All that’s left is vices torn.
Steve Malkmus, Greenlander
I made a commitment to myself to really look after my body
during my build-up to Scotland. For
the most part, I have been adhering to this common sense approach and have been
tweaking my training as necessary as the weeks have gone by. I’ve even incorporated a little cross training,
in the form of cross-country skiing, into the program.
I haven’t x-country skied before this year, so the two times
I’ve been out in the past few weeks have been my introduction to the sport. I may not be good yet (with a good pair of
trail shoes, I’d move a lot faster) but I totally enjoy it. I just wish I had a better understanding of
how skiing affects my body ... if only to avoid doing something stupid ... like
oh ... the next day.
Last week, I was visiting my parents up north and I dropped
into Nordic Highlands for some skiing.
It was a cold, windy morning but I didn’t care a bit. There was a ton of snow and it was sunny out
so I just kept going and going.
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I
covered about 15km in about 2.5 hours (yes ... as I said, very slow), but
besides a little tightness in the glutes, I felt fine afterwards. I felt so good, that when I got back home on
Sunday, I decided to put the shoes on and head out on an 18km run (which was in
the schedule anyway) up to Edward Gardens.
Besides the disappointment of having to run on snow-plowed
paths (I had my trail shoes on), the run was great. That is, until I turned around to head back
home. Almost immediately, I felt my hip
flexors tightening up and they kept getting worse for the next 9km. Side note – I think the corner of Leslie and
Lawrence must be cursed or something cause that’s the site of my epic training
blow-up on route to the 2011 Boston Marathon.
Anyhow, I rolled the heck out of my legs when I got home and took care
of them as best I could for the first couple of days this week. I dropped my Tuesday run and did an easy 6k
on Wednesday which went by without any issues.
By yesterday morning, I was once again feeling fresh so I went out for a
run of an “indeterminate” length. ‘Twas
going to be my long run for the weekend or just 10-12km, I would figure it out
as I went. So, I headed down to the Don
Valley and decided to do my 1km Beechwood Road hill loop a bunch of times. Well ... after one loop, I felt the hip
flexors go off again and I ended up dragging my trashed legs back home.
Man ... I thought I was smarter than this. But no, my love for running is like an air
bubble in my brain and leads to some very poor decisions SUCH AS not substituting a long day skiing for my weekly long
run. I’m a damn fool sometimes. Oh well, more rest this week I guess? Hip flexor flare-ups are tricky to recover
from, but fortunately for me, they’re not catastrophic in the greater scheme of
things. I’ve just got to be smarter.
With this in mind, Albert and I have got a pretty decent
training plan concocted. It actually
looks like your standard marathon program for the next little while. The miles build up slowly and, every fourth
week, I’ll back off to recover. By the
end of March, I’ll be up to 30km for my long runs and that’s where things will
get interesting. I need to get my body
used to the punishment of running for days on end, so Albert and I will begin
incorporating doubles (two runs, one day) and back-to-back long runs into the
agenda. I’m actually looking forward to
this phase because I haven’t done much of this type of training in the past. It’ll also be done mostly up north, at least
on the weekends, to take advantage of the vertical of the Niagara Escarpment. The Bruce Trail will become my home away from
home and my dad has already suggested/offered to haul me up to Tobermory for
some epic runs (love that guy). I can’t wait ... the
Bruce Trail is my fave running location and May is awesome with the trilliums in
bloom.
Stepping away from the running aspect, I have cleared
another few additional hurdles these past two weeks. First up, I have booked my time off from
work. Thanks Carla, you're the best!!! And, in turn, I have also booked my
flight. It’s funny how these sorts of
pseudo-administrative activities still add to my subconscious realization that
this adventure is going to happen and is not that far off. The plan has shifted a bit though. I’ll be running in the June/July timeframe,
not the July/August period I was initially envisioning. No worries there, in fact, it may be better
from a temperature and / or midge perspective.
Only time will tell.
And in terms of gear, good news has been rolling out. Brooks has finally released the Launch
2. The shoe that was swept away by the whole
minimalist running fad, then miraculously resurrected as a result of the
persistent pestering of its die-hard fans.
I can’t wait to get a pair when they finally show up in Canada. Barring any unforeseen issues, the Launch 2
will definitely be my road shoe for the trip.
Next up, Garmin ... and their new line of GPS watches. I was seriously looking to switch my running
watch allegiance from Garmin to Suunto cause the Ambit3 is “as good as” the fenix
2. But, neither can compare to the new
Garmin lineup. Not only is the Garmin fenix
3 a good looking watch (go figure ... running watches tend to be f-ugly) but it’s
got just about everything you’d need for your navigational kit. It’s only missing an actual map display and
that’s where the Garmin epix comes in. A
GPS/GLOSNAS watch with compass AND topographic map display! OH BABY!
I cannot even begin to comprehend how lucky I am that this watch is
coming out now. I’ll be able to import
all the waypoints from my route onto the watch and, if it actually works, the
watch will keep me true and on course.
While there’s something to be said about navigating the old fashion way
(Westing by Musket and Sextant anyone?) and the rush of being lost in a foreign
land, having a technological backup should help me “keep clear of the moors” at
night. J
Craig
