42. The One With All The Preparation

30 September 2015

I'm not actually running today - I did a stretch session from YouTube this morning.  However I took the day off work so that I could get all my stuff together, do any last minute shopping, clean my house etc (can you imagine coming back from an eight hour drive after three days of running to have to clean the house?!).  It was actually so nice to have a sleep in this morning because Susan, Julia and I went to Bobo Social last night in Noho - OMG it was AMAZING.  Obviously, since I'm carb-loading, I investigated the peanut butter burger.  All in the name of nutrition you understand ... from now on I shall be demanding peanut butter on all my burgers.  That is all.

So, you know how running is this minimalist sport right, where you just need a pair of trainers and you can head out the door and be on your way?  So I really shouldn't need that much stuff right?  Ummm ... well, so far I've filled my entire suitcase and I haven't even packed my running shorts yet because they're in the wash.  I have an entire bag full of food and water on the side of my suitcase, plus my duvet and pillows separately again (I could bring a sleeping bag I know, but it's not any more hassle to take the duvet and a lot more comfortable ... and comfort is soooo where it's at right now).  I have been to multisport events with considerably less STUFF!

Most of my stuff is of course for recovery - I have compression tights galore, plus warm clothes and my Ugg boots for maximum comfort each night.  On top of that I've got way, way, way too much emollient cream for aches and pains ... we're talking tiger balm, Neal's Yard warming balm, voltarol gel (for real injuries rather than aches), Deep Heat and Deep Freeze as well as the only one I'll actually use - AntiFlamme!  AntiFlamme is uhMAZing ... it's called Nature's Kiss over here for some reason which I will never understand (Nature's Kiss FFS) but to those in the know it's always AntiFlamme.  The NZ rugby team uses it, so not only do you have the most soothing, sweet-smelling, non-greasy, relieving emollient in the entire world, you're one step removed from this guy.  Need I say more?  Then there's panadol, neurofen, blister plasters, kinesio tape, band-aids ... who knows what I'll need?!  Then obviously God forbid I should go anywhere without an entire Currys PCWorld contained within my suitcase, so we're talking laptop, iPad, iPhone, Garmin, chargers ... more chargers ... I've also got my swimsuit in there because the holiday park has an indoor pool.  Obviously, the first thing I'm going to want to do after running at least a marathon each day is jump in the pool for a nice hard swimset.  Who wouldn't right?  I might take my bike too, what if I fancy a good bike ride as well?

The rest of my case is filled with compulsory STUFF.  Obviously, trainers are high on that list, plus three long-sleeve running shirts and three short-sleeve running vests, running socks, sports bras, my hydration pack, the compulsory safety stuff we have to carry (which includes warm waterproof clothes plus torch, compass and whistle which is a bit worrying, but also includes a chocolate bar so I think overall it's okay).


Basically, I'm pretty much prepared for WWIII so I think I should be good for almost eventuality.  I'll still have forgotten something essential like my toothbrush though ...

The one other piece of essential kit is the two gorgeous cards I received yesterday - one from Debbie (all the way from San Francisco!) and one which was hand delivered to work, along with magnesium flakes (ahhhhh so perfect) and emergency chocolate (for emergencies including ultramarathon).  I love that!  So lucky to have my friends!  I'll be taking them with me and also pics of them to get me through the bad times.  And also a mental image of the tiny potato.  Naturally.

Now that I feel like I'm 99% sorted, I'm off out to visit one of my tri-buddies who's got a new upgraded foot - she's been struggling with injury for well over a year and she's finally had an operation to sort it.  So my other tri-bud Susan (aka Ride Across Britain Susan) and I are going to visit, armed with chocolate and the new DangerMouse on iPlayer.  Good times!