Recently I
wrote about strategies how to cope with the winter as a runner and then escaped from it myself. Ironic, I know, but after a fair
amount of compromises and small niggles I just couldn’t stand it anymore and
headed to Fuerteventura for a week’s warm weather training camp. Our base was
at Las Playitas, a wonderful well-equipped sports centre in the southeastern
corner of the island, that I knew from previously would serve me well even if I
faced some problems. On holidays I seldom want to go back to places where I’ve
been before and rather seek for new places to explore. However, when it comes
to training, it’s different, and it actually feels good to go back to a place
that you know has got everything you need (see my comprehensive description of
Playitas here)
My week was
more or less a replay from last year. It was funny to see flashbacks from my
own Facebook updates from exactly the same dates a year ago. It was like a
tailored-made training plan. Just when I was about to go for a long ride the
pictures from last years’ ride jumped into my face. Again, I gathered about 20h
and 230km in a week, of which 80km cycling and nearly 150km running, and over
4000m vertical climb. For me it’s like two weeks training squeezed in one week.
And the best of it was that it all came like nothing. In addition to actual training
I took part to some morning yoga sessions and climbed about 720 stairs a day
(that being part of living in the upper most house of the resort).
So here is
roughly what I did. It was important for me to get a proper long run and I also
wanted to get a longer tempo run and long intervals. Hill reps were a nice
bonus. To play safe I took one day off from running and spent it in the saddle.
Day 1: A short
jog on the hills after a long travel. Can’t describe the feeling of running in
shorts and t-shirt again!
Day 2: Easy
off-road run on the hills in the morning with some strides and 5x1600m intervals
on the red carpet in the evening.
Day 3: 18km
progressive run in the morning and 2km swimming in the evening.
Day 4: 13km
tempo run in the morning, then an easy off roader on hills in the afternoon,
followed by a strength workout.
Day 5: A
day off from running. Just a short morning jog to the nearest hilltop before
the sunrise, then a massive breakfast and a long ride on the mountains. Some
relaxing swimming in the evening.
Day 6: 5x6min
hill reps of varying length and steepness, followed by some short sprints. Quads
were dead from the ride and some of the climbs felt too steep. I dig in but it
wasn’t pretty. Some easy running and core exercises in the evening.
Day 7: Long
run. I had my doubts about 32km on top of the week but it was pure enjoyment.
Amazed that my legs didn’t protest. Very happy.
Day 8: Last
run to the lighthouse, 13km. Had thought about taking the ridge back to the village as
suggested but it looked quite rough and I didn't have proper trail shoes. There
were also dark clouds hanging low so I started to hesitate. I was tempted but
at the same time it all looked very alarming and so I decided not to take the
adventure this time. Instead I just ran the road down and when the first drops
came I was quite happy about it. Coward, yes, maybe, but I just felt like
acting sensible for once. I had a long day of travel ahead and I kind of wanted
to feel reasonable fresh for it. Just avoiding risks at all costs. Next time…
