Thursday, April 10, 2008

Running Journal Month 4 (April 2008)

Week 18 (4/28-5/4)
Weekly mileage: 26.5
Mileage to date: 444.8

Being back on my feet running again this week felt awesome. The poison oak has mostly gone away and my foot didn't hurt after Sunday's DSE race. I'm so excited for Quicksilver already. Even though I live near San Jose, I've never been there, so it'll be interesting.

Race Stats:
DSE Walt Stack 10K - 48:08; 7:44 pace; 47/120 overall; 8th F; 3rd Age

Week 16 & 17 (4/14-4/27):
Mileage to date: 418.3

Week 16 was a bust. Running the Muir Woods race on the 12th did not seem to make the foot injury worse, but it certainly didn't help it get better. I was forced to do other non-running exercise during all of week 15. Running made the metatarsal area hurt more, so I just didn't run and focused on trying not to get too depressed about it (a difficult challenge). On Sunday, went to see my friend's team finish the 199 Mile Relay (http://therelay.com/ ). They did great despite being plagued by injuries of varying types. After they finished, we went to a little vegetarian restaurant in Capitola called Dharma (http://www.dharmaland.com/ ), which had an array of very healthy plates. It was a good day.

During Week 17, I took a more active approach to the recovery and visited Athlete's Advantage, a deep muscle therapy massage center where Nathalie worked on my foot, releasing some of the tension that had built up. It felt better to walk on for the next few days, so I went back again on Wednesday for another session. She mentioned her friend Adam, who owns Runner's High in Menlo Park (http://www.runnershigh.com/), so I went over there for an analysis. Adam watched me run in various shoes for about 45 minutes or so, and concluded that I need shoes with slightly more arch support. I bought an insole for my current shoes since they are new and a new pair of Saucony ProGrid Omni 6 stability running shoes. I really liked the way they felt on my feet, so I decided to try them out. We'll see how it goes.

As for the race on the 27th, originally I was signed up for the 50k at Big Basin on the 27th, but had dropped it to the 25k the week before. The drive to Big Basin turned out to be a little longer than anticipated, however, and I ended up starting the race about 5 minutes late; at that point, I dropped down to the 17k, figuring it would be better for the foot and I was starting late anyway. It was a good decision. My foot hurt a little bit, but mostly I felt fatigued and my stomach was upset, so I was pretty happy not to have to do another loop. That being said, the trail, waterfall and redwoods were amazing as always, and I tried to enjoy them while I was out there, even though it was hitting the 80s near the top of the hills. The course was not a fast one, but I felt particularly slow. Even on the 17k, I got a bit dehydrated, but it was a good run overall because my foot felt okay after. My conclusion is that I think I can start running in Week 17 again, which makes me happy.

Also, on the 26th, my oldest and greatest friend ran an awesome first marathon. A big congratulations to Christina!!!

Race Stats:

PCT Big Basin 17k (elev. gain ~2,110') - ~ 1:55 (I'm guessing b/c of the late start and failed watch!); 22/89 overall; 7th F (woulda been 4 0r 5 if I started on time); 3rd Age (either way)


Week 15 (4/7-4/13):
Weekly mileage: 20
Mileage to date: 405.8

This week was a lesson in recovery and restraint. I spent it icing and limping around the office, trying not to get overly frustrated with the state of my foot (and failing). I kept up the yoga and went climbing on the gym wall on Friday, but I only ran once on the treadmill on Thursday, and my foot didn't love it. Nevertheless, it seemed a bit better Friday, so I decided to run the Envirosports Muir Woods 25k starting at Stinson Beach and climbing part of Mt. Tam, mostly because I absolutely love the trails in that area. The weather reached the low 80s that day - by far, the hottest weather I've run in. I wore a white tank top, shorts and sunblock, and doused myself with the water at the aid stations, which seemed to do the trick. The trails wove in and out redwoods and through streams, with views of the ocean at some open parts near the top. My foot doesn't seem to be worse for it, so I'm glad I ventured out. Other highlights from the week included seeing Eddie Vedder play at Zellerbach in Berkeley and climbing all over San Francisco (and, finally, up Coit Tower) on Sunday.


Race Stats:

Envirosports Muir Woods 25k (elev. gain: ~3400') - 2:38:56; ~10:14 pace; 35/138 overall; 8th F; 2nd Age

Week 14 (3/31-4/6):
Weekly mileage: 11.4
Mileage to date: 385.8

Recovering from knee, foot, poison oak and stomach ailments. Ridiculous!

Race Stats:
DSE Great Highway 4M - 30:43; 7:40 pace; 44/118 overall; 4thF; 1st Age

1 comment:

NLC said...

i am tired just reading about your running! :) hope to see you soon!