Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Wednesday Workout Update

I'm getting a little grumpy about my body.  Why?  Because my hamstring is starting to squawk again.  And seriously, if that bugger cannot handle me running a tiny bit faster than I have been, well...Cranky Shelley is going to come out in full force.  I'm telling you, it's ridiculous!  The most I've run at one time is three miles.  THREE MILES.  The only thing slightly different I've done is to increase my overall pace a little - it's picked up by about one minute per mile - but I'm still doing 1:1 intervals.  And lest anyone thing I'm speeding along, I'm not - well, for me I am, but I'm averaging 13:30/mile.  So what the hell, hamstring??  You are being so dumb.

Aside from that hamstring business, running has been really fun.  Jenny and I decided that Thursdays are our "push it" days, where we run hard; Tuesdays, we pretty much talk the entire time we're running, so obviously we're taking it easy.  Doing the walking warm up before each run has helped tremendously with not having my Achilles/heel/ankle scream at me for the first mile of the run; I'm so sold on this that I'm trying to figure out how to encourage our USAFit peeps to arrive early and get a nice walking warm up in.  I have until July to come up with a plan...any suggestions?

On Saturday, Jeff ran with Andi and I.  Amy and Julia were off doing a trail run (trail might be a bit of a stretch, but it was off-road, through a pecan farm); five others from our group were either ahead of us or behind us as we all ran.  Beautiful weather, nice cool morning, and low humidity - just a lovely day to be outside, running with my friends.  I will never be a speedster, I will never have the means nor the body to run a half in all 50 states, I will never win my age group - but none of that is important to me.  What I love is the camaraderie and friendship that comes with running, and I'm so grateful that I get to experience that on a regular basis.  Now, if my hamstring would just continue to cooperate, that would be peachy.

17 comments:

  1. oh MAN Im so sorry about the hamstring.
    Im grateful for getting older...for being here...but issues like that keep popping up here too.

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  2. I hear you Shelly on your frustration with your hamstring...The only things I can suggest I know you don't want to hear and you probably are already doing them like going slower, rest on your days off, icing, stretching carefully. Believe me I feel your pain on the push back our 50 year old bodies give us. I know like me you will NEVER give up. Hang in there I am rooting for you...this hamstring issue shall eventually pass:)

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    1. Thanks, Susan - I suspect I will have to dial it back, which I'm not really wanting to do.

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  3. Girl I love the sentence before the last! You get it! There are so many people that run and want to run faster or in every state or whatever, they often forget the reason most of them started running: because they loved it. You run exactly why most should do it: because you love it and everything that comes with that.

    As for the group: I would just mention in the announcement for the runs of the week that there's a possibility for a warming up through a walk. Don't they warm up in the group? I know running groups here always do a warm up first (personally I don't, I just walk a bit before I start running).

    As for the hamstring: THAT SUCKS! I hope it won't get worse and keep my fingers crossed for that.

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    1. We usually do some warm up stretching while the organizer or coach is making announcements. It's just getting people to come early that might be a challenge, seeing as we start so early in the morning (trying to beat the sun coming up because it's already so warm).

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  4. Hmmm... I guess just offer up the warm-up walk as an option for anyone who is interested in coming 10-15 minutes early. I usually just walk to my group run for a warm-up, since it's a mile from my apartment - definitely can't underestimate the importance of that!

    Sorry your hamstring is acting up :( I know this literally only puts a bandage over the problem, but have you ever tried KT Tape? I've been wearing it on my calf to get through my training cycle, and I haven't had any pain on my runs since. It sounds like you have a minor strain at worst, so it could help.

    I keep holding out hope that I'll win my age group someday, in a really small race when I'm like 80 and the only one in it ;)

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    1. Our group starts at 6:30, and then we back that up to 6:00 am because of the heat; it's hard to get people there on time (although we do start on time). I'd love for them to come early, but you know...beds are hard to get out of, lol! You are so lucky to live the perfect distance for a walking warm up. :)

      Thanks for the reminder about taping - I did get my hammy taped (using Rocktape, which stays on better for me than KT tape, interesting factoid) when I was going to physical therapy and it helped. Wonder if I could do it myself - it's in an awkward spot...

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  5. At least you can say you have a hamstring injury due to exercise and not diabetes due to obesity!! It's all how you look at it! Plus, even though it hurts, it still sounds kind of badass to say "I hurt my hammy during a run". :)

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    1. I agree, but having something hang on for going on 8 months gets really old...

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  6. Well, that's terrible about your hamstring, but good news about your ankle.

    Oh I know you'll come up with a clever way to get people to come early to warm up. How about getting some coffee for after the walk, before the run? That might end up being a problem for the long run people : )

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  7. Good friends, healthy hamstrings, that's what it's all about!

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  8. Dang your silly hammy! I agree that it just gets old. As do we. But we do keep on running for the love of it and the SANITY! In trying other forms of cardio, I have to say that nothing else feels as awesome as a Mental Health Mile or 3. That's the part I fear losing the most. I hope that it was just a brief hamstring flashback and that you're back to pain-free running soon!

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  9. I am so sorry about the hamstrings. That sucks. It's hard to think about having to do less, but maybe that is something to consider.

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  10. Injuries....hamstrings.......NO FUN!!!!!!

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  11. I wholeheartedly agree about stretching - even if I do the treadmill at lunch, I walk 5 minutes, get off, stretch for a couple minutes, then get back on - then when I start to run I have no pain at all. I love that you love to run - and you are a total runner in my book! :D (you have the medals to prove it!)

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  12. Oh boy. Hamstrings suck and that's the truth. It WILL get better, I promise. In the mean time all you can do is recognize and pull back if necessary and run all out on days where it's cooperating.

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