Get yourself a goal

This weekend was an unexpected joy with bright blue skies and almost warm conditions. The G-Force and I took advantage of a gorgeous afternoon on Saturday for a  fast spin on our bikes around the Campsie Glens, north of Glasgow. Then on Sunday, the G-Force, Little Miss Outdoors and I headed up the reservoirs above Milngavie for a run/cycle. While Little Miss cycled along – offering numerous running coaching tips (most of which were pretty good!) – The G and I ran. One of Little Miss Outdoor’s tips that I liked was to imagine you are being held up by a helium balloon. As you run you should feel light on your feet and almost as if only the tips of your feet are touching the ground. This encourages you to run upright as well. The G-Force hadn’t heard this tip before so he was pretty impressed by the wise words of an 11-year-old! I was pleased that years at a running club had taught her something!

But this weekend also saw the clocks going back. While this might be good for mornings, it means night-time is going to coming way too early for the next few months. This, coupled with a high chance of cold weather, rain and snow, can really knock your motivation to keep on training. I suddenly realised that cycling will need to be done at weekends (if the weather is good) and on the turbo trainer indoors (big yuk!) because the evenings will now be so dark. Running will have to be on lit roads and so I will have less opportunity to get off the beaten track until spring next year. Swimming is the ideal activity for winter but there is only so much of this sport that I can stand – and it’s not that easy to fit into a busy single mummy’s life.

Aaargh! The winter could be really bad for my training – or I could find myself a few goals. In previous years I’ve relied on the bonkers Mighty Deerstalker event in March as a winter training aim. I enter for fun but I know that I do need to be fairly fit to get myself around the testing 10k or so course. So I’m thinking of signing up for this event again. Entries are now open for the March 19, 2011, event by the way. The Rat Race Adventure guys also organise a wide range of other adventure races throughout the year and across the UK that could provide your perfect training goal.

A couple of friends have also pointed me in the direction of cycle cross. Cycle cross is like cross-country running but on bikes that look like road bikes. I have tried this sport before and only just managed to finish the course. It’s fun and muddy and excellent for keeping you fit. Best of all it takes place during the winter season so it offers lots of goals throughout the dark, wet season.

There are two Glasgow cyclo cross events taking place on November 27 and 28. Cross at the Kings is at Kings Park on the 27th, while Cross in the Park takes place at Bellahouston on the 28th. All ages and fitness levels can take part but do be prepared to puff it out on a muddy course. Falling off and carrying your bike is all part of the fun. And there’s a £100 prize up for grabs for the first senior home.

Peebles Triathlon 2010

Then there’s next year’s triathlon season. Tri Club friends have already signed up for a number of events. Oh, yes, and that includes me! I’m doing my first Olympic Distance triathlon at the London Triathlon in July. Check out the British Triathlon website for a long list of events taking place across the UK. My triathlon might be next summer but it has given me a bit of a focus for winter training, including my much loathed sport of swimming! I will also need to take part in a couple of sprint triathlons earlier in the year as preparation, including my fave triathlon, Peebles Sprint Triathlon. I loved the event this year.

The experts tell me I should also do a couple of 10k races (the run section of the Olympic distance triathlon is a 10k) so I guess I should have a couple of these as goals, too. Check out the fantastic resource The Scottish Running Guide for a very, very long list indeed of running races taking place in 2010 and 2011.

Entry Central is another great place to find races as winter-motivator goals.

And then there are the increasingly popular series of cycling sportives to aim for. If you’re a regular reader of this blog you’l know how much I enjoyed the Bealach Mor Sportive in September. Check out Hands On Events for the 2011 series of cycle sportives in Scotland. And the Etape Caledonia, Pedal for Scotland, Braveheart Cycle to name a few more.

* If anyone else wants me to blog about great adventure/sports events taking place next year please email me. I’ll need a brief description of the event, including dates, website and also a pic or two.