canoe?

Since my recovery seems to be taking pretty long, I actually feel like my cycling is making slightly forward (still rubbish tho) and yesterday I did 10miles on the concept 2! Be it slow. At the moment I'm just frustrated by how slow my recovery is. I just want to go out and run, and run flat out with no discomfort!

More resting and X training for me for a bit longer. I've just got my hands on an old canoe! This should sort me out over the summer. As well I'll try and get a couple practice sessions in before I take part in this adventure race on the 26th. Even though I've never mountain biked and have nly limited experiance in kayaking I'm well up for that event.

With the beach just a stones throw away and the river closer X training for a while could be good but it's always more of a casual thing with me when I cant run. To me proper training is running. Thats what I prefer but got to be sensible i suppose! With the main target being fit for the coastal challenge at the end of Novemeber it's not an issue at the moment.

Having done all that moaning about my recovery, before I took on the 22miles Saturday my recovery was getting better. I'm just going to have to concentrate on shorter sharper stuff as I gradually build back up I think. Again I need the speed as I've gone really sluggish since focusing my training on ultra distance. So short and sharp before far and plenty of X training for now.

I wonder if I can find anyone with a roof rack to help me get this canoe?!

Man vs Horse

My first attempt at any sort of distance since the 50 mile today. Entered the Man vs horse marathon (22miles actually). It's one of the hardest courses I've done and was really hard. Infact soon after about 14miles my hamstring pain came back. It was hurting exactly the same way as the second half of the ultra, early! So deep down it was too soon but never mind. I just ran the whole thing with no kind of knowledge of time or any meaning to race so when it started hurting I just held back slightly before finishing a bit faster. It took 3hrs of running through the wind and rain which resulted in parts of the course being ridiculosly deep in mud! Toughy

First 8 miles I felt good except I missed the start as I was standing by the pub door from the rain so had to chase past a lot which took a while. There we are my own fault for not being man enough to stand in the rain! I then heard the first cry of 'horses' which was when a couple came racing past close - experiance! By the way if a runner beats the horse they get a £1,000!!! No one did beat one but I know last year the runner was less than a minute behind!! Felt ok up until the second checkpoint at about 14/15 but then my hamstrings started really hurting and I was getting a bit grumpy with the tough running under foot ha ha. Hit a bit of a bad patch for a couple miles before finding a rythum and speeding up to the river crossing at the end!! Thats pretty interesting after 22 miles. Anywey great laugh but the weather ruined the end and put a dampner on the run for me but never mind. That to the side it's well worth doing, even as a team of 3 which is very popular.

With about 10 runners from Cardigan RC taking part it was a good trip but weather definetly spoilt it. The event brings out the whole village and were usually greated at the end with all the local grannies making all the runners sandwiches which is great but today they looked as fed up as a runner who had run the whole thing!

Jason from the running club gave the whole thing (I say whole thing because running it as a team of 3 realy members is very popular) a go this year and did great so well done to him, I don't think he'd ever gone further than a half marathon except for the od training run. great effort!

Hamstrings are good tonight, I'll arrange another massage and dig in to a chicken chow main and I'll be good to fight another day but it did show today, I'm still not recovered fully, so I'll keep cycling for a little I think.

Adventure race

Got my first proper days running in today - felt decent to, infact my second session included 5km pretty much flat out and got a 16.31 which im more than happy with, it's one of the faster times I've done actually so happy days. Combined this with a small resistance circuit and 4km on the concept 2 to warm down.

My first session of the day was a pre breakfast 8mile which I started very slow but then gradually increased the pace to finish at a decent pace. All an all im happy with today and it's the first steps on the come back. Hopefully Saturdays run will be a great laugh and it will just be more miles on the return.

Looks like I'm about to enter a different sort of event in a couple weeks, more of adventure race which I'm well excited for. Not sure of the details but a team of two take on 10km run, 30km mountain bike (which I'm slightly nervous about having never tried mountain biking) and a 3km kayak with the team mate. I'm not sure if we have to find some checkpoints from a map to - which will be interesting! I've never done something like this before and will again be a nice change until I get near my 40 mile in August. I actually cant wait for this and can't wait for Saturday - so the hungers back!!

Also preparation for the 2km concept to race on 9th July is looking good - for entries please email where I can send on an entry form.

Cycling easier than running? Just messing cyclists :)

Only 4 miles of running but it's a start. The healing is slow but I'm finally starting to feal lighter on my feet again.I've noticed a sign that I'm running lighter and easier is when I accidentally scare walkers when I pass them because they havn't heard me coming. Unlike when I need a rest, I'm all heavy on my feet and walkers turn to see what the racket is!!

All the cycling I've done in the last week has been really enjoyable and a nice change. This may enrage cyclists but is it me or is cycling easier than running? :) The low impact nature of it has certainly eased my recovery but kept me moderately active. Thank god as I'm sure there's been little change in my appetite since hardly running in the last few weeks. I'm sure I'd be huge if it wasn't for me training so much. Then I guess everyone active says similar because the appetite gets huge! I noticed on T.V the other day there was a programe about a woman needing the gastric band (the lazy option) becasue she was eating 4,000 calories a day. Granted it was pure rubbish food but I've been known to eat that much! Ha ha - joys of training, I love it.

I'm going to stick mainly to the road bike and concept 2 this week again with the od circuit and just the occasional run just to ease myself back. On Saturday I'm contemplating running the Man vs Horse marathon, which is infact 22 miles but over mountains and through streams aswell as racing people on horses. It's a truely great run! I won't be racing it at all but may use it as my first training run and just see how I feel as I go. I'm just going to run by feel, no watch, no pressure, no race just enjoy the day and have a laugh. As well as this it can act as my first training run as I very gradually get back on the horse.

Interesting times have come up recently to with the prospect of a big charity event in 2012 moving forward so hopefully I'll be able to update in the next few weeks.

Slowly Slowly

Finally I saw some light when I ran today. Infact I hadn't planned on running but towards the end of my 40mile cycle I thought bugger it lets try and run. It was always going to be 3miles but how I felt I didn't know. Even though I wasn't a 100% at all I definitely felt like there was an improvement. Slowly now I can start building again - very gradual and I'm imagining it will be the end of the month before I'll be back to full training. However at least I'm starting to feel better so hopefully can start running again. I have cycled a fair bit in the last week tho, well a fair bit for me at close to 170miles this week but all really relaxed - it wasn't training at all just casual but it's still more cycling than I've done before.

Im aiming for two more events this year - 13th August - 40miles and I'm going to enter the coastal challenge (3 marathons in 3 days) on the Pembrokeshire Coastal Path just to see how much my endurance has come on in comparison to last year. Will be interesting to see if there is an improvement.

By the time I'm back running I'll imagine I'll have 4-5 weeks of hard training before a taper and the next event in August, and after two weekends of heavy drinking I'm gasping to get back to it and get to feel fit again.

2k Rowing Competition

I've been playing with the idea of organising a rowing competition at Cardigan Leisure Centre for a while, I've finally worked some logistics out and have decided to hold a 2k indoor rowing competition on the 9th July.

For further details email me on harries_rhys87@hotmail.com where I can send you an entry form. Another option is to pick up the entry forms at Cardigan Leisure Centre from Monday 6th June.

First prize will be two free Personal Training sessions, one with myself and one with Sheila Williams (M.I.Trainer). There will be to categories which Iv'e kept basic by doing it around age and not weight - Open and a 40+ for men and women.

I know it's more normal to categorise rowing events through weight but as I want to maximise entries and base the event on friendly competition, I've decided against getting the scales out on the morning of the event and let's face it not everyone wants to weigh them selves they just want to 'have a go'. However fierce competitiveness is very welcome ;)


Again for entry forms - email me and I will send you the entry forms or pick up at the Leisure Centre.

Time out!

Definitely not running the marathon this weekend - my hamstrings are still so damaged! Every time I run I can just feel it almost as soon as I start. I reckon it could take me a month before I get back to training properly again then another week or two to get back to fitness. Today I ran for the first time since Monday, I did 7miles but it was so uncomfortable and I couldn't get any speed in to it - the only reason I didnt do less was because I'd run out a few miles before the uncomfort started so had to run back more than wanted to!

Luckly when I cycle or use the concept 2 it doesn't hurt at all, infact with these I feel pretty good. It was just the fact that it was the first time I'd run so far so my 'running' muscles as such are damaged and just need to heal! With that said I've covered a fair bit of cycling this week, not training just purely going out at a really casual pace and it's been great. Plans for the weekend is a cycle, about 60 miles to watch and support the cycling event down at Tenby. It's a long corse weekend as part of the preparation for the Ironman being held in September. (Doing one of these has been an ambition for years but not yet) That should take all morning then back for the rugby, and to see what sort of impact Gavin Henson does ha ha.

As it's a none training month for me, I'll more than likely join in on some alcohol fuelled antics that goes on and just catch up with friends.

Enjoy the sun :)