Pretty much everything apart from running if I’m honest! 124 miles in six weeks is a clear indication of how little training I’ve been doing recently, although I’m pleased to say that this has been intentional and not a result of either an injury or lack of motivation.
After the “buzz” of running two marathons in the space of 18 days wore off I began to realise just how tired and in need of a break my body was. The preceding six months of training and racing had undoubtedly taken its toll so, after the GB Marathon Relay in the middle of May, when even getting out of bed on a morning felt a bit too much like hard work for my liking, I knew it was time for a rest.
Conveniently this coincided, firstly, with a family holiday at Center Parcs where I was able to spend quality time with my wife and two little girls and, secondly, with a stag do in Bratislava ahead of a wedding where I’m going to be the best man for my former Elswick Harriers club mate Ian Fenwick.
Spending quality time with the family is not always something I get to do when I’m training for a marathon. Running twice a day, on top of working full-time and also being a running coach, means that I don’t get to spend anywhere near as much time as I would like with the wife and kids, so when I do get the chance to spend time with them I like to make the most of the opportunity. Center Parcs was the perfect way to relax after a marathon and we had a great time messing around in the swimming pools and messy play areas, strolling around the forest grounds and having barbecues in the evening sunshine. With Starbucks practically on our doorstep far too much coffee was drank, and alcohol consumption was also pretty high once the kids were settled down in bed!
As for the subsequent trip to Bratislava, all I can say is I haven`t drank so much since I was 18! We had an absolutely fantastic time in the Slovakian capital and I doubt whether its bars have ever been drank as dry as they were that weekend. After a pretty stressful few weeks at work, including an office move, I felt like I was in need of a real good blow out and that’s what I had. A cracking send off to bachelor life for Ian!
Spending quality time with the family is not always something I get to do when I’m training for a marathon. Running twice a day, on top of working full-time and also being a running coach, means that I don’t get to spend anywhere near as much time as I would like with the wife and kids, so when I do get the chance to spend time with them I like to make the most of the opportunity. Center Parcs was the perfect way to relax after a marathon and we had a great time messing around in the swimming pools and messy play areas, strolling around the forest grounds and having barbecues in the evening sunshine. With Starbucks practically on our doorstep far too much coffee was drank, and alcohol consumption was also pretty high once the kids were settled down in bed!
As for the subsequent trip to Bratislava, all I can say is I haven`t drank so much since I was 18! We had an absolutely fantastic time in the Slovakian capital and I doubt whether its bars have ever been drank as dry as they were that weekend. After a pretty stressful few weeks at work, including an office move, I felt like I was in need of a real good blow out and that’s what I had. A cracking send off to bachelor life for Ian!
So in a nutshell the story of the last six weeks has been one of holidaying, and drinking and eating too much, with only a limited amount of running. Probably not what you’d expect to hear on a website such as this, but to get back to the serious business of running it has all been about post-marathon(s) recovery before starting my preparations for October’s Frankfurt Marathon.
And that’s where I find myself now whilst writing this - Day 1 of the Frankfurt training plan. Yes I’ve put on a handful of pounds over the last few weeks while not training hard, and no I’m not in particularly great shape at this specific moment in time. But does that concern me? Not in the slightest. When I’m starting marathon training I’d much rather be at 85 - 90% fitness than close to 100%. 16 weeks of hard miles is a long time by any stretch of the imagination, so I’d much rather be some way off peak fitness and slightly overweight at the outset so that I’ve got something to play with in the forthcoming weeks. Being close to peak fitness at the start of a marathon training plan, in my opinion, can only result in one thing - peaking far too early and blowing up on the big day!
The plan for Frankfurt is very similar to the build up that I had for the Manchester Marathon in April, just shorter in length because even if I’m not feeling particularly fit right now, I know I am carrying a lot of residual fitness forward from all of the training that I did during the winter and spring. So it’ll be a four week base phase to top up my aerobic levels, then straight into the marathon specific workouts for ten weeks, followed by a two week taper. There’ll be a few races in amongst all of that to help break up the training and give indications of where my form is at as we get nearer to the marathon. But that’s all in the future. At the moment I’m relaxed, fresh and simply cannot wait to get going again!! Bring it on………
And that’s where I find myself now whilst writing this - Day 1 of the Frankfurt training plan. Yes I’ve put on a handful of pounds over the last few weeks while not training hard, and no I’m not in particularly great shape at this specific moment in time. But does that concern me? Not in the slightest. When I’m starting marathon training I’d much rather be at 85 - 90% fitness than close to 100%. 16 weeks of hard miles is a long time by any stretch of the imagination, so I’d much rather be some way off peak fitness and slightly overweight at the outset so that I’ve got something to play with in the forthcoming weeks. Being close to peak fitness at the start of a marathon training plan, in my opinion, can only result in one thing - peaking far too early and blowing up on the big day!
The plan for Frankfurt is very similar to the build up that I had for the Manchester Marathon in April, just shorter in length because even if I’m not feeling particularly fit right now, I know I am carrying a lot of residual fitness forward from all of the training that I did during the winter and spring. So it’ll be a four week base phase to top up my aerobic levels, then straight into the marathon specific workouts for ten weeks, followed by a two week taper. There’ll be a few races in amongst all of that to help break up the training and give indications of where my form is at as we get nearer to the marathon. But that’s all in the future. At the moment I’m relaxed, fresh and simply cannot wait to get going again!! Bring it on………