It Ain't Running, But It Will Have to Do

Hey I did the unimaginable -- I rode my bike!

The first time I have ridden for any significant distance for quite a while and my hip didn't bother me at all during the ride. Which means that I have something that I can do while it is recuperating and not lose all of my conditioning.

I cheated and used my Garmin to track my ride, it made for GREAT run times, but not so good bicycling times. However, I am actually pretty satisfied with the "first" ride in a long time, but I still have some adjustments to make on the bike so that it doesn't bother my knee

Bike riding isn't all that bad, but it isn't running, but it will have to do for now.

Looking at Injuries as an Opportunity

Okay, I am injured - there I said it. It took a lot to say that and actually accept that fact.

Yes it sucks!!!

However, I have a sneaking suspicion that while I have pushed through the discomfort/pain of the injury and continued to run, that by continuing to run it is not allowing me to heal completely, simply re-aggravates what is wrong and is prolonging how long it will be before I can run again.

Everybody has injuries or accidents, it doesn't matter whether you are a couch potato who doesn't do any exercise that gets up trips over the cat and blows out a knee, the backyard mechanic with the cigarette hanging out of his mouth who slips on a grease spot on the garage floor, to the socialite who trips in her high heels and can't walk for a week. And so on.

It doesn't matter who you are or what your exercise of choice or not is - injuries happen.

No I would rather have one of my running over-use injuries, that I got from being too active and doing something that I love, than many of the other injuries that occur or the other diseases that happen as a result of not being active.

I have to look at this particular running injury as an opportunity.

Injuries are Very Humbling - 5-14-13

The past couple of weeks are/have definitely been a lesson in humility and bringing me back to reality. I have been running GREAT this year and I have been dealing with issues with my hip, which have made it so that yes I can still run, but not at the level or intensity that I have become accustomed to.

Sometimes, you just have to suck it up and look for the silver lining in a situation. Being not able to run the way that I have become accustomed is forcing me to let other parts of my body that needed to heal up a little a chance to do so and also to remind me to not take my running for granted. It is a good reminder to ensure that I am appreciating the runs that I am able to get in - no matter the distance or intensity.

Today's 2.5 miler on the trails at UMA felt pretty good until the last 100 yards, when the hip tightened back up. There was discomfort during the run, but it was within the tolerable range. I didn't try to pick up the pace very much, even though the Garmin shows me going a lot faster in a couple of places.

My hip bothered a little more after the run, but it is better than it was last week, so it is getting better, but it will just take some time.

Originally written by Harold Shaw and published at "A Veteran Runnah" © 2011-2013, All Rights Reserved. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Harold Shaw and A Veteran Runnah" with appropriate and specific directions or links to the original content.

Running Shoes - For Better or For Worse

For better or for worse, I am a shod runner. Oh I run a few strides on the football fields barefoot, but actual barefoot running holds no interest for me.

Which means that I rely on running shoe manufacturers to provide me (usually for a $100 bill or so) with running shoes to run in.

This post or mini rant came about, due to my frustrations with a minor running injury to my hip (which I blame rightly or wrongly on the shoes I was wearing that day), that has caused me to miss almost a week and a half of training - I can run/jog, but not train at the level I want, the issues I was/am having with my right foot/toe and all the running shoe shopping that I have gone through over the past couple of weeks - something that I usually love to do, but this time it has become an exasperating experience.

On top of everything else, I am one of those runners who loves to try the newest and greatest shoe, to see if it is that mythical magical shoe that is going to solve all of my running related issues and keep me running in spite of my enthusiasm - errr training mistakes.

Sound familiar?

What I Learned Last Week - 5/12/13

Well the injury bug got me finally and the flu bug beat me silly last weekend.

This past week has been all about getting things back together and recovering.

On Friday (way back on May 3rd), I ran a great 13.1 mile training run. However, towards the end of that run, I tweaked my left hip (I was running in a pair/style of shoes that I haven't run in for a long time and the body wasn't ready to go that far, or that fast in that style of shoe). The next morning I could just barely walk on it and I had to drive back and forth to Logan Airport in Boston, so that probably didn't help either.

I can run through the pain if I have to get a run in, but I am trying to be smarter about it and let it heal, so while it is better, it ain't back yet and I have a feeling that the Sugarloaf 15K race this coming weekend is going to be skipped unless I have a miraculous recovery.

Shutting It Down Early–Is a Good Thing

I attempted to run an easy 3.0 miler today and ended up finishing 2.28 miles in 19:28.

The goal for this run was simple – to run and see how the left hip is doing.

My hip was feeling decent when I started, I knew that it was going to be a little sore, but figured as long as there wasn’t any pain, (there is a difference) that I would be fine. Everything else felt great and I could tell that my body needed the run, however, the hip while not barking very loudly, it was letting me know it still wasn’t quite right and after a couple of miles, I decided to shut it down before it started to hurt again, since I could feel it starting to tighten up.

I have to keep reminding myself that I don’t have to beat myself silly and complete every run that I start out on. When I feel that something isn’t quite right, shutting it down is the smart thing to do. I don’t have to impress anyone but myself.

It was too bad, because the light rain was wonderful to run in and otherwise I felt really great.

Now to just get this hip back to normal, so I get back to running the was I was.

Better safe than sorry and be able to run another day.

Who Else is A Little Nicked Up

Photo by Susan Morris

I don't know about you, but my training this spring has gone better than, I thought it would, actually it has been GREAT!!! It also means that I have put a LOT of miles (for me) on the body and my body has decided that it is going to take some unscheduled down-time.

This morning I had a quick Twitter conversation with Christina and over past few weeks I have also been reading other runner's comments on social media and I have been seeing quite a few comments from others, with their tales of being sick, soooo tired or nicked up. There seems to be an accumulation of a lot of little aches and pains from our spring running programs.

This trend was really brought home over the course of the past week.

• Last Friday on a great long run, towards the end, I tweaked my right hip and have been battling to get it back to normal since then.
• Saturday, Sunday & Monday - I was sick as a dog with the flu

Those two things coming so close together reminded me that I am not invincible (another myth shot to hell) and got me to thinking - I know a dangerous thing.

So I took a look back at my weekly mileage totals since the start of the year.

A Surprise Track Workout 5-8-13

Today was a tale of 2 runs, the first a nice easy planned one and the second a bit unexpected - at the last minute I found that I needed to go to the track for a post I am working on.

The first run was my weekly workout with Team Red, White and Blue at the Augusta YMCA. Unfortunately, not too many showed up, but those of us that did had a good time and did an easy 3.0 miles on the Rail Trail.

The second workout was this afternoon, when I was working on a blog post and figured out that I needed some recent video of me doing a track workout and barefoot strides on the infield.

So I trundled off to Colby's track and proceeded to see how much I would be able to do after being so sick just a few days ago.

Here is what I was able to accomplish:

How Did I End Up in Saucony Virrata's

Over the past couple of weeks, I have been taking a CLOSE look at my running shoes and how things are actually working versus how I want them to work.

Why - You have been running consistent mileage, with decent good times for an old fart?

To be honest, this right foot pain has had me in a tizzy and it bugs the hell out of me that I can't seem to run pain free or at least without discomfort in that foot and still be able to run with socks on and even when running with no socks, it is beginning to bother me - A LOT.

So last Wednesday, I ran in a different brand of shoe (one that worked really well for me in the past), than usual and the foot didn't seem to bother nearly as much, but they sure bothered my knees (which is why I stopped running in them - they are done) which made me think, could it be the style or brand of shoe?