With just one week to go until Ultra England, I wanted to record a solo episode reflecting on the training, races and lessons that have shaped my preparation over the last few months - and when this comes out I am going to be on holiday.

In this episode, I look back at the Ochils 50k and the River Ayr Way Race, two events that taught me valuable lessons about durability, climbing strength, pacing and the importance of race-specific preparation. I talk about how those experiences led me to adapt my training, spending more time in the Fairlie Hills and getting invaluable recce days in the Lake District.

This week's Word of the Week is Specificity, one of the most important principles in endurance training. We often focus on volume, pace and weekly mileage, but how closely does our training actually resemble the demands of the event we're preparing for?

I also share some thoughts on where all of this is leading. Whilst Ultra England is the immediate focus, I talk about a longer-term ambition that genuinely excites and scares me in equal measure: the Bob Graham Round. A challenge that sits right at the edge of what I currently believe may be possible and one that is already influencing how I train and think about the mountains.

In this episode I cover:

• Lessons learned from the Ochils 50k

• Reflections from the River Ayr Way Race

• How and why I've adapted my training

• Fairlie Hills hill sessions and Lake District recces

• Word of the Week: Specificity

• Looking ahead to Ultra England

• My longer-term goal of attempting the Bob Graham Round

• Good luck to everyone who's entered the West Highland Way Race ballot

As always, thank you for listening, supporting the podcast and being part of this incredible running community

Keep showing up. Keep moving forward. And I'll see you on the trails and if you want some coaching then reach out by DMs or at: https://teamrunrun.com/coach/david-taylor-glasgow-running-coach/

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