Advice
Simon Wheatcroft
03 February, 2012
What an amazing and inspirational athlete!
Joggingbuddy's exclusive interview with Simon wheatcroft
What made you want to start running?
I started running as a challenge and to explore what was possible. After losing your vision, it is easy to sit back and believe you can’t do certain things or compete with everyone else – so I decided to run to define what was possible for a blind runner. I also run to set an example for my son. I want to show him that, no matter the barriers, you can adapt and make any goal possible if you believe in it.
How do you train, and what is specific to your style?
I train in two ways - outdoors and indoors on the treadmill. The outdoor running is incredibly limited as I have only been able to learn one single route. This means that the incline is always constant and, unfortunately, they don’t like putting ultra runs on nice flat roads. So, I have added a lot of treadmill running to practice running on an incline.
The outdoor training is where I put in my long miles. I have memorised a route and navigate it from memory and with audio GPS updates. However, this is not fool proof and a lapse of concentration, or taking a sip of a drink at the wrong spot, can result in me running into a post or falling down a ditch. Obstacles placed on the route also pose a problem – so I accept that I might run into things now and again.
Indoor training consists of speed and incline work on the treadmill. I usually run on the treadmill 4-5 times a week. This is tough as it is difficult to let your mind wander while indoors, so the treadmill can become very draining. However, it’s the only way I can train for hills and that has been something I’ve had to accept. As for my style, I would say its mind over body – believe you can make the distance and you will, or, at least, you’ll be at peace with failure because you’ll know you took it to your mental and physical limit.
What is your diet like?
I would like to say my diet is fantastic but, frankly, it isn’t. While I do eat reasonably healthily and don’t eat too many unhealthy foods, it could certainly be better. My actual nutrition while running is done on a cost per run basis. I simply cannot afford to train using sports nutrition for every run, so I eat whatever is cheap and try to keep a good mix of sweet and savoury foods. This might be anything from chocolate bars to sandwiches.
What keeps you going during the difficult parts of an event?
The opportunity to prove to myself that I can carry on no matter the circumstances. Once you have overcome the barrier of being blind and running solo, you start to set the bar quite high. So, I’m not going to stop unless I literally collapse. If I can stand back up, the race goes on.
Which has been your favourite event so far?
My favourite race is always the next one. If you are hungry for the next event, you will keep training hard. If I had to choose an actual event, it would be a 5km race that I ran with my wife. It was the only event she has ever run, so it was great for us both to receive a medal.
If I had to choose my one-and-only, favourite race from the ultra world, however, it would be the Badwater Ultramarathon. This event is the entire reason I began to train – I started training solely to qualify and finish it. Of course, I have yet to run the Badwater event – but it is the race I really want to do and really admire.
xx