UltramarathonMike

Another few weeks fly by without another post, thankfully training hasn’t suffered the same hiatus. Although there was a light couple of weeks when some mystery knee pain (mostly experienced during periods of sitting down…) slowed me down, it didn’t stop me and running didn’t cause any issue.
The weather of course is still cold so icy pavements, snow and sleet are the norm, tonight’s pyramid session was no exception, 2C and sleet.

This did give me a perfect excuse to keep it shortish and get out the exercise ball and have a good old core workout. Many runners just run, many run and cross train with other sports, not so many fit the essential core work into the regime … at least not before they are injured and advised to by the physiotherapist.

In some ways the last few weeks have epitomised winter training, it’s been icy, cold, frequently wet or snowy and there are more excuses not to go that there are to go, but whilst the training slips into the unremarkable it’s better than not training and does you the power of good physically and mentally.

There is still enough of winter left to see the temperature drop a few degrees and give us those crystal clear blue sky ice days which would suit me down to the ground, but if that doesn’t happen it’s not so long before spring will be in the air.

I have managed to avoid much of the associated Christmas excess during the festive season, heck, I started writing this on New Years Eve. I can’t say I have exactly been an angel though and there is a mostly empty box of Guinness in the drinks cupboard, my Laphroaig Quarter Cask is almost empty, and a bumper trip to the bottle bank is necessary, but compared to most I have been good.

The unusually cold weather has been a great excuse for many to stay inside and wrap up warm and, whilst there has been some snow and ice cover almost continually for the past four weeks and with some heavy snow, severe frosts and negative daytime temperatures I have managed to chip away at the miles, get back on the bike to work and even increase the mileage.

Since Brecon though that’s it, just training, little in the way of events (bar the Christmas handicap run dressed dubiously as Mrs Claus) it’s just been about planning, trying out some new gear, running and more planning. Sometime during February I will see if I can plan effectively when I go for a supported test run along the 79(+1) miles of the Wolds Way.

In the mean time, more OS maps, spreadsheets and training.