1st January: Forthcoming in sweet '16

Looking to the new year, I’ve already booked in to races that will have me going further than before and races that will be physically harder than before, all part of pushing myself further and (hopefully) faster… I will be racing quite a few of the runs I have done previously, so the aim is to better my times on every race that I have previously run (injury permitting). The ‘A’ race out of them all for me is without doubt the Lakeland 50 in the last week of July… So training in effect starts now as I really cannot afford to turn-up ill-prepared for that, especially with my desire of a sub 16 hour finish to qualify for a place in a future 100.

As such, once the CTS series finishes I’ll be hitting some ultras to prepare myself for the LL50, one of which in the Lake District, and will attempt to recce the last 15 miles of the course from Ambleside to Coniston so as to have covered at least part of the course that I will most-likely end-up traversing in darkness!.. Plus it means an excuse to go up there for another time :)

Over the last couple of months of the year I neglected my training, which in part was responsible for failure to hit a sub 4 hour time in a marathon, with my weight steadily creeping higher over this time to the point I am at the heaviest I have been for a while, and now to the point I could ideally be some 2 stone lighter come the LL50, so one of the goals must surely be to drop down to this ready to toe the start-line!

The other goal is notionally to cycle 3,000 miles and run 1,500 miles over the course of the year, with no stipulation on the number of times I must run or ride, nor the distances that each should cover… Its just that with figures that high then it means I WILL have to go out more times this year as the distances are double those I put under my belt in 2015. That said, these goals are something to push towards so if I do not achieve them then I will not be beating myself up over not hitting them… A sub 4 hour marathon at some point would still be a great goal to achieve as well!

Eat pies.
Drink beer.
Run far.