Archive for July 19th, 2010

I had a happy weekend despite the hamstring injury.  Since it was a cutback week and Saturday was a scheduled rest day, all I missed was Sunday’s run.

My internet investigation revealed the hamstring owie to be a Grade I strain that, barring any reinjury, ain’t no big thang.  Under some wise Adam advisement (thanks, Coach Man!), the week has a few minor changes: a 5k pace workout on Tuesday is now an easy run and Friday’s 8x1ks @ 10k pace will morph into 8x800s, which I’ll cut short if anything feels weird.

Other than that, the homemade compression sleeve and slushy icepack continue to work their magic.  I got out this morning for a reaaaally slow 7 (10:17 pace).  Last time I went that slow was the first run after Boston and before then?  2008!  Lol.  But I could feel the hammy’s presence and was reminded further when I rushed across the street to beat a stoplight, so “leisurely” was the word.

It was actually quite an enjoyable run – you don’t heat up half as much in “Feels Like” 86 when you’re going that slow.  Clothes still needed wringing out, but it could have been 70 degrees as far as comfort level.

The Running Gods Replied
Just last Monday I beseeched the Running Gods for a sign, any sign, to instill a touch of confidence back into my running.   Oddly enough, I got my wish during this injured weekend…

Thanks to this summer being unusually hot and humid, I stopped wearing my heart rate strap a few weeks ago since all it was doing was making me feel inadequate.  However, I still check my resting rate a few mornings each week because I like keeping tabs on the trend.  The lowest it’s ever been was 45 (and that was a temporary flicker during my big improvement period last year), usually it’s 48 and in the last month or so, 49.

So imagine my shock when I put the strap on this Saturday and saw the numbers do their usual descending dance, only to hit 42.  42?!  Huh?  This was so unexpectedly weird that I thought my Garmin was flaking out on me.  So I turned it off and on…still 42.  Ever suspicious, I dug out the old Polar heart rate monitor and…well, will you look at that? 42.

But wait, there’s more.

Sunday, I again put on the strap wondering what I’m going to see and you could have knocked me down with a feather: 44, 43, 42, 41…40 beats per minute! Granted, it didn’t stay there long, but Oh. My. God.

My heart, the primary organ in all this running stuff, is giving me an unbiased indication that something good is happening.  Whether it’s from more sleep (average 6.75 hrs/night for July so far and getting better) more rest days, lowered average mileage, or all of the above, I am on track!

Sure, it still remains to be seen as to how or when this will reflect in my paces.  But even if they don’t drop in time for a PR in September, I’m cool with that! Because if nothing else, this says I’m getting healthier.  I’m not stagnating, I’m not moving backwards.  The Girl, she is in motion.