My next ultra is just over a month away so I have given myself a 6 week plan to prepare for the race.

The Dragon’s Back race is now over 3 months ago and I do feel it has taken me most of that time to recover. Looking back I think the Devil o’ the Highlands probably came a few weeks too early. I enjoyed the race even despite the heat but don’t feel I was able to run my best.

I’m hoping that by the time I get to the start line for the Ochils Ultra (50miles) I will be in better shape and ready to run well.

Here is my training plan …

Last week was week 1 so here is my summary

Monday 19th August - Club Fartlek Session

• • 8.21 miles
  • Session:
    • 10min (2min recovery)
    • 10 x 1min (30sec recovery)
    • 10mins

This was my first fartlek session since before the Dragon’s Back in May so I was keen to take it steady.

Here are my stats for the session

I was encouraged that I was able to run further on the 2nd 10min tempo run.  It was good to be back as I know these sessions are the ones that will help me get some fitness back.

Wednesday 21st August - Lunchtime Run

• 6.45 miles
• 1:02:05
• 9:37 pace

I ran my off road Pollok Park loop. It was still quite muddy in places and my legs felt a bit heavy but happy with my run.

Thursday 22nd August - Ben Lomond Run

• 7.62 miles
• 2:37:10
• 20:38 pace

My first Ben Lomond run since May. When I started running at 3.55pm after work it was quite warm at Rowardennan but the further I climbed the colder and windier it became. The last 1,000ft was tough going. There were times when I had to crawl with hands on the ground to stop being blown over as the wind was so strong.

It took me almost 1:30 to get to the top compared to around 1:15 when I’m going well in better conditions. The descent was even slower than normal taking me 1:07 compared to around 50mins on a good day!

So a tough run but it gave me an idea of where my fitness is at the moment!

Saturday 24th August - Gleniffer Braes Run

• 15.07 miles
• 2:52:01
• 11:24 pace

Last Friday night I did my 12 mile loop and it was really hard going. This week I ran further and faster so that was encouraging. I spent the whole run listening to a new (to me) podcast called ‘Don’t tell me the score.’  The 3 episodes I listened too were excellent and helped pass the time.

Sunday 25th August - Recovery Run

• 5.29 miles
• 47:28
• 8:58 pace

I wanted to do an easy recovery run before church. I could feel my legs a bit after the day before so I tried to keep it nice and easy and enjoy the run.

Summary of the week