“Even if you’re on the right track,
you’ll get run over if you just sit there”
Will Rogers

Resting HR (average): 50

Injury status: (R) calf/shin 2/10

Neural stretching (knee to nose. averages in cm):
Baseline 34; Afterwards 30

A reasonable start to the year and some high mileage in recent weeks allowed me to reduce the length of my runs and have an easy week. Not that the running is ever very easy!

I tried to increase the pace on my runs and get a little faster. Monday was an easy 8km and I was obviosuly still feeling the effects of the previous week as I couldn’t run very fast!

Tuesday was a decent 15km and Wednesday was a welcome day off running. A good tempo run on Thursday was followed with a medium 24km on Friday. It felt a better than the previous week’s long run!

The weekend I only managed 2 short sessions as we were busy with an Internet marketing seminar so I had less time to exercise. Sunday’s run gave me a Right lower calf/shin pain, so I’ll have to work on that over the next few days as next week it’s time to up the mileage again!

“The will to win is worthless, without the will to prepare”

“Don’t let yesterday’s disappointments
overshadow tomorrow’s dreams”

JANUARY 2010

Resting HR (average): 55
Resting HR range: 46-62

Neural mobility: 37/31cm

Average weekly mileage: 67km
Average training load: 288

Running time:km range: 5:00 – 6:11

After a poor 2009, 2010 has started much better. Whilst I’m desperately unfit, putting in solid sessions and reaping the rewards later.

I achieved my goal of getting back to marathon distance, the goal for February is to push that up and see if I can run a 50km!

“Don’t let your body push you around. Keep running!”

“Gotta get up, Gotta get up, Gotta get up”
From “Ride on time” by Blackbox

Resting HR (average): 52

Injury status: General lower leg soreness!

Neural stretching (knee to nose. averages in cm):
Baseline 37; Afterwards 31

A solid week helped by a good long run. However early in the week I found it tough getting up in the mornings. It reminds me of the song Ride on time by Blackbox, the tagline being “Gotta get up.”

I missed my Tuesday run, it always sets back the weekly mileage when you miss your midweek longer run.

At least I still managed to do some exercise sessions and Tuesday I worked the legs hard using a step.

Thursday was a tempo run during the heat of the day. Jeez it’s been hot during the Brisbane summer!

Friday I was out at 1.30am. It would choose to rain on my long run!

After about 16km I was starting to struggle. I had run at a reasonable pace, but I got slower and slower….and slower still! My thick Thorlos (socks) were wet and had a crease which created a terribly painful hot spot under the ball of my foot. Why I didn’t stop and fix it I don’t know!

A wet top didn’t help either, and my left nip guard had fallen off which was irritating my nipple too.

At 24km I wanted to give up. I thought about calling Rheanna to come get me, but simply set small targets. 2km at a time.

My feet were getting sore and my legs really tight. When you want to give up, you have to think of your goals to drive you, and I was also motivated by the thought of not finishing what I set out to do and being the same as everyone else!

When I got home after 43km, all I could think of was I never want to run again! (That’s a common occurence after my long runs recently!) A pace of 6:11 per km is disgraceful! Oh it’d be nice to be fit again!

Exhausted after my 43km long run! I just had to lie down!

My wrinkled foot after running 43km

Looking worse for wear after running 43km!

Saturday was a fairly easy day, and then Sunday was good to back up the long run with a slow, steady 18km.

Next week will be an easy week. I’ll reduce the mileage, aim to run a little faster and work on strengthening the legs…

“Every runner has excuses, only winners never use them”

“No one ever drowned in sweat”

Resting HR (average): 54

Injury status: General lower leg soreness

Neural stretching (knee to nose. averages in cm):
Baseline 37; Afterwards 31

Training is always tough. It’s worse you are not fit, because the recovery between sessions is lower and it’s always harder to start the next session.

Monday was an easy 10km.

Tuesday my legs needed a rest from running and I took 3 days off to give them a break. It always feels good to freshen the legs, but once you start running again, it’s like they’ve never rested at all!

Training in the Brisbane summer is tough. It’s so hot (but it’s not the heat that kills). When running you need small water stops to just stop the mouth from being dry, and your clothes just get drenched in sweat. They get heavy, and it’s annoying having to wipe off the sweat constantly.

Friday I was out at 2am and the rest had helped my legs. For the first 15km anyway! After that I started to get progressively slower…and slower. I ran out 19km to St Lucia and turned around. My battery in my mp3 died. There would be no music to keep me occupied on the way back, I’d have to listen to myself!

I started to get sore feet about 22km, and had a second drink stop at 26km. From there I struggled.

It hurt to run, but it hurt even more to stop. When I stopped I’d get a burning, tightness type of pain down my legs. The last 6km were a struggle, although I did run the last few km a bit quicker.

Once again I was very stiff and sore afterwards.

That night I had to have a bath to try and ease the muscle fatigue. There was just a deep ache all through my legs! I guess I’ve been pushing hard and increasing the mileage faster than I should do. But I had wanted to get back to marathon distance by the end of January.

Saturday and Sunday were fairly easy recovery sessions.

Next week will be a big week as I aim to get back to marathon distance! It hurts already!

“Pride lasts longer than pain”

“What will determine the course of your life
more than any other one thing is whether or not
you’re willing to tolerate necessary discomfort”
Barbara Sher

Resting HR (average): 58

Injury status: Low backstrain 5/10

Neural stretching (knee to nose. averages in cm):
Baseline 33; Afterwards 28

Pain. Lots of it!

This week was a tough week, and required pushing through the pain barrier!

Monday through to Thursday I was feeling tired! It’s been tough getting back into normal training again but at least it was a full week with decent mileage for a change.

The midweek longer run on Tuesday started to get more comfortable, but it was still very tough. I can feel how tight I am neurally by the fact it takes 6-8km to warm-up and feel looser. Running those first 6-8km is painful, especially through the shins and thighs!

Friday I was out by 3am. I can’t believe I felt so sore. Every step caused immense pain in my shins, hamstrings, everywhere! At 7.5km I sat down and was ready to ring Rheanna to come and pick me up. I figured I’d just run 500m more and do 8km at least. I kept thinking I can’t give up, otherwise I’d be just like most other people!

At 8km, I thought, just get to 10km. At 10km I was not too far from a service station and thought, get some food and have a powerade, then see how I feel. I paid for 2 powerade’s (so I’d pick up the second one on my way back), it’s amazing what spending $3 does for you! I struggled through to 16km and my turnaround point, focused on the fact I had to at least pick up my second powerade which I’d paid for!

Then it was just get to 20km, 22km, 23km, 24km…etc

There was a lot of stopping at traffic lights and intersections on the way back. I was so grateful just to stop and try rest my legs.

When I got home, at 32km I could barely stand. My feet and legs were so sore! As I said to Rheanna “this was one of the hardest runs I’ve ever done.” I say that fairly regularly, but I am sure this ranks as one of the toughest! (They all do, not sure why someone would voluntarily do this so often!)

Saturday and Sunday were fairly easy days. Next week I need to build on this week’s training, hopefully it’ll get slightly easier, but I wouldn’t count on it!

“Continuous effort, not strength or intelligence,
is the key to unlocking your potential”
Sir Winston Churchill

“Resilience is the ability to
come back and keep trying,
even when you fail or things are tough”

Resting HR (average): 58

Injury status: Low backstrain 3/10

Neural stretching (knee to nose. averages in cm):
Baseline 37; Afterwards 31

With a new year, it was nice to re-evaluate and set new goals. 2009 produced a good beginning before being derailed with neural pain and frustration at not knowing to handle it. After numerous specialist consultations and investigations it was up to me to deal with it, and I finally feel I now know how to handle it.

2010 is more about training consistently and reaping the rewards that brings. The 10kg I need to lose will hopefully happen as I build up and regain more intensity.

It was nice to start off with a fairly solid week. One knows one is not fit when 24km is a long run and leaves you knacked! I took it fairly easy over the weekend, but next week brings the chance to build on some decent sessions and push to the next level…

“Resilience is having faith that you will succeed
and the knowledge that each failure
is a learning opportunity and experience”

“The key to success is failure”
James Dyson

DECEMBER 2009

Resting HR (average): 56
Resting HR range: 49-64

Neural mobility: 39/34cm

Average weekly mileage: 10km
Average training load: 37

Running time:km range: 5:09 – 5:38

December was a poor training month, it has been hard to get back into a routine since moving. The hot weather, and lack of slep havent made it any easier, but they are poor excuses!

As someone who thrives on routine, the Challenge for January is to just get some solid training days under the belt and the results will come. 2010 will hopefully be a much better year, I have 10 kilos to lose and a lot of fitness to gain! Bring it on!

“The tragedy of life doesn’t lie in not reaching your goal.
The tragedy lies in having no goal to reach”
Benjamin Mays

“A marathon is like life with its ups and downs,
but once you’ve done it you feel that you can do anything”

NOVEMBER 2009

Resting HR (average): 55
Resting HR range: 50-59

Neural mobility: 28/23cm

Average weekly mileage: 25km
Average training load: 98

Running time:km range: 4:43 – 5:55

“Catch the person in front of you,
not the one behind you”

“It hurts up to a point, then it doesn’t get any worse”
Ann Trason, Champion Ultramarathoner

Resting HR (average): 54

Injury status: (L) Calf 3/10, General lower limb pain!

Neural stretching (knee to nose. averages in cm):
Baseline 28; Afterwards 23.5

The Comrades Marathon ‘down run’ is all about pain management. This week I got to experience plenty of it!

Monday was a fairly easy 10km, and on Tuesday the pain started!

I ran 20km, and from anout 11km, my Left calf started to get very tight and felt it could blow up at any stage. Whilst that was a struggle in itself, at least that took my mind off the pain of my sore nipples! It has started to increase in humidity in Brisbane, and running in a singlet, it still gets drenched in sweat. Once wet, the chafing begins!

I have been pretty good recently, so I didn’t apply any protection (I usually use Nip Guards on longer runs, and lubricant on shorter runs). Also it saves a few dollars by not having to use Nig Guards which are for single use . Whilst it was sore, it wasn’t until I got back home and looked down that I realised the left one had bled, on my nice white singlet!

The problem with “runners nipple” is that once it heals, the skin sort of calluses over, and goes hard. The chance of ‘reopening’ the abrasion are higher.

Sanjay suffering from runners nipple

Wednesday was a strengthening session on the total trainer, and a cycle and quad strengthening in the afternoon.

Thursday morning was a 6km tempo run. I worked hard and felt I was sprinting on the way home, but alas I had run slightly slower than the first half of my run!That afternoon my quads were a bit stiff from the previous day, something I rarely ever get in my quads.

Fridaymorning I had a set myself a minimum of 30km, and aim for 40-45km. First I had a 21km out and back to the East of Brisbane. It started off fine for the first 5km, then because it gets fairly undulating along ‘Old Cleveland Road,’ my pace became very slow and I was practically running 6:00/km’s for the remainder.

At about 15km my Left Calf started to get tight and sore. Running out and back I was practically near home at the 21km mark. The pain was too much for me and I decided 22km would be my limit.

The previous evening I was talking to a friend who told me it is important to train according to how one feels. If one doesn’t feel good, then it is better to take it easy/rest. It conflicts with my own personal mantra of “You can always do more that you think you can!”

(After 21km) I decided to do 1 more km, as I was now running to the west side. With the turn around and having to get back home it would make 24km. It was so hard to run each step, let alone think of running 1km. When I got to 22km, I thought 1 more km, that would mean I’d have to run 26km. The pain was becoming unbearable.

When I got to the 23km mark, I thought if I was going to do 26km, I may as well do my minimum target of 30km. Keep going for 2 more km and turn around. By now my feet were killing me too, and as I kept going my calf started to ease slightly.

I figured I could keep going a bit further to the petrol station where I normally buy my drink and maybe that’d help me keep going. When I stopped the pain a wave of burning pain swept up my legs! The cold drink was great, but it was better to keep moving, no matter how painful that was!

I just concentrated on running each km. Each km I ran I’d effectively have to do 2, as I had to run back home yet.Somehow I found the energy and determination to have run 32.5km, meaning I had 12.5km to get home. Whilst I had manged to feel better for the last 7-8 km, that feeling was wearing off!

At the 36km mark I didn’t know if I could make it home. Although it’s always tough, I don’t ever doubt whether I can make it home. Just over 3km to get another drink. Whilst I mormally think of small goals to keep me going, this was getting way harder than it usually is!

The last 5km, were a nightmare. Pain. In every inch of my lower body, and neck too. Instead of focusing on kms, that last 2-3km I focused on 200m at a time. When I finally staggered home, I was dead!

The pain was so intense I couldn’t sleep like I normally do! It goes to show however, if you put your mind to it, you can definitely do more than you think you can. My immediate thoughts were that was only half a Comrades! Remind me why I want to run it?

Saturday I did a 45 min cycle in front of the telly as I watched the Springboks play Leicester. The rest of the day we got a decent workout moving boxes to our new place!

Sunday was a 12km recovery run. I felt okay for the first 8km, then it got a bit harder as my legs are still recovering from Friday.

Next week the challenge is to keep up the momentum whilst Rheanna is away. It’ll be an easy week to let the legs recover (my training load had a massive spike and shouldn’t increase by more than 10%), and if I do more 4 runs during the week, I look forward to taking the weekend off running…

“What counts in battle is
what you do once the pain sets in”
John Short

“Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up.
It knows it must outrun the fastest lion or it will be killed.
Every morning in Africa, a lion wakes up.
It knows that it must run faster
than the slowest gazelle, or it will starve.
It doesn’t matter whether you’re a lion or a gazelle
when the sun comes up you’d better be running”

Resting HR (average): 54

Injury status: Right Hamstring tear 2/10

Neural stretching (knee to nose. averages in cm):
Baseline 31; Afterwards 27

This week I had to manage my hamstring and get back into some running. Monday and Tuesday I could only do small amounts as the hamstring was still tight, so I only did 4km and 10km.

Wednesday was a strengthening session, and Thursday a gentle 6km.

Friday morning I got up a bit late, but felt really good doing 22km. Whilst it was slow and I started to get a bit stiff after 15km, I felt I could have run 30km quite easily. Unfortunately I ran out of time as I left late, and I had an early morning appointment.

Saturday we did a long walk. I find it much harder on the feet than running, so it is something I’m going to have to increase leading up to comrades.

Because of the Currie Cup final on Saturday night/Sunday morning, Sunday was a sleep in! Unfortunately no training got done.

On Sunday I officially entered Comrades Marathon 2010! There is not long to go, and plenty of training to do. Like the Lion…when the sun comes up, I’d better be running…

“A man can fail many times, but he isn’t a failure
until he begins to blame somebody else.”
Steve Prefontaine