Outside of tight hamstrings I have been running injury free for the last 3 years. I think my luck has finally run out. My achilles tendons have been tight in the morning for the last month but a simple stretch and they were fine the rest of the day. Toward the end of last week, my right tendon was feeling tender during and after runs. My 16 mile run on Sunday really did it in though. I tried to run through it on Tuesday but there was a lot of pain so I cut the run short and walked for a while. I’m a little concerned that if I push it then it will turn into something big.
This week was going to be a low mileage week anyway so I’m just going to play it safe and stick to walking of the stationary bike until early next week. Based on an article in Running Times I think my injury is in the paratenon which is a sheath around the tendon and not the tendon itself. Their suggestion was to stretch, ice down and rest it for a little while.
I hate not being able to run for a week but that sounds a lot better than not being able to run for a few months.
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Harvey's 5k St Petersburg
Time: 20:21
Overall: 14 out of 292
Age Group: 3 out of 24
I was a little disappointed in my time for this race. I have increased my training the last few weeks and I think it is starting to catch up to me a little. My legs were so tired when I was warming up that I had no idea how I would do. By the time 8:30 came around it was getting warm and a little humid. There was a light breeze which helped a little though.
The course was great. The start was by Straub Park and stayed pretty close to the water the whole time. If they could eliminate the run through a parking lot early in the race, I would say this was the best 5k course I have run.
My only criticism is their choice of age group awards. A coffee mug? It was a mug with the same picture that was on the shirt. I feel sorry for the runner that was receiving their first age group award and they only get a coffee mug. If you are going to have age group awards then give an award.
Overall: 14 out of 292
Age Group: 3 out of 24
I was a little disappointed in my time for this race. I have increased my training the last few weeks and I think it is starting to catch up to me a little. My legs were so tired when I was warming up that I had no idea how I would do. By the time 8:30 came around it was getting warm and a little humid. There was a light breeze which helped a little though.
The course was great. The start was by Straub Park and stayed pretty close to the water the whole time. If they could eliminate the run through a parking lot early in the race, I would say this was the best 5k course I have run.
My only criticism is their choice of age group awards. A coffee mug? It was a mug with the same picture that was on the shirt. I feel sorry for the runner that was receiving their first age group award and they only get a coffee mug. If you are going to have age group awards then give an award.
Sunday, April 6, 2008
My first 50 mile week
I’ve been increasing my mileage over the last couple months and have finally top 50 miles for a week.
It wasn’t a goal because I could have topped 50 miles long before this but I reached it this week without much effort. I’ve increased my frequency to 6 runs a week which made this easier to achieve.
The difference now is my ability to run 10+ miles on back to back days. I ran 15 miles this morning after running 10 miles yesterday and after the first mile or two I felt great. I was a little tired at 15 but I could have gone 20 and not been any worse off.
I’m not sure that I want my miles to get much higher right now but I would like to keep it in the 40-50 range until I start getting ready for my next marathon in October.
It wasn’t a goal because I could have topped 50 miles long before this but I reached it this week without much effort. I’ve increased my frequency to 6 runs a week which made this easier to achieve.
The difference now is my ability to run 10+ miles on back to back days. I ran 15 miles this morning after running 10 miles yesterday and after the first mile or two I felt great. I was a little tired at 15 but I could have gone 20 and not been any worse off.
I’m not sure that I want my miles to get much higher right now but I would like to keep it in the 40-50 range until I start getting ready for my next marathon in October.
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Brandon Shamrock Classic 5k
The weather was 75 and humid and a little windy but that didn't stop me from crushing my PR and finishing 2nd overall. I was in 2nd from the start. After the first 1/4 mile the lead runner started to pull away. I didn't look behind me until the half way point and I had a good 30-45 second lead on a pack of 3-4 runners behind me.
My first 2 splits were both 6:15 my 3rd was 6:05 which leads me to believe that the course was a little short. I thought my 3rd mile was more like 6:45.
The race winner finished in 18:18. I didn't see the time of the 3rd place runner but he looked to be about 1 minute behind.
This was my third race in four weeks. My next scheduled race is in four weeks.
My first 2 splits were both 6:15 my 3rd was 6:05 which leads me to believe that the course was a little short. I thought my 3rd mile was more like 6:45.
The race winner finished in 18:18. I didn't see the time of the 3rd place runner but he looked to be about 1 minute behind.
This was my third race in four weeks. My next scheduled race is in four weeks.
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Armadillo 5k
There wasn’t any rain and the temperature was in the mid 60’s which would have been perfect if it wasn’t for the 25-30 mph gusts of wind. I still managed to beat my PR by 1 second and finish 3rd overall in a very weak field.
I felt great throughout the race and really thought that I had a good chance to beat 20 minutes if it wasn’t for those head winds but I’ll get another chance next week in Brandon.
I was very impressed with how well the race was run. Especially when compared with the Bolt Run 5k that I ran 2 weeks ago. My only complaint was the trophies. There were more than enough to go around but my 3rd place overall trophy was one of the smaller ones given out. The forth place finisher won the Masters award which was 3x as big and even the 1st place age group trophies were twice as big. I guess it really doesn’t matter but if you are going to give out more than one overall award then make it seem like a good thing.
This will definitely be on my race calendar again next year.
I felt great throughout the race and really thought that I had a good chance to beat 20 minutes if it wasn’t for those head winds but I’ll get another chance next week in Brandon.
I was very impressed with how well the race was run. Especially when compared with the Bolt Run 5k that I ran 2 weeks ago. My only complaint was the trophies. There were more than enough to go around but my 3rd place overall trophy was one of the smaller ones given out. The forth place finisher won the Masters award which was 3x as big and even the 1st place age group trophies were twice as big. I guess it really doesn’t matter but if you are going to give out more than one overall award then make it seem like a good thing.
This will definitely be on my race calendar again next year.
Friday, February 29, 2008
If I knew then what I know now
I saw this question asked on another blog and it got me thinking. Approximately 25 years ago was the first that I started to take running seriously. By serious I mean racing. I have stopped and started back up so many times since then that I lost count. The first step is to look at why I’m a better runner now then I was 25 years ago.
Healthy eating
Stretch every day
Schedule training and track previous runs
Keep motivated by always having the next race scheduled
The following is a short list of some of the things I would do differently 25 years ago if I knew then what I know now.
1. Always have a scheduled race on the calendar
When you only run for fitness it’s easy to skip a workout or two. It doesn’t take long to fall out of your routine and before you know it you have gone weeks without running.
Since getting back into running 3 years ago, I’ve always had the next race (or races) that I was training for. I usually look forward to running but on those days that I would like to just skip the run I just think about how that will effect my performance in the next race and will usually end up running.
2. Don’t wait to run a marathon
I thought about running a marathon for a long time but was intimidated by the distance. It took a few marathons before I knew how to prepare. It would have been nice to not have to learn those lessons the hard way.
3. Eat better
Compared with the average person I’m a fairly healthy eater but I still could have eaten much better. Way too much fast food and beer in my earlier days. It’s amazing how much more energy you have when you eat right.
4. Stretch, stretch, stretch
I never did much stretching early on and this lead to many injuries. Now, I never run without stretching before and after and I will even stretch on days that I don’t run.
5. Treadmill running
It wasn’t always easy to find a good place to run or a good time to run. This made for an all too easy excuse to skip a run. Until 2 years ago I never considered running on a treadmill and now that’s where I do most of my running.
6. Pre-plan my training runs
I’ve done a much better job of sticking to my training and mixing up the workouts when I plan them at least 1-2 weeks out.
Healthy eating
Stretch every day
Schedule training and track previous runs
Keep motivated by always having the next race scheduled
The following is a short list of some of the things I would do differently 25 years ago if I knew then what I know now.
1. Always have a scheduled race on the calendar
When you only run for fitness it’s easy to skip a workout or two. It doesn’t take long to fall out of your routine and before you know it you have gone weeks without running.
Since getting back into running 3 years ago, I’ve always had the next race (or races) that I was training for. I usually look forward to running but on those days that I would like to just skip the run I just think about how that will effect my performance in the next race and will usually end up running.
2. Don’t wait to run a marathon
I thought about running a marathon for a long time but was intimidated by the distance. It took a few marathons before I knew how to prepare. It would have been nice to not have to learn those lessons the hard way.
3. Eat better
Compared with the average person I’m a fairly healthy eater but I still could have eaten much better. Way too much fast food and beer in my earlier days. It’s amazing how much more energy you have when you eat right.
4. Stretch, stretch, stretch
I never did much stretching early on and this lead to many injuries. Now, I never run without stretching before and after and I will even stretch on days that I don’t run.
5. Treadmill running
It wasn’t always easy to find a good place to run or a good time to run. This made for an all too easy excuse to skip a run. Until 2 years ago I never considered running on a treadmill and now that’s where I do most of my running.
6. Pre-plan my training runs
I’ve done a much better job of sticking to my training and mixing up the workouts when I plan them at least 1-2 weeks out.
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Bolt Run 5k
Tampa Bay Lightning Bolt Run 5k
After training for a marathon and half marathons for the last 6 months I finally ran another 5k. My goal this year is to break 20 minutes so my 20:38 was a little bit of a disappointment but not totally unexpected. It’s a little hard to change the mindset from long and steady to hard sprint. It didn’t help that the course didn’t have mile markers so I could monitor my splits.
Overall though it was a good first race to build on. I placed 14th overall and 3rd in my age group. It looked like there were around 400 at the start (about the same as last year).
After training for a marathon and half marathons for the last 6 months I finally ran another 5k. My goal this year is to break 20 minutes so my 20:38 was a little bit of a disappointment but not totally unexpected. It’s a little hard to change the mindset from long and steady to hard sprint. It didn’t help that the course didn’t have mile markers so I could monitor my splits.
Overall though it was a good first race to build on. I placed 14th overall and 3rd in my age group. It looked like there were around 400 at the start (about the same as last year).
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