5 Miles on the W&OD Trail

Yesterday I was feeling so good after my 5 mile return to running that I decided to repeat the run today.  I followed the same path and tried to keep to the same pace (9:25 - 9:30).  I ended up running a bit faster at the start and slowed as I went.

This run I felt my ankle more at the end than the day before.  And there was a little bit of swelling afterwards but no real pain.  I stretched and iced afterwards and felt fine the next day.

Friday is a day off and then Saturday I'll attempt a longer run (got to build back up the miles if I'm going to do the marathon in 30 days).

Glad to be running again.

5 Miles on the W&OD... I'm back!!!

I had another physical therapy session today at 1:30, and by the time I got home at 3:00 I was feeling really good.  I haven't had pain in a while, and the massage and stretching at PT really helped me feel loose and strong.  And then, to top off the good feeling I was experiencing, when I came home there was a package in the mail from the Semper Fi Fund.  It was my race tec shirt with the Semper Fi Fund logo on the front.

I set my Garmin for a 9:30 pace and really tried to run no faster than that (I ended up with a 9:27 average pace).  After the first two miles I really loosened up and noticed my pace crept up on me.  So I pulled it back and focused on running slowly for the last two miles.

Only once did I think I felt a slight twinge, but it's hard to say.  Half way through the run the KT Tape that the physical therapist had applied started to come off (I sweat too much for it to stick) and it was bothering me as it bunched up in my shoe!

When I was in the last mile and about 1/2 a mile from home one of my dear neighbors Melissa drove by and gave a nice big hoot and a holler to cheer me on.  That was really nice of her, and it helped get me home.

I can tell I've lost a bit of endurance and strength during my hiatus.  But I also can tell... I LOVE RUNNING.  At times I almost felt like crying, I was so happy to get back out there again!  I really hope this is not a short-lived recovery.

My Hal Higdon training plan is out the window.  Now I have to figure out what my runs are going to be from now until 10/30.  I'll post a schedule once I have it figured out.

Cheers,
J

It's been two weeks since my last run...

It's been two weeks since my last run and I'm itching to get back out on the trail.  But I'm also worried.  If I try a run and end up in pain again then it most likely means I won't be running for a long time.  No Army Ten-Miler.  No Marine Corps Marathon.  Nothing.

So I'm waiting as long as possible to test out my Achilles tendon on a real run.  I think Saturday will be my first test run.  But possibly I'll try a very short run tomorrow of two or three miles.

If I pass my first test, then I'm thinking of running the following for my long runs...


10/2 - 7 miles
10/9 - 10 miles (Army Ten-Miler)
10/16 - 18 or 20 miles
10/23 - 8 miles
10/30 - 26.2 (MCM)

I wouldn't run the Army Ten-Miler at "race pace".  More likely it will be 30-45 seconds off my race pace.

Meanwhile I continue physical therapy, and I've also been exercising on the elliptical machine at the community center and on the stationary recumbent bicycle at home in order to keep my cardio fitness level somewhat close to where it was.  I feel like I've lost some cardio fitness during my rehabilitation.  Hoepfully not too much.

Physical Therapy and Rest

A brief update...

My orthopedist whom I saw last Friday gave me a boot for my left foot to immobilize my ankle.  That's helped with the ankle pain when walking down stairs, but it's a pain to move around in otherwise.  I probably won't wear it too much longer.

Yesterday I had my first session with the physical therapist.  It amounted to little more than massage, ultrasound and icing, and then he taped up my ankle.  Tomorrow I'll have another session which should include learning stretches and strengthening exercises.  We also discussed some acupuncture therapy which sounds interesting and which I'll probably pursue.

I like the physical therapist, mostly because he's very optimistic about my ability to run the marathon.  He even thought the Army Ten-Miler on Oct. 9th was a possibility. :-)

Meanwhile my ankle is feeling pretty good.  It's tempting to try running again, but I vowed not to run for at least two weeks.

8 Miles at Hains Point and the Mall

Well... it did not go well today.  My achilles tendon was sore from yesterday at the beginning of today's run, and after the first mile it was hurting a little.  I pushed through and ran at a 9:20 pace.  I debated stopping because I was "running through the pain" but thought I should see if I could finish or not.  Of course I finished, and now my tendon is more sore than before.

So I'm stopping.  For now.

I made an appointment with the orthopedic doctor I saw before (when I had my other tendon issue in May/June) for Friday.  Let's see what advice and treatments he has for me.

So, dear reader... keep your fingers crossed and say a prayer for my recovery.  I'd hate for this to be my last run in this blog.

5 Miles on the Mall

Today, after one week of not running to rest my Achilles tendon, I returned to the Mall to run 5 miles.  I wore my brand new Brooks Adrenaline GTS 11s with my new custom inserts.  My legs were fresh and the weather was great at 6:00am when I set out. 

I decided to to a close circle around the Mall so I wouldn't have far to walk back if I had pain and had to stop. 

The tendon is definitely not 100% healed.  I could feel some soreness still, but it wasn't much of a soreness at all.  Just enough to let me know it was there and that I'll need to keep an eye on it.  Tomorrow I plan to try to run 8 miles (per schedule).  Let's see how it goes...

Rest, Ice and Ibuprophen

(as I commented to Anne in my last post)

I'm feeling a lot better but don't want to rush myself back and injure myself again.  I'm going to wait until Tues (1 week from my last run) before trying another run.

Meanwhile I'm using the recumbent bike in the basement in front of the TV.  Yesterday I did two hours on it and the day before 90 minutes.  It doesn't bother my ankle at all, and the college football games keep me distracted.  Hopefully this cross-training exercise will help prevent too much muscle/endurance loss.  I won't know how far I've backslid until my next long run in about a week.

Rest, ice and ibuprofen...  a few more days to go.

Taking some time off

After yesterday's run my tendon was sore again.  I've decided to take a week off, just as I did when I had strained the extensor tendons after running hills back in late May.

4.28 Miles on the W&OD Trail

I haven't run since last Thursday's 5 miler.  I wanted to give my Achilles tendon time to heal from whatever it was I did to it.  It had become tender and slightly swollen.

So after a long weekend's rest in sunny Florida I took my old body out for a quick run in the clammy drizzle and rain of Northern Virginia.  It actually wasn't raining when I started, but as it had been raining on and off all day (heavy at times) I knew I was probably going to end up running in the rain at some point in the run.

When I started out I was feeling very fresh.  Too fresh, probably, for my own good.  I started out fast and decided to keep up the fast pace.  After the second mile it started raining, lightly at first and heavier entering the fourth mile.  Meanwhile my left ankle was feeling a bit tender again, as was my left knee.  So I decided to wrap it up early and stopped after 4.2-something miles.

I ran with a pace of about 8:25/mile and that was wrong of me.  I should have been running around 9:15-9:30 minute miles.

Tomorrow I'm supposed to run 8.  I will focus on running them slowly at a 9:30 pace.  Let's see what happens.

5 Miles on the Mall

I took two loops around the Mall today at a slow pace. I didn't run Hains Point today because I wanted to stay close to my office. My Achilles tendon was sore today in my left ankle and I wasn't sure how my run would go. When I was running it didn't bother me too much, but after I stopped I could tell it wasn't happy. So I iced it and I'm going to take a few days off to let it rest.