Paradise is a constant hill. I live at 2,200 feet and no matter where I run there are always hills to descend and ascend. Today's run was the perfect case in point. I wanted something different for my long run--needed to put in about 9 miles. I ended up just running the length of the walking trail that goes through town. The only problem is that this trial drops over 680 feet in elevation over that distance.
I started with one mile up--bought a gatorade from the gas station (the only store that's open at 5AM). And then it was down for the next 4.9 miles. That's ok, I mean I enjoy downhill as much as the next guy, but I prefer to do it on the homeward part of the journey. Today, every step down reminded me that I had to come back up.
To make matters worse, on the return leg, I got to run uphill and into the breeze. But do you know what makes it all worthwhile? It wasn't the Gatorade, or the Clif Bar that I ate along the way. It was the chocolate milk waiting for me at home. Yummmm, chocolate milk--the perfect recovery drink.
Showing posts with label recovery. Show all posts
Showing posts with label recovery. Show all posts
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Running Through Injury
Last week my regular training schedule was in flux. I spent Monday through Wednesday at a Pastors' Prayer Summit. While I was there, I met another pastor who has 11 marathons under his belt. We planned a run early Tuesday and went out for a quick 6. The next day we ran another 4. So that left my usual speed workout day for later in the week.
On Friday I went to the high school track and did some speed intervals (a weekly part of my training plan). On deck that day were 4x100m ad 2x200m. As I was putting in the rest of my mileage for the day I threw in one more 200m aerobic interval. I think I was a little too aggressive on the sprints--soreness in my quads and lower abs.
Sunday's long run was to be 13.4 miles. Here in Paradise, CA there is very little flat ground and the route I chose for this run had a lot of ambitiously rolling hills. Apparently the combination of a tough speed day followed by a hilly long run really strained my lower abs. Spent the rest of Sunday and Monday doing the "old man shuffle."
So yesterday I knew I had to take it easy. My friend Ryan wanted to do an easy 2 mile run in the morning. He's just starting to run again and his training has him alternating running/walking. Let me tell you, I was thankful for every one of those walk portions. That evening I put in another 1.5 miles just to keep my mileage up. I felt so much better.
There is a something kind of cool and counterintuitive about running through the minor strains and pains of running. Of course, I've been through other difficulties other this training program--shins, knees, IT band, hams--and so far I've found that a lot of listening to my body and a little research (to find out how to address issues as they come up) enables me to keep on truckin'!
On Friday I went to the high school track and did some speed intervals (a weekly part of my training plan). On deck that day were 4x100m ad 2x200m. As I was putting in the rest of my mileage for the day I threw in one more 200m aerobic interval. I think I was a little too aggressive on the sprints--soreness in my quads and lower abs.
Sunday's long run was to be 13.4 miles. Here in Paradise, CA there is very little flat ground and the route I chose for this run had a lot of ambitiously rolling hills. Apparently the combination of a tough speed day followed by a hilly long run really strained my lower abs. Spent the rest of Sunday and Monday doing the "old man shuffle."
So yesterday I knew I had to take it easy. My friend Ryan wanted to do an easy 2 mile run in the morning. He's just starting to run again and his training has him alternating running/walking. Let me tell you, I was thankful for every one of those walk portions. That evening I put in another 1.5 miles just to keep my mileage up. I felt so much better.
There is a something kind of cool and counterintuitive about running through the minor strains and pains of running. Of course, I've been through other difficulties other this training program--shins, knees, IT band, hams--and so far I've found that a lot of listening to my body and a little research (to find out how to address issues as they come up) enables me to keep on truckin'!
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