“Fall seven times, stand up eight”
Japanese proverb
As 2017 draws to a close it’s time to reflect upon another year of running.
Positives:
- Ran a self supported 53 miles from Horsham to Chichester in a day
- Paced Zoe Norman for 25 miles up, down and along the Ridgeway at the Autumn 100
- Gained valuable insights into running smarter and stronger at Ronnie Staton’s Train Like A Champion workshop
- Explored some new trails with Phil Hall, the “I’m sure it’s this way” run from Droke to the South Downs Way and back in particular
- Ran on the trails with my brother Greg for the first time
- Stood on the start line of the North Downs Way 100 in August and got to 66 miles before being timed out, only 5 weeks after my Dad passed away
- Met even more excellent people in the running community
- Volunteered again and loved each and every moment of these races
- Managed to avoid injury
Negatives:
- Experienced my first DNF at the North Downs Way 100
- Had to DNS the Portsmouth Coastal Marathon for the second time, this time around due to illness
- Failed to run with any consistency, averaging 3 runs per week
- Fell out of good habits after Ronnie Staton’s Train Like A Champion workshop, lacking focus
- Continued to pile on the weight due to bad habits and ended the year 21lbs heavier than I was when I ran the South Downs Way 100 in 2015
Plans for 2018:
- 2 x 50 mile races – Chiltern Wonderland 50 (September) and Wendover Woods 50 (November)
- Marathons – Giants Head (June), the Lunertic (July)
- Half marathons – Portsmouth Coastal Half Marathon (February)
- Shorter distances – parkruns once a month or so, and one or two 10k races to build speed in the first half of the year
What will I do differently?
I almost wrote what I hoped to do differently but, as Ronnie Staton rightly says, it’s time to commit.
- Work with my personal trainer at work (free one hour session every fortnight) to build strength
- Try Pilates sessions as an additional part of training
- Complete Train Like A Champion drills every week
- Follow the TrainAsOne plan, which has been generated to meet my plans for the year and adapts as my fitness builds
- Eat less, specifically cutting down on the sweets, chocolate and cake that are my weakness
- Move more, including lunchtime walks when at work and being more active generally (less sofa surfing)
- Return to my practices from the first half of 2015, when I slept longer whole training for the South Downs Way 100
- Focus on building my mental strength so I can suffer for longer in races – the shorter distances and interval runs in training should help here
Where am I now?
- Current fitness – 26:58 parkrun on 30 December 2017 (PB 25:15, set in 2015)
- Current weight – 14st7lbs (racing weight/ideal 12st7lbs)
- Current state of mind – determined (grrrr)
Learn. Adapt. Improve. Repeat.
Onwards.
