Having a break from training (Brett)

Having had some time off running for a few days due to various commitments and having the infamous manflu – trust me that it is life threatening even though Hannah and other women may disagree. The only thing which I could do is moan and use the remote control.

It did highlight something which Guy used to go on about, and that was that we all do things at a 100m/hr and never stop to just smell the roses. The other thing being that we also keep comparing ourselves to others during this process. I personally think that the Keartland clan is at a loss without him as he was the only one in the clan who provided the deep thinking. My task is, light banter and teach the nephews bad habits – well habits which their mom might not approve of.

Having not run for a while I have been like a bear with a sore head and eventually I managed to do some very light running e.g walk/run for 25-30minutes. Thankfully it has not been to cold, so did not need any of those man up chats which Hannah has a knack of giving. However once I got out there, just cruising around the park in the evening after work it really highlighted how fortunate we are that we can just get outside and go for a run and do something which I love doing.

During my time off running I have been noticing that the blokes and other such characters have been putting in solid training sessions in the hills and they are definitely looking very impressive. Thus I start over analysing my performances vs theirs etc and start doubting my own training for Hardmoors 110 and Transalpine. However I bet that if you ask these guys how their training is going they might say rubbish and that I am flying. Or at work when you are only a junior bricklayer while the guys you went to bricklaying college with are now senior bricklayers – you do not know if they are happy being senior bricklayers and whether they are pleased that they have sacrificed so much for only that much more.

Thus what I am trying to say is that sometimes you need to just enjoy the journey no matter what gets thrown your way – yes it does get frustrating and you want to go into hibernation but that is when you need to look around you and be grateful for what is around no matter how small it is and just enjoy it. Furthermore during these periods and others do not compare yourself to others as you do not know what is going on behind the scenes.

Being unusually sensible (Hannah)

Last weekend was a lesson in both of us having to be sensible with a view to the longer term bigger goal.

It was a beautiful sunny day with very little wind, clear blue skies and a peak temperature of around 13 degrees – a perfect day for running. Not least when that running was on the trails of the New Forest, one of our favourite parts of the world.

Brett and I had both entered the Heartbreaker marathon organised by Race New Forest. We’ve done lots of their events over the years and really like them – they’re well organised and the atmosphere is always relaxed and friendly.

The weekend before, however, Brett had run 80km which was a vital training session in his build up to the Hardmoors 110 miler in June. His knee had been niggling since then and wasn’t happy after a gentle 10km run on the Saturday. He’s also been battling sinus problems for a month or so and just can’t shift the bug. So doing a marathon didn’t seem like a sensible idea – it could put him out of training completely for several weeks and we can’t afford that sort of disruption at the moment – the events we’re training for require consistency. So Brett woke on the Sunday morning and made the decision to be a DNS. Instead he had a lovely walk in the New Forest.

I’ve been battling with spasm in my left glute and lateral quad for a month or so. It’s been getting better and I’d managed to run 13 miles three times in the week running up to the marathon. So I was fairly confident I could get halfway. But I didn’t want to push myself to the point where my technique was off and I was doing myself damage. The course route was ideal for this – 3 loops with a turnaround point at each end and a central feed station. So every 1.5 miles I had the opportunity to reassess how I was feeling and the option to pull out.

It was a beautiful course and really scenic.  And a stunning day.  There was also a half marathon and a 10k going on but us marathoners headed off earlier than everyone else - and that meant we had the "loop" to ourself on the first time round.  It was really peaceful and I really enjoyed myself.  I was so keen to complete this race!

Loads of the marathoners were training for bigger things and had stories to tell.  There was one guy running 60 marathons in 60 weeks at the age of 60.  And another woman running 12 marathons in 12 months to raise money for Headway.  And a woman heading towards her 200th marathon!  Plus lots of  people training for ultras later in the year.

The second loop was busier cos we were being chased down my the people doing the half marathon.  But at that point I hooked up with woman training for the Marathon des Sables.  Talking to her helped take my mind off things and it was also really interesting to talk to her about her training.  That got me round the second lap and onto the third when things quietened down again - the half marathon only did one loop.

I got to the second turnaround with around 10k to go and decided I needed to stop and stretch my leg out.  By this stage I could feel stiffness all the way down from my glute into my lower leg.  I stopped and started to stretch and felt my whole leg seize up.  I walked for a bit and it was sore.  It didn't seem to be easing.  Brett happened to be there at that point.  So we agreed that I'd start running and if it looked like I was running awkwardly then I'd stop.  I started running and Brett was assertive with me.  10k was too far for me to run with an uncomfortable and uneven gait.  I'd have risked injuring myself badly and putting myself out of training for weeks. 

It was a hard decision to make not least cos the rest of me was feeling really good.  For example, my right leg didn't feel like it had been running at all.  But it was definitely the right decision.  I was running again by Tuesday morning and have covered some big mileage over the past week.  Consistency is so key at the moment that that is more important than completing a marathon and then having to take a break from training.