...considering that my chest feels raw, i feel a bit poorly and my legs are rediscovering the joys of fellrunning.
I've trained six days this week for the first time in ages, which is satisfying but i don't feel as fulfilled as i might because i seem to be very off colour.
This morning I ran the Cardington Cracker, but so very nearly didn't. The closer I got to the village, the worse i felt. My chest was raw and tight and i had a horrible sense of forboding that racing was a bad idea. Race today and i could be out for weeks....
But it was a stunning morning, a clear sky, perishingly cold and as clear as clear can be. I decided to run, not race, and see how i fared. After all, this is what it's all about isn't it? Getting out on the hills on days like this? It's a curse of fellrunning the the competitive side of things can make you forget that what it was like up there is more of a measure of your day that how fast the scenery moved past you. You can live a hundred years without really living a second if you're not careful - so all thoughts of canning it were gone and I lined up on the start.
I went out easy and picked people off. I let my usual sparring partners race off into the distance and enjoyed being at the back. I didn't wear a watch, I didn't have a target. I just ran easy. It was fantastic. Took it all in - the view south off Caer Caradoc was amazing, with patches of fog forming a patchwork along with the fields around Church and Little Stretton far below us. I felt better as the race went on and ended up crusing home in about 1:40 or so and I couldn't have been happier!
My chest was ok, got no worse, but boy did i cough up some interesting coloured phlegm! Let's hope that i don;t get any worse...
This week:
Monday - 7M, brisk on a very hilly route up to Llay from Rossett. 7.17 min/mile average, about 400' ascent on that route. Really really cold.
Tuesday - 6 * 850m - a series of hard efforts around a good fast and flat loop in Rossett. About 5M all told, really cold also.
Weds - Circuit training - bloody hell it was hard. First time i;ve done that for years! My girly arms and shoulders sore after that. Great fun though - and such joy to see the lovely Claire again!
Thurs - 11.5M, brisk hilly circuit around Brown Knoll, Tattenhall, Burwardsley. Great!
Friday - Not sure how far - but 2 * 1150' climbing with Dave Sykes on the fabled Moel y Gamelin reps. These have got Simon and Dave into great shape in the past and it was good to see where this secret little gem actually was. I was tired and didn't run that well. BUT, it was toughed out and i did it, even in a cold, sleety wind. Dave was far stronger but this was about mental training. I was tired and obviously this chest infection was brewing without my realising it at the time. Glad to have done it, and the reps each took about 23 mins. So, there's a baseline...
Sat - Rest, well Christmas shopping,,,
Sun - Cardington Cracker - 8M, 2700'.
Total - 5600', about 42 miles-ish
Tunes in head - Radiohead, Jigsaw Falling into Place
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