Posts Tagged ‘return to running’

A week gone by with nary a post so this is a meaty one, starting with this: 88 miles and a breakthrough.  Like a gift from the Running Gods (or the result of 3 weeks back at high mileage) my general aerobic paces are suddenly back to my pre-injured state.  ‘Tis a thing of beauty.

In an odd coincidence, Tuesday through Thursday produced 3 runs averaging 8:06, 8:07 and 8:08, yet each run was composed differently: one had some faster miles in the middle, one included fartlek and the 3rd run was even splits.  I was especially happy with that last one since I never start quickly anymore, my first mile is usually between 9:1x – 8:3x so I was pleased when I saw 8:17 for that initial mile.

But then!  Saturday afternoon I wore my Hyper Speeds for the first time (review below) and between their magic powers plus the last day of Lady Time (hormonal magic powers) and a beautiful upper-40s day, my first mile was a completely unexpected 8:05 and then it progressed from there, ending in 8 miles@7:46 avg. pace.

Heart Rate
As much as I love data, the last time I strapped on my HR monitor was in September before my Half.  It would have been wonderful to have the comparison of HR while injured and rebuilding, but the inevitable crappy feelings it would have brought were not at all worth it.  I like to be happy when I can and knowing those numbers wouldn’t have given me anything useful.

But this week, I figured I was ready to see where I stood, so I started yesterday by checking my resting HR.  Much to my delight, I got a rock-solid 46 with a teasing of 45 (47-48 is more of a usual) so Yay!  Then today, I wore it out for my runs.

I’m glad I wore it for both runs because, while the morning run’s HR was fine, the afternoon’s was better – which is a good reminder never to put too much weight on HR data for one run, there are simply too many reasons for it to vary.  But back to the run…

I wasn’t wearing the magic shoes but the hormonal magic must be lingering because it was another feel-good zippy run averaging 7:58/mi with an average HRR of 73% and it was windy out there.  Considering this is the first week where those paces have reappeared, this is a really strong sign that everything’s in order.  I couldn’t be happier.

Running Form – Arms
As you know, I’ve given attention to different areas of my running form over the past couple years.  I’d work on one thing for a while then eventually come to peace with it, either because I’ve made an improvement (posture) or because the initial problem loses importance (foot plant).

Starting last Friday, I began focusing on something that’s been bugging me since the start: my armswing.  It’s not all bad, for instance I don’t cross the centerline of my body which is a common enough mistake, but when I see photos or watch my shadow on the bike path, there’s a certain “smallness” to my arm carriage that I know could be improved upon.

While it sounds like an aesthetic complaint, it’s much more than that.  I mean, of course I’d like to look like an Elite or, hell, even a high school XC kid, but beyond appearance, I suspect I’m missing out on a power boost because of this.  After all, your arms drive your legs: they dictate how fast you’ll go and even affect your stride length, so it really is no small thing.

I started by studying the race video from September’s Half and noticed a clearly uneven carriage: one arm doesn’t go back far enough while the other one goes back farther, but only because it’s driven by the hand (not the shoulder or elbow, as you’d want),  thus the angle increases well beyond the optimal 90-degrees.

So I’ve been reading articles and watching videos of runners I like – here’s a nice slow-mo of Shalane and Desi at the trials (Kara too, but she was all tensed up at that point).

When I work on it (and it’s very much a focus on the shoulders, not just the arms) there’s more swing to my upper trunk, less rigidity. It also seems to give me a more “tits out” posture, which is a good thing, not because I’m trying to get a job at Hooters, but because it’s optimal for breathing and efficiency.

In fact, Friday’s run was weird, it was unseasonably warm, 59 degrees, but super windy and I was feeling like crap so I almost cut it short.  The first couple miles were 9:15s and I was slugging along. After a bit, I started paying attention to my arms/shoulders and I’m not sure if it was the distraction or if it was really helping, but I picked up a good amount of energy – the last few miles averaged 8:03s.

I tend to think it’s really helping since I also paid attention to it on Saturday’s fast run as well, this time with an additional “trick” of brushing my hands lightly on the sides of my hip, which ensures they’re going back far enough while keeping a good angle.

Weight
It’s been 9 days and I’ve lost a touch over 2 pounds. I’m also happy to report that by timing my meals differently I’ve virtually eliminated the hunger spikes I used to get.

As far back as I can remember, my dinner time has been around 6:30pm.  Didn’t matter if my bedtime was 10pm in the summer or 12-12:30am in the winter, I’d always eat at 6:30.  This meant that in the winter I’d have those extra hours before bed that invariably required snacks and carrot consumption.  Carrots are fine vegetables, btw, but I don’t love needing a stomach filler to keep the growling at bay.

Now, in the last month, my eating schedule started shifting due to doubling my runs.  I usually get in from the afternoon run at around 4:30-5pm which left some time before dinner, so I’d eat some almonds or other snack to hold me over.

But this week, I decided to do away with the snack and just go for it: eat a small meal right after the run and then push dinner up to 8pm. This works beautifully because then at 10-10:30pm, I’ll have another little meal, usually the ole standby of PB/cereal (I love that shit like crazy, don’t ask me why) – far much more substantial than carrots or little snacks.

Et voila! I end up pleasantly sated until bedtime and my morning run doesn’t need fueling.  I haven’t had a carrot in over a week. It’s a miracle.

Aside from that, I did a silly motivating thing that I’ve never done before…I bought a clothing carrot.  That is to say, the other day on a whim I ordered some compression shorts (I only ever wear regular running shorts) that I’m too chicken to wear at my current weight but I think might look pretty damn hot when I lose a few.

I didn’t actually buy them with that in mind but once they arrived and I put them on I was like “I can’t wear these, too scary”.  FYI, a 4″ inseam is frumpy for me in regular shorts but in compression (with the potential of ride-up)…not so much.  Anyway, instead of returning them, it struck me that they’d make a fun treat for sticking to the plan.  We’ll see, I may feel too nekkid in them no matter what but it’s silly fun and they were on sale, so no loss.

Shoes
As mentioned, I took advantage of RunningWarehouse’s shoe sale a couple weeks ago and bought the Saucony Fastwitch 5s and the Asics Hyper Speeds.  Here’s what happened…

Saucony Fastwitch 5s
These are the first pair of shoes I’ve straight up lost money on, which is my own fault for not exchanging them immediately.  The thing is, it was a defective pair but it wasn’t till the second run that I was sure about it.  When I first put them on, there was an intermittent feeling in my right arch when stepping off, almost a pinching, but it was occasional and I thought it might be something that just needed “seating” in the shoe.  I did try to find the source but no matter how I bent or investigated the innards with my hands, I couldn’t replicate it, so I took ‘em out for a run.

First run was fine, I didn’t notice the sharp thing though it was odd to run in a stability shoe after wearing neutral shoes for ages.  They were comfortable in the upper but extremely firm in the sole and I did not love them, but as I ran faster I started liking them more.

However, the 2nd time I took them out, the pinching thing was there in full force and I ended up with a blister on my arch!  That is a pain in the ass place to get a blister – you’re doomed to feeling it for days no matter what shoes you wear.  So I was pissed at the shoes but thought I’d give them another shot once my foot was settled. (only because I’d spent 52 bucks on them)

So yesterday, a week after the blister run, I tried them on again but was instantly alerted to that same hot spot.  At this point, I knew the shoes were a loss so I took some snippers and cut the logo off the side thinking it might be the hard plastic and did some other operating but in the end, I couldn’t locate it. I think it’s the stability post or whatever keeps the shoe supported but I have enough working shoes right now that I don’t care to try another pair.  And I’ll stick to neutral shoes from now on.

Asics Hyper Speeds (aka Magic Shoes)
These shoes are wonderful.  They’re the lightest shoe I’ve ever had, 6.1 oz, compared to the Adios’ 6.5.  Talk about barely there.  I took them on that 8-mile run yesterday and you know how that went (fabulously) and they felt great!  Lots of room in the toebox and no discomfort anywhere.

I’m debating whether to stock up on them, putting ‘em in regular shoe rotation since they’re so inexpensive right now (new version’s coming out) or whether to save them for races, in which case one pair will last me a long time.  Either way, I resisted wearing them today, the better to harness their mystical magical powers for good rather than evil.  Not really, I just wore the pair closest to the bed.

And that’s it for today’s self-involved novella.  Have a great start to your week folks, run well and enjoy yourselves.  Later!

I began this week with a 6-miler on Monday.  Done with rest days from here on in (unless I need one, of course) it was no surprise that following Sunday’s LR,  the infamous leg was barking a bit.

The next morning, I’m in the midst of my usual time suck and see a Facebook update from my local running store that includes a link to Phila Massage with something like “Give yourself a gift of sports massage”.

Now, I must admit, I’m 50 years old and have never had a massage – that wasn’t about sex, that is.  I’m not a Spa-type person at all, I don’t care about being made to relax or lying around with hot rocks on my back or getting dipped in mud or walking around with a white towel turban – it’s really not my thing.

And because I am a dumb-ass a lot of the time, I always assumed a sports massage was that type of luxury item: something you don’t need, makes you feel better for a day but then you’re back to your same-old self a couple days later.

But I check out the website and it hits me that sports massage is in the same bucket as ART, that it’s another form of PT.  Reading further, I see this place is located in a gym downtown (just a 20-minute walk from my apartment so no Zipcar rental or parking hassles), the rates are reasonable and it has nothing to do with doctors or referrals, I can just go. Hmmm…

So I go for my run, an 8-miler, and while it’s dramatically improved from the previous day, I can’t stop thinking about the massage place.  I know full-well I still have soft-tissue adhesions that will continue to bark intermittently until my foam roller, fingers and time eventually work them out. But how long is that gonna take?  One week, two, four? No telling.

Mid-run, I decide “Enough dickin’ around, let’s give it a try”.  The moment I get home, I fill out the online booking form.  This was at 2pm.  By 5pm, I’m on a table getting a massage.

The Massage
It was phenomenal.  The masseur, Brian, is a huggy bear of a guy, sweet as hell and really enthusiastic about his work.   He was also extremely generous with his knowledge; it was like taking a class, I absolutely loved it.  He worked on me for an hour, homed right in on the trouble spots and as a result, yesterday’s planned 9-miler turned into 11.

I’m seriously kicking myself for having eschewed massage prior to this.  Had I done it in September when I felt those first tweaks, I am certain there would never have been an injury in the first place.  Hindsight aside, I’m thrilled to have it in my back pocket now, it’s like a secret weapon for the future.

In the meantime, I booked a 30-min appt for next Wednesday.  I’m sure there’s some final adhesion gunk to work out and I’ll be happy and confident knowing the last of my cooties are gone.

Social Ineptitude
Of course, a new experience like this would not be complete without me doing something embarrassing – this time it was when I paid for the session. I hadn’t thought about tipping, thinking it was like a PT or doctor thing.  But once I got out on the street, it occurred to me that perhaps this is more akin to a hairdresser.

So after wrestling with “do I, don’t I?” for about 10 minutes, I post an emergency update on Facebook asking if I’m supposed to tip and how much.  While I impatiently waited for replies, I see a girl standing there outside (it’s a huge building btw and the gym is just one of many businesses in there) but she looks like she’s wearing fitnessy clothing, so I walk up like a lunatic and ask “Do you know if you’re supposed to tip a sports massage person?”  Without missing a beat she said, “Yeah, it’s like when you go out to eat, so like 15-20%.”  I thank her profusely, run back inside and very apologetically take care of it.  Still, I kicked myself all the way home, I hate screwing up tipping etiquette.

Despite my near-gaffe, yesterday morning Brian sends me a really nice email that includes a 3D model of the body, isolating the muscles he’d worked on, that you can pan around and zoom – really cool.  Conclusion: it was a great experience from beginning to end.

And with that, have a great holiday week, all.  I’ll pop in on Xmas day with my mileage rundown as usual.  In the meantime, enjoy the happy spirit of the season or hide in your basement till it’s over, whichever makes you happiest.  Later, loves!

Friday was the day I went from Injured to Not Injured.  It was the day I pressed Start on the Garmin and braced myself, as I have since the beginning of September, against those initial hurting steps.  But they never came – no twinge, no reminder, it was…odd.  I just ran.  And like that, I knew it was done.  The injury was over.

To give you a frame of reference, this is 4.5 weeks after 4 weeks of no running.  I was naive to assume the time off would leave me totally “fixed” – it fixed the stress reaction but the muscular mess that started 6 weeks prior to that 4-week rest was quite the tenacious beast.

A friend on the forum asked what I’d have done differently and it’s this: if I can’t identify an injury and it’s not better after 3 weeks, I’ll call a doctor or get PT.  For common running injuries, I’ll continue to self-treat as I always have, but there’s only so long you can run through a mystery and expect it to disappear. (disclaimer: 3 weeks is a loose guideline for me alone based upon my injury experiences, not a one-size-fits-all suggestion)

I needn’t explain how monumental it feels to move on.  There was an instant mental change, like a switch turned on in the midst of Friday’s run.  Instead of avoiding all thoughts of training and the future as I’ve had to do, I suddenly began plotting out the coming week, how I could add in a few strides, maybe even some short hill reps on the museum ramps.  Hope and Excitement had returned.

Lastly, there’s an insane amount of relief and release from finally, finally, not having to monitor my leg every waking minute.  No more “does it hurt more or less than before? where does it hurt exactly right now? if I do this will it do that? am I getting better or making it worse?”  I’ve been so sick of living inside that limb, you’ve no idea.

The “Look, I’m A Runner Again!” Week In Review
My paces are still behind but the gap is closing at a reasonable rate.  Mileage-wise, I’ll hit 60 next week and while that doesn’t seem like much compared to my Summer Self, I can appreciate that it’s a solid amount.

Mon: off
Tues: 6
Wed: 7
Thurs: 10
Friday: 6
Sat: 8
Sun: 13
Total: 50 mi

I’m going to hold off on listing paces for each run for a bit longer to avoid any self-inflicted pressure, but I will say my slowest run this week was 9:03, fastest was 8:23.

Star Encounters of the Facebook kind
If you’re a Facebook friend or a 3:20 forum pal, you already saw most of this play out, so you’re allowed to leave the classroom early, but you might enjoy my moment of embarrassing stupidity that I’ve included here.

On Friday after my “I’m Cured!” run, my friend Karah posts on my wall that one of my t-shirt designs, the Chafe one, is on Kara Goucher’s fan page.  This was extremely fabulous news because first off, Kara Goucher!  But also, she has 45,000 fans Liking that page, so mucho exposure.

But when I check out the page and see my design there, my smiley turns into a frowny because there’s no mention of Gifted Runner.  There is, however, a link to the FB page she “shared” it from, Run The Edge, which had posted it earlier in the day. So I added this comment below the update on both pages, “Thank you for posting this! This is my design so check out GiftedRunner.com to see it on shirts and gift items” and included a link to my site.

Now, note that at this point, because I’m not paying attention, I assume Run The Edge is one of those FB pages that post funny running pics for people to repost all over Facebook.  But continuing with the story…

15 minutes after I add my comments/links, I get a very sweet, apologetic Private Message from Adam Goucher himself, telling me he absolutely loves the design and that he’ll repost the image with proper credit and a link to my site.  Meanwhile, I’m thinking, “Hmmm, I guess he manages Kara’s FB page since he’s the one contacting me”.

In my reply, I gush back a tiny bit and include this, “I don’t blame you at all, it’s Run The Edge that should have credited me since you guys just shared their link, not knowing otherwise.”

Stupid, stupid, stupid!  Because immediately after sending it, I go back to the Run The Edge page and realize…it’s the title of Adam Goucher’s new book.  It’s his page!

So now I’m totally mortified that I’ve not only accused him of being at fault but that I blatantly didn’t recognize his book.  So before he can reply, I pop off another message saying “I’m an ass and didn’t realize you ARE Run The Edge.  Please, let me start over…” and I make some joke about it.

He’s such a cool guy, he thought it was really funny, told me I’m not an ass and that they both really like my stuff.  Whew!  And he did re-add the link as promised, which resulted in a bunch of new newsletter sign-ups which means…time to design again.  Between the run and this, it was quite an eventful Friday, all told.

So that’s it for this time.  Have a great beginning to your week, may your runs be gloriously strong, unexpectedly easy and make you feel like a hundred bucks.  Cheers!

I’ve lived here since 2002 and for the most part, I like it a lot.  It’s beautiful, old (Olde), I love my neighborhood but it also has a few annoyances particular to the locale:  Philadelphia has a city tax that eats a shitload of your money (which is why a lot of people live in NJ and commute), the liquor stores are state-run so more expensive (which is why, if you’re smart, you take stealth missions to NJ for booze) and I just found out today, I cannot get an A.R.T session for the same injury without a doctor’s prescription, regardless that I pay completely out of pocket, because I’ve surpassed the 30-day window.

Backtracking a day, yesterday’s run wasn’t awful or painful but it followed a rest day, so I naively expected to be tangibly improved.  Granted, I was tired from a long job and it was windy, but my leg was not magically done and frankly, I’m sick of noticing or thinking about it.  So when I got home, I called the ART lady to finish the thing off.  Appt made for 1pm today.  Cool.

Forward to today, I have a great run: 7 miles, a few around 8:00/mi, feeling the best I have post-injury.  In fact, had this run happened yesterday, I wouldn’t have even made an ART appt.  Still, I’m excited at the prospect because I know that with a little therapeutic mauling, it’ll be over for good.

50 minutes before the appointment, I get a call from the office asking if I’m going in for the original injury.  When I say Yes, she tells me that, due to some stupid law called Direct Access, I can’t have the session without a referral.  Nice.  The therapy place isn’t in my HMO network, and even if it was, doubtful I’d have been able to get it taken care of with less than an hour to the appt.

I’m not freaking out because today’s run was so good, but I’m pissed and disappointed – it takes a lot for me to seek help.   Also, there are very few ART or Graston people in Philly and since I have to rent a Zipcar to deal with it, I’m not going to find someone else.  Hopefully the week will continue to play out well on the heels of today.

Edit: Turns out Direct Access is actually a Federal Law and a bunch of states do this.  They make it a “feature” that they allow you to seek PT without a prescription for 30 days.  Maybe I’m pissed at Pennsylvania a little less now.  Maybe.  Back to hating the damn health system as usual.

Baby’s First Wheels!
I’m old (Olde), and it’s taken me this long to figure out that traveling with a duffel is dumb.  Every time I go anywhere, I look longingly at the other travelers with their handy little wheeled bags while I do the Quasimodo carry.  But at the same token, I always think “how do they fit anything in those?”  After Vegas though, I vowed to get a wheeled bag, no matter the sacrifice to size.

Well blow me down, I found the coolest bag.  It’s roomy, has a lot of variations on how you can pack it, is half hard-case, half duffel (expandable, at that) and lastly, it comes in different colors – easier to spot than black.  It was a little pricey but it’ll last for years, so I figure it’s worth it. First use: San Diego in April.  yay!

Blog Feed
I finally got rid of my original domain name (girl-in-motion.com) but I still have about 90 subscribers still using it in their blog feeds or blog rolls.  If you’ve noticed that the last post in your blog reader (or however you subscribe to this thing) has stopped updating, you’ll want to check that the link is girlinmotion.com (without dashes) to keep getting the latest boring, complaining, whining crap from me.

My leg took a turn for the better this week; I ran 5 consecutive days without deterioration – a major accomplishment.  It’s still not as lithe and free as the right leg, but nearly there.  Fitness is returning as well, but taking its time.

For the most part, I’m positive about the way things are going but still, I miss my Summer self.  I miss fluidity and ease.  I miss confidence.  I miss feeling like a good runner.

No doubt it’ll all come back in due time but at the moment I feel like a clunky farm animal.  Nevertheless, I’m happy to say that after 2 interminable months, it’s time to include this ole thing again…

‘Bout Fucking Time Week In Review
Mon: Vegas – off
Tues: Travel – off
Wed: 6
Thurs: 6
Friday: 9.42 (targeted 9 but got distracted and missed the turn-around)
Sat: 4
Sun: 10
Total: 35.42 mi – paces (per run) averaged 8:54 to 8:28

Note: The week prior was 40mi, but because Sunday’s Half was a big mileage jump for a single run, I played the following days conservatively.  This coming week, however, I’m back on track, so providing my leg stays happy, I’ll hit 48mi. Just wanted to explain that in case you think “35 to 48…Danger! Danger!”

The cow has everything under control.   Moo.

Life’s a trip.  I’ve gone from Boohoo Blue to Luckiest Lady in the span of a few short days.  Here are the highlights:

#1. Runners World has featured one of my Gifted Runner shirts in their Unique Christmas Gifts for Runners web slideshow.  Way cool surprise.

#2. Just when I think it’s a dead month for voiceovers, I get a flurry of bookings.  It’s already been a lucrative week and fun too, didn’t have to speak much Medical-ese, mostly plain English.

#3. I committed to something next September that’ll be way out of my comfort zone: Reach The Beach relay.  There are two teams (20+ people) comprised of RW forumites, though they hang out in a different sub-forum than the one I frequent, so I only know a few of them and that’s through Facebook.  This adds an extra level of unknown fun to the adventure – more imaginary friends becoming real ones.  I heart this.

#4. I found $20 on the floor at Target yesterday.

#5.  Running has been beautiful.  I bumped up a little sooner than I would have if not for the Half, but the rest days are keeping my legs in check.  I finally feel like I’ve come out the other side.  Whew!  The week, when done, will look like this: 6, 8, Rest, 8, 5, Rest/Travel, 13.1. The face already looks like this:

Viva Las Vegas!
When next I write, it’ll be from a hotel room in that man-made desert wonderland.  In the meantime, I want to send out early race wishes for all my friends racing CIM, Vegas or White Rock.  This weekend will be a race tracker’s paradise.

A special Good Luck goes to my brave pals doing both CIM and Vegas in one godawfully long day – Paul, Holly, James and Matt – along with Steve, who is doing his own freaky stunt: The Northface 50mi race on Saturday, then going to Sacramento to cheer the CIM crew, then the Full in Vegas. Needless to say, they’re all insane.

Also racing and hanging with me this weekend will be Carrie (finally, Girlfriend, we meet!) and sweet Kevin who are doing one marathon each and Jay who is doing Northface (not the 50miler, maybe the marathon) then will jump in the course for a bit at Vegas.  And this is just the core group, not including spouses and friends.

Lastly, there’ll also be a handful of forum/Facebook/blog friends doing Vegas, too.  Off the top of my head: Joe, Eric, Jeff and Deb.  To you guys, I’m gonna be at the Expo on Saturday probably around 4:30 or 5, so hopefully we can bump in to each other then if not during the race itself.

So that’s the story.  Next post comes from Vegas, Babies.  Till then…muah!