So June has come and gone, we are now 6 months through 2016, WOW! So my focus for June was to run everyday, I then went a little further and made it a minimum of 5km a day! So how did I go? Actually it was a little different than I imagined. I struggled through a minor calf tear for most of the month, which I managed with massage, voltaren (tablets & gel), reducing the intensity and removing self-inflicted pressure on myself to have to run continuous (introduced walk/runs). I found that by run / walking I could get through my 5km and not pour petrol on the fire that was my burning calf! A visit to my physio & massage therapist, some deep conversations with a podiatrist ensured I could finish the month running over 150km! There was not a great deal of other activities complete this month, but I’m totally comfortable that my fitness levels have been maintained and with minimal effort I can regain the swim & bike quickly!
Probably the hardest part of this challenge was finding the time and trying to fit it into our family schedule. If you follow me on Strava or Instagram you’ll see that a lot of my runs were complete at night, trying to limit my time away from my family. I have the most understanding and amazing wife and supper supportive kids. I think they all understand and know that I am a better person, dad & husband when I am training or moving towards a goal.
In June I trained on 30 out of 30 days, running everyday! I trained for a touch under 24 hours for the month of June, which is marginally ahead of last month and is right there as my 2nd lightest month in 2016. During June I entered (and attempted to finish) the following Strava challenges:
Running:
- June Distance Challenge – complete 165km finishing 18,159 of 138,963 participants
- June Run Climbing Challenge – climbing 1,369m finishing 24,284 of 79498 participants
- Global Running Day 1st June – I did 5km finishing 28,821 of 112,515 participants who together ran 329,721km on that day globally.
- I didn’t complete either the 10km or half marathon challenge this month.
Cycling:
- June Gran Fondo – 108km was my longest ride (not qualifying for the GF badge) but finishing 95,545 of 198,031 participants
- June Climbing Challenge – 1,498m climbed finishing 162,914 of 198,711 (missing the target of 6,000 by 4,502, I’m sooooo not a climber)
The following is a summary of activities for June:
The following little chart is from my excel spreadsheet I use to track volumes & hours, it helps me stay on track for my annual goals, also providing a good summary of the monthly totals:
So at the half way mark of 2016 I am easily over half way to my annual targets, I may need to revise them, or simply revel in the glory of smashing them at the end of the year!
Now with a very consistent June behind me its time to bring some balance back and start planning next summer. I have finally committed to running a marathon, so if you’re heading to Sunshine Coast Marathon Festival in August I will see you there. Now my training finally has a race focus I will plan out the weeks to include all three disciplines but with a distinctive focus on the marathon!
So if you’re not active at the moment & need some inspiration, follow me on Strava & Instagram and let’s get back out there swim, bike or running. The biggest regret we can have in life is to not TRI!
Till next time build consistency, keep smiling and live to Tri!
SO, YOU WANT TO BE AN IRONMAN? 