It can't be December already!

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

Here we are, it's nearly Christmas again.  Funny then that my focus is not Christmas lunch with oysters and booze, but the seaside town of Almeria and a date in early February.  Whilst it's tempting to start singing All my bags are packed, and I'm ready to go... there's still much to be done, although it's true that my flights are booked, along with the hotel and my leave from work is all approved, so I'm definitely going to be there. 

However, there is a little matter of training for the big day. Or rather, the lack of it.

Last we spoke, I was having trouble with some pretty damned serious leg cramps. These, I regret to say are continuing, despite my best efforts to alleviate the problem. I can only assume my modified diet has left me bereft of essential salts, perhaps something as basic as sodium, as I'm supplementing with magnesium and potassium, so I don't believe that's the issue. That, and some mild but annoying lurgies have resulted in a cessation of serious training, but things will be back on track shortly.

As regards the Maffetone Method, well I'm having to modify things somewhat, as the method is leaving me short of the distances and pace required for a comfortable traverse of the Almeria course within a reasonable time. So, I'm going to leave the low-heart rate Maffetone method for long, slow distances and add anaerobic training to get the kilometres required and the pace needed in place before race day materialises.

There's now too few weeks to hope for a really good race time in Almeria, but it's going to be fantastic to be there with so many other RCers.  But in the meantime, I need to get on with it.

[Antonio247]

I'm sure you'll be quite fit for Almería half marathon in eight weeks' time, MLCMM.

Get better soon.


Saludos desde Almería

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

I'm sure you'll be quite fit for Almería half marathon in eight weeks' time, MLCMM.

Get better soon.


Saludos desde Almería

Thanks, Antonio - I wish I could be as confident. Despite my best efforts I continue to be dogged by cramps, although perhaps today wasn't the best day to try and run; the crushing tiredness I felt and the calf and quad cramps as likely to have been caused by the 38-degree heat as anything else.

Summer, you have to love it.

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

And so this is Christmas ...

Well, only in a seasonal sense. Christmas Day is now three whole days ago, man this time of year goes fast. Christmas Day for me was a non-running affair due to our hosting of the Christmas Day family lunch, requiring an early start to cook turkey and implement a sudden transformation of the MLCMM household into a venue suitable for family festivities, which it more typically isn't. Fortunately our 'plan B' wasn't required as the weather was warm and fine, so the luncheon was served al fresco, and most enjoyable it was, too.

Back on the running front, things are trundling along tolerably well, with "long" runs now comfortably well in excess of an hour, so I am hopeful of ramping this up fairly quickly from here to get into something approaching half marathon shape before the big day, now only five and a bit weeks away.

The niggling injuries that plagued me for a few weeks seem to have settled down, once again proving the "use it or lose it" mantra is worthy advice. One just has to work through the slow, stuttering restarts to a campaign to find form and fitness again. It takes perseverance, and it becomes ever harder but ever more crucial the older we get.

A good year of running beckons. I reckon I'm up for it.

[marathondan]

Huzzah! Glad to hear you are back from the injuries. Good luck with the ramp-up. With 5 weeks to go, sounds like your "taper" will be on the plane.