So I haven't posted anything in a bit. Ok, more like forever. Here's the quick and dirty version of what I have been up to.
First off, real life: I finally got that promotion that I should have gotten 3 years ago. Strange thing about that, absolutely nothing at work has changed. Still doing the same thing but now I can afford a few extra pairs of running shoes.
Alright, when last we met I had just run the CVS Downtown 5k and was mildly pleased with the results. From there I continued to train being ever mindful to slowly up the mileage and pace so as not to aggravate the injured Achilles. Soon it was time for the Ho Ho Ho 5K and I was excited to run it. I planned on hitting a 7 minute pace and putting in a solid show. But the guy in front of me decided to go a wee bit faster so I stuck to him and then turned on the jets for the final mile and ended up twelfth overall with a 20:36. Alright! Getting back in shape!
And of course that didn't last. I went out for a normal run one day and ended up with sharp stabbing pain in my heel. That basically put my training on hold for a few weeks while I cut down on mileage and intensity to make sure I didn't do anything stupid like re-injure myself. Eventually it cleared up but the email from the BAA informing me that the marathon was 10 weeks away was most definitely not welcome news. I was way behind on my training at this point and getting nowhere fast.
I should also mention that up until this point I had been dealing with a severe case of shin splints. It didn't stop me from running but it certainly stopped me from doing any serious training. Damn things really hurt.
A few weeks ago everything started to clear up though. My heel/Achilles was feeling pretty good, the shin splints were getting much better and I was looking forward to really train. So I did. The past two weeks I have felt good and have got some great runs in. The Old Fashioned Ten Miler is this Sunday and I plan on using it to test where I am at endurance-wise. That is, I was planning on using it as a litmus test, right up until yesterday. I went for an 8.8 mile run (totally didn't mean to go that far) through the puddles and slush and snow which was fun but as soon as I stopped I realized there was a pretty bad pain in what I think is my Adducter muscle in my hip/groin. And it still hurts, which totally sucks.
So right now I am dead in the water. Running will definitely make this worse so I have to wait and see. I'm hoping that it is just overuse and a few days of rest will clear it up, I really don't want to skip the OFTM but I really don't want to screw it all up and miss the marathon. FML.
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Friday, September 21, 2012
CVS Caremark Downtown 5K
Take eight!
This was my eighth year in a row running this race. The only streak I have going as it concerns my running. I always make a point to run this race, not because it's a flat course, that hill at the end is a killer, but because the weather is always awesome. I'm not kidding, eight straight years of absolutely gorgeous, if not hot, weather. Now that's a streak!
Unlike previous years I decided that I only needed a week to get ready for this one. So with a total of about 6.8 miles of training I set out to conquer the all-new 5K course. I'm kidding of course, I planned on just finishing and not looking like a fool. The closer the day got though the more I began to have an idea. As I had previously mentioned I needed to bring some fun back to running. Enough with the doom and gloom of ten months of no running (oh the shame!) I needed an attitude adjustment. So I started to look forward to the race more and more. At least it was something to do! And though even all my friends abandoned me and I had to do it alone, I was determined to have a good time.
And I did. As I said, the weather was gorgeous, everyone was in high spirits and I was just happy to be out running. I'm so used to running this race that everything was on autopilot so I could just take it all in and have some fun.
I also ran pretty well. I purposely kept it slow, except for the start where I went out at a 6:30 pace until I finally realized that my GPS watch was not playing tricks on me. I kept a steady pace and took in the new course. When it was all over I had run my second slowest time of that race but I didn't care at all because it may have been one of my slowest 5K times ever, but it was my fastest time ever having run a 5K:
This was my eighth year in a row running this race. The only streak I have going as it concerns my running. I always make a point to run this race, not because it's a flat course, that hill at the end is a killer, but because the weather is always awesome. I'm not kidding, eight straight years of absolutely gorgeous, if not hot, weather. Now that's a streak!
Unlike previous years I decided that I only needed a week to get ready for this one. So with a total of about 6.8 miles of training I set out to conquer the all-new 5K course. I'm kidding of course, I planned on just finishing and not looking like a fool. The closer the day got though the more I began to have an idea. As I had previously mentioned I needed to bring some fun back to running. Enough with the doom and gloom of ten months of no running (oh the shame!) I needed an attitude adjustment. So I started to look forward to the race more and more. At least it was something to do! And though even all my friends abandoned me and I had to do it alone, I was determined to have a good time.
And I did. As I said, the weather was gorgeous, everyone was in high spirits and I was just happy to be out running. I'm so used to running this race that everything was on autopilot so I could just take it all in and have some fun.
I also ran pretty well. I purposely kept it slow, except for the start where I went out at a 6:30 pace until I finally realized that my GPS watch was not playing tricks on me. I kept a steady pace and took in the new course. When it was all over I had run my second slowest time of that race but I didn't care at all because it may have been one of my slowest 5K times ever, but it was my fastest time ever having run a 5K:
as the Freakin' Batman!
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| na na na na na na, me |
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Well That Was Quick
Oh yeah.
Going to the big show.
Fingers crossed, let's hope everything holds together. I'm looking at you Achilles.
Going to the big show.
Fingers crossed, let's hope everything holds together. I'm looking at you Achilles.
Yes, you
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Monday, August 20, 2012
No Wonder Why
I was perusing some blogs today when I came upon one particular one. It was all about getting out and doing a race for no reason other than to just get out there; no agenda, no expectations, just go have some fun. And like the proverbial ton of bricks it hit me, no wonder why I've been so depressed about my lack of running, it 's not just that I haven't been running, I haven't raced since October 30th of last year.
One of the first things I tell new runners is to go out and pick a race that they want to run. The reason is that this gives them a goal, something they can remember when they are sweating their asses off at 4:30 in the morning. It's the reward for all of the time and effort that you have put in to getting there. Basically, it's the fun part. Now I know some people are saying, "Racing, fun? What the..?" But it really is. You get to throw caution to the wind and just run run run as fast as you can while chasing down and fending off opponents. And some times they have prizes too!
So yes, I like to race. It is the only part of my life that I get competitive about and I can be super-serious when it comes to race time. At the end of the day though, whether it is a marathon I've trained months for, a fun local 5K, a run up a mountain, or an Ultra relay across New England, the one thing I have always tried to find in every race is the fun. Racing has always made me happy because of the challenge it brings; what else in our lives gives us the opportunity to see how far we can push our limits?
With that part of my life gone for so long now it is no wonder that I've been feeling so low. There are studies out there that have shown that running can be a form of addiction which could explain my attitude the last few months. Race time was always something that I could look forward to and get excited about but this morning I suddenly realized that not only have I lost anything to look forward to I've actually come to be depressed about the races I do have on the calendar. My last post is a shining example of this!
It's time for an attitude change. I am signed up for the Providence 5K in September and up until now my attitude towards it has been, meh. It shouldn't be like that, I need to remember the fun and excitement. Now I know I'm not going to PR it, at this rate I just hope to be able to run the whole thing, but I can use that knowledge. Since a PR is out of the question, and in fact I can't even run fast, there is no pressure at all for this race. Maybe I can do something that I haven't actually done in years; take some time during a race to enjoy the course, the other runners, the spectators. In short, to go out and have some fun.
One of the first things I tell new runners is to go out and pick a race that they want to run. The reason is that this gives them a goal, something they can remember when they are sweating their asses off at 4:30 in the morning. It's the reward for all of the time and effort that you have put in to getting there. Basically, it's the fun part. Now I know some people are saying, "Racing, fun? What the..?" But it really is. You get to throw caution to the wind and just run run run as fast as you can while chasing down and fending off opponents. And some times they have prizes too!
So yes, I like to race. It is the only part of my life that I get competitive about and I can be super-serious when it comes to race time. At the end of the day though, whether it is a marathon I've trained months for, a fun local 5K, a run up a mountain, or an Ultra relay across New England, the one thing I have always tried to find in every race is the fun. Racing has always made me happy because of the challenge it brings; what else in our lives gives us the opportunity to see how far we can push our limits?
With that part of my life gone for so long now it is no wonder that I've been feeling so low. There are studies out there that have shown that running can be a form of addiction which could explain my attitude the last few months. Race time was always something that I could look forward to and get excited about but this morning I suddenly realized that not only have I lost anything to look forward to I've actually come to be depressed about the races I do have on the calendar. My last post is a shining example of this!
It's time for an attitude change. I am signed up for the Providence 5K in September and up until now my attitude towards it has been, meh. It shouldn't be like that, I need to remember the fun and excitement. Now I know I'm not going to PR it, at this rate I just hope to be able to run the whole thing, but I can use that knowledge. Since a PR is out of the question, and in fact I can't even run fast, there is no pressure at all for this race. Maybe I can do something that I haven't actually done in years; take some time during a race to enjoy the course, the other runners, the spectators. In short, to go out and have some fun.
Thursday, August 9, 2012
I'm giving up
This is not the post I wanted to be writing. Even though I've put it off for a while now, it's time to face facts.
About a month ago I was feeling pretty good, good enough that I decided to start running again and see how things went. So I started running, slow, short runs to test the water; think one mile runs. It definitely proved that I wasn't yet 100% but it was encouraging. Then came that run one Monday; it was about 2.5 miles and the pace was faster but not crazy. I could tell during that the Achilles wasn't good, and it wasn't, and it continued to not be for days afterwards. Not painful per se, but worse than it had been. All of which just proved to me that I still wasn't ready to run. And I have no idea when I will be.
So what, right? I've gone this long, what's another month or two? What changed is that I happened to look at my calendar the other day. This is what I saw:
I put those entries into my calendar within days of running my qualify time back in October. With ten separate alerts tied to the appointments to remind me to register I would say that I was a bit excited. Now, reality is crashing down on me.
At this point I am all but out of time to start any sort of training regime. I kept telling myself as one month of not running turned to three which turned to nine which now has no end in site that there was time. Always more time. Maybe I wouldn't be shooting for a 2:55 but I'd be ready to run a nice solid marathon. Now I need to realize that those dreams are rapidly fading away. If I was 100% ready to run right now I could still be ready, but I'm far from that point.
So I'm left with only a couple of options. Register as planned, hope for the best, and maybe put in a weak showing during the marathon. All the while hoping that I've healed enough to not make things worse during training and the race. Or, scrap all plans on running Boston. This second option really pisses me off though. Not running means that all that work and training was ultimately for nothing. Yes I will always be thrilled with my last marathon time and I'm happy I ran it, but the intent was to qualify for Boston. Not being able to run is, in my mind, a failure. Whenever I think about the situation all I can hear in my mind is this clip from Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory:
Except, unlike Charlie, I did nothing wrong. In fact, I did everything right and yet I still lose. So when I said that it was time to face facts at the beginning of this post what I meant was that it is a growing fact that no good will come of this situation. The silver lining I tried so desperately to cling to is slipping away and I can see that at best I may be at the starting line this April. Or not. Either way it's a shitty situation I find myself in right now and I'm really tired of it.
About a month ago I was feeling pretty good, good enough that I decided to start running again and see how things went. So I started running, slow, short runs to test the water; think one mile runs. It definitely proved that I wasn't yet 100% but it was encouraging. Then came that run one Monday; it was about 2.5 miles and the pace was faster but not crazy. I could tell during that the Achilles wasn't good, and it wasn't, and it continued to not be for days afterwards. Not painful per se, but worse than it had been. All of which just proved to me that I still wasn't ready to run. And I have no idea when I will be.
So what, right? I've gone this long, what's another month or two? What changed is that I happened to look at my calendar the other day. This is what I saw:
At this point I am all but out of time to start any sort of training regime. I kept telling myself as one month of not running turned to three which turned to nine which now has no end in site that there was time. Always more time. Maybe I wouldn't be shooting for a 2:55 but I'd be ready to run a nice solid marathon. Now I need to realize that those dreams are rapidly fading away. If I was 100% ready to run right now I could still be ready, but I'm far from that point.
So I'm left with only a couple of options. Register as planned, hope for the best, and maybe put in a weak showing during the marathon. All the while hoping that I've healed enough to not make things worse during training and the race. Or, scrap all plans on running Boston. This second option really pisses me off though. Not running means that all that work and training was ultimately for nothing. Yes I will always be thrilled with my last marathon time and I'm happy I ran it, but the intent was to qualify for Boston. Not being able to run is, in my mind, a failure. Whenever I think about the situation all I can hear in my mind is this clip from Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory:
Except, unlike Charlie, I did nothing wrong. In fact, I did everything right and yet I still lose. So when I said that it was time to face facts at the beginning of this post what I meant was that it is a growing fact that no good will come of this situation. The silver lining I tried so desperately to cling to is slipping away and I can see that at best I may be at the starting line this April. Or not. Either way it's a shitty situation I find myself in right now and I'm really tired of it.
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Adventures in Acupuncture
For the past couple of months I have been seeing an acupuncturist to try and speed along the healing with my Achilles. It's been pretty nice I guess. Basically he sticks me with a bunch of needles and then I fall asleep on the table for 40 minutes. Not a bad break from the day I will admit.
It has actually been more than that. He has been working my ankle and leg joints, giving me advice on stretches, and throws in the occasional cracking of the back for good measure. So does this mean that it has helped? I have no idea. Some days my heel feels great, others it can be annoying. At the end of the day though, he is actually trying to help. Not just by telling me to wait and let it heal, but by trying to get to the root of the problem and fixing it. I feel like I have spent the last nine months just waiting around for it to get better on its own so it is a nice change to feel like I am actively participating in my recovery.
I am still hyper-sensitive to every single little twinge and pain that emanates from my heel but there is no doubt that it is getting better. So much so that I have started to think about, wait for it...going for a run. Whoa! I know, a crazy thought but I think I may be at the point where I need to test it out and see how everything reacts. We shall see, soon.
It has actually been more than that. He has been working my ankle and leg joints, giving me advice on stretches, and throws in the occasional cracking of the back for good measure. So does this mean that it has helped? I have no idea. Some days my heel feels great, others it can be annoying. At the end of the day though, he is actually trying to help. Not just by telling me to wait and let it heal, but by trying to get to the root of the problem and fixing it. I feel like I have spent the last nine months just waiting around for it to get better on its own so it is a nice change to feel like I am actively participating in my recovery.
I am still hyper-sensitive to every single little twinge and pain that emanates from my heel but there is no doubt that it is getting better. So much so that I have started to think about, wait for it...going for a run. Whoa! I know, a crazy thought but I think I may be at the point where I need to test it out and see how everything reacts. We shall see, soon.
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| I only wish I looked this good with needles all over me |
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