is quality training and it will take me closer to removing £10 from a "doubting Thomas"!

How do you eat an elephant?

Taking on the marathon Des Sables is a bit like eating an elephant, or at least I think it should be althouth I have done neither. The point I am getting to is that rather than be overwhelmed by the magnitude of the event you need to break it down into smaller parts. So today was a simple run as part of my run every day in September challenge. However the man flu (aka a common cold) was lurking around so I decided to work from home and see how I felt. My wife who is definately suffering from the cold, sneezed all day so staying at home may backfire on me. At 5pm and lacking energy I decided it was now or never. I completed a very short 3.28 miles and although felt hellish all the way round, by the time i got out the shower I could feel my energy coming back to normal levels. These "small victories" help condition your mind to "man up...". There are people really suffering out there so I should count myself lucky - I do. Tomorrow I am off to a three day intensive run camp and I think the phrase "man up" will come to mind more than once. But if I am going to succeed in the Sahara Desert in 7 months time I can't miss out the small steps on the way.

Man flu?

Man flu is a lot more serious than most women give credit. However seen as this "bug" has been passed on by my wife she can't say it's not real! It's at an early stage and I feel tired and sore but this could also be due to the yoga and running session this morning - the later in the rain. It's bad timing as on Friday I am off to a three day running camp which is always tough. So I am resting for the remainder of the day and hope it will pass. Man down!

Andy Murray's belief

Can you believe it? Britain has it's first Grand Slam winner in 76 years - Andy Murray. As a nation there are mixed feelings about Andy with many doubting he "had what I took" to win a Grand Slam. But last night Andy took control and achieved what no other Brit had done in 76 years. It didn't happen over night, this victory has taken a lifetime to achieve. But most importantly, Andy ignored all the noise made by the press, all the doubters and kept his focus on the prize. I had the privilege of meeting him in 2008 when he was no. 11 in the world. Even then you could see his determination but he wasn't ready for greatness although he got to no. 4 by at year end. He has put up with so much rubbish in the press. I worked with him on three occasions with a group of kids and he gave them his full attention - he's a good guy. But my admiration is for how he has kept believing when it would have been easier to be the runner-up all the time. It will be interesting to watch his career develop now his belief has been rewarded, and his peers realise he's broken his "duck". Well done Andy.