Falling off the wagon...un poco

Yeah, so my training has been less than stellar lately, thanks to my right leg. Why is it always the right leg, anyway?

Anyway.

So, last Saturday I ran 12 miles with my friends Dawn and Jamie. Dawn is training for her first half marathon (Labor Day weekend!! :)) and Saturday was her first 12-mile run ever in her life! I told her I'd join her for the momentous occasion! :) It was great...and I am so proud of her! Dawn has been training using intervals...so we did the run using her current training plan strategy, which is a 3-1 interval, or 3 minutes running, 1 minute walking. It felt good to "take it easy" since my leg was definitely causing a lot of pain last week.

It started out a few weeks ago with inner thigh pain. Two weeks prior to this coming Saturday, I started feeling it in the outside of my right knee as well. I knew that was a sure sign that something was amiss and I needed to ease up. So, I took it easy last week...and thought that doing the run/walk 12 miles with Dawn and Jamie would be a good, easy training strategy for the weekend.

Sunday I was supposed to do 20, according to Hal...but I did nothing. Yup...read: NOTHING. Ugh, it totally pained me...but I really didn't have a whole lot of choice. My knee AND thigh both felt awful. Heinous. So, I rested...thought it really irritated me. To make matters worse, my husband went out and ran 10. Talk about torture!! It was SO hard for me not to go out and do SOMETHING, too.

Monday night I ran six....

And it was awful.

One of the most painful runs of my life. I was bawling my eyes out when I rang the doorbell upon arriving back home. Jeremy took one look at me and informed me that I was taking a week off.

It was a pretty darn LOW feeling. I stretched, iced, ate, and slept. I felt a bit better in the morning.

(NO, this wasn't related to PMS or anything like that ;). It was legitimate emotion caused by sheer frustration at feeling failed by my ailing body)

Tuesday, I didn't run...but I played sand volleyball. It was great stress relief :).

Wednesday...I didn't run. We had dinner at some good friends' house. It helped keep my mind off the fact that I wasn't running...almost.

Tonight? I went over to the Sports Enhancement Center and got some advice from my friend Kristin's husband David (a PT) and Nate (an athletic trainer who runs marathons himself). It was great...really. Nate gave me some really useful (I think!) strategies about changing my stride...and I tried out the strategies tonight.

I am not sure if it's just all in my head (I don't think it is!), but it felt great. Sure, it felt good just to finally be out and running again...but the suggestions Nate and David gave me really seemed to help. It seemed less effortful to run quicker...and it really felt as if it was putting less stress on my knee as well.

I ran with my friend Jamie, who wanted to run 4. I was planning on doing 6. So, we ran out 2 and back 2 for her 4...and then I set off, planning to go out 1 and back 1 to make my total 6. Well, after I made it out 1 (for a total of 5 miles), I felt awesome...so I ended up going 1 more mile...and then back 2...for a total of a very glorious 8. It felt good. I feel as if I am almost "back in the saddle."

When I was a half mile away from my car, I decided to dig in and speed things up. I didn't push as hard as I could've...but ran the last half mile at a 7:30/mile pace...and it felt wonderful.

Ah, I needed a high :). It felt great tonight.

I am going over again to visit with David over my lunch tomorrow and getting some sort of treatment on my knee...and was instructed by him that after that I can't do any running tomorrow. So, tomorrow...a day off...again. It will be ok :). (Right??)

4 1/2 weeks to go!

Anywho....happy running, all! :)

REGISTERED!

It's official! I registered for the 2010 Quad Cities Marathon!

37 days....here it comes, ready or NOT! :) :)

Yahoo, bring on Marathon THREE!!! :)

It will be my THIRD marathon within a 12-month span! :)

I can't wait :).

Just 5 1/2 weeks....two more 20-mile runs :)....many more miles....one pair of new shoes (ordered!)...

Lots of smiles :).

Goodnight!

Ahhhh!

Just returned from a 18.5 mile solo bike ride :).  It felt awesome....I hadn't gotten my bike out all summer, sadly.  All of the time I had for physical activity outside was always dedicated to running.  Since my right thigh (quad?) has been sore for about a week now (I did rest Sunday and Wednesday completely and took it easy Saturday (only 4...was going to do 6, but I felt the scary all-to-familiar twinge of my right IT band going goofy...), Monday (swam laps at the pool for 35 min....wanted to pool jog, but the deep water pool at my gym is being cleaned and won't be open for a few more weeks), Tuesday (Just did 40 minutes on ye olde eliptical at the gym, followed by 60 min of sand volleyball :) ) ).....I decided to do some cross-training and go for a ride!

It was glorious :).

Good choice.

Good for the soul.

Leg is a bit more sore.....but at least I mentally feel better. I hatehatehate taking so many days off! Makes me looney...

:)

Ah....the great outdoors and the awesome feeling of getting that heart beating/pumping quickly :).

The weather was awesome today, too :).

Happy training, all! :)

~R

Oh dear

So....
The last eight-day Saturday-Saturday period was a running success, I'd say.

Sunday....I did NOT run. Took that day right off! :) I did get a lot of walking in ;)....we spent the day at Six Flags with some friends. Fatiguing, but not in a real "athletic" way ;).

Monday...I ran 4 with Jamie.

Tuesday....no running. I didn't have time! ARGH! And, we were under yet ANOTHER heat advisory. I did play sand volleyball for approximately an hour...again, fatiguing but not a real "work out."

Today...I ran 6 with Jamie (the mileage I was supposed to get in yesterday). I was in a hurry afterwards and came home, took a 3 minute shower (literally), and then jumped in the car with Jer to go off to a going away party for one of our friends. I ate an entire pound (actually probably a bit more) of cherries in the car and then drank a glass of merlot at the bar.

Last time I checked, a pound+ of cherries shouldn't really equal dinner.

After the merlot, we went to dairy queen.

I ate a (small...HA!) blizzard.

Then we came home and I ate a piece of cheese.

oh dear............................

New accomplishment!

So, I ran 80 miles in the past 8 days!

80.6, to be precise!

WHEW!!

Last Saturday: 7.75
Sunday: 19.25
Monday: 4
Tuesday: 9
Wednesday: 6
Thursday: 4.6
Friday:10
Saturday (today): 20

TOTAL: 80.6!

WOWSA!

Tomorrow=day off=whew!! :)

I feel pretty accomplished!

In this training week (my "week" is Monday-Sunday), I have run 53.6 miles...the most I have run in a week in my LIFETIME! :)

Yahoo for new accomplishments! :)

AND, yahoo for a day of rest tomorrow! Let me tell you what, my legs are needing that in a pretty MAJOR way!! :)

Happy Running!

Wrap-up of past few days' worth of training

So....after my post about being BAD last week....

I didn't run on Thursday OR Friday! Egads!!!

Friday, actually, I got home from work at 5:30 (never mind the fact that I am technically OFF at noon on Fridays...yeah...I have a problem...) and literally fell asleep on the floor in the hallway outside of our office upstairs. I layed down on the floor to talk to Jer who was on the computer, and conked out. I transplanted myself to my bed shortly therafter (about 7) and fell asleep again....until 9! Talk about a wasted evening! ;) Well, my body probably just reallyreallyreally needed sleep ;).

Saturday I ran 7.75....was supposed to do 9...but slept in a bit. I had to get to a hair appointment by 8am (I know, I know...super important, right?? ;)).

Sunday I ran 19.25 (Hal called for 19, but my OCD self wanted to add that point 25 to round out the weekend's miles to an even 27 miles). WHEW!

Last week's total...(I count Monday-Sunday as a "week")....39 miles running. 11 miles biking :).

So far this week.....
Monday I ran 4 and today I ran 9.
a very, very sweaty nine!!

Seriously. Hal called for 10, but the heat....I can't even describe it! We have a heat advisory right now, effective from 1pm this afternoon until like 7pm tomorrow.

So, what does Rachel do...RUNS! HA! I mean, really, though what was I supposed to do?! ;) Training can't really take a hiatus for weather!!

I got out of work a bit later than I hoped, and had to hurry to a sand vb game (I was a few minutes late to the game as it was)....and couldn't keep up the pace I was hoping to do because of the heat....so I settled for nine tonight.

Let me tell you what...it was one of the HOTTEST runs I'd done yet! The heat index was far over 100...like 110ish!

Three miles in, I removed my tank top and soaked it in a drinking fountain along the constitution trail. I wrung it out over my head (seriously), and soaked my face in the drinking fountain. I re-wet the tank top and strapped it into the back of my sports bra for some cooling action down my back. I had to look like a freaking hot mess. HA!

Thank goodness for water fountains on the Constitution Trail, I have to say! They were definitely a lifesaver tonight.

Goodnight, all!