foot problems; trying to figure things out

Wednesday afternoon: tweaked my foot walking around. Same foot problem I had about 5 years ago, peroneus longus tendonitis at the insertion of the first metatarsal; basically, some pain in the medial side of my foot about midway between heel and toes. Oh yay. I didn't think much of it at the time and didn't even mention it to my coach because I figured it'd feel better in the morning. That was dumb, since it had been bugging me a bit on and off since the Tuesday after the Salt Lake Half Marathon. Just a little pain here and there, nothing serious, mind you, but bugging me all the same.

Yesterday: I was supposed to do a 5K fartlek. Nope. My foot hurt a lot. I drove to the track anyway, and it was raining a bit, and VERY windy. Ridiculously windy. I walked up the steps to the track, and realized I was being very stupid, so I turned around and got back in my car and was quite sad and grousing to myself. Seems like lately it is always something - hamstring getting better, now the foot, and the rain, and the wind, and...

I skipped the workout, went to my PT appointment early and did some elliptical there, plus a whole lot of PT for my foot and some for my hamstring. My PT did the Graston tools on my leg and foot (OUCH!!!!! but good...), and that seems to have helped. It's better today.

Today: I went to the indoor track and did a couple laps. My foot felt OK but my legs were just heavy and dead. I bailed and did the elliptical instead.

It's very hard right now to get over the hump of being injured and not being able to do what I want. I'm afraid to push too hard, yet feel I need to. My PT wants me to back off a bit, though. I want to go to Perth, but more and more it's looking like I'm not going to be able to get into shape. Part of it is real physical limitations right now, but part of it is mental. I can't seem to get myself back in the mental groove to really, really want this. I think a lot of that is that when you have repetitive instances of workouts that are very difficult and feel horrible that it's hard to get motivated to even try them again, and then my real physical limitations crop up and make it worse. It's a vicious cycle and I can't seem to get out.

Otherwise, life is going pretty well, so I am grateful for that, and it makes me feel like putting this all on hold until I can heal up properly might be the right decision? I don't know. Just thinking aloud.

8K no pain :)

I was grumpy and woke up late. Still tired from the trip and the time change. BUT...all that being said, I had a good walk. NO PAIN! YAY! I would've been faster but the dogs were kind of a pain this morning - because I was later, there was a bit more traffic and more kids and dogs near the elementary schools I walk by, and I had to keep correcting the dogs. Otherwise, it was good, and I'm happy I got out. The weather (after much much much rain the past couple days) was nice this morning, though it's supposed to rain again this afternoon. It was 7.8C (46F) and calm and clear.

I did the 8K at 6:34/km with ave HR 145; total time 52:35. Good enough.

Garmin data here. 

4x1km @85% effort

I rested Sunday & Monday - long weekend trip, getting older, not bouncing back as well, I guess. Rest days were good :).

Today I opted for the indoor track because of the cold rain (about 6C with steady rainfall - ugh). I warmed up well (5 laps) then did 4x878m @ 85% effort (3 laps each). It went well! I did them in 5:04.7 (5:47.1 for 1km), 5:05.3 (5:47.8/km), 5:06.6 (5:49.3/km), and 5:09.5 (5:52.6/km), at a true 85% effort; comfortably hard. My hamstring did well, hurting 1/10 at most. 

This week we'll do 2 speed sessions :) and that was a good start. Not fast, but hey, starting somewhere.

Garmin data here. 

3K fartlek - last Thursday

This is a leftover post from last week ---

On Thursday I did a 3K fartlek at the outdoor track (! it was unlocked!). But...sadly, the workout was terrible. I was really slow, felt like sludge, and my HR was low. Just one of those bad workout days. I was supposed to do 5K but quit at 3K, at 18:25 (!so slow!). HR was only 158.

16K in Dana Point

Yesterday: elliptical/bike at hotel (the recumbent bike was NOT hamstring-friendly, so only did about 7-8 min on it) and LOTS of PT exercises. Calf raises, hip hikes, monster walks with band, planks on all sides, bridges, and NEW unweighted one-legged hamstring dead lifts (eccentric, gently --- if any pain I am to NOT do them, but it felt fine).

Kelly's wedding was great! See pics on Facebook...

Today: 16K along the beach and up a giant hill with Calvin - 8K with Calvin, then 8K alone. Including the giant hill (91 floors on my fitbit! elevation gain 195m on Garmin) I did 6:35/km for the 16K, which is very good IMO. Better yet, pain was mostly ZERO with 1/10 for the last 3-4km. HA! Happy with that. Weather was incredible - in the 50s (12.8C) and with a gentle ocean breeze. Rough life here.

Garmin data here. 

cross-training; 8km with 3x3' bursts

Yesterday: elliptical and LOTS of PT exercises, on my own, at the gym.

Today: 8K with 3x3' bursts. Hamstring was a bit more sore today than it has been, but it wasn't terrible or anything. I think it's fine; it was just a 2/10 during some of the bursts and 1/10 otherwise.

My legs were tired. I wonder if it was the PT? But they weren't dead. Still, my 500s were way slow... 3' fast was 2:56 (OK), 3:01 (ugh) and 3:06 (really ugh). Oh well. I'm getting better slowly. Progress is incremental and all that.

Weather was great :) 9C and sunny with a breeze. Company (Calvin and dogs) was nice too :).

51:53 for the 8K (6:29/km) w/ave HR 147.

rest day; 6K

Yesterday: rest day, though I did walk about 5K casually (not RW) to a baby shower and back home (2.5k each way).

Today: 6K with Powder and Sugar; very uneventful. I felt good :) and though my muscles are pretty sore (were more sore yesterday!!!) I did fine, and was even a bit faster than I have been. Weather was lovely at 8C (46F), though quite windy (slowed me down a bit at some points).

38:26 for the 6K for 6:25/km with ave HR 143. Pain level was 0-1/10 :). Hamstring feeling good. Definitely on the mend, as long as I don't do something else stupid to hurt it.

Garmin data here. 

Salt Lake Half Marathon - 10th consecutive year! 2007-2016 :)

Yes, this was my first half marathon in 2007, and I've done it every year since, even in 2014 when I walked it in just over 3 hr (slowly!) because I was too sick to go faster. My fastest time was 2:03 and change, before the course got harder 3 years ago; that's still my half marathon PR. This year I was 2:19 and change. I took my time and made sure my hamstring survived OK. The hills on the new course are really tough, and despite that it's a net downhill it is still a very challenging course and I was happy to finish.

My hamstring didn't bother me much - at most it was sometimes a 2/10, but it was 0-1/10 pain level for most of the race. My legs felt strong and good until about the last 2km, when my right leg got very tired and I felt that my hamstring and calf on the right were a bit wobbly/iffy. I probably was compensating for weak/tired/injured left leg, so I have to be careful of that this week. Otherwise, everything was good and I think my recovery is proceeding.

The weather was cold but not windy until after the race (yay!) and it was beautifully clear (yay!). The temps were about 2.2C to start (36F) and about 46-48F at the finish (8-9C).

Garmin data here. 

I'm way tired and trying to get some sleep soon so not gonna write more now - seems like this pretty much sums it up. Photos from the last 10 years:

slogging along

This week has been +/-.

Monday night: dug up some weeds. Think it aggravated the hammy a bit.

Tuesday morning: elliptical.

Tuesday night: mowed very long grass in yard. Definitely aggravated the hammy a bit.

Wednesday morning: 5K fartlek was the workout. I made it to 3K; legs were heavy, and hammy was more sore than I thought it should be, and I was very slow. Got to 2926m (~3K fartlek on indoor track) in 17:54 and HR was only 157 average. Yeah. Slow. I called it quits, which I think in retrospect was definitely the right call. No sense beating a dead horse. I think it was just a minor setback due to the yard work, because today was better.

Today: 6K on JRP with Kelly and Sugar. Nice weather, 52F (11C) but pretty windy as a storm was blowing in. The first 3K was slower (into the wind) and then the last 3K felt better. Total was 39:59 for 6:39/km ave HR 143. Then I did 5x200m @85%...well, more like a nice hard effort :). Harder than 85%. But I wasn't fast; the fast twitch muscles still need work. I did 5:29 for the km.

Hamstring felt OK the rest of today. Tomorrow is PT and Saturday is the Salt Lake 1/2 marathon. I think it'll be OK for that.

I'm going to have to decide in the next couple months whether to go to Perth or not. Right now it's hard to know if I'll be able to train, so I'm trying not to get discouraged and make a pre-emptive decision. Hopefully things will improve soon or it'll be a no-go.

rest day; 10K

Yesterday I took a legit rest day. Did absolutely no exercise, not yoga, nothing. Even took a nap! It felt good. I ate well too :).

Today: 10K with Kelly (OK, she did 6.8 with me, then I did the rest with Sugar!) on the JRP. Gorgeous morning. 48F by my car but Garmin says 54F (12.2C). It was nice :). No wind, dark when we started but light when I finished, and the alpenglow on the mountains was awesome. I love living here (when it's not snowing...).

We started off very slowly (7 min km for the first km) but I felt pretty tired and my legs were definitely heavy - though I rested on Sunday, I had done a LOT of heavy duty yard work on Saturday, including digging 6 very large holes for rosebushes and hauling the dirt around, so I'm not surprised my legs were a bit tired to start. I picked up the pace as I went though, and my hamstring did OK. It was also a little sore to start, sometimes 1, often 2/10 pain level, but by the end of the workout it was running 0-1/10 and wasn't bothering me much at all. Whew.

So the summary is: slow but done. The usual lately. 6:40/km for 1:06:48 with ave HR 144.

Some pictures from my walk and also of my tulips :). Spring is here :)!!! (It'll probably snow again, but I need to enjoy the good weather while I can).

16K

Yesterday: elliptical & resisted urge to bike to work, since last time my hamstring didn't like it.

Today: 16K on the JRP; first 10K with Kelly and Sugar and last 6K with just Sugar. I ran into Sarah out there at a bit shy of 13K and it was nice to see her. The weather was amazing and my workout was great, too. Yay! Plus all the flowers are blooming and it's just gorgeous right now. Of course, this being SLC, it could snow tomorrow (and who knows, it might!). It was 13.9C (57F) and breezy, but not so windy that it messed up my walking.

Pain levels were quite good. They started off at mostly 1/10 with some 2/10, then as I went it was more 1/10 and even some kms with no pain. Yes!!!! This after sitting a lot at dinner and the symphony last night, so I'm quite pleased.

I didn't try to go fast. We started slowly and I didn't want to push anything. I got to 10K in about 1:06:xx and felt good. Happily, my legs felt good all the way to probably the last 500m, when they started to get tired. But that bodes well for next week's half marathon, and also for next week's training. Maybe I can ramp things up.

Weight Watchers: Um, yeah, I have had a lot of problems the last few weeks. I only gained 0.4lb from 2 weeks ago, but...yeah...it's time for some soul searching. Kelly and I talked about it and it was very helpful to have her support and her perspective, plus I went to my meeting today and also my church small group has been helpful. I am in a good frame of mind right now and realize that I need to 1) slow down a little so I can sleep a bit more, 2) focus on treating my body well. I'm feeling a second wind here; it probably helps that racewalking is going better this week.

Perth, here we come (I hope!).

Garmin data.

cross-training; 5K fartlek

Yesterday: elliptical, rode bike to work. I also did this on Monday, and my hamstring was totally fine with the biking uphill. But yesterday it was bothering me a bit during the bike ride, which I thought was a bit odd. It's not like hamstring is the #1 muscle you use while bicycling. Hmmm. The good news is that it felt 100% fine last night and this morning before my 5K fartlek, so I am pretty sure I didn't aggravate it.

Today: 5K fartlek. Went to Taylorsville High track to meet Kelly. Track was LOCKED. ARRRRRGH. So we had coffee, and skipped the workout. The end.

Not really! We had coffee, and afterward I went home and got ready for work and took the bus to campus and worked out at the indoor track, showered, and walked to work. I did the 5K fartlek.

The warm-up was fine and I felt very good. Pain was limited to 1/10, and my legs felt energetic this morning. I did a few PT exercises and some dynamic drills and got going on the fartlek. I did about the same as I did 2 weeks ago when I did the 5K fartlek, speed-wise, only today I had less pain. It was consistently 1/10 with only the occasional 2/10. Yes to that! The speed will come. I gotta keep believing that!

Total time was a slowish 30:19.8, which = 30:29.3 for the full 5000m. Splits were 2:53-2:58 adjusted for hard effort 500s and 3:07-3:13 for medium effort 500s. Yes, slow, but I am trying not to care about that. Just getting it done.

Garmin data here. 

10K; improving?

I think I'm improving :).

Today I did 10K on the Jordan River Parkway (JRP) with Kelly and Sugar. Pain levels were mostly 1 with sometimes 2, and not increasing during the workout. Yay! Legs felt fine all the way to the end, unlike on Saturday when the last km was quite tiring (which is why I stopped; tired + possible resultant bad form = possible injury aggravation). Now, I was very slow today, but I started off slow and not feeling great mentally, and picked it up at the end - we barely negative split the workout. Besides, I'm OK with being slow because I did the distance and the pain wasn't bad. If I can train again hard soon, speed will come (I keep telling myself that).

I'm proud of this workout because I really wanted to quit in the first 3-4km. Kelly and I were both feeling mentally blah, and somehow kept each other going. I am getting to the point with this injury that I'm almost like "Why bother?" because RW is just going to hurt and I will be very slow because I can't train hard enough to get faster. So it was critical to get through a workout in good stead. I told myself this one was critical because I need to do 15km on Saturday so I can do the SL 1/2 on the next Saturday. Now of course if my injury had bothered me I'd have stopped, but endurance-wise I knew I needed to find a way to make this work. After about 4km though I felt better and got my second wind. I tired a little at 9km but it wasn't bad, just a little bit. 1:07:21 for 6:44/km with ave HR 142.

We celebrated with a trip to Mimi's Cafe for breakfast. I was well-behaved and ate steel cut oats and some turkey sausage and lots of COFFEE :). Mmmmm, warm tasty goodness. The weather was nice outside (7.2C = 45F) and calm and clear, but it was still chilly in damp clothing after stopping, so the coffee was awesome.

Got back to the car after breakfast to see this, which made me laugh out loud, literally :). I wish she could've driven me home :)!

6K; gentle yoga

Today: Did 6K easy, and pain was a bit better than yesterday. 1-2/10; sometimes 1, sometimes 2, always tolerable. Slow, but that was OK. 6:39/km with ave HR 144, and legs felt reasonably fresh. I could've gone farther (not sure HOW far) but don't want to push things too much. I feel like right now I need to be conservative for a little longer.

Then I did yoga with Sarah, the hard DVD, but omitting any exercise that even began to feel like it was stretching my hamstring. Super conservative. It felt good.

Then hot tub for 20 minutes and relaxing in the sun :). Ahhhhh....

Now to drive home and go back to reality!

Easy 10K

Yesterday: elliptical and PT exercises.

Today:

I hoped I could go farther today, but I'm so darn de-conditioned, endurance-wise. Sigh....

I'm in Mesquite, Nevada, with my friend Sarah for a girls' weekend away. It's awesome :). It's usually about 20 degrees warmer here than in Salt Lake, and right now it's so lovely. It was definitely shorts weather for my walk at 50F (10C) but rapidly warming to 55-60ish, calm, and clear and so much sun :).

The drive down here was surprisingly OK on my hamstring (5 hr drive) at the time, but this morning it was sore, probably from the drive I assume. I was very apprehensive about RW. I started out and the pain was probably a 2/10 and I was very concerned, but I thought I needed to give it a few km, and the pain lessened to 1/10 and didn't really bother me much. Whew. The bigger problem was that my legs got really tired around 7-8km and so at 10K I knew I should call it quits before I did strain something trying to go longer. Geez. :(. But since I still want to do the SL Half Marathon in a couple weeks, I knew I needed a bit more work, so I did 33 min on elliptical + bike. Would've done longer but the hammy started to hurt on the bike (?what?!?) so I quit. It feels totally fine now (after a shower and breakfast) so I don't know what was going on. I got a total of about 1:40 of exercise so that's something.

The 10K was slowish at 1:06:38 for 6:40/km but my HR was nice and low at 138. Haven't lost all my fitness, just some endurance. It'll come back.

I saw 3 very cute cottontail rabbits, a bunch of quail, some cattle, chickens, and BABY goats -
very very cute! Here's a photo of the goats and also one of some giant concrete Lego blocks.