It is better not to rush past feelings and address them as they come. Sometimes I will sit down for a few minutes just to check in with myself and my surroundings then carry on my run. It is always easier in a team or with a buddy and you can bounce off each other too. I also talk to myself and motivate by getting emotional and thinking positive thoughts and saying them out loud “You can do this”, “Your feeling strong”. It is important to connect with the body like this and at some point, I get this euphoria of pure joy when I am one with the run, which I call ‘pure running. Being connected with your running often moves the focus towards things like your breathing, how your arms and legs are moving, or parts of the body that may be feeling tight or weak. I always find being present so inspiring during my runs. In these instances, I often check in with myself and take the opportunity to do some mindful running. If you are doing this solo, you are going to need to be ready to spend long periods alone in all sorts of weather conditions (sunny and hot, cold and wet, in the night, on windy mountain tops). This all helps to remind me that I have what it takes and build mental calluses ready for the challenges ahead. For example, I would hold a plank for 1 minute longer than I planned or do extra reps when squatting or run another mile at the end of a training run.
I find it is important to test yourself outside of running too. I also like to train harder in more difficult environments than the challenge I set myself out so whatever I came across in the Welsh 3 Peaks ultra would already have some form of resilience and capability. Walking/hiking is a different movement that will tire you in a different way to continuous running so you can mix your training between hiking and running. What I found during my Welsh 3 Peaks Challenge run as I was hiking a lot up steep hills, so it made sense to train like this too and hike up steep hills as well. Do you know what sort of training plan you need for your particular ultra? Maybe there are certain environments you need to get familiar with running in.Īs part of my training plan, I like to rack up time on my feet in preparation, whether that is from running or even hiking! When it comes to trail ultras, hiking is underrated in terms of building a good base of endurance and leg conditioning in a low-risk way. What do you need to achieve this vision? What is your current benchmark fitness? Knowing where you stand now and where you want to get to in terms of fitness allows you to devise a suitable timeline for a training plan. Remember your 5 P’s - Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance. It’s all good having a vision, but if you don’t prepare you won’t reach the goal or the dream. I wanted to immerse myself in the wild landscapes of Wales, after seeing some pockets of Wales I have always dreamed of a deep dive.ĭo you want to go for a distance goal? Do you fancy immersing yourself in stunning scenery in wild landscapes? Do you want to run on paved paths or even the other extreme no paths at all or a mixture of both and everything in between? In doing this it translated well to raising awareness of mental health and my chosen charity “Mind in Mid Herts” of which I am a trustee of. I had always done team challenges and this was the first big solo challenge that scared me and pushed me to a whole new level.įrom a mental health perspective, this was an experiment to see how I could dig myself out of the ‘lows’ using my tools. I never rely upon others to motivate me, because I always develop a very clear “Why” for whatever I am doing and that is how I empower myself.įor the Welsh 3 Peaks Challenge my personal ‘Why’ was three-fold: Your “Why” message is an extremely powerful self-motivation technique in reminding you what you are doing to spur you on. Is this because you want to push your running to a whole new level or do you have a social cause you care about and want to raise the profile? During my ultra endurance challenge of the Welsh 3 Peaks run at times when it got tough and I felt out of energy and stopped for breaks, it was the “Why” that got me to carry on. Answering these questions below is essential. This is where you set out a clear vision of what this ultra is. At first, I tend to split all my challenges into 3 phases (visualising, preparing and executing), all are equally as important as each other. When creating your challenge you need some structure/process.
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