Training Log Archive: RDiL

Slept well. Woke up with alarm at 0530. Snoozed for a short while and then got up. Hips felt a bit stiff when getting dressed and walking down stairs - think that is DOMS from Friday morning rather than an injury.

Had a coffee and then headed out. As I missed the moderate run yesterday, decided I would do it today instead. Ran along towpath towards Richmond and then home back through the park. Eased into the run. Didnt look at watch and ran to feel. Hips eased off after 10' and had no issues for the rest of the run.

Slept well. Alarm set for 0530. Struggled to wake up and laid in bed not wanting to go running. Eventually got up and over coffee decided I would do S&C and run later...

S&C session:
1) side lying hip abduction. 20reps L&R x 3 sets
2) side lying hip adduction. 20reps L&R x 3 sets
3) single leg bridging with foot on step. 20reps L&R x 3 sets
4) single leg hamstring curls with SB. 10reps L&R x 3 sets
5) runners touch. 20reps L&R x 3 sets
6) press ups on knees. 20reps x 3 sets

No niggles.

The run later never happened. Dont know why I thought it would when deciding what to do in the morning. Had a busy day at work - lots of home visits which equals lots of admin. Ate well but barely drank anything so was feeling dehydrated and headchey by the end of the day.

Notes written in retrospect.... Drove to Teddington and then ran around Bushy Park in the dark with headtorch. Ran on good trails. Not undulating. Did 50' easy and strideouts at the end. Legs felt good. No niggles.

Slept well. No interruptions from back when moving about. Needed 0530 alarm to wake up but got up easily. No aches or pains anywhere.

Had a coffee and then drove over to work (have early-ish start in clinic) so could run in Bushy Park.

Pissing it down with rain but temperature fairly mild. Ran for 50' in the dark with a head torch on. Legs felt good. No niggles or tightness anywhere. Thought I was running much faster than i actually was!

Did 6 x strideouts after 50' - legs felt good. Hamstring on right side felt a bit tight towards the end.

Still not the best night of sleep - moving in bed still aggravating back. Back only an issue with direct pressure. Still feels bruised but nothing showing. Woke up naturally at 0600. Got out of bed easily. No niggles or stiffness.

Did a S&C session after a day at work:
1) Side lying hip abduction. 20 reps L&R. 2 sets.
2) Side lying hip adduction. 20 reps L&R. 2 sets.
3) Side lying clams. 20 reps L&R. 2 sets.
4) Single leg bridges with foot on stool. 20 reps L&R. 2 sets.
5) Press ups. 20 reps. 2 sets.
6) RDL (without weight). 20 reps L&R. 2 sets.
7) Hamstring curls with SB. 20 reps (both legs together). 2 sets.
8) Reverse plank. 20 reps L&R. 2 sets.
9) Runners touch. 20 reps L&R. 2 sets.
10) Deadbug with SB. 60 secs. 2 sets
11) Side plank with knee to chest. 60 secs L&R. 2 sets.
12) Mountain climbs on bosu ball. 60 secs. 2 sets
13) Side plank with trunk rotation. 30 secs L&R. 2 sets.

No niggles doing the exercises.
Balance doing runners touch and RDL very poor. Did the RDL without weight so could focus on form.
Reverse plank is improving - still weaker in left glutes. This was also obvious when doing single leg bridging.

Slept okay. Tossed and turned a fair bit during the night which aggravated my bruised back. Managed to quickly fall back asleep afterwards though. Didnt set an alarm as nothing to get up for today - not at work. Properly woke up at 0630. Legs feeling stiff and achy but no pain/niggles.

Had breakfast, faffed about and then went for a run. Groin on both sides felt very tight to begin with. Ran with short strides which helped. Groin eventually eased off and running felt easier. Left achilles was also abit sore to begin with but didnt last very long. No other issues felt. Ran on pavements.

Slept well. No aches or pains lying in bed, when getting dressed or when walking downstairs.

Had a coffee and instead of porridge which I had last weekend, had a bagel with peanut butter and jam for breakfast instead. Wondered whether less fibre would make a difference to my gut during the long run...

Drove to Wendover and I was first through the gates.

Since I am not allowed any crew on race day (assuming it goes ahead) and I didnt like having to stop after the first lap last week to pick up more fuel, I thought i would try and carry more fuel with me this time and just keep running. I have also been given a new race pack - the salomon adv skin 12 - so I loaded it with 10 gels, 2 x 500ml flasks in the front and 1.5litres in the back. it felt very heavy to hold but barely noticed the extra weight on my back.

Decided before I started that I was going to walk the majority of the hills - the steeper ones anyway which is the majority - and take the downhill sections easy. Especially the long ones on hard paths. Wanted to try and keep my laps times even rather than go off quick and then fade or bask my joints up with the hard impact.

1st lap - think this lap took me about 1hr50'. No navigational issues and didnt need my watch/map. stuck to my plan of walking the majority of the hills. Legs felt okay. no niggles or discomfort anywhere. Need to stop for a pee once. Didnt stop at the car, just ran straight through...

2nd lap - think this lap took 1hr47'. It didnt feel any quicker. Legs felt tired on the climbs. Still stuck to my plan and walked/ran the exact hills as in the 1st lap. Still no niggles but maybe a bit of discomfort creeping into my joints. Needed to stop for another pee. Gut felt fine. Didnt stop at the car....

3rd lap - think this lap took 1hr50' again. Surprised by that because I was in a fair bit of discomfort - both adductors were tightening up and my hips, knees and feet were really aching. As before, walked/ran the exact hills as previous 2 laps. The long downhill sections on hard paths were the worst. Gut still fine. Didnt stop for a pee this time. Also noticed that my back where the bottom of the bladder rests and bounces about on was making my back feel bruised. There was nothing I could do to stop it though. Reached the car at 49km and wanted to make it 50km so did a little extra loop.

Whilst on the 3rd lap, was wondering quite a bit about how on earth I am going to complete another 2 laps.....

Fuel: had 2 torq gels every hour. Mix of flavors. Had made up 2.5 litres of torq energy drink (lemon and lemon/lime). Didnt manage to drink it all. Finished with 500ml left over. Think i finished the 1st litre in 2hr15' and then didnt catch up. Felt like I was drinking regularly though. So that works out at about 76g of carbs per hour... not enough I know. Need to work out how to remind myself to drink more... or try and add in more gels. i liked the torq energy drink though.

Clothing: salomon speed 2 - great grip but not much cushioning which I really wish I had in the 3rd lap. Maybe I just need to train in them more often to get used to the firmness. Wore shorts, merino base vest and long sleever. At times I wish I was in a t-shirt but it was too cold first thing to set off in a t-shirt and i didnt want the faff of stopping and swapping clothing. rolling up my sleeves on the ascents and pulling them down on the descents seemed to work and didnt feel like i was over heating. didnt wear nor need a cap/visor or sunglasses. No chaffing.

After the run - stiffened up straight away but could still walk. No niggles just stiffness. Got changed into dry clothes. Drank a torq protein shake and drove home. Once home, had a shower and laid on the sofa with a coffee and cake. In hindsight, I should have eaten something more substantial. Didnt sleep as it was abit too late in the day and I didnt want to interfere with my night sleep. Legs felt stiff and back really bruised - no damage to the skin though... Had a big evening meal whilst watching Moonraker. Then went to bed....