Skip to main content

Back to the Grind Stone

After a week off work and a few days of easy running, it's now back to the hard work as training recommences in earnest to get me ready for the Worlds in September.

Following a lovely day in Porthmadog on Sunday, I ended up doing my "long" run on bank holiday Monday instead -a  perfect excuse to run off all those Easter eggs that I'd been scoffing over the weekend. It was very warm, a little on the breezy side, and for some idiotic reason I'd chosen a hilly route. The legs actually didn't feel too bad, but with suffering from hay fever, the breathing was quite laboured and I found it difficult. I still managed a respectable 1 hour 34 minutes for 13 miles, so can't complain.

Then on Tuesday, I was back at the club and it was great to do a session with the others. Being the last Tuesday of the month, it was the 3k time trial so I was interested to see how I faired compared to last year. The loop goes around the Wedgwood Estate at Barlaston, and although it's a downhill finish, the first mile or so is a little undulating. My best in previous years was 10.45, my worst about 11.15 so when I saw that I'd done 10.52 I was really pleased and figured that maybe I do still have a little bit of speed in my legs - even if it only lasts for a maximum of 11 minutes before I falter!

The good news is I'm really enjoying my running again, so much so that I am even considering running twice a day again to try to get back some of that fitness, but then maybe the sunny weather of late has led me into a false sense of security. Either way, I AM enjoying the running, and I'm looking forward to the up and coming races, starting with the South Cheshire 20 on Sunday. Life is good at the moment :-)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Javelina Jangover 50km Night Race

One of the things I love about running is hearing about the success of my many running friends, whether it be over 800m on the track or 100 miles on the trail. It always makes me realise that no matter your ability, no matter how big or small your goals, as runners we all push ourselves in an effort to do our very best. Last weekend my social media feed was alight with endless stories of running success - podium finishes in the Sky Race Series, 100 mile champions, 100km champions, folks running 200 miles, others competing in marathons and half marathons, some people running further or faster than they have before, on road and trail, track and country. It really was amazing to see so many positive and happy stories, and I felt so happy and proud of each and every one that came through that I spent most of the day just smiling. For me, my weekend racing meant staying close to home this time, as I opted to race the Javelina Jangover 50km race which took place at the McDowell Mount...
Post a Comment
Read more

A trip to Europe - 24-hour World Championships 2025

It's been several weeks now since I competed in the 24-hour World Championships, and looking back, it still feels a little surreal that I was there on the world stage, representing Canada along with some other amazing athletes. The whole experience was incredible, from our arrival in France where we got chatting to athletes from other countries whilst waiting to clear immigration, to the flag parade and opening ceremony, the mealtimes at the pavillion, the Team Canada meetings, wandering around Albi and the French saying how much they loved Canada, to the actual race itself, where world and national records were broken, PRs set, and a whole range of emotions surfaced, not just for myself but for many others that were out on the course too. Whilst the memories are still there, some of the detail has already faded with the passing of time over the past few weeks, but I still wanted to capture things as best I could in this post so that when I read it again in years to come, I can rel...
1 comment
Read more

The Divide 200

The Divide 200 went far better than I expected, and there's no denying that for me personally, it was one of my best races where everything went almost perfectly. I went into the race with no expectations, my only goal being to finish no later than 11.59am on the Saturday. I'll be honest in saying that from the moment I registered, the thought of running 200 miles always seemed within my reach and I didn't find it intimidating. What was intimidating was the elevation gain and the terrain I would be running through - living in Leduc, there was no way I could replicate those long climbs and descents in training, neither could I find somewhere close by that would mimic those rocky, technical mountain trails - running on the Devon trails or in the Edmonton River Valley was the best I could do on a regular basis, and with daily strength sessions that included half an hour of step-ups, I just hoped it would be enough to carry me up and over mountain summits and undulating ridges,...
3 comments
Read more