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Unforeseen Victory
A Trail Runner's Tale of Pain, Perseverance, and the Unexpected
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Wadi Bih 72km through the Oman mountains is the setting. You have just climbed a vertical km up what is commonly known as “Butt F**K” hill (or so I was told). The reason being that by the time you get to the top, your glutes are fried!
I had run this race once before in a time of 8 hours 20 minutes, and I had a goal in mind to crack that 8 hour mark. Everything was going well and I had ascended “the hill” in great shape. There was another small climb and a nice descent to bring me to the 36km halfway point of the out and back route, and I was feeling very confident.
Then BANG. I could feel this pain surge up through my knee.
Confusion set in, and I started mentally backtrack through the race so far. I’d not gone over on a stone, not pushed too hard up the hill, I had warmed up. In my opinion, I had not done anything to warrant this pain.
Running became too much, so I downgraded to walking which over the course of a few more minutes downgraded further to limping. Admittedly, I am a fairly stubborn person when it comes to pain and expect every race to incur a decent bit of either physical or mental suffering, but this was different. I was limping along the ridge of the penultimate summit and took an anti-inflammatory, the stabbing pain now shooting up my leg into my hips. I was certain that my race was done. Stubborn as I may be, I know that shuffling along for 40+ km is reckless at best. As I was pondering how to stop the race and get myself back to either an aid station or a support car, I needed to pop to the toilet. As this is ultra-life there are no portaloos so a quick detour off the trail behind some rocks to take care of business was in order. I then stood up to get back onto the course, and the most bizarre thing happened….. There was NOTHING, no pain! The was pain completely gone, I could walk and run as normal!
Just goes to show you when you think you are done, you are probably not, yet your body might do some strange things to get you to stop.
Ultimately I didn’t make the sub 8 hour time cap that day, but came out of it with a good story and lesson learnt.
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ENGINE
We are going to mix things up a bit this week, varying modalities, time frames and distances designed to push your aerobic capacity.
GYMNASTICS
To kick things off, we will spend some time on Pull-ups and chest-to-bar pull-ups before we move off the rig and onto the floor as we look to break down and develop the Handstand Walk.
HYROX
Working on compromised running this week. Running consistently strong when there is nothing left in your legs is a key skill in Hyrox.
MOBILITY
Improving your overhead mobility will show you how to improve not only flexibility but also stability using a few key exercises that you can do in your own time.
PURE STRENGTH
In Pure Strength this week, we will kick the week off with a mixture of paused and unpaused back squats, followed by some heavy single-leg work. Wednesday sees us continue our progression on the strict press and the stationary dips.
WEIGHTLIFTING
This week in weightlifting we focus on the power snatch and hang power snatch with a series of complexes followed by some EMOM percentage work
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Track Tuesday
The purpose of this workout is to develop threshold speed. To do this we’re running through 3X800m into 2X400m finishing with a final best effort over 800m, then repeating the whole set again!
Start time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 1 hour
Location: InnerFight
Wednesday Ride
This Wednesday we’re going to put your legs through some climbing efforts and then finish with some maximum power sprints.
Start time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 1.5 hour
Location: Bottom of the stick
Friday, The Coffee Run
The ‘in’ word within endurance is fatigue resistance; and today we look to benchmark it. With 2 maximum efforts at the start and end of the set with a steadier middle section, we’ll be able to track your drop-off. A great set for anyone wanting to get better this winter!
Start time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 1 hour
Location: Common Grounds, Jumeirah Beach Track
Friday, Sea Swim
With Salalah and T100 just around the corner, we again take to the seas to practice race-specific skills for open-water swimming.
Start time: 06:19 am
Session Length: 1 hour
Location: Common Grounds, Jumeirah Beach Track
Saturday Ride
This week we take on the second extension, with some 3-minute and 1-minute turns as a group. We’ll cover around 85km or fun riding. Come along to start your weekend right!
Start time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 3 hour
Location: Bottom of the stick
Please note that there is no Monday and Wednesday session this week. LRC Unlimited Clients, your TrainingPeaks are still programmed.
Tuesday
Time: 5:59am
Location: InnerFight
Session: Track Tuesday
This week we have a selection of 800s and 400s for you. Come ready to run fast with InnerFight Endurance community and coaching team.
Friday
Time: 5:59am
Location: Kite Beach
Session: The Coffee Run
Today we are looking at your durability. The session is book ended with hard efforts, to see how your duratlity is at the end of a middle block of easy running. This is a great session to test as the weather gets better and then test again in the coming month, after stacking some more consistency in your training.
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Monday:
Strength:
Pull Ups and Dumbell Bench Press
Conditioning:
Amrap 20
Car Park sandbag bear hug carry
10 hand-release push-ups
10 pull-ups
Half park run
Tuesday:
Strength:
Front Squats
Conditioning:
In a 3 minute window
10 Dual KB front squats (2x 20/16)
30/25/20 cal Row
AMRAP wall balls
Rest 2 mins x 5
Wednesday:
Strength:
A) Power Clean + Hang Power Clean
B) Clean Complex + Wall Walks
Conditioning:
FOR TIME
3-6-9 Power clean
2-4-6 wall walks
into
9-12-15 Power Clean
9-12-15 Burpee over bar
Thursday:
Strength:
KB Single Leg Deadlifts + Arch Holds
Conditioning:
EMOM 16
Min 1 - 20 alt DB hang snatch (50/35)
Min 2 - 20/15 box jump over
Min 3 -18/15/12/9 Cal assault bike
Min 4 - Rest
Friday:
Conditioning:
Another spicy Friday to end the week, and then we finish together with a Durante Special!
Wadi Bih 72km through the Oman mountains is the setting. You have just climbed a vertical km up what is commonly known as “Butt F**K” hill (or so I was told). The reason being that by the time you get to the top, your glutes are fried!
I had run this race once before in a time of 8 hours 20 minutes, and I had a goal in mind to crack that 8 hour mark. Everything was going well and I had ascended “the hill” in great shape. There was another small climb and a nice descent to bring me to the 36km halfway point of the out and back route, and I was feeling very confident.
Then BANG. I could feel this pain surge up through my knee.
Confusion set in, and I started mentally backtrack through the race so far. I’d not gone over on a stone, not pushed too hard up the hill, I had warmed up. In my opinion, I had not done anything to warrant this pain.
Running became too much, so I downgraded to walking which over the course of a few more minutes downgraded further to limping. Admittedly, I am a fairly stubborn person when it comes to pain and expect every race to incur a decent bit of either physical or mental suffering, but this was different. I was limping along the ridge of the penultimate summit and took an anti-inflammatory, the stabbing pain now shooting up my leg into my hips. I was certain that my race was done. Stubborn as I may be, I know that shuffling along for 40+ km is reckless at best. As I was pondering how to stop the race and get myself back to either an aid station or a support car, I needed to pop to the toilet. As this is ultra-life there are no portaloos so a quick detour off the trail behind some rocks to take care of business was in order. I then stood up to get back onto the course, and the most bizarre thing happened….. There was NOTHING, no pain! The was pain completely gone, I could walk and run as normal!
Just goes to show you when you think you are done, you are probably not, yet your body might do some strange things to get you to stop.
Ultimately I didn’t make the sub 8 hour time cap that day, but came out of it with a good story and lesson learnt.
Track Tuesday
The purpose of this workout is to develop threshold speed. To do this we’re running through 3X800m into 2X400m finishing with a final best effort over 800m, then repeating the whole set again!
Start time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 1 hour
Location: InnerFight
Wednesday Ride
This Wednesday we’re going to put your legs through some climbing efforts and then finish with some maximum power sprints.
Start time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 1.5 hour
Location: Bottom of the stick
Friday, The Coffee Run
The ‘in’ word within endurance is fatigue resistance; and today we look to benchmark it. With 2 maximum efforts at the start and end of the set with a steadier middle section, we’ll be able to track your drop-off. A great set for anyone wanting to get better this winter!
Start time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 1 hour
Location: Common Grounds, Jumeirah Beach Track
Friday, Sea Swim
With Salalah and T100 just around the corner, we again take to the seas to practice race-specific skills for open-water swimming.
Start time: 06:19 am
Session Length: 1 hour
Location: Common Grounds, Jumeirah Beach Track
Saturday Ride
This week we take on the second extension, with some 3-minute and 1-minute turns as a group. We’ll cover around 85km or fun riding. Come along to start your weekend right!
Start time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 3 hour
Location: Bottom of the stick
Please note that there is no Monday and Wednesday session this week. LRC Unlimited Clients, your TrainingPeaks are still programmed.
Tuesday
Time: 5:59am
Location: InnerFight
Session: Track Tuesday
This week we have a selection of 800s and 400s for you. Come ready to run fast with InnerFight Endurance community and coaching team.
Friday
Time: 5:59am
Location: Kite Beach
Session: The Coffee Run
Today we are looking at your durability. The session is book ended with hard efforts, to see how your duratlity is at the end of a middle block of easy running. This is a great session to test as the weather gets better and then test again in the coming month, after stacking some more consistency in your training.
Monday:
Strength:
Pull Ups and Dumbell Bench Press
Conditioning:
Amrap 20
Car Park sandbag bear hug carry
10 hand-release push-ups
10 pull-ups
Half park run
Tuesday:
Strength:
Front Squats
Conditioning:
In a 3 minute window
10 Dual KB front squats (2x 20/16)
30/25/20 cal Row
AMRAP wall balls
Rest 2 mins x 5
Wednesday:
Strength:
A) Power Clean + Hang Power Clean
B) Clean Complex + Wall Walks
Conditioning:
FOR TIME
3-6-9 Power clean
2-4-6 wall walks
into
9-12-15 Power Clean
9-12-15 Burpee over bar
Thursday:
Strength:
KB Single Leg Deadlifts + Arch Holds
Conditioning:
EMOM 16
Min 1 - 20 alt DB hang snatch (50/35)
Min 2 - 20/15 box jump over
Min 3 -18/15/12/9 Cal assault bike
Min 4 - Rest
Friday:
Conditioning:
Another spicy Friday to end the week, and then we finish together with a Durante Special!
ENGINE
We are going to mix things up a bit this week, varying modalities, time frames and distances designed to push your aerobic capacity.
GYMNASTICS
To kick things off, we will spend some time on Pull-ups and chest-to-bar pull-ups before we move off the rig and onto the floor as we look to break down and develop the Handstand Walk.
HYROX
Working on compromised running this week. Running consistently strong when there is nothing left in your legs is a key skill in Hyrox.
MOBILITY
Improving your overhead mobility will show you how to improve not only flexibility but also stability using a few key exercises that you can do in your own time.
PURE STRENGTH
In Pure Strength this week, we will kick the week off with a mixture of paused and unpaused back squats, followed by some heavy single-leg work. Wednesday sees us continue our progression on the strict press and the stationary dips.
WEIGHTLIFTING
This week in weightlifting we focus on the power snatch and hang power snatch with a series of complexes followed by some EMOM percentage work
Wadi Bih 72km through the Oman mountains is the setting. You have just climbed a vertical km up what is commonly known as “Butt F**K” hill (or so I was told). The reason being that by the time you get to the top, your glutes are fried!
I had run this race once before in a time of 8 hours 20 minutes, and I had a goal in mind to crack that 8 hour mark. Everything was going well and I had ascended “the hill” in great shape. There was another small climb and a nice descent to bring me to the 36km halfway point of the out and back route, and I was feeling very confident.
Then BANG. I could feel this pain surge up through my knee.
Confusion set in, and I started mentally backtrack through the race so far. I’d not gone over on a stone, not pushed too hard up the hill, I had warmed up. In my opinion, I had not done anything to warrant this pain.
Running became too much, so I downgraded to walking which over the course of a few more minutes downgraded further to limping. Admittedly, I am a fairly stubborn person when it comes to pain and expect every race to incur a decent bit of either physical or mental suffering, but this was different. I was limping along the ridge of the penultimate summit and took an anti-inflammatory, the stabbing pain now shooting up my leg into my hips. I was certain that my race was done. Stubborn as I may be, I know that shuffling along for 40+ km is reckless at best. As I was pondering how to stop the race and get myself back to either an aid station or a support car, I needed to pop to the toilet. As this is ultra-life there are no portaloos so a quick detour off the trail behind some rocks to take care of business was in order. I then stood up to get back onto the course, and the most bizarre thing happened….. There was NOTHING, no pain! The was pain completely gone, I could walk and run as normal!
Just goes to show you when you think you are done, you are probably not, yet your body might do some strange things to get you to stop.
Ultimately I didn’t make the sub 8 hour time cap that day, but came out of it with a good story and lesson learnt.
Please note that there is no Monday and Wednesday session this week. LRC Unlimited Clients, your TrainingPeaks are still programmed.
Tuesday
Time: 5:59am
Location: InnerFight
Session: Track Tuesday
This week we have a selection of 800s and 400s for you. Come ready to run fast with InnerFight Endurance community and coaching team.
Friday
Time: 5:59am
Location: Kite Beach
Session: The Coffee Run
Today we are looking at your durability. The session is book ended with hard efforts, to see how your duratlity is at the end of a middle block of easy running. This is a great session to test as the weather gets better and then test again in the coming month, after stacking some more consistency in your training.
Monday:
Strength:
Pull Ups and Dumbell Bench Press
Conditioning:
Amrap 20
Car Park sandbag bear hug carry
10 hand-release push-ups
10 pull-ups
Half park run
Tuesday:
Strength:
Front Squats
Conditioning:
In a 3 minute window
10 Dual KB front squats (2x 20/16)
30/25/20 cal Row
AMRAP wall balls
Rest 2 mins x 5
Wednesday:
Strength:
A) Power Clean + Hang Power Clean
B) Clean Complex + Wall Walks
Conditioning:
FOR TIME
3-6-9 Power clean
2-4-6 wall walks
into
9-12-15 Power Clean
9-12-15 Burpee over bar
Thursday:
Strength:
KB Single Leg Deadlifts + Arch Holds
Conditioning:
EMOM 16
Min 1 - 20 alt DB hang snatch (50/35)
Min 2 - 20/15 box jump over
Min 3 -18/15/12/9 Cal assault bike
Min 4 - Rest
Friday:
Conditioning:
Another spicy Friday to end the week, and then we finish together with a Durante Special!
ENGINE
We are going to mix things up a bit this week, varying modalities, time frames and distances designed to push your aerobic capacity.
GYMNASTICS
To kick things off, we will spend some time on Pull-ups and chest-to-bar pull-ups before we move off the rig and onto the floor as we look to break down and develop the Handstand Walk.
HYROX
Working on compromised running this week. Running consistently strong when there is nothing left in your legs is a key skill in Hyrox.
MOBILITY
Improving your overhead mobility will show you how to improve not only flexibility but also stability using a few key exercises that you can do in your own time.
PURE STRENGTH
In Pure Strength this week, we will kick the week off with a mixture of paused and unpaused back squats, followed by some heavy single-leg work. Wednesday sees us continue our progression on the strict press and the stationary dips.
WEIGHTLIFTING
This week in weightlifting we focus on the power snatch and hang power snatch with a series of complexes followed by some EMOM percentage work
Track Tuesday
The purpose of this workout is to develop threshold speed. To do this we’re running through 3X800m into 2X400m finishing with a final best effort over 800m, then repeating the whole set again!
Start time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 1 hour
Location: InnerFight
Wednesday Ride
This Wednesday we’re going to put your legs through some climbing efforts and then finish with some maximum power sprints.
Start time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 1.5 hour
Location: Bottom of the stick
Friday, The Coffee Run
The ‘in’ word within endurance is fatigue resistance; and today we look to benchmark it. With 2 maximum efforts at the start and end of the set with a steadier middle section, we’ll be able to track your drop-off. A great set for anyone wanting to get better this winter!
Start time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 1 hour
Location: Common Grounds, Jumeirah Beach Track
Friday, Sea Swim
With Salalah and T100 just around the corner, we again take to the seas to practice race-specific skills for open-water swimming.
Start time: 06:19 am
Session Length: 1 hour
Location: Common Grounds, Jumeirah Beach Track
Saturday Ride
This week we take on the second extension, with some 3-minute and 1-minute turns as a group. We’ll cover around 85km or fun riding. Come along to start your weekend right!
Start time: 05:59 am
Session Length: 3 hour
Location: Bottom of the stick
Wadi Bih 72km through the Oman mountains is the setting. You have just climbed a vertical km up what is commonly known as “Butt F**K” hill (or so I was told). The reason being that by the time you get to the top, your glutes are fried!
I had run this race once before in a time of 8 hours 20 minutes, and I had a goal in mind to crack that 8 hour mark. Everything was going well and I had ascended “the hill” in great shape. There was another small climb and a nice descent to bring me to the 36km halfway point of the out and back route, and I was feeling very confident.
Then BANG. I could feel this pain surge up through my knee.
Confusion set in, and I started mentally backtrack through the race so far. I’d not gone over on a stone, not pushed too hard up the hill, I had warmed up. In my opinion, I had not done anything to warrant this pain.
Running became too much, so I downgraded to walking which over the course of a few more minutes downgraded further to limping. Admittedly, I am a fairly stubborn person when it comes to pain and expect every race to incur a decent bit of either physical or mental suffering, but this was different. I was limping along the ridge of the penultimate summit and took an anti-inflammatory, the stabbing pain now shooting up my leg into my hips. I was certain that my race was done. Stubborn as I may be, I know that shuffling along for 40+ km is reckless at best. As I was pondering how to stop the race and get myself back to either an aid station or a support car, I needed to pop to the toilet. As this is ultra-life there are no portaloos so a quick detour off the trail behind some rocks to take care of business was in order. I then stood up to get back onto the course, and the most bizarre thing happened….. There was NOTHING, no pain! The was pain completely gone, I could walk and run as normal!
Just goes to show you when you think you are done, you are probably not, yet your body might do some strange things to get you to stop.
Ultimately I didn’t make the sub 8 hour time cap that day, but came out of it with a good story and lesson learnt.
Wadi Bih 72km through the Oman mountains is the setting. You have just climbed a vertical km up what is commonly known as “Butt F**K” hill (or so I was told). The reason being that by the time you get to the top, your glutes are fried!
I had run this race once before in a time of 8 hours 20 minutes, and I had a goal in mind to crack that 8 hour mark. Everything was going well and I had ascended “the hill” in great shape. There was another small climb and a nice descent to bring me to the 36km halfway point of the out and back route, and I was feeling very confident.
Then BANG. I could feel this pain surge up through my knee.
Confusion set in, and I started mentally backtrack through the race so far. I’d not gone over on a stone, not pushed too hard up the hill, I had warmed up. In my opinion, I had not done anything to warrant this pain.
Running became too much, so I downgraded to walking which over the course of a few more minutes downgraded further to limping. Admittedly, I am a fairly stubborn person when it comes to pain and expect every race to incur a decent bit of either physical or mental suffering, but this was different. I was limping along the ridge of the penultimate summit and took an anti-inflammatory, the stabbing pain now shooting up my leg into my hips. I was certain that my race was done. Stubborn as I may be, I know that shuffling along for 40+ km is reckless at best. As I was pondering how to stop the race and get myself back to either an aid station or a support car, I needed to pop to the toilet. As this is ultra-life there are no portaloos so a quick detour off the trail behind some rocks to take care of business was in order. I then stood up to get back onto the course, and the most bizarre thing happened….. There was NOTHING, no pain! The was pain completely gone, I could walk and run as normal!
Just goes to show you when you think you are done, you are probably not, yet your body might do some strange things to get you to stop.
Ultimately I didn’t make the sub 8 hour time cap that day, but came out of it with a good story and lesson learnt.
One-Hour Workout: Revving Your Swim Engine
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