Cool Runnings!

I was originally hoping to run 12 miles today, but decided fairly early on that I was going to cut it short, to make sure I didn't do anything to my calf. Being able to run at St. George is my most important goal, and I don't want to do anything to jeopardize those chances. Ran 1/2 mile to warm up, then ran 6 miles in 50:20, for an average pace of 8:23/mile. My calf is a little tight, but it didn't cramp up like yesterday, so I take that as a positive.

I didn't run this morning, as I was recovering from some sort of virus, but felt good enough this evening to do something, so we took the kids to the track and they played around and ran a little bit while I did some 800 repeats. Did 4 repeats: 1 - 3:17 (too fast), 2 - 3:25 (better, but I was shooting for 3:30), 3 - 3:30, 4 - abt 3:15. On my last repeat, I picked up the pace the last 200 and ran it like an interval. In spite of the fact that it was still 100 degrees out, it felt good. I am going to soak my legs in the tub tonight and will see about doing a nice slow run tomorrow morning.

Happy Fourth of July! Afer my 800 repeats yesterday evening, I had planned on a nice slow run. Started out nice and slow, but then ended up picking it up, even though it didn't feel like it. Total time was 32:32, for an average pace of 8:08/mile. I am going to go out later and measure the course - somehow it seemed to be shorter than what I had thought. Otherwise this was a really good run for me.

Same route as yesterday - I am going to take it easier this week to try to get my leg back to normal. Ran the 4-mile loop in 33:00 today, for an average pace of 8:15/mile.

Ran 2 miles in the morning on the treadmill, at 8:34 pace. Ran 5 miles in the afternoon on the treadmill, started at 8:34 pace, then set the incline at 1 for the second mile, dropped back down to 0 for the third mile and bumped the speed up to 7:30/mile for the 3rd mile. Dropped back down to 8:34/mile for the 4th mile and increased the incline to 2. Dropped the incline back to 0 for the 5th mile and increased the speed to 7:00/mile for the last mile.

I took it easy today to avoid over-stressing my calf. I also have started to do some core strength training (crunches, leg lifts) and added calf exercises to that as well. Ran 6 miles in 50:00 for an average of 8:20/mile. I may add a bit of distance later this evening - if so, I will update my entry.

I am really getting irritated by this calf injury now - after a week of no problems, I went for a 6 mile run this morning, only to have my calf start to cramp up again after 4.5 miles. Luckily I wasn't that far from home, and was able to take a shortcut. I am afraid I am going to need to shut it down for a couple of weeks and do some cross-training to allow my calf to heal. I will plan on icing it several times a day, and will also start up on the ibuprofen. I am very disappointed, and can't figure out why this is happening to me again, but would rather get it taken care of now than have to pull out again.

So after deliberation and suggestions by some of the SGM forumites, I decided to go ahead and run today. There is a good chance that part of my troubles may be caused by lack of vitamins/minerals in my diet, so I went out and bought some multivitamins today. I also am continuing to take ibuprofen and icing my leg daily. Did 0.5 mile warmup on the treadmill at 6 miles/hr, then ran 4 miles at 7 miles/hr, then cooled down for 0.5 miles at 6 miles/hr. Felt good, no pain in my calf. I also hooked up my heart rate monitor on a whim, and was very encouraged. Average HR for the run was around 153-152, never got above 160. I am also continuing to do exercises to strengthen my core as well as the calf exercises. Will probably run again on the treadmill tomorrow, as it is too late for me to get up early and still get enough sleep.

After today's workout, I am beginning to think that perhaps I am running just slow enough that my stride on my slow runs may be part of the problem. That or maybe too much running on the roads. I did the following workout on the treadmill today:

0.5 mile warmup at 6 miles/hr

0.5 miles at 7 miles/hr (8:34 pace)

1.5 miles at 7.5 miles/hr (8:00 pace)

2 miles at 8.5 miles/hr (7:03 pace - and it felt good)

0.5 miles at 8 miles/hr (7:30 pace)

1 mile at 7 miles/hr

Boy did I feel good after this run. My stride felt the most efficient when I was doing my 2 mile interval in the middle of the run. I am continuing to do the other things - ibuprofen, icing, also putting absorbine jr on the area before I run. No calf pain today, no calf pain yesterday. Maybe some of it is in my head as well. I think this is about the time last year that I strained my calf . . . :)

I felt a little sluggish when I got up this morning, but I am getting used to that feeling. I am just not a real early morning person. I did run again on the treadmill instead of outside. 0.5 mile warmup at 6 miles/hr, then ran 4 miles at 7.5 miles/hr (8:00/mile). I made an observation today that may have had something to do with my calf - my normal stride running slower seems to have my pelvis tilted forward too much, which keeps me from using my stronger quads and hamstrings. When I consciously tilt my pelvis back, all of a sudden my stride is easier and I can feel my upper legs taking on more of the work. I think I am on to something here. Strengthening my core is going to definitely help with this - as my abs get stronger, they will be able to tilt my pelvis back automatically.

I am kind of guessing on the distance. We are in Colorado Springs until Monday at a family reunin, and I ran this morning for 36 minutes. It was a killer. Elevation was around 6500 ft, and I had some hills to navigate, plus pushing my 18 month old in a jogging stroller. Lungs were burning at the end of this run, but my legs felt pretty good. I am planning on doing 10-12 tomorrow at a nice easy pace, which will put me at 34-36 for the week.

The distance is a fair guess - I ran for just over 1:20, and there was a good amount of downhills. I could still tell that I was at altitude, as my lungs were still burning. All in all, I am happy with this run - I was aiming for 10 miles, and thought this was pretty good. This puts me at 33 miles for the week - I think this is my most mileage ever. And my calf is still doing fine now!

Was unable to run on Monday due to travel, and did not run yesterday as I have been recovering from an eye infection. Ran 5 miles today - was planning on running 6, but took it out a little too hard, and decided to ease off. Total time was approx. 41:15. I am planning on running 7-8 miles tomorrow, and will also increase my long run this week. The one thing I have going against me is the heat - it continues to be hotter in the early morning - this morning it was 92 - and we are now in monsoon, which means the humidity is up as well. Probably time for me to slow down some more. Next week should be back to normal, and I should be able to get upwards of 35 miles in next week.

Ran approx. 5.5 miles this morning, felt very sluggish. It was hot and humid this morning. Total time was 44:30.

Ran approx. 7 miles this morning - felt good. I can tell that it is still hotter than I would like, but I feel I am getting used to the weather. Total time was 1 hour. Planning on 12-13 miles tomorrow for my long run to keep my weekly mileage over 30 miles. Calf still feels good. I am confident that I am past the stage where I need to keep worrying about it.

Well, I apparently did not eat enough this morning, as I was pretty drained of energy after 10 miles and decided it was in my best interest to stop. Not to mention the fact that it was already hot out, and we ended up getting up to 118 today. I will consider this week kind of a rest week, since I didn't get to run on Monday or Tuesday, and will get back into the rhythm of things this coming week. As I did almost 34 miles the week before last, I will plan on 37-38 miles this week. Getting closer to my weekly mileage goal of 50+ miles.

Ran 4 miles this morning, it was muggy again and hard to get going. My legs were still a bit dead after my 10 miler on Saturday. I started at about 8:30/mile, and I had a 7:40 mile without even realizing it for mile 3, while mile 4 was about the same. I'll see how I feel tomorrow - hopefully the weather starts to cool off soon, but I don't really expect much lower temperatures in the morning until September.

Ran 5.8 miles of a 6-miler this morning. The heat continues to affect me. I am also experiencing a bit of pain in my right hip flexor. Today was a nice easy run except for the pain I had when I first started my run.

So I didn't get a chance to run in the morning, so I did my run on the treadmill in the evening. My hip flexor was still hurting as I started, so after I got warmed up, I thought perhaps it would feel better if I was running more efficiently (i.e. faster). After the first mile, I put in a 6:40 mile, which honestly felt pretty good, then slowed back down for 1/2 mile at 8:30 pace, then did the next 1/2 at 6:00/mile pace. I dropped back down to 8:30/mile pace for the next 1/4 mile, then went back up to 6:40 pace for another 1/2 mile before finishing with the last .45 at 8:30 pace. I was amazed at how easy the faster portions were. However, my elation quickly turned to frustration as my hip flexor started to really hurt. I iced it last night and took some ibuprofen to help with the swelling, but I think now that I am going to have to take a couple days off - just when I was getting ready to have a breakout week with my mileage! I will take today and tomorrow off and keep icing in the hopes that I will be able to complete my long run. I am also thinking about breaking up my daily runs due to the heat - doing 3-4 miles in the morning, and another 2-3 in the afternoon on the treadmill. Any thoughts on this, Sasha? I am just finding it too difficult to run any longer in the morning when it is already 90 degrees out at 4:30 am, and occasionally overcast with the humidity higher than normal.