50km Gold Coast Ultra Marathon

Results: 1st in Female Category 20-24 year olds & 13th Female Overall.

I felt really underprepared for this one but still hit my goal of completing it in less than 5 hours, which I was happy with.

2 weeks before the event I had the flu and was out of action for 6/7 days, this really wiped me out. I then had to decide if it was wise to do the 50km’s or back down to the 30km event. My Coach advised I drop back to the 30k but because I am stubborn as hell and didn’t want to cheat myself i stuck with my original plan.

8 days out from the event I had kicked the sickness and was feeling back to about 70% so I wanted to do a longer run to make sure I was capable of completing the 50k – I did a 31km run just 7 days before the event which I did quite easily but this left me pretty fatigued for a few days so I started my taper week on a pretty poor note.

In the week leading up to the 50kms my training looked a little like this – x2 yoga classes, x2 8km runs, x2 swimming sessions and a walk… yes, I am yet to master tapering…slowing down isn’t a strong point for me.

Saturday (the day before the event), I didn’t like to admit it but I was pretty anxious/nervous about the race and tried to not think about it. My pre race food wasn’t spot on which was detrimental as it left me with a shocking stomach the entire race which mean’t a number of restroom breaks adding on time to my end results.

All in all I enjoyed the race, it was beautiful along the coastline and a cracking summer day! I took lots away from this event and hope to learn from the mistakes I made this time around.

Post Event 

Straight after the event I went for a swim in the ocean, ice bathed, hot showered, stretched and popped on my 2XU compressions. I woke up Monday feeling pretty good – I went for a light walk/jog, went to yoga and went for a massage to gives the legs a little bit of relief. Tuesday I was pretty tight and sore so I went swimming for an hour and by Wednesday I was back running and doing gym.

New things happening

Strength Coach – Kieran Maguire @ Science of Fitness.
After a few planning weeks Kieran and I had our first actual gym session which was fantastic but at the same time a bit of a wakeup call. It really highlighted all of my weaknesses and I have a lot to work on in the gym which will directly cross over into my running performance.

Running Technique Session – The Balanced Runner – Paul.
Paul spent an hour with me evaluating my current technique and gave clear cues to be able to implement small changes to help me run more efficiently. A week after seeing Paul and already I am feeling lighter and faster in my running by mainly focusing on my arm position which directly influences how the rest of my body reacts to their alignment.

Physiotherapy – Paul Trevethan @ Body Leadership.
2 visits to see Paul and my niggles have reduced significantly. Paul assessed my running technique looking at the angles in which my feet strike the ground and trying to get this just right to be able to avoid excess impact being taken by my hips. We also worked on ways to utilise the least amount of energy possible when running over longer distances and up hills.

New Sponsors on board

Downer Mining – David Overall.

Steigen Sport – Socks.

Angela Shaw – Personal training client – thank-you so much for the financial contribution.

Science of Fitness – The boys at Science of Fitness are supporting me with my training, use of the gym and recovery. Thanks Guys!

Special Thanks to Charlotte Lynch and Nicola Roth – 2 Canberra girls who completed the 250km Nambibia Race this year and raised over $18,000. They have been absolute legends in helping me prepare for my first event in April by giving me all the hints and tips that I need from how to survive wearing just one set of clothes in a desert for the week to what equipment is best! Hoping the girls sign up to the Gobi March Desert event later next year so I can have some friends on the adventure.

Donations to the White Cloud Foundation

Eilish Grundon and Beth Beetroot.

Up-coming Events

14th January – 51km Trail Race @ The Glass House Mountains
18th February – 22km Trail Race @ Mount Glorious
23rd-25th February – Running Camp with Gale Force Running @ Sunshine Beach
25th March – 25km Trail Race – Up the Buff @ Currumbin