Taking runners right to the edge
Last week I was humbled to be invited back for a second year to lead a group of runners at Ian Corless’s Multi-day Training Camp in Lanzarote.
My role was to lead the slower running group and provide motivation.
Over the course of the camp we ran/walked around 100 miles in all terrains, from soft, sandy beaches to steep, rocky scrambles up the sides of multiple extinct volcanoes, which were both lung busting and breathtaking when we eventually hit the summits.
Some people in my group found it relatively straightforward but others really struggled at first. But as the week went on it was so pleasing to see people’s confidence growing, along with their stamina to keep going.
For me it was win, win, win all the way as not only did I get the chance to help others with their running, I also increased health awareness, injected the ability to dream about the future, and improved my own fitness, all in the company of amazingly positive and genuinely nice people.
What makes this training camp so special for runners of all abilities, however, is the blend of coaches. The team had international racewinning runners, strong runners, average runners, and, of course, yours truly, as I describe myself, a completer not a competitor!
On top of the running, the guides have other skills: nutrition, strength and core, animal flow (a kind of yoga extension), physiotherapy, technical running skills (scrambling over rocks, use of running poles etc) and inspiring a “you can do it if you want it enough” attitude.
Everyone could run before they came here but everyone left a better athlete because of what we did, including the crew.
Maybe in your own life there are things you can get involved in to improve a skill or attitude? This will make what comes after a better place for you and others, so why don’t you try to find that opportunity?
I increased health awareness, improving my own fitness too