William and Shaun commented that my race reports are quite good in that they allow me to recall a lot of detail about the event/place/surroundings etc, but I maybe needed to do a different sort of race report for myself and them alone. They sent me an example, and at first I thought, "Hmm, I've said everything in my blog already about this", but in actual fact I hadn't at all.
I set about immediately filling the form in, and found a few very simple yet costly mistakes that I had done during Amsterdam... as an example, I only took 3 of my 6 gels and didn't bother with the rest because I didn't feel like them. I can't afford to do this in India, so I'm going to have to go on a strict 45 minute deadline for each gel until I've taken all 6. (After this/during, I need to think about normal food stuff... I know I can handle a banana...just! I want to maybe try pretzels this weekend after finding one of my co-runners at the weekend had some and thought they worked well).
My recovery has been very good indeed, however it should be really, after having walked a whole quarter of Amsterdam (maybe slightly more). I went out for a run across the beach banks on Tuesday which was around 4 and a half miles. This went well and my legs felt back to normal, although my breathing was all over due to the heavy winds. I have decided to start using my Powerbreathe again in the run up to India, however as the house is upside down at the moment due to our carpet getting fitted today, I am unable to find it... I'm sure I'll find it once the furniture is all back in place!
On Wednesday I had an "almost" normal training day in that I ran for 45 minutes on the treadmill to start. I again got my sums wrong as I planned on a 10.30mm pace (to practice the slower pace for the ultra) only to get to the end and find I'd done a 10.20 pace instead! I'm not sure if a 10.30 pace is going to be the correct one at the moment, I need to practice and see how it feels. I know one thing, I was sweating profusely because the plan was to go into the sauna immediately after finishing the run so I was wearing my sauna gear (which comprises of a big t-shirt and heavy cotton tracksuit bottoms). I was boiling hot, and only lasted 10 minutes in the sauna afterwards (I may have lasted longer if I'd remembered to take a towel up to sit on, but was burning in the heat without one).
After a meal and a rest I went back up and did some squats. I was feeling pretty good so was surprised when 65KG (20KG under my 1 rep max) felt too much and my left hamstring ached. I think this must be my little weakness as this ached after the 30 miler when I tried to do deadlifts! Still... I did around 45 squats all in all, so they were better than doing nothing.
Yesterday was sauna day and I had to step out after 20 minutes for a breather as I felt quite dizzy. I haven't done a decent session in the sauna for quite a few weeks, so this wasn't too much of a surprise. After a minute (I timed it to make sure) I went back in for the remaining 9 minutes. My quads were quite achey after the squats on the previous day, which surprised me as they rarely ache, and today they are still quite tired and achey. It's all good training though!
Graeme wanted some gaiters for Bangalore and asked me to order the same pair I have for him. On reflection of this (mine are still in the packet unopened) I ordered a different pair for myself and gave him my Raidlight ones. The ones I am getting only cover a part of the shoe whereas the ones I have given to Graeme cover the whole shoe. If I'm honest, I felt embarrassed at the thought of wearing them. I know it's going to be very dusty (I've seen photos of finishing runners lying on the ground covered in red dust) but I just didn't want to have a whole shoe covering. I'm happy to try out the new style which fits with a string under your trainer and secures snuggly around your ankle.
I have also ordered socks from an alternative place (this time from Wiggle, and they will be here tomorrow). I have to consider that I will need training gear for my time in India whilst I do my taper. Shaun sent me an email on Wednesday saying they are putting together my taper schedule for me and will be in touch soon. I have a feeling I may be doing my running in the hottest part of the day over there just to fully acclimatise. At the moment it is 29 degrees, hot and sunny!
I am also pondering the logistics of water and coconut water in my hydration pack. Originally I thought water would be best in the back and coconut water in the bottle at the front (I've just bought a bottle with a big straw coming out of the top after failing to be able to undo the screw top whilst in Amsterdam and having to pull the bottle out of the side pocket to drink). I'm now thinking that 1.5 litres of coconut water will be quite sufficient for the whole race, but that wouldn't be enough water. If I fill the 750ml bottle up with water at the aid stations this will be much easier than faffing with the bladder. It's just a thought at the minute though... I'm still unsure which would be the best move.
I've had a few emails from Dhirender about the bus to the race start. Apparently they will be in touch about picking up my race number in Bangalore on the 11th. It's suddenly very very real!
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