This weekend we went on a brief 4-day trip to Finland to visit Nat’s friend Anna-Liisa. We arrived in Helsinki and it was -15 deg C with severe wind-chill on top… I decided straight away that there would be no outdoor running on this trip!
On Friday we drove to Anna-Lissa’s family summer house in a small town called Jamijarvi. The house was set next to a beautiful (frozen) lake out in the countryside. We spent the weekend doing all sorts of exhausting outdoor activities… cross-country skiing, downhill skiing, running up slopes and tobogganing down them! After the cross-country skiing in particular, I ached as much as I had after my entire first week of running… I decided that it was excellent cross-training as I had worked muscles all-over my body that I didn’t even know I had!
After a hard day’s exercise, I found that a good Finnish Sauna was even better than a Jacuzzi for soothing aching limbs. In the evenings we watched the Winter Olympics… I got right behind the Finnish Ice Hockey team who beat the Czech Rep and Canada… a good weekend to be an honorary Finland supporter!
It’s amazing how invigorating a brief break from routine is. I have returned to England full of energy and ready to take marathon training to a whole new level! At last I also have a reason to watch the Winter Olympics… com’on Finland!
Today I woke up early and did my Hyde Park perimeter run. It was the first run I have done with my new ipod nano which I got duty free at the airport. It was weird not being able to hear my feet pounding on the ground. I can’t quite decide if I prefer running with or without acoustic entertainment… more testing is necessary!
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