Monday, April 30, 2012

Riding The Dream!!

Saturdays ride was all about easing back and surviving the conditions! Driving rain and gusting winds won't deter me from climbing onto the saddle. A great endurance ride with an average speed of 17.9 mph at a very easy pace is a good indicator that I am in quite good condition. Yesterdays ride home at 11pm my favourite time of day was a delight in mild conditions and clear skies. Once the rain stops it is the only place to be, riding in silence on quiet rural roads! The bike is simply a dream!! Now its time to increase the mileage!

Saturday, April 28, 2012

Rest Day Over.........

Today I will return to the bike for a nice easy endurance ride. Life is no longer about speed, it is all about careful conditioning and pure endurance. DECA is constantly on my mind 24/7, I think about it non stop as I prepare mentally for the toughest challenge of my life. Every day I think about how to train, how far to go and what lies ahead. The single thing that helps is the fact that I love my training, the solitude, the isolation of training alone brings with it an inner calm. It affords me the opportunity to focus and to visualise the race!! I will be the only british athlete so I am the standard bearer!! Live it, feel it!

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Endurance 10 Mile Run!!

It was time to hit the road with a single aim in mind. To run slowly and more economically at a pace that is comfortable. My chosen pace is going to be 9 minute miling and to be honest it is difficult to run at such a moderate pace. I have to remember that I am training to run 262 miles after all. Todays run was completed in 1 hour 26 minutes at an average pace of approximately 8.30 minute miling! I am sure that I will adjust in time.....................

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Ride Fast Climb Hard!

With weather conditions atrocious, high winds, heavy rain and flooded roads once more there was only one thing for it!! To ride fast and climb hard. Training with LH again we set off on a fast flat stretch of road and were soon sitting on 25/26 mph for a brisk 20 minute warm up before easing up in poor conditions. It was impossible to sit in due to the amount of water blinding you with spray! After almost an hour of surges, easy riding and the odd brief chat it was time to finish with a series of climbs made all the more taxing into a tough wind! After 1 hour 10 minutes and 22 miles of riding, average speed 17.3 mph it was time for coffee and a debrief! Drenched with cold hands & feet it was time to relax...............love it...............

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Run Fast Run Smooth

This morning I was out on the road with Laura Hicks who is aiming for an Olympic distance GB vest later in the year. Today it was a tough 3 mile tempo run with a long climb to start and then speed endurance in quite testing conditions, a strong head wind and light rain. A finish time of 21 minutes 32 seconds, average 7.10 minute miling. I am mixing up my own sessions with coaching and training. Tomorrow it is back to the bike again out with Laura for a tempo 60 minute session!! The weather? Who knows and to be honest, who cares....................

Monday, April 23, 2012

The Journey Has Begun!!

The weather was atrocious with strong winds and driving rain, at 5pm today I set off out on the bike to complete my first ride that saw me kick off 6 months of Deca Training! It was hard going with a mixture of cross winds and flooded roads, my decision has been made that no weather will prevent me from training! At a modest average speed of 17.4 mph I rode for 1 hour 3 minutes 34 seconds completing a distance of 18.46 miles! Every ride no matter what distance will be completed at 17+ mph. Tomorrow I will swim and run! Wednesday endurance ride 1. It is time to get serious!!!

Saturday, April 21, 2012

Preparation Weekend!!

It was great to be back on the bile today even if the weather was a little bit mixed. As I looked out of the window at the rain I thought to myself, no weather will prevent me from training!! I cleaned all the rain off the bike and headed off, training alone as usual I set myself an easy average speed target of 17 mph! After an hour of riding I was back home with an average speed of 17.1 mph, total time 01.07.15, total distance 18.96 miles, a very easy relaxed session. Tomorrow I will run and then relax before day 1 on monday!! I will be keeping daily training data sheets ready to include in my book post deca called "Beyond Exhaustion" "The Journey To Decaman"................

Thursday, April 19, 2012

USA Trip Complete! Now to Start Work.....................

Returning to Death Valley is always an emotional experience! Some of the toughest ultra distance runners on the planet have blessed the roads that pass through the valley floor. The decision was made to return one day to race the badwater run. In the meantime there is the small subject of DECA in October!!
Monday will be day 1 of a full time training programme that you can follow right here! One man against one race. 0630 hours on Monday morning I will climb into the pool for my first session and tp start 6 months of intensive preparation! It is going to be a long road.............................I am ready!!

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

The Calm Before The Storm!!

This week has seen me just ticking over with the odd cross country run, yesterday training alongside a horse for a steady hours run! Smashing the bike for short sharp hour rides raising the tempo considerably. The original plan remains in place to go full time from May 1st. This will involve full time training for 6 months, strictly no alcohol, a perfect diet and a no holds barred training regime. It will be interesting to follow as I adopt a 100% approach to decaman! On saturday I travel out to the USA for some hot weather run training out in Death Valley where the temperature is already 33 degrees! Here I will complete a series of endurance runs out in the heat of the Nevada Desert ready for a programme so intense that it is certainly all or nothing! Follow developments as I aim to go where few people dare tread! Mentally I am ready, physically I will be as Mexico looms large....................