And along came..........illness!

Since last week when I was elated at clocking off the week with a sub 2hr half marathon I have covered the sum total of 5km. That's right, 5km. Not 15, 50 or even 105km - just 5! My lowest weekly mileage since July 2010 when I aggravated a cervical disc injury in my neck and was laid up for a few weeks. And the cause....flu! And yes, to any ladies reading it was full blown man flu! I was feeling good on Monday after having a rest day and was looking forward to a hard interval session on Tuesday. As I was driving home from work I began to feel rotten. Not just looking for an excuse to not train, but shivery, sleepy and very cold. Off I went home, jumped in a bath and then to bed. The following two days I was working away from home and had diligently packed my kit so I could train. No chance, feeling just as bad. Instead I dug out some old running mags and read about the train v rest debate when ill. I reached the conclusion that to miss 3 runs was a loss, but not as much as losing a months worth of runs by delaying the recovery process and potentially generating fatigue for longer periods. With this in mind, I ran an easy 5k on Friday night as I was picking up a bit. I say easy because I wasn't going to hit it at pace but there was nothing easy about it. Except when I finished I felt good. I can honestly say I got the balance right for once which for those that know me is rare. I'm quite a 'gung ho' all or nothing person so this last week has been a real test for my mental preparation. On a plus note however, I DID enter the Scotland coast to coast race in September this year, the last of my challenges I am doing for Erskine. Place confirmed! And I am now just getting my kit ready for my run tomorrow. Can't decide whether it's a 10, 12, 15 or more kinda day....gonna sleep on it for now!