RUNNING
Words: Gavin Grobbelaar ǀ Photos: Various photographers
Trail running is tough, rugged, and it hurts. The way it should be. If it wasn’t meant to be like that, it would be on tar.
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that’s why it’s tough
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There's no denying that road running is tough, however, when you arrive at a trail race and find yourself clambering over rocks, rock faces, down technical descents, and through razor-sharp bushes, you know the event will make short work of separating the men from the boys and the women from the girls. Trail running is definitely a sport for athletes looking for something tough to do, which tests their strength, resolve, and endurance, all while enjoying the great outdoors.
Many races are tougher than others, but there are races that cater for all levels. So when entering, make sure you know what you are in for and trust me, a tough trail run will not kill you. When you are on the trail and it gets harder and harder to put one foot in front of the other, and thoughts that you can't do this start to cloud your mind, just remember that you are not alone. There are many others on the route that are also thinking, "Jeepers, this is insane, this is tough, why am I doing this to myself?” But as you push on and finally cross that finish line, you will feel incredibly proud of yourself for persevering until the bitter end. And once the adrenaline has worn off, you'll think to yourself, "Hey, I got through that and it wasn’t so bad, it was actually a great test of what I am capable of. I bet I could do that again in a few weeks and improve my time." The mind will quit up to 1,000 times before the body quits once! Tip: If you participate in an event that is too tough for you, don't complain about it to anyone and everyone who will listen. It’s supposed to be tough and the race director has specially created and marked the course so that it's a challenge. Rather start training for the rough stuff earlier, or find something that is more suited to your level of enjoyment.
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Susan Sloan in action. Photo credit: Ocker Odendaal
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Preparation tips
Here are some tips to help you prepare for a trail race: • When preparing for a race, try and get hold of the elevation gain. This will give you an indication of how tough the climbs will be. For example, if there is 600 m to 750 m of total elevation gain in a 20 km race, in South Africa, it's going to be tough because there are sheer ascents in a short distance. This means it has steep climbs and almost definitely steep, thigh-busting descents. • Look at the winning time of the previous events results to see how long it took for the leaders to finish and compare that min/km pace to what you are capable of. • Check out the area that the race is being held in to establish the type of terrain and how technical it will be. • If all of this information is not available on the race website for any number of reasons, you are more than entitled to contact the race organiser and they will, in most cases, assist with a description of the route. • Knowing what you are in for, so you can best prepare, is not always possible due to accessing private properties and gaining permission to use the land. So the next best thing you can do is train in the area the race is being held. • Always establish whether you require permission to gain access to the land you will be training on and ask for permission. Don't annoy the landowners and make it difficult for the other runners and race organiser to gain permission and access to that land in future.
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Training and nutrition tips The following tips will assist with your overall well-being in the build up to a race: • Adapt your training and racing goals to suit the season and type of race you want to enter. When setting your training programme, make sure that it is achievable and fits in with your daily schedule - life still has to go on. • Set yourself a goal. For example, do you want to finish the race in a certain time, or just finish the race. • Eat well, but the right stuff. • Get lots of rest. • Listen to your body. • Remember why you are doing the race - we run ultimately for fun and to feed our souls. If you’ve prepared well, rested well, and eaten well, then you’ll be sure to get the maximum amount of enjoyment out of your next trail run. •
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