Staying fresh. It’s not easy. Here’s my theory – when it
comes to training, we runners can easily end up like a piece of fruit left up
on the counter for too long. In other words, don’t expect to stay ripe all the
time, because you can end up rotten when you need to be fresh the most.
This last season was a lesson for me on being “on the shelf”
for too long. I trained and raced for nine consecutive months, grinding through
3,250 miles from February to November. Completing four races; a 100k, two 100
milers and a 50 miler. By the time I was done, I was feeling like forgotten
banana at the back of the cupboard.
The races were the easy part. The hard part? Staying
motivated. There were times when I struggled just to lace up my shoes and go
for a run. My body was holding up, but my motivation was slowly waning. I even
tried to mix up my training. The excitement that normally courses through my
veins was getting thin. What I learned is this: once the fruit is ripe, I can’t
expect it to remain that way for very long.
The coming season has me a little worried. As I mentioned in
my last post, I’ve got four 100 mile races over a four month period starting
the end of June. This makes last year look like tiddlywinks. So I’m planning
on doing things a little differently. First, its January, and I’m not running much at all.
Sounds crazy, but I’m not going to get sucked into a
serious training regimen until I know I can sustain it well into the summer.
That would start around March and will take me through April, May and then into
June. By then, my fruit will be just ripening and, if I treat it right, will
remain that way through all the mountain miles before me.