The mystery cough/cold continues and I’m not quite ready for the gym so as an alternative I’ve been doing some free weight exercises (during my Netflix binges 😂)

On the plus side, I did manage to fit in another “long run” and hit a couple of milestones – later than I hoped but a win is a win! On Saturday I dragged myself out of bed and plotted a nice long route that would take me up to the 15km distance (the next big milestone). I set off at a nice leisurely pace and to my surprise was able to maintain about 7:30 per km for 8km (another unexpected milestone!)

Of course it was at this point, during my recovery walk and mini celebration that my legs started to cramp. It started as a mild cramp in the calves – the kind that you can feel coming on but can just about walk off (albeit slowly). After a few minutes I was able to pick up the pace again and at the 9.5km mark my thighs joined the party – cramp in both calves and thighs meant I was forced to run in a bizarre loping method (think Igor/Quasimodo) with the odd recovery walk in between.

It was at the 11.5km mark that my legs packed it in altogether and I was reduced to a painful hobble. I sent out an SOS on WhatsApp to my more experienced friends but unfortunately they were busy living their lives…. I had of course planned my run in such a way that I would have to complete the distance regardless just to get home and so I set off on one of the most painful journeys (taking almost as long as the 11km before it…) for the remaining distance before collapsing in a pile at my front door.

So what did I learn?

Pro: I can complete the distance. Even if it means hobbling the final few km

Con: My legs will make me pay for it for days after

Pro: Mind over matter, tempting as it was, I didnt give up and hop on the bus

Con: Clearly I hadn’t trained adequately for the distance

In short, whilst I’m really pleased to have hit a couple more milestones, I’m concerned I could be doing some damage that then derails my plan again (as I type this, my foot/ankle hasn’t quite recovered yet). The plan is to rest it one more day and replace tomorrows run with some cycling or other cardio to maintain fitness but take the pressure off my ankle. Once that’s recovered, I will need to focus on building a bit more mileage across the week to improve conditioning.

Roll on week 28…