Continue31st July 2012 - It's about 14 weeks before I set off to Antartica. My journey will take me through Paris, France, and Santiago and Punta Arenas in Chile. Once I land at Punta Arenas, situated at the Southern most tip of South America, I will be flying (weather permitting) to our Antarctic base camp situated just 200 miles from the South Pole.
I am 41, having only taken up running seriously 4 years ago and now I have the bug big time. My training is extensive so I need lots of energy therefore I’m eating plenty. I'm not religious about diet but I do try to eat plenty of carbs before a long run and to help with recovery lots of good protein afterwards. I also supplement this with a protein shake, which I take four times every day.
Over the next 14 weeks, up until mid of October, I will doing 10 mile runs from 3-4 times a week with a long distance at the weekend and aiming to cover at least 60 miles per week but running slower. As a runner I normally aim to beat my best time but with this particular event, time is almost immaterial as the task is just to finish and it's all about endurance; running slower for much longer! I normally run a marathon in around 3 and a half hours but, weather permitting, the Ice Marathon will need between five and six hours.
I will also fit in quite a lot of trail running and beach training because apparently running on a beach is quite similar to running on snow so this should help me get used to the conditions I might expect on the Ice Marathon itself. I'm pretty excited already not least because I am booked into attend a training sessions at the environment chamber at Loughborough University - where minus 25 degree conditions can be created complete with extreme and wind conditions. The session will involve running on a treadmill for 2 and a half hours. I hope my product sponsor, Odlo's thermal layers, hold up!!
Check out footage of me in the environment chamber at Loughborough University:
