Sorry I am a little bit behind with our post this week. I am writing from Birmingham Airport departures whilst waiting for my flight to Glasgow for work after a busy few days.
After last week’s epic 18 mile run in Cornwall it is fair to say both Graeme & I have been feeling rather tired. I certainly felt a lack of spring and speed in my step when I embarked on the 10 x 200 metre relay session with Stroud AC on Tuesday. It is bizarre but I do think we are starting to take the miles which we are running for granted for example a 13 mile run seems like a short one at the moment and as the weeks go by we are hoping our bodies are becoming stronger.
On Thursday, Graeme paid a visit to Sarah Clatworthy who is a fellow runner and friend who has trained as a Sports Massage Therapist. He has been experiencing some calf and knee issues and Sarah did an excellent job getting to the route of the problems to try and assist him to run without the niggles. We cannot emphasise enough the importance of keeping the body maintained during marathon training to prevent chronic injuries. Monthly massages are definitely required.
We are also both now regularly using a foam roller. Stretching is very beneficial and we do this and it cannot be neglected but in the case of muscle knots, stretching alone is not enough. Graeme is focusing on his tight calves and legs in general. Where as I have ongoing issues with my back tightening up and glutes not firing properly. We have borrowed a friend’s old roller but a purchase of a new hi-tech grid model is imminent. Amazing results with loosening up my stiff back, I am very pleased with the results.
This week’s long run on Saturday, planned once again by Graeme the “Training Troll” using the ViewRanger App, started at Frampton-on-Severn Church. It was such a glorious spring day, the birds were singing and we were blessed with blue skies and low winds which always makes the task in hand so much easier.
The first 5/6 miles of the run saw us head south on the Sharpness ship canal tow path. Oh my goodness, how I detest uneven, straight endless canal paths.
We passed nice canal barges and the views across the Severn were lovely but that doesn’t help with the negative issue I have running straight linear trails with no end in sight!!
So once again folks some not very lady like swear words could be heard but mind over matter got me to the turn at Sharpness onto the Sustrans route 41 country lanes where I was a happy bunny again and my mood instantly changed.
The lanes to Slimbridge undulated slightly but not too much. We passed lots of farms and nice cottages. We stopped briefly to refuel with our Cliff energy bars but by 13 miles Graeme was clearly starting to suffer and said his legs felt like lead.
By 14 miles we were back on the dreaded tow path heading back to the car. At this stage, Graeme started to drop behind and was clearly in pain so I took the hard decision to continue on keeping an eye over my shoulder to make sure he was still bringing up the rear.
I felt strong, my final distance was 16.5 miles and Graeme’s a little bit less. We are hoping with lots of stretching, rollering and cross-training Graeme can overcome his pains and push on to complete the next crucial two months until the start line in Edinburgh. It has been fair to say, a tough run today and the miles are starting to take their toll on our nearly 50 year old bodies!
