A week after my 50km run I can think clearer, at last. In around four years I made a transition from a fully inactive middle aged 'drinking smoker' to a very active ultra-marathon runner. I would never think of it as possible, I would never think of it at all in my pre-running days, to be honest. But running, like many other things in life can lead from one thing to another, from basic to more elaborate, from complex to sometimes unfathomable.
Looking back, the process had its logical course and all of it was down to ideas, hard work and stubborn persistence. I was absolutely determined to get to another stage and denied any factors that could play against me. When I got injured I healed, got back and tried not to repeat the same error. When a new obstacle appeared, I worked around it.
The point is, it can be done.
Remember, at times when facing a barrier that feels insurmountable think of those who have done it. I can’t see why you couldn’t achieve your own goals the same way.
If you want to read the full account of my journey from Big Zero to 50km via important stopovers like 5K, 10K, 16K, half and full marathons, please see my latest blog on my website:
Many thanks! As you know, forums such as this one will offer invaluable support and I’ve benefited greatly from many great advice that I picked up here, yours included. Quite bluntly, things can be done if we apply ourselves. And then we can push it a bit. And then with some work and a bit of luck things start happening.
I can't find an emoji to adequately express my admiration. As an ex English teacher, I really must stop using exclamation marks, but I think in this case, you deserve them!!!!!
Lol, thank you! It’s been an inspiring journey and I’ve already got further ideas. We all can surprise ourselves sometimes, that’s one of the points of what we do here. There are so many benefits, the key is to get to as many as possible.
Ha, thank you! It's only when I look back at my training logs and when I remember some serious mileage that I can think, ok, that was a bit of a trek. But the important thing is how our bodies transform from one stage to another, regardless of ages and lifestyles. As if they are grateful to be given the opportunity to go through a grinder, haha. I can honestly tell you that it all looks far harder than it can really be. Large % of perceived difficulties is in our heads.
Many thanks! Superhuman? Haha, no. I was inspired by the guys who run 100k, 160k and those who run over 250km. Have I mentioned 24hr races where people go non-stop without sleep? That's a different league, and they call 50km ‘Baby Ultra’, of all names….lol…
If you train long and hard those distances become a norm, strange or not. My first runs were 90 seconds long and I was falling apart, just like everyone else. And I was a 52 year old former champion cigarette smoker. That’s all irrelevant if you really commit to something and have enough luck to avoid bad injuries although you can work around that stuff too. I write about running here, elsewhere and on my blog, runmrrun.com where you can, hopefully, get an answer to many of your early questions!
I don’t think I would ever be able to find time to train for anything longer than 50km. That’s full time commitment, those guys are mega fit athletes and most of them are being sponsored. How do they do it? No idea. 50K took huge involvement in terms of training, diet, lifestyle and focus. Even then, a single injury can stop it all. Now I’m going back to my 4 weekly short/medium runs with some nice music. Then we’ll see what happens next.
😀, not a typo - and many thanks! It's not just running that I like, it's the whole process. I started with benefits, that was my motivation. Then I was discovering other things like different routes, different times of day when l ran (including pre dawns), running in other countries, gear, communication with other runners.....constant mixes and reinventions. During my first running months I struggled and questioned it all like many others. My repeated early injury struggles were well documented here. I got into long distance running some 3 years later and figured out that's what suited me best. Just keep going!
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W9R3...oh yes, I've graduated!
Yes! I’ve done it! W9R3 done!
Now where was I...oh yes, week 8...
W4R3 Oh yes siree! 
