Due to that nasty Coronavirus restricting race entries I have had more time to buy running stuff online. Being injured also helps , so it’s a double whammy. This is now beginning to become a problem. In the last few weeks I’ve brought two pairs of shoes (which I needed) , two head torches , a pair of poles (is that the right term? ) a running waterproof jacket and a new GPS watch (all for the Irrational South , which is now postponed until October ( http://irrationalsouth200miler.com.au/ ) Truth be told I’ve probably brought more than that but just in case No1 Wife reads this post (which is highly unlikely, luckily?) I need to be careful, also Mum and No1 Wife are close so they talk and I know Mum reads all my posts.
Anyhow reason behind this post is I have become am Amazon Affiliate which means if I recommend stuff to my reader(s) and they go and buy it from Amazon I get some coin. Unfortunately my readership currently consists of my 80 year old Mum who funnily enough doesn’t run but in the off chance someone else comes across this post, probably by mistake, then I can recommend the items I brought. It’ll be a win-win for all as I do make an effort and try to buy the best products, at the best price, albeit on Amazon.
Right, here’s the items I’ve purchased recently that I can recommend for quality and price, at time of posting of course. There’s no price promise from the BK Running blog , I ain’t Bunnings Warehouse people ! If you do find any of these items cheaper let me know and I’ll update the post. This really is a tester to see if you guys are interested in the same items I am and if I can get a small back-hander from Amazon to help towards running costs for the blog ?
The first product is a real bargain because for some reason the product on www.amazon.com is over $370 AUD but on www.amazon.com.au it’s $236.41 AUD. (See the link below)
Good news for you , bad news for me as the link I get is for the Amazon.com listing , which is over $140 AUD more expensive? This really is a bargain and if you want an awesome GPS watch for around half price use the link above. The reason I brought it was for the incredible battery life , easily more than enough for the 4 day (or quicker?) Irrational South race in October. In fact I have had my one for nearly two weeks and it still has over 70% batter life, albeit I have only used once in that period. (Being injured)
I have attached a review below but do your own research, the watch has been around for a few years and now represents great value for money.
Next is my watch of choice and the one I am currently wearing and have been for the last 4 years, the GARMIN 235. Again this watch has been around for a long time but if something works why change it. ! Before this watch Garmin’s were to be used only when you ran, they were not your everyday watch. This all changed with the 235. It was bye-bye Rolex Submariner and hello sports watch. This watch is light , has an inbuilt wrist heart rate monitor which I feel is very accurate (Don’t listen to Mike Kowal!) and provides clear and accurate data as well as having the ability to download maps via apps. It may be looking a tad old in the tooth but for this price you’re getting a whole lot of watch. My Suunto is really for ultra races, where as the Garmin is my ‘use everyday’ watch.
My go-to watch and the one on my left wrist currently.
Head torches, I hear you ask ? According to the link below this bad boy of a head torch is just under $40AUD. Unfortunately it looks like this is out of stock at the moment but keep trying, this is the headlamp of choice for quality and price.
My backup torch, because you need two at all time on the Delirious and Irrational 200 milers and there’s no point buying the same one ?, is the Petzl Tactikka 300. Petzl are a great brand and always good to have the best as a backup just in case. Not as many lumens as the Black Diamond but for me it’s a good product as a second torch. The link below is for the 200 Lumens, where as I brought the 300 and you can go higher of course, right upto 750 Lumens; which apparently you can see from space.
Petzl, just a good bran really.
PETZL – TIKKA Headlamp, 200 Lumens, Standard Lighting, Black
Socks are next on the BK recommendation list and nothing beats the Injinji brand with the unique design giving each toe their personal sock thus stopping blisters, apparently. (The 5 Toe Fit System, funnily enough ) I used a pair on the Delirious recently and after nearly 18 hours of running my feet still felt great, unfortunately my quads were goosed but my feet , no problem. Each toe is cocooned in their own personal cotton sock thus , in theory, eliminating blisters.
Injinji Men’s Trail Midweight Mini Crew Toesocks
Ok, that enough for today. If you have any bargains you see on Amazon you think would benefit other readers of this blog, other than my Mum, please feel free to leave a link or email me and once a in a while I’ll write a post and advertise to the greater good of the readership, and some extra coin for me to keep the site going and/or retire early.
The last year has been tough for me, it’s been the first year that I have never pb’d (or PR’d for the American’s amongst us) . Although I realise the reasons for this it still hurts and watching my pace and endurance desert me has been a sobering experience. I always knew it was inevitable, at my age, that Father Time would come calling but it doesn’t soften the blow when the he arrives. Funnily enough after two years of bad injuries torpedoing my season it’s an injury free year which has destroyed me. 2019 will be remembered for all the wrong reasons, many visits to the Doctors convinced I had either heart issues, blood problems or just plain good old fashioned ‘killer’ man-flu , although the man-flu was confirmed twice during the year my blood and heart all tested ok. Maybe it’s a case of ‘eating some concrete‘ to harden up or some ‘suck it up pills‘ as recommended by David Goggins. ( https://davidgoggins.com/ ) Whatever the reason the year descended, monthly , with times I had not run for many years becoming the norm.
When you’ve as tough as DG even your shirt tears….
2019 started badly with a 1:22 at Darlington half. This was the first time I had run over 80 minutes for 6-7 years and although it was good for a top 10 finish (just) it was a disappointing result. I did manage to run sub 80 minutes at the Joondalup half and , with hindsight, this was probably the run of the year for me, again a top 10 finish and a reasonable paced race. I raced five 10k’s over the year , starting with a 36 minute finish before dipping just under 36 minutes on the next two, albeit just under, before two disappointing 37 minute finishes. Not somewhere I thought I’d be so quickly after running 34 minutes regularly a few years ago? Marathon season was another mixed bag. At Rottnest I managed to sneak under three hours with a 2:58 and 7th place finish, which was a fair result but at the City to Surf a few months later I only improved my time a few minutes to 2:55. Again this was the slowest I’d ran this event for many years ,albeit it was a controlled race and a good split between the first and second half so maybe I’m being hard on myself ?
To cap off a bad year my favourite race of the year , the 6 inch trail ultramarathon , was cancelled due to the extreme heat in Perth over December and the risk of a fire. ( http://www.6inchtrailmarathon.com/ ) I’d managed to put together a few good weeks of training (relatively) and was hoping to break 4 hours for the 9th on the course, this will have to wait until later in the year now ?
Its going to be a trail year in 2020 me thinks…an old 6 inch photo.
So was has 2020 got to offer in the way of challenges ? The first one is in February , a small matter of a 200miler called the Delirious West ( http://deliriouswest200miler.com.au/) I entered this event when entries first opened in March 2019, I think? I was the first to enter and managed to enter before entries had even opened by finding a link on the interweb , when searching for the race details, much to the angst of the race director! Anyhow here we are now 10 months later and the race is weeks away and I’m probably at my lowest ebb for many months, not a good combination. On the bright side a 200 mile race is mainly mental , apparently , which is lucky as physically I’m nowhere near where I need to be, albeit I have a few weeks to prepare. I did lash out on a nice running vest at the Kathmandhu sales so I’ll at least look the part. I probably need to think about other ‘stuff’ for the event as it’ll probably take 3-4 days to finish, vaseline comes to mind by the bucket load !!
200 miles, how hard can it really be ?
I’d written off the Australia Day Ultra ( http://australiadayultra.com/ ) at this stage as I’m still recovering from a head cold shared by no3 Daughter a few weeks ago. Again , just as I was getting up a full head of steam , I’ve been derailed and have not put on the trainers for a few days, with little chance of that changing this week. Of course if I can conjure up a Lazarus like recovery it could be on the cards but confidence is low, unless I can get some of those ‘suck it up’ pills from Mr. Goggins? This was how I started 2019, a DNS at the ADU, albeit I had paid for that one, this year I’ve kept my entry money in my pocket for the time being, maybe you can teach an old runner new tricks?
Not actually seen a Kangaroo racing the ADU?
Goals for 2020, well the first one is to survive the Delirious West of course. Then we’ll be back into the racing season, Darlington half in March, a few 10k’s between then and the Rottnest Marathon in June, Chevron City to Surf Marathon in August and the Perth Running Festival (for the fist time, finally?) in October. Maybe a half or two somewhere in there and finally the 6 inch ultra in December. I may go back and revisit the UWA Light horse in April and try and finish the 12 hour race, my only ever DNF (so far?), we’ll see ? All that was easy to type but first thing first I need to find my running mojo. It has eluded me many times over the last few years and, combined with injuries, left me questioning why I do what I do. All runners must eventually reach a point in their career when it all just becomes too hard, motivation can certainly wane when you know you’ll only ever be running slower each time you race. For me running has always been about racing your old self, the best you could do , and beating that time. Racing has always been my main reason for running and now , as I move back to the pack, that goal is disappearing. Of course I can always set season targets like continuing a long sub 3 marathon streak or trying to run sub 37 minutes for 10k or 80 mins for a half, but ultimately these are all times I would have scoffed at a few years ago. It does make the early mornings and double days seem that little bit harder, nigh impossible lately truth be told. This has the double whammy of hastening your retreat to the pack because you’re not putting in the time on legs, gotta’ love paying the piper ?
As I have said many times in 2019 this is quite a depressing post but , until I can get back in the game mentally , this does seem to have become the norm of late which is why I have been posting less than usual. It’s hard enough writing these posts I can only imagine reading them must be as challenging. No worries, I’ll make a promise to my readers (reader ? , Mum?) to try and be more positive in the future and maybe even start to rekindle my love of running which got me started on this blog in 2016. Looking back at those early posts I miss that ‘youthful (I’m not sure a 50 year old can be described as youthful??) enthusiasm , trying to hold myself back from running three times a day and gleefully describing PB adventures in all distances. Those days are gone and I need to reset my goals to make them at least achievable. I think the first one at the moment is to just start running again after three days off. Now is not a good time to start looking for my mojo again because in less than 6 weeks I’ll have over 200 miles to look for it and that may be a very painful experience. On the bright side it will make one hell of a post. Right, where did I put those ‘suck it up pills’ ………
This post was going to be about my 11th 6 Inch Ultra Trail marathon ( http://www.6inchtrailmarathon.com/ ) and another sub4 finish, unfortunately due to the extreme heat wave we have been suffering though this summer it was deemed too dangerous to run the event. The conditions in sunny Perth have been very sunny and the last few weeks has been a chore to continue to train for the 6 inch ultra. Many lunch time runs I have ‘showered‘ under a tap and staggered, rather than skipped, back to work where I soak in my own sweat in air conditioned heaven (must to my work colleagues disgust!) Unpleasant is an under statement and the heat is unrelenting , with three 40 degree days in a row before the Saturday when the race director, Dave Kennedy, made the right decision to cancel the event.
Unfortunately , or fortunately, my accomodation was brought and paid for, with no refunds, so as a group we decided to go to Dwellingup anyway and just run the Sunday morning, conditions permitting. Thus on Saturday afternoon Barts picked me and No2 Daughter, Hannah, up from City Beach and off we went , via a small detour at Como to pick up another friend of mine Amy. We arrived just in time for a Question and Answer with three elite ultra runners, who had obviously double booked because Dave let me and Jon on the top table with Barbara Fieberg, a previous winner of the event and an Australian representative at 12 and 24 hours. All me and Jon could offer was an AURA age group record (mine) and his unratified 5th longest distance at a 12 hour event earlier in the year. In our defence we are still very keen runners and can at least offer some advice, using experience as our guide.
After the Q&A Barts insisted we hot foot it to the pub, to beat the rush, and get some decent good old fashioned Australian county tukka at the local tavern. If you read my blog you’ll understand last year this same tavern scuppered the event for Jon, Bart’s, Mike and Mark as they indulged in the pub’s enormous portions. I did giggle to myself as I ate my small portion of pasta later in the evening without the 5-10kg weight gain all the lads put on due to their evening meals. Needless to say the next day the lads struggled up the numerous hills with the extra weight , while I skipped off into the distance, still giggling like a 10 year old boy after his first encounter with his Father’s Mayfair magazine. This year we could all enjoy our meal , bar Jon , who had decided that even though the event was cancelled, unofficially, he would run the course backwards in the dark and then return the next morning. Yep, you guessed it, the infamous 12 inch. ! Only attempted by a few mad ultra runners who would leave at 10pm the night before the event, they’d turn up at the start around 4am the next morning and then register for the main event, kicking off at 4:30am. This would give them 94km and some serious kudos of course. Jon decided to ignore the ban due to possible fire risk and off into the night he went while myself, Amy, Mark and Bart’s settled down for the 4th showing of Run Fat Boy Run armed with a good bottle of red.
Preparing for ‘Run Fat boy Run’… with a nice red.
So while we finished off the film, but not the bottle of red , we were running at 4:30am the next morning, Jon set off into the dark on his quest to obtain the 12 inches he had always wanted ( or that was what Bart’s had said , not sure what we meant ?) The next morning we did get up at 4:30am, much to my Daughters disgust!, and set off on to the trails and headed towards the escalator for a cheeky 24k out and back. Conditions were glorious , albeit it did start to heat up quite quickly and we all agreed it was still the right decision to cancel. The picture below doesn’t do justice to the conditions, as I have said many times before trial running , when the light is right, is magical.
Once we returned to the accomodation, we freshened up and then scuttled off to the Blue Wren Cafe for a good old fashioned large Cappuccino and bacon and egg toasted sandwich. While me and the boys tucked into our freshly made toasted sandwich’s Amy had a Strava segment to attend to (you do have Strava right ? http://www.strava.com ) She had stalked this segment from Perth and was determined to leave her mark in Dwellingup with a CR (Coarse Record). There was a double incentive as the current holder had initially followed Amy on Strava but then unfollowed her. This is unacceptable , apparently , and punishable by a good old fashioned Strava segment beating, bless her. Once Amy achieved her CR we regrouped and waited for Jon , who eventually turned up after running for well over 11 hours. He , along with one other , had become a member of a very select club of men who can say they have a 12 inch under their belt. (Please note, at the time of writing, no woman has got her hands on a 12 inch, although I suspect in the near future one may get her hands on Jon’s 12 inch , if they speak nicely to him or whisper sweet nothings in his ear, he likes that apparently?) I digress , as always.
All in all a great weekend , spent with friends (and no2 Daughter) with many happy memories added to the trail running database to be retrieved at random times over the next few years , with much laughter , and some obvious innuendos.
Thursday is Yelo muffin time. Phil, Mike , Gareth, me, Mark and JP.
Well it looks liker my old mate Jon Pendse is keen to give back to the running community and has offered free coaching, mentoring to all and sundry. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to learn from one of Perth’s best known, and loved, local running legend. I have had the honour of running with Jon since 2008 when I first encountered him at the Bunbury marathon and then realised we both worked in the same building in Perth. After introducing ourselves in the mens changing rooms (?) we started a relationship that is going as strong today as when we first started on our journey over ten years ago. Rereading that please note that was a running relationship , I’m happily married (according to my current Wife!) and Jon was happily married but is now even happier single. (and running a lot quicker, go figure?)
Jon, Me, Mark (over dressed for pancakes) and Damien.
Back in the day Jon was the target for all us St. Georges Terrace Running Club runners to aim for. He was the quickest runner at all distances and I spent 4-5 years admiring his form as he strutted off into the distance on many occasions, it was around 2011 I think the first time I pipped him to the finish line at the City to Surf. We had run together for the first 41k and then it was on for young and old for the final 1k sprint. I think my long legs gave me the edge as we both sprinted for the finish. Happy days.. I’ve managed to keep Jon in check up until this year when he has once again found the fire ( and got divorced, coincidence I don’t think so !) and just maxed out his running distance. The payback has been instant as he has won numerous marathons , ultra marathons and even set a top 10 Australian record distance in timed races over 12 hours.
Jon, pre Bunting Diet while I was mixing both diets, panackes and bacon. When it comes to Diets I swing both way !
So for any runner in the Perth area if you want to be coached by a running legend get in touch , his email is :jpendse@tpg.com.au He may even share his running spreadsheet which has to be seen to be believed ! (He is an accountant by trade funnily enough!)
Nice early start to the 6 inch. Jon’s pink armbands helped with navigation.
One of the many benefits of being a paid-up Strava member ( http://www.strava.com ) is you get more additional information and data on your historical training . For the $90 AUS you pay a year for the privilege the resulting extra information is priceless. The run of the mill daily totals are free to everyone who uses Strava and all historical data is saved to your account. With premuim you get the option to view your training in increments for the last months, three months, six months, a year or two years. This information is very useful and you can see where you are in relation to previous peaks and troughs.
As you can see from the image below I have been gradually building up my training from nothing at the beginning of October to my first full week in many months this week. Bu where does that leave me in relation to my fitness over the last 2 years ? If you want to follow me on Strava feel free to use the link below:-
Improve each week, just keep adding distance and eventually the magic happens?
With Strava all the data is there as I haven’t missed saving a run to Strava for many years. I did try and run without a GPS watch, deliberately , a few months ago but it was a disaster. I’m a Strava addict and that’s just the way it is. I started running before GPS devices and tracking software but , in this case, consider technology to be a good thing and now cannot run without a GPS watch welded to my wrist. Remember if it’s not on Strava did it happen ? There are other training software packages of course and Training Peaks is probably the nearest thing to Strava. Truth be told it’s probably a better option for the ‘true athelete‘ because I’ve heard the data analysis is better but Strava is more like the facebook of the running world, and as I’m ‘virtually’ very sociable it’ll always be Strava.
The image below sums up everything I have talked about in the preceding paragraphs. In 2018 I was running well and coming off the back of a great couple of years , 2016-17, where I had hit quite a few running goals. These included a 16:40 5k, 34:18 10k and even a 2:41:44 marathon , three years after a similar time. 2018 was going to be a similar story and I even harboured , secretly, thoughts of maybe one more sub 2:40 marathon assault. Unfortunately all these plans came crashing down during a 3k steeplechase race at the Australian Masters in April. I had been fighting plantar fasciitis for a few months previous to the Australian Masters and , with hindsight, racing a 5k, 10k, 3k steeplechase (in racing spikes for the first time EVER!) and 10k cross county on consecutive days was probably not a good idea. That was 2018 written off and it was a long period of slow grass/trail running that dragged my fitness down to around 80 . I then tried, and failed , to get ready for the Perth City to Surf marathon (August) and the Rottnest Marathon (October) before finding salvation in the Elliptigo, combining commuting and training, for a high score of nearly 180 just before the 6 inch ultra.
This was shown to be true as I aced my 10th 6 Inch trail ultra-marathon with a 6th place finish and ran a new veterans record (over 50) , beating my previous time the year before , albeit I had got lost that year which for me is usual at this event ? I was then ready for the Australian Day Ultra in January and felt I was a good chance to try and beat my 7hour 47minute time for the 100k I had ran the year before. My confidence was boosted by my fitness score for January 2018 sitting on 160, while I was 180 just after the 6 inch a year later, maths was on my side?
Unfortunately (I seem to be using that word a lot on this post?) I picked up man-flu a week before the ADU 100K ( http://australiadayultra.com/ If you are in WA for January you need to run this event. Probably the fastest and flattest 100k on the planet?) As you can see from the graphic below man-flu hit me hard (Only a man understand that statement!) and in a few months I had lost a serious amount of Strava fitness points. Again I threw myself on the Elliptigo and managed to have a pretty good early racing season posting some OK times but nothing compared to the previous few years. I was probably a minute slower on the 10k, 3-4 minutes for the half and 5-10 minutes for the two full marathons I ran. Funnily enough, although at the time I didn’t realise, I was still dropping Strava fitness points and the slope moved down to around 140 , from a 160 at the start of the racing season. This was unusual because I wasn’t injured but had just lost my mojo a few times and basically wasn’t put in the training kilometres. As I always say running is an honest sport and if you don’t put in the time training you are not going to get your times, simple really.
Right, where are we now. Sitting around 140 after another trough thanks to catching another bout of man-flu , so much for the flu-jab working ? Ont he bright side I’m hitting some training goals and have rediscovered the long run with the boys this weekend. The 20k went well enough but the bacon and egg sandwich afterwards was a disaster, it seems the restaurant has started to substitute ham instead of bacon. A heinous crime which will result with me and the boys boycotting said restaurant until they change back to the good old fashioned bacon and egg combo.! I even backed it up with a 15k Sunday for a three figure running week for the first time since August. So to sum up, you need Strava and you need to pay the for the premium package to get your hands on all that data presented in such a way to aid your training.
The peaks and troughs of the last 2 years of training.
Of course the real test will come in December this year when I take on the 6 inch ultra trail marathon for the 11th time (in a row !) ( http://www.6inchtrailmarathon.com/ ) . I’ll be trying for a record 9th sub 4 hour finish but it will certainly depend on conditions. Probably need a tailwind all the way and freezing conditions, in a Perth summer this is unheard off! Also working against me is the last few years have been ran in great conditions so we’re due a hot one, we’ll see, whatever happens there will be many stories coming out of the day and that’s more important than the time for this race, really. I’ve written at least three posts on this race so if you have more time and want a good laugh I suggest you use the SEARCH option on the site and type in ‘6 inch’, you won’t be disappointed.
Some pre-race banter..
Of course one person not returning to the 6 inch this year is Mike Kowal who ran a shocker last year and blames the Escalator ( a hill of biblical proportions you run up and then stagger down!) at 38k for destroying his legs and making the last 10k very painful. Personally I feel the writing was on the wall last year when this photo was taken and he refused to put on his finishers t-shirt, it was a sign it seems !! One person who will be there is Barts (to my right in the photo below) who has ran the course one more time than Jon (for new readers (?) the runner to my far left in the photo) , this is discussed every time the race is brought up, much to Bart’s delight. Bart’s also has a faster finish time and Jon was forced to add a ‘average time’ column to the 6 inch spreadsheet so he was faster than Bart’s. As you can imagine this caused much hilarity within the running bunch and around this time of year it is a source of constant amusement to all. Unfortunately (there’s that word again?) for Bart’s Jon is in good form and will be aiming to take his time in December. It would be a pity if that happened because I’ll miss the banter this subject has generated over the years, nearly as much as the topic of who is the tallest, Bart’s or Jon; maybe Jon should use average height?
6 Inch Finishers shirts all round bar Mike, a rookie error !
I suppose ‘back on the horse’ is a strange title for a running post. Needless to say I don’t own a (whole) horse although I do own 2.5% of a race horse, it’s a long story! Anyhow the point of this post is I’ve just about recovered from man-flu after nearly a month. I know the women reading this will roll their eyes and snigger at that statement but you really don’t understand how dangerous man-flu is !
My last couple of posts have been about my illness and recovery, albeit probably premature, and as Strava shows below ( you all have Strava right http://www.strava.com) I have been quiet of late. I was still contemplating the Perth Running Festival ( https://perthrunningfestival.com.au ) next weekend but the run last Friday was a reality check which ended up with me sitting on a park bench at 12k into a 16k run feeling very sorry for myself. This was the kick in the balls I needed to take another week off and just get better. As of writing this I’m hoping I’m now better although I have strained my side throwing the ball for the dogs ! You can tell when you’re getting old when you get injured walking the dogs, joy ?
No much training going on.
Of course another thing to do when you can’t run is enter events due to the FOMO effect. (Fear of missing out, every runners nightmare!) True to form I have entered a 100k race in the NSW Blue Mountains next May, when you’d be mad not to surely? ( https://www.ultratrailaustralia.com.au ) The Ultra Trail World Tour hits the Blue Mountains in May and it looks amazing. I have friends who rave about it so need to tick this one of my ‘races to do’ list. Add in the 6 inch Ultra in December, the Australia Day Ultra (100k) in January and the Delirious West (200 miles!) in February and the start off next year looks busy before we get into the three marathons I’ve penciled in in June, August and October. Also need to put that 12 hour Light Horse race, in April, to bed next year after I dnf’d this year. Sprinkle in a few half marathons and 10k races for the WAMC Club Championship and it’s going to be a busy 2020.
Only a few 100k places left for the 2020 Ultra Trail World Series., if you want to join me.
A quick post this time as I’m just getting back into the swing of things. I also need a shout-out to the boys in Berlin racing the full this Sunday. The T-train, Mark C. , Dean and Mike K. are representing the BK running crew and I’m sure will do us proud. Mike K. is running for fun after an injury interrupted training program while Tone and Mark are gunning for PB’s . Expect the T-Train to set Berlin alight and finish high up the his age category. If all goes well he could knocking on the sub 2:40 door. Mark C. has trained the house down thanks to Matt Fitzgerald ( http://8020endurance.com ) and one of his ‘magic training programs‘ . Mark is gunning for another 2:48 marathon time or quicker, this time of a certified course .. Dean will either run a great sub 2:40 or blow up spectacularly, there’s no middle ground with that guy ! I’m hoping it’s another sub 2:40. Phil was meant to be joining them but got struck down by the dreaded man-flu this week and had to pull the pin. I feel your pain brother, I feel your pain !!
After the Perth City to Surf Marathon I was itching to get back on horse and start to train for the goal race of the year, the Perth Running Festival. ( https://perthrunningfestival.com.au ) . I had also entered a ‘last man standing‘ race two weeks after the City to Surf as a bit of fun and an enforced long run. This race was another brainchild of Shaun Keasler . ( https://ultraserieswa.com.au )
A 6.7k loop with runners having 1 hour to complete the 200m vert course. Runners continue until the last person standing who then needs to again complete a lap on their own within cutoff to be a finisher. Everyone else is a DNF.
Anyhow to cut a long story short, which is unlike me of course , I got sick four days after the City to Surf and ended up bedridden for a few days and taken three days off work, dosed up on antibiotics the size of small children, I wasn’t sure which end to take them ? Anyhow to add to my woes I had a business trip to sunny Malaysia which is always hot and humid as hell. (I am only assuming hell is hot and humid , never been there myself, although I did spend some time in Aberdeen , which although not hot or humid is probably what I envisage hell to look like. Please never mention this to my Aberdeen born current Wife…) I digress….
In Malaysia you’re never too far from dense jungle, with monkeys thrown in for good measure !
So off to Malaysia I go and end up in Johor, just over the border from Singapore. When I say just over the border I mean just that, you could probably skim a pebble between the two countries. Feeling a bit better I arranged to meet my work colleague , Hamid, after work and pound the pavements for 10k, at a leisurely pace. I was hoping the humidity would act like a sauna and clear my chesty cough, who was I kidding ?
Look a lot better than I feel in this photo, trust me !
I did eventually manage 10k after a long rest break at 7k. The last couple of kilometres was not pretty and I was certainly holding Hamid back. Truth be told it was probably pay back as last year, when I visited Johor, Hamid took me on a hilly 10k loop and the tore tendons in his ankle that required surgery and many months off running. Please note just before he injured himself I did urge caution.
After leaving Hamid to continue I staggered , probably worse than staggered if such a word exists, to my hotel room and collapsed into the shower. The old adage about running if you have a head cold is ok, but anything below the neck is is advisable to rest, rings true. I was goosed.
Felt better after my second run, so decided to sweat all over the Security Guard.
Of course the next day I was back on the pavement but this time alone and only for 8k. This allowed me a marginally better finish and I didn’t feel like I was about to meet my maker , as per the previous night. That folks is it for the last two weeks, 18k . A 9k a week average is not going to get me the time I need for the PRF (Perth Running Festival) so it’s a case of damage limitation unfortunately. This is a pity as I was targeting the PRF for one final tilt at a sub 2hr 50min marathon. (I am 52 you know!) Looks like its going to have wait until next year now ? So instead of a fast time I’ll be targeting sub 3 number 33 and continuing my sub3 streak, taking it to 30. Luckily for me I know the sub3 bus-driver very well, its my old mate the T-train who will be one week out from running the Berlin marathon , where I’m sure he’ll come close to, or maybe just sneak under , 2hrs 40 minutes.
The pavements can be challenging.
So the point of this post is to reiterate that if you have a head cold it’s fine to run, probably not race, but run. Anything below the neck and it’s probably best to rest. This article by Jeff Gaudette from www.runnersconnect.net sums it up nicely. https://runnersconnect.net
Are you Putting Your Body in Danger by Running While Sick?
Sneezing, coughing, congestion, and achy muscles. No, you did not stumble onto a Nyquil commercial. Unfortunately, hard training increases your susceptibility to getting sick, especially if you have children at home.
When you are in the middle of a big training segment, it’s important to know what to do when those symptoms do arise, and you are faced with the question of whether to run or not. To make the decision easy, this article will give you a clear idea of what to run through, and when to rest up.
The most important thing to remember about running when sick is that you should always err on the side of caution if given the choice.
You are not going to ruin your fitness by pushing your workout back a day, or even by taking a few days completely off from running. Yes, runners are obsessive creatures, but two or three days off will not negatively impact your fitness. We looked into this in great detail for our post on How Long Does it Take to Lose your Running Fitness post. Be smart and be patient, and your body will thank you in the long run, pun intended 🙂
Running when Congested
If your symptoms are congestion related – runny nose, chest congestion or coughing – you are usually safe to run.
In fact, an easy run, followed by a nice hot shower may help clear your congestion, and give you a few hours of feeling back to normal.
How to adjust your training
Reduce the speed or intensity of your workouts, or ideally, replace a hard run with an easy day. Being congested and stuffy will make it harder to perform to breathe in and out of your nose, which will limit your ability to run your best.
Instead of setting yourself up for disappointment, have the courage to move your workout backwards. In the words of 2014 US Marathon Champion, Esther Erb, “it takes more confidence to run slowly than it does to run fast.”
If you still plan to workout, start your intervals or tempo run 10-15 seconds per mile slower than you initially intended. If you feel good as the workout progresses, pick up the pace and finish strong. If the workout is harder than expected, keep the paces as you adjusted, and perform the best you can on the day.
Remember, your goal workout paces are merely an estimation of the effort it will take to run that time given your current fitness. So, if you’re congested, you’ll still benefit from the workout, even if it is slightly slower based on conditions.
Running with the Flu
If you have flu like symptoms, especially achy muscles or a fever, you should not run. Running with a fever is not only dangerous, but will significantly increase the time it will take you to get back to 100%.
A fever, by definition, is a rise in the body’s internal temperature in response to bacterial or viral infections. Running also increases your internal temperature, which will make your fever symptoms even worse and could result in dangerous and long-term health consequences.
Likewise, running compromises the immune system, particularly in the first 20 hours after strenuous exercise. Therefore, your body will be more susceptible to the bacteria and viruses already making you unwell, which increases the likelihood of your symptoms taking a turn for the worse.
Furthermore, running siphons away critical energy, nutrients, and resources that could be used to help fight the virus, thereby lengthening the amount of time it takes you to return to full health.
How to adjust your training
You should not run if you have the flu or a fever. Take as many days as you need to feel back to normal with your everyday activities. Remember, it takes at least 10 days to lose significant running fitness, so don’t be worried that a few days off to get healthy will ruin your training.
You should start running again the day after you are able to return to normal day-to-day activities. For example, if you first get sick on Monday, and start feeling normal on Thursday, you should begin running again on Friday. Here is a more detailed look at how you can return to training after getting sick.
Do not try to “make up” missed training in the few days after you return to to running. Your immune system likely still fragile, and your body probably isn’t ready for maximum effort. Spend the first two days running easy mileage with a few strides at the end to snap the legs back into gear. After 2-3 days of easy running, you can attempt a workout.
Be Patient when Sick
No one wants to get sick and lose training time. However, by listening to your body, and being patient in your approach, you can avoid the flu setting you back for weeks instead of days. You will be back to normal training before you know it. Likewise, setting realistic expectations when suffering from a cold or other illness will enable you to adapt and keep your training progressing smoothly.
2019 has been a mixed bag for me. So far I’ve raced 6 times and done pretty well. Three 10k’s finishing in 36.17, 35.55 and 35.38 ; two half marathons , 1:22 and 1:19 and one full, 2:57. Not times to set the world alight but reasonable enough I suppose to keep me interested. Chuck in my first ever DNF at the Lighthouse 12 hour race and I reckon I’m averaging around the ‘B’ grade for the year; commendable effort but could do better . Add to this me and my mojo parted company earlier in the year and it has taken me nearly three months to find it again. I’m not sure how one loses their mojo but it did happen to me in 2014 and this led to me taking Raf on board to coach me which sparked a running renaissance that lasted until late 2017. ( http://therunningcentre.com.au) I use to say there was only one coach in Perth but this was by no means a slant on the numerous quality coaching opportunities available. In fact lately there’s a new Rooster in the training henhouse, my good mate Tony T-Train Smith ( https://www.tonysmithruncoaching.com ) Tony is probably aiming at the older runner , being one himself, and with his military back ground you can be sure of a quality product. Word on the street is he’s fully booked with a waiting list and countless 5 star reviews , maybe I can join the queue as , of late, his running has been taken to a new level.
So what has Tony done to not only reboot his running but all of his clients. Basically good old fashioned running 101’s. First, distance, this is the foundation onto which you build your running dreams and aspirations. If you take nothing more from this post, or even my blog as a whole, than ‘distance is king‘ then my job is done. I have other rules of course about avoiding injury, adding speed, losing weight but all these are useless without first adding distance. Once you run more you will get quicker, it is that simple people. Of course the act of running more may lead to injuries and this is where the juggling act of adding distance comes into play. It’s here a good coach can advise with advice on training techniques and/or injury avoidance with exercise etc. (It’s a little known fact that injured runners do more prescribed exercises in the waiting room of their running professional than in whole previous week. Also when a runner is given a ‘time not to run’ they instantly half that time as they are better than ‘normal runners’ and then half it again because the Doctor is always conservative. Thus when a Doctor says ‘ 6 weeks of no running’, a runner hears ‘ 2 weeks of no running’….. I digress)
Right back to my mojo. Losing ones mojo is not nice as it makes the thing you love most seem a chore and you find yourself thinking of reasons not to run. Trust me you can always think of multiple reasons not to run but all you need is one reason to run, to get you out the door and , normally, that is enough. The old adage you never judge a run on the first few kilometres. Unfortunately when your mojo is gone the run itself is torture from the start to the finish. When this happens you just got to get your head down and ‘run through it’. For me buying new trainers helps as well as running with friends , especially if you start to find you’re running alone a lot. Friends keep you accountable and also help pass the time. They’re also good for ‘kicking your sorry ass’ if you start to bleat about losing your mojo; thanks guys. Eventually you will come out the other side and , voila, you and your mojo are reunited and all is good with the world.
This time I managed to find my form and mojo by buying new shoes. Initially the new Nike NextX and then some Hoka Cliftons ; which were on sale so why wouldn’t you? These Hoka’s are amazing and give you that Vaporfly feel without the hefty price tag, a poor man’s Nike Vaporflys you can use for everyday training. They are so light but also packed with foam that ‘bounce’ you along on your run and also protect your legs. I can’t recommend these bad boys enough, I am a convert. They also add 2-3 inches to your height, a win-win situation.! I’m tempted to try their Carbon X version which is their version of the Nike NextX but with three pair of Vaporflys in my stable it would just be showing off to buy more , wouldn’t it ? I’ve heard on very good sources the Carbon X is as good as the Next X, not for me to decide on that one unless a Hoka representative is reading this and wants to send me a pair to test, always open to free stuff. (Would any reader, i.e. Mum, please forward this post to someone in Hoka One One world and get me some free shoes please… I’ll mention you on my blog?)
These are just ‘ace’…
Right back to the mojo search. As you can see from Strava extract below ( you do have Strava don’t you ? … ‘in Strava we trust’, ‘if its not on Strava it didn’t happen‘ etc… http://www.strava.com ) I built up nicely after the Rottnest Marathon before being struck down by a blister. This was a rookie error on my part as I could feel my shoe rubbing but waited until the end of the run, 10k later, to investigate. ! If I had just stopped and adjusted my shoe earlier the blister would have disappeared . As it was I had four days off running when I was starting to get the love back. Anyhow after a few painful runs on my healing blister I eventually put together a few good weeks and threw in some double days to add some punch to the training. Now I am deep into my two week taper and finding it hard not to run twice a day, this is where you need to be so close to a marathon, itching to run twice a day and worried about the prospect of losing all that hard earned fitness you have accumulated over the previous few months. Of course you won’t, and can’t, lose fitness in two weeks but marathon runners are fickle things at the best of times and let all sorts of ridiculous thoughts enter their brain when they don’t have running to distract them! Tapering and carboloading are activities which ever runner realises they MUST DO pre-marathon but all question these activities when they are not running as much as they’d like. As I have said before as runners we enjoy running, it is what makes us runners. Knowing we shouldn’t run to allow ourselves the best chance on race day is common sense but it still does not make it any easier to digest, no matter how many times we go through it. Add in the carboloading activity ,pre-marathon, when we are forced to eat more carbohydrates than we think we should , mixed in with our paranoid delusions about getting sick the last few days before the race and you wonder why being married to a marathon runner can certainly put a strain on any marriage. Karen, No1 Wife, treads very careful around her grumpy Husband in the few weeks preceding a marathon., even the kids have learnt its best to give Dad a wide berth, pre-marathon. With just over a week to go I’m not in fully ‘taper grumpy mode‘ yet but it’s coming and the family is preparing to baton down the hatches. I must admit I forgot to tell them I’ve entered a ‘last man standing’ race two weeks after the marathon so will move seamlessly from one two week ‘grumpy runner‘ period straight into a another two week pre-race taper, joy, I can’t wait to tell them the good news ?
Ramping up for the Perth City to Surf Marathon.
This last man standing is a new concept over here in WA and it’s the brain child of Shaun Kaesler and his USWA Series ( http://ultraserieswa.com.au ) , as well as his triple crown of Australian 200 mile running (The Delirious West, Irrational South and Unreasonable East , I think? ) and the Forest Series etc.. you can’t keep up with Shaun at the moment. Birdys backyard is a 6.7k loop with 44 runners all needing to be at the start line on the hour every hour , until there is only one runner left who will need to run the loop one more time to win. Depending on how keen the other runners are this event had the possibility of lasting between 24 and 48 hours. Eventually sleep depravation will choose who wins, in my opinion. Personally I’d like to run over 100k and if I could nudge 100 miles that will be my limit. We’ll see, it’s my first ‘last man standing race’ so anything could happen ? A lot will depend how I pull up after the marathon but this event is more mentally challenging so the legs won’t have to be 100%, well that’s the theory anyway ? If you need to know about extreme running events google https://wheredreamsgotodie.com . Lazarus Lake invented the insane ultra and his Barklay Marathons is just a lesson in masochism ! He also has a last man standing competition and from this Birdys Backyard was born, allegedly. ?
As always I seem to have digressed and a post about finding my mojo, getting free shoes from Hoka One One and general training tips has ended up detailing mad races that you’d be mad to take on , after I have already signed to do just that. We’re a funny bunch runners, just saying.
A runners night out, watching a film about running naturally?
This years marks the fifth year of the Run Nation Film Festival and I highly recommend you pop along to a cinema near you (if possible) and watch it. The website will have all the details ( https://runnationfilmfestival.com/#home-section ) and I’m very excited and looking forward to viewing the film in Perth on August 22nd, luckily enough a few days before the Perth City to Surf Marathon. This film will certainly inspire me as it does every year. The man behind the film, Keith Hong, is a genuine turbo charged, running nice guy and just loves what he does. He puts together stories that make a difference and just make you go ‘wow’, or stories that just inspire you to be a better person and that is just a special gift.
So for all my Perth running buddies I’ll see you on August 22nd at the Luna Cinema, Leederville, 7pm KO, everybody else the dates are on the website. (Looking at the website it looks like the World Tour is Australia and New Zealand at the moment?)
I’m a big believer in a runner having a window of opportunity for personal bests (PB’s) or Personal Record’s (PR) for my American Cousins. The window varies for each runner of course but 7-10 years is about the average when it will be possible for a runner , who trains consistently, to expect to challenge PB’s. After that, unfortunately, Father Time dictates it’s time to readjust your goals. Instead of PB’s it could be a ‘season’s PB‘ or even add a minute or two to your PB time and set that as your goal; that way running become goal orientated instead of PB’s. More important of course is the goal needs to be achievable otherwise your running mojo soon disappears, together with your records. We run because we love running but also because we love testing ourselves to either complete a certain distance or run that distance in a certain time. Very few runners just amble up to the start and then skip along with no thought of time or distance. (We call these people ‘joggers‘ and we shall not concern ourselves with them!)
In the picture above I was just about to break sub 3 hours for the City to Surf Marathon in 2009. This was my 10th marathon and I had been slowly whittling down my finishing time each marathon, each time closer and closer to one of the holy grails of running. Funnily enough in 2009 the full length compression tights were all the rage and I’d convinced myself they gave me a 5 minute advantage. The logic is sound with the tights helping blood circulation and thus allowing the heart to concentrate on other things, this results in a lower heart rate and thus an increased performance window for longer. Sounded good but I could never get over the fact the lead marathon runners at the time, Kenyans, never wore them and so, after a few years, they were consigned to only injury prevention or wearing on long flights before or after racing. I still have a pair , as well as calf socks, and will wear them when I’m feeling particularly fatigued , as an injury preventer. Every runner should have a pair of compression tights in their wardrobe.
As you can imagine 10 years ago, after breaking sub 3 hours for the marathon for the first time, me and my mojo were joined together in the search for my next PB. At that stage of my career I ran PB’s virtually every race from 5k up to ultra’s. It was exciting turning up at the start line knowing you would run faster than you had ever run before and it wasn’t a case of ‘if’ but ‘by how much’. Over the next 6-7 years I managed to continually bring down my times for all distances and, even when I thought I had done with setting records , managed another year or two thanks to Raf and his magic training plans. ( https://therunningcentre.com.au ) Unfortunately injury came a calling in 2017 and 2018 and , although I managed so sneak in a 100k AURA age group record, my times started to slide. No more sub 35 minute 10k’s or sub 2:50 marathons, it was back in the 35 minutes for the 10 and closer to three hours than I’d like in the full. My half times were a minute or two slower than I would target as the first half of a marathon and a sub 1:20 half became a challenge. No worries, I knew age would eventually catch up with me and two bad injuries ,back-to-back, had given Father Time the ammunition he needed, bless him !
So what next ? Funnily enough running slower isn’t a problem. At 52 it’s expected of course but what does become harder is the ability to keep running the same weekly distances. A few years ago I’d be targeting twice a day runs , every day, with a minimum of 130km to 150km a week. I’m a big, big believer in distance over pace so hitting these numbers needed to be relaxing, remember if you see a rose, stop and smell it !! This was possible initially but, this year, even the rose smelling runs have started to test me and 5min/k’s average runs are now , sometimes, a challenge. I remember a few years ago I’d target 4min/k average as the benchmark for all my running and I achieved this more often than not ? Where have those days gone ?
Mojo wise I now struggle to find mine most days but that is not to say it is lost forever. Pre-Rottnest, in June this year, I had one Sunday training run with the boys when I was dropped at 5k and turned around, alone, to stumble back to the car. On the way back I managed to find enough juice to manage 19k for the run but it was a real struggle, again when it should had been a breeze. A week later I ran the Rottnest marathon for the 12th time and finished sub 3 for the seventh time, a new record on Rottnest. What had changed in that week ? Nothing really, a few days tapering and a few days carbo-loading put me in a position to finish strongly but with no explanation how, a week earlier, I had stumbled to a slow and painful 19k training run. Recovering from Rottnest has been as difficult as preparing with numerous runs that have been, at best, forgettable and worst career ending. Looking at my training for the last few months and its nowhere near what I once considered the ‘norm’. To highlight the difference I’ve added my Strava ( You do have Strava right? http://www.strava.com ) history from January 2017 compared to my latest month of training. Chalk and cheese unfortunately, training was so much easier when I was 50 ?
June / July 2019
January 2017. Some serious distance and some serious race results.
Right, to find your mojo the best thing to do is completely reset your goals. Give yourself achievable targets and run for only as long as you’re enjoying yourself. This may take the form of very small loops but anything is better than nothing. Just getting out the door is the first step because , after the first kilometre, you’ll always be surprised how much better you feel, it’s just putting on the trainers and making that effort to open the door and take those first steps. Rarely have I ever finished a run and thought that was a mistake.
Next it’s making yourself accountable and that can take the form of running with friends or employing a coach. Both of these demand you turn up when you say you turn up and also give you the encouragement you need to keep turning up ! (Especially when you’re paying for the attention.) Note this doesn’t work if you’re friends with Mark Lee because he rarely turns up , probably looking for his mojo ? (Only joking tiger ….)
Buy yourself some very expensive race shoes, the Nike NextX is a good example of this. I have mine waiting for me when I eventually find my mojo. ! ?? I wish these shoes were avaialable in 2016 when I ran 2:41:xx twice. I’m positive the Nike shoes could have given me 3-4 minutes minimum which would have allowed me to easily break 2hours 40 minutes for a marathon. No worries, I’m hoping Nike invent the Vaporflys 50% which will make you 50% faster than you would be without them, then even I can break 2 hours ?
Remind yourself why you run, sounds simple but sometimes it’s the simple things that make the biggest difference. Also mix it up a bit. Tomorrow I’ve arranged to run 38k in the hills, on trails. Running on the trails reminds yourself about the pure joy of ‘just running’ , breathing in the scenery and just enjoying the pure pleasure of running, remember , simple things. It is to be noted we are in the middle of a Perth Winter (I say ‘Winter’ in the broadest sense of the word?) but that makes a difference and on a number of occasions I have been beaten back to the couch by the cold (?) , dark nights. Not sure how’d I go if I ever returned to old ‘Blighty? Probably never run again. Running in Summer is so much easier , albeit avoiding the heat in the middle of the day, no one likes being fried alive.
I had 10 days off over Christmas – I was planning on two! I just couldn’t find the energy, but I pulled myself together and decided on January 1 to just run. It was only 5km and lashing with rain but it broke the excuses and my mojo is now back. It’s just getting out the door – give it 10 minutes and tell yourself that if you’re not feeling the love you’ll stop… bet you won’t, though!’ Karen Stanley
‘When it’s cold outside and you’ve had a miserable day it’s so easy to come in and drink a pot of tea and eat a cake. Before I knew it a month had passed with the same excuses and I was getting out of breath in the park with the dog and the kids. So one morning I set my alarm earlier, having laid out my kit the evening before. I got up and just did one mile. Wow, did I feel great that day! I decided to do three short, early runs a week and as time went by home life improved and I felt healthier and happier just for getting out there.’ Michael Bowen
‘I lost my desire to run when I was in the depths of anorexia. Running became a chore and the illness snatched my passion for something that had offered freedom. Now I am progressing in my recovery and finally have the energy to run and ultimately feel the mental benefits.’ Alison MacVicar
‘After pelvic issues in pregnancy and a caesarean section, my running performance was ruined. How much harder it was to run and how much slower I was really got me down. But once I realised that I could work on setting new, post-baby PBs things got much better. Suddenly I had some achievable targets to aim for and now I am finally getting back up to (pre-baby) speed after nearly three years. All I had to do was adjust my expectations.’ Elizabeth Dix
‘A few years ago I had an injury I couldn’t shake. I rested, I did the exercises, I went to a physio, I got orthotic inserts – nothing worked. Two months passed, then three…four…But I never gave in, not because I love running, but because I want to remain in good condition for as long as possible. I’m in my late 40s and I see people my age who sweat while they walk – I don’t want that. I see old people making their way painfully down the street – I don’t want that, either. I see the frailty of my parents, who worked so hard, and had no time to think about core work or glute strength, or the right balance of carbs, protein and fats. I worry for them and I don’t want to be so physically uncertain when I’m their age. Nor do I want to be a burden to others. So my motivation is as basic as it gets. I can’t outrun old age, but when the Grim Reaper finally beckons me with his bony finger I want to be able to bound up to him and say, ‘What is it? Oh, right. That.’My injury cleared up after nine months and I’m still running. In the end I will be caught, of course, but that’s not the point, is it?’ John Carroll, RW chief sub editor
‘After a good 2015-16 training with no major injuries I was sure I would – third time lucky – break the sub-four barrier. I woke up on marathon day with the flu and finished in 4:30. I was gutted and lost my mojo for a couple of months. I decided to give running a rest for a while and re-evaluate my goals, which helped me to recover, then kick on to this year’s training for sub-four attempt number four [at the London Marathon].’ AL Rourke
‘Sometimes I fall out of love with running for a spell. When you spend 40+ hours a week thinking about, talking about, writing about and, of course, doing it, that’s inevitable. In 2013 I had a severe bout of antirunningitis. Injuries and a series of failures to crack a four-hour marathon had bred resentment and I started to see running as a chore. And if I couldn’t improve, what was the point?
My solution was a new regime that challenged body and mind. I put myself in the hands of two CrossFit coaches, who made a valid point about [supposedly] Albert Einstein’s definition of insanity (doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting a different outcome). I trained for the Berlin Marathon by replacing all my runs with strength and conditioning work; and I found doing something new and so out of my comfort zone stimulated my curiosity and competitive instinct. The weight dropped off, niggles abated, my mojo returned and I went sub-four in Berlin with a whopping 17-minute PB.’ Kerry McCarthy, RW commissioning editor
‘Training through the bad weather of the winter – especially after Christmas in the run-up to London Marathon – is tough. I persuaded friends to run with me; that way you can’t back out of your committed training slot. I also joined some Nike group runs and did some group classes, including spin sessions (indoor) to vary the training. Group training is easier than solo training in the dark winter months!’ Jer O’Mahony, RW VMLM pacer
‘My biggest motivation block? Me! I keep telling myself I can’t, then I get stressed. Running with friends and talking about it helps. I also now set three targets for myself before I run. Number one is to finish the run – doesn’t matter how long, provided it’s under my own steam. Number two is a minimum mileage that’s acceptable to me. And number three is a dream mileage that would be a boost, or represent meeting a challenge.’ Colette Croft
‘Getting injured two weeks before a marathon messed with my motivation because I felt that all the training had achieved nothing. The only way I got back to it was to enter another race, to give me that goal again. I’ve had a few mental hiccups along the way (“What if you get injured again?”), but I always get out of bed if a goal is there.’ Roger Bilsland, RW production manager and RW VMLM pacer
‘After two years in a constant cycle of training for spring, then autumn, marathons I just ran out of desire. I understood what I had to do to get faster – possibly a little too well – and felt confident I could do it, but where in the past that mix would have been like paraffin for my motivational fire I was, for the first time, simply out of the mental energy to take it on. I took a break, did more cycling, enjoyed Sunday afternoons with my family, then focused on a running goal that was about as far from the marathon as I could manage: running a fast mile. The shift of focus restored my mojo and the following year I felt ready – itching, in fact – to return to marathon training. Mentally refreshed, I had my best and most enjoyable training cycle – and I ran that PB.’ Joe Mackie, RW Deputy Editor
‘A seemingly unsolvable injury that dragged on for months threatened to destroy my motivation for good. Each expert I saw reassured me they would have me back running in no time, but to no avail. Coaching kept me going. Being able to impart knowledge, experience and enthusiasm to others made me feel I still had a purpose in the running world, and I gained a lot of enjoyment and pride from seeing others succeed. If you’re not a coach, stay involved in other ways, such as volunteering at events or going along to races to support friends. But don’t force it: if you’re really miserable about not running, forcing yourself to go and, say, provide tea after a training run (when everyone returns full of running joy) can leave you feeling even more wretched. I speak from experience. By the time I was able to run again my whole outlook on running had changed. I still enjoy racing, but it’s now much more about feeling good, enjoying each run for its own merits and being part of the running community.’ Sam Murphy, RW section editor and running coach
‘Pregnancy and postnatal depression stopped my running for nearly a year. I got my mojo back by rereading Chris McDougall’s Born to Run and starting back slowly with no goals, just me and the road.’ Laura Curtis
‘A few years ago, when I was chasing a sub-three marathon PB, there was an eight-month period in which pretty much every run was a training run – by which I mean every run had a specific goal (e.g. long-run distance, speedwork reps etc). I kind of fell out of love with running as a result, as it became a pretty joyless grind. After the marathon, for a couple of months I made a point of running when I felt like it and with no specific focus, and during the runs just enjoyed the sights and sounds of being out in the open.’ Andy Dixon, RW editor
‘Suffering with anxiety can really affect my running. At times anxiety can leave you feeling demotivated, overwhelmed and not knowing where to turn. Finally understanding that even a small run can make the biggest difference to my mental health really changed things for me.’ Helen Woods
‘After moving to a new area I didn’t have the confidence to go out and explore, for fear of getting lost. This, coupled with the fact it was a hilly area and I wasn’t keen on or very good at hill training, meant that I didn’t run for about six months. I really missed it, so eventually I found a local club who took me under their wing. Soon I had a PB at the local half marathon and became a regular at the local Parkrun.’ Jane Shackleton, RW head of marketing and events
‘My competitive attitude killed me with constant use of Strava etc. I got my running mojo back after reading about the ‘hygge’ way of life. It’s a Danish concept about doing what feels good, not competing, not being bothered about anything other than getting outdoors. I even stopped while out running the other day just to take a photo of the view. I felt free, liberated by lack of measurement. Wonderful.’ Isabelle Szczeccinski
‘Fear of failure was my problem. I got over it by telling myself that the only person judging me is me. No one else cares, they’ve got their own worries to deal with.’ Layton Paul Jones
