Week 1 Phase 1

Running:

Yesterday I did the long run concluding week 1 of my TCI-journey. Quite fun to follow a specific and professional training plan for the first time of my life. Since I did a short 9,3 km trail-race on wednesday (finished 9th out of 60!) I had to alter this weeks program a little. Had an average bpm of 191 during the race, and legs felt heavy the next 3 days. Therefor I spent a total of 9 days to complete week 1, as I needed two extra days off.  

Positive and negative experiences:

I have a 2 year old son, and this week I tried to be effective and ran the 8 km roundtrip to and from the kindergarden. This is on asphalt and it clearly was a bad idea, as I felt a vague sense of achilles tendinitis and plantar fasciitis in my left foot the next day. No more asphalt for me! Never had such problems before. As for the speed I was surprised at how fast I could run effortless in BPM-zone 2 when I relaxed and focused on technique, this was a real eye-opener, and I am constantly improving.

Strenght training:

I have done my core-excerises every other day, but need to spend more time working on leg-strength with the balance and slant boards. Today is a day off, but gonna start week 2 tomorrow, and looking forward to it! 

The numbers:

Running days: 6

Average hr: 152 (max 204)

Total duration: 7 hr 15 min

Total distance: 75 km

Total ascent: 950 m

Preliminary tests:

5 km:

Max bpm: 200

Avr. bpm: 190

1 mile:

Time: 5:51

My Movescount

Background:

1 year ago, on the 7th of September 2013 I ran my first ultramarathon here in Denmark. It was "only" 54 km long, and with a positive altitude gain of 1,300 m. I finished, but was more dead than alive when I crossed the finish line. Even though it was a mixed experience, I got hooked on trail-running, and I have been racing a number of competitions since that time. 

I have a flair for running, and got a lot of speed in my legs - this is part genetic, and part due to a very active childhood. Now I am 27, and I want to take a step up to the next level with my running. Since I am extremely competitive, my main motivation is winning races. Luckily I also enjoy training for these ;-)

Results:

2014 has been a very good season for me, with a 4th place (250 starting teams) finish in a 24 hour race in Norway, a 6th place (50 starting teams) in a two-day orieentering race in Denmark and 4th place (50 starters) in a 36 km trail race in Denmark this Saturday. 

The Cool Impossible:

My main motivation and goal for the first part of 2015 is the well-known ultra race 'Transgrancanaria' on the Island with the same name in March. I will run one of the shorter distances (44 km) with a positive altitude gain of 1,300 hm. My goal is to finish the race in sub-4 hours. As I like following recipies, I will try out the training program from 'The Cool Impossible' to achieve my goal, starting at week 1. 

This Friday and Sunday I will run the two tests, and subsequently I'll start the program. Hopefully, I will update this blog along with my progress. It is solely a way for me to evaluate and control my training, but if it could inspire others it would be great ;) Feel free to comment along the way, and fire loose if you have questions!