Tuesday - 10km slow

Today was the first morning since Saturday that I actually managed to get out and run. Having the rest has done nothing to facilitate my recovery - what it has done though is made it clearer what is going on. I was completely short of breath from the moment I started, and this continued for the whole run. Almost identical symptoms to what I experienced three years ago when I was severely anaemic. Thinking back over the past six months, the signs have been there but I just didn't acknowledge it. Hills, my former strength, have recently become my nightmare. The last few massages have been torture around my neck and shoulders (a common compensation is to breathe through your accessory breathing muscles around the neck and shoulder instead of the diaphragm when oxygen delivery is compromised). And hopefully, my progressive decline in performance since May 2016 - despite pushing as hard (if not harder) throughout my training. So yesterday's blood test will hopefully have some answers. The other differential diagnosis is low testosterone, which I feel may actually be the precursor my hypothesised anaemia (as testosterone is an essential building block for red blood cells). This, in turn, is likely an effect of (potential) overtraining, undereating, and my new theory - a diet that is too low in fat. Good fats that is. I did some calculations yesterday and I consistently only meet about a third of my recommended daily intake of fat, despite comfortably meeting the requirements for carbohydrates and protein. I acknowledge that this is by no means an exact science, but it is interesting trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together to find the underlying culprit (which is what I try to do with all my clients as well). Anyway, managed 10km this morning in 4:45's - couldn't have gone any quicker. I was saved by Tom who I joined from about the fifth to ninth kilometer. I was not in a good place prior to this, so thanks heaps Tom. I'll hopefully have some definitive answers over the next few days, and then I can start to get on top of things and get back out there ASAP!