What next?

Kids, you'll discover at points in your life, things that you are passionate about. Some of these passions will burn bright and intense, but last a short while.

Others will smoulder in the background, ever present, always driving you forward but without the ferocity.

Others will sit somewhere in the middle of the two, as driven and focused as the first and as long lasting and consistent as the second.

Running falls into this camp for me.

It's great to have things like the first type (I wanted to be in a rock band), they make life interesting and exciting. And our lives are filled with the second type (I love video games, always have, always will).

But running is the one that falls into the third category.

After my family, running is my raison d'etre. The reason I eat well, train hard, work shifts and sometimes even get up in the morning (especially early mornings).

And so it was that after my last marathon, which turned (technically) into an ultra I found myself as always asking the question your mother dreads most about my running. What next?

I had a few irons in the fire and a few races and runs I was considering, as I've mentioned before, have always wanted to run from London, back to home. SO when I started speaking to a friend about just such a run a few months ago, the seed was planted in my mind. And it's slowly grown and continues to take shape.

Currently the challenge a head of me looks like a 52 mile canal path run in early December. A four man team, almost totally self sufficient, will attempt to get this done, starting in the early hours at Euston and getting back before nightfall. I guess we have about ten hours.

The question I usually get before I do something like this is why.

Why do you do it?

For me this one is a culmination of things. After a number of ultras and varying experiences, I want to put best practises and my learning's together to achieve a positive result. I've said before about the importance of setting lots of goals and I learnt recently what happens if you fail to prepare. So this time I'm starting early.

The current situation:

I'm in good shape, coming off the back of three ultras. I have no injuries and am the leanest I have ever been. I have transitioned to minimalist footwear now and will need to get some non-trail shoes (I love the mud more than the road).

The goals:

• Run 50+ miles.
• Aim for 5-6mph and finish strong.
• Complete the training programme, giving confidence in completing  the challenge.
• Maintain current eating pattern and look to lose excess body fat (I'll have to carry it with me and it's a bloody long way!)
• Run as a team, finish as a team.

Nothing earth shattering or surprising and no doubt, more will crop up on the way, but a set of goals I can aim for and achieve, if I work hard. I've set out long runs as part of the training plan for the next couple of months and I'll be looking to improve all over body strength so I have more resources to draw on when the going gets tough. This time I'm going to prepare well and run well on the day.

Like I said at the beginning kids, some passions are with you forever, constantly burning and lighting your life. In time the nature of them may change but it doesn't change the fact that they have a huge influence on your life and give you the most satisfaction. When you achive something at these long term passions, that is a great achievement.

My rock band never came to anything and I can take or leave a few hours on the PlayStation but when I have the time and the challenge ahead, running is like my default setting. It's what I return to every single time.

And sometimes people will ask you Why do you do it?

But after all of the hard work and the preparation, when you succeed, they ask you How did you do it?

And then you know you've achieved something great.


* I must give a shout out to JenJ @Jens_Itchy_Feet.  A great blogger whose post inspired me with the phrase, "First they'll ask you why you do it. Then they'll ask you how you did it" So true.