Back On the Road

After laying dormant for two months, I got back out on the pavement today. For most of the day it was way too hot to do anything (90 degrees in April?!!), but by evening it had cooled into the 70s. I set out on an easy 1 mile loop through the neighborhood, not pushing too hard, and stopping to walk for a bit here and there.

I could have kept going -- cardiovascularly, I felt great -- but I have to be cognizant of what caused the two-month lay-up in the first place. Two months ago, in preparation for the 10 Miler, I hurt myself by doing too much too soon. My heart, lungs and muscles (once I solved the tight calf problem) might have been ready for a 70 minute jog, but my bones weren't. Suddenly I was able to run as long as I wanted -- but my feet couldn't take it.

But today, there was no pain. And with no Mandatory Distance Goal on the horizon, I'm just going to work up to 30 minutes and keep it there for a while. I'll head out every other day, and I'll aim on getting faster within those 30 minutes. I think a sub-30 minute 5K is a worthy goal -- one that I was only last able to accomplish about 5 years ago.

I enjoyed getting out there today. I'm glad that my hiatus hasn't changed the fact that I still find running to be -- gasp -- fun! I'm looking forward to getting back out there regularly.

The Rise and Fall of Matt the Runner

You have missed so much over the past 6 weeks, you have no idea.

First let me answer the question on everyone's mind: Why haven't I posted anything here since early February? Have I been slacking off? Have I fallen off the wagon? Have I hopped aboard the one-way train to Fatsville, USA? (aka Detroit)

None of the above, my friends. I was silent because I was spending my free time running instead of blogging!

Here's the short version:

• Longtime Still Waiting visitors will no doubt remember that I have long had issues with tight calves. For some reason, after 10-15 minutes, my calves would tighten up to the point where it was difficult for me to keep running. This problem has plagued me ever since I can remember.

• One day in February, I figured out why my calves were so tight and how to fix them. I had been very concerned that the tightness was due to Compartment Syndrome, which seemed to match my symptoms exactly. The only cure for that is surgery. Desperate, I Googled and Googled until I figured out that the tightness might be caused by Trigger Points -- knotted up parts of the muscle. The cure for that? Deep Tissue Massage. I took my thumbs and found the part where my calves were tightest and I PUSHED DOWN HARD. After 5 second, the pain dissipated. I repeated that treatment on both legs, several times a day. And a miracle happened: My calves got the blood flow they needed to rebuild themselves, and I was able to run as long as I wanted with no tightness!

• Literally. As long as I wanted. I picked up a heart rate monitor and planned to keep my pulse in the 150s. It turns out that as long as I jog slowly, I can keep my pulse in the 150s, and this way I don't fatigue myself and I can basically go indefinitely. One day last month I went out the door and ended up jogging almost 5 miles, with just a little walking thrown in every 10-15 minutes or so. It was amazing. The next week, I went out and, for the first time in YEARS, jogged 30 minutes without stopping.
  
  
• I was unstoppable. Or so I thought.....

NEXT TIME: Too Much, Too Soon OR "What the heck is a Stress Reaction?"

Aborted

Things were going quite well. I had made almost every scheduled training run since the training period began, and I usually made up any I missed. My endurance was progressing nicely, as 2 minutes running grew to 4 and then 6. On Saturday I did 6 repeats of 6 minutes running, 1 minute walking. I felt good.

Then came Sunday. I was scheduled to run 7, walk 1, repeat 4. The day was beautiful -- 60 degrees and sunny. Up until then my standard run took place in 30-degree temperatures or less. Sixty would be awesome! I threw on shorts and a T-shirt and headed out the door.

Right away, I could tell something was amiss. Barely one minute into it, I was breathing far more heavily than normal. I slowed my pace and pressed on, making it about 6 tenths of a mile until it was time to walk. Halfway through my second 7 minute jog, I had to stop and massage my tight calves. I tried jogging again, but I was so easily out of breath. What was going on? Why was this so much harder? Halfway through, I cut my losses and walked home.

Why was it so hard? It could have been the poor nutrition I expose myself to on the weekends. It could have been the fact that I was trying to run less than 24 hours after a particularly strenuous effort. But after some discussion with Diana, I realized that the fact it was 30 degrees warmer than normal probably had a huge impact. Apparently my body has become acclimated to exerting itself at cold temperatures, the sudden increase was too much for my wittle body to bear.

Tonight it's supposed to be in the low 40s with a little rain. The plan is to run 8 minutes, walk 1, and repeat 3 times. We'll see what happens!