Category: News

medium hard day. A good aerobic session to get some circulation plus sprints and weighs. Just a nice mix to keep the muscles going. I really do not have to worry about the lungs the days before I go up there….believe me, I will get plenty of time to test them in La Paz :))

I am also working on all kinds of small injuries before I leave. It is very important to be injury free (or close to) before going to such a place as Bolivia. You have very little chance to get rid of injuries there. So I got some acupuncture (works REALLY well for running related injuries) today and will get som more this Wednesday. That should make me fit and ready to go 🙂

So all well from here,
Marius

some training on cinder roads again, and it feels great on the legs.

I did a long anaerobic treshold session today, much longer then what I usually do. It was inspiring to run in the sun, 6 degrees C and perfect running conditions in the forest close to where I live. You just feel more fresh, you relax more in your running and can do more repetitions. And I will need all the training I can get now, because in La Paz……well…..it is about one meter of water in the main street “Prado” (!) and I am going there soon 🙂 Saw it on the news the other day. It is the end of the rain season. It looked really bad. I have been there when it rains before and it RAINS. And with the fog, you can hardly see a meter in front of you. And there is in no possible, physical way possible to go running…

In our original plan we thought about going there at the end of February (right now), but we delayed it a bit. So we will go early in March instead. I am really glad, I do not like watersports… I hope it will be better when we arrive, and it should. Frank is checking with La Paz right now, to see if things are improving.

Marius

treadmill on longer intervalls. I have more power in my legs this year, and am able to glide and “bounce” even at high speeds. I used to be a 800 meter runner, but when training for the 5000 meters some of the positive adaptions you can as a 800 meter runner has been lost. Alot of mileage and long anaerobic treshold work is not ideal for power and speed endurance. But now it is on the way back, and I am really looking forward to bringing this element into my racing shape this summer.

The results on the treadmill today shows that I have improved well over the winter. I have adjusted the training this year slightly. More quality and easier on the recovery days. And longer quality sessions also. The total comes out to be quite a bit more then last year, but still I keep tight to my principles of training.

We have had great weather here recently, so perfect running conditions. Last year I had trouble keeping the mileage high in between altitude stays due to snow and ice. But this time it has been fine.

Marius

and ice once again, so it fits the schedule perfect with the easy sessions now. Yesterday I did a treadmill run at the Toppidrettssenter (Top Athletics Center) and just floated for a bit over half an hour. Frank was there, just to monitor that I was running easy enough. And no problem, I was almost too tired to even get started 🙂 With low to moderate lactate acid levels, those sessions are made just to keep you in shape through the easy week.

Now I will spend the rest of the week sleeping, resting and running smoothly. And from Monday on, it is full training again.

Marius

with blue sky, sun and 7 degrees C. Very rare in the beginning of February here in Norway. And the running paths were clear of ice and snow, also very rare. I really hope it will keep like this until I leave for Bolivia in a month. If I can keep my condition until then, I will get a great float in my training.

The post altitude tests show that I am better this year compared to last year. You never know what will happen from now on, but I feel in control of the training. Last year, I had a groin muscle injury bothering me alot since the middle of February. So much that I could not do all the training I wanted. I have to avoid all sprint work, weights and the very long anaerobic treshold sessions. This year I am healthy (with just some minor things bothering me) and that makes me feel very strong.

Marius

smooth. It was one of those days where your body is not with you. For the first time in three weeks I could really feel all the hard and heavy training. I will see on the next quality session if it is now time for some easy days. I always allow myself two quality sessions to evaluate training stress. You can always have a bad day, but two bad ones in a row should tell you that it is time to do some real recovery work.

We have also started planning our next altitude stay. It will probably be sometime in March. We are now timing everything specific for the season and counting days back from Bislett Games and the European Championships, the two main events of the summer. It is important to do this planning as early as possible to get the maximum out of the preparations.

Marius

difficult running conditions. So I have had to run all my long distance runs around on the soccer field and the quality work on treadmills. Not too motivational, but you still get the work done.

Tomorrow is a long, hard day and I will pack my training bag to be away from 10am until 9.30 pm. You just train, train and train. But if you start the week like that, the rest feels easy 🙂

I have received some quite interesting emails from Peter Coe recently. 82 years old (father of Seb Coe), but still going very strong and contributing to my running. He knows Frank from meeting him in Oslo last year and a couple of talks on the phone. They are very much on the same page. So he helps me with specific workouts and general ideas. Then we put it into our system of training. Works really good. His standards are nothing but H I G H. No matter what you do, you can always do it better 🙂 I think he has been really, really satisfied with my performance two times : my 13.11 in Rome two years ago (big personal record – and he had calculated I could do 13.10-12..) and the 9th at the World Champs (where he calculated that below 13.20 would be top 10 in a normal race based on the prelims…I did 13.22 🙂 ) To have such a man helping you means that you will always stay sharp and never rest physically or mentally.

Marius

long runs around in circles at the surface-heated soccer field up here. And the quality runs at the treadmill.

I feel fine in my legs and have lifted myself in terms of running shape. Will be fun to see how training goes in the next days, and in a week or two. That is when the real effect hits you and it just feels great to be a runner 🙂

So not much new from here – just adjusting back to home.

Marius

(rest !) and some easy days back in Norway. I have heared from home that it has been snowing lately, so I am mentally adjusting to it 🙂

We did a great training session on the Moi University track Thursday, knocking off hard repeats. With a very FAST end to it….shows that I am getting in shape.

If we sum up the training stay here in numbers, it includes 2-4 training sessions daily, 3 hours of wait for the food in the restaurant daily, 180 dry toasts with butter, 32 breasts of chicken steak, 10 hours of sleep each night….and another two in the sun by the pool during the day, 16 days with sun, one rainy evening, 2200 meters altitude, 204 times hearing “How are you mzungo” (white man) – 4 times each run 3 times daily for 17 days… and finally 25 dead mosquitos on the wall 🙂

So all in all a great training stay down here !

Marius

qualities you have as a runner. So I am preparing for it. We will have to run it very early in the morning because of the hot weather we have had recently.

Today we did a long sub-hard session on the mud roads. On parts of it we were joined by Julius Korir, a 43 year old athlete of Frank who did 61 in the half marathon age 39. With the shape he is in now I believe he could do from 2.10 to 2.15 in the marathon. He was a great athlete in the beginning of the 1990s winning several of the major 5000 meter Grand Prix races beating runners like Khalid Skah. Even though he is old now, the running conditions (prevents injury), altitude and climate up here makes it possible for him to continue his career…almost twice my age :))

We have had a relaxing day today between the sessions. Just spent the time at the beautiful colonial style outside restaurant of the hotel we are staying at. Those days makes you want to stay here forever….

All well from Eldoret,
Marius