Sunday 1 April 2012

Pull yer socks up!!!

I said last week that I perhaps needed to slow my training a little to try and let my body recover from some really hard sessions. Well for some reason, I seem to have lost my motivation. After my 20 miler last Sunday, I went out Monday night and did a pretty quick 7 miles, I missed the usual Wednesday session as I went to see Scarlett perform in Brownies Got Talent, and then finished the week with 5 miles in 55 minutes on Thursday night which included Kewaigue hill into a headwind.

I am ashamed to say that since then I have done absolutely nothing. I had planned on getting out this afternoon for a dozen miles but just couldn't seem to get myself motivated.

It seems a little strange because this time last year I turned a corner in my preparation, and the Walk Talk really gave me a mental kick up the backside and taught me not to rest on my laurels. The opposite seems to have happened this year, and before I get loads of complaints, it was nothing to do with the night itself which again was a fantastic event and hopefully everyone who went got a lot out of it. All the talkers were informative and interesting and really know their subject matter well.

In actual fact I put today's lethargy down to one of 2 significant happenings. I was out Friday on my mates Manx stag do and it's fair to say that I was extremely worse for wear yesterday morning and this may have had a knock on effect to today. I must take this opportunity to thank the bus driver who woke me up at Ballacannell bus stop, and if it hadn't been for this I would probably have spent an uncomfortable night in Ramsey bus station or probably got my dozen miles in a day earlier than I expected.

The second and most probable explanation was the feeling of deflation after another absolutely diabolical display by the red half of Merseyside. That is 6 defeats in their last 7 games and creates the forgettable statistic of them taking only 4 points out of the last 24 available. If we didn't have sufficient points to guarantee Premier League football for next year, I would seriously be worrying. I never thought I'd hear myself say this, but the soone the football season is over the better.

Anyway, back to training, or lack of as the case seems to be. My opportunities for good length walks over the next couple of weekends are minimal as my sister in law gets married next Saturday and unless I can sneak out for a few miles in the morning, I expect that Sunday will be another write off. The following weekend I am away on my mates stag weekend in Spain, so although I will bring my PE kit with me, chances are it won't see light of day. That said, as I mentioned last time, the Sara Killey memorial walk is 3 weeks today, and ideally I don't want to have the effects of any serious distance in my legs so the enforced training slow down could be welcomed.

As I was convalescing on the couch yesterday afternoon, I had a quick fire exchange of texts with Richard Wild who gave me an update on his training this weekend which was pretty impressive, but in addition, he gave me a link to a fantastic website with tips for drinks for long distance events. Rather than regurgitate what it says, have a look at this link www.brianmac.co.uk/drinks.htm

There are a couple or ideas on hee that I will be certainly trying out when I do get round to training again just to see if they work for me. If not, it'll be back to normal drinks. Trying things out in training is extremely important as it really is a dummy run and if your body rejects something whether it is food or drink, then it has been a worthwhile exercise as you don't want to experience something like that on the day itself. This also goes for training gear. By now you should be training in the trainers you plan to wear on the day, and trying out different clothing combinations. Seriously, trying something new on the day can be he difference between a finish and having to give up at Maughold with blisters or world class chaffing.

Next blog I will give you a run down of the type of kit that I use and what I have done and when, and what has and hasn't worked for me.

Right, time to go and give myself a serious talking to.

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