Tag: My Journey
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Weekly Newsletter – My fuelling secrets in 2025
Fuelling is one of the three most essential facets to getting better as an athlete (alongside proper training and recovery). And it’s equally essential to aiding the training and recovery process both in the prehab and rehab in between runs. Not to mention all the fuelling that needs to happen during the thing itself. With…
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Weekly Newsletter – The secrets to my recovery in 2025
As someone who is forever injury prone and forever punished by simple recovery mistakes, I’m always scrutinizing over recovery. Recovery is the single most important facet of training. Way more important than the training itself. It’s not only where those key adaptations take place. But it’s your body’s chance to allow you to continue to…
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The changes to my training in 2025
2025 has been a year of growth so far as I recover from an injury. It’s also been a year of newness, as I train in new trails in a new province under the guidance of a new coach. We’ve focused more on running efficiency – touching more roads already in April than all of…
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Gorge Waterfalls 30K Race Recap – Penguins 🐧
I wasn’t meant to be in this race. I mean, to the extent where my bib still said ’50K’ on the day. While 30K might not ever be my race distance of choice, I felt fortunate to even make it to the start-line. Seven months of dealing with this injury on and off has taught…
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Maybe I do like to run 🤷
I always proclaimed myself to be nothing more than a shuffler, since I knew my skill and strength as a ‘runner’ leaned more toward the skill and strength-based aspects of the sport. Things like technical terrain, tough conditions, downhills, and sustained climbs. I prided myself on being able to dance around roots and rocks, and…
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Injured again: But life’s not about the short term, anyway
My injury has come back! But any kind of catastrophizing any more isn’t going to help. Instead I have to channel all my anger over the situation into genuine smiles and laughter, and hope for better in the long-term future, even if not the short-term. Life’s not about the short-term anyway.
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The rebound effect
There’s something powerful in the post-injury experience. In the immediacy of the weeks and months following an injury. You’re still weary. You’re still hot dogging every downhill, expecting for every step to hurt. But over time, when you learn those steps no longer hurt like they used to, you gain confidence. Over time, you realize…
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Why I use XACT Nutrition
I have now been an ambassador for the brand for almost two years, and write this article as a way of shining the light on the brand that has most rapidly helped to accelerate my own development in the sport. This is partially a love letter, and partially an explanation as to why I use…
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You are not the imposter
For the past two years, I’ve existed in my sport as a professional athlete. The term is loosely defined in a sport like mine. For one, because there’s no clear-cut definition. For another, you can so clearly compare your results to others, thus never feeling good enough. For a double ‘nother, because of Imposter Syndrome.…
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Standing out of the spotlight
As you go through your bucket list to life, or even your resolutions to the year, continue to remember what matters most to you, and where you want to spend the majority of your time. You don’t need the extra meaning in your life in seven different directions. You definitely don’t need the spotlight. You…
Rhys Desmond 