3/30 short run

I tried going for a run again today for the first time in a week or so. I went to a chiropractor this morning to check out my spine and make sure none of the hamstring issues were coming from anything spinal. Good news is that isn't the case. She said it just felt strained. Obviously I don't want to deal with any spine stuff, so that was good. Then Marc did a brief massage this morning and he said that my hamstring felt a lot looser so this was a good sign. I made it for about 15 minutes and those first 15 minutes felt pretty good. Then all at once I felt the tearing/stabbing pain in the tendon and I was done. I did a little walking and a little jogging back to my car, came home, and stretched and iced. I'm going to resort to my last hope on Wednesday which is a deep tissue massage targeting right where it hurts the most. That'll take place on Wednesday, and if Lisa can't work miracles, I'm out for Boston. I'm hoping it'll go well and loosen everything up, but if not I'll be taking off several week and then just going back to base building which will involve many high mileage weeks until I get as fit as I possibly can.

pluses: things are going well at Emmaus

minuses: run didn't go well

25 miles and Cap 10K

Today I rode my bike from my house to the Cap 10K race. Brian ran it, as did many of the Team Rogue folks, so while I was bummed to not run I was excited to watch everyone else. It was about a ten mile ride to downtown and it was cold! Once I got there I met up with Brian to wish him luck. Then I rode to Lavaca and 15th to watch everyone come through. After I saw Brian I headed to Mopac and Lake Austin Blvd, then to the finish line. It was good to see everyone race and it seems like everyone had a good day...especially considering they're coming off of a 24 mile long run. My ride back to the house involved warmer weather and a lot more traffic, but it was fine. I am going to the dr. tomorrow am to get a potential diagnosis on my leg, so we'll see how that goes. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

pluses: great weahter

minuses: missing bball games

20 miler

Bike ride that is :) Since I'm on my non-running recovery, I decided to go for a ride this morning. Brian and I went out Old San Antonio Rd and rode through Buda. It was a great ride and really nice weather. Although I was a little envious of my friends doing the 24 miler this morning, I really enjoyed mixing things up. I have to admit that at first I was really frustrated about the possibility of not running Boston. It was the last thing I wanted to hear when Steve mentioned it last week. But I think I've had some chance to gain a little perspective and realize it's one race in the long term plan. It'd be great to go out and there and run well, but if it's not in the cards then that's not the end of the world. I have been going to South Congress Gym lately and they have a program called Roll 2 Walk. They rehabilitate people with spinal chord injuries to try and help them learn to walk again. Everyday I go to the gym there's someone there working there butt off trying just get out of their wheelchair, so me not being to run for a few weeks is really nothing in the big picture. I think it's just helped me to realize that I am so freaking blessed in life, and while this may be a little bump in the road of my running life...it's not a big deal.

pluses: Katie's bday party, ride with Brian

minuses: not prepared for talk tomorrow

still no luck

I tried running again today and failed. After about 2 minutes it felt like my hamstring tendon was going to rip in half. The hamstring pain used to be just a general tightness, and if I slowed down it would go away. Now it feels like something more serious and I'm worried about doing more damage. Looks like I'll be out for a least a few more days....maybe longer. I feel my insane fitness level that I reached just slipping away. 26 days left. It's not looking so good.

back on the IR list

No running today. Missed out on a warhurst...but oh well. Looks like there won't be any more quality work for me at all...and maybe no Boston. I'm still not comfortable with making that decision at this point because in my mind 27 days is a long way away. I'm going to try to run again tomorrow and see how that goes. Basically I'll be taking it one day at a time and hope I can get back to at least a lydiard build routine by Boston. Even if it's just easy mileage, I think it'll be enough to help me run decently at Boston. Probably not a 2:55...but hopefully at least a PR. The easy mileage is what had me feeling so fit before any hamstring issues. If I can get back to how I felt in late December and early January I think I'll be fine.

pluses: lunch with Brian today

minuses: no running

failed attempt on greenbelt

I tried to run on the greenbelt today. I made it about 9 minutes. My hamstring tendon was really sore. I was hoping it'd loosen up, but that wasn't the case. It just got worse as I kept going, so Tim and I changed the run into a walk. Looks like I may be out of action again this week unless Marc can work some miracles. Going to see him at 4:00pm.

pluses: productive around the house

minuses: running

long run

I joined up with Bruce and some of the north group today to take part in the easy miles of their soulbuster. Bruce and I ended up missing a turn and we put in 16.2 easy miles before their faster pace started. I actually felt better than I had in awhile. I ate well and hydrated yesterday, and got a decent amount of sleep. I think those things all added to a pleasant start. My foot is kind of bothering me. I have a pain on the top of my foot, about an inch from where the ankle meets the foot. I have no idea what it's from. It could be from the birkenstocks I wore a lot the past few days, or from the crappy old tennis shoes I wore all week at workcamp. I also played basketball for a few hours in old shoes. I'm hoping some ice will do the trick. It's not super painful, just an annoyance. After the first 16.2, I decided I'd do some of Bruce's mgp work. He was shooting for 6:52's for 5 miles. The first mile felt great and we were right on track. The second mile felt long, but again, we were right on. Shortly after that, I got a really sharp pain in my hamstring tendon. It was enough pain to make me pull up and stop...and walk/jog in the rest of the way. So that definitely isn't a good sign for the upcoming week. If 6:52 pace causes problems...then hitting 6min pace on the track for the warhurst could be rough. The good news is it's already feeling more lose than when I finished. So I'm hoping ice will relieve this as well so I can be ready for the week ahead. My plan is to run on the trails tomorrow to see if that works things out.

pluses: 4 runs over 18 miles and 5 runs over 20 miles since SA

minuses: body seems to be falling apart

the last couple of days

I've been pretty MIA with regards to running with the team the last two weeks. I've done one run with them since March 7th which was the SB II. It seems pretty crazy because for awhile there I was running with the group basically everyday. I had a mandatory break, then this last week was spring break. It wasn't a running break, but I did take it easy and laid off all quality. I ran everyday except Wednesday, but was either by myself or with other running friends outside of rogue. On Thursday I did an 11 mile run from the camp we were at in Marble Falls. I felt pretty good, just had some knee pain when I finished. Then on Friday I did a 10 mile run on Slaughter. I was a bit more sluggish, but it was a long week at work camp so I wasn't too surprised. Today I ran 13 miles with Tim at the lake. I could've run with the group (they were doing 14) but I didn't have much interest in running the hills of Scenic. Instead I settled for a nice flat course. Tomorrow I'm going to meet up with Bruce and the North group to run their Soul Buster II. I'm not doing any of the fast mileage, I am just looking to get a good long run in. They're doing 15 miles easy, 5 miles at MGP, and then some track work. I'll do the first 20 with them but probably won't bring it down to MGP. I'm thinking if I feel good I'll bring it to 3hr MGP with Bruce. My mileage has been relative low the past several weeks so that's why I want to get in a 20+ mile run this weekend. Hopefully it doesn't hurt me too badly for the warhurst, steroid rollers, 24 miler, and CAP 10k that are coming up in the next 7 days....

pluses: great weekend with family, boat ride tonight

post soul buster II

It's been a busy few days since the SBII and unfortunately I haven't had much time to recover. After the run on Sunday I set off for a busy afternoon of wedding stuff with my sister and parents (she's getting married in Sept). It was all successful, but really all I wanted to do was to hang out on the couch on Sunday. Then I was up early on Monday, got in a quick 4 miles (actually it was a really slow four miles) to try and loosen up my legs before heading out towards Marble Falls for the rest of the week for Work Camp with my teens. We've done a variety of jobs from cooking and cleaning to moving rocks, digging trenches, etc. I'm completely wiped out from it. Today I went for a run from the camp that totalled about 8-9 miles. It was really hilly but I kept up a pretty good paces. My running still feels more labored than I think it should and I don't feel like I have a fluid stride. I'm sure some of that is not fully recovering from Sunday's run yet. This is my last week away from the team...then a have a month to get back on track before Boston. Good news is  I get to sleep in a real bed tonight and not work in the morning (I'm back in ATX for a funeral...then back to work camp after that). My plan is to run for an hour tomorrow, Thur, and Friday...and then I'd like to do an actual long run over the weekend. We'll see.

pluses: teens seem to be enjoying work week

minuses: poor nutrition, not enough sleep

soul buster II

Today was the infamous soul buster II. I've been nervous about the workout because I haven't run much at all this week. I put in 7 on Friday and 7 on Saturday...so that's pretty low mileage for the week :) Been nursing a hamstring/hip/lower back issue that doesn't seem to be getting any better. The workout was a 20 mile run that ended with about 7 miles of hills. Then at the end of the 20 miles you were on the track at Austin H.S. The portion on the track was supposed to be 2 miles at marathon goal pace (6:40), 2 miles at half marathon goal pace (6:20) and 2 miles at 10k pace (6:00). I wasn't too far off, but definitely have some work to do. My miles were as follows:
mgp1: 6:39
mgp2: 6:38
hmpg1: 6:19
hmgp2: 6:16
10k 1: 6:12
10k 2: 6:14

In the fall when I did the workout my splits were as follows:
mgp 1: 7:15
mgp 2: 7:15
hmgp1: 6:48
hmgp2: 6:48
10k 1: 6:23
10k 2: 6:18

So I have gotten faster, but my goal this year is 15 minutes faster than what I was training for last year....so obviously things on the track need to be faster this time around. I really didn't feel good at any part on the track. I worked really hard to not let my hamstring or anything give me an "out" on the workout. I wanted to try and hit the 2:55 goals, and I didn't want to get through half of it and say "oh that hurts, I should stop." And while I didn't hit my goals, I never let up. I was pushing as hard as I could the whole time. My problem was just that I never felt loose or had a fluid stride so it was really hard to get down to 6min pace. I had that pace for the first 800m or so of the first 10k mile, but I couldn't keep it there. The good news is I didn't die too much....but I still have work to do.

pluses: time with family, nicer weather

minuses: my body hurts!

two more days..then I'M BACK

Two more days of no running. I've been on a mandatory break from Sunday until Thursday. I cheated on Monday (I know, I'm weak) and went out for an easy 4 on the Greenbelt. About a mile and a half into the run I stepped on the edge of a rock and twisted my ankle. It wasn't bad, but it was enough of a sign that my body is saying STOP (and my friends, coach, husband, etc). I've had enough twisted ankles in my basketball life to know this isn't a bad one. It was just a little swollen and sore the past few days, but I think it'll be fine by Friday. I have been going to the gym everyday to work on strengthen my core. Marc has decided that is the root of all of my problems. The weaknesses I have allow my pelvis and hips to not give me an even amount of support on each side, so when I stride out hard or fast with my right leg, it's pulling on my hamstring. I think this break along with continued work in the weight room should take care of the problem. The good news is my attitude about running is becoming positive again, which is much needed. I had some other personal/health issues last week that kept me really preoccupied and I think that added stress made my emotions towards running a bit more out of control than usual. The good news is I had a good doctors appt yesterday and everything is fine...just a minor herniated muscle in my abs. It doesn't hurt, so it's no big deal. I was just freaking out because I didn't know what it was. The rest of the week is going to involve eating right, getting and staying hydrated, and getting enough sleep to have a pain free and hopefully successful 28 miler on Sunday!!

pluses: lunch with C Hall

minuses: traffic, bad driving weather

travis country LAB

We met at Central Market this morning for a 4 mile warm up to the Travis Country 5 mile loop. The plan was to do three of these loops at MGP, with a 2 minute break between each one. My plan was to do one, see how my hamstring felt...and then decide how to proceed. The warm up was fine. Humid and a little stiff, but not bad. I've been training at 2:55 pace which is a 6:40 mile..so that was my goal for the loops. I managed to be inconsistent, at best. Last season when we did this workout, I remember I didn't wear a watch but just latched on to the "train" and was right on every mile. This year I'm kind of in no man's land and I'm really struggling to hit paces. I'm either too fast or too slow. When I go out too fast I end up paying in the end. I've learned this lesson but haven't figured out how to prevent myself from repeating the same mistakes. The splits for each of my loops is below:
loop 1 loop 2 loop 3
6:31 6:30 8:08
6:28 6: 31 6:34
6:34 6:27 6:47
6:50 6:40 7:04
6:56 7:07 7:23

I have a couple of conclusions to draw from this....first of all, I wasn't smart on the first loop. I went out too fast, and wasn't "fit" enough to finish at the same pace. The out and back and hill on the last part of the loop were tough and I paid because of the fast start. The second loop is actually the only one I wasn't too far off. I went out fast again (which was stupid) but I actually felt pretty strong. I felt like I was in a comfortable rhythm and when I thought I was fading I was actually right at MGP. Going up the last hill on the 2nd loop, my hamstring really started to hurt. I intentionally let up at this point and took it in easy (hence the 7:07). I thought about calling it quits, but after talking to Steve I decided I needed the mileage so I'd go out easy on the third loop and just jog the whole thing if necessary. After a mile of letting my leg loosen up, I tried to push it again. I was relatively successful, but when it started tightening up again towards the end I backed off. The good news is I got in a full 23 miles and my actual average for the MGP miles was 6:50...which includes the 8 min mile. So while I wasn't consistent, I wasn't too far off overall.

On the cool down I was fine. I actually came back in faster than I went out. The big question mark in my mind is how much of my inconsistency and inability to nail workouts right now is fitness vs. mental vs injury. I'm sure it's some sort of combination of the three. The possibility of readjusting my Boston goal came up which I really wasn't happy to hear. 2:55 doesn't sound too crazy for me and 6:40 hasn't felt hard...but I'm not running 6:40, I'm going out too fast and running harder than that on most of the workouts. The ease of the cool down made me feel like my fitness is not the problem, but I'm not 100% convinced of that. If it is part injury, hopefully the next few days will take care of that. I'm going to back off and stick to some easy trails or just off days. I have to get my hamstring 100% so I can figure out what the real issue is. If it's mental, that's a different ballgame and I'll deal with it one work-out at a time.

pluses: kids enjoyed middle school retreat

minuses: not enough sleep

recovery/easy day

I went out for two easy runs today. This first was on the greenbelt with Robin and Mindy. They hadn't run there before and wanted to check it out. We went for an easy run around 4 miles. My hamstring felt pretty good. The run was nice because it was great weather and I enjoyed the company. It was a good reminder of why I love running as opposed to yesterday's debacle. The rest of the morning I didn't have any pain walking around...just a little stiffness. Then this afternoon, per Marc's instructions, I went to the gym to do some of the new exercises he showed me yesterday. After those, he wanted me to do a shake out run and see how my leg felt. Initially, it felt pretty tight. I'd say about a 5 on a pain scale of 1-10 (10 being I can barely walk and 1 being feels like a million bucks). After about 10 minutes it loosened up and the rest of the run was ok. My legs were a little heavy, but all in all it wasn't bad.

pluses: weather, salt lick

minuses: traffic

discouraged

And the trend continues...one great workout, followed by a sore hamstring, followed by me blowing up at the next workout. From the get-go I felt tight. Started off with the front pack on the rollers. They got a little quick when Steve started rolling will them, and I quickly feel behind. Tried to hang with Kamran for awhile, but struggled there too. Then Mike and Damon flew by...then I started getting pissed. Not at them, of course, just mad at myself...actually not mad, just frustrated. I can't keep yo-yoing back and forth and expect to run well in Boston. I need to be able to consistently work hard...and while my I'm not suffering from a lack of effort...I just can't do what I need to right now and stay healthy. The 2 min on 2 off was decent for the first part...then I fell apart. I went easy and gradually picked it up on the "tempo" part back. Total mileage 13.3. Total pace, including warm-up and cool down: 7:17. Boo.

pluses: time with family

minuses: crappy mood, irritated hammy

semi-off day

I knew today was going to be a busy day so I figured I'd make it my "off" day and just run on Friday. I had an early mtg at Emmaus, followed by another mtg, followed by picking up my mother-in-law and sister-in-law. I wasn't sure what there plans were, but I knew we had about 3 hours together until I had to head back to Emmaus. Lucky for me, they wanted to run. We did an easy 4 mile loop at the lake. They're from MI where it is cold, so they were anxious to spend some time outside. I think it was actually a good shake out for me. My hammy is pretty tight from yesterday. It just doesn't seem to be fully healed yet. It was feeling pretty good last week, but then when I pushed the pace yesterday it seemed to revert back to how it felt before. Not horribly bad to the point that I can't run...just sore and tight. I'm meeting up with Marc from SoCo again tomorrow, so maybe he'll have some insight. Looks like my mileage is going to be plenty high this week. Robin and Mindy want to do the 4 mile loop again on Thursday and Friday...so if I do that, tomorrow's rollers, and the Saturday long run...I'll be at 70 miles. Followed by a short shake out run on Sunday, I'll be set on mileage. Hopefully my body takes it well because I'd really like to keep my mileage at 70+ during the quality stage. I don't want to chase a number...but it seems like that'd be a good workload to shoot for!

pluses: time with family

minuses: lots of driving

warhurst

I was pretty scared coming in to today's workout. Ever since I ran the SA marathon, Steve's been talking about the warhurst and how hard it was going to be for me to complete. I hadn't run it before, so I didn't know what to expect. The only good thing I had going for me was that I've completed some pretty tough track workouts in college...so I knew the mental toughness was there. The workout was 5 (yes that's right, 5) sets of 1 mile at tempo pace, quick recovery, 1200 at 10k pace, and a quick recovery. The recovery was about a 400 meter jog. The recovery saved me. I think that my ability to recover during each set was a true testament to the fitness I'm acquiring. Anyways, according to McMillan (not Mike's iPhone app), my tempo pace is about half marathon pace, or 6:20. My 10k pace is 5:59. For the sake of easy math, I gave myself the extra second to make it an even 6 min mile pace for 10k. So for a 1200, I should've been coming in at 4:30. We were instructed to take the first mile a little bit slower (b/t hmgp and mgp) and then settle in . My sets looked like this:

set 1
mile: 6:28
1200: 4:15
set 2
mile: 6:16
1200: 4:26
set 3
mile: 6:16
1200: 4:27
set 4
mile: 6:15
1200: 4:25
set 5
mile: 6:17
1200: 4:18

I was really happy with the results. I ran the first set with Larry, Ken, and Kamran. After the first one (which was too fast for me on the 1200), Larry & Ken stopped for water and Kamran and I kept going. It was easy to lock in with him and keep a consistent pace, which we did on the 2nd and 3rd set. He stopped after that because he's nursing an injury...so I was on my own for the last two sets. I was a little concerned because I'm not the best at keeping a steady and consistent pace...but I was right on the money. I guess I'm actually learning how different paces are supposed to feel. My last 1200 was fast because I was chasing Larry and Ken...but it was intentionally fast, so that's ok. After the workout we had a slow cooldown back to barton springs and I enjoyed a nice/freezing soak with Mike. Today was the first quality workout and I'm off to a good start!

pluses: confidence, nice weather

minuses: tight hamstring