I don’t have much more to tell this week. I’m still in limbo.
I’ve been on vacation in Michigan all week. I took two hefty bike rides, one last Sunday and the other last Tuesday. No problems there except some wrist soreness because the bike I was riding didn’t fit me quite right.
I ran 3.7 miles with my mom on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. I don’t really know how fast we were going, but I’m guessing that it was about a 12-minute mile. Monday I had a little pain but nothing too bad. Wednesday I felt really good. Friday it was back to how I felt on Monday. I iced every day for good measure. There was one spot on each shin that continued to bother me.
Yesterday I ended up running 5 miles total, but trying out the 8:1 run:walk ratio: run 8 minutes, then walk 1 minute, repeat. The whole run took roughly an hour. Some shin problems, but not enough to ice. The specific sore spots on each leg didn’t give me much trouble. So while I’d be lying if I said I felt completely rehabbed, but I at least can say that I feel like I’m progressing.
Still hoping to run 18 miles on Saturday. Only planning on running once between now and then, for Wednesday’s speed workout.
6 weeks to go. Hang in there, shins.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Sunday, August 22, 2010
7 weeks until the marathon
(Written on Saturday and posted on Sunday...)
Well, things are staying stubbornly in limbo between “Things have improved and I’m feeling confident that I’ll make it to the start line” and “Well, that’s it. I’m calling it off.”
Week before last went so poorly that I couldn’t even bring myself to write about it. I felt fantastic after that 16 miler. I was a bit sore on Sunday and Monday, but feeling ok. I biked to work Monday and felt a little pain in my knee, but nothing else.
Then I ran 8 miles Tuesday morning, and I had a really hard time. The humidity was brutal, and I had a lot of shin pain. I finished, but I was really hurting the rest of that day and into Wednesday. I spent most of Wednesday debating with myself about whether or not to go to speed training. Ultimately, I decided to do the workout, but do it at home instead of schlepping all the way up to the track.
I completed a warm up, 3 repeat miles, and a cool down, but I suffered for it. It wasn’t so much sharp pain as it was an overall inability to make my legs work. I was stiff and achy while running, and my legs were swollen and tired afterward. I went to bed that night feeling like I had blown it.
I biked on Thursday and took Friday off, hoping that I would be ok on Saturday. When Saturday came, I did put on my running clothes and lace up my shoes, but my instincts screamed at me not to run. So I didn’t. I geared up again on Sunday and actually set out that time, but I run/walked for only a mile before I turned back.
Things were looking bleak, but I figured missing a 10-miler was better than missing the following weekend’s 18-miler, so I tried to focus my attention forward. I biked to work on Monday, and wore my compression socks pretty much all day and night that day, trying to get the swelling down. Tuesday I ran 8 miles with the compression socks on, and while I was pleased to have finished that distance, I didn’t feel great afterward.
I got up on Wednesday to attempt a speed workout, ran about 10 steps, and stopped. I spent another day on the bench in my compression socks, wondering if I could really come back from this.
It was similar on Thursday. I was able to run 6 miles, but had pain in my shins afterward, all day. I continued to intermittently wear the compression socks. The pain was not terrible – I had definitely had worse – but I had a sinking feeling all day that it just wasn’t enough. I may have been somehow powering my way through a good number of my shorter training runs… but I felt that trying to run 18 miles on Saturday was just asking for a serious injury.
I was a hair’s breadth away from calling off my training. I just couldn’t see how I could miss another one of those big long runs and still keep going. But I exchanged some emails with a running friend who has shin problems similar to mine, and she informed me that she trains for marathons by running only 2-3 times a week: a long run, a speed workout, and as her schedule permits, a third run of 3-5 miles. In a nutshell, that means that I have been running roughly 10 miles more a week than I really have to.
I felt a bit more optimistic after that. I biked to work and back on Friday, still wearing the compression socks. Friday night, I sat thinking for a while, and decided on this plan: Tomorrow, I would run as far as felt safe, even if that meant only 3 miles or so. In the coming week, I would stick to 4 miles or so, every other day, and perhaps attempt 6 on Saturday or Sunday. Then the following week, I would start sticking to my friend’s plan: a speed workout, a short run, and a long run, never on consecutive days. If I can rehab my shins enough this week to feel confident going into 18 miles on September 4, I might still have a chance. It will mean having my last long run be 20 miles instead of 22, but there are a lot of plans that end at 20 miles so I think that’ll be ok.
I woke up this morning and procrastinated about going out running, because I didn’t want to go out and come back feeling defeated. Even though I had a revised plan that I thought had some hope for success, deep down I badly wanted to run 18 and feel like I was still on track. Ultimately, I ended up going out deliberately unprepared to run 18 miles (no gels, started too late, not hydrated well enough) so that I wouldn’t do anything stupid. I ended up doing the speed workout I missed on Wednesday, which I thought was a good compromise. I was able to push myself a little but still only do a total of 5 miles. Plus, I ended the week feeling like I only missed one workout, not two – even though the one I missed was the long run.
If that speed workout had gone by with no pain, I would be feeling pretty good right now. But, it didn’t. I felt some deep aching in my shins both during the run and after. I was able to run without the compression socks on, which is good, but I’m just not feeling so great. My shins hurt when I walk.
Bottom line: I’ve still got a decent chance of bouncing back to marathon readiness, but there’s also a decent chance that I won’t. I’m still in that annoying place of needing to remain optimistic but realistic.
Will this be worth it? If I make it to that start line, I think it will. The hardest part is that I know the closer the marathon gets, the more crushing it will be to not run. But I will not give up.
Come what may, it will be over in 7 more weeks.
Well, things are staying stubbornly in limbo between “Things have improved and I’m feeling confident that I’ll make it to the start line” and “Well, that’s it. I’m calling it off.”
Week before last went so poorly that I couldn’t even bring myself to write about it. I felt fantastic after that 16 miler. I was a bit sore on Sunday and Monday, but feeling ok. I biked to work Monday and felt a little pain in my knee, but nothing else.
Then I ran 8 miles Tuesday morning, and I had a really hard time. The humidity was brutal, and I had a lot of shin pain. I finished, but I was really hurting the rest of that day and into Wednesday. I spent most of Wednesday debating with myself about whether or not to go to speed training. Ultimately, I decided to do the workout, but do it at home instead of schlepping all the way up to the track.
I completed a warm up, 3 repeat miles, and a cool down, but I suffered for it. It wasn’t so much sharp pain as it was an overall inability to make my legs work. I was stiff and achy while running, and my legs were swollen and tired afterward. I went to bed that night feeling like I had blown it.
I biked on Thursday and took Friday off, hoping that I would be ok on Saturday. When Saturday came, I did put on my running clothes and lace up my shoes, but my instincts screamed at me not to run. So I didn’t. I geared up again on Sunday and actually set out that time, but I run/walked for only a mile before I turned back.
Things were looking bleak, but I figured missing a 10-miler was better than missing the following weekend’s 18-miler, so I tried to focus my attention forward. I biked to work on Monday, and wore my compression socks pretty much all day and night that day, trying to get the swelling down. Tuesday I ran 8 miles with the compression socks on, and while I was pleased to have finished that distance, I didn’t feel great afterward.
I got up on Wednesday to attempt a speed workout, ran about 10 steps, and stopped. I spent another day on the bench in my compression socks, wondering if I could really come back from this.
It was similar on Thursday. I was able to run 6 miles, but had pain in my shins afterward, all day. I continued to intermittently wear the compression socks. The pain was not terrible – I had definitely had worse – but I had a sinking feeling all day that it just wasn’t enough. I may have been somehow powering my way through a good number of my shorter training runs… but I felt that trying to run 18 miles on Saturday was just asking for a serious injury.
I was a hair’s breadth away from calling off my training. I just couldn’t see how I could miss another one of those big long runs and still keep going. But I exchanged some emails with a running friend who has shin problems similar to mine, and she informed me that she trains for marathons by running only 2-3 times a week: a long run, a speed workout, and as her schedule permits, a third run of 3-5 miles. In a nutshell, that means that I have been running roughly 10 miles more a week than I really have to.
I felt a bit more optimistic after that. I biked to work and back on Friday, still wearing the compression socks. Friday night, I sat thinking for a while, and decided on this plan: Tomorrow, I would run as far as felt safe, even if that meant only 3 miles or so. In the coming week, I would stick to 4 miles or so, every other day, and perhaps attempt 6 on Saturday or Sunday. Then the following week, I would start sticking to my friend’s plan: a speed workout, a short run, and a long run, never on consecutive days. If I can rehab my shins enough this week to feel confident going into 18 miles on September 4, I might still have a chance. It will mean having my last long run be 20 miles instead of 22, but there are a lot of plans that end at 20 miles so I think that’ll be ok.
I woke up this morning and procrastinated about going out running, because I didn’t want to go out and come back feeling defeated. Even though I had a revised plan that I thought had some hope for success, deep down I badly wanted to run 18 and feel like I was still on track. Ultimately, I ended up going out deliberately unprepared to run 18 miles (no gels, started too late, not hydrated well enough) so that I wouldn’t do anything stupid. I ended up doing the speed workout I missed on Wednesday, which I thought was a good compromise. I was able to push myself a little but still only do a total of 5 miles. Plus, I ended the week feeling like I only missed one workout, not two – even though the one I missed was the long run.
If that speed workout had gone by with no pain, I would be feeling pretty good right now. But, it didn’t. I felt some deep aching in my shins both during the run and after. I was able to run without the compression socks on, which is good, but I’m just not feeling so great. My shins hurt when I walk.
Bottom line: I’ve still got a decent chance of bouncing back to marathon readiness, but there’s also a decent chance that I won’t. I’m still in that annoying place of needing to remain optimistic but realistic.
Will this be worth it? If I make it to that start line, I think it will. The hardest part is that I know the closer the marathon gets, the more crushing it will be to not run. But I will not give up.
Come what may, it will be over in 7 more weeks.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
9 weeks until the marathon
Miraculously, I am still hanging in there. This week went very well!
I rode my bike on Monday. I had some minor pain in my knee when I went uphill or otherwise had to pedal hard, but I mostly felt ok.
Tuesday I did another run home from work, this time adding a loop around the path at Promontory Point to make it 8 miles. It went pretty well. It was REALLY humid, and I did have a few shin, knee, and hip issues from time to time, but overall it went better than when I ran home last week. No walk breaks. I didn't have my watch, but I made it door to door in just over 90 minutes, so that's a pretty good clip.
I felt ok on Wednesday -- no worse, but also not really any better. I wasn't having any sharp pains while walking, but I still had a sense of not-right-ness. I remembered how last week ended up, and how I wished I had skipped one of the mid-week workouts in favor of being able to complete my long run. So, I stayed home from speed work.
Thursday morning I got up and ran my 5 miles in the morning. It was pretty much the same as Tuesday. Only a few minor issues, and the rest of the day felt no worse, but no better.
I biked on Friday and everything just still felt the same. No worse -- but still not normal and not getting any better.
So, I was not feeling all that great about my prospects as I got ready for my long run Saturday morning. But, I figured I had nothing to lose. I either did this long run, or I called it quits. So considering that making my shins worse would have the same effect as just sitting it out, I did not hesitate to try for 16 miles.
I felt a little stiff when I first started out, but after the first half mile, I have to say that I felt fantastic. Something has definitely changed about my form. I'm not completely consistent about it, but there were several long stretches when I felt like I was gliding forward, rather than pulling myself along. I'm pretty sure that's because I am finally striking the ground with my foot underneath me and pushing off backward, rather than striking in front of me and using my shins to pull my weight forward.
I can't say that I didn't feel any pain ever. There were episodes of quad pain, shin pain, knee pain, and even my old friends the psoas voiced some discomfort from time to time. However, everything faded eventually. I think (hope pray beg) that all of that was just the normal kind of discomfort associated with distance running.
I finished 16 miles in 2:59:15. That's a pace of 11:12 per mile -- a pace that, if I were able to keep it up for another 10.2 miles, would give me a finish time of 4:53:44. That time also included many short stops at water fountains, as well as three longer stops to eat a gel or drink some Gatorade at a hydration station. (Bless you, Fleet Feet and hydration station volunteers. BLESS YOU!)
Since I had experienced pain pretty much through my whole lower body during the run, when I got home, I did something I never thought I would do. I took an ice bath. I filled my bath tub with enough icy cold water to submerge my legs, and I sat in it for 15 minutes. I have to say that stepping into it was among the more miserable experiences of my life, but I think it helped. I was extremely stiff yesterday after watching a 2 hour movie, but otherwise the soreness has not been bad. I did a lot of walking yesterday, and a little today, and while I had some achy-ness, overall I felt pretty good.
So, I'm still in this. I know that I still have 9 weeks to go, and plenty can happen in that time. However, I feel I have reason to be optimistic. I actually feel better today than I did on Friday, before I ran 16 miles. That has to be a good sign.
I'm planning on doing all four runs this week. Here's the plan:
Monday: bike
Tuesday: 8 miles
Wednesday: speed work (3 x 1 mile)
Thursday: bike
Friday: 5 miles
Saturday: 10 miles
Miles on my latest pair of 2150s: 38
16 miles. No matter what happens, I can always revel in that.
I rode my bike on Monday. I had some minor pain in my knee when I went uphill or otherwise had to pedal hard, but I mostly felt ok.
Tuesday I did another run home from work, this time adding a loop around the path at Promontory Point to make it 8 miles. It went pretty well. It was REALLY humid, and I did have a few shin, knee, and hip issues from time to time, but overall it went better than when I ran home last week. No walk breaks. I didn't have my watch, but I made it door to door in just over 90 minutes, so that's a pretty good clip.
I felt ok on Wednesday -- no worse, but also not really any better. I wasn't having any sharp pains while walking, but I still had a sense of not-right-ness. I remembered how last week ended up, and how I wished I had skipped one of the mid-week workouts in favor of being able to complete my long run. So, I stayed home from speed work.
Thursday morning I got up and ran my 5 miles in the morning. It was pretty much the same as Tuesday. Only a few minor issues, and the rest of the day felt no worse, but no better.
I biked on Friday and everything just still felt the same. No worse -- but still not normal and not getting any better.
So, I was not feeling all that great about my prospects as I got ready for my long run Saturday morning. But, I figured I had nothing to lose. I either did this long run, or I called it quits. So considering that making my shins worse would have the same effect as just sitting it out, I did not hesitate to try for 16 miles.
I felt a little stiff when I first started out, but after the first half mile, I have to say that I felt fantastic. Something has definitely changed about my form. I'm not completely consistent about it, but there were several long stretches when I felt like I was gliding forward, rather than pulling myself along. I'm pretty sure that's because I am finally striking the ground with my foot underneath me and pushing off backward, rather than striking in front of me and using my shins to pull my weight forward.
I can't say that I didn't feel any pain ever. There were episodes of quad pain, shin pain, knee pain, and even my old friends the psoas voiced some discomfort from time to time. However, everything faded eventually. I think (hope pray beg) that all of that was just the normal kind of discomfort associated with distance running.
I finished 16 miles in 2:59:15. That's a pace of 11:12 per mile -- a pace that, if I were able to keep it up for another 10.2 miles, would give me a finish time of 4:53:44. That time also included many short stops at water fountains, as well as three longer stops to eat a gel or drink some Gatorade at a hydration station. (Bless you, Fleet Feet and hydration station volunteers. BLESS YOU!)
Since I had experienced pain pretty much through my whole lower body during the run, when I got home, I did something I never thought I would do. I took an ice bath. I filled my bath tub with enough icy cold water to submerge my legs, and I sat in it for 15 minutes. I have to say that stepping into it was among the more miserable experiences of my life, but I think it helped. I was extremely stiff yesterday after watching a 2 hour movie, but otherwise the soreness has not been bad. I did a lot of walking yesterday, and a little today, and while I had some achy-ness, overall I felt pretty good.
So, I'm still in this. I know that I still have 9 weeks to go, and plenty can happen in that time. However, I feel I have reason to be optimistic. I actually feel better today than I did on Friday, before I ran 16 miles. That has to be a good sign.
I'm planning on doing all four runs this week. Here's the plan:
Monday: bike
Tuesday: 8 miles
Wednesday: speed work (3 x 1 mile)
Thursday: bike
Friday: 5 miles
Saturday: 10 miles
Miles on my latest pair of 2150s: 38
16 miles. No matter what happens, I can always revel in that.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
10 weeks until the marathon
Ok, so, there are several things I could say.
I could be completely optimistic, and say that I am in a much better place than last week and it looks like I will recover.
I could go with the pessimistic view, and say that I just had another week where I did not complete all of my workouts.
But I think I'm going to go with the most honest take on the situation. The truth is, I really don't know what to think.
I bike commuted on Monday.
Tuesday morning, I got out of bed at 5am feeling like I had lead in my stomach, so great was my dread at how my legs would feel if I tried to run. But I laced up and headed out, figuring I had to do it eventually.
I was supposed to do 6 miles according to the schedule, but I chose I route that would give me plenty of outs in case I had to cut it shorter. I didn't talk the 2-mile out... didn't take the 4-mile out... and headed toward 6 miles. It wasn't until about mile 5 that I started to have some suspicious twinges, so I took a shortcut home and ended up with a total of 5.5 miles. The rest of the day, my shins ached a little but didn't have any sharp pains.
All day Wednesday I debated with myself about whether to go to speed training. I thought maybe skipping it, and instead running Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday this week, might be a good idea. But I was feeling really good Wednesday afternoon and ultimately decided to go, if only to have Coach Leach look at my form.
Coach told me my foot strike actually looked really good. He did have to yell at me about my hips once, but I was able to fix it immediately, which is a good sign. The only other thing he told me to work on was evening out my arm swing. Apparently my left arm doesn't move as much as the right one and that might be making my gait uneven.
So, I did two 2-mile repeats, plus 3 miles of warm up and cool down, for a total of 7 miles -- exactly what the training plan asked for. And very little pain. I was feeling great when I went to bed that night.
Thursday I was sore, but not in my shins. I had normal-feeling achyiness in my hips and quads, which didn't particularly worry me, but also some pretty bad pain in my knees, which was new and rather annoyingly worrisome. It was much better by the afternoon, though, so I went ahead and did my next workout: running the 7 miles home from work. Running point to point was actually a really nice change from the constant out and back runs I do. I took one walk break around mile 5 because my knee hurt a little, but went to bed feeling pretty good.
Friday, however, was a tough day. I was able to bike to and from work ok, but overall, my whole body felt exhausted and beat up. I went to Fleet Feet to get some new shoes after work, and while I was walking, my shins also hurt a bit. It was more of a deep down ache than usual, but I really don't know if that is a good thing or a bad thing.
So, today, I spent a lot of time debating about what to do. I was supposed to run 9 miles. In the early morning when I would normally go, it was pouring rain. So that gave me the time to think it through. Do I skip it, and be glad that I got in all but one workout this week? Do I dare miss another long run, even if it is one of the shorter recovery runs? Would the new shoes help? Do I try for 9 miles, even if it means walking a lot of it? Do I just do a shorter run?
In the end, I decided to hit the pavement with the promise to myself that if my instincts told me to stop, I'd stop.
I ended up running a total of 6 miles. I could have finished, but I was having some suspicious swollen feelings in my lower legs, and I did not dare put myself in a place where I might have to miss the 15 miler I am supposed to do next week.
So, that was my week. I finish with 25.5 of the 29 miles I was supposed to do. Right now, other than still having a bit of that all-over tiredness, I'm not in any pain. In fact, when I got home from the 6 miles today, I didn't even feel like I need to compress or ice.
So, I continue to be hopeful but cautious. I hope I am making the right choices. I do think I needed to run today. I am not sure if I should have pushed through those extra 3 miles or not. It might have been fine, and made me feel better. But it also might have been the end of my marathon hopes.
If I can get through my workouts this week, including that 15 miler on Saturday, I will be very happy.
Here's the plan for this week:
Monday: bike
Tuesday: 5 miles
Wednesday: speed training
Thursday: 8 miles
Friday: bike
Saturday: 15 miles
Miles on my new shoes: 6
I could be completely optimistic, and say that I am in a much better place than last week and it looks like I will recover.
I could go with the pessimistic view, and say that I just had another week where I did not complete all of my workouts.
But I think I'm going to go with the most honest take on the situation. The truth is, I really don't know what to think.
I bike commuted on Monday.
Tuesday morning, I got out of bed at 5am feeling like I had lead in my stomach, so great was my dread at how my legs would feel if I tried to run. But I laced up and headed out, figuring I had to do it eventually.
I was supposed to do 6 miles according to the schedule, but I chose I route that would give me plenty of outs in case I had to cut it shorter. I didn't talk the 2-mile out... didn't take the 4-mile out... and headed toward 6 miles. It wasn't until about mile 5 that I started to have some suspicious twinges, so I took a shortcut home and ended up with a total of 5.5 miles. The rest of the day, my shins ached a little but didn't have any sharp pains.
All day Wednesday I debated with myself about whether to go to speed training. I thought maybe skipping it, and instead running Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday this week, might be a good idea. But I was feeling really good Wednesday afternoon and ultimately decided to go, if only to have Coach Leach look at my form.
Coach told me my foot strike actually looked really good. He did have to yell at me about my hips once, but I was able to fix it immediately, which is a good sign. The only other thing he told me to work on was evening out my arm swing. Apparently my left arm doesn't move as much as the right one and that might be making my gait uneven.
So, I did two 2-mile repeats, plus 3 miles of warm up and cool down, for a total of 7 miles -- exactly what the training plan asked for. And very little pain. I was feeling great when I went to bed that night.
Thursday I was sore, but not in my shins. I had normal-feeling achyiness in my hips and quads, which didn't particularly worry me, but also some pretty bad pain in my knees, which was new and rather annoyingly worrisome. It was much better by the afternoon, though, so I went ahead and did my next workout: running the 7 miles home from work. Running point to point was actually a really nice change from the constant out and back runs I do. I took one walk break around mile 5 because my knee hurt a little, but went to bed feeling pretty good.
Friday, however, was a tough day. I was able to bike to and from work ok, but overall, my whole body felt exhausted and beat up. I went to Fleet Feet to get some new shoes after work, and while I was walking, my shins also hurt a bit. It was more of a deep down ache than usual, but I really don't know if that is a good thing or a bad thing.
So, today, I spent a lot of time debating about what to do. I was supposed to run 9 miles. In the early morning when I would normally go, it was pouring rain. So that gave me the time to think it through. Do I skip it, and be glad that I got in all but one workout this week? Do I dare miss another long run, even if it is one of the shorter recovery runs? Would the new shoes help? Do I try for 9 miles, even if it means walking a lot of it? Do I just do a shorter run?
In the end, I decided to hit the pavement with the promise to myself that if my instincts told me to stop, I'd stop.
I ended up running a total of 6 miles. I could have finished, but I was having some suspicious swollen feelings in my lower legs, and I did not dare put myself in a place where I might have to miss the 15 miler I am supposed to do next week.
So, that was my week. I finish with 25.5 of the 29 miles I was supposed to do. Right now, other than still having a bit of that all-over tiredness, I'm not in any pain. In fact, when I got home from the 6 miles today, I didn't even feel like I need to compress or ice.
So, I continue to be hopeful but cautious. I hope I am making the right choices. I do think I needed to run today. I am not sure if I should have pushed through those extra 3 miles or not. It might have been fine, and made me feel better. But it also might have been the end of my marathon hopes.
If I can get through my workouts this week, including that 15 miler on Saturday, I will be very happy.
Here's the plan for this week:
Monday: bike
Tuesday: 5 miles
Wednesday: speed training
Thursday: 8 miles
Friday: bike
Saturday: 15 miles
Miles on my new shoes: 6
Saturday, July 24, 2010
11 weeks until the marathon
While I have not yet completely given up, things are not looking good.
The pain didn't go away by Tuesday. I ran 4 miles Tuesday morning, but by Tuesday afternoon, I knew I was in trouble.
Wednesday morning I started having pain while walking. My lower legs tend to swell up while I walk, giving me an uncomfortable, distended feeling below my knees after a while. Compression and ice help, but it keeps happening.
I did not try to run at all Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday. I did bike on Thursday without much of an issue, though I did have pain occasionally.
I tried to run today, but did not even get half a mile before I stopped and turned back. It only hurt a little at first, but got worse, and so I knew to keep going would be a bad idea.
I figure my best shot is to just wait until Tuesday, then pick the training schedule back up. If I am ok to run by then, I might have a shot.
I won't say that I am not devastated by this. I am. On Wednesday, the day I skipped my first workout, I cried on three separate occasions. It's incredibly frustrating and disappointing. I really believed I had gotten past this.
But, I have not quite given up yet. Here is a list of positives:
1) I really do believe I've made the best choices possible. If I do have to drop out of training, it won't be because of my own stupidity. I don't have any regrets about what I've done.
2) The shins do seem to be getting a bit better by microsteps. So there is a chance they will be ok by next week.
3) Even if this is the end of the line, I can walk away knowing that I can safely train for a half marathon. I ran for 9+ weeks, leading up to a 13 mile run, without injury. That alone is an improvement over last year.
While part of me says I should try to bike or something to keep my cardiovascular fitness up, a larger part says I should soak up every moment of leg rest that I can.
I'm trying to remain hopeful yet prepare myself for the worst. If anyone knows how to successfully do that... let me know.
The pain didn't go away by Tuesday. I ran 4 miles Tuesday morning, but by Tuesday afternoon, I knew I was in trouble.
Wednesday morning I started having pain while walking. My lower legs tend to swell up while I walk, giving me an uncomfortable, distended feeling below my knees after a while. Compression and ice help, but it keeps happening.
I did not try to run at all Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday. I did bike on Thursday without much of an issue, though I did have pain occasionally.
I tried to run today, but did not even get half a mile before I stopped and turned back. It only hurt a little at first, but got worse, and so I knew to keep going would be a bad idea.
I figure my best shot is to just wait until Tuesday, then pick the training schedule back up. If I am ok to run by then, I might have a shot.
I won't say that I am not devastated by this. I am. On Wednesday, the day I skipped my first workout, I cried on three separate occasions. It's incredibly frustrating and disappointing. I really believed I had gotten past this.
But, I have not quite given up yet. Here is a list of positives:
1) I really do believe I've made the best choices possible. If I do have to drop out of training, it won't be because of my own stupidity. I don't have any regrets about what I've done.
2) The shins do seem to be getting a bit better by microsteps. So there is a chance they will be ok by next week.
3) Even if this is the end of the line, I can walk away knowing that I can safely train for a half marathon. I ran for 9+ weeks, leading up to a 13 mile run, without injury. That alone is an improvement over last year.
While part of me says I should try to bike or something to keep my cardiovascular fitness up, a larger part says I should soak up every moment of leg rest that I can.
I'm trying to remain hopeful yet prepare myself for the worst. If anyone knows how to successfully do that... let me know.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
12 weeks until the marathon
Another week of training complete.
I ran 5 miles on Monday morning and bike commuted on Tuesday.
Wednesday I went to speed training. My schedule just said 6 miles, so I figured I'd try to hit that mileage. I ran 1.5 miles from the train to the track, did 20 x 100 m repeats with 100 m active recovery, ran an extra 2 laps, then ran another 1.5 miles back to the store to pick up my race packet. All in all it was 6 miles. It was VERY hot and humid. On the train ride home, I discovered that I was literally crusted in the salt from my own sweat. It was both disgusting and satisfying.
Thursday I bike commuted again. For once, I was grateful for the wind. Otherwise the heat would have been unbearable.
Friday I ran 6 miles in the am. I feel very rushed in the morning when I have to run that far, but I was still glad to get it out of the way.
Saturday I rode my bike down to 63rd St beach and back (roughly the same mileage as bike commuting). I discovered that riding on the path on Saturday morning is much like a real-life version of the old NES Paperboy video game. I spent the whole time dodging various obstacles, from other bikers to runners to small children to dogs to beach balls. (As an aside, I have to say that while I really like biking and am disinclined to give it up because of this, I maintain that bikers as a general group are jerks to the other people on the path. I apologize to all the runners and walkers on behalf of the bikers, despite the fact that I doubt they are sorry.)
Today was the women's 5K and 10K. I ran the 10K and finished in 1:03:15. I did not go in with a particular goal, so I am completely satisfied with the result. I am particularly pleased that I passed so many people at the end. I finished very strong, which means I paced well.
I'm having a little pain today but I am optimistic that it will fade after my rest day tomorrow. I walked to the library and back this afternoon without a big problem.
The training plan really starts to ramp up now. Besides the long runs extending to distances I haven't attempted before, the midweek runs are getting longer. I think from now on I will be running home from work on Thursdays, if I can manage to work out the logistics of that.
Here's this week. It's kind of nice that I already have one workout done.
Monday: off
Tuesday: 4 miles
Wednesday: speed work
Thursday: 7 miles
Friday: bike
Saturday: 14 miles
I'm crossing a really important threshold this week. I hope I remain uninjured. But I think I will.
I ran 5 miles on Monday morning and bike commuted on Tuesday.
Wednesday I went to speed training. My schedule just said 6 miles, so I figured I'd try to hit that mileage. I ran 1.5 miles from the train to the track, did 20 x 100 m repeats with 100 m active recovery, ran an extra 2 laps, then ran another 1.5 miles back to the store to pick up my race packet. All in all it was 6 miles. It was VERY hot and humid. On the train ride home, I discovered that I was literally crusted in the salt from my own sweat. It was both disgusting and satisfying.
Thursday I bike commuted again. For once, I was grateful for the wind. Otherwise the heat would have been unbearable.
Friday I ran 6 miles in the am. I feel very rushed in the morning when I have to run that far, but I was still glad to get it out of the way.
Saturday I rode my bike down to 63rd St beach and back (roughly the same mileage as bike commuting). I discovered that riding on the path on Saturday morning is much like a real-life version of the old NES Paperboy video game. I spent the whole time dodging various obstacles, from other bikers to runners to small children to dogs to beach balls. (As an aside, I have to say that while I really like biking and am disinclined to give it up because of this, I maintain that bikers as a general group are jerks to the other people on the path. I apologize to all the runners and walkers on behalf of the bikers, despite the fact that I doubt they are sorry.)
Today was the women's 5K and 10K. I ran the 10K and finished in 1:03:15. I did not go in with a particular goal, so I am completely satisfied with the result. I am particularly pleased that I passed so many people at the end. I finished very strong, which means I paced well.
I'm having a little pain today but I am optimistic that it will fade after my rest day tomorrow. I walked to the library and back this afternoon without a big problem.
The training plan really starts to ramp up now. Besides the long runs extending to distances I haven't attempted before, the midweek runs are getting longer. I think from now on I will be running home from work on Thursdays, if I can manage to work out the logistics of that.
Here's this week. It's kind of nice that I already have one workout done.
Monday: off
Tuesday: 4 miles
Wednesday: speed work
Thursday: 7 miles
Friday: bike
Saturday: 14 miles
I'm crossing a really important threshold this week. I hope I remain uninjured. But I think I will.
Saturday, July 10, 2010
13 weeks until the marathon
Well, I am thrilled to report that my shins seem to have made a miraculous recovery.
I had Monday off in observance of the 4th, and I ran 3 miles then. I was able to do it non-stop, but had a general sense of not-right-ness in my lower legs that left me less than optimistic about the longer runs on my schedule.
Tuesday I bike commuted with no issues. Even if I DO get injured, at least I will still have that. It makes me feel a little better.
Wednesday I went to speed training, and Coach had us doing 2-mile repeats. And I thought it couldn't get any worse than 1-mile repeats. But, I did two of those, plus a mile warm up and cool down, so 6 miles for the night -- more than my usual Wednesday 5. I ran them nearly pain free, and instead of picking at my hip placement, Coach griped about my arm swing. I am choosing to interpret that as progress.
Thursday evening I went on a 5 miler in really high humidity. I suffered, believe me, but it was due much more to the heat than to my shins.
Friday I bike commuted, and had the great luck of being on my bike through the entirety of a 30-minute rain shower. ON MY WAY THERE. It was a rather uncomfortable day. But I suppose I should be grateful that my work environment is casual enough that it didn't really matter.
This morning, I headed out at about 6:15 for a 12 miler. This is another situation when the schedule showed two distances -- one for the first-time marathoner, and one for a vet. They were 12 miles and 15 miles, respectively. Last time this came up, I went with the longer distance, and that is when I started to have troubles with my shins. Thus, I started out with the intention of only doing 12.
However, as I got going, I started thinking about my training for the half marathon last year, and it occurred to me that I had never run more than 12 miles without taking walk breaks. I ran 13 miles twice -- once in training, and once during the race itself -- but both times, I walked a lot. And suddenly I really, really wanted to go the whole distance without walking. So, I decided to run my first 6 miles, decide how I felt, then perhaps go an extra half mile before turning around.
Long story short, I still felt good after 6 and did not turn around til 6.5. And I finished 13 miles, plus an extra block to count for the .1 in 13.1, in 2:22:43 -- eight minutes faster than my half-marathon time and just under my goal pace of 11-minute miles.
Today, I ran farther than ever before without walking. Good for me.
I have done a lot of walking and generally being on my feet since my run this morning, and there have been no major complaints from my shins. They hurt a little from time to time, but really not any more than any other part of me -- and believe me, I am sore in a lot of places. But in a good way, if that exists.
In the spirit of being ever-cautious, I must point out that last week's bout of shin splints did not show up until 3 days after my long run. So, I can't really say that I am in the clear. However, the signs are all quite good. I have to believe that while my gait is not perfect, it has improved enough that I seem to be avoiding long-term injury.
Next week's long run is supposed to be 7 miles, but instead, I'm running a 10K (6.2-mile) race on Sunday. It's an all-woman race, and I am really looking forward to it. However, because it is on a Sunday, which is usually my rest day, it throws a wrench in my schedule. I do not particularly want to move my rest day to Saturday, as that would mean I would have to do six consecutive workouts following the race. So, I think I am going to move what would normally be on the following Monday -- either a bike ride or a 4-mile run -- to Saturday, and take Monday off.
So, here's the next week, plus a couple days:
Tomorrow: rest (hurray!)
Monday: bike
Tuesday: 5 miles
Wednesday: speed training
Thursday: bike
Friday: 6 miles
Saturday: bike
Sunday: 10K race
Monday: rest (hurray!)
Way to rally, shins. Way to rally. Now please stay tough. I promise to keep icing and compressing you liberally.
I had Monday off in observance of the 4th, and I ran 3 miles then. I was able to do it non-stop, but had a general sense of not-right-ness in my lower legs that left me less than optimistic about the longer runs on my schedule.
Tuesday I bike commuted with no issues. Even if I DO get injured, at least I will still have that. It makes me feel a little better.
Wednesday I went to speed training, and Coach had us doing 2-mile repeats. And I thought it couldn't get any worse than 1-mile repeats. But, I did two of those, plus a mile warm up and cool down, so 6 miles for the night -- more than my usual Wednesday 5. I ran them nearly pain free, and instead of picking at my hip placement, Coach griped about my arm swing. I am choosing to interpret that as progress.
Thursday evening I went on a 5 miler in really high humidity. I suffered, believe me, but it was due much more to the heat than to my shins.
Friday I bike commuted, and had the great luck of being on my bike through the entirety of a 30-minute rain shower. ON MY WAY THERE. It was a rather uncomfortable day. But I suppose I should be grateful that my work environment is casual enough that it didn't really matter.
This morning, I headed out at about 6:15 for a 12 miler. This is another situation when the schedule showed two distances -- one for the first-time marathoner, and one for a vet. They were 12 miles and 15 miles, respectively. Last time this came up, I went with the longer distance, and that is when I started to have troubles with my shins. Thus, I started out with the intention of only doing 12.
However, as I got going, I started thinking about my training for the half marathon last year, and it occurred to me that I had never run more than 12 miles without taking walk breaks. I ran 13 miles twice -- once in training, and once during the race itself -- but both times, I walked a lot. And suddenly I really, really wanted to go the whole distance without walking. So, I decided to run my first 6 miles, decide how I felt, then perhaps go an extra half mile before turning around.
Long story short, I still felt good after 6 and did not turn around til 6.5. And I finished 13 miles, plus an extra block to count for the .1 in 13.1, in 2:22:43 -- eight minutes faster than my half-marathon time and just under my goal pace of 11-minute miles.
Today, I ran farther than ever before without walking. Good for me.
I have done a lot of walking and generally being on my feet since my run this morning, and there have been no major complaints from my shins. They hurt a little from time to time, but really not any more than any other part of me -- and believe me, I am sore in a lot of places. But in a good way, if that exists.
In the spirit of being ever-cautious, I must point out that last week's bout of shin splints did not show up until 3 days after my long run. So, I can't really say that I am in the clear. However, the signs are all quite good. I have to believe that while my gait is not perfect, it has improved enough that I seem to be avoiding long-term injury.
Next week's long run is supposed to be 7 miles, but instead, I'm running a 10K (6.2-mile) race on Sunday. It's an all-woman race, and I am really looking forward to it. However, because it is on a Sunday, which is usually my rest day, it throws a wrench in my schedule. I do not particularly want to move my rest day to Saturday, as that would mean I would have to do six consecutive workouts following the race. So, I think I am going to move what would normally be on the following Monday -- either a bike ride or a 4-mile run -- to Saturday, and take Monday off.
So, here's the next week, plus a couple days:
Tomorrow: rest (hurray!)
Monday: bike
Tuesday: 5 miles
Wednesday: speed training
Thursday: bike
Friday: 6 miles
Saturday: bike
Sunday: 10K race
Monday: rest (hurray!)
Way to rally, shins. Way to rally. Now please stay tough. I promise to keep icing and compressing you liberally.
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