Training diary: 9th – 15th December

Monday 9^th December: Strength exercises + 90min cycling

Easy spinning

I seemed to have pulled up from the weekend with a slightly stiff/sore left calf but once warmed up I didn’t notice it anymore.

Tuesday 10^th December: W/U exercises + 100 min

60min of tempo on single track + 20min barefoot

The bit of calf soreness I had the day before had gone and I was able to really enjoy the tempo session without any worry.

Wednesday 11^th December: W/U exercises + 90min

Up Lookout bike track – down Honeyeater track – up Under Construction trail – turn around and return along same route + 20min barefoot

Well, my left calf was again a bit stiff but felt fine once I started running. My legs were a little bit heavy today but otherwise I was feeling good.

Thursday 12^th December: Strength exercises + 90min cycling

Easy spinning

Friday 13^th December: W/U exercises + 90min

30min of uphill reps also with hard downhills on Chapel Hill Road trail + 20min barefoot

Well, that bit of calf stiffness seems to be lingering but still didn’t bother me while actually running. I was feeling great but the hard descents sure were giving my qauds a good pounding and I was really feeling it by the final rep.

Saturday 14^th December W/U exercises + 5 hours

Up Lookout track – down/up Honeyeater track – down/up Chapel Hill Road Trail – down Reservoir trail – up/down Under Construction trail – up Kokoda Track – down/up Jacksonia trail – down Moggill Rd Trail – up/down Powerlines – up Moggill Rd Trail – down Reservoir trail – turn around and return along same route

My calf seems to be continuing to improve and the fact it didn’t give me any issues during today’s long run seems to suggest it isn’t anything too serious. The pace today was fairly relaxed as could feel yesterday’s hill session in my quads right from the start. I still finished with plenty left in the tank though.

Sunday 15^th December: W/U exercises + 3 hours

With last hour hard – Up Lookout track – down/up Honeyeater track – down/up Chapel Hill Road Trail – down Reservoir trail – up/down Under Construction trail – down Greenford street – turn around and return along same route + 10min barefoot

My quads actually felt better than yesterday but my left calf was back to being a little bit stiff and sore before the run but fine during. I was surprised at how good I felt going hard in the last hour.

So, I was really happy this week with how my training went but obviously I am also mildly concerned about my left calf. The fact it isn’t getting any worse seems to suggest it is probably just something little that will pass, but hopefully a visit to my physio in the coming week will help speed up that process. Just a couple of weeks more of solid training and it will be time to taper for Bogong to Hotham!