Steve’s blog

We ran a but under 10 miles last week and down the stretch I was fading fast.  I had some tough pain around my left hip area and my thighs.  Reflecting back on the run, I think I ran out of fuel; in other words, I bonked.  It was a cold day, I think without question the coldest day I've run in yet, so that was a good learning experience as well.  Learning how to cope with a cold day (about 40 degree), learning how the body warms up, learning how to put the shock of the cold behind you and to focus instead on the run. 

I did bring up my hip pain with my PT and was shown that a possible flaw in my biomechanics that could be leading to the pain.  I'm hopeful that the PT is right (I think she is), and so during tonight's 5 mile run I will try and focus and pay attention to how my hip is positioned during my stride.  We'll see.  Earlier this week my lower back really tightened up overnight knocking me out from a morning run.  I could barely roll myself on to my side, so there was no chance I could have done a 5 mile run.  For the first time in a couple of days I actually feel motivated to run. 

This coming Saturday we're scheduled to run 11 miles which will be a new PR for distance.  If my energy levels don't fail me and I can fight through the annoying pains I have during parts of a run, I'll feel reinvigorated.  Right now I am feeling a bit down and depressed b/c I can't seem to run without pain during these short distances - how can I expect my body to handle 26 miles?  One step at a time, I guess.

We ran a bit over 9 miles this past Saturday and I felt pretty good afterwards.  I'm not sure I could have gone much farther but I wasn't feeling any bad pains.  The weather was sunny and humid and a bit on the warm side.  Having a running partner really makes the runs so much more enjoyable and they do seem to go by faster than I'm sure they would if I was running alone.  It's a good feeling to know that each new long run is a new person record.  This week's long run will be 10 miles and it's at this point that I think I'll begin to feel like a runner.

I did experience some tightness in my lower left leg, on the top of my left foot specifically.  I'm not sure what this pain is or what I can do about it, but I did feel it once we started out running and after each water stop.  I think it went away shortly but until it did, the pain was annoying.

Up next is a 6 mile run followed by two 4 mile runs.  This is the last week we'll be running less than 5 miles on a short run day.

We ran 4 miles after work on Monday.  This was the first time we ran after work rather than before and it did feel different.  I was surprised.  I think I felt better during the evening run than I do at times during the morning run, but I like the way I feel during the day after a run rather than waiting all day to run, so I don't think we'll be changing our routine - yet.

We ran 6 miles this morning and it was a tough run, in more ways than one.  The route was tough - lots of hills and some doozies as well.  Our other routes are relatively flat with an occasional small hill or two.  Today's was a constant up- and downhill run and the few flat spots had uneven ground which made them a challenge as well.  By mile 5 I was hurting but pushed on and made it to the finish line in a bit over 1 hour.  Given the tough run I was happy, but I do want to get our run time down. 

We may begin a different training program in which we divide up a run in to two segments - a one mile run to the gym, followed by our weightlifting and then finishing up our run afterwards.  I think this routine will allow us to do some speed work, but I guess until we do it I won't know for sure.

We ran 4 miles after work on Monday.  This was the first time we ran after work rather than before and it did feel different.  I was surprised.  I think I felt better during the evening run than I do at times during the morning run, but I like the way I feel during the day after a run rather than waiting all day to run, so I don't think we'll be changing our routine - yet.

We ran 6 miles this morning and it was a tough run, in more ways than one.  The route was tough - lots of hills and some doozies as well.  Our other routes are relatively flat with an occasional small hill or two.  Today's was a constant up- and downhill run and the few flat spots had uneven ground which made them a challenge as well.  By mile 5 I was hurting but pushed on and made it to the finish line in a bit over 1 hour.  Given the tough run I was happy, but I do want to get our run time down. 

We may begin a different training program in which we divide up a run in to two segments - a one mile run to the gym, followed by our weightlifting and then finishing up our run afterwards.  I think this routine will allow us to do some speed work, but I guess until we do it I won't know for sure.

We ran 4 miles today and despite the humidity I would say I had a good run.  I thought that the run wasn't going to go well because I felt heavy and stiff for the first half mile.  But by the end of the first mile I was feeling good and strong. 

I had my first PT appointment yesterday and I am hopeful that the icing technique and stretches that I was shown are going to take care of my lingering tendon pain.  I have four more PT appointments scheduled over the next two weeks but so far I'm very relieved that the therapist said that at this time there was no reason I shouildn't be able to continue running.

I am a happy runner.  We ran 4 miles on Sunday and Monday and another 5 miles today and all-in-all my legs feel good. We are due to take tomorrow off from running before running 4 miles on Thursday and then we are due for our longest run to date of 8 miles on Saturday.

If all goes well by the end of Saturday we will have run 25 miles this week. 

Tomorrow we are due to run 7 miles - our longest run yet.  According to the schedule this run should take place on Saturday, but because of Yom Kippur we're moving it up a day to get it in before we have to start fasting.  I'm looking forward to the long'ish run, but I am a bit nervous as well.  Should I try and keep a constant pace throughout, should I ease into the run but running a slower first couple of miles and then pick up the pace about half-way through?  Guess I'll play it by ear, or foot, as it is.

Wednesday's four mile run went very well.  As I've written in prior blogs, in my limited experience the second day of a back-to-back run has proven to be a "bad run".  But, no so on Wednesday.  I felt very strong through the first two miles.  I was a bit winded between miles 2 and 3 but re-grouped and felt strong throughout the final mile.  Of course as always happens, Emily kicked my butt when she took off and finished incredibly strong making me look like I was running in place as she zoomed by me.  But for now, I'll take pleasure in knowing that I felt good in my run.  Happiness.

We ran 6 miles on Saturday which is the longest run so far, and my personal long distance record.  I felt pretty good for the first 5 miles, but felt a sharp pain in the shin/knee area.  I walked for about 20 seconds to get a better sense of the pain and whether I would be able to complete the last mile.  I felt good enough to finish the run but the tendon (my guess) on the outside of the knee was (and has been) bothering me for the rest of the weekend. 

We ran 5 miles today and I was extremely nervous that my tendon pain was going to keep me from the run.  But I felt great throughout the entire run and am very encouraged by the lack of pain and the strength I felt during the run.  We are due to run 4 miles tomorrow which, in my brief history of running, the second consecutive day of running has resulted in a bad run.  It was pretty darn cold this morning, with the thermometer showing 45 degrees.  I'm hoping for a bit warmer tomorrow, but once my muscles got warmed up I found the cool air very refreshing so maybe I should be careful for what I wish for.

I tried the run/walk training method for our 4 mile run on Tuesday.  The run/walk method has you run a mile followed by a brief walk, maybe for a minute or so.  The theory is to give your body a chance to re-group, catch your breath, let the muscles recover before pushing them for another mile.  Our coach's husband said he did this during the 5k and he ended up winning in his age group.  I'm not saying this method is going to cut 3-4 minute off my average time (per mile) but if it does help in any way, no sense not taking advantage.

Overall, my run on Tuesday was horrible.  I think it's still a matter of strengthening and conditioning.  We ran the same distance (4 miles) on Monday and I felt great; but trying to run 4 miles the next day I just felt heavy and slow.