Habit: 2015 Rocky Raccoon 100 Training

Every week for 6 weeks I've started writing a blog on my dull ass training. But every week I run out of time to finish it.

So here is the world's longest blog post about my own training. It's just an amalgamation of stuff I've written weekly since October, and a brain dump from today. It's obvious which is which. It's really for my own future referral although I know one other person who is marginally interested in some of this....

This is the start of my training towards Rocky Raccoon 100 (Jan 31) and Athens 24hr (Mar 28). The idea is to run a sustained period of higher mileage than I've traditionally done without compromising consistency and/or the quality I'm after.

Why am I doing this? To keep me focused on the job and because when I used to post stuff like this I did get one email from a nice person saying that they'd found it useful.

I called this post habit, because the primary issue I've encountered with my own training regime in the past, is consistency. It's the number one thing that I preach to my coaching clients, it's something I believe makes more of a difference long term to the success and health of an ultra runner, yet I myself wax and wane between periods of very consistent training and some exceedingly erratic episodes. As examples, between January and May 2013, training for the GUCR, I averaged 32 miles per week. That included a 100 miler, a 50km, an Ironman and the London Marathon. The 100 and the Marathon were PBs. So what does that tell me? That sometimes less can be more, but more that I might actually get to an ok standard if I applied myself. I count some of my past performances as second tier. I don't want to hot dog or massage my ego or show off. I have run well a few times in the past, but I haven't yet had a really good 100. That's what I am setting out to change this time around. To then roll off of that and get a burst of follow on training for the 24hr. Then wind my season down for a couple of months as the Centurion one takes off.

So the plan has the usual phasing: Recovery, Base, Build, Peak, Taper, Race.

The general plan through Recovery and Base was:

Get in to the habit of running by heading out every day.
Leave quality until the build phase.
Easy miles with most on trail, more forgiving and better strength building.
Let the running come back gradually.

Phase 1: Recovery. 2 weeks.

Just a little consistent running with no quality, some cycling and low mileage. After the BGR and a very bad 24hr track attempt in September I was so heavily fatigued, that I had a panel of blood tests and an ECG performed so that I could see if there were some deeper underlying issues going on. I felt dreadful with no energy and some dizzy spells. Everything came back clear which proved to me a. that I just needed to rest and b. that once I felt better I was good to start training again with the caveat that if I dipped again, it was likely to be chronic fatigue and would need a lengthy period off. Thankfully that has proved not to be the case.

After 4 weeks of almost zero mileage, I picked up with the following two weeks:

Recovery 1: 37.3 miles. 2100 ft. 6:07.
Recovery 2: 59.7 miles. 2700ft. 9:06.
A couple of the runs were right up in the 9:30 per mile range, on trails, including some hiking. I then ran one 13 mile effort at a comfy 8:15 pace in the second week, which felt sufficiently easy enough to give me the go ahead to pick it back up.

Phase 2: Base. 4 weeks.

Applying the consistency. Everything just seemed to work well from the off and motivation was really high.

Base 1: 86.7 miles. 5500ft. 12:14. 
A good start. Easy Ridgeway recce on the Monday. Solid runs around home Tues - Fri including some tempo at the end of Friday's session. Piece of String organising on the Saturday but a good solid 15 miles at 7:40 pace on trails on the Sunday.

Base 2: 94.3 miles. 18500ft. 19:08. 

This week always had the potential to go too far in terms of indulgence, with a trip to the Lakes from Thurs - Sun. In the end it was relatively restrained but featured a long day on the fells on Friday and then the L100 recce from Coniston to Buttermere on the Sunday. The Friday run was in horrendous conditions initially, around Buttermere, up Scarth Gap and then to the top of Haystacks. Wainwright's favourite fell I had all to myself, in fact I didn't see another person in 4hrs. The rain was horizontal and the wind was around 50mph judging by the fact that I know I can't stand up very well in 60. It abated enough for me to enjoy Innominate Tarn, but the descent back to Scarth Gap was steep, rocky and slippery. I then went up over High Stile, High Crag and along to Red Pike but in very low visibility started to descend off of the Ennerdale Side. In fact i had navigated on to White Pike and had to hunker down behind some rocks to get the map out and re-assess where I'd gone wrong. I followed a bearing up and over the top of Red Pike, the descent back to Buttermere was ridiculous in studded shoes on the 'path' that's been laid. It's always satisfying, however, to get oneself out of trouble resorting to traditional navigation techniques. I met Martin Bergerud back at the hotel and we went straight out on to a circuit up and over Mellbreak. The weather cleared now and left us with a calm and sunny afternooon for much of it. The climb up the far side of Mellbreak was steep though not quite in the same league as Yewbarrow.

Haystacks

Martin B climbs Mellbreak North End

The L100 recce, I ran with Debs, in what were average conditions to start with becoming good for much of the day. The section through the plantation between Seathwaite and Boot was atrocious underfoot. It's not good even on a summers day and thigh high bog sinking incidents were numerous. After Boot we made good progress over to Wasdale and then a really nice final section over Black Sail Pass and Scarth Gap to Buttermere. It was eye opening to see how much time could be saved on the descent off Black Sail. Without any meaningful effort it was possible to put some considerable minutes in to other runners as a result of better lines and downhill 'technique'. That part is definitely worth seeing again.

Debs with Yebarrow behind on route to Wasdale Head

Yewbarrow side on from the Black Sail ascent

Debs descending Black Sail with Ennerdale behind

Base 3: 91.1 miles. 5000ft. 12:47. 
I expected some fatigue from the circa 18000ft of climbing the previous week but a very easy 30 mins on Monday set me up well for the week. Tempo Friday night, I had Louis all weekend down at Lisa's parents so I got out very late on Sunday night for 20 miles. The SDW was as wet underfoot as I've ever seen it but the route: Burgess Hill - Streat - Black Cap - Housedean - Black Cap - Ditchling - Burgess Hill was a good one. Apart from the stretch between Ditchling and Burgess Hill which is already flooded and infuriatingly shit trail.

Base 4/ Easy 1: 71.2 miles. 3500ft. 9:37. 
On the Monday we went on holiday. Our first proper holiday with Louis, and our first in a number of years. Antigua was about 30 degrees in the day time and contained zero trails with plenty of rollers. The heat and humidity (it rained at least once every day) co-oincided an easier week with the bulk of the 9 day trip but was still able to get out for 90 minutes each day. The treadmill saw a couple of pieces of action, notably I ran one tempo set on there and finished off 10 miles in 61:30 which was pleasing.

View from Shirley Heights over English Harbour, Antigua

Aggressive sweat on the one road in and out of the Hotel

Phase 3: Build. 4 weeks.

Build 1: 102.9 miles. 7200ft. 14:55
Began with a couple of longer road runs before leaving Antigua including one just before our flight, then an overnight with no sleep on the plane (Louis slept on my lap) and a short run on return before passing out for a good long snooze. Keeping the daily schedule was hard over that few days. On Friday, Drew and I went out for a few hours on the Ridgeway and surrounds, I saved a lot for Sunday and the first long session of 30 miles. The first 10 I ran with Ian Munro before pushing on by myself and finding more and more gas in the tank as the run went on, such that it ended up being some kind of giant progression run. Again, satisfying.

Drew in foreground, Wendover Woods ahead

Build 2: 100.3 miles. 4000ft. 
This week ended up being a lot of very similar length runs with not enough differentiation in effort. Tuesday was a noticeable effort, I tried to hit the track but didn't make it and ran a few intervals instead with a circa 7 min average for 14 miles overall which wasn't taxing. Thursday was a 19 miler which went ok also. Otherwise too much junk in the week.

Build 3: 101.5 miles. 3000ft.
This was a really good week. I grabbed a last minute place in the Enigma Blues Marathon on the Wednesday. Monday I ran 14 miles, Tuesday when I found out there was a spot I pulled back and ran 8 easy. The marathon started easy, at around 6:50 pace. It was windy and the course is fast albeit a little fiddly with lots of turns. The pace felt harder than 6:50s and I decided after lap 2 of 7 it would be better to back off and maintain consistency through the week. I ran with Jonathan Godfrey initially but around mile 12 we suddenly dropped off to 7:15s and I decided just to press on. There was a lot left in the tank, I made sure not to stretch out and in the end ran in a 2:54. The strava app probably couldn't cope with the twists and turns of the course, and hence was giving me bogus readings by about 15 secs per mile so those early miles felt harder, because they were harder. Thursday easy day, Friday the same with Drew recce-ing the far eastern end of the NDW for the future. Saturday I had the pleasure of pacing Louise Ayling to a Park Run PB, a few easy miles on the river and then 2 stints of pacing Paul Navesey on his 50km treadmill WR attempt. Both times I was able to hold his pace, 6:00 mile initially, then a little higher, without too much difficulty which only a few days after the marathon was encouraging. Sunday easy 15 in 2hrs, felt easier than it perhaps ought to have done.

To Come

This week of Build. Then 2.5 weeks of Peak. Then the taper. I'll do an assessment of pace splits and lap times, but form suggests I can go a good bit quicker than 17:32 from last time, if conditions are good.