Week 9

“Only those who will risk going too far can pos­si­bly find out how far one can go.” Although T.S. Eliot was likely not think­ing of run­ning when he wrote these words, he couldn’t have bet­ter cap­tured the essence of why ultra run­ners do what they do. We’re all search­ing for some­thing within our­selves; most of us want to know just how deep our well is.From 10 great Pinterest Quotes for Ultrarunners

What doesn't Kill you makes you stronger

This weeks programme has dropped a couple of notches in intensity and time .A welcome break .

I had an off day on Monday and after the weekend of running it was welcome. On Tuesday I ran for 55 minutes really slow and kept the HR at 10 and averaged 111 running 8kms at about 6.45 minutes per km . The weather was a really cool 25C. In the evening it was the usual 34 km cycle to cross fit and home .Cross fit was a good 55 minutes and a hard session with the last exercise dragging a weighted sled of about 70kgs 870m.

Wednesday : Sore legs and rang to work with a 90 minute work out for Thursday done on Wednesday.Ran easy for 3 kms then about a minute faster for the next 50 minutes at 5.16 minutes to 5.38 minutes pace for the next 9kms and then the rest easy for a total of 14kms in 1.25 hr.

Noranda Running: 13.96 km • 1:24:36 • 6:04 min/km • 9.9 km/h • 69 m

Thursday : I ran an easy 8.4 kms on the sand trails in Kings Park. It was warm and humid and the sand trails was a good work out .

Friday , another easy run at lunch time along the river and Elizabeth Quay . A warm 34c run. In the evening a 30minute recovery ride on the wind trainer.

Saturday , I opted for a 1hr wind trainer session with a number of 5-7 minutes at 80% of FTP . It was a warm day and so sweated a lot . I then ran for 55 minutes in the hot morning sun at 36C .That really cooked the body .

  A glimpse of cross fit sessions

Saturdays Session

 In the afternoon a hard 30 minute cross fit session.

start and end of run

 video of Sunday's run by Jason

Post Run Recovery with Molly

Sunday a comparatively short 2 hour run for a change . We ran on the Yaberoo budjara heritage trail near Waneroo . Started out on a limestone trail and soon for most of the run we were running on sand trails and that was a little hard going on the legs. Managed 8kms in the first hour and then for 30 minutes , increased the pace by about a minute although for some of that I was running up a gradient and so the pace suffered but was putting in as much effort. I finished with about 7kms and a sore knee but just pushing off the sand made it hard work .Felt good at the end . Breakfast at Jason's and Jade's place .

Total for the week 7.5 hrs approx and 63 km. 3 hrs of cycling and 1.5 hrs of cross fit.

Week 8

The Summer Day

Who made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean-
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead 

of up and down-
who is gazing around with her enormous and 

complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly 

washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.
I don't know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll 

through the fields,

which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?

—Mary Oliver

It has now been 2 months of training and just under 3 months to go before Ultra-trail Australia 100 at Katoomba

The hours on the feet and the distances are beginning to edge up but only slightly . This week we start back to back to back runs on the weekends and After 8weeks of training and trying to follow a sort of Paleo diet , there are some results. I have kept to about 30% carbohydrates, 25% protein and 45% fat diet but not religiously and have succeeded in getting the carbohydrates mainly from fruit and vegetables and milk and cheese products.I started weighing in at about 75.5kgs at the beginning of the year and I now weigh 70.5kgs and on Tuesday 16 February I actually weighed in at 68.8kgs , the lowest I have been for 5 years . Zach Bitter wrote in his blog a short piece on how everyone is different and the polarizing views on diets and food choices.I agree .

 One thing that is clear to me in life is that there are very few topics more polarizing than nutrition. It seems like the more we know the more polarizing and hot the debates become.

The topic of nutrition has been a very intriguing one for me over the past few years as my approach is quite different than most, and with it, has cast me into a variety of categories. Categories such as: high fat low carb, paleo, primal, ancestral, etc... Some of these categories are a stretch for sure, while others have some clear nutritional similarities in what I feel is ideal for my lifestyle.

Healthy curiosity and "The Diet Wars" Posted on February 17, 2016 by Zach Bitter


The week starts off easy as I had a rest day on Monday self imposed after the weekend.

Tuesday , an easy run on the tread mill for 50 minutes with a 7minute per km pace building to 6.10 for 8km in 50 minutes .I then rode to cross fit and did a 30 minute session with :

1. squats with a light 25kg weight , 
2. medicine ball push ups ,
3. hollow rocks and
4. lunges (both legs ) with 10kg bar push press 

all done on 2 minutes with a minute rest between .

Wednesday .It was suppose to be an easy run but I did the Thursday's session 93 minutes of some speed work .15 minutes warm up and then 5 x 10 minutes at between 5 to 5.10 minutes per km pace with 2-3 minutes recovery run and a 15 minute cool down at the end. I ran to work and did the session deviating a round 2 parks to make the run last longer and ended up doing just under 16km in 95 minutes Hardest run so far because of the intensity of the 10 minutes and my HR was definitely in the 150s

In the evening I started to do an FTP test to see what my maximum threshold on the bike was but only managed to cycle for 35 minutes before the legs were just tiring.

Thursday, Just an easy 50 minute run on the tread mill again but with a really humid gym .I mixed up the session with easy 7 and 6 minute pace and then 2kms at 4.5 % @6.30 pace and some short runs at 5 min pace for a total of 7km. In the evening I missed Cross fit so just had a rest.



The Ingenuous Choice - Mountain Running with Anton Krupicka from Outdoor Live on Vimeo.

How to Get Motivated

Friday. I had an easy session just running in the evening for 1 hour slow covering 8kms along the Swan River and over the new Elizabeth Quay.

Saturday.No riding but a 2.5 hr run along the coast to star swamp and then a run around the  trails and then back to Sorrento .I managed 20kms in 2.5 hrs and felt reasonably fine possibly as there wasn't much elevation.(Only 140m) The test is tomorrow running after Saturday's run and backing up.
 

Jason and Al ahead

The terrain

Power lines at the end of the longest hill climb on Sunday's run

Sunday .Overcast skies but was humid .We started off at Kalamunda at 6 am and there was just 3 of us doing a 3 hour run and 2 doing a 2 hour run. An easy slow walk down to the trails and then just lots and lots of running  up and down the trails . There were a few steep climbs and a really steep descent which cause me to fall but not badly. The pea gravel and sandy soil were a good combination for a slippery track. Not many people out today and saw 3 mountain bikers 2 who looked like they had just climbed the steepest hill we encountered and were walking down .The legs held up well despite the run yesterday and I managed 17km in 3.10hr. Not the fastest time but still standing at the end .

This week I had a rest day on Monday and finished with :

About 76 kms of running in 10 hours , biking 2 hrs , cross fit 1 hr .
Total 13 hours 

Week 6 & 7

“It is said that your life flashes before your eyes just before you die. That is true, it's called Life.”
― Terry Pratchett, The Last Continent

View from Reabold trails on a hot Monday 

More limestone trails 

The past 2 weeks have been a little bit of a roller coaster physically and emotionally. After 5 weeks of training in somewhat hot and humid conditions ,week 6 was an easy week which allowed the body to recover.

I chose not to run on Monday and Thursday as the programme had DOC or Distance of Choice.On Tuesday and Wednesday just easy 1 hour runs with cross fit as well .I ran 8 km on Tuesday with a very easy slow pace  at Midday and on the Wednesday did 11 km with a 15 minute  warm up at 6.30 to 7 min per km pace and 30 min at 5.30 to 5.44 pace .The rest was an easy pace .I did just under 11 km with stops at traffic lights all on the footpath.

Friday I ran around the river with the opening of Elizabeth Quay underway and ran 13km in under 90 minutes.Kept the HR at about 130 and it was hot and humid.

Saturday , I ran 30 minutes and did 4km  and had cross fit in the afternoon.Unfortunately ,I did not ruin on Sunday . My mother in law passed away suddenly on Saturday night .

The renaming week end was realising how sudden and fleeting life can be and enjoying each moment is precious is probably the most valuable lesson one can learn.

The next week was the start of another build in time on the feet and was going to be a hot week.Perth had a 4 day stretch of temperatures above 40 C or 104 Fahrenheit. On Monday I ran on a tread mill for 7.5 km in 45 minutes and then in the evening at 5 pm I ran for 75 minutes at Reabold Hill and covered 11.5 km

Tuesday I did  10 KM SESSION on a tread mill because of the heat . I did a 2 km warm up and then ran 8 x 4 minute segments at 5.15 pace with 2 minutes between each segment for recovery .Then in the evening rode to cross fit but because of the heat just rested and rode home .

Wednesday , I ran an easy 75 minutes covering 11 km

Thursday , I ran an easy 45 minutes covering about 6.5 km.

Friday , I ran  in the evening along the coast with a 3km warm up at about 6.30 minutes per km pace and then between 5.30 and 5.45 minutes per km pace for the next 7 km and finished with a 2  km cool down .Run time 75 minutes

Saturday's WOD  ...sore arms

Saturday , rode around the river in an easy pace with some hard efforts along the way .Rode 45 km and then ran 4.6 km in 26 minutes.In the afternoon cross fit .

Kalamunda Trails on Sunday

Michelle running up a hill

Railway Road in Kalamunda Town ..Start and end of the run

Sunday morning started with a 6am run up at Kalamunda for a 3 hour run. I got lost with Michelle for the next 3 hours doing a big loop and getting as far as the Zig Zag Road and Stratham Quarry and then back through Gooseberry and the final 2 km up Kalamunda Road into the town site. Ran a total of 22kms in 3.15 hr approximately.

For the week I did about 84.5kms in 10.5  hours of running 2 bikes rides and cross fit for about 15 hours of training . I have also started to sort out my running equipment and have all the items in the list . Just need to test out the lights again with some night running.

All the gear for the Ultra-Trails Run Checklist sorted

Week 5

Start N Finish of the KOM run on Australia Day 2016  The Long Run ..... Last week of January and the longest training session and most hours done. Monday is usually a DOC which means distance of choice .I decided to run on the treadmill for 6kms at various speeds to mix it up .Ran with my Altras and they feel comfortable but don't have as much absorption as the Hokas. On Tuesday it was Australia Day and usually I am out cycling or a few years back I would have been down at Point Walter doing the Pt Walter Triathlon .This year I ran the KOM trail at Helena Valley at least I did a 2 hour run . It was pretty warm as we started at 7am and finished at 9am . I did a tempo run after 45 minutes running a minute faster and then 4 seconds slower after each km for the next 30 minutes and then back to an easy pace for the last 45 minutes but the hills along the way made it difficult keeping the pace exact. Finished up with 16.5kms Wednesday I ran in the evening .It was hot and muggy .Just ran the sand trails in Kings Park , no one was around accept for one other runner. Completed only 7.5kms and felt pretty tired in the hot conditions. Thursday another warm and humid run in the evening rather than going to Cross fit . I did a 30 minute warm up running at 7 mins per km pace then 8minutes x 3 at about 5.25 minutes per km before resuming the easy pace and between each 8 minutes recovered for 3 minutes by walking. Ran round the river and ended up running 13.25km in 1.5hrs.Again wasn't fast but managed it comfortably with a HR at 125 to 130 and in the fast laps at 145. Friday . Evening slow run along the river and the new Elizabeth Quay which opened today .Just did a slow 60 minutes running 8km. Again just humid. Saturday. Slept in and did not ride but ran a slow 10km , 5km with Molly and the remainder faster without the dog stopping and having a sniff.  Kalamunda hills on Sunday Sunday.Long Run in the Hills at Kalamunda.As it was a cool day we ran at 7am and there was an overcast sky with dark clouds looming so the run was cool but humid. We went down the various single tracks around and it was a long run /walk before I got separated from the others with Michele and made our way back to the start and then ran for another hour before heading back to the start at Kalamunda town. The legs were sore from the cross fit on Saturday where we did :  100 kettle bell squats with an 8kg kettle bell. 5 x 10 cleans with 35kg weight 150 medicine/slam ball 7kg twist in crunch position 5 x 10 back squats with 35kg bar For the week , did 11.5 hrs of running and just under 84 kms . Largest block of running ever .