On The Sidelines
It's 2012 now, and I'm not off to a good start. I took five days off completely from running after the double, and started to get back at it feeling great. However, the day after my 15 mile trail run at Island Lake, I ran a 10 miler where I developed some tightness in my left leg, which eventually turned into knee pain. After resting almost a week to try and get well, my planned 13-miler last week was cut short as I could not run without limping - a sure sign that I needed to get it looked at.
This past Tuesday I went to Athletico to get an injury screen. I didn't think it was serious, and fortunately my instincts were correct. My physical therapist there said my left IT band and hamstrings were extremely tight and that hip and glute weakness was most likely the cause for the knee pain. She gave me several stretches and strengthening exercises for me to do to help out, but it's going to take time for the imbalance to be corrected. Obviously this is good news that it's not serious, but the bad news is that she recommended that I not run this week, and it's driving me crazy to not be out there while my wife and peers are building mileage for the spring.
I'm looking at this as a test of my resolve. This time on the sidelines is making me hungrier than ever to get out there and log miles, but I'm also trying to be really smart about it so that I can run consistently and comfortably. I had an amazing 2011 and I really want to build on that progress, but I also don't want to do anything stupid that will put me on the shelf for even longer, and make running a struggle.
The PT says I can do some "light running" next week, but the truth is that I've already started testing the waters. Yesterday I did a quick 5 minute jog to warm up before my stretching routine, and it felt OK, but I went REALLY slow, and I was nervous the whole time. It's incredibly annoying that I am running so gingerly, almost waiting for the pain to come...however thankfully it did not come yesterday. That's progress, hopefully I can continue to build on that.
I couldn't even imagine having a more serious injury or condition that would put me on the shelf for longer. I am going crazy. I did have my first adventure on the elliptical, just to do something to get this energy out, which I think helped a bit. It's been a constant struggle between saying 'fuck it' and just going out there anyway, and the rational side of me which is saying not to rush. So far the rational side is winning, but who knows for how much longer. I'm going to try my first real sustained run (maybe 30 minutes or so) on Monday and see how that goes, and hopefully slowly build confidence.
Goals for 2012
Goal number one is obviously to get and stay healthy. I plan to do this by making these stretching routines daily, do a better job stretching after running as well as incorporating these strengthening exercises the PT gave me into a larger core strength routine that I do every other day. Hopefully in time these exercises will make me stronger so that I can comfortably return to 70 mile weeks (and perhaps more if my body and schedule permits it).
Two other goals - to complete a 50 mile run and go sub-3 in the marathon. I am extremely confident in my ability to do the former, when healthy. Amazingly, the latter isn't too far off - I have to trim my time by 2 minutes and 51 seconds. That simultaneously seems both doable and difficult. I have road marathons in April (Toledo), June (Grandma's) and October (Chicago) planned, as well as "warm-up" ultras in March (Green Jewel 50k in Cleveland, Kal-Haven 33.5M trail run in Kalamazoo), one in April (Winona Lake 30M), leading up to a 50M in May (Ice Age). Right now I am hopeful I can do them all, but I'd like to be able log at least 2-3 runs of 20+ by February to feel confident I can get these done. I am not planning to race anything until after Ice Age, and will probably pace my wife in Toledo to a 3:5x marathon. If I can make it through Ice Age in May and stay healthy, I might make Grandma's a sub-3 attempt, or maybe not...who knows. I am definitely in a wait and see mode.
Truthfully, completing the ultras is a more important goal to me than going sub-3. I know this is the almighty goal for a lot of recreational runners, but I have zero interest in hard marathon training right now...mostly I am interested in just getting out there and going long. Perhaps the fire will come back to race again, but right now I just want to develop the ability to be out there for a really long time.
One other non-race related goal is to incorporate hill training into my regimen. All of this flat running has made me weak, and I don't like it.
Finally, an overall goal for me is to always have fun and enjoy the ability to run. Perhaps this is relevant now more than ever. Running has changed my life and is a blessing that I really try not to take for granted. Each day on the roads or the trails is truly a gift, and you never know when it could be taken from you.
