I am in the stage where I can't really see any light at the end of the tunnel but have faith it will be there in about 5 weeks time. I have done 3 weeks training now since I have been back with the emphasis on getting the structure back, increasing the mileage slowly and getting the long run back on track....I am doing sessions but the times are irrelevant at the moment, which is good because they are rubbish!

In terms of how I compare to last year I am a little off but then I did start the first week of October last year, the upside is I have got back up to 19miles for 2 hours on the Sunday pretty quick where it took 8 weeks last year....ideally this will get up towards 21 this winter in the same time.

The legs ache...a lot at the moment to be honest but that always happens and sessions are hard work in a different way to when you going well, the legs go first rather than the breathing. For example we did 5x2k on the road Tuesday and it was bloody hard to get 6.15's (with two 180 bends though) but like last year I remember struggling until around January and then all of sudden within a week or two the times just seemed to come down as the legs adjusted to the new load.

I am still enjoying just training without the worry of times (Sunday excluded) and tried my best to hang on to Dewi last Saturday on a cross country session....he does love the grass! I have some company also on the Sunday runs which I hope continues, Marc Hobbs and Steve Davies wanted to get involved this winter and seemed to cope fine...we mess around the first few miles, then chat a bit to around 10, few brief words to 14 and then it goes quiet but there seems to be a good understanding and not that awkward silence you can get in groups.

What else has been happening......um, big Lewys Hobbs joined me on a run in Margam Park yesterday but forgot his trainers so ruined a pair of my size 9's with his big fat size 10 feet "Ooo my feet hurt Simon, can we slow down" every five minutes. Andy Doel decided to roll around on the floor one night and get a little bruise on his hip which gets brought up all the time and Matty Bullock who joined me for some easy runs knocked out a 3:24 in the New York Marathon.

I plan to do Liverpool cross country tomorrow and hopefully I wont get smashed to badly, Swansea are up against Stockport and Central to be the British representatives at the European Club cross country so I agreed to race if my achilles was not reacting before day (seems fine). I have never raced there before so will be something new and Wicks passed on some advice in the week, he said (wait for it) "Just get stuck in".....ok then, lets see what I can do.

Anybody else reading this doing Liverpool?.... Leave your name below and I will post up the 'readers results', unless you beat me and I will just leave you off.

See you in Liverpool

Simx