Race reports

I slept fantastic last night... a whole 11.5 hours where I barely moved. When I finally got up this morning I was amazed to feel like I hadn't even ran yesterday at all. Every time I have done the run from work to home I have ached horrendously, but today I feel good. That's good news! Graeme is very achy and has had to ice his shins all day, however he doesn't train as much so this doesn't really surprise me, and at the end of the day I think he managed the run better than I did so he just needs to up his fitness levels so he recovers quicker too.

I had a huge dinner at my mams house today, and as usual came straight back home and did my rebounder, deadlifts and upper body weights followed by a sauna. My grip was much better today, and I didn't wear any gloves. Unfortunately the 3 sets of static deadlifts were reduced to just the one set because I had nothing left in me to do more, but I am finally noticing in my running why I am doing all of this. I just need my breathing to catch up to where my strength is! The sauna was lovely for the first 16 minutes and then within 3 minutes it became unbearable. It made me think about the ultra and how last year the weather had been "unseasonal". I had previously took this to mean it was cold (and I couldn't help but be pleased at the prospect), however it turns out it was very hot.

After a shower, I looked up as many race reports from 2010 race as I could find. People spoke of how the sun became unbearable from as early as 6.30am, and there was quite a few people reporting how they ended up with a DNF. Oh dear... however forewarned is forearmed, and I'll just have to work harder to cope in the heat. If people who live in India find it too hot, then I've got a lot of work to do... but I won't let that deter me. I've been looking at shoes to wear on the day too, and have found a pair that may be suitable... I'm not sure.
The bad news is the sunglasses I bought last week are no good. Yesterday I found the fact that they wrap around the sides of my face to be a bad thing as there seemed to be no air getting to my face and the sweat was dripping into my eyes. I resorted to putting them on the top of my hat and squinting instead (or dropping my jaw so the visor protected my eyes from the sun). I have a feeling I will end up ordering the Nike ones (I know they will be good as they are the updated version of the ones I lost a couple of weeks ago). I'm also considering a different style of hat. I have found one that is the same material as a top I have (by X-Bionic). The top is great in the heat however the fact that it is a t-shirt and not a sleeveless top makes me more reluctant to wear it. But hopefully the hat will be better.

The money for the holiday to India is due on Tuesday, so I will be living on beans on toast for 2 weeks I think, so I shan't be buying anything whatsoever until at least the middle of next month!