Two Miles At a Time

January ended with me having a slight injury. I was getting pain in my knees; it wasn't joint pain, but some kind of soft tissue pain. The weird thing about it, was it was in both knees not just one and it only affected me when I was running.

I am a nightmare when I get any kind of injury. I want to know what it is immediately and then I want to know what I can do to make it better... Immediately! 

I tend to be like that with a lot of things, not just my injuries. If something breaks, I want to figure out what is wrong with it. If I'm stuck in a traffic jam, I want to know what's causing it. Once I know I tend to relax a bit... It's the not knowing that frustrates me... 

I almost wish I was a Cyborg like Arnold Schwarzenegger in Terminator. When he got injured (actually I think he was beaten up and shot at, but I'll continue with this slightly gory analogy) he could just peel back his fake skin, see what the problem was and get some tools and fix it.

So when I started to feel this pain, and realised it wasn't just going to go, I didn't run for a week.

I'm getting better at resting when I get a niggle, I used to just try and run through it, but my past experiences have made me realise that's not sensible. This came at a bad time as my next 10k was a few weeks away, and I started to worry that I wouldn't be able to run.

I realise at this point some people might say it doesn't matter as it's only a race. I'm not an elite athlete and it's not the Olympics, but the principles are the same... I have set my sights on a race, I've worked out a training plan and that is my focus. I have to adapt and change things to fit in with the rest of my life, and ultimately it's still my goal. I have missed many races in the past due to injury and usually once I get to that acceptance stage I am ok... However I have to get to that stage first!

My plan to deal with this injury was to rest from running for a week, then after that week try a couple of easy runs to see how it felt. If it was ok and didn't get worse I would try to move back into my schedule for the last two weeks before the race.

I was trying not to worry about it being a long term issue and whether or not it could affect my plans for the Half Iron Man as these kind of 'what if' thoughts do start to cross your mind. But I had a plan and that was my focus, I'd deal with the 'what if's' if I needed too.

That first week seemed so long. I wasn't getting any pain or discomfort doing any other activity so I was frustrated that I couldn't run, as it was all I wanted to do... 

However it was good that I could continue my other training as I was able to keep my fitness up. Towards the end of that week I did start to worry about running. It might sound silly, but I was worried about running and getting pain. If I didn't run, then I wouldn't have to deal with that prospect. I knew it wasn't an option, but the thought did cross my mind.

So the day of the 'test run' came. I was a bit apprehensive but planned to do a shorter version of the planned session. As soon as I started running I felt discomfort, and instantly felt disheartened. I continued and finished what I had planned to do as it didnt get worse, but my hopes of a pain free session didn't happen... 

I felt quite low, Chichester 10k was in three weeks and I really wasn't sure I would be there. So again I needed a short term plan. I decided not run to again for a few days, then try again. Short term plan, long term effects... Hopefully!

The second run wasnt too bad, not free of discomfort but certainly not as bad. There was hope!

If I could manage this  problem with running and resting maybe I could do this without losing too much running fitness.

Two weeks before the race saw my last tempo session. If I could do that at race pace then I would be happy that I could complete the race.

I did it, and ran faster than my race pace. I was happy. I just needed to manage things through the week running up to the race.

Race day arrived and it was a beautiful day. Nice and sunny, not too much wind and what there was would be behind us for the last few miles.

I was feeling exciteded before hand which is quite unusual for me before a race. I wanted to do well. Its a 'possible personal best' course, as it is flat and has a nice downhill for the last mile or so. I was thinking this would be my last 10k for a while; after the race I knew I would really start to focus on the Half Iron, so I wanted to go out and push hard. I felt almost quite aggressive about it and after I listened to my pre race motivational video on Youtube I was really up for it.

Usually when I start a race I start quite far back as I don't want to get in people's way. Not this time. I started nearer the  front, as I wanted to get a good start and try and hold it. This turned out to be a good decision, as I started well and didn't feel like I was fighting to get past people (sorry to anyone who was trying to get past me!).

The first few miles went well, I was under my goal race pace according to my watch (there are still issues with my watch pacing but I won't go into that again). For 10k races I split them into three two mile segments. That way I only have to think of each two miles at a time rather than the whole race. For me that makes it mentally easier to deal with. Two miles hard is much easier to think of than six miles hard!

So first two miles were done, I was feeling good. So next two miles I needed to maintain that. According to my watch I was well under race pace , but I felt ok so my plan was to hold it. About this time my pre race motivational video came into my head. In it there is a clip of Mohammed Ali saying 'I'm gonna show YOU how great I am!!'. This seemed to stick in my head and really motivate me. I was going to prove to myself how great I was, what I could achieve. Even thinking about it now, I am feeling that same determination!

Into the last two miles there is a short, sharp hill. As I started up that hill, I noticed a lady in front of me who had passed me earlier. As I came up behind her she stopped to walk on the hill. I was feeling so motivated I spoke to her as I went past. I encouraged her to keep running and told her that she could do this. I didnt see her again, but I saw her start running again so I hope my encouragement helped a bit!

After that hill, I know there is about a mile and a half left to run, and a mile of that is a gradual downhill. It's hard not to start getting faster at that point, as you think you are nearly there. But a mile and half is a bit long to try and sprint! I know the point on the course that I can speed up as I know its not far to go. It always seems to take a while to get there though!

As I was looking out for my 'sprint' point I was aware of another lady coming up behind me. My competitive side kicked in. For about 3/4 mile we alternated with passing each other; I'd be in front, then she would and so on... It was quite good to have that distraction for the final part of the race. I knew she was aware of it too as she  would check to see where I was.

I could see my sprint point approaching so I ran up beside her and said 'Don't let me pass you on this last bit. Push this last bit and go for it'. She looked a bit shocked that I was talking to her but then she smiled. And then I started to sprint. I had motivated myself to try and stay in front and hopefully I had motivated her to do the same.

That last 1/2 mile I just went for it. My legs were jelly, I felt like Bambi on ice but I came over the line in 45.04. I had taken over a minute off my PB that I had set in this race in 2010. I had taken over three minutes off my last 10k in Brighton in November.

To say I was happy was an understatement... Those odd four seconds were a bit annoying, but that's a goal for next time!

The race has left me feeling confident and excited about the next phase. Now I need to start gradually increasing things to prepare for August. I can't wait!

Oh and the woman? She didnt pass me, but she wasn't far behind and we both congratulated each other at the end...

And if you need a bit of motivation for anything in life, here's the link to my pre race motivational video I mentioned... I hope it helps you too.