My spirit is willing, why won't my flesh cooperate??

The good news--I did 7 miles!! The not so good news: I did it in 1 hr 31 mins; my average pace was 12:58 & my fastest was 9:00! This is one of my worst runs. My right ankle & Achilles tendon again *sigh*. But today, my left knee & calf started bothering me the last 2 miles. I want so much to increase intervals from 2:1 to 3:1, but I have to get adjusted to the extra mileage before I do. So, I soaked in cold water for about 15-20 mins. I was feeling pretty confident about this whole MM thing until we got to 5 miles. My body is giving me fits--from this continuous cough I can't shake to the aches & pains of my legs & feet. This is going to get better, right????

Sports Injury Hypochondriac

Firstly, I did not do any yardwork because it rained--forgot that was supposed to happen. I didn't go to the "Y" to XT, either. My left shin was bothering me as was my left foot in the arch area. Immediately, I'm thinking, "Shin splints, tendonitis & plantar fasciitis--I'm not going to be able to do 26.2 miles." Got a bag of frozen peas to put on my shin for about 15 mins & it felt better. I need to quit reading anything about sports injuries because each time I do, I swear I start feeling the pain.

Also, I'm considering changing my training schedule to this:

Sunday: XT
Monday: long run
Tuesday: XT
Wednesday: long run
Thursday: XT
Friday: Rest
Saturday: longer run

Yeah, I cut out the Tuesday short run. I'll try it next week and see how that works. Hoping a day or two of rest between long runs might help. Happy Training Everyone! :)

New Pains

Well, I didn't quite make it to 5 miles yesterday (4.97, though--I'm calling that good enough) thanks to a most annoying cramp in the muscle in my shin (didn't feel like shin splints). more of a jabbing pain. Another new pain was my left hamstring--I just had to brag about never having any hamstring problems during training :( And, my face was covered in salt!

Learned some new stuff & not so new stuff:

1. Wash your face immediately after training. I wondered why I felt like a teenager again with acne flare-ups.

2. Change out of the clothes you ran in IMMEDIATELY!! Ladies, you may feel me on this. I won't go into detail (TMI). It's common sense, but I forgot!

3. Cold baths really do help with aches & pain. Just have to get past the initial shock.

4. If you get a side stitch, lean into the aching side as you're walking/running and take deep breaths. It DOES go away faster!

Think I'm going to do yard & house work for today's XT. I have 6 buds on one of the gardenias and both could use fertilizing/weeding, need to prepare to plant tomatoes, prune the azalea bush and move the tulip & daffodil bulbs elsewhere & make a raised bed for them. I've neglected the yard long enough.

Took it slow

I made sure I was well hydrated before I attempted my 3 mile goal yesterday. I stretched for a longer period of time & it seems that did the trick. It felt great, although my right ankle & Achilles tendon ached initially, but as time went on, it was OK. I took a cold bath immediately afterwards & feel pretty good today. Today, I will attempt 5 miles and Thursday 6 miles. Then I should be ready for Saturday's 7 miles. That's the plan.

Forced Rest Day :(

I HATE that I had to miss today! My legs are still sore from Thursday's run & I didn't want to risk further injury. Maybe Monday, I can try for 6 miles. *sigh*

The Agony of "De Feet"

Saturday's 5 mile run at the "Y" was great! I did it in about 1 hr & 5 mins. Monday's 5 mile run also felt great. Did that one in 1 hr 6 mins exactly. Did I mention BOTH of those runs felt great???

Logically, I was looking forward to another great run. I stretched as usual, then set "The Toy" for 2:1 run/rest intervals and took off. Felt like I was going in slo-mo--I couldn't pick up my feet for anything and it seemed the 1 min rest intervals were only 30 seconds in length! After 2 miles, I wanted to quit. Then I realized "I am a marathoner" & kept going to just over 5 miles & did it in 1 hr 8 mins. My calves, ankles & achilles tendons were sore!

I took a cold bath for only a few minutes because the shivering & clattering of my teeth pulled rank over my poor feet & calves need for relief. But the hot water felt heavenly (ahhh). TGIF (yay, rest day!) and we're doing (*gulp*) 6 miles Saturday! Happy Day of Rest! :)

Distractions. . .

My husband is allergic to just about anything with fur. So, we have 2 betta fish named KR & Carotene (Caro for short). Anyway, Caro's been sick for a few days so I called PetSmart to see if they had any kind of medicine for bettas. The lady who answered said I was the first person to ever call for that (she probably laughed after she put me on hold). But, they did have a variety of remedies! After work, I picked up some medicine, treated the fish and went to do a 5 mile run. I finished in just over an hour, but in the dark--don't like running in the dark.

Yesterday, I planned on doing 5K. Unfortunately, I had an auditor at work who didn't seem to realize that when the clock says "5:00" it's time to shut down. Plus, he didn't seem to believe me when I told him I couldn't run the report he needed & so I was at work an unproductive hour after closing. Finally, I got home & got dressed to run. The phone rang. My husband helped a damsel in distress with her vehicle and left a 15 passenger van in Madison somewhere which he needed me to help him retrieve. So, no workout yesterday :( Not happy about that. But at least Caro is doing much better. :)