Proprioception Drills for Hill Runners

written By Mariam Kilpatrick - Physiotherapist and Ultra-runner

Trail and hill running as a sport is demanding on our bodies. Common injuries are often as a result of overloading an area of the body not able to meet the demands placed on it, particularly as running is a repetitive, high-impact activity. Here are four of our favourite exercises to help improve strength, proprioception and build fatigue resistance to improve your running economy.

1. STEP UP

What you will need…

• A Bench or box that is knee height.

Technique Tips

• Try NOT to push through your back leg.

• Step up with the weight primarily on your heel.

• Maintain a knee window i.e. knees on either side of your midline.

Perform 8-12 reps each leg, aim to perform 5-6 sets with a max of 30s rest between each one.

2. SINGLE LEG BALANCE

What you will need…

• An unstable surface to balance on i.e. a bosu ball, wobble board or cushion.

Technique Tips

While balancing on one leg try;

• Writing the letters of the alphabet with the other.

• To draw a clock face.

• Closing your eyes.

Perform 1 minute each leg, aim to perform 2-3 sets with a max of 30s between each one.

3. POLEQUIN STEP UP

What you will need…

• A slant/decline board OR

• A small block placed beneath your heel to elevate it, while standing on a step. This puts your foot into a decline position.

Technique Tips

• Keep your weight on the block.

• Lightly tap your other heel to the floor.

• Maintain a knee window i.e. knees on either side of your midline.

Perform 8-12 reps each leg, aim to perform 5-6 sets with a max of 30s rest between each one.

4. TRAMPETTE BALANCE

What you will need…

• A trampette

  OR

• Your child’s back yard trampoline.

Technique Tips

• Aim to land on the same spot, don’t bounce all over the place.

• Don’t let you knee fold inwards.

Spend a minute on each leg, aim to work 5-6 sets or work to fatigue.

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The Glasgow Running Clinic

If you’d like to improve your running technique or are keen to prevent or return from injury, Physio Effect offer a bespoke running analysis service to get you operating at peak performance. Call our reception team on 0141 230 4766 to find out more and schedule your appointment.

A Winter Walloping of the West Highland Way

On 18th December 2021 one of our owners and Sports Physiotherapist Jonny Kilpatrick ran the West Highland Way , in a day, North to South on the weekend closest to the winter solstice. Here is his account of it.

“I’m thinking of running the West Highland Way from North to South on the weekend closest to the winter solstice this year Mariam”, I said to my wife in August. A brief pause and “Okay, that sounds a good challenge” came back at me, which completely sums up how well supported I am by Mariam and my daughter Aria to do the hobbies I love.

This certainly hadn’t been something I’d ever really thought about but the seed got planted after watching Mariam pull off an epic effort herself running the West Highland Way in June. After 2 years of staying fit and being disappointed the pandemic had cancelled the race twice for her she did the route independently and pulled off one of the most nail biting and gritty finishes I’ve ever seen to finish 2 minutes inside her target of Sub-24 hours. It was brilliant and I think everyone who was involved, including myself left that day feeling quite inspired! When I feel inspired, I need to do something about it!

I’ve ran the West Highland Way as part of the race in June 2018 so I knew the route really well and have since developed as a runner so I felt a more ambitious goal of trying to beat my previous time of 20 hours and 46 minutes but in winter with the least daylight hours possible was achievable. That would work out to be a whole 7 hours daylight to use as well as the total unknown of how severe or relatively kind the weather would be. I’d also had a really disrupted year of running with an injury to the Meniscus in my right knee earlier in year leaving me with a lack of mileage this year but a massive motivation to pull something out late in the year and feel like I still achieved in my running during 2021.

So we have the Why of this challenge, now for the How!

I found myself more motivated than I’ve ever been in planning for this, maybe appreciating I could run again after the knee or just the way the world has generally been this last 2 years in the pandemic where my work as an owner in a Sports Physio Clinic has really took over a little more of my time than I’d ever wanted. Whatever it was, I hit my training like never before with an intensity and goal that I wouldn’t be compromising on. Incidentally, and some may laugh; this was the first time since I began running back in 2017 that I actually thought about myself as a runner and that doing well in it would be important to me. Previously with the many races I’ve done in the last few years Including some fairly chunky ones such as the Lakeland 100 in 2019 or the triple crown of West Highland Way races in 2018 I was really just approaching it as a big challenge and trying not to F**k it. I even found myself brave enough this training cycle to run in leggings minus the over shorts, although numerous corners of my social circle have not so subtly suggested I don’t!

I dredged up my old WHW plans by Neil MacNicol of RunRecover from 2018 and decided I’d just be doing a 12 week block of that with some additional rehab type strengthening a few times a week for my duff knee. I’d been training myself for a year or so prior to this and I’d forgot just how good Neil’s plans were with the variety and intensity. In hindsight on my own, I had fallen into a habit of making training harder and more grinding in terms of the terrain, but this was definitely not going to help on this challenge and I’m not sure it’s done that much to progress my running in the last year or two.

Training went brilliantly and I knew by 6 weeks into the block that I was on course to be in the best shape of my life, if not already in it. I even did all my rehab and didn’t adjust the plan whatsoever which resulted in not one single training niggle except for the right knee which I was happy to deal with myself through a regular battery of dry needling, massage and strengthening.  In the planning of this I’d also decided that I really wanted to enjoy the whole day and opted against going totally unsupported as I know some people do on these efforts. Instead, I arranged a hit squad of local Scottish runners I’m friendly with all of whom I consider to be better runners than myself to accompany me on various sections and just keep me engaged with it all. The respect I had for each of these runners I was sure would completely prevent me showing myself up with any melodrama on the day and just keep that mental pressure on me for the target I’d told them all I wanted to achieve. You can’t hit a target you can’t see, right? I provided them all a 20 hour schedule to make sure they would all keep me moving to it.

Finally on preparation, I can’t thank Mariam enough for shelving her own big training runs and time on the trail on the weekends to facilitate mine. We’ve realised in the last year or thereabouts that with Aria being 4.5 years old it’s just not right to have both of us attempting big runs at the same times in the year.

So how’d it go?

I’m really pleased to report that I managed to beat my target time by 21 minutes and finished in Milngavie in 20 hours 25 minutes and 59 secs. The Kilpatrick’s do like the dramatic sprint (hobble) finish and on the day for some reason I’d convinced myself I was chasing a finish time of 0128 making for a nerve wracking last few miles! Not the first time my glycogen depleted brain on these long runs has let me down in the old maths department. The run actually went really well and I thoroughly enjoyed myself throughout it with great company and stunning winter weather. I’m told this is could be a Fastest Known Time in Winter for a supported West Highland Way effort North to South. That remains to be seen but if it is then that’s a nice bonus and certainly sets an achievable target for people to have a crack at next year!

If you’re still with me at this stage what follows is my blow by blow account of the effort and of course loads of profound insights into what went well and what should have went a little better.

Saturday 18th December 2021

Sore Feet Statue Fort William just before starting

It’s 0459 and I find myself at the Sore Feet Statue that marks the end of the West Highland Way in Fort William about to start what should be about 20 hours of running back home to Glasgow. As you’d expect it’s dark, it’s cold and I’m unsurprisingly the only person on the street. Certainly this is the most low key start to any race I’ve ever done but that was because of the antisocial hours I’d decided to attempt and finish this in based upon maximising my daylight hours on the fast more runnable sections. I’d set a schedule for my supporting crew that would have me through Kinlochleven at 0810 and over to Kingshouse by 1000. Of course everything got a little exciting at the start of this and I’d had far too much caffeine and I ended up in Kinlochleven at 0740 and Kingshouse at 0930. Mariam was a little panicked at my message coming through Kinlochleven as her and Aria were still in bed at the hotel in Fort William. The section went really well to be honest and I think I’d probably overestimated the time needed. I had an initial panic for the first mile running down the street trying to get my headtorch which had been fine in the hotel to actually turn on. Not sure how I did it, but I’d activated the lock button which I was able to suss out with a trusty google search while running, nothing like a drama to settle you into the thing. I decided I would just run the entire hill up from Glen Nevis as it’s pretty flat all along the top and it looked foggy up there so I wanted a little time in the bank. Foggy was an understatement, I’m not sure I could see more than about 1 m in front of the wall of mist and light from my headtorch the whole way over to the Kinlochleven Descent. This strangely I think worked to my favour as I just ran to feel with what was immediately in front of me on fresh legs and I made great progress. It also kept me totally unaware of the creepy sheep and deer eyes that were no doubt planning to scare the crap out of me.

Coming up the long 4 mile hill from Kinlochleven I did show much more restraint and walked the bits that needed it while eating a ton and listening to some angry people in my ears asking me how much I wanted this and telling me not to be a pussy and such! As planned, daylight was in about half way up the climb and the sunrise was just stunning and totally reminded me to take it all in as well. The descent down the Devil‘s Staircase flowed well and I didn’t feel like I sustained any real damage to my quads or sore knee. I just love this bit of the route too as the Buachialle has such a special place in my heart having left some of my Uncle Raymond’s remains at the top and purposely made it Aria’s first Munro, carrying her up there at 5 months of age. Towards the bottom of the staircase, I came across Lorne and his partner Lorraine taking pictures so of course I popped out some completely unreflectively fast descending just to give Lorne a wee panic about supporting me for the next 31 miles from Kingshouse down to Beinglas. Not sure how wise that was 20 miles later when I was chasing Lorne without him ever looking back!

Coming up the path from Kinlochleven as light starts to turn

Beautiful sunrise looking back down to Kinlochleven

Buachialle Etive Mor taking some early morning light

My girls waiting at Kingshouse

A quick checkpoint at Kingshouse where it was lovely to see Mariam and Aria’s smiles and support, then Lorne and I headed off towards Glencoe. He kept running and I kept following thinking the whole way up the hill towards the Rannoch Moor from the Ski centre if I would have actually ran all this on my own. I concluded I probably would and I did say to him to drag me through the hours of daylight down to Beinglas in good time to get a little of the Lochside in during the last light. Lorne actually was brilliant company having done the first 22 miles myself and we made great time over the moor with lovely winterised sunkissed hills to our right and eventually the big hills at Orchy in front. What else would you rather be doing with a Saturday morning in winter Jonny? It was fairly cold but with the temperature inversion it was noticeable that the valleys were the coldest and we warmed the higher we went. Not a lick of wind or rain forecast would be a major factor on my side today.

Another quick pitstop with the girls out the front of the Inveroran Hotel and we were off up Jelly Baby Hill en route to Bridge of Orchy. My legs were still working great on the climb and descent and I was taking in calories and caffeine no problem. Through Orchy and on our way up to Tyndrum was the first time I actually started to feel a little fatigue creeping into the legs on the uphills, nothing major but I did think I’ll need to be sensible with walking the appropriate inclines and not toughing them out. The views on this section are some of my favourite from the whole route, it’s just a wide open valley with really steeply rising mountains everywhere. It’s well surfaced and not a chore at all to run through even when tiring.

Tyndrum was Baltic when we reached it! I was supposed to eat something more substantial here but opted to get going with just a banana which wasn’t the wisest idea. I’d already slowed up with eating my solid foods because they were all slightly frozen and much more effort than usual to get chewed and swallowed. This would come back to bite me but I felt okay even though I’d deviated from my food plan! I was starting to feel the pace a little with the cumulative mileage so I opted to get the headphones in again and have those rather angry chaps “motivate me”. This did make an immediate difference though and I felt I was able to keep a much better pace behind Lorne through the Crainlarich Rollercoaster! Thankfully the medieval fortress of fallen spruce trees from the storm a few weeks prior had been cut up as it had took Lorne and I a good 5-10 minutes to get through on a training run and it had been in my head how little I was looking forward to being scratched and spiked from every angle climbing through them. As I’d pretty much been reverted to powder and gels for food due to the cold I started to really get some stomach and gut bloating across this section which was hard to keep running our pace through. I knew though there was a proper toilet block at Beinglas so it was just about getting there and I could take a slightly longer check point as I’d been quick through them until now.

Chasing after Lorne towards Crainlarich on a brilliant winters afternoon

We arrived at Beinglas Farm 25 minutes up on the 20 hour schedule I’d given my support crew. Unfortunately I think I took 20 minutes of this at the check point between trying to eat, change clothing/shoes and use the facilities. At this point Mark and Stu rotated into the supporting roles and Lorne bowed out with a job well done. The Lochside was certainly one of the crux points in the planning of this effort. It always is though due to the treacherously slippy and undulating terrain of rocks and roots, with Scotland’s largest Loch ready to swallow you right up with any falls. Hitting it at 55 miles in where you’ve pushed the pace to get ahead of time for the second longer darkness was definitely going to make a difference too. The longer checkpoint had made a positive difference and I was running well to begin the section and thankfully my stomach and guts were being kinder. Unfortunately this was short lived as I just didn’t stomach solids well at all from here and survived really on the odd glass of flat coke, nibble of tablet or a muller rice. I found myself deflecting the efforts of Stu and Mark to suggest I should eat because everytime I drank or ate my stomach was just terrible for the next half hour. Another thing that was immediately apparent was that I shouldn’t have changed my shoes out from the Hoka Speedgoat to the much less protected but more nimble Hoka Torrent. The Speedgoat had been like a bulldozer down the WHW so far with all of its plush cushioning, the torrent though I could feel every tiny rock through and I think the slower speed we were going compared to training would totally have accommodated the lack of grip and dexterity of the speedgoat along the lochside.

We were actually making steady progress across the Lochside and I really enjoyed getting a catch up with both Mark and Stu at various bits. Probably so much so that my lack of attention to the trail had me at one stage trip on a root and go down like a trap door, face first into a rock on the ground with no efforts from my arms to help. Luckily cheek bone still intact with a graze and bruise but eyes seeing straight and I was confident I’d swerved an effort ending accident and we could batter on. Once off the much more treacherous and slow ground north of Inversnaid we made some great progress right across onto the low road where I think my lack of training on this bit recently really played on my mind as with the very poor visibility in dark and fog it felt much longer than the 2 miles or so it should be and I was constantly convincing myself the climb up to the forestry was upon us, but wasn’t! The weird thing about running in dark and fog is just how disorientating it can be in terms of what type of gradient you’re actually on. I know the section from the low road to Rowardennan like the back of my hand but it felt like we just couldn’t be on the right path as it looked to be constantly going uphill even though it is clearly downhill. Thankfully I knew we had no where else we could have went wrong so just continued at a decent trot until we saw Neil MacNicol’s headtorch in the distance at the toilet block at Rowardennan at 1900 (14 hours in). Rodger had taken over car duties and I knew it would be good having his experience to draw upon if I needed it for the coming sections.

The next section between Rowardennan and Balmaha was one I was determined not to lose too much time on as it’s a complete rollercoaster of short hills and sections of runnable trail. I’d purposely asked Neil to join here even though Stu and Mark would continue to Drymen. I have a lot of respect for Neil as  a runner and a coach and I knew his calm head and dry sense of humour would help in some darker moments to come. I opted to once again put the headphones in for this section and take an abusive bit of ‘motivation’ on board. The section actually went really well I felt, minus another belly flop that once again I came away from unscathed. We were running (or at least that what it felt like) everything that was flattish and downhill and making really steady uphill walking pace. The various landmarks of the section came and went quickly and I was surprised how quickly we were in Balmaha although for some reason the last hill up and over into Balmaha had kicked the arse clean out of me and I was feeling probably my first proper bonk of the whole effort. This wasn’t aided a whole lot when I got to Rodger’s food station at 2055 (15 hours 55mins) at the foot of Conic Hill and realised Mark and Stu had tanned all my remaining flat coke. All I could do was have a little mental chuckle at that when Rodger asked, “so what do you feel like” to which I replied “the flat coke the lads have just finished off”, he looked a little mortified but I actually found it quite funny.

Off we set up Conic with absolutely no illusions that this would be a cold, slow slog as it’s steep as f**k from the North side and I wasn’t exactly feeling like a mountain goat ready to spring up it. Headphones were taken out which I knew wouldn’t necessarily be optimal but I fancied a chat with the lads now we had a slower pace. There was an incredible temperature inversion and the cloud was so thickly banked all over Loch Lomond below us with a clear sky above. Knowing I couldn’t do a whole lot more at that moment in time than keep the legs moving up I actually quite enjoyed the odd glimpse backwards and thought there’s certainly silver linings to every situation. Not sure how much my freezing cold support runners were enjoying that stunning view by the top having to move at my pace. Over conic and I’d forgot just how trickly the upper 3rd of the southern side is on tired legs for loose rubble, thankfully no more falls.

Conic Hill with Temperature Inversion drawing clouds down low beneath us

It was good to get back onto the more runnable trails back towards Drymen as I could slowly build a little momentum with these tired legs. I’ve always found that towards the 70 mile plus mark of the ultras that you really need to get the momentum going on flatter ground as it is entirely possible to run  but the ups and downs just kill that. About 2 miles out from Drymen we spotted a head torch in the distance over by the sheep pen (well not actually) which turned out to be Ross Jack, the husband of one of my final 2 support runners Stacey who’d clearly got the FOMO and dropped the girls early so he could come get involved.

Into the Check point at the high car park in the forestry above Drymen where I was so glad to see Mariam who’d be accompanying me on the last section with Stacey. Rodger the legend, had made another trip to the small store in Drymen and was standing with a fresh bottle of flat coke and a muller rice. I managed a little flat coke and that was about it though, I just wanted to get going without feeling like I was starting the section feeling sick again. Here we said goodbye to Stu, Mark and Neil who’d all done a great job getting me through what I consider to be the crux of this effort and had left me bang on time provided I pulled out a good last section with the girls.

I wanted to run the last section with Mariam and Stacey as this was the reverse of Mariam’s effort where Ross and I ran with her over from Kinlochleven to Fort Bill. I felt if Mariam hadn’t pulled that awesome finish out of the bag and got her sub-24 there would be a high chance we could be on for a divorce after the ‘encouragement’ Ross and I had gave her. I was just going to have to suck up whatever came my way and pull up my Big Boy pants when it came to that last 2 mile section down Mugdock to emulate the tenacity and drive Mariam had shown in June. I don’t really have much to say for this section except it was a few hours of hearing Mariam shouting back from the front “come on Jay” and Stacey behind me saying “you’re doing great Jonny”, while I just tried to run, shuffle limp at something resembling a steady pace. It was nice to see Ross pop up to check if we needed anything again at the Beech Tree road crossing. I don’t think he realised in this dark fog how creepy it looked constantly popping up with a blinding head torch - just kidding Ross. I was glad to get the last big hill finished and onto the short downhill road section to Carbeth as I knew we could easily enough run it in from here. As a nice bonus I managed to get some Kendall Mint Cake in which wasn’t long on giving me a kick of energy and had me wondering why I hadn’t tried this at any stage in the previous 40 miles. As we entered Mugdock I knew the script without it needing to be said and Mariam just lifted the pace! I decided not to look at my watch but I knew it was going to be tight, I’d just do what I could and what would be, would be. We ran well for the 2 miles down to Milngavie town centre and I touched the finish at 20 hours 25 minutes and 59 secs! I’d done it and managed to beat my target time over the 96 mile route by 21 minutes; only realising this after a week of telling folk it’d beat it by 2 minutes, romantically describing my epic finish that emulated what Mariam had done 6 months earlier. I was so happy to be finished and delighted to once again be at the finish of a West Highland Way effort with Mariam and our Friends Ross and Stacey. Like the start this was very low key as it was half one in the morning but I really liked that for some reason as we’d also pretty much not seen a single person on the West Highland Way between Fort William and Milngavie which is a complete rarity.

Finish point in Milngavie with my final support runners

Content at a job well done and to be heading home to my own bed

Strava Screenshot

Final Thoughts

I appreciate this is a long blow by blow account of my effort but I hope this is helpful for other people who may be considering undertaking it in future as I only really found two other accounts that I could use as a little bit of research by Paul Giblin and Neil MacNicol. I think it’s also important for me to acknowledge that weather wise I had a great forecast which really made a long winter effort much more enjoyable. If it was windy, rainy or icy, all of which in winter may be more likely than what I got then I think this would have been a much tougher day out that I wouldn’t have had a chance of beating my old summer time on. All in all though I would say this went about as well as I could have hoped except for my nutrition but I understand you have days like this on the trail and I probably wouldn’t have changed much about the pace that was needed to get down to Beinglas to give me a good distance in the bank because I know from experience that the 70-100 mile mark the wheels always grind a little slower or come off at some point.

Having done the route both directions I would be inclined to say that I feel the profile of North to South is a little more difficult due to getting the lochside at 55 miles in and then Conic from the North on very tired legs, I guess though different tactics of not pushing so hard for the first 55 miles and I may see that differently. Running in the dark with poor visibility really slowed things down in the second darkness as it really affected my ability to commit to descents as I couldn’t see the gradient profile in front of me. This definitely smoked my quads and shin muscles more than I’ve ever experienced before and it’d be worth training slower descents in my opinion for any winter effort and strengthening the tibial muscles.

Doing it in winter has been an awesome challenge and actually a very enjoyable experience. I feel humbled that so many people gave me their time so close to Christmas and we all worked together to make this happen for me. It’s been suggested that this is a Fastest Known Time (FKT) for a winter supported effort North to South on the West Highland Way. That will be amazing if it is and I’ll be sure to log it as I feel its certainly a time a number of runners could take aim at on this iconic route. Doing these individual challenges with your friends has been awesome for both Mariam and myself this year and I would totally suggest others have a go at similar efforts rather than just stacking up race after race. It’s been great for me to relive all this a week after the effort and I’m pleased to report I’ve made a great recovery and am looking forward to running again in 2022 with a renewed enthusiasm for it.

Cape Wrath Training Blog

Who am I?
My name is Jonny Kilpatrick and I’m a 36 year old ultra runner and sports physiotherapist based in Glasgow, Scotland. 

What am I doing?

At the end of May 2020, I intend to take part in the Cape Wrath Ultra and have my journey on the race documented in the Journal by 'Proper Adventure’. The Cape Wrath Ultra is an eight day event that will take competitors and ‘journeymen’ like myself through 400km of epic trails, mountains and world class coastal scenery. It starts at the highland town of Fort William and finishes at the most North-Westerly point of the country at the Cape Wrath Lighthouse.

The Cape Wrath Ultra is now in its 3rd Edition having been run bi-annually in 2015 and 2017. It is organised by the excellent team at Ourea Events who also organise other epic events in the UK such as the Dragons Back, Lakeland 3-day and the Glencoe Skyline. Previous Cape Wrath Ultras have been truly life changing experiences for those who have participated. Even people who’ve spent considerable time in the beautiful Scottish outdoors are gobsmacked at the rugged beauty and challenge of this route.

The route starts by taking a ferry across Loch Linnhe before running west to the Glenfinnian viaduct. This is where we will get our first experience of the camp that will be set up for us each night to eat, sleep and socialise. From day 2, we will be forging a route North taking in beautiful scenery in remote areas such as: Knoydart, Wester Ross, Torridon and Assynt. The daily distances over the eight days will certainly be a challenge and are; Day 1:  37km, Day 2: 57km, Day 3: 68km, Day 4: 35km, Day 5: 44km, Day 6: 72km, Day 7: 61km and Day 8: 26km. This is before taking into account the considerable ascent and descent while pushing on through the ever changing conditions underfoot including forestry path, single track, mountain paths and then all of the trackless bogs and numerous river crossings. To really make this the complete experience we’ll also be expected to navigate the unmarked route making sure to make various check points before cut off times. Check out the Cape Wrath Ultra Website for full details. 

Why will I be doing this?

In a nutshell, I absolutely love the North West of Scotland. This route can get so remote that it will take us through areas that I’d never get the chance to visit easily with my busy life juggling a family and my business. It merges my two passions of trail running and hill walking. Having successfully competed in several challenging distance events including; completing the West Highland Way Race in 2018 and the Lakeland 100 in 2019, I’ve decided to try something totally different in the format of a multi-day event. The idea of covering these large distances each day for 8 consecutive days throws up so many unknowns and challenges for me physically, mentally and even tactically in terms of getting myself through this in one piece - while at the same time trying to enjoy the experience, which is my main priority.  I love the idea that all the participants will be in this together and we will no doubt make new friends and share experiences that will be unique to those of us running and camping each day. I’ve always enjoyed the camaraderie with other participants that you experience on the longer Ultra Marathons and I think that camping, eating and racing together for over a week will be just brilliant. I like the minimalist nature of this event and that we will all have to become very flexible, adaptable and accommodating to overcome such a challenge. This will no doubt enrich all of our lives to some extent after it. I don’t take being away from my wife and daughter for over a week lightly, but I know what I will gain from this experience will make me a better person and in turn, a better husband and father.

How do I plan on being ready?

The whole challenge seems very daunting this far out from it and I’ve been guilty of overthinking it at times. I think though that I made a real breakthrough with my mindset by travelling up North to recce section 4 in December 2019. The weather was atrocious, the terrain was hilly and challenging and the description of a large trackless section seemed like a real understatement while I was on it. In nearly 6 hours I only saw four deer and zero humans. With this in mind, I absolutely loved it and the penny really dropped for me that this ‘race’ will be much more about taking things slow and steady, looking after myself physically and mentally and just trying to enjoy being in such remote and wild places as the miles tick along. Realising this has lifted a huge internal pressure from me and I’m now really looking forward to it.

Obviously I will need to be physically in great shape to be able to complete this event and that side of my conditioning will be guided by my running coach Neil MacNicol of RunRecover who has done a fantastic job with my training in the past. I’m also fortunate that I live near the Kilpatrick Hills which will allow me to train a few times a week on a huge variety of classically challenging Scottish Terrain that I’ve found will mimic that of Cape Wrath. Ideally I plan to recce at least another 3 sections having already completed section 4 in December. If I can prevent excessive fatigue with my training and make sure I don’t develop any new injuries as well as continue to get rid of a groin niggle I’ve had for a few months I think I’ll be ready to go by the time the start line approaches. All that remains is to keep building my conditioning along with getting used to moving over a wide variety of terrain using the equipment and skills I’ve developed for this great challenge. 

I plan to write another update in April on how my training progress and share my experiences and thoughts regarding the event. 

Run report - Trail With Us - Physio Effect Trail Running/ Walking Group - Sunday 15th September

This month we planned a trail session combining the well-known route up to the Whangie from the Queens View Car Park (10 minutes past Bearsden) with a short section of the John Muir Way and a loop of the Burncrooks Reservoir. We had another decent turnout of new and familiar faces and headed up the hill at about 0910 after meeting at 0900. Although a little cold in the wind initially, we soon warmed up by the hill run and treated to nice views back East of the Earl’s Seat and Dumgoyne in the Campsies as well as North providing views of Loch Lomond.

It was muddy enough on the way up the hill but everyone seemed to handle that well and made steady pace with running and power hiking. We went through the Whangie which is always a nice photo opportunity and hard to believe this cracking rock formation is just on our door steps. Another short climb followed and we took an obligatory group picture at the trig point before pushing on over the boggy top down through the bracken-lined single track to reach the John Muir Way. Everyone seemed to enjoy the muddy single track and big Euan even treated us to some fairly special gymnastic type twists and turns in the slope when his road shoes took him for a ride.  

Once back on the hardpacked trail of the John Muir Way, Euan’s Adidas Boost road shoes came into their own and we didn’t see the big man for dust; well, I didn’t anyway. The loop around the Burncrooks Reservoir is just such a great bit of trail with it’s rollercoaster of a path and feeling of complete isolation wedged being between the Kilpatrick Hills and the Campsies. It was awesome seeing the group working their way around it as we were the only ones on the trail. On finishing the loop we were back on the John Muir Way to retrace our steps back up to the Whangie. Well, everyone except Danny (the other owner of Physio Effect) who left us before the muddy climb back up and continued along the John Muir Way round the back of Eden Mill and joined the West Highland Way where he was able to run back to his house in Milngavie. This allowed him to complete a long run of 18 miles for his marathon next month. I just think it’s brilliant how easy it is to link Scotland together with trails and paths.

After a leg sapping slog back up the single track to the trig point, we were able to get another run through the Whangie and then a sustained 15 minute descent back to the car park. All in all we were done and dusted in 1.5 hours with 1300ft of ascent and descent giving everyone a decent workout and a new route to go running on. I’ll look forward to planning up next month’s run and hope to see a good turn out again.

2019 Highland Fling 53 mile Ultra-Marathon Race Report

The night before a race is always a stressful period for me. I’m usually a nervous ball of energy, overthinking everything from what to wear and what I’m going to eat (an absolute delight for my coach and husband Jonny!). So the night before, I had my outfit set out, my dropbags ready and had written down everything I was going to eat and drink during the race – possibly a little overkill, but that’s just my personality! Jonny had given me approximate split times for Drymen, Balmaha and Rowardennan. Beyond Rowardennan was all up to me. Time to get some sleep.

 4am alarm for a 6am race start. I woke up at 3:55am. I was grateful for my mother staying as she was in charge of our 2 year old. We drove to Milngavie as Jonny gave me a final pep-talk. Two nervous pees later and an obligatory photo next to the Australian flag as I couldn’t see a New Zealand flag anywhere (sorry fellow Kiwis!), I was stood at the start line in the 10-12 hour pen. The clouds were grey but the temperature was mild. The forecast was to be “some rain” which suited me having lived in Scotland for a number of years now.

The plan was to get to Drymen (12.6 miles) in 1:55hr which meant an average of 9min/mi. I knew the push through Mugdock would be slow with the crowd (nearly 800 starters) so I just relaxed and enjoyed the atmosphere and the chat.  Having done the entire route at least 3-4 times in parts during my training, I knew the trail like the back of my hand and I knew the rolling down-hill stretches towards the Beech Tree Inn was where I could pick up my pace. After 30 minutes, I tucked into my first bit of food (half a salted caramel Chia bar). My nutrition for this race was an exact science. I was to take 300 cals per hour no matter what and I had to stick to it.

I arrived at Drymen and after a quick kit check from the marshals, I looked at my watch: 1:53hr. Brilliant. I felt great, legs and lungs were good and in my excitement I passed the checkpoint drinking 2 cups of water but forgot to re-fill my flasks (oops). The next checkpoint was Balmaha at 19.8 miles which included a climb up Conic Hill. The aim was to be there in 3:20hrs. In my head, I could hear Jonny’s voice: Get to the steps at the bottom of the hill, take a gel and power hike the whole way. The whole way. Don’t run it and let your HR peak, save your lungs and your legs for the lochside.

Conic Hill ascent

By this stage the rain had set. The ground was getting slippier but I was thankful that there wasn’t much wind. As I approached the top of the hill, the views opened up of Loch Lomond shrouded in some mist, which only added to the beautifully dramatic atmosphere. No matter how many times I’ve run this section, the views of this place never fail to amaze me. I also recognised a familiar face. There was Jonny waiting (in the cold and rain!). I ran towards him and gave him the biggest kiss and cuddle, “Take it really easy” he said to me. He and I knew I was slightly ahead of schedule so there was no need to beast it down hill. I cruised it and just enjoyed the views but also careful of my footing due to the wet rock. I arrived at the Balmaha checkpoint at 3:14hrs. The marshals there were incredible and were full of smiles and cheer. I chose not to have a dropbag at this section and instead had my flasks re-filled with water and quickly went on my way. One marshal asked if I wanted some Buckfast mixed into one – I must admit, I was slightly tempted but decided against it for fear of my tummy possibly protesting later on. I also saw some porta-loos and for a split second I thought about using the facilities but decided against this, thinking there may be some in Rowardennan (I would regret this later).

Conic Hill Descent

The views down to Loch Lomond

Rowardennan checkpoint would be at 27.2 miles. I was to hopefully get there in 4:50hrs. I quite enjoy this section. Sheltered for most part and I love the views of the Loch to my left, all mostly runnable. I relaxed into a pace and let my mind wander a little and I thought about what I wanted to eat when I got to Rowardennan. Before I knew it, I was there and I looked at my watch: 4:48hrs. Bang on. The marshals there were swift. My dropbag was already waiting and a lovely lady helped me re-fill my flasks one with Tailwind and one with water, “Let me fill them and you just concentrate on getting some food into you, you’re doing great.” I wanted to hug her. I stuffed my face with white chocolate Tim Tams (thanks mum for bringing them from Australia!), ate some dried mango, dates and apricots and drank a bottle of flat coke.

From here on in, it was all up to me. I was to go by feel. Push if I could, ease back if I didn’t feel right. Eat, drink - control the controllables. Jonny’s voice in my head saying this over and over. The next checkpoint was Inversnaid at 34.4 miles. I don’t remember much of this section. I was too busy thinking about how much I needed to pee and how there were no porta-loos in Rowardennan after all (oops!). I chatted to a few folk. I met a guy from England who had returned to do the Fling this year after a DNF last year. He commented on how he loved that I colour co-ordinated my outfit but I just needed to maybe sort out the shoes as they were purple and not blue like the rest of it – thank you whoever you are for making me smile!

I arrived at Inversnaid. I was wet and cold and a lovely man helped me with my dropbag and refilled my water (I cannot tell you how amazing every marshal was during this race. They were all angels.) Another lady kept telling me I was doing great and I could have a little rest from running for the next section as this was to be the technical stretch. I knew this stretch very well. In my last long training run, I did an out-and-back along this route so I knew how slow it was going to be scrambling and climbing over rocks and roots on a narrow path. The wet weather would make them slippery so I HAD to take good care here. I’d like to say that I came into my own on this section. Having been an avid hill-walker before I took up trail-running, I was used to scrambling and I was able to gain some good ground passing a few people along the lochside as I scrambled up and over boulders. It was actually mentally as well as physically tiring. It took a lot of concentration and when the end came I couldn’t help but shout, “THANK YOU GOD!”

The next checkpoint would be Beinglas at 40.9 miles. I still felt good albeit wet and cold and just as I approached the checkpoint – lo and behold – a porta-loo! The rain was relentless and I really felt for all the marshals waiting for us to arrive standing in this cold. I would be forever grateful to them and the way they lifted my spirits up each time I arrived at a checkpoint. After stuffing food in my face and drinking another bottle of flat coke, off I went. Only a half marathon to go and I still felt good. That elation did not last long, unfortunately. You could say, from Beinglas, everything went a little downhill for me apart from the actual course…which was 7 miles of UPHILL. Gah!!! When you’ve just run 40 miles and your legs are so fatigued - this was hell. It was from here I could feel my right hip flexor seize up with every steep incline. I took a couple of salt tabs but it didn’t really help. I decided to put my physiotherapist hat on and see what I could do to ease the pain. I tested out “The Pain Gate Theory” whereby you would introduce a different pain stimulus to block the nerve signals to your brain from the other pain stimulus that is bothering you. In my case, every time I needed to lift my leg on a climb, I would bite my finger really really hard so that the pain of my biting my finger would distract me from the pain in my hip. Sounds a bit nuts right? Anyway, it seemed to work for a while and I pushed on.

The Bogle Glen checkpoint was near which meant only 6 miles…i.e 10km left till the finish!! The rain was unrelenting. I was so cold I could barely feel my hands now. This was the start of the roller-coaster of the Crianlarich Forest.  I got a lovely surprise at the top of the first hill, two ladies sheltered in the trees playing accordions and a bowl of jelly babies waiting. Absolute angels. My spirits were lifted and with a smile I pushed on as I listened to the sound of their music. Up and down and up and down of rolling hills followed, that seemed to take forever. 10km might as well have been another 100km! I did surprise myself and I managed to pass a few people and before I knew it, I was out of the forest and hitting the road-crossing and the final 3 miles to the finish line.

I passed a smiling spectator standing under an umbrella, “you’re doing great, only 500m to go.” That’s when I heard the bagpipes. The tears started here and finally the red-carpet finish was within reach. As I ran along that beautiful red carpet, I saw Jonny holding our daughter Aria. She was squealing with delight, “Mummy!” The tears kept flowing. As I passed them, I heard Jonny yell, “she wants to run with you to the finish!” I knew if I halted to “run”at my 2 year old’s pace, my legs would seize so instead I grabbed her in my arms and carried her across. I’ll never forget that moment as I crossed the line with her and I was met with cheers, hugs and kisses from the finish-line marshals, one of them being our friend Gavin Bussey.

Carrying our daughter Aria along the red carpet to the Finish Line.

Finish time 11:15:39

Thank you to all the organisers and volunteers of this epic race! Incredible organisation, support and friendly faces throughout and the scenery of the course is out of this world.  I would highly recommend it to anyone to give it a go. It is one that will be forever etched in my mind.

Jonny, Mariam & Aria Kilpatrick