Intense Stretching Routine Starts Tomorrow

I've still been battling ITBS in my right leg.  Last week, I thought I might have turned a corner, as a couple of my jogs were relatively pain free.  But, it was short lived as I still have pain in my knee when I run, and it's all a result of straining my ITB during the marathon, I'm positive of that.  Granted, the marathon was only 3 weeks ago (almost seems like a lifetime ago, weird), so I'm still in recovery mode from that no doubt.

But, a new marathon training cycle is supposed to begin tomorrow, and I've got a half marathon race in Huntington Beach, CA in 6 weeks.  I was able to run 5 miles today, and I don't have a doubt that I can finish this upcoming HM race, but I really need to get rid of this ITBS.  I think I may also consider going back to the PT, to make sure to get the right combination of stretches to help facilitate healing.

For once, I'd like to have a solid marathon training cycle without any injuries and do an intense training program, but that may have to wait for my fall marathon.

Also, regarding long term goals, even though I've only got intentions of doing 2 marathons this year, since I want to focus on quality rather than quantity this year, perhaps next year, I might try to run a marathon a each month.  That would be fun!

I may have Turned the Corner

I've been running this past week, well, doing a run/walk shuffle, but not without a lot of pain in my right knee.  I thought it was getting better, but in reality, I don't think it was.  I finally got out this past weekend and did some running outside, after doing a number of runs on the treadmill. Yesterday may have been a turning point though, as I was able to run about 2/3 of my 3.1 mile jog, without any significant pain.  And, I was able to repeat that on this evening's run, without any pain at all.  So, I think I'm definitely making progress.  It did feel good tonight, although I did have some shin splint pain, but that was minor.

Making Progress

10 days post marathon, and I feel am making progress regarding my ITBS.  I did not run for about 3 days after the marathon, mainly because of the blizzard we received, and dealing with the aftermath of that.  But, by last Thursday, I was ready to start again, and have done a run/walk every day since then, either doing 3, 4, or 5 miles. The first run was pretty tough, with a immediate pain in my knee whenever I jogged, but walking at the same pace did not hurt.  So, I started doing my stretches, and just took it easy, gradually doing a little more each day.  This is a very mild case of ITBS, certainly not as bad as I had in my left leg earlier this year, hence the reason I am able to do a little bit more.  Today, I was able to fully run half my distance, so am making improvements a little each day. I've still got another couple of weeks of recovery runs lined up before a new marathon training cycle starts, and I'm OK with that.  So, I will probably be doing a daily run of 3 or 4 miles, with nothing longer until I can get to a pain-free point again in my knee.  I'm also stepping up my stretching regimen, so that will likely help too.

It's a weird feeling, knowing I've run so much, and have recently just done 3 marathons, and now I can't even run more than 1/4 mile without pain.  I long to be 100% healthy again, where I can just run, and run, and run.  It will come, I have to have faith that it will.

A Midwestern Blizzard, Oh My

Today, a blizzard is expected across the region.  That's both a good and bad thing.  Mainly, it will keep me off my feet as I have to work (I'm a weatherman), and it will give me a couple of days to heal.  I may get stuck at work for 24 straight hours, but that's OK, and hopefully, the rest will be good for my knee.  Otherwise, I really don't have any other major aches or muscle soreness.  I think the huge amount of walking I did post-race really helped out a lot. I will have to remember that for future races.

Walking, Walking, Walking

After bonking in the marathon yesterday afternoon, I did take a nice long nap, and then felt much better yesterday evening.  I felt good enough to go for a long walk up and down the strip.  My knee still hurt, but not bad enough to keep me indoors.  After getting a hearty breakfast at Denny's (breakfast is my traditional post race meal, no matter what time of day), I continued to walk up the strip, into, through, and out of casinos, and generally, just kept moving.  It felt great. By the time I got back to my motel late last night, I had walked well over 5 miles.

Today, I've walked another 5 miles or so, again, walking up and down a part of the strip, and walking through both the Las Vegas and Houston airports. Walking definitely helps the rest of the muscles recover by keeping an ample supply of blood flowing.  The knee still hurts today, but it's better than it was yesterday.

On a positive note, I did win $390 playing the Wheel of Fortune slot machines this morning before leaving Vegas.  Woohoo, that nearly paid for my entire trip.

Decided to Not Run Today

Gasp, I decided to not run today, even though I should have logged at least a couple of miles.  And now, I'm feeling somewhat guilty that I wasted the opportunity, especially considering that the average person can possibly consume upwards of 3000 calories at a typical Thanksgiving meal.

Why didn't I run?  Well, I made excuses, and frankly, I'm not happy about that.  I've been working the midnight shift, and my sleep hasn't been that great this week.  Plus, I've had to cut my sleep short 2 days this week to attend extra meetings at work during the daytime. And, it was cold, blustery, and quite windy tonight when I should have run, and my knee joints were hurting just a little bit.  Excuses.  I tried to rationalize with myself that I'd feel much better after a 30 minute run, but I opted for a nap on the couch instead.

Some days, despite our best intentions, you just need a break.  Skipping a 3 mile run today, in the grand scale, is meaningless at this point.  I do have another marathon to run in 10 days, so I need to make sure I keep moving, but at the same time, I just ran a hard marathon 4 days ago, and do need some rest. It's a delicate balance.

Post Marathon Recovery Day 1

I expected to be very sore this morning after the marathon yesterday, but actually, I think I'm better than I was after Des Moines.  Although, my quads are much more sore today than last time, as are my knees, but everything else feels pretty good with no major aches or pains. I think the dip in the cold pool water at the gym after the marathon yesterday helped a lot too.

So, overall, today hasn't been that bad.  I went to the gym to soak in the hot tub for awhile this afternoon, and also managed to do about 20 minutes of light swimming/water walking, which felt really good.  My right knee is still pretty sore, but I don't think I've hurt anything, it's just going to take another day or two.  And, I decided to forgo the post marathon massage, I just don't think I need it.

Two states down, 48 to go?

Marathon Recovery Week 1

I managed about 6 miles on the treadmill at the gym yesterday, and did 9 miles today on a neighborhood loop with a 9:32 pace so my legs are definitely feeling good.  That's 24.2 miles total for the week, which had a blend of walking and running, so I'm happy with that.  However, I'm having a lack of motivation about the next race that I signed up for in December, and am now having regrets about doing so.  I guess it's still just part of the recovery process, I hope.  The Las Vegas marathon is a Rock n Roll event, so that should make it fun, and I'm even toying with the idea of running it for fun instead of trying to PR, and also thinking about joining the Running Elvi.  They are trying to set a record, and it sounds like a lot of fun.  It's Vegas, and to run as Elvis seems like such a goofy idea, I just might do it! Ha.

Marathon Recovery Day 2

Today is better than yesterday, for sure. While I'm still stiff today, the legs seem to be doing better. I woke up this morning and did manage to get another hot tub soak in.  The hot water sure does help loosen things up.  While an ice bath is the best thing for immediate post-race recovery, nothing beats a nice soak in a whirlpool tub.  I also scheduled a massage early this afternoon.  I went to the Omaha Massage School and got a full hour-long massage for $35, not bad.  While the massage on the legs was uncomfortable at times, it really did help, and is something I'll probably do in the future after big races. And tonight, I did manage to do a 2.8 mile 1:4 walk/run combination.  Basically, I'm just trying to do a reverse taper recovery plan, to ease back into it.

On an unrelated note, I also had time to do a full post-race evaluation today.  While I'm very happy to finally have the first marathon in the books, I now wonder if I couldn't have done better.  I suppose these feelings are common for everyone, asking ourselves what we could have done differently.  In the end, my first marathon ended up like an extra-long long run.  My last long run of 22 miles 3 weeks before the race was at a 10:15 pace.  My 26.2 mile marathon averaged out at a 10:14 pace.  Given that I seem to be recovering well, I'm starting to question whether I might give this another shot in the not too distant future.  It's a personal struggle, questioning whether I could have pushed myself harder, and did I somehow subconsciously sandbag my own race by not giving it my all?  I did bonk during the race and cramped pretty badly near the end.  If I had run harder, would I have bonked sooner?  Or should I be happy with what I've done, take a break, and begin anew next year?  It's a real dilemma for me.

Marathon Recovery Day 1

While I am very sore today, it's not necessarily pain, just that my leg muscles are extremely stiff.  That's normal, although, it's becoming apparent that I probably didn't run the marathon yesterday as hard as I could have. I can walk up and down stairs OK, just very slowly, so that's a good thing.  I did arrange with my boss a few weeks ago to day a day of sick leave today, and he had no problem with that.

So, I've just been at home, taking it easy, and I did manage to go for a very slow walk around the block, which was about 3/4 of a mile.  Slow at first, but once I get moving, it's much better.  I've also used the Stick every once in awhile to roll my muscles, which also helps to keep extra blood flowing. I also plan to hit the gym later tonight to get a hot tub soak in, which will help too.