Running in late 20s

Just a quick note on Cappadocia ultra trail. For the first time ever I had to drop out of a race. That happened at 77th km due to severe pain in shin area and dropping the body tempreature and shivering. DNF ( stands for Did Not Finish) really hurts. There are lessons to be learned and I'm going to write a detailed post on this one. 

Heading to Turkey in a few days to run the Cappadocia Ultra Trail on Saturday. A 110-km trail race with 3300 metres of elevation gain. This race is a bit different from my last ultras. It is the longest distance I've ever run, but there is not a massive climb and the elevation gain is significantly less compared to the previous ultras. After the Eiger and the Irontrail, I had a few weeks of almost no training. I started to train for this race in mid August. Had a few long runs and also did a bit of strength training at the gym. I am now tapering and getting ready for the challenge. I might not be in my best shape, but my mind is set. Whatever happens, I'm going to give it my best this Saturday. Training near Tochal summit, my favourite place.  The race elevation profile For my everyday training photos check out my instagram profile: mamad_m and the hashtag #runninginlate20s Stay tuned

This is a long-awaited race report. This delay was due to a few reasons - or better said excuses - I hope that I can provide as much details as I can after a couple of months.  Last August I went to Davos once again to run another ultramarathon. Davos is where I ran my first marathon (Swissalpine C42, July 2012) and my first ultra (Swissalpine K78, July 2013). And this time I was heading there to run the Swiss Irontrail T81 and get qualified for the UTMB. UTMB stands for The North Face Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc, An ultra trail that perhaps everyone who is into ultra running wants to run it.  It is 168 km with 10,000 metres of elevation gain. In order to attend the race, you need to collect 8 qualifying points by completing a number of ultra races. Each race gives you between 1 to 4 qualifying points depending on length and elevation gain. You need to get your 8 points in maximum of 3 races.   There are five different race distances to choose from...

The race report comes in a few days. Just a quick note to let you know I crossed the finish line in 19 hours 34 minutes.

This Friday I'll be running the Swiss Irontrail T81 . 88 km  run with 5000 metres of elevation gain four weeks after the Eiger Ultra Trail. After the Eiger trail, I spent a few days recovering. I was suffering from shin splints for the first time since I started running. When the pain faded away, I went for a 15k run and the day after my shins were sore again. So I had a couple of weeks of recovery and only went for a couple of easy runs. After a few physiotherapy session, my leg is now pain free and I cannot wait to face the next challenge. It's not gonna be easy, but I will give all I've got to finish this race and get enough qualifying points for the UTMB 2015. Stay tuned

I just cannot wait for this. Swiss Irontrail T81: 88.1 km, 5010m elevation gain.

"Run if you can, walk if you have to, crawl if you must. Just never give up" Dean Karnazas Last Saturday and Sunday I ran the Eiger Ultra Trail, a 101 km ultramarathon with more than 6700 metres of elevation gain. I arrived in Grindelwald on Thursday and went to collect my bib number on Friday morning. The race organisation was quite good for a race in this size. There was a strict equipment check at the bib number distribution which I appreciated during the race. They asked every runner to bring all the mandatory gear listed on the website in order to collect the bibs. Apart from the bib numbers we were handed out a plastic cup in order not to use many disposable cups along the way. There was also a reflective band which we had to wear after 9:30 pm. The mandatory gear that should be carried along the way Weighs around 4kg (including 1.5L of water) Pasta was served from 12 to 7 pm and there was a briefing session on Friday evening at congress centre which ev...