I’m undecided whether a bout of aggravation to my sciatic nerve is going to mean disaster for my Marathon des Sables in just 10 weeks’ time or if it’s going to be a blessing in disguise.
So close to the race I’m obviously a little nervous that such an extensive period of extreme effort combined with the basic conditions of life on the race will result in an even more uncomfortable experience than I was expecting, possibly excruciatingly painful even. However, having re-assessed my training in light of my condition recently I can report my biggest weekly distance since I started training, with 60 miles covered last week.
All of it was done at a pace of around 15 minutes/mile, or 4 miles an hour, which if achievable on the MdS will be pretty acceptable frankly. I still can’t run really – the pounding seems to aggravate the sciatic nerve irritation and leaves me with a numb and tingly lower left leg, and considerable pain in my left glute. I’m also carrying a much lighter pack than my anticipated race weight, but it’s more positive than it’s been in the last couple of weeks.
The walking this week was split between a 6-mile route to and from work on various days and 2 longer sessions at the weekend – 14 miles on Saturday afternoon, and 22 miles on Sunday morning, both in some pretty horrific blustery conditions – not often you see waterfalls being blown upwards rather than falling to the ground! The bracing conditions were a far cry from the desert but seemed to suit me well and I had no problems on either day despite having wet feet for most of the weekend and struggling to stand up at times (due to the wind).
I’m still seeing the physio, Matthew at Hallamshire Physio, who has been excellent (though not so good as to have cured my back problems just yet!). Under his guidance, I’m spending best part of an hour a day stretching, mobilising and generally trying to improve the sciatica and he seems confident that come race day it will have been remedied – funnily enough he never uses the word “cured”.
Kit faffing continues a-pace with more of my race food coming together ready to be bagged and packed – there is absolutely nothing fresh in there to worry about it going off in the next 10 weeks. I think I’m almost there on clothing and the like too which will be a great relief for my bank balance.
Fundraising is also doing pretty well, having topped the £1,000 mark, but there’s still plenty of time for people to sponsor us via http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/team/ianandrichmds2012. Tickets to our charity Moroccan feast seem to be selling well and we’re thinking of one or two other ways of raising money for Macmillan Cancer Support and Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice.
So all in all, I’m in a fairly positive state of mind at this stage, though I fear sciatica may have put paid to any ambitions I had at winning the race………
Monday, 23 January 2012
Monday, 9 January 2012
New year, new challenges
 |
| Heading back to Sheffield in the early morning snow |
After some excellent running conditions in the snow and ice the snow has gone. I got good use out of the “Yaktrax” snow grippers I bought in December and was well pleased with their performance, saving me the usual slippery trepidation the snow brings.
The festive season is also now over and it’s now the last push to the start line. At least it would be if my back hadn’t been playing up over Christmas – disaster! |
| Houndkirk Road on the day after the Derwent Marathon |
All was going so well – running on consecutive days, increasing the pack load to 8kg+,and some excellent coverage in the local Sheffield Star and Sheffield Telegraph before Christmas. Rich and I managed a pre-Christmas marathon distance run around the Derwent Dams in the Peak District which was fantastic – we completed the distance in 5 hours, carrying 8kg packs with half the distance completed in the dark and in pretty icy conditions. Both of us felt good pretty much all the way round, and apart from a close call with mild hypothermia once we’d finished it was a great success.
The training plan was always to take it easy in the lead up to Christmas and focus on back-to-back running between Christmas and New Year. The plan was adhered to, but after the 3rd of our back to back runs my back felt really stiff. The 4th day’s 10 miles was painful, and in hindsight carrying the pack that day probably wasn’t the best idea, but you know how it is. Adding to my woes, I managed to aggravate my recovering shoulder injury, rather pathetically by pushing myself up out of the sofa on Christmas day in order to get another beer from the fridge. Luckily the strong anti-inflammatory drugs I’ve been taking for that are also good for helping my back!
A trip for a sports massage, followed by a visit to the GP and then a physio have all confirmed a bout of sciatica. Luckily it appears manageable (which I take to mean it’s not totally debilitating, but it hurts!) and actually a week or so on, it does feel better. Last week saw the turbo trainer being dusted off and set up again in the garage to try to maintain my cardio fitness, whilst not running. The weekend’s long run was translated into a 15 mile march around the Derwent Dams with a light pack. That produced no ill effects in terms of my back, and was completed in sub-15 minutes/mile pace which was positive.
So, before the final push, a bit of recovery and not being silly about trying to do too much too soon. It’s not what I wanted at this stage, but as so many people keep telling me, I’m almost 40 now and I can’t expect my body to cope and/or recover as well as when I was younger. Great, thanks for that.
One thing I can focus on whilst injured however is the fund raising. As I post this update, our running total stands at £455 (http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/team/ianandrichmds2012) and we’re now selling tickets for a fund raising Moroccan Themed Night at our sponsor’s restaurant Otto’s on Sharrow Vale Road in Sheffield on 24 February.
Saturday, 10 December 2011
Deep and crisp and uneven
The snow has arrived in Sheffield, making for slightly treacherous, though very beatiful running conditions.
Since returning from the Brecons, the focus has shifted to getting used to running on consecutive days. And loading up the pack - standard weight is now around 7kg. It's going to be a long winter.
We've also been busy planning some fund raising for the Bluebell Wood Hopsice in Sheffield which supports families and children with life shortening ilnnesses, and Macmillan Cancer Support. We've set up a charity donation page at www.virginmoneygiving.com/team/ianandrichmds2012 which we'll be promoting more widely in the near future, as well as hosting and organising a range of fund raising events between now and April 2012.
As a result of conversations with a local Moroccan restaurant, we're now also officially sponsored athletes - courtesy of Otto and Theresa at Otto's Restaurant and The Mediterranean on Sharrow Vale Road in Sheffield. They'll be featuring on our race kit as our main (and only) sponsor of equipment. I'm very excited that someone has agreed to back us in this way.
Our next objective on that front is to get some media coverage and we've been talking to the Sheffield Star newspaper about running an article on us after we completed the Percy Pud, a popular local 10k race, in full MdS kit - there was even a camel running, but in a potentially bad omen, we failed to beat it!
 |
| Lady Canning's Plantation, just up t'road from home |
We've also been busy planning some fund raising for the Bluebell Wood Hopsice in Sheffield which supports families and children with life shortening ilnnesses, and Macmillan Cancer Support. We've set up a charity donation page at www.virginmoneygiving.com/team/ianandrichmds2012 which we'll be promoting more widely in the near future, as well as hosting and organising a range of fund raising events between now and April 2012.
As a result of conversations with a local Moroccan restaurant, we're now also officially sponsored athletes - courtesy of Otto and Theresa at Otto's Restaurant and The Mediterranean on Sharrow Vale Road in Sheffield. They'll be featuring on our race kit as our main (and only) sponsor of equipment. I'm very excited that someone has agreed to back us in this way.
Our next objective on that front is to get some media coverage and we've been talking to the Sheffield Star newspaper about running an article on us after we completed the Percy Pud, a popular local 10k race, in full MdS kit - there was even a camel running, but in a potentially bad omen, we failed to beat it!
 |
| We didn't beat the camel but still got the Christmas Pudding |
Brecons Ultra
This post is a little out of date now, but a quick update on our performance at the Brecons Ultra back in November. It was a long drive down to Brecon on Friday night but rewarded with a pre-race pint in a village pub, before settling down for a night in the campervan.
The race day was grey, but promised to be dry which was a bonus. Around 120 or so people gathered together in the early morning, and then set off along the canal path for the first of two 23 mile laps - the race organisers weren't really sure how long each one was. What was certain was the massive hill that we had to climb early on the loop, made harder knowing that we'd have to do it again with another 23 miles in our legs.
Our aim for the day was to practice for the long day in the MdS, which meant a lot of walking with our new poles, and much to the amusement of a number of competitors who passed us, a stop for a hot meal to see if that strategy would pay dividends in the desert. Not overly helpful, as I found it worked really well, but Rich didn't seem to get on with the food 2/3rds of the way into the event.
The event overall was good - I felt pretty strong all the way round, although my right knee was pretty sore towards the end. Going through the day and into the darkness of a November evening was good practice and rather odd, as it felt a lot later than it was due to the dark which seemed to add to our tiredness. I was pleased with my performance though, and despite a mild dose of trenchfoot my feet held up with no blisters.
I'll definitely be taking poles to the desert, and have at last discovered some shorts which don't rub in all the wrong places so another piece of desert kit can be ticked off and packed ready for the race. Alright, so 12 hours+ isn't going to win any prizes (it didn't!), with the winner finishing in 6 hours 20 or thereabouts, but happy with the day out.
The race day was grey, but promised to be dry which was a bonus. Around 120 or so people gathered together in the early morning, and then set off along the canal path for the first of two 23 mile laps - the race organisers weren't really sure how long each one was. What was certain was the massive hill that we had to climb early on the loop, made harder knowing that we'd have to do it again with another 23 miles in our legs.
Our aim for the day was to practice for the long day in the MdS, which meant a lot of walking with our new poles, and much to the amusement of a number of competitors who passed us, a stop for a hot meal to see if that strategy would pay dividends in the desert. Not overly helpful, as I found it worked really well, but Rich didn't seem to get on with the food 2/3rds of the way into the event.
 |
| Rich "enjoying" a de-hydrated chilli con carne at mile 29 |
Monday, 7 November 2011
Slowing the pace
Not that my pace needs to be slowed at all really, but I figured I'm unlikely to be running all of the MdS so the last couple of weeks have involved some brisk walking, practicing with poles to help take some of the pressure off the legs. Both sessions proved pretty sucessful, not too much discomfort from the shoulder during the walks, though it's got a bit sore afterwards. Last weekend's outing was in perfect, glorious Autumnal weather - chilly, bright morning with excellent visibility.
The other main focus since the Race Kit weekend has been pack carrying, aiming to gradually build the weight up to the full 11-12kg we're expecting at the start of the race. Joy. The fun part comes in gathering the goodies that will make up all that weight - shiny kit shopping. Currently I've working with a 6-7kg pack, so there's some way to go.
The pace will be picking up again this week (it's all relative!) as the Brecons Ultra is only 2 weeks away, which will be a great opportunity to try out our new kit and some anticipated strategies for the desert.
Other than that, things appear to be going well in training, with an increase in stretching, some strength work and avoiding injuries. Happy days.
 |
| Rich on the way back from Redmires |
The pace will be picking up again this week (it's all relative!) as the Brecons Ultra is only 2 weeks away, which will be a great opportunity to try out our new kit and some anticipated strategies for the desert.
Other than that, things appear to be going well in training, with an increase in stretching, some strength work and avoiding injuries. Happy days.
Wednesday, 19 October 2011
All revved up
Just spent a fantastic weekend courtesy of the nice folks at Racekit.co.uk on an MdS training weekend in the Peak District. A great mix of running, trying kit, learning about all things MdS (including mental preparation, foot care, nutrition and tent etiquette - apparently "whacking off" is a no-no!). And of course the opportunity to meet up with, weigh up and have a jolly good laugh with some fellow competitors.
It's left me with a good few queries over pack choice, and other kit options, but at least I know where to turn to for advice and kit shopping. Three fantastic runs between Friday night (run round Ladybower Reservoir), Saturday am (Curbar and White Edges in the glorious sunshine) and Sunday (through my old favourite Burbage and across the back of Hathersage) allowed us to try many different variations of kit, poles and clothing.
A few days afterwards and I'm still very very excited about the race now. So much to do, so many things to think about and prepare and so much to look forward to. Given it's 6 months away, there's still time to get things sorted, but not much time to waste so from here on in it's focus, focus, focus.
A few pics of the weekend courtesy of Andrew & Amanda at RaceKit (www.racekit.co.uk) - thanks guys for a fantastic weekend.
It's left me with a good few queries over pack choice, and other kit options, but at least I know where to turn to for advice and kit shopping. Three fantastic runs between Friday night (run round Ladybower Reservoir), Saturday am (Curbar and White Edges in the glorious sunshine) and Sunday (through my old favourite Burbage and across the back of Hathersage) allowed us to try many different variations of kit, poles and clothing.
 |
| If Carlsberg made night runs.....Ladybower in the clear dark night |
 |
| Less sunny at Burbage |
 |
| Somewhere near Curbar Edge in the sunshine |
Friday, 7 October 2011
6 months and counting
That's less than 26 weeks to go until we fly to Morocco. A quick summary of where I'm up to: lots of long, slow plodding - tick; avoided running injuries so far - tick; confident of running 150 miles in ridiculous heat with a stupidly heavy pack and sand in my shoes - work in progress!
Still much work to do in the next 6 months, or 26 weeks, or 182 days. Getting kit, sorting out some charity sponsorship, ramping up the training and probably a million and one other things I'll be thinking I should have done come the 5th April next year.
This week's change from summer to winter, including 10 very soggy, windy, cold miles on Thursday morning does not signal ideal preparation for 40 degree heat but the miles all count. At least that's what I'm telling myself.
Now, best get on with that training plan......
Still much work to do in the next 6 months, or 26 weeks, or 182 days. Getting kit, sorting out some charity sponsorship, ramping up the training and probably a million and one other things I'll be thinking I should have done come the 5th April next year.
This week's change from summer to winter, including 10 very soggy, windy, cold miles on Thursday morning does not signal ideal preparation for 40 degree heat but the miles all count. At least that's what I'm telling myself.
Now, best get on with that training plan......
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
