OMG!

At 6.15am I was on my yoga mat with my teacher Pamela Young (check out www.pamelayoung.co.uk). She took me through most of the Ashtanga series for the first time although I had covered all the individual moves before. It took me to the limit of my fitness and beyond. I was completely exhausted by the end and tonight I had to clean my yoga mat which had been saturated in sweat. It's not often I reach a point where I really don't think I can go any futher. But I have complete faith in Pam and while I feel as though I can't breath and am drowning, I know she wouldn't put me in danger. Yes this is yoga I am talking about. So the stiffness that was in my legs that needed a sports massage - gone. When I got home from work I was exhausted so I jumped in the bath. I couldn't believe it when I was able to reach past my toes - getting to my ankles is difficult enough! This is a full body workout and is essential to my training programme so it reinforces my belief that yoga will serve me well in the preparation for MdS.

First snow

This morning I awoke, early, to a blanket of white snow. Not too thick but enough to know the usual car accidents would be happening in the morning. So I jumped out of bed and got on the turbo trainer to exercise out the stiffness in my legs from yesterdays run. I could easily have stayed in bed but there is no room for being lazy as my trining is behind and I try and play catch up. My legs started to ease by the end of the session but I'd put them under no real pressure. Much more interested in flushing out any lactic acid. However when I started my yoga I was surprised at how stiff they still were. After a spin I am usually ok so the 10 mile run had affected them. The good news is that there were no aches or pains from my foot, ankle, achillies or calf. It was mainly my quads and hamstrings that were complaining. I am sure tomorrows yoga session with Pam will sort me out but I'll also be booking a spots massage just to make sure my legs are getting some TLC!

2nd run

After my birthday which involved a few more liquid carbs than healthy I went out for my second run since returning from illness and injury. You are meant to increase your running distance by a maximum of 10%, but I don't have time for that. So my 6 miles increased to 10 miles. I managed without any problem but my legs did feel it. So when I got home it was straight into an ine cold freezing bath. I lasted 5 minutes but thought my feet were going to explode with the cold. My legs are a bit stiff so tomorrow I'll be on the turbo to ease my legs. So progress but we'll see if there is any fall out in the next couple of days! What a great weekend.

Birthday boy

Today was my 51st birthday. Last year was the quickest year of my life - woosh! The amazing thing is, I'm fitter at 51 that I've ever been in my life. And it's all due to a change in mindset. Today I was away with my wife at the Nick Nairn Cookery School making a three course meal - what an amazing experience. Doing things I never thought possible. A bit like preparing for MdS. The older I get I realise it's not physical, it's mental. If you think you can, then you'll make it happen. Tomorrow I will stretch my running but at the same time be careful as I don't want any more set backs. I've come to the conclusion, my mind is expanding the possibilities and I'm getting younger! All because I'm pushing the boundaries and loving it. Come on. Join in!

I'm back

My new running shoes arrived today and having not run in five weeks I thought it time to see how the possible stress fracture, the swollen ankle, the thickened achilles and the tight calf were getting on. But first I had to put in a days work. So at 5pm I headed out into the dark with my head torch. It was 1 degree centigrade - bloody freezing. Within 20 metres I had gone over on my ankle - running with a head torch isn't ideal but fortunately there was no damage. I ran easily for 10k and ignored the time. It was good to be back running. I had felt a few tweaks but nothing painful. So as a precaution I soaked my calves and feet in an ice cold bath for 5 minutes. Brrrrrrrr. Tomorrow I have a day off training but on Sunday I'll pick up the training and stretch the distance.

Amazing new diet

I am very fortunate never to have had a weight problem. However the drawback would be if I ever fell over board I wouldn't last long in the water as I have little body fat. But if there is one thing I don't want to be it's the skinny guy with a pot belly! So what am I on about a diet for? A strange thing happened to me this morning when I finished my training. My stomach requested a change in my diet. It's happened before when training for Ironman events and I can only assume it's like the cravings pregnant women get. When training for an endurance event you need more calories than normal, but the right type. Recently I have been overdosing on chocolate which isn't really a problem but you do feel sluggish. After a breakfast of porridge (my norm) and a fresh green smoothie I was off to the supermarket for my greek yoghurt, bananas, grapes, mixed nuts & raisins (1,000 calories in that pack alone), tuna and wholegrain rice. I've snacked during the day and my energy levels are through the roof. My stomach is now quiet and I think happy. So I'll be piling on the veg tonight or salad with my meal. It seems that my body is guiding me as to what I need for the sharp increase in exercise - feels great!

Sore, tired but feeling good!

It's nice to be feeling almost back to normal. As I woke for my 6am turbo session I took stock; slightly dehydrated from 3 glasses of wine late last night (they were required after a seriously crap day), sore muscles either from some weight training with my son 2 days before or the yoga session yesterday or the fall in the shower! So generally ok. I did an efforts session on the turbo parked next to a radiator to get me used to working out in the heat. The sweat poured out of me and I consumed double the amount of water - note to self, lay off the wine when training at 6am! But it's great to almost be back to normal - I'll say normal once I have a few runs under my feet and the injuries don't flair up. You forget what it's like to feel healthy when your a shivering snot factory so I'm going to enjoy this feeling. The aches and pains are just a result of my body getting used to regular training again - bring it on!