I'm baaaaack!

Well, after a relaxing vacation and then a 3-day weekend last weekend (including a 10K race that I was ill-prepared for but did anyway (1:03:35....ugh! But what did I expect?)), I feel ready to train again. I wasn't sure I would, but I really do want to do it. My hamstring is MUCH better - 95% of normal I'd guess - and I want to refocus. I'm thinking of doing the national 30K in NY on November 6, and that seems like a reasonable goal, as it's 15 weeks away and though I'm out of shape I've been walking enough that we can ramp up fairly quickly, assuming I continue to feel well.

Speaking of that, I have been a bit fatigued the past week (since returning from vacation) which seems pretty normal, but it seems to be a bit more than I'd expect. Plus I have a nagging toothache, and I got the tooth checked out by the dentist and it's FINE (he's checked twice, including x-rays). It occurred to me this morning that maybe I have some sinusitis going on (!) and that is causing the pain and fatigue. So I made a doctor's appointment for Monday to get it checked out. My dentist is awesome so I really believe there is nothing wrong with the tooth, and it's not unusual for me to have tooth pain with sinusitis, so maybe that's it. A strong decongestant and possibly antibiotics might do the trick?

Anyway, this morning I did a track workout, albeit a short one. East High is done being resurfaced and it is really nice now! Plus it was unlocked!!! YAY!

I did a 1600m warm-up with strides in 10:12, and then some dynamic drills. Guess what? The hamstring one did NOT hurt for the first time since December! WOOHOO! My 3x1km was pretty bad, but 1) I did a whole bunch of hammy PT at the gym yesterday and my legs were still sore, and 2) on Monday I did a 10K race plus a moderately hard hike, so yeah, my legs were feeling it. My times were (ugh!) 5:57.2, 6:03.1, 6:00.8. HR was in upper 160s-low 170s at the end of each of the last two, so I was working hard, but apparently I have no more fast twitch muscles, haha! That'll change.  Garmin data here.

Soul searching

Saturday, after the PT on Friday, my hammy really hurt. A lot. Like 2-3, maybe 4 at times, while racewalking 8k on the Jordan River Parkway. Ugh. It was terrible. I wanted to do 20K, then realized it was gonna be 10-12K, then had to stop at 8K.

Sunday night I picked up the pianist (and his mom, and two teachers) that we are hosting for the Gina Bachauer Junior Competition this week. Things got busier from there. I did take a rest day on Sunday, but it was busy getting ready for our guests.

Monday morning I went out for 6K, and it felt OK. But I was slow, and tired. Every time I pull my hamstring it shortens up my stride because I get paranoid about hurting it, and then I lose my toe-off, and then I'm really slow. I did 6:37/km. Oh yay.

Tuesday I was supposed to do 8K, but I was up late Monday night for the piano competition opening gala, and I was way too tired to get up and walk. So I didn't. I was angry about the hammy and frustrated and tired.

Wednesday I did the 8K, and it went OK; better than Monday but still sluggish. I did 6:32/km. I was talking with friends Wednesday night and journaling some and realizing that something has to give in my life. I'm too busy and it's not good for me or the kids or Loren or work or RW or anything else. But I don't know what to give up.

Today I was to do a 5K fartlek. I woke up tired with a sore throat and just looked in the mirror and said "I don't have to do this any more. Maybe I need to give competitive racewalking a rest." So I went to the gym and did the elliptical and did my PT - including all of the eccentric exercises. It felt OK during, but later, at work, my hammy hurt annoyingly any time I sat more than 15 minutes.

So, right now I'm thinking that I need to consider carefully whether I need a break or not. I'm thinking a break might help my hamstring to recover, though when I e-mailed my PT about that he said he thought I could continue training, albeit at a reduced volume.

I just don't know what to do.

But hey, at the moment I'm enjoying a Chopin Etude, courtesy of my 13-year-old guest prodigy. That's awesome at least.

6K

I racewalked today. It went OK. I was slow and cautious because of my hamstring, but it actually didn't hurt too much. Maybe 1-2/10, and mostly 1 with the occasional 2. I guess that's all right. 40:16 for slow 6:44/km with ave HR 142.

Then I had PT, and my PT was dismayed about my tweaking my hammy again :(. But he thought it might not be too bad. He is pushing me to do some more eccentric hamstring exercises daily, even if they hurt a little. The latest research shows that some eccentric load helps tendons heal faster. Seems to make sense. He had me do some exercises and they hurt 2-3/10; the ones that were 3 we stopped before they could get worse. I am feeling OK now, in the afternoon.

I might try a longer walk tomorrow. I don't know. I'm still tired and discouraged and trying to figure things out. I still need to stay in shape, and I still want to RW. But I wonder if I am pushing too hard for something that can't happen right now. My PT and coach don't seem to think so, so maybe I should believe them?
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5x878m at indoor track

Yesterday: Cross training; elliptical + PT.

Today: Went to the indoor track since the outdoor one is closed for resurfacing. I warmed up for 5 laps (~1500m) and felt horridly sluggish to start and was concerned; also felt a bit nauseated, but that subsided. By the 3rd lap I felt a bit better and was good to go.

I started in on the intervals, and felt OK. I focused a lot on technique, thinking about all that my coach and my PT have been telling me to fix. After the first two intervals went pretty well, I pushed a little harder for the last 3 and was rewarded with slightly increasing speed. This was MUCH better than last week when I slowed down a lot. My intervals were 5:07-5:03 which works out to 5:50-5:45/km. Not fast, but not so awful as it has been, and not too bad for my second speed workout this week. And guess what???? Best of all, NO PAIN!!!!!!!!!!!! :) :) :)

Garmin data here.

Splits:

Split	Time	Avg HR	Max HR	878m	1k equivalent
1	01:40.8	133	151
2	01:43.5	150	151
3	01:42.9	153	156	05:07.2	05:49.9
4	02:00.1	115	156
5	01:39.4	139	154
6	01:44.1	155	157
7	01:42.1	157	160	05:05.6	05:48.1
8	02:00.2	128	160
9	01:40.8	140	155
10	01:42.3	157	160
11	01:42.1	160	162	05:05.2	05:47.6
12	02:00.4	126	162
13	01:39.9	144	157
14	01:42.5	159	161
15	01:41.2	163	165	05:03.6	05:45.8
16	02:00.4	131	165
17	01:40.4	143	161
18	01:43.1	160	162
19	01:40.3	163	166	05:03.8	05:46.0
20	02:46.4	124	166
Summary	36:12.7	143	166
					28:57.4	(5K equivalent)

rest day; 10K w/3x3' @10K race pace

Yesterday: much needed rest day. My hamstring was pretty sore while playing the piano for church; not sure why - maybe because of the PT on Friday? I might eliminate the one exercise I think is the problem and see if that helps. I was SO tired yesterday. Weirdly tired.

Today: I woke up feeling very rested (!), and ready to do today's workout, which was 10K w/3x3' @10K race pace. The weather was lovely, and much nicer than the rain on Saturday! It was 45F (7.2C) and calm and clear, and very beautiful in Liberty Park. The workout went really well, too! Calvin and the dogs joined me and I felt very good on my fast 500s - I have no idea what 10K race pace is these days, but I just went by effort, and those were great. 2:58, 2:53, 2:57, and they didn't feel too hard. My GPS was very off for the first 500m (by probably 20-30 seconds under - had me at 2:48 for easy pace - ummmmm, NOT!) but otherwise seemed fine. Total time was 1:03:57 for 6:24/km with ave HR 145. I like that! I liked even more that my hamstring had mostly ZERO pain and some 1/10 but only on the fast intervals and only part of the time, not the whole interval. Doing better for sure.

I'm taking anti-inflammatories again to try to get the hammy feeling 100%. Hoping it helps, since it was so sore on the weekend.

12K

Yesterday: elliptical and PT. Got new eccentric hamstring exercises. Yay! Hammies are a little sore today but feeling ok.

Today: Coach said 12-15km. It was a very wet morning. Very, very wet. We're in a desert here, so we are a bunch of rain wimps. It started off raining lightly but soon became moderate, steady, soaking rain. Oh yay. It kept that up for my entire workout. When I turned around at 6k (reasoning that I could do 3k more when I got back to the car if I felt OK) the rain was in my face. Yay. I had forgotten my baseball cap and my waterproof jacket, so I was pretty miserable. My injured hamstring started to complain a bit at about 6km, and I double-checked my technique. It never hurt more than 2/10 and was mostly 1-2, but it was still a bit annoying, and between that and the rain, and the fact that I was a bit late (and had to get to work for a bit), I decided 12km would be enough today.

Total time: 1:18:58 for 6:35/km with ave HR 148.

15K national championships

As you might expect, given my lack of conditioning, I was slow. But I didn't think I'd be *THIS* slow. I figured I could at least manage 6:25/km. Nope. About 8km in I was hurting, and slow, and chafing, and I started to cry when Karen S (>60yo, very fast, but still...much older than me) passed me...and I couldn't see Marianne M (>65yo, also very fast) either. Neither of them has ever beaten me before. I could hardly breathe for a while because I was crying while walking :(. I mean, I should have known, but it was just hard to see how truly awful I've become.

Coach assures me that with speed work more regularly and longer, that in 3-4 months I'll be better. That's a long time. Not good enough to make plans for Perth WMA, so I'm probably not going. Better to save $ for Spain in 2018 and take the family with me, since the kids are learning Spanish in school (dual immersion program).

The nice thing about the 15K was the girlfriends' weekend (though poor Diane was very, very sick and we had to take her to the ER on the way down; she's doing better now and will be OK), getting away and relaxing, seeing RW friends, and best of all, walking a lap with some very good American racewalkers from the past - Curt Clausen and Susan Armenta. That was pretty fun - I even have pics of me with them. If I'd been in shape I could've kept up with them easily and that would've been even more fun, but as it was, I couldn't hold even that pace.

The other good thing? Hammy and foot didn't bother me much; pain at most 1/10.

My time was about 1:38:12. Ughhhhh. I was 7th overall so didn't even get an open medal (they give them for 1-6). I did get first in my age group, but I was the only one...geez.... :(

***

Monday - rest day after the race; drove all the way home. Hammy didn't like that, but after a night's sleep it recovered.

Tuesday - 6K easy with Calvin and the dogs, in ~39:15 (watch was waaaay off the first 500m so this is a guesstimate) for 6:32/km. Not too bad. Nothing hurt much; hammy a little sore at times, but mostly 0-1/10.

Today - elliptical and PT exercises.

4x878m @85% effort (indoor track)

Yesterday: elliptical, PT exercises.

Today: warm-up, a few PT exercises (light), then 4x878m at the indoor track. I didn't go early this morning because I was up too late reading and needed to help the kids with some stuff and do laundry this morning before work. So I went at lunch time instead, which was fine.

I pushed a little harder then 85% and was still very slow :(, slower than a couple weeks ago when I did this workout :(. But...it's data, and I'm just getting started. Don't think. Just do it. Or something like that.

Intervals were 5:07.6 (5:50.3 for 1km), 5:08.7 (5:51.6), 5:11.1 (5:54.3), 5:12.3 (5:55.7). The good part about the workout was that my foot didn't hurt and my hamstring hurt only a little, at 1/10. Afterward the hammy bothered me a little but is better now. I'm happy about that! Gotta take the little victories where I can.

Garmin data here. 

10K

Yesterday: rest day.

Today: 10K. Took Calvin and the dogs and enjoyed a beautiful morning; the streets were wet from last night's rain and it was very humid (foggy in Liberty Park - it was cool - the fog was low to the ground, up to about 3-5 ft high) but comfortable at 11.1C (52F).

It was a pretty routine 10K. I like the sound of that! My hamstring bugged me a little bit, pain 1/10, and my foot didn't hurt at all until the last km when it was a little sore (1/10). My legs were a little tired (not sure why, as I rested a lot yesterday!), but considering that I wasn't too awfully slow. I did 6:34/km for 1:05:47 with ave HR 145.

Afterward I did PT exercises.

cross-training; 20K

Yesterday: elliptical, PT. PT: more Graston (ouch! but good) on foot, hammy exercises.

Today: 20K. Kelly did 5K with me, and Calvin rode his bike. Then for 5K-16K Calvin ran with me, but he did 10K plus a bathroom stop during which I did 1K :). Then I did the last 4K alone, and did well. Hammy: pain minimal, at most 1/10! Foot: NO PAIN!!! Yay!!! I was still slow but not too bad. Getting a bit better.

5K splits: 32:34, 33:09, 33:13, 32:53. 6:35/km for 2:11:50 total. Now I just have to get 13-14 min faster by October :). I think that's possible. I should improve rapidly now that I can train again :) :) :).

Garmin data here.

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.

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.

P-DTR, rest day; 3K fartlek

Yesterday: I was just really tired, and a bit down, plus really busy, so I tried to respect my body by giving it a day off except for my PT appointment. My regular PT, Shane at the U Orthopedic Center, had suggested I go see Bonnie who is a PT at the women's clinic, to rule out any pelvic floor dysfunction or problems with muscles in and around that area, given that I was having a hamstring relapse. I agreed, because while I didn't think I was having problems in that area, I figured it wouldn't hurt to get it checked out.

So yesterday afternoon I saw Bonnie and she was very thorough. After examining me she didn't think I had any pelvic floor problems, and thought that basically the problem was my hamstring coupled with some possible lingering dysfunction from my ACL reconstruction 23 years ago. She felt that my popliteus on the left side and some of my back muscles on the left side were a little dysfunctional. I had told Shane last week that I thought I did have some lingering weakness stemming from the ACL surgery, and while I had rehabbed it very well, it wasn't quite the same as the other side. That was all fine and well.

But then Bonnie did something a bit unusual and I'm not 100% sure how I felt about it. On the one hand, I felt that last night it improved my pain level and my functioning quite a bit, but what she did struck me as a bit "woo-woo" and now that I've done some research I can say this much: "P-DTR" or "Proprioceptive Deep Tendon Reflex" therapy is not peer reviewed or evidence-based - YET. Having experienced it and seen some definite short-term benefit (though obviously n=1 and this is anecdotal!), I wouldn't write it off. I thought it was helpful. I'd love it if someone would do some research and show whether it is actually effective or not. Basically, the theory is that some pain results from poor proprioceptor functioning and that using a variety of techniques one can "reset" the mechanosensory feedback that the brain gets.  It seems possible to me that this could have some truth in it; our brains are complex and respond to quite interesting therapies, for example, the mirror box treatment for phantom pain.

Today: 3K fartlek. I went to the gym and did a warm-up on the indoor track. My pain level was a bit better than last week's 5K fartlek, which is good. It wasn't zero, and it was still more painful than before my relapse, with pain 1-2/10, mostly 2/10, and afterward it bothered me quite a bit for maybe 5-10 min before settling down and not hurting any more. I took some naproxen and though I was sitting quite a bit this morning doing injections of zebrafish embryos, it didn't bother me at all, so that was good. Now, at lunch time, it feels pretty much fine, which is an improvement on last week I think.

My fartlek performance was OK, and was about what it has been the past few weeks. Hopefully I can start training more soon and make some real fitness gains. All this waiting is frustrating, but at the same time, I should relax and go with it. My total time for the 2926m was 17:35 which is 18:02 for 3000m. Ave HR was only 157, and my intervals were ~2:55 for the fast and ~3:10 for medium effort. OK I guess. It is what it is...and I feel like I've been saying that for several years now, but what are you going to do, y'know?

Garmin data here. 

hamstring relapse

Yeah, well, it's still not much better, so I guess it's a relapse. But I'm feeling OK about it. Not much I can do to change things at this point!

At PT on Friday I told my PT about the increase in pain, and he advised x-training on Saturday instead of 18K. After consulting with Jim, we decided to do 8K instead. That was all right I guess. No way I would've made it 18K - the 8K was definitely uncomfortable, with pain 2/10 and occasionally a 3/10 - I should have stopped sooner, possibly, as this is the worst the pain has been in a while. But it felt better on Sunday after some anti-inflammatories and resting, and I rode my bike to work on Sunday afternoon with no ill effects, enjoying the good weather before the snow came today. Spring snow...oh yay! Oh, and I was slow on Saturday as you might have guessed - 6:39/km for the 8km; I started much quicker but had to slow down because of pain, not because of fitness.

Monday: did elliptical and PT exercises, felt OK.

Today: tested the hammy out with 6K on the Jordan River Parkway with Kelly (!). Yeah, Kelly actually came with me! She's working this week which made it even nicer that she made the effort. She ran, and I racewalked. My pain was better than Saturday; 1-2/10, probably more 2 than 1 but no 3, and afterward it feels OK. I forgot to wear my Garmin, but Kelly had hers. We did 39:38 for 6:36/km. The weather was lousy! 4C (40F) with wind and rain - starting with a drizzle but turning to pretty steady rain by the time we got back. But I was dressed for it and so it was OK.

cross-training; cross-training; 5K fartlek

Tuesday: cross-training & PT

Wednesday: cross-training & PT, because I wasn't feeling so hot. I'm fine now, but I wasn't up to a 5K fartlek.

Today: 5K fartlek on indoor track. It went OK. My hamstring was much more tender than last week; about like Saturday's 16K and Monday's 10K - pain 2/10. I don't like this trend and am watching it but suspect it's just irritated from the PT and yoga? I need to take some more anti-inflammatories; had stopped because I didn't need them but I need to get this calmed down again.

My fartlek was 30:25 equivalent for 5000m, which is slower than last week by a little bit; perhaps because I was a bit more conservative because of the pain? But it's basically the same speed: too slow, but it'll do for now. I have to be patient, and I'm not good at that.

After my workout I went on the balcony to cool off and took this cool moon photo:

yoga; 10K

Yesterday: yoga, the hard DVD. Then was just sooooooo tired that I had to take a nap. There was no stopping it.

Today: 10k this morning, and I felt OK but was slow and somewhat sore in the hammy; pain was 2/10 but never more. I think the PT from Friday plus some of the yoga stretching is to blame for the sore hammy, though it wasn't *that* sore and feels fine now. Time was 6:41km for 1:06:58 with ave HR 144. Brought both dogs along and they were pretty good though Powder had some lagging/potty issues at the end.

After a busy work day and taking the car to the shop (routine inspection, oil change) and then taking Grace to violin, grocery shopping, and making dinner, I'm thrashed. Low energy tonight, with a pounding headache. I think I'll go to sleep early. My resting HR is nice and low so I doubt this is a relapse of the fatigue; maybe I have a virus of some sort? More rest should help.

PT; 16K

Yesterday: elliptical; hard PT session wherein my PT put me through a boot-camp-like workout. It was tough, but very good. Everything was a bit sore this morning as a result.

Today: 16K. I was sore, and legs were heavy from 5km onward. My hamstring bothered me quite a bit (it was aggravated a bit yesterday in PT, go figure!) but only for the first 1-2km (pain 1-2/10), and then it settled down and didn't hurt much. The heavy legs worried me and I wondered if I'd finish, but it went OK. Not fast, but not a death march either, which is good considering what I did yesterday. It was cold this morning (27F, -2.7C) but not much wind, and the sun was out once it got light. It was still semi-dark when I started.

Total time: 1:45:35 for 6:36/km with ave HR just 143 - happy about the low ave HR. I'm getting fitter, slowly!

Garmin data here. 

8K; misc.

Sunday: I did the hard yoga DVD - all of it :). My muscles were VERY tired from the half marathon, and I could feel it when I did the yoga; I'm pretty sure much of that was because of the hilly course. Then we did some light hiking; probably about 2 miles of easy walking on trails in Arches National Park.

Monday: elliptical, and some PT, including jumping rope. My PT thinks that explosive calf strength will help, and I agree. The jumping rope is hard though - it's not just jumping rope, but also doing one-foot jumprope, alternating feet every 2 touches. It requires a lot of coordination; I'm still working on it. I had a lot of delayed onset muscle soreness, and was glad for the x-training.

Today: 8K with Sugar (no Calvin, no Powder). It was about 36F (2.2C) and snowing very lightly but the roads were essentially dry with a few puddles. I felt fine, and well-recovered - the muscle soreness is pretty much gone. I focused a lot on technique and enjoyed my walk. Total time was 52:17 for 6:32/km with ave HR 143, which is pretty good of late. Hopefully I'm going to turn the corner soon and pick up some speed. Pain was 1/10 at most - very well controlled and hamstring is feeling good.

Garmin data here.

Cross-training

Today: PT exercises in earnest (I've been slacking a bit since going to San Diego) and then 40 min on the elliptical. I slept a bit longer and better last night and am feeling less tired today. After yesterday's speed work, I am keeping close tabs on my hamstring; I had some sciatica yesterday with sitting - fairly mild, but annoying - but today it feels 100% fine. It isn't even bothering me when I climb stairs, which is good :).

Tonight I'm taking Calvin to the symphony, so we'll see how it feels after sitting :/. They're performing Saint-Saens piano concerto #5, which is a wonderful piece, so I am excited to go.