“Do not let what you cannot do
interfere with what you can do”
Former UCLA coach, John Wooden

After 3 slack weeks it was time to get back into it. The circumstances were made more difficult by the fact I was away in Sydney. It meant I didn’t have as much equipment to cross train with so it was back into the running. After feeling pretty sore I had managed almost 50km by wednesday but my leg was starting to get sore again. Back home by friday I haven’t gotten back into the routine. I think I have hopefully diagnosed my hamstring problem as referred pain from my patellofemoral joint, so I am hopeful this will lead to a resolution soon.
Meanwhile my Garmin GPS unit has died. The battery is not working unless it is on the charger. Still these obstacles are only meant to make us stronger. It is certainly a useful and awesome training tool so I have to get that sorted.
My goals have taken some adjusting and the next aim is to get some solid training in for the rest of December and build my base back to what it was before taking things to a new level come the start of 2008. Let’s do it…

“It’s not whether you get knocked down…
it’s whether you get up”
Justin Herald

“Defeat does not finish a man – quitting does.
A man is not finished when he is defeated.
He is finished when he quits”
Justin Herald

Sorry for the lack of updates. This period has been extremely tough. It began with the pain/tightness I started to experience through my left hamstring. Not a crippling or overly intense pain, but more of a nagging feeling that doesn’t allow me to straighten my leg properly. In this period the mind games have been the hardest to overcome and I haven’t coped particiularly well through it all.
Mentally it has been a huge challenge. One can’t simply push through it. The support around me has been fantastic and motivated me faster than I could otherwise do on my own.
Unfortunately my training has stopped and the progress halted and in reverse. Still as I search for positives I can only think that I have just over 6 months of hard training to go so if ever a break can be had, it is now

“You’re not obligated to win.
You’re obligated to keep trying to do
the best you can every day”
Marian Wright Edelman

“It’s not whether you get knocked down…
it’s whether you get up”
Justin Herald

This week has seen more pain and effort when all I want to do is sleep, rest and have a few days off! However the dream of running Comrades gets me out of bed and striving harder.
At the end of last week I could feel some tightness in my left hamstring, and have managed to push through it all week. I figure I need to learn how to run with pain and visualise myself running as if it is the last 10-20km of Comrades. After all you can’t be an ultramarathoner without experiencing some pain.
On sunday though I felt it was a bit sore and curtailed my run. It may have been a bit aggravated from the strong work Rheanna did to it on saturday. It is due to nerve tightness and comes from my back so it isn’t anything serious to worry about. At least I am not damaging my body at all.
Although the last few weeks have been progressing well, the pounding on the body has probably signalled it may be time to have a few days rest. We’ll see how the body responds in the next few days.

“Only those who risk going too far
can possibly know how far one can go”
T S Elliot

“There is no substitute for work. It is the price of success”
Earl Black

This week it was back on track by pushing hard and discovering my limits.
A strong beginning to the week with extra sessions (mostly abs and strengthening) in the evenings on monday to wednesday, was backed up with my longest run ever on friday, albeit quite slow. It was a tough run, and by 30km I was starting to feel stiff but then my music played the “Bryan Habana” song and that inspired me to push through. My battery on my MP3 ran out with 5km to go and that made the last 5km tough. Usually my feet get sore at about 30km but this time I only started to feel it around 40km. However my hamstrings felt very stiff about 43km which made running tough and I didn’t feel I could have run much further.
After initially feeling pretty good for running 50km I started to think how can I run another 40km on top of that!
This was also the highest mileage I have done in 1 week ever. The 3 runs at the beginning of the week often feel harder than the higher mileage at the end of the week!
With 224 days to go I still have plenty of work to do. Next week I shall have an easier week and aim for 90km.

“Success is not a destination that you ever reach.
Success is the quality of the journey”
Jennifer James

“We can’t become what we need to be
by remaining what we are”
Oprah Winfrey

Lack of being organised this week has resulted in a poor end to the week. On monday night I went up to Toowoomba, some 120km from Brisbane. It is a great place to run around with lots of steep hills. One day I need to go run the range which has a 4km hill, but unfortunately the only road is the highway with no footpath.
On getting back to Brisbane I have struggled to get organised and into my routine, however it is no excuse for missing 3 days in a row. I find it hard when I miss 1 or 2 days. Unfortunately the majority of my miles are run friday to sunday, so missing out here is bad for my total mileage. With just over 7 months to June, time is starting to get more critical. Once January comes round I can’t afford to miss many sessions, and this effectively gives me 2 months to ensure I have a strong base. Gotta make next week count and get back to 100km.

“The greatest battles of life are fought out daily
in the silent chambers of the soul”
David McKay

“You must have a long-range vision to keep you from
being frustrated by short-range failures”
Charles Noble

This week I had high hopes of pushing hard but early in the week I started experiencing a sore right foot, not sure what had set it off. It could have been a small strain from overstretching it, something quite likely the way I often lose my footing or miss my step somewhere. It started off around the 5th metatarsal which is a common site for stress fractures and my biggest fear. Anything else I can deal with, rest I cannot!
So a couple of days rest was the order of the day and then with the rugby world cup final I decided that a few days recovery wasn’t a bad thing. I managed 26 days in a row so I was happy with that.
And the brilliant Springbok victory was extemely inspiring. It shows the value of long-term vision and what can be achieved when you believe in a wonderful cause/country.

“It’s okay if you fall down as long as you learn something as you get up”John C Maxwell

“It’s hard to beat a person who never gives up”
Babe Ruth

This week was designed to be an easier week to allow a bit of recovery from the high mileage. Although the runs were shorter and faster, they weren’t any easier and the body was still knacked!
It was pleasing to run 5 PB’s out of 6 runs indicating I am getting fitter and faster.
Met a guy this week who has run 11 Comrades. His advice was that “Comrades is all in the mind not the body”. But the training will determine how fast I am able to run and what I will feel like at the end of it. Gotta keep working hard and pushing on…

“It’s not what we do once in a while that counts,
but our consistent action”
Anthony Robbins

“The best preparation for tomorrow is doing your best today”
H Jackson Brown

This week has been a great week, having achieved the mileage I set out to do and backing up after a strong week previously. Mind you it hasn’t been easy as my body has been tired. When I get up I start doing my Abs with my eyes shut!
At least I can look forward to an easy week of training next week.
I had planned to run the Toowoomba marathon in 2 weeks time as my comrades marathon qualifier, but I just found out it is not an IAAF accredited race, so now I may have to wait till the Canberra marathon in april to qualify. I hadn’t wanted to leave it too late but don’t have many options.

“To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift”
Steve Prefontaine

“No one has ever drowned in sweat”
Lou Holtz

As the going gets tough, I have just had to get it going. This has been my first full on training week in some time, finally stepping up my training back to where it should be. I always feel when you are doing 100km+ per week you start to get fit pretty quickly. However by this weekend my body has been knacked and just wants to rest!
Thanks for the messages of support, they certainly help to motivate me in the early mornings when I don’t want to get out of bed. I am happy the longer runs have stepped back up in distance, but it is the run the next day that is harder when the body is still stiff and trying to recover!

“There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere, and many of us will have to pass through the valley of the shadow of death again and again before we reach the mountaintop of our desires”
Nelson Mandela

“The world meets nobody halfway,
if you want it you gotta take it”
Linc Hawk, Over The Top

This week has seen me return back to New Zealand for my Grandfather’s funeral. Returning to the hills of Wellington has made me realise that whilst the 90km of Comrades is going to be hard enough, the big 5 hills and many many smaller ones are going to kill me! It will require a lot of fitness and strength to be able to survive let alone run swiftly. At least I managed to do a few more kms this week even though I wasn’t feeling so great. Wednesday I ran my favourite, up Ngauranga gorge, and friday I started the long runs again, doing a 32km run from Wilton to Tawa and back, on friday. Sunday ended with a 20km run along the Brisbane river, which resulted in a much more consistent pace than the up and down of Wellington which saw me get slower and slower as I ran.

Some of the world’s greatest feats were accomplished by people not smart enough to know they were impossible”
Doug Larson