Week 3: When The Heart Says Go, But The Body Says No


Mike Finch |

For three months I had prepared myself – mentally, physically and regimentally – for the Hout Bay Ultra. I had no qualms about the distance, having run plenty of ultras in the past few years; but I knew the cut-off was going to be a challenge for even South Africa’s strongest trail runners.

The end of my race at the bottom of Platteklip at HBTU.
The end of my race at the bottom of Platteklip at HBTU.

I really couldn’t believe it was actually happening. I had 25km behind me and 40km in front of me, and I had finished the hardest part of the course in terms of vertical gain – but the thrill of the chase or being chased was diminishing quickly. With each step on the uneven rocky terrain, the muscle along my inner thigh was screaming with pain. So many times before in a race I would have had the mental capacity to say “Shut up legs!” – but this time, it wasn’t working. My heart was saying go; but my body, unfortunately, wasn’t listening.

For three months I had prepared myself – mentally, physically and regimentally – for the Hout Bay Ultra. I had no qualms about the distance, having run plenty of ultras in the past few years; but I knew the cut-off was going to be a challenge for even South Africa’s strongest trail runners, so I invested a substantial amount of energy into intensity training, to pick up my speed. (I had done plenty of runs at what has now been established as my M-I pace: anything above 175bpm, which is just below my anaerobic effort.)

I knew I was going to have to run really hard in this race, and out of my comfort zone, so I decided not to wear my heart-rate monitor strap. I made an executive decision to just keep an eye on my pace using my watch, and gauge how hard I was pushing myself using RPE (rate of perceived exertion). This is what I would count on to get me to the finish line. Throughout training I had kept a close eye on my heart rate on the big climbs, but I knew that if I wore the monitor during the race I would be tempted to keep an eye on my all-out effort (anything above 195bpm), and try to conserve energy. Because it’s such a long run, that could hamper me, preventing me from pushing as hard as I needed to make it home before the cut-off.

But by the time I’d almost reached the highest point and halfway mark in the race, I had crumbled completely. I needed to make a decision. Every runner knows what it feels like to reach their limits; but what defines those limits? Either you push on, and see how far you can get – or you abandon the race: something I’ve never done. But on Saturday, for the first time, I bailed.

This week is all about recovery: I’m focusing on getting strong again, mentally and physically. I started the week with walking and easy hiking, and stretching and mobility exercises. Then running at recovery pace (135-145bpm) with the focus on not pushing my heart rate for an extended time, and then slowly pushing my heart rate a little more, with a shorter run that includes a 40-minute period in which I push just a bit harder (145-165bpm). I will close off the week with an LSD (long, slow distance) run.

My choice to abandon sat heavy with me. But some consolation came from Coach Mo, as he explained in an email: “Unfortunately this happens in endurance running; and sometimes it’s braver to pull out than to strain through, and sit with the damage for months.”

It helps when someone with experience confirms you’ve made the right decision. I have a lot to look forward to and to focus on. The Cape Town Marathon is in seven weeks – and more immediately, I’ll be walking down the aisle in two weeks. If I’d pushed on Saturday, perhaps I would have been hobbling down the aisle instead!

THINGS I HAVE LEARNT THIS WEEK

– Sometimes, even if you think your heart is saying ‘go’, it’s actually saying ‘no’. Listen to your body. If your central nervous system is in overdrive because of stress, it will find a way to shut your body down.
– There is no guarantee, when you show up at the start line, that you will finish the race – and that’s okay.
– Recovery is key. I’ve been moving at a snail’s pace this week.

 

Alana Doyle is a committed trail and road runner and has completed events like the famed 160km UTMB (Ultra Trail Mont Blanc) run in France. This year her target events include the Hout Bay Challenge Trail Run and the Sanlam Cape Town marathon.

Follow Alana’s running journey here:

Week 1: Running Hard Is Easy
Week 2: My First Win… But at What Cost?

Learn more from Polar on calculating your maximum heart rate for running.

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