Unleashed

I'm learning to run again, again.  With the help of my physical therapist assessing a video of my running, I learned that I have been under striding.  A year ago I decided to change my running form from heel striker to mid foot striker.  According to my PT, my foot strike is good, but my stride length is short.  This week I tried to lengthen my stride while maintaining my usual cadence, and my speed increased. I felt unleashed!

Training This Past Week:

Mon.: 7 miles, hilly with some speed intervals; 8:47 pace
Tues.: 8 miles, some hills; 9:05 pace + 8 x 100 strides
Wed.: Cycling class
Thurs.: 7 miles; 8:15 pace
Fri.: no workout
Sat.: 18 miles; 9:02 pace

Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Coming to Raleigh

The Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series has selected Raleigh as a new addition to its schedule beginning in April 2014.  When I first learned of this, I thought Raleigh had hit the big time.  I was excited about the news and thought I would run the race because my experience with the Rock 'n' Roll half in Virginia Beach was great.  I wondered why the marathon would come here.  I'm sure they did research about the numbers of runners here and studied stats about visitors to the city.  Still, I don't think of Raleigh as an exciting destination.  Perhaps the race will make it so.  The Rock 'n' Roll half marathon in Virginia Beach is a destination race.  A friend of mine recently participated in the Rock 'n' Roll half in Las Vegas.  That's a destination race.  And now we add -- Raleigh.

I would imagine the City of Oaks and Tobacco Road Marathon directors are nervous about how this new addition will affect these already established races.  Rock 'n' Roll will be in direct competition with Tobacco Road because of the Spring race dates.  I foresee many locals trying out Rock 'n' Roll the first year because of the excitement associated with the newness of the race.  This most likely will detract from the number of runners for Tobacco Road.  I don't foresee a large out-of-town presence for the race in its first year, but the Rock 'n' Roll staff will try to prove me wrong. After the glitz and glam of the first event, fans of Tobacco Road should be back to support our local, home-town race.

I am reading that some local runners plan to boycott Rock 'n' Roll.  Runners can be loyal to races.  Some of us go back to races year after year because of our familiarity with the course or because of the great time we've had at a race.  We are fortunate to have two local marathons and numerous half marathons here already.  Let's hope that this new addition serves to get more people in the Triangle running and grow the sport, and make all of the good races here even better.

In other news, I finished my first long run in several weeks and am thrilled. Additionally, I went to a physical therapist to determine why I had calf issues and how to avoid them.  From the assessment, I learned that I have weak hip muscles, which is a contributing factor.  Because of the muscle imbalance, my calves were having to do additional work.  Now I am doing specific exercises for this and plan to do more strength training after the marathon.  During the appointment, my calf was treated with a laser to stimulate blood flow and speed healing.  Physical therapy will continue twice per week for the next week or two.


Training for the past week with 7 weeks until Boston:

Mon.: 5 miles, slow
Tues.: 6:36 miles at 8:49 pace + 30 mins. bike
Wed.: cycling class + 30 mins. bike
Thurs.: 7.35 miles at 9:10 pace
Fri.: cycling class + yoga class
Sat.: 15 miles at 9:16 pace

Return to Running

Today was my first run in two weeks, and my heart was filled with joy.  With a steady rain and temperatures in the 30's, I chose the Y treadmill option to try out my leg.  At the outset my senses were assaulted, but eventually I found myself easing into my own insulated, bubble world with mindless pop music and a rhythmic pace.

The treadmill was situated on the small, elevated, indoor track with a view of the gym below where two simultaneous children's basketball games were being played with cheering fans on the sidelines.  Balls hitting the exposed racquetball courts behind me echoed off the walls.  Runners ran in circles in front of me on the track.  I turned on Mumford and Sons to an unsafely loud level to cover it all.   While I noticed the noise and commotion, I was happy to be on the treadmill and focused intently on the feel of my right calf with every footfall.

After several miles without a hitch, my concern turned to joy.  I was so elated that I told myself I should run 10 miles, which would give me a nice psychological boost.  Common sense returned, and I reminded myself to be safe; I'm just trying to make it to the starting line.

I remembered good gym member etiquette of using a machine for only 30 minutes when others are waiting and flirted with the notion of running a couple of miles on the track, but instead insulated myself and kept moving.  I wore my hot pink leg compression sleeves, which will likely be permanent training and recovery accessories from here on out even if just for the good luck they brought today.

I finished strong and found a friend cycling on the track.  From our discussion and her evident concern, I decided I will see a physical therapist this week to work on whatever is causing my calf problems.  I had been in a holding pattern, hoping I would be okay after two weeks of rest.  I was myopic about where to go from here as I focused on staying positive each day.

Mon.: cycling class + 1 hr. elliptical
Tues.: 1 hr. bike
Wed.: cycling class + yoga
Thurs.:  90 mins. bike
Fri.: cycling + yoga: no workout/conflict
Sat.: 8 miles treadmill at 10 min. pace

Cross Training for Boston

I was nervous as I began a conservative 15 mile run on the flat American Tobacco Trail last Saturday.  I ran into my Boston training companion by chance on the Trail and told her I was hoping for the best (which was to complete this run pain free).  She wished me well and then sped away to continue her long run at race pace.

At 3.75 miles I felt a pop in my right calf, my problem calf.  I was stunned; I was at the beginning of a flat, slow run and had felt fine when I returned to running earlier in the week.  I stopped, walked, and was stretching at the time that members of a men's college team ran past.  When the group approached, I was pushing against a bench with my legs outstretched more as an outlet for my emotions than as relief for tight legs.   I knew I would be walking the mile back to the parking lot, but I couldn't resist the urge to try to jog after the pop.  Futile.  Utterly futile.

When I got home, I counted the weeks of training that had passed and the weeks until Boston. Nine weeks down and nine weeks to go.  And I counted the minimum number of long runs and speed workouts I would miss if I can recover quickly: four weeks worth of long runs and speed workouts.  In those four weeks I should have been increasing my weekly mileage and the duration of my long runs.

This time I will cross train for two weeks, but I have now lowered my expectations for race day.  How low they go is yet to be determined.  At this point, let's just say that I'm delaying buying plane tickets.  I said a while ago that if I made it into the Boston Marathon, I would enjoy the sights and take it all in.  Then I changed my attitude and was going to race Boston to the best of my abilities.   If I am able to make it to the starting line and finish this race, no matter what my time, I will be grateful indeed.

Resumed training after injury:
Mon.: no workout
Tues.: 5 hilly miles; 9:23 pace
Wed.: 7 hilly miles; 8:58 pace
Thurs.: 8.84 miles; 4 miles treadmill at 9:15 pace and 4.48 miles of hills and trails at 9:11 pace
Fri.: cycling class + yoga
Sat.: 15 conservative miles; 3.75 miles completed


Resorting to cross training (again) after re-injury:
Mon.: 1 hr. elliptical
Tues.: no workout (traveling on vacation)
Wed.: cycling class + 45 min. bike
Thurs.: bike for 55 mins.
Fri.:  cycling class + yoga
Sat.: cycling class + 1 hour bike

Caged

I have been reminded twice this past week how fragile we are, yet how strong the spirit can be. Encouraging words and prayers of a dear friend have helped lift me through the week.  I was reminded again to be thankful for the capability of my body and for the motivation to use it to run for my physical, mental and spiritual well being.  Running is a gift.

My Thursday run was a gift, but I didn't realize it in the moment.  I was anxious about how I would feel and how far I could go, so I chose to run on a treadmill.  On the cardio balcony at the Y, I felt caged.  The sides of the treadmill wrapped around me, and black netting hung in front of me to protect me from children's stray balls.  A man on the elliptical machine next to me worked at a frenzied pace for 30 minutes and then left me in peace.  It was cold outside, and I thought the run, if I could do it, would be a reprieve from the elements.  Instead, it reminded me of how much I love to run outside.

Boston Training:  Week Nine

Monday:  50 mins. bike
Tuesday: 1 hr. bike + 1 hr. elliptical
Wednesday: cycling class + yoga class
Thursday:  rest
Friday:  8 miles on treadmill
Saturday:  90 mins. bike
Sunday: rest

Minor Injury

Last week I felt tightness in my right calf.  I had a massage to work it out and went about my training for several days. This Thursday the discomfort returned, and I decided to visit a sports medicine doctor.  His assessment is that this is a minor injury, probably a pulled muscle or tear, and he recommends one to two weeks of cross training.  This next week I will take a break from running to heal.  If something like this was to happen, I'm glad it's happening now and not closer to the race.


Mon.:  6 miles; 9:53 pace plus 6x100 m strides
Tues.: 7.5 miles;  7:57 average pace for 5 miles plus warm up and cool down
Wed.: 50 mins. bike
Thurs.: 10 miles; 9:15 pace (not completed) Did weights instead. Felt pain at the start of the treadmill run and went to Sports Med. doc.
Fri.: cycling + yoga; not completed because discomfort still present.
Sat.: 16 miles with 9 miles at 8:20 race pace; not completed per doc's advice.  90 min. bike instead.

Aerial7 Sounddisk Sports Beanie Review

Back view of the Aerial7 Sounddisk Sports Beanie

My husband is a techie, a runner, and a bargain hunter.  Naturally, he found the Aerial7 Sounddisk Sports Beanie on a discount website and bought two of them.  It doesn't matter that he takes a break from running in the Winter; he couldn't pass up the deal.  Retail price for this hat with built-in earphones is $45, but he got it for a steal.

When he showed me the royal blue hat, I was intrigued, but when he tried it on, it was one of the most unfashionable items I had ever seen.  It's one size fits all, and a giant could probably wear it.  It has extra fabric at the top that, to me, makes it look odd.  I wouldn't be wearing one, I commented, and  I continued wearing my headband that covers my ears on cold runs.

Facing a long run today with temperatures in the 20's at the start, I reasoned that I should probably wear a hat.  In years past on runs in the teens and 20's I have resorted to wearing my decade-old, powder blue,  Land's End fleece hat that looks smart with a car coat.  That could not be any less fashionable either on a running trail, so I decided to give the Sports Beanie a try.

Front

My husband helped me fold the extra material on the back of the hat so that it looked like a good fit. That solved my problem with wearing the hat.   A downside is that it doesn't have a hole for a pony tail, but it has so much room, that I was able to wear a braided pony protruding from my head and push all of my hair up and under the hat.  The neat feature is the built in earphones.  They worked well, and only once during my 17 miler did one shift away from my ear.  The user has the option to wear her ipod in the pouch on the back of the hat or attach it elsewhere using an extension wire.  The tech fabric is so lightweight that I didn't feel like I was wearing a hat (unlike my bulky blue standby).  This was the way to go on this cold morning.   I would recommend this hat, and I was a naysayer.

Cold, crisp morning in Umstead State Park

Boston Training: Week 7

Monday: 8 hilly miles; 8:54 pace
Tuesday:  50 minutes bike + weights
Wednesday: 9 hilly miles; 9:01 pace
Thursday: 6 miles easy; not done because of tightness in right calf. Message instead to work it out.
Friday:  cycling and yoga; only yoga class today because of 2 hr. school delay, etc.
Saturday: 17 hilly miles; 9:35 pace

Remnant of a rare snowfall in Raleigh, NC