How do you eat an elephant?

Bite by bite…

At the moment I’m in a hotel in Derby in England, I knew when I committed to doing the Namibia Ultra-Marathon that I had a hell of a lot of work to do. The physical challenge of getting fit enough to get to the start line was only half of the story, the mental battle and the nutritional education is another. Usually runners who take on Ultra-marathons (officially any distance above the standard 26.2 Miles) have been running for years often with many marathons under their belt already. I started running again six months ago and did my first marathon just three weeks ago, and now I’m about to do my second. I looked around for a personal trainer and through the internet and several recommendations found Rory Coleman. Rory is well known for Ultra Marathons, actually maybe that’s a bit of an understatement, so far he has run 632 Marathons, 163 Ultra-Marathons he holds 9 Guinness World Records and has run 6 Marathon des Sables (six day self supporting, Ultra-marathon across the Sahara Desert, 254 km (156 mile) the equivalent to six regular marathons. The longest single stage is 91 km (55 miles) long.)… And tomorrow I’m going to run a marathon with him. Also with us will be another runner that Rory is training for next years Marathon des Sables… That’s why I’m feeling so amped right now, following my first marathon I couldn’t walk properly for a week; I had an MRI of my right foot done as there was a suspected fracture, thankfully it was only soft tissue damage but blood had pooled along my 5th Metatarsal in my foot. The next two days sees me run a marathon tomorrow and then complete a one day gym assessment with Rory on Thursday.
Whether it be the night before a skydive after I haven’t jumped for a while, or before diving a wreck dive in the sea in strong currents for the first time, its normal to feel like I’m feeling now…. A bit scared, that’s normal. As children we are taught that fear is to be feared, something that is negative. I have learnt to make a friend of it; for fear is what keeps you focused, pushes us on and gives us the edge over those poor souls who are complacent through lack of it. Fear is simply excitement looked upon from a different angle.

Right now I’m out of my comfort zone, like a child who has just taken their first steps and is wobbling not sure if they’re going to trot forwards or fall on their arse. But overcoming that crippling fear that can sometimes take us, and blocking out the voice in your head that tells you ‘I can’t do it’ is just as much part of the training as the running is. Reading the blogs of those who have gone before me, who both completed Namibia Ultra and those who didn’t, there are times when fear, self doubt and pain will be your only companion. I have to be able to make friends with fear and approach it from a different angle, I have to conquer the self doubt and go through the pain, feel it and push on regardless. It’s not a case of being macho, simply a case of that’s what is required.