Week 1

Number of runs : 6

Total mileage : 54

 

The first week of a schedule often presents a bit of a shock to the system. This time however there has been a fairly smooth transition into the demands of the programme. The volume of running involved is not an appreciable increase from my base mileage and while my current schedule has slightly more intensity I have been able to manage the pace of my order runs sufficiently that has been easy enough to absorb.

 

Of course this is just week 1. Things will get tougher from here. 50+ mile weeks are not particularly challenging. That is relative of course. I can vividly remember being excited by my first 25 mile week and it takes a long time for the body to adapt to these demands but now 50 is fairly standard. I won't be sticking at this level for long though and last time round with this schedule I broke down after a peak of 63 miles. I would like to think I am more ready to deal with that volume now. I have a programme of stretching and I am constantly assessing and managing the multitude of aches, twinges and pains that are the feedback I get from what I am putting myself through.

 

Even still. There is no reliable way of knowing how I am going to respond. Am I going to adapt and get quicker or will I fail under the pressure of ever increasing volume? In a way though that is what is. Out exciting about this. It is one of the things that really brings home the scale of the endeavour. This *is* a challenging activity. Running 26.2 miles is not easy and I know from experience just how much of a knife edge the training for it is. For now though, optimism. This is when everything is still possible and it is where the fun really begins.

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