232 Miles

That number is what I need to run to reach 10,000 miles in my running career. I've actually been pretty close to 10k for quite some time. These pesky injuries have made the last 1,000 miles a very long and slow journey. I will reach it, though. It may not be by the end of 2013, as I was hoping, but the milestone will be reached, rest assured.

In the meantime, I'm in "Do What I Can Do" mode. I put in 37.5 miles in two bike rides this week, while the nice weather hangs on. It looks like it'll cool down at least 20°F next week, so I'll either be riding while being bundled up, or I'll dig out my trainer and try to stave off boredom. I'm also trying to get back into the weights more, minus deadlifts, which severely injured my back a few weeks ago. Or, I should say, they pushed my already temperamental back over the edge.

I may opt for some very short runs here and there, just to keep those muscles familiar with running, but if the hamstring objects, I'll stop.

Which leads me to a tangent. Like a good sports geek, I play fantasy football (for fun & bragging rights, not for money). I have two fantasy teams. I was noticing lately just how many of my players are coming down with hamstring injuries, and have been reading the notes about just how long those injuries take to heal. Trust me, I'm no professional athlete, but I can relate. It feels like this injury could take a very long time to heal (it already has), and I'm 15-20 years older than these athletes...who have the very best medical care available.

I wish there was a way to instantly fix it, but that day hasn't yet come 8-)

Reboot

Well, I tried.

I had a couple weeks of decent mileage. Felt some minor pains, but not quite enough to convince me to pull back.

Until now.

Or, Monday, to be precise. Having run a couple of six milers and a seven miler in the last two weeks, I decided that—come hell or high water—I was running 8 miles on Monday. And so I did.

I felt clunky. I never got into that comfortable groove. In hindsight, I think the tightness in my hamstring was causing me to alter my stride slightly. At around mile 5, both my right hamstring and my right knee started aching. Oh, and my right big toe, too. I ran the 8 miles at a faster pace than I should have (although not terribly fast).

I iced the knee and hamstring, then applied heat to the hamstring.

I had an easy 4-miler (with the dog) planned for Tuesday, so off I went, curious about how my body would react. I made it through the run, but later that day, I knew I was done for a while.

This has been a tough year for this old (feeling) body. I'm also nursing some other non running-related injuries, so my body is currently a mess.

Aside from a short & slow pre-donut run I promised my youngest daughter this coming Saturday, I'm taking a few days off from all exercise. Then, I'm going to basically start over. Everything will be short, light and easy for a while. I'm going to vary my workouts quite a bit. I may do a short run one day, bodyweight exercises another, ride my Schwinn Airdyne on another, lift light weights on another, skip rope, ride the bike trainer, etc. Basically, it'll be a general fitness program until I can get past these aggravating injuries.

Oh, I'm not done as a runner. My body just wasn't ready for what I was asking quite yet.

Until it is, I'll see if I can slowly get this body back to where it should be...i.e. not hurting!

Vitamin I

I'm not a big fan of downing ibuprofen on a regular basis (least of all before a run...which I avoid), but the end of this week provided enough pain for me to resort to a few rounds of vitamin I.

Here were this week's totals:

M - 7.0 mile run
T - 4.0 mile run
W - off
T - 6.0 mile run
F - 4.0 mile run + weights (ouch)
S - off (ouch)
S - 17:00 spin on the Airdyne

Miles Run: 21.0

The positive news of the week was starting off with a 7-mile run, which is my longest run since early March.

On the flip side, Friday wasn't a fun day for me. My hamstring had been feeling more or less okay during the week. Friday's run was no different. After the run, however, it was bothering me quite a bit. After that run, since I had been neglecting it, I decided to do a short workout with the weights. I did some pullups, bench presses, then moved on to the deadlift. I haven't been deadlifting a lot of weight for a while due to a cranky lower back, so I figured I could handle this with no problems. Oh, how wrong I was. During the third rep, I felt and heard an audible pop in my lower back. I immediately dropped the weight. I did finish my workout (dumb), and my lower back proceeded to hurt and lock up quite a bit.

Upon waking up the last two mornings, I can barely bend. Putting on my socks is agonizing (and nearly impossible.) Thankfully, my back gradually loosens up a bit as the day wears on, but it's going to take a week or two to mend.

As for the hamstring, I'm not sure what to do. I rode my neglected Schwinn Airdyne today, since I'm able to sit upright on it (as opposed to my racing bike, which would kill my back), so I at least got in a short cardio workout. I'll play it by ear as to whether or not I'll run soon. In the meantime, I'm doing the usual: ice, heat, stretching, for both my back and hamstring.

Getting old is getting old.

Good Week

I just wrapped up my first 20+ mile week since the beginning of March. While I'm still injured, I think I can manage the issues and still run, as long as I keep it slow(ish) and flat.

Here are the numbers:

M - 6 mi
T - 4 mi
W - off
Th - 6 mi
F - 3 mi
S - 3 mi
S - off

Total: 22 miles

Mmm...pumpkin spice post-run recovery!

I had a fun morning with my daughter. My wife and youngest daughter are out of town. Natalie has been injured and unable to race with her cross country team, so this morning I took her down to the Centennial Trail (paved) where we did an easy out and back. After the run, I treated her to a donut & hot chocolate at Krispy Kreme. It was a fun morning. She's a freshman in high school, and I know she'll be gone before long, so I want to get in as many of these "daddy dates" as I can over the next few years.

Have a great weekend!

Bumpy!

My Stick arrived two days ago, and I've been putting it to the test on my right hamstring.

First of all, it's quite an upper body workout! To hit the hamstring effectively (when it's not tense), I lay on my back and bend my right knee straight up (foot on the floor). Then I roll up and down on the hamstring. The Stick is meant to really dig in, so that's what I do.

I can tell you with confidence that my right hamstring is a complete mess! When I roll over it, it feels like a bumpy road, especially compared to my left hamstring. My guess is that I've got a lot of scar tissue built up, which may be why it's taking so long to heal, and why it often feels tight & like it's pulling during some runs.

I've decided to stop stretching it for the time being (which usually felt uncomfortable, anyway). I'm also going to hold off on the ice and heat. I really want to see if I can break things up in there first, so I'll have a good idea whether or not the Stick is making a difference.

So, after a couple of days of really working it over, it's pretty sore. I'm going to run on it in a couple of hours. I'm sure it's too soon to feel a significant difference, but over the long term, I'm optimistic that I can undo most, if not all, of the damage.

Fingers crossed...

Tighten The Reigns, Cowboy

Two weeks ago, I ran three times for a total of 9 miles. My bum hamstring made its presence known, but with a little ice and heat...and running on a level surface, it was completely manageable.

So, last week I ran three times for a total of 10 miles, right? Following that old "10 percent rule?"

Er, um, did you catch the Seahawks game yesterday? It was great, huh?

Okay, I got carried away like I have MANY times in the past. I ran 5 times for a total of 19 miles. Not a lot of miles by most standards, but coming back from a long term injury, that was a bit of a jump—especially since it included a hard mile during one run, and a hard half mile during another.

Consequently, my hamstring was barking a little over the weekend. I fed it plenty of ice and heat and it seems to have calmed down a little.

This week will probably fall somewhere between the 3 runs/9 miles from two weeks ago and the 5 runs/19 miles from last week.

Oh, I recently ordered The Stick from Amazon.com a few days ago. It should arrive on Tuesday. I'm hoping this will allow me to massage the tar out of that hammy, since I can't really dig into it with the foam roller.

Right Hamstring, Prepare For Sweet Pain

Have a great week of training, my friends!

So Far, So (Mostly) Good

I ran three days last week and have run both yesterday and today (Monday and Tuesday) and I'm knocking on any wood I can find. The runs have been between 3 and 4 miles, at a slow pace, and on level ground. That's all by design. I still have a very touchy right hamstring and, now, an angry upper left calf. But, during the runs, they both feel pretty good.

So...where to from here? More of the same. Three to four runs per week, gradually increasing the distance, but keeping things slow and easy. And flat.

If I can sneak up on my body and get up to a consistent 12-15 miles per week for a few weeks, I'll re-evaluate and maybe change things up a bit. Any potential changes will revolve around the goal of building a huge base of easy mileage.

But for now, I'm very hesitant to change what seems to be agreeable to my very temperamental body.

Oh, and the weight is slowly starting to come off.

More as things develop...

Oops. My Bad.

I'm going to confess to a mistake I've made this year. It's one I've made before.

I got fat.
On purpose.

If you've tolerated, er, followed this blog for a while, you'll know that I have a tendency to go 180° away from running when I suffer a long-term injury. I guess it's a coping mechanism. I love running so much that I need to get away from that world when I'm unable to actively participate.

My "athletic" history includes both endurance activities (primarily running) and strength training; sometimes simultaneously, often not. When I shut down my running earlier this year (March 11th), I once again thought, "screw it. I'm going to 'bulk up' and get strong again." Well, I did. And now that I'm trying to get my endurance mojo back (cycling plus a little running), that decision has once again come back to bite me in the glutes.

Like most men (and many active people in general), I don't venture into things half way. I'm usually all-in. So, once I decided I was done with endurance activities, I hit the weights & food HARD. I put on 15 lbs. in no time flat. I pounded protein shakes mixed with whole milk, often a few per day. Sure, some of the weight gain was muscle, but some was also fat.

By most standards, I would STILL be considered a small-ish guy. At nearly 5' 11", I don't have a big frame. But as a distance runner, I'm a good 12-15 lbs. above my comfortable running weight. And my once prized abs are currently in hibernation (that will change.)

So I'm on a mission to reverse the damage. I haven't stopped the weight training, but I have refocused it to assist running and cycling rather than to merely see how much weight I can move and how big I can get my guns.

I've always been able to fairly easily manipulate my body weight & composition. I'm blessed with a high metabolism. However, at my current age (46), I'm noticing it's not quite as easy as it used to be. The next time I'm off the endurance bandwagon and get the bug to "get swole," remind me to go easy on the bulking up. Or, remind me to get on the bike or trainer & keep the cardio going instead.

And, misguided or not, I'm still hopeful about returning to running regularly—at least to the level I was at before my hamstring injury took me out. It'll be a long, slow process. It usually is. But there's always a little excitement and anticipation when I "start over." I just wish I didn't have to do it quite as often!

But I'm game. Let's do this.

Very Interesting...

Normally, I wouldn't refer to a slow, 2-mile run as "interesting." However, this one was.

I had a strong urge this morning to take the dog for a short, easy run around a local park. I was planning on just a mile, but I felt good and continued.

Nearly a week ago, I did an even shorter run with my youngest daughter and had a lot of soreness on the tendon behind my right knee for several days after the run. And that run was my first in over a month (back in early August, when I pulled a calf muscle running with my OTHER daughter. Hmm...I need to stop running with my kids.)

My lower back has been in pretty serious pain for over a week, too, so I wasn't sure what to expect from today's run. But everything felt good. I did notice my right hamstring—injured early this year—but it didn't hurt, probably since I was running slowly.

Now, if I can sneak in a few of these per week, maybe I can restart (resurrect) my running yet again. If so, it'll be a long, slow process, which will still include cycling and strength training. And beer.

Although, come to think of it, I haven't had one of those in a few weeks. I need to resurrect that, too...

Man Down

It looks like this week will be a wash when it comes to exercise.

Last Friday, I helped my dad with some tasks around his house, which included unloading several hundred pounds of tile from his car. That involved me bending and reaching awkwardly into the (huge) trunk, and back seat, of his car to pull very heavy boxes up and out and an odd angle. I have a history of low back trouble, and doing this over and over again was a huge risk. I felt okay the rest of Friday. I went on a 28-mile bike ride on Saturday and, again, felt okay. But I think being bent over on the bike for an hour and 45 minutes on top of all the lifting threw my lower back into a tizzy (a medical term), as I woke up Sunday morning hardly able to move. I've been hitting the ibuprofen and heating pad pretty hard since then, along with my routine of lower back stretches.

So, after an enjoyable week of cycling, I may not be able to ride at all this week. And the weights are obviously off the table, too.

It's no fun feeling like an old codger...