Isobel Bespalov

Age 39
Sport Played Marathons
Years Played 5

Tell us about yourself

•    Born in Glasgow, Scotland and emigrated to Australia in 1971
•    Married in 1992
•    Became an Australian citizen in 1994.

Running History:
•    Started running in April 2004 as a way of keeping fit after having two children.
•    Injured in September 2004 after doing too much too soon and had to take 6 months off training.
•    First marathon was the Great Ocean Road Marathon in May 2005.
•    Second marathon was the Melbourne Marathon in October 2005 in 3.12
•    Came second in the GOR marathon in May 2006.
•    Won the 6 Foot Track Marathon in 2007.
•    Completed the Gold Coast Marathon in July 2007 in 2.58.
•    Represented Australia in World Long Distance Mountain Running Championships in 2007, 2008 and 2009.

Work/Life:
•    I am a mother to two children and work part-time as a Casual Relief Teacher.
•    I live on 2 acres in the middle of the Dandenong Ranges National Park. This allows me to run the trails straight out my door!
•    My hobbies, when I have time, are reading, hanging out with my kids, and cooking and eating delicious food!
•    I coach myself using the principles of Arthur Lydiard.
•    My family consists of my husband Andrew and my two children, Adam and Zara.

Proudest Sporting Achievements

What are you hoping to achieve

How does LineBreak help

My Blog

08/08/10
I have been busy training and racing! I recently competed in the You Yang’s 30k trail race on the 25th July as part of my early season training. I came 2nd, which I was quite happy with. I have been accepted in the Kepler Challenge which is a 60k trail race in NZ in December. Of course I will be doing plenty of other racing before that, including the Fitzroy Falls trail marathon in October.


19/05/10
I came 3rd at the Great Ocean Road Marathon! It was a beautiful day, and a great race. I was especially happy because I had been sick with a head cold all week before the race.


25/03/10
Well I came 5th at the 6 foot track marathon, which although was not as good as I had hoped, still saw me finish at the tope end of the field. Next on the agenda is the Great Ocean Road marathon (45kms) on May 16th.

23/02/10
I just thought I would let you know that I won the Maroondah Dam 30k trail race on Sunday. It’s a great last hard hit-out before the 6 Foot Track Marathon in less than 3 weeks.

10/12/09
I raced on the weekend just past, I did the 35k trail race up to Mt. Feathertop. I lead for the entire race, and won overall (men’s and women’s), so it was a great day out! We ran 2000m elevation, which was hard work, but then we got to run back down which was fun!

Race Schedule for 2010, January to May.

January:
➢    10th Bogong to Hotham 35k Trail Race

February:
➢    7th Queen of the Lake 10k
➢    21st Maroondah Dam 30k Trail Race.

March:
➢    13th 6 Foot Track 45k off-road Marathon, Trail Championships.
➢    28th Dandy Creek Dash 10k

April:
➢    11th Geelong Half Marathon.

May:
➢    2nd Great Train Race
➢    16th Great Ocean Road Marathon, 45k.

10/11/09
I ran the Marysville 1/2 marathon on Sunday, and boy was it hot, well over 30 degrees!! I was the 3rd woman and 10th overall, which I was very pleased with as I had not tapered at all for it. In fact the week leading up to the race had been my biggest week of training since before Austria. Not only that, but 15 minutes before the race started I got bitten by at least 2 bull ants! Silly me, I had sat down under a tree for shade and sat on a bullant nest!! It really hurt, but at least they didn't swell until the next day.
The weather is still very hot, in fact yesterday was 35. Today is a bit cooler, thanks goodness, but still hot. It's not even summer yet!
I went for a nice hilly run today. It was nice, as Andrew rode along with me. It's nice having some company.
I am doing the Razorback run (38ks) on December 5th, which I am really looking forward to.

26/10/09
Here's my race report from the World Champs I raced recently in Austria

RACE REPORT: Kaisermarathon. Tirol, Austria.
42.2km mountain marathon.
Saturday 10th October 2009.

Lead-Up
My training was going really well and I was feeling fit and strong. It was at about this time I noticed for the second time in the last 2 months that a mole on my wrist was infected and sore.
This worried me, so I went to the doctors was soon as I was on school holidays.
The doctor took one look at it and decided it needed to be removed, which he did right away, giving me 5 stitches as well.
Two days later, and I noticed that this was getting infected too, and with only two weeks till race day! I got antibiotics, but after three days they had still not kicked in. Just to be sure, I went to the hospital to have it checked out. I was rushed through and put on IV antibiotics straight away and kept in overnight on repeated doses of antibiotics. I went home the next day on a program called ‘hospital in the home’ whereby I kept the IV attachment in my arm and a nurse came twice daily to my home to administer IV antibiotics (all for 4 days). Each time I had a dose I felt lethargic and sleepy.
I went to hospital on the Friday (2 days before leaving for overseas!) for my final dose. I was completely over all the needles by that stage!! The doctor came in and made a ‘joke’ about the antibiotics and drug testing. “Not that they’re performance enhancers, rather the opposite!” he said with a laugh. I had a little cry once he left the room. They gave me a course of strong oral antibiotics to take for another 5 days.
Not the best lead-up to a world championship race!!

Off To Europe!
Two days later I was sitting on an aeroplane bound for Germany. I spent a couple of days in Germany (no jet-lag, thank goodness!!) then I was off to Austria. What a beautiful location! I found it amazing that the land was generally flat, then straight up for the mountains. There was no in-between!
I met up with the rest of the Australian team and had a day in the area.
The day before the race had been raining, but race day itself dawned clear, dry and, later, sunny. The gun went, and we were off.
The course was undulating for the first 15kms, with the first 7kms involving a loop that brought us back through the start in Soell. We mainly ran on bitumen during this time.
After 15kms, the course started to climb some more, but only gradually. However, after 21kms the real climb kicked in. I had never seen anything like it, it was incredibly steep. My hill training in the Dandenong Ranges near Melbourne could never compare!
This continued on for about another 5-6kms, then it was more undulating again. A lovely fast and flowing descent followed (a nice quad trasher!!) This went on for about 6kms.
The last 4kms of the race was even steeper than the first main ascent! In fact, the last 3kms climbed 700m! We were going straight up a ski run. I found this impossible to run, and in fact did not see anyone running! Not only was it steep, but grassy, muddy and slippery as well! I am not too bad at steep hill walking, and passed quite a few men in this section.
Before I knew it, I was nearly at the top, “Thank goodness!” I thought. This feeling was short-lived as I gazed up at the last pinch. I forced my weary legs on, but at each step the finish line appeared to recede! It felt as if I would never make it, but of course I did! Once over the line I was wrapped in a space blanket because the top was enveloped in fog, with a brisk wind up. I was doubled over struggling for breath for what felt like an eternity. Once I recovered, I grabbed a warm soup and watched the other finishers.
This race was a great challenge, and like all challenges, very enjoyable in retrospect! I was the 21st female, and 3rd in my age group, but believe I could have done better without my health issues before the race. However, the fact of racing, and life, is that not everything always goes to plan. Sometimes we just have to do the best that we possibly can given difficult circumstances, and this is what I did. In this way, I can reflect on the Kaisermarathon and believe that it was a success.
I am back training now and my next focus is the 6 Foot track 45km off-road marathon.
The plan is to be fit and healthy so I can prove what I am really capable of!!

18/09/09 
The last day of school before holidays!! Yay!! Not only that, but only two weeks till I leave for Austria! I'm getting excited and nervous all at once!I'm feeling good, so that's positive! I will be doing the 15km DeCastella race in a week, which will be a good hit-out two weeks before the big day.
The 38km run to Carrum went really well. I started off relatively slowly then wound it up. It's always nice to finish a run faster than when you started, and feeling good!

6/09/09
Well after a solid week of training I ran in the innaugural Grape run from Yarra Glen to Healseville yesterday. I came 2nd by 15 seconds, bummer!! I nearly had her! 11th place overall, so that was good. It was a great workout on a beautiful course. It was very windy, with a headwind most of the way, but that did not bother me too much. This was my second race since my stressie, so was happy with the result. Not totally happy of course, as I had wanted to win!!
My training is going very well,luckily because I've booked my ticket to Austria. I'm really looking forward to the trip, but not to the travelling! I picked up my ticket on Thursday from Jetset in Ringwood. Thanks Tony for organising that!
I have been working 4 days a week, so I've been having to get up very early to fit in all my training. It's really nice that it is starting to get light earlier. I can now do parts of my run in daylight which is great.
I've got a 38km long run planned for this Saturday with the Knox Road Runners. We run from Knox city to Carrum. It's always a great run, especially because they are such lovely people. I have also entered the DeCastella 15k on the 27th September, and may do the Dingley Dozen on the 20th. Races are a good workout, and also help me to practise race nerves!
BTW, I still haven't washed my bike after the Adventure race!!!!!!

12/08/09
The Teva Adventure race was so much fun!! I had to do the first challenge that established our teams start time, which was the beep test. This wasn't too hard, but we did have to do the turns on slippery mud and grass! It was very congested too, so there were a few elbows out! All part of the fun though. We got an early start, and off we sprinted, phew! It was a freezing morning! Gembrook tends to always be very muddy, and there was lots of bog to get the bikes caught in (I'm very naughty and still haven't washed my bike!), but we soldiered on. I was the 'punch bunny' which means that I dibbed our control checker at each point. This was tough work as all of the controls were in the thick scrub of the bush. My legs and arms are now covered in scratches and bruises, thank god it's winter and my legs are covered up!There was an obstacle course as one of the challenges that involved heights, not my forte. I was scared, but I made myself do them for the team. I was so rapt to do them, as on my own I might have gone for the time penalty instead!
We ended up winning the women"s event, and coming fifth overall. This was a fabulous result when you consider that the three of us had never raced or trained together as a team!
I would recommend these races to anyone, as they are heaps of fun, great training, and an excellent way to spend a day with friends!
My speed training is going really well, too. I am enjoying running at the faster paces and just feel so energised!
We are off skiing this weekend, I shall try to get some running in!

10/08/09
Well, we did really well at the Adventure race on Sunday, winning the women’s section and coming 5th overall (4 male teams in front of us). It was fantastic fun! I’ve attached a couple of pictures:




6/08/09
I went out for a great training run today, 33 kms through the hills with about 1,300metres of elevation!! As soon as I got home I sprayed my legs with cold water. We have a shower head on a cord, so this is easy to do. It was horrible and cold though!! AS soon as that was over with I put my Linebreak compression pants on. I really believe this helps with recovery. Tonight before bed I will put Qoleum recovery cream on my legs to further help the process. All these things make a difference.
I weighed myself after my run and I had lost just over a kilo!! That was with drinking! However, obviously not enough. I was drinking High-5 4:1, but ran out...silly me didn't take enough for the run. I will need to ensure I do better, especially with Summer around the corner (YAY!).
I started my speed work phase this week. I went out on Tuesday for a set of 12x400ms with my friend Veronica. It wasn't as bad as we were fearing! In fact, we quite enjoyed it!
I will be racing in the Teva adventure race on Sunday which should be lots of fun! Let's hope the weather stays nice...although the wind can go away!

1/08/09
Only one month till Spring!! Woo hoo!! Mind you, the blossoms are already out because it has been so unseasonably mild. The daffodils are out at my place too. I did a 5k time trial this morning, and on my cool down I ran past some houses with the trees in blossom and the smell was magnificent! Isn't running fantastic??? I improved my time since I last did a 5k TT, 44 seconds than when I did it a month ago. This is an improvement without any speed work either! I start that phase on Monday. I shall have to see how much improvement that makes!!
I raced in Canberra last weekend and stayed with my friend Pam Muston. Thanks to Pam and her family for making it such a brilliant weekend!I came 4th in the race (out of 21 women) which I was pretty happy with seeing as this is my first running race since returning from my stressie, and 25kms at that!! I feel that I don't have the speed over distance at the moment, heaps of endurance though! My legs are also not 'race tough' so I will need to work on both of these with lots of under-distance races and TT. The street orienteering helps too.
I have a new sponsor!! Linbreak is supporting me by providing me with their fantastic compression garments. Not only do they look fantastic, they are comfortable to wear all day (under my work clothes!!) and help me recover form all my hard sessions...and easy ones!
I'm off now to spend some quality time with the kids!

30/07/09
Training:
I am currently following the Lydiard system for my training. This was recommended to me by the President of the Australian Mountain Running Association as an excellent method for mountain runners.
At the moment I am just completing my hill phase that was used to develop leg strength after my base phase. I will now be starting on my speed phase. As the name states, this stage is designed to develop speed!
Of course, I also stretch every day, and try to do core work twice a week.
Because I work full time and have children, when I train in the morning I am up at about 5am. Therefore, most of my training is in the dark. I need to wear a head torch for my training, especially necessary when I am training off-road!!
To aid my recovery I wear Linebreak compression clothes under my work clothes every day.

Upcoming Races:
August 9th: Teva Adventure Race (Team of 3), involving running, mtb and other challenges.
August 30th Bellarine Rail trail 34km ‘fatass’ run/race.
September 6th: Athletics Victoria ½ marathon.
September 12th: Sri Chinmoy 10k
September 20th: Dingley Dozen 6k.
September 27th: De Castella 15k.
October 10th: World Long Distance Mountain Running Championships, Austria.
November 7th: Mt. Majura Vineyard 3 peaks 26km trail race.
November 15h: VRR Jells Park 15k.
December 5th: Kepler Challenge 60km trail race, NZ