Transitions

Image via Wikipedia

I’m still about 10-​​15kg shy of where I need to be to race com­fort­ably. And it seems, too, that my weight at the moment (91-​​odd kilos) pre­cludes me from run­ning with­out injury. That’s what you get for seven years of neglect…

My legs have always been a prob­lem. I’m designed for lift­ing — squats and the like — not run­ning, and I’ve always expe­ri­enced some dis­com­fort when run­ning as my calves fill with blood under pres­sure. They feel tight and over-​​inflated, if such a thing can be.

At the moment, run­ning means that I get fre­quent small, but debil­i­tat­ing tears in either my gas­troc­ne­mius, soleus or the fas­cia around them. Each time it’s 7 – 10 days before I can run again, and even that’s prob­a­bly too soon.

So, with no other choice, I get to focus on my swim­ming and rid­ing. By the time I’m 10kg down and mechan­i­cally okay to run, all the heal­ing should be done, and I should be at peak fit­ness for my swim (often neglected) and cycling too.

Doing lots of walk­ing will also pre­pare me for the Oxfam Trail­walker Mel­bourne 100km walk I’ve com­mit­ted to doing with my best friend, Edmund, in mid-​​April.