Sore Knees and Ankles

Update: I've solved my injury problems--see ChiRunning technique. 

I was able to get out for a trail run today, first since my 20-miler over the weekend. Yesterday my knees and ankles were sore--not injury sore, but just generally sore. I could feel it mostly when walking up or down stairs. My arms on the inside of my elbows (not sure what that part is called--you know, where the doctor takes blood) were also sore. I suspect these are areas I need to target for strength training. However, once I started running, the soreness went away.

Week 19: Not Happy with Weight Watchers

I wasn't very happy when I logged into Weight Watchers this morning. My displeasure didn't have anything to do with my weight--I lost weight again last week. Instead, my displeasure was with a significant change they made. They changed how Points are calculated.

L-Five Trail Run Report (20 Miles)

I had the pleasure today of trail running with Steve Barlow and Kay Scott, both fellow members of the North Texas Trail Runners. I ran with them about a month ago and enjoyed the company both times.

For most of the run I just tucked in behind them and tried to stay up. They spent most of the run today talking about their Ironman training. I have a lot of respect for people that train for multiple disciplines. I am just trying to get good at one!

Steve and Kay ahead of me on a sandy part of the Northshore Trail.

My run was excellent, the longest since I started my Three In Three Challenge, and a big mental and confidence booster for my next milestone race.

Too Damn Cold

I was planning to run the Fat Ass Turkey Trot with the North Texas Trail Runners this morning. We were scheduled to leave the MADD Shelter at the Northshore Trail around 7 am. However, when I awoke this morning it was cold... really cold. I know 28 degrees might not seem cold to some, but it's TOO DAMN COLD  for me! I decided to make a nice hot cup of coffee and play on my computer instead.

Early afternoon the temperature warmed to the mid 50's. Much better! So off I went to the trail. I decided to run from Far Gate so I could continue practicing for my next milestone race on the rougher terrain. I ran about two and a half miles in, turned around and ran back out to Far Gate.

Somewhere along the Northshore Trail.

I pushed my pace a little today, and I can feel it in my calf muscle. Must keep reminding myself that slow running is far better than no running!

Will probably rest tomorrow and then go for a nice long and slow run on Sunday.

Music To My Ears

My daughter asked me a question this morning that just about stopped my heart...

She asked if she could go trail running with me!!!

How exciting is that. My eight year old daughter wants to go trail running with her dad. Her request was like music to my ears! I suggested that we go for a trail WALK for starters. She has a tendency to get injured rather easily. She can get hurt just watching an episode of SpongeBob! She agreed and off we went!

We loaded up the Doodles and off we went to the Northshore Trail. We picked Far Gate because it has less traffic than the other parts of the trails, which works out better when I have the Doodles with me.

My daughter and the Doodles walking the Northshore Trail.

My Running Buddy

Today I started Week 2 of my half-marathon training program. Since my mileage is back down to shorter runs during the week and the weather has been so cool, I decided to add some company to my run--my Labradoodle, Tucker!

Tucker absolutely loves the trail. However, he has a tough time getting there. He gets so excited on the 2 mile drive from my house to the Far Gate trail head at Northshore Trail that he almost has a heart attack. He just can't help himself!

Week 18: I'm A Loser... Again!

I was pretty frustrated when I weighted in last week. But not this week. I am happy to report that I am a loser... again!

During Weeks 16 and 17 I really lost focus. I stopped keeping track of what I was eating and didn't really pay much attention to the quality of the food, either. As a result, I gained weight.

Last week I hit the bit reset button and started following the Weight Watchers program once again. And, the strangest thing happened. I lost weight! I lost 3.3 lbs total, which is more than I wanted to lose, but I am happy with making up a little ground.

When I updated my numbers on Weight Watchers this morning the system yelled at me...

"You lost weight! Keep making sure you’re losing weight the healthy way – sticking to the Good Health Guidelines, using up your daily POINTS Target, and focusing on nutritious Filling Foods."

I liked that message much better than the... "oops, you screwed up" type message I saw over the previous two weeks!

I know I just need to stay focused and follow the program. If I do, eventually I will achieve my weight loss goal.

L-Five Trail Run Report (13.1 Miles)

Today was my first long run since completing my 15K milestone race. I followed a taper for a couple of weeks preceding the race, and to be perfectly honest, I HATED the taper. I felt so restricted. But I knew it was necessary in order to allow my body to recover and build energy for the race.

Now that my first milestone race is out of the way, I've started training for my next milestone trail race. My training plan for today called for a six miles run. But to be honest, once I started running, I didn't want to stop.

Somewhere along the Northshore Trail.

Strength Training for Endurance (W2D1)

Per my training plan, yesterday I started (resumed) strength training for endurance. I am following a 12 week beginner strength and conditioning program intended to work the lower body, core, and upper body. I started the program during my last training round but stopped after the first three weeks.

The focus yesterday was on the lower body and included exercises such as the dumbell squat, bench step ups, and dumbell dead lift. I increased the weight used on each exercise from the last time I did this circuit. The goal is to increase the weight each lap so that you find the point of exhaustion, where you can't complete the full number of reps. In theory, if you exhaust the muscles in this way, they build back stronger.

After the lower body exercises the focus shifted to some upper body and finished with some core work including glute bridges, superman, and some ab crunches.

I will say the workout was good. And as I write this the next morning, I am a little sore. But I know the soreness is a good thing. It means that I stressed my body and that it will repair itself stronger than it was.

I need to stay with it.

My Half-Marathon Training Program

I recently completed my first milestone race, the Rockledge Rumble 15K. I felt I was 100% prepared for the event and completed the distance with ease. After some reflection, I updated my milestone trail races to reduce the amount of time to train for and complete my ultramarathon goal.

My next milestone race, the Cross Timbers Half-Marathon, is scheduled for February 19th, 2011. The Cross Timbers trail is known as the "toughest little trail in Texas" primarily due to its sometimes unrunnable hills and technical areas (rocks, tree roots, etc.). Over the last couple of days I have done a lot of research and thinking about the approach I want to take for this portion of my training. I decided that my training program should meet the following requirements:

1. Incorporate strength training.
2. Incorporate hill work.
3. Longest run to exceed half-marathon distance. 

Hal Higdon

For my 15K race I followed Hal Hidgon's Half Marathon Training Program. I felt the program worked well for me. The program helped me increase my mileage gradually and incorporated enough rest days to allow for proper recovery. So I've decided to once again follow one of Hal's training programs, this time the Novice 1 Marathon Training Program. However, I've made some changes to the program in order to accommodate my specific training needs and requirements:

Week 17: Not Surprised

I weighted in again this morning and didn't like what I saw. I wrote last week that I was surprised that I didn't gain more weight after all the left over chocolate I ate. But this week I will have to admit that I am not surprised that I gained weight again. I gained TWO WHOLE POUNDS. Ouch!

I was still tapering for my first milestone race and carbo-loading the last few days before the race. But bottom line, I wasn't tracking what I was eating, so I ate more calories than I burned. And the end result of that... I gained weight, again.

So, now that I've completed my first milestone race, it's time to get focused again. I need to hit the big reset button and get back to the disciplines that allowed me to lose my first 25 pounds. I know that the Weight Watchers approach works, as long as I actually follow it! And following it simply means tracking what I eat and stopping each day when I get to my allotted points. It's that simple. If I continue to follow the program, I will achieve my weight loss goal.

As I said last week, and as I will actually do this week... Reset, refocus, resume.

Updated Milestone Trail Races

I have posted an updated version of my milestone races.

In my first post I identified three goals that I plan to achieve over three years (my Three In Three Challenge). The third goal is to complete an ultramarathon. In July 2010, I broke down my ultramarathon goal into a series of milestones races, including a 15K in 2010, a 30K in 2011, and a 50K in 2012. I have now completed my first milestone race, the Rockledge Rumble 15K. The race was a BLAST!

As I write this post the day after running my first milestone race, I am realizing that my fitness level has improved at a much faster pace than I had anticipated. As a result, I think I can cut almost a year out of the process and shoot for the Rockledge Rumble 50K at the end of 2011.

With that in mind, I have decided on the following milestone trail races and distance goals for 2011.

1. Feb 2011--Cross Timbers Half Marathon (13.1 miles)
2. May 2011--The Ranch 30K (18.6 miles)
3. Aug 2011--Full Marathon (26.2 miles, location TBD)
4. Nov 2011--Rockledge Rumble 50K (31 miles)
   (my ultramarathon goal race!)

Now that I have my milestones set, I need to shift focus to developing training plans for each of the races. The combination of training plans will become my 2011 Annual Training Plan.

I need to ensure that the plan is well balanced, helps me build the mileage and endurance needed to comfortably complete each race, and allows for proper rest and recovery between each race.

If you have suggestions, please leave me a comment!

2010 Rockledge Rumble 15K Race Report

I have posted an updated list of my milestones races.

I am pleased to announce that I completed my first milestone race, the Rockledge Rumble 15K. Before I get into the race report I wanted to thank Tom Krull (the race director) for organizing such a well run event, and also all the volunteers that made it possible. Even more so, I want to thank America's Veterans, for which this event honors.

Here's a video from rockcrawler23 that shows the 15K race. After watching, scroll down for my race report.



I'm not really sure how to write a race report, so I will just ramble on for a bit about my experience today.

I'm Ready To Rumble

My first milestone race--the Rockledge Rumble--is just two days away. I went for my last tapering run yesterday and I felt great. No calf muscle problems. My legs felt strong and rested. My lungs are good. And my brain is very excited about participating in the first race since I started my Three In Three Challenge. I have successfully completed my training and I feel like I am ready.

On The Trail Again

On the trail again - just can't wait to get on the trail again.

Not exactly what Willie Nelson had in mind, but I was singing this modified version of his classic as I jogged the trail today. It was the first time back on the trail since I injured my calf muscle about a week ago. I was going to run yesterday but my calf was still a little sore. So I opted for another day of rest.

I took the pace nice and easy today. I ran a portion of the trail that has very few inclines or declines and slowed my pace further for the few that I did encounter. I went a little over 3 miles and my legs felt fine. An hour or two after I finished I could feel a little pressure in my calf muscle, but no pain. I am going to rest again tomorrow and then go for another slow and easy jog on Wednesday.

Week 16: Surprised!

This morning I feel like I got away with something. Over the last week I sorta let things go. I stopped running (because of my injury), I drank a few more beers than normal (instead of red wine), and I ate a TON of chocolate (left over from Halloween). I also stopped tracking my points with Weight Watchers. So I expected to see a big gain on the scale this week. However, when it was all said and done, I only gained a half a pound! I'll take it!

I will say I had a really fun eating week last week, and I know its much more fun eating that way. However, I also know that I will never get to my goal weight if I continue. So, I am refocusing on the Weight Watchers process and will begin tracking (and staying within) my daily points.

Reset. Refocus. Resume.

What do you do to stay on track with your goals?

Jogging The Dog(s)

I started jogging again today. My calf muscle was feeling OK this morning. No pain, but very stiff. So I decided to stay off the trails and just go for a run with the dogs around the neighborhood.

I started with Tucker, our Labradoodle, and ran the first lap. Tucker is the dog that I've taken on the trail recently. He tends to want to go a little faster than Mazie, our Goldendoodle. I probably should have started in the other order so I could get my slower jog in with Mazie and then pick up the pace a little with Tucker. But it worked out OK.

Not Ready

My calf muscle was feeling OK this morning so I decided to give it a test on the treadmill. I was only able to go about a mile at a very slow pace before it started hurting again. I'm clearly not ready to hit the trails yet.

I will give it a couple more days of the RICE treatment and then try the treadmill test again. If I can run a few miles without any issues on Saturday, I'll try a trail run on Sunday. Otherwise, I'll keep on resting it. Need to get it healed for my upcoming milestone race.

In hindsight, I think I know the root cause of my injury this time... going too fast. I was feeling great when I started my run on Tuesday, and as a result, I pushed my pace. I think my head and my heart are further along in my training than my body! So I will slow my pace back to what I know my body can handle and focus on gradually increasing my distance.

The speed will come later.

Have you experienced set backs in your training? If so, how did you deal with them?

Using RICE To Treat Injury

I injured my calf muscle yesterday during my run. Fortunately, I have enough experience with calf injuries to know exactly what to do about it. I also know what to do to avoid them, but for some reason, I don't pay any attention to that side of it. But that's for another post.

Anyway, I use RICE to treat my calf injuries. What is RICE you might ask? Well...

Week 15: A Small Loss

I only lost about a half a pound last week, but I'll take it. I was trying to transition off the Weight Watchers program. So I was eating most of the week based on how I felt, vs tracking the actual amounts. I am still happy with the 0.6 lbs loss.

This week I will resume tracking.