If you’ve read any advice on running the experts give 3 tips in a nutshell;
1) Wear appropriate footwear
2) Warm up and cool down
3) Cross-train

If this week epitomises anything it’s point 3. Cross-training! That is activities which are not running. Cross-training is recommended because injuries can arise with any muscle imbalances and performing other exercises strengthens muscles which aren’t used for running. Thus cross-training helps to keep you balanced and hopefully injury free.  To put it another way; running is by its nature a repetitive exercise – you just put one foot in front of the other and repeat until done – so to improve your running performance and prevent overuse doing something different will keep you fresh and allow those running muscles to recover.

Having been injured once before and barely able to walk let alone run I am now terrified of injuring myself again.  So I do make a point to cross-train.  Ordinarily I cross-train by swimming 2-3 times a week and cycling to and from work (about 20 K a week).  Both swimming and cycling are great cross-training activities for runners as they are non-weight bearing but still improve your cardiovascular health.  I am also convinced it was swimming that helped me finally get proper breathing technique as in water my breaths had to be timed to my strokes – which can easily be applied to steps whilst running.

However, this week, there was something more special in store as Andreas and I were in St. Marine, Brittany, France staying with his extremely active Aunt and Uncle.

Together we have gone on bike rides to the coast and mountains, swam in the sea, ridden a horse, kayaked up and down a river, walked along port fortifications, climbed hundreds of steps to the top of a lighthouse, paddle boarded, sailed a catamaran and still slipped in over 20 miles of running.  If I hadn’t consumed copious amounts of fromage et pain (cheese and bread) with every meal it would also have been extremely healthy.

The best thing in all of this for me, is the knowledge that I can actually do these activities without dying on the spot from physical exhaustion or suffering for days afterwards from aching muscles. Don’t get me wrong, last year, I would have still tried all the activities – but it is still a relief to fit into an ‘M’ sized wet-suit and to not always be the slowest. Except, that is, the day I decided to wear heels because we were just visiting friends but then the weather improved so we went for a walk on rocky terrain! I was the slowest that day because I missed point 1 – appropriate footwear – but, hey, at least I looked the coolest.

Brittany really is a beautiful corner of the world and I would recommend it to anyone in a heartbeat.  Andreas and I agreed we definitely need to go back again!  Merci beacoup to our hosts for entertaining us so well!

Week 4: Total mileage for the week was 15 K (9.3 miles), total running time was 1:45 (because the 19 K run was on the Monday and so I count it in the next week).