Since my handful of readers have been rather persistent in asking for updates to this blog, and I have run out of excuses, I think I will oblige them for once. Of course, this is also a good chance to reflect on all the training I did for the KLIM, what with it being just 2 weeks away.
Anyway, for the first time since I started running, I started a running log. That was 11 weeks ago. It was no coincidence that it was right smack in the New Year season, where I felt that I needed not only a change in my training, but also my approach towards it, if I were to really improve in my running. I needed to be more systematic, hence the creation of my running log. That was also when I had gotten a new pair of running shoes, and I don't know better motivation for running than a new pair of kicks, for me at least. Even though, the KLIM wasn't confirmed yet at that time, I more or less expected it to happen around March, thus giving me about 12 weeks or so, perfect for the training cycle I was about to undergo.
Enough of time traveling. Since then, I have logged 495km, welcomed a new pair of racers, spent countless lonely hours in the gym and busted in a water bottle and a bag. The mileage totted up includes significant mileage only though, and does not include stuff like speed work and hill work. They are listed just as strides, sprints, or hill depending on their type in the log along with the number I did. The main reason I do not include their distance is simply because I can't. I don't have an accurate measuring device for that, and at the relatively short distances the variation in accuracy makes a big difference. And I also do not want to kid myself by claiming I ran a longer distance in a shorter time. In running, it's just better to be honest to yourself or at least err on the side of caution, rather than fuel your ego.
After looking through my log, I also noticed a trend, an unintended one. For the first two months, I did a huge chunk of my training on the treadmill at my gym and the grass field near my house. Don't get me wrong, this is actually a good thing. Those months are more or less my base building months, and those surfaces are better in the respect that they lessen they beating my body takes. In contrast, I did more of my runs on the road the past few weeks, which is wise because my body needs to adjust to the pounding since the race will be on tarmac. All in all I am satisfied with that aspect of training.
As for regrets, there are plenty. Chief among them is that I could have done more mileage, even though I am already at my highest ever. There will always be the run I could have squeezed in, the morning I should have woke up earlier, the week that was lost to Chinese New Year. Whenever sloth takes over my mind, and I am left with the pieces of a missed opportunity, I always console myself with the excuse that my body needed the rest. Still, that nagging feeling of guilt will always lurk in the shadows.
Anyway, that's it for my review of my training. Despite all the troubles though, I am pretty glad I made it this far, with no real injury to boot. Let's just hope the last two weeks before the big day will be even better.
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