Review of February February has been one busy month, I’ve had two weeks of college and two weeks of holiday (study leave!). I always try to take a big advantage of the holidays where training is concerned and put in as many hours as I can. This month started on a massive low, I had injured both my Achilles resulting in running being very uncomfortable and there also being pain when I swam. This meant I completed minimal training for the first week of the month and booked myself a session with a physio asap. I took it super easy, swimming with only a pool buoy and not running. Saturday 11th February My Achilles was feeling better by now and I wanted to test it out so Dad, Ollie and I travelled over to Wotton parkrun to test out the course and more importantly see how my recovery was going. We arrived and it was snowing. Proper snow. The ground was soaking wet and almost all of the route was mud, not a good idea to wear my new running shoes :(. I was all taped up with KT tape and calf guards so I figured I would just go for it. I ran off with the lead pack and the pace was comfortable. I felt strong and started to play with the pace a bit, pushing hard on the inclines, trying to separate the group and after 2km I was out in front by a good 50m and feeling great. What a great day, I was injury free and feeling unstoppable. Reached the 3km mark and bang, pain shot through my Achilles and it hurt…bad. I stopped with a fake smile on my face and let the other runner go on to win. I was absolutely gutted, everything was going so well but I guess that’s what I get for trying to rush recovery. Dad and Ollie finished in good times and positions and I cheered on the rest of the runners, freezing cold in the snow. Sunday 12th February Headed over to see Jason Tait at South West Swim for my monthly endless pool analysis. Really starting to see a lot of progress as a result of Jason’s coaching, I’m becoming so much stronger and more powerful in the water because of the attention to detail. Today we worked on a lot of drills which focused on rotation and my ever going problem of hand placement - it’s getting better but it’s not yet perfect. I recently spoke with my old swim coach from the school triathlon club. The first time I met her I was 15 and I couldn’t swim 400m in under 7 minutes, now I’m aiming for sub 5:10. Without her, I don’t believe my passion and motivation to improve in swimming would’ve ever happened and for that I will be forever grateful. “The most important step of all is the first one.” Wednesday 15th February Some friends and I decided we were going to cycle 100 miles and not only 100 miles but to another country – Wales! I really don’t know why we decided to do this, it was absolutely horrible weather with the rain, wind and roads all terrible. It quickly turned into more of a psychological challenge than a physical one. George, Mark and Sil are all more experienced riders than me and I also had the more basic bike but anyway we got it done with two café stops and numerous toilet stops. The worst thing was by far the weather, had it been sunny, dry and warm I would’ve enjoyed every minute. We plan on doing it again sometime in the future, but only if it is sunny. Thursday 16th February I headed over to Dyer St Chiropractic in Cirencester for an appointment with Sarah Fellows where she looked at my Achilles and tried to work out what could be done to make it better. She concluded it was down to my running technique so we went out to the park and she gave me some things to work on, specifically arm movement and direction and foot placement. I can honestly say it was one of the most beneficial hours of my life. Sarah has so much knowledge which she applies to running that it would’ve been worth seeing her even if I didn’t have an injury. There was nothing I could fault about the session and I am very confident that when I am back to full fitness, I will be stronger and faster than ever. Sarah recommended that I ran for 10-20 minutes per day until I next see her, so that’s what I am currently working on. If you have any kind of running injury or you just want to improve your technique, book an appointment with Dyer St Chiropractic! https://www.dyerstchiropractic.com/ Saturday 18th February My first ever Performance Cycles Club Ride. I rode over with 3 other regulars (it was roughly 30km away from my home) and then we set of in one of the groups of around 12 people. The pace was good and I was working hard on the front until my chain fell off. No idea why or how but it did and I had to stop. I fixed the chain back on and then worked very hard to get back onto the group. We continued for another 30km back to the shop, stopped and chatted and then headed home. It was tough, 120km later and my legs were slaughtered. Looking at the stats, it was a very good ride averaging 31.5kph. This is equivalent to 74miles averaging 19.5mph. I am planning on completing the club rides on an alternative basis with parkrun. Performance Cycles is a great shop with very experienced staff who I am working hard with to achieve my goals. We have confirmed that I will be purchasing the Orbea Ordu TT bike along with some racing wheels for the season ahead. Along with other rides, throughout the week I travelled 360km (227 miles) with around 13 hours on the bike. There’s no way I will be hitting those miles every week but I’m taking advantage of all the time off in my holidays. Saturday 25th February The short runs are getting better, I’m getting stronger and more comfortable in the new technique and so I decided it was time to try out parkrun again. Originally I was only aiming for 25 minutes but when I got there I was asked to pace a young 9 year old friend who wanted a Pb but because he is under 11 he has to run with an adult and his dad is not fast enough to keep up. Of course I was more than happy and we did it. I pushed him hard and made him work but he got a 20 second pb of 28 minutes which he was over the moon with. When I first started doing parkrun I only wanted to complete it, I hated it. But I started to get faster and stronger and was so determined to get Pb’s. One day it all clicked in my head, I needed to push myself through the pain otherwise I would never get better. In 12 months I went from running a 24minute 5km to a 19 minute 5km. All because I realised how much my mentality affected my running. Now I can run a 17 minute 5km and I’m constantly pushing myself to get faster physically but also mentally. Thanks for reading, please share my blog on social media, I would appreciate it! #bigthingsarecoming Check out my social media accounts Facebook- Luke Campbell Triathlon My twitter and Instagram tags are still- @lukecampbell246 Follow me on strava- https://www.strava.com/athletes/12686138?hl=en-GB Please like, follow, comment and share my social media accounts! My email is [email protected], send me a message if you need any help with training, nutrition or have any feedback. A big thanks is needed to the people and organisations that support me, one day it will all be worth it! Pedal Potential Performance cycles South West Swim NDJ FITNESS
2 Comments
Andrew
3/8/2017 02:12:19 pm
Really enjoying reading the blog...very impressed by your dedication in face of set backs and results. Inspiring stuff!
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