Wind, rain & sleet

In less than 4 weeks time I will be taking part in the "toughest footrace on the planet" - the Marathon Des Sables. I have to keep repeating this as it's been a dream for the last 2 years while I have been preparing for it and now it is just around the corner. So when running with my friend on the trails of Chatelherault Country Park, I gave some thought to the contrast in conditions. It was 3 degrees, windy, rainy and by the time the end was approaching it had turned to sleet! In 4 weeks it will be 40 degrees - like stepping into a furnace, and then running in it with 10kg on my back. I'll need to spend more time in the sauna to see if I can extend the time beyond 15 minutes. I've layered up with clothing but nothing can really prepare me for what I am about to go through. So a few long runs interupted by shorter runs to keep me ticking over as MDS is just around the corner. This afternoon I am going food shopping with my wife to see if I can finally get the food I want for the desert. Watch this space.

Sweat fest

It's Friday. It's been a long week but the training goes on. At 6.15am I was on my yoga mat going through my paces with my yoga teacher Pamela Young (www.pamelayoung.co.uk). She pushes me beyond what I think is possible. I'm usually a "can do" person but sometimes the yoga is scary, especially when I can't breath or I'm upside down and canto't work out what's going on. But she pushes, gently, and pushes and tries to get my brain to let go of it's thoughts and to keep breathing - when you do this amazing things happen. After an hour I was drowning in a pool of sweat which I lay in to recover. Great start to the day. Then for a full on day at the office. When I got home I needed to go for a run but I knew from this morning that I still has some swelling in my back from the previous weekend and as I was going on a big run on Saturday I should give it a rest. So I jumped on my turbo trainer - sweat fest no. 2. It's been a while and it felt like it but in such a short period of time you can get a great workout, and another pool of sweat. Now I'm relaxing. Tomorrow is another, training, day. Have a great weekend.

Past the test!

It was big day today in that I needed my GP to sign off on my ECG. He was very thorough and went through 3 different methods of assessing the data. The good news is I don NOT have "athlete's heart". Part of me feels disappointed but actually it is better not to have an enlarged left ventrical. He signed off on my pulse and blood pressure so all that remains is for the medical team in the Sahara to agree. Tomorrow I will be seeing the nurse for some jabs in case I pick something up in the desert. My training was restricted to yoga in the morning but I will be repeating this tomorrow when I have my 1:1 lession with my teacher - the toughest workout of the week. I'll have a run tomorrow night before some big miles at the weekend. My wife has found some protein pasta and we're going shopping for good instant soup on Saturday. My food plan will be complete by Sunday night which is one more, important, thing off my list. It's getting closer.

Head chattering

I didn't have a good nights sleep last night. A voice in my head kept chattering to me; what about your nutrition strategy for the mds, have you done enough training, you've peaked too soon! Aargh. It's common when big events are approaching to have doubts but the volume seems to have turned up recently in my head. So I needed to silence the voice and there was only one way to do that - have a good workout. At 6.15am I was on my yoga mat for a warm up. I felt a bit stiff but after 20 minutes felt the benefit of it. Then I headed out for a 10 mile run with 5kg on my rucksack. I wanted to make sure I didn't have a re-occurance of my back problem, and I didn't. The 10 miler was easy and I was pleased with the pace that I kept up. It was cold, grey and windy but I needed to get this run done so the voice in my head would say "ok you're in reasonable shape"! Then off to work for a full on day. This evening my paramedic pal Chris called round and set me up with a resting and an exercising ECG. You require this if you are to cross the start line. All readings were normal although normal on the exercising one shows I have an "athlete's heart" i.e. an enlarged left ventrical. Tomorrow at 8.30am my GP will review the results and hopefully sign it off or refer me to a cardioligist. Without this there is no MDS but it should be ok. As for the voice in my head hopefully it will be quiet tonight but I do need to get my food sorted and hope to make progress this weekend as it is vital. I could probably have done more training but you need to get a balance and make sure you don't pick up an injury - especially at this stage. So I'm relaxed, nervous, excited and can't wait to get out there so the second part of the adventure can begin (the first part was the training). Isn't it just great setting stretching goals and working towards them taking yourself into new, unchartered territory?

Sunset running

I love the month of March. The crap months of Jan & Feb are out of the way, the temperature starts to register as positive and there are more hours of daylight. As my back had been sore yesterday and I rested it, I decided to leave my 10 mile run to late afternoon giving me an extra 9 hours of rest before running. I also decided to leave my rucksack off to see how I got on. It was a lovely spring late afternoon and I watched as the sun was going down while I put in a fast run. Having no rucksack meant I had the opportunity of running freely and increasing the pace. This was therefore a good, intense workout and although my pace will be much slower in the desert, it gave me the opportunity of a different type of workout. It also allowed me time to think through my food which is now becoming more urgent. I need a diet that will give me enough calories to sustain me throught the 7 day ordeal - there's no point in thinking it will be anything else. Running 232km in 7 days (225km in the first 6 days), in 40 degrees, in sand, with no showers, making your own food and some huge dunes to climb - it's not going to be a picnic! I need to expect pain and be prepared to deal with it. There will be plenty of times when I will want to give up, but that's not an option. That's where you come in. Knowing you'll be following my every step and that you've supported Maggie's with your sponsorship means I will drag myself up any dune in my way. So thank you for your interest and support. As the sun settled below the horizon tonight I was on the home straight. In just over 4 weeks time I'll be watching the sun setting in a completely different world - I can't wait.

Counting calories

After yesterdays trail running my back was protesting from the pressure from my rucksack. Perhaps I had't taken enough care to make sure it was sitting properly when I started or maybe having it loaded with 7kg for the first time in a week was asking a bit much. So today I "listened to my body" and decided to rest. But that doesn't mean do nothing, I went for a sauna. Now I know you are thinking that isn't training but I only lasted 15 minutes in the heat, and it was only 80 degrees! In the next 5 weeks I will be having a lot of sauna's to get used to the intense heat as temperatures in the desert will be higher than anything I've ever experienced. I am now turning my attention to my food plan. It's changed in that I am trying to find suitable alternatives to freeze dried food which I didn't enjoy in Morocco. This afternoon I am starting a spreadsheet for my meals over the 7 days, breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks & hydration. I need to make sure I have a minimum of 2,000 calories per day which is manditory and will be checked. It's not something I have done before but I am sure it will be an interesting exercise. So although I am not out running, I am still working and it is the minute detail that could mean the difference between success and failure.

Back on the trail

20 miles of trail running with the rucksack this morning in beautiful sunshine. A nice steady pace for 3.5 hours got some miles in my legs which is necessary as there are only 5 weeks to go before I head off for the adventure of a lifetime. I ran with a pal who is training for Ironman and it was good to have company of somoene who understands what I am going through at this stage in the training. The start line is so close yet there is hard work to be done before the tapering starts. At the same time you are trying to avoid injury but need to put in the miles. Tomorrow will be a recovery run and I think I'll leave off the rucksack as my back is feeling the pressure. Time for rest and recovery.