Archive for: injury

Five on the Treadmill

Posted by Jim on March 13, 2012

Me with my dog CaseyI ran five miles on the treadmill this evening at a moderately slow pace.  I was still feeling a little worn out from Sunday’s long run and had to push myself to even get out the door.  The run went okay except for one concern.  I’m feeling a slight pull on my left muscle (for lack of better wording).  It’s not pain and it doesn’t yet hinder my running.  But I feel as if it I could end up with a pulled calf muscle at any moment.

I tried to compensate a little with my stride.  I found that running off my toes a little more seems to lessen the feeling.  Even sitting here now I can feel that tingling in my left calf muscle.

I think I’ll have a chat with my wife (a nurse) and see what she suggest as preventative measures.  Then I will look into making a doctor’s appointment to get an even more informed opinion.  I really want to avoid anything happening that would keep me from running the marathon.  I’ll keep you up to date as soon as I learn more.  In the meantime, all else seems right on track for being ready and conditioned for the marathon run.

Categories Training
Comments (0)

Marathon Training Update

Posted by Jim on February 20, 2012

Categories Training
Comments (0)

10 Kilometer Racing in the Morning

Posted by Jim on December 16, 2011

I ran a couple times this week and didn’t take time to post.  Family time is my priority during the holiday.  But tomorrow I have my first ever trail race so I thought I should update you on what’s happening.

On Wednesday I ran four miles on the Back Country Trail in Cloudland Canyon State Park.  It was a faster run than I expected at just under 48 minutes.  Yesterday I did a short three mile run on the asphalt track and again my pace was faster than normal.  Since I run with a heart monitor to keep from over or under training, the increased speed is definitely a good sign.

My only concern going into this race is the pain at the back of my right knee.  I think I did something to it while playing table tennis with my sons.  It hurt a little on Tuesday night and was painful during both runs after that.  Even today while doing some shopping there was pain.  It doesn’t seem to be slowing me down, but I’m concerned that it could become a bigger issue in tomorrow’s 6.2 mile race.  I’ve got the leg elevated with a heat pad right now, so let’s hope it is only a minor nuisance tomorrow.

I’ve never run a race on dirt trails before other than one cross country race during high school.  Even then it was a fairly level and easy course through open fields.  Tomorrow’s race on Lookout mountain has some more challenging aspects.  Also, it rained most of today, so there will be some mud and water to navigate.  Nonetheless, it should be a lot of fun.  I will update you on the result tomorrow or Sunday.

Categories Races, Trail Runs and Hikes, Training
Comments (0)

When You Fall, Get Back Up

Posted by Jim on December 11, 2011

In March of 2008, Heather Dorniden from the University of Minnesota stood at the starting line to run the 600 meter race at the Big Ten Championship.  The race would be over in less than two minutes and Heather wanted to put in a strong performance.  This race was on her home track in front of friends and family.  The video was taken by her father as he watched his daughter run the sprint race.  What happened next was a surprise to everyone.  Just one minute into the race, Heather tripped on a fellow runners feet and plunged forward onto the track.  Getting back up, it was the last of the three laps and she was far behind the other runners.  But Heather ran anyway.  If you’ve not yet watched the video, please do.  You won’t want to miss this.

I haven’t run for the last two days.  I’ve had some pain in my legs from a pulled muscle injury, but that is only part of the problem.  I’ve was supposed to run yesterday, but I just didn’t want to.  Yep, I kinda fell down.

But like Heather, I’m back on my feet and ready to win this race.  I just got in from a five mile treadmill run.  I had planned for six miles, but some pain after an hour of running convinced me to stop for now.  I want to be ready for the race in a week, so pushing myself when there is pain is not a good idea.  But the important thing is I ran.

Up until this week motivation was not a problem.  Actually, I see this as a bump in the road.  It’s been cold and overcast for the past few days.  Not the most inviting weather for running.  It makes shopping for excuses not to run a rather easy task.  But I’m up and not going to let this last long.  Tomorrow I will run another five miles, then three on Monday.

My two sons are flying from California to visit us during the Christmas holiday.  I pick them up at midnight on Monday, so Tuesday will be a day off.  I’m looking forward to the three weeks they will be here.  Maybe I can get them to do a little running with me.  That would be fun.

By the way, if you want to learn more about Heather Dorniden, read the article “Heather Dorniden: The Runner Who Didn’t Give Up“.

Categories Races, Training
Comments (0)

Training Update: Almost Back to Running

Posted by Jim on December 7, 2011

Yesterday I did another five miles walking on the treadmill.  Actually it was more like late last night/early this morning.  I didn’t get started until nearly 11:00 pm and the walk took an hour and a half.  I left the incline at 2% and simply walked at a comfortable 3.3 mph except when cooling down at the finish.  I really just wanted to get in the miles.  I wore my heart rate monitor, but I averaged a very mild 109 for the walk.  Again, my goal wasn’t to do an aerobic workout so I didn’t worry about my heart rate during this workout.

Today I figured I could start doing a little bit of running on level ground.  I went to the church’s track and covered 3 miles by running a lap, then walking a lap.  I felt good and the pulled muscle didn’t seem to be a problem.  I’m trying to be cautious because I know if I re-injure myself I will have to drop out of the 10k race coming up.

Today’s run was at the warmest time of day, but still only 40 degrees.  I wore my layers, double socks, gloves and hat.  After a couple laps my core was warmed up and I felt comfortable.  It’s been raining throughout the day, but I did manage to find a window of no rain during my run.  I just had to be sure to avoid the multiple puddles of water on the track.  Yeah, I finished with wet feet.

Categories Clothing & Equipment, Training
Comments (0)

Treadmill 5-Mile Walk

Posted by Jim on December 6, 2011

I didn’t run yesterday because my pulled muscle was still hurting from Friday’s run.  I can walk just fine, so today I decided to walk my workout.

I didn’t get time to work out until after dark.  So I headed to the garage to avoid the dark and the rain for my walk.  I tried to mix things up a bit with a varying pace of 3.5 to 4.2 mph and varying inclines of 0 – 8%.  I used the inclines to keep my HR as close to my target zone as possible.  I took a 90 second “incline break” every 8.5 minutes.  These replaced my typical walking breaks.  The total walk was 5 miles in just over 80 minutes.

I’m hoping that this injury will heal soon so I can get back to running.  I still have the 10k trail race coming up in two weeks, so I want to be ready.

Categories Training
Comments (0)
Next Page »