This week I’ve been giving quite a lot of thought to the types of training sessions I will need to start doing.  Interval training such as one mile reps will need to feature. For this I need to decide on my target time.  I have been thinking that three and a half hours is a good starting point, and if I manage anything quicker then it will be a bonus.  The idea is that you run one mile faster than your expected pace, and then alternate it with a mile that is slower than your expected pace.  This is also a good tactic if you are feeling tired in a race and you want to break it up a little.   Obviously to start with I will be running a minute fast, alternated with a slow minute, but as I get fitter and further into the training programme the time intervals will get longer.  I will also need to add in strength sessions.  These will include exercises such as squats and dead lifts, as well as lots of core and upper body work.  Strength is important in long distance running to help improve stamina, however it is the one part of a training plan many athletes will miss out.

This week I get to start counting down in single figures until my expected due date!  It also means that I am finding everyday tasks hard, especially with the current heat. I’ve given quite a lot of thought to the training plan I will need to follow over the next year for when I return to running.  I also realise I can’t start this until the new year but it is good to have something to think about whist I am far from my normal active self.  It is important not to take on too much too soon and it will involve a very slow build-up of mileage.  It is recommended that when you start your training plan, you are not to increase mileage by more than 10% a week to help avoid overuse injuries.  It is also important to develop the speed element of running before stamina.  This means that from the beginning of my training plan I must include interval training sessions as well as strength sessions before I can contemplate increasing millage to any distance that will help with marathon running.

This week I’ve tried to walk most days but I can really feel myself slowing down.  Even working has started to become tiring.  Tiredness effects us all eventually at different times, I can’t remember being this tired with my daughter, but I am assured I was.  I am also assured that I am trying to do much more this time around!  Many ladies suffer from pubic symphysis disorder (SPD) during their pregnancies.  I’ve been lucky so far with both of mine not to have suffered with this (touch wood).  It is a painful condition affecting the pelvic area which can be at the front of the pelvis or the rear, or both if you are really unlucky!  As the pregnancy progresses, hormones that help with the birthing process relax of the smooth muscle and ligamentous tissue in the body, allowing the pelvic girdle to widen to allow the baby to pass through at birth.  However this can cause a great deal of discomfort in the lead up to the birth, and in the worst cases it can leave the mother immobile and in a lot of pain, making it hard to carry out the simplest of tasks such as walking.  There are many different techniques we as therapists can do to help with these issues.  Mobilisations to the back and sacrum can help. Simple stretching can also help take the strain out of the adductors to reduce the pain at the front of the pubic bone.  We can also apply various tapping techniques with k-tape or rock tape to help lift the bump, which are much more comfortable that the belts provided by the NHS.  We can also provide you with the correct and gentile exercises to help with this terrible condition. I’ve got my staff on standby but hopefully I won’t need them for this!

This week I was devastated to find out that my daily two mile walk was actually only 1.75 miles. And as it takes me 45 minutes at the moment, I am starting to think it’s almost better for the dogs to run around in the garden as they would get more exercise! That aside, it’s better than sitting on the sofa.  Plus it’s helping with my restless leg syndrome that many pregnant women get.

I also encountered the “strangers walking up to you and touching the bump syndrome”! For those of you who have been there, you know what I am talking about. For those of you who haven’t, let me explain. It’s when a total stranger walks up to you, touches your bump and then comments of your size. This isn’t always welcome, and as most pregnant women know, you feel insecure, highly emotional, and probably slightly neurotic! So total strangers walking up to you, touching you, then commenting on how big you are, isn’t the best feeling. I’m hoping the grumpy phase passes soon…….