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I ran 3 miles this morning to cap off my second week of my 20 week training schedule. Its been cold, but I have been able to make myself run anyway. It sure feels good to be back on the road again.
Got in two miles tonight - first day of the new marathon training schedule. I only had to run one mile, but I am feeling really good so I pushed it. I have a doctors appointment tomorrow to get a handle on some of my knee and foot pain. I am on the path again!
Ran 2.whatever miles tonight in the freezing cold. I surprised myself - I thought it was going to be just a mile, but I was feeling pretty good at the mile mark, so I extended it. I am marking out my new marathon schedule tonight.
Well, a perfect storm of criteria pushed me out the door today to start running again. 1) It was actually a sunny and warm day; 2) Snow is mostly melted; 3) I have been feeling pretty flabby; 4) I am looking at the impending summer months, and eyeing some marathons in the July time frame.
So here we go again boys and girls - time to get my training on.
I started out very light - a 1 mile run. I figure I will ease into things with my knee and everything. It was harder than I thought it would be. Take 4 months off of running, and its crazy how much you lose. I definitely felt the burn and when I got home I was totally exhausted and hit the couch for a nap.
My mind is in a place that is still ready to handle and run 10 miles, so it is kind of depressing that my body can only handle one mile right now. We will see how things go this week - I am told that you get it back pretty fast.
Well, a few weeks ago I was about halfway through my first 20 mile run, and my knee started giving me some pain. I have had pains like this before so I slowed my pace a bit and figured it would pass. About a mile later, the pain became excruciating, and I couldn’t run on it. I was running in the local neigborhood so it wasn’t too far for me to walk the rest of the way home. By the time I got home, I found I couldn’t walk on it anymore. I debated for a few hours about whether I should go to the doctor, and at my wife’s urging I did. They didn’t see anything wrong with it at the ER, so they gave me some crutches, and told me to go see my doctor. I went to the doctor a few days later. Good news: it wasn’t a major issue like an ACL tear or something. Bad news, I had strained some tendons around my kneecap and was told I couldn’t run on it for a while.
I was pretty bummed - I only had about a week or two to go till the Denver Marathon.
Its been about a month since all that happened. My knee was sore for a few weeks, but now is back up to (what I think) is 100%. I have been looking around on the Internet for marathons in January and early February, and there are a couple of interesting prospects. I hope to get back on the road this week and start my training again. I am still fully committed to this goal, and won’t quit until I make it.
Over the past month I have run a cumulative 88 miles - with long runs on the weekends building from 10 miles, to 12, to 13 last week. I am sticking to my schedule like a hawk, but I have to admit that these long runs are getting pretty tough. The 13 miler last week wasn’t so bad, but that first 10 miler was killer. The last 2 miles of that run were literally torture every step of the way. Running a marathon is truly a mental challenge as much as it is a physical challenge. I found myself trying to rationalize why I didn’t need to do this goal and how I had already done so much. My resolve is not broken though - by the end of the run I was having this very heated debate in my mind between the two Kronks - one saying that I shouldn’t give up, and the other doing one handed handstand pushups trying to impress me.
The good Kronk won the argument. I am going to complete this marathon if it kills me. Two months left before the Denver Marathon.
Shorter run this weekend , 10 miles, next weekend I go up to 15 miles, and am considering signing up for a half marathon that day.
Got 3 miles in yesterday and 5 tonight. Perfect weather for running these days (in the evening at least). I love summer.
I went back through my spreadsheet based on Hal Higdon’s novice training schedule (here), and have revised my training schedule a little bit so I can get back on track. I have 14 weeks before the Denver Marathon, and I have a pretty clear game plan from here on out. I will run a short run tonight but will kickoff my revised training schedule on Tuesday. 10 mile run this coming weekend. Time for a final push.
Got some running in a couple of days this last week, so I am getting back on track after resting for a bit. I am about to start a more comprehensive work out program as well to chase after that six pack and bench press goal. To that end, I wanted to share a couple of really great workout songs…of the heavy metal variety:
Disturbed: Indestructible
Shinedown - Sound of Madness
Well, it looks like I am going to have to push off my half-marathon a few more weeks. This last week my ankles and knees have been very sore, and I reluctantly have decided to give my body a little bit of a rest. I have peaked out with a 10 mile run a few weeks ago, and a week ago I ran 4, 6, and 4 miles on three different days.
I broke from my training schedule because I was feeling really good about where I was - and I think I just ended up pushing myself too hard. I need to be more patient and stick to my established schedule. This coming week I will be getting back to it.
Kind of frustrating. I am still hoping to run the Denver marathon in October, but with this latest set back I am now a little behind. I guess we will see how things turn out.