Hope To Run Again Before End Of The Year

am - Two days of no running on the roads and my legs felt pretty good.  I woke up early and went for a 4 mile run before work.  I can already tell the new shoes are making a difference.  The bottoms of my feet were hurting the last couple of weeks.  But so far not in these shoes.  I lost track of the mileage in the others but it should have been between 300 and 400.  I ran slow and easy.  But the calf twinged a little near the end.  But the best thing about this morning's run was the way the wind was blowing.  It allowed the wonderful smell of freshly baked doughnuts to permeate the air from the local bakery.  * feel free to leave your favorite police officer / doughnut joke in the comments section.

pm - After work went out for another 6.  Again, I kept it easy....or at least I tried to.  I was running by feel but when I checked some of the splits I realized I was running a little faster than I should be right now.  The best thing for me right now is just to keep running easy miles until my legs are ready to do more.

4.07 - 8:40, 8:19, 8:15, 8:14, :33 - 34:04 - 8:22 avg.

6.35 - 8:01, 7:52, 7:46, 7:57, 7:46, 7:59, 2:49 - 50:13 - 7:54 avg.

Well I certainly cannot do this everyday.  Whew! But hopefully one day I can look back and say I just went out for an easy 10 mile run.

Tried a different route today.  More hills than usual.  Winds are forecasted from 10 -20 today, and it felt like it.  Mostly in my face the 1st half and on my back the 2nd.  I ran on the the shoulder of the road for the most part in the dirt, grass, and rocks.  I think this may have helped cushion my legs a little more compared to the asphalt.  Legs are tired now.  Probably an easier and shorter run tomorrow.  And if the legs are hurting too much I will take a rest day.  Just do not want to do anything to injure them again.

1	8:22	6	8:14
2	8:11	7	8:13
3	8:09	8	8:07
4	8:09	9	8:06
5	8:07	10	8:02
		.11	:51

10.11 - 1:22:35 - 8:10 avg.

I really planned on running 8:30 miles.  I need to discipline myself to take it easier for awhile.

Nothing special about this morning's run.  Legs were tired and so was I.  So it was easy to keep it easy today.

6.35 - 8:49, 8:43, 8:32, 8:22, 8:13, 7:56, 2:42 - 53:20 - 8:24 avg.

Went out for 8 today.  About 3.5 miles in I realized I was feeling pretty good.  The pace seemed controlled, the breathing was good, and the legs felt fine.  Well there is still that twinge of something in my left femur/quad area.  I wonder if it will ever go away.  Hopefully it just does not get worse.  My split on mile 7 was a little fast.  It just happened.  Of course then I tried to hold it on the last mile.  I could feel the extra effort then.  I need to just keep plugging along, getting in the miles with slower paces.  One day the legs will be ready to try more, but for now I will take anything I can get.

8.02 - 8:08, 8:01, 7:56, 7:50, 7:54, 7:56, 7:39, 7:36, :10 - 1:03:15 - 7:53 avg.

Had no urge to get out the door today and run, and I am not sure why.  Probably because tonight starts my week of working Midnight's...which I really hate.  Tomorrow will most likely be a rest day as my body will be out of whack from the sleep disruption.  Then I will try to adjust and get some miles in Wednesday.  But going back to today, I made myself go.  I wanted to get in 8 but figured 6 would be ok.  No set route just ran along and let the Garmin keep up with the miles.  After 4 miles I knew I could do at least 6.  The at 5 I decided instead of turning towards home I would keep going another mile.  So I ended up with 8 in the end.  I also found myself running a little faster.  I think it is because I thought I might stop earlier than I expected and figured I would make the most out of what I did.

8.05 - 7:54, 7:49, 7:46, 7:57, 7:43, 7:46, 7:39, 7:34, :24 - 1:02:35 - 7:46 avg.

Usually after working the 1st Midnight I do not feel like running at all.  But I slept in longer than normal today and it helped me gain and extra 1.5 hours of sleep.  Then I took my daughter to her dance class.  After getting home and everyone going to bed I decided to go out.  For the 1st time in a long time my legs felt great.  My house in on top of small hill.  I usually warm up by running down it about .1 miles and then walking up the other side which is another .1 mile.  Something about starting a run uphill has always bothered me.  Anyway, I could tell right away on my mini warm up the legs had a bounce and no signs of any pains.  The left leg twinged from time to time in the later miles, but other than that it was a good run.  I also felt rushed towards the end as well.  I had to come home and shower then get to work.

8.39 - 8:06, 7:50, 8:03, 7:59, 8:00, 7:53, 7:51, 7:49, 3:01 - 1:06:36 - 7:56 avg.

Ow ! Ow ! Ow !

I got my flu shot this morning when I got off from work.  It hurt.  And it still hurts hours later.  I hate shots.

Woke up earlier today and could not fall back asleep.  Waited a little over an hour and went for my run.  I was trying to keep it easy and not go sub 8:00 per mile.  Still did so a couple of times, but I could tell this was an easier pace for me.  Legs still feeling good this week.  The new shoes must be helping more than I realized.

8.05 - 8:17, 8:13, 8:10, 8:06, 7:56, 7:57, 8:12, 7:59, :27 - 1:05:20 - 8:06 avg.

Today was the 8th day of running without a day off.  Over the last 7 days I had put in a little over 59 miles.  Which is much more than I have ever done.  But even so the legs still feel good.  But I still need to be careful in over doing it to fast too soon.  Still ran today though.  I decided it would be a shorter run.  After the 1st mile for some reason I decided I would run the next 3 fast, and see what kind of pace I could hold.  I guess this is a tempo run, but not sure the exact definition of a tempo.  Recovered the last mile.  On the 3 miles, splits were consistent with one another and just a little slower than my pace on my 10K last month.  The last mile had 2 small hills which made the split slower, but I think the effort was about the same as the previous 2.

Tomorrow will be a rest day.

5.34 - 8:22, 7:13, 7:09, 7:17, 8:38, 2:44 - 41:26 - 7:45 avg.

A planned day off and an extra hour of sleep. In the last 8 days I put in 64 miles.  That is the most in a row for me.  And the legs feel pretty good considering.  I am happy with that.

One day of no running = 48 hours of rest.  That is some weird math.  Must be the same as my schedule showing a day off on the same day I have already worked 8 hours on Midnight shift.

Ran 8, and on the last 4 tried to catch the 8:00 guy.  Got him good over tha last 2 miles.

8.11 - 8:22, 8:11, 8:04, 7:58, 7:55, 7:50, 7:40, 7:38, 1:02 - 1:04:43 - 7:58 avg.

Felt good today.  Miles seemed to get easier as I went along.  Hope it stays this way or better.

8.13 - 7:56, 7:50, 7:48, 7:50, 7:39, 7:42, 7:37, 7:31, 1:06 - 1:03:03 - 7:45 avg.

Switched from Midnight Shift to real life hours today. Body does not always do well with this change. So no run today.

Big day planned. Going out of town to do our Ho, Ho, Ho shopping for the kids. So I got up early for a 6 mile run. Then it was off to Richmond to the malls. By the end of the day my feet hurt so bad. Especially the middle toe and ball of my left foot. But overall it was a good day. My wife and I were able to get most of the stuff we had hoped to. Even better we did not even argue once all day, and even found time to have a nice dinner together. When I got home I went for another run. This time I was in a hurry to get it done. So I went pretty close to all out. Hopefully legs can handle it.

6.05 - 8:29, 8:16, 8:14, 8:15, 7:58, 7:42, :25 - 49:21 - 8:10 avg.

4.10 - 7:32, 7:14, 7:05, 6:42, :56 - 29:31 - 7:12 avg.

Today was a bad running day for me. It was warmer than usual, 79º. When shopping yesterday I did not take in very much fluids. And only had a cup of apple juice this morning before running. My legs were a little tired from the shopping as well. But my desire to run and keep running was stronger than my desire to skip or quit. The last 4 miles were tough. I noticed I was not sweating as much. And I also did not have enough saliva to spit. My lack of hydration was apparent. I was very thankful to finish and happy for a cold drink and shower afterwards.

10.05 - 7:57, 7:49, 7:46, 7:53, 7:58, 7:38, 7:50, 7:47, 7:54, 7:47, :24 - 1:18:49 - 7:50 avg.

Legs were tired, and so was I. My left foot is still hurting pretty bad. So I went to the gym today. I figured the elliptical would be good for my foot. I started with 3 miles on the treadmill at 8:00 minute pace. Then 4 on the elliptical. My best guess would be that I gave at least an 8:20 effort. Then another 3 on the treadmill at 8:00 pace. Lots of sweating. Felt good afterwards.

3 miles - treadmill - 24:00

4 miles - elliptical - 33:20

3 miles - treadmill - 24:00

Total: 10 miles - 1:21:20

Wanted to run a little less today. Planned to go 8:00 pace. Was very surprised with a 7:50 on the 1st mile. That's when I heard it for the first time...a horse was neighing a little bit and wanted to get out. But my horse sounded more like Mr. Ed than lets say the Lone Ranger's Silver. So I decided to keep it easy on the 2nd mile. Then run a faster pace for miles 3 & 4. Nothing crazy, just faster than my average training pace. Both of these felt pretty good. Backed it down on the final 2.78 miles. Overall I felt good on this run, but at the 5.5 mark my left quad area started to ache again. I will have to keep my eye on this.

6.78 - 7:50, 7:58, 7:09, 6:56, 7:52, 7:40, 6:01 - 51:30 - 7:35 avg.

Ball of my left foot is feeling worse. Hurts more when walking around than it does when running. I have been keeping my shoes on in the house to lessen the pain a little. I have not looked up this type of pain yet, but need to. Still not hampering my running....yet.

For today I wanted to run the 1st and last 2 miles at 8:00 pace and the middle for at 7:30 pace. I was close enough except on the last mile.

I was pleased with my running this week. The legs feel good and mentally the miles seem shorter than they used too.

8.06 - 7:53, 8:04, 7:33, 7:23, 7:22, 7:18, 7:53, 7:33, :28 - 1:01:30 - 7:37 avg.

Planned rest day.

Unplanned rest day

My eyes still cannot believe what they are seeing for the total miles today. Somebody pinch me.

Well things did not go well with my work schedule yesterday so I had to skip the run. My plan was to do my best today to make up some of those lost miles. I figured my legs should be fresh and today would be the best day to run extra.

I woke up early and did a nice 5 miles. Ran past the donut shop and was glad I was not carrying any money with me. I certainly would have stopped for a few jelly donuts to take home and enjoy after the run. After showering and eating I went to my son's preschool. His class sang 3 songs in the church. They did pretty good for a group of 4 and 5 year olds.

This afternoon I set out for 10 miles. I wanted to run by feel, but I think my slow and relaxed pace has become faster by about 10 seconds or so. So going by feel I was running faster than what I planned. But I felt good while doing it.

Now all of the above was the good news....here is the bad.

The ball of my left foot still hurts when walking. Hardly noticeable when running. And now my right foot, just above the heel hurts. This had only been hurting while walking the last few days. But it hurt the whole afternoon run. It was not enough to effect how I ran though. When I get some more time I need to look this pain up.

am - 5.31 - 8:01, 7:49, 7:55, 7:49, 7:54, 2:28 - 41:58 - 7:54 avg.

pm - 10.06 - 7:52, 7:53, 7:42, 7:47, 7:47, 7:37, 7:42, 7:38, 7:33, 7:37, :30 - 1:17:41 - 7:43 avg.

Every time my running starts heading in an exciting and positive direction I get stricken with an injury. Now it is 2 of them. Hopefully neither is serious and will only take away a a few days to a week of no running to make them feel better. The first is the ball of my left foot. Hurts bad without shoes on, but managable with them. The second is my achilles tendon on my right foot. That is hurting with and without shoes.

I knew running was out of the question today. And I was nervous about using the elliptical and the bike. I could see where both could aggravate the injuries further. Of course this is just intuition and not based on any other facts. So it was off to the pool I went. I had not swam a lap in almost 3 months. And it showed. I managed 1500 yards before I wore out. I tried the breaststroke for 100 yards, but it really hurt the achilles when I would snap my legs together. So it was almost all freestyle, with a couple laps of backstroke thrown in. I wished I had done at least a mile though. After the laps I decided to aqua jog. I did not have my belt with me, but that was ok. I figured it was at least an 8:20 per mile effort.

I forgot to check, but I assume the pool will be closed tomorrow. So I will get back there Friday for some more laps.

1500 - mix of strokes - 28:39

Aqua Jog - 1 mile - 8:20

The achilles pain was on and off again today.  I might walk around for 15 minutes, then it would tweak some.  Seems like anytime I walked faster than a leisure pace or pushed off with any effort it would hurt.  So another day in the pool.

Got in 2000 yards.  Arms were sore and heavy from yesterday.  Times are way off from 3 months ago.  Also aqua jogged a mile.

Two Thanksgiving meals in one day....boy am I stuffed !

2000 yards - mix - 38:03

Aqua Jog - 8:20

My poor arms feel so sore and tired from the last 3 days of swimming. The ball of my left foot and my right achilles feel no better. Swam 1000 free. Aqua Jogged, with the belt, for 25:00. Then 300 free.

Swim - 1300 - .738 - 23:04

Aqua Jog - 3 miles - 25:00

Rest / Recovery

Rest / Recovery

What a discouraging day. After 2 days of rest / recovery I was hoping the achilles would feel better. I am not noticing it when doing normal walking around. I do not feel it at all without shoes. And only a little with shoes on. So I go to the pool and do a quick swim. Then was planning on a couple miles on the treadmill followed by a couple more on the elliptical. I began warming up with a walk on the treadmill. But I could feel it twinging so I decided to skip it all together. On the elliptical I stopped after 4:15. Never was there enough pain to make me not be able to run. Rather I figured if I can feel it, then I better rest it more. I also tried the AirDyne But cold feel it on there too.

So I went home. I guess the proper thing to do would have been put my bathing suit back on and get in the pool for more laps. Or some aqua jogging. But the desire was gone. Tomorrow I will plan on more laps and running in the pool.

Swim - 1200 yards - 21:34

Elliptical - 4:15 - Which I guess equaled a 1/2 mile.

Been 10 days without a run, and several without any workout at all. The worst part is I did not even care. And this was gnawing at me a little bit. I also noticed I did not care about what or how much I have been eating lately. While the scale has only showed a pound or two increase I could swear my face and belly look a little rounder. Then all of a sudden I thought about going for a run. I wasted no time in changing clothes and getting out the door. Not sure how much of an excuse I needed to change my mind, so I figured I better hurry.

The left foot feels about the same and the Achilles is feeling better, but not 100%. As far as pace, I knew immediately I was running faster than normal. Then I decided to just go for it. Go fast, get tired, and only slow for anything that felt like and injury.

I felt good considering the layoff. And the feet were ok. My body began shutting down the last 25 yards. If I had another 25 to go, I would have had to walk it.

I needed a run like this to remind me how much improved I have become in only a few months. I needed a run like this to remind me why I want to stay fit. I needed a run like this to show myself what I can do now, and in the future. I needed a run like this.

I will try to run some more, but slower, if my feet allow it. If not, then I will cross train like I did all Summer until I am ready to go 100% again.

5 miles - 7:20, 7:16, 6:52, 6:53, 6:27 - 34:49 - 6:58 avg.