Tough Monday

I broke away from the hospital tonight before 7pm (what a break!).  My wife was working on some project with coworkers late so I took the opportunity to go for a little run.  It's been raining off and on all day so the grounds were wet.  Being well after dark I wore my flashing light clip-on and kept the iPod turned down low.

 

I started at a pace I felt was fast - maybe 8 minutes by the feel.  I managed to keep up what FELT like a very hot pace for me.  I checked the Nike+ several times and was convinced it was well out of calibration again - SURELY I was surring faster than what it read.  SURELY!

 

Throughout the run I fought hard on all the uphills and picked it up on the downhills.  I was getting pretty sore about halfway through the 5 miles.  I pressed my iPod again to get my pace - 10:00/mile.  DAMN CALLIBRATION!

 

I finished at 46 minutes for a purported 4.6 miles.  SURELY that was wrong.

 

I checked on Google Maps and to my surprise the run was only 4.78 miles.  Somehow I got totally exhausted from only running 5 miles at a pace that was a full minute slower than my recent 10 mile race.  This running stuff is amazing.  The day to day flux makes to no sense.

Thanksgiving Runs

We pulled up to my in-laws in rural Florida at about 1am Thanksgiving
morning. The skies were getting cloudy and we could start to see a
little lightening in the distance... regardless, at 1am after 6 hours
of driving we were headed to bed...

Thanksgiving morning brought the rains - granted good for the
southeast drought - the 1/2" or so we got was barely a drop in the
bucket but enough to keep me off the road.

We had a our usual grotesquely large Italian thanksgiving for lunch
and did the other usual family things after the rain cleared up -
played with the motorcycles, our golf driver challenge, badminton.

The day ended by carving into the turkey and cranberry sauce for dinner.

Friday morning I woke up before everyone and found the morning
beautiful. I strapped on the Saucony's and headed out on the rural
Florida highway (careful to keep the Pod volume low - very little
traffic, but also no sidewalks). I did a nice 6.5miler and got back
before my wife even woke up. Temp in the 50's. Then treated myself
to the outside shower.

Later Friday we went to visit my family, a couple hours away. I
dragged my dad out to run Saturday morning on a 4 mile jog (he used to
do distances, but is just now getting back into it - mostly doing
elliptical training - and only runs now when I come in town). The 4
miler was slow but we got to explore a few new areas around the house,
including two large ponds, I never knew were there.

I would be out there right now but the rain has returned. Am getting
ready to head back to the city, back to work, back to 14 hour days,
and back to probably no more running until my next day off - December
8.

It's been a slaughter

In the medical field we call it a slaughter. Since November 1 I've
been on a very busy rotation in my residency. Lately I've been
getting into the hospital at 5:45am and leaving around 7 or 8pm (7pm
actually on the early side). I've decided that no matter how hard I
work during the day there will be work found until at least 7.

That being said the Chickamauga run has been my last time out. This
past weekend I was on call, which usually affords me some time to run.
I changed into my running clothes in the car, hooked up the iPod and
halfway down the stairwell got paged back to the hospital - a simple
30 minute consult turned into 4 more, plus an OR trip, plus a couple
of procedures on the floor.

I've been away from my wife and house so much I don't feel right about
running during my 2-3 free hours a day.

Tomorrow I hope to get all done by 4 or 5pm and head out the door for
a four-day Thanksgiving break. Will be sure to get in a run here or
there.

Happy break!

Chickamauga Success!

I met with personal success the morning of the 10th.  My foot gave me an ache on Oct 30th and I've been off it ever since... except for a single 1-hour elliptical workout last weekend.  I did a 1.5 mile "stretch" around the block friday night.  My goal for the race was a 9:00 mile / 90min overall, which I have not done for that distance before.  In the final analysis I wound up with a 1:24:24 time (8:27 pace), which is about a minute faster pace than I expected - VERY HAPPY VERY SORE.

 

Saturday morning my neighbor Z and I, and our wives, woke up pre-5am.  We loaded in the SUV and barrelled northward to Chickamauga.  After getting some directions from local Chickamauga cops (the Google maps failed us!) we found the Oakland Street Church and the Start of the Chickamauga Battlefield Marathon and 10 miler.

 

We got checked in, used the potty and even got race chips  for this one (a nice but unexpected touch for a 10-miler).  Before I left Atlanta the temp in Chickamauga was reported as 49F.  I think they were about 10 degrees off.  Definitely felt thirties and was slow to warm up.  We started the 10 miler about 30 mins after the marathon.

 

The race starts by winding out of small neighborhood and over a highway to enter the Chickmauga Battlefield area.  In general the 10 mile course is almost flat, but definitely 1 or 2 real hills and many slow inclines and declines.  We finally enter the Battlefield area, staying on paved roads.  It is strange that during race it is apparent why they call it the "Battlefield".  Yes, of course there was a battle there, but its almost like the area was laid out to have battles - Looks like before being a battle field it was an agricultural area (not just forest).  The whole place is diviied up into large 20-acre open fields spearated by strips of woods.

 

We passed several deer that did not seem to mind us.  Someone spotted a coyote.  Most of the roads were canopied but several stretches in the sun.  Unfortunately no houses around and very few cheering us on.  There were plenty of water/powerade stations and the course was very well marked.  Our split times were taken at the halkway / turnaround point.

 

At mile 7 my foot started hurting again, but not as bad as previously.  It didn't really slow me down but boy does it make you anxious!  At mile 8 I was starting to run out of gas at this quicker pace.  I checked the iPod clock though and could afford to back off a little. Finally the last mile came and the steam was quickly exiting.  For the last 200 yards I had no juice left to sprint, only enough to jog a little straighter and smile a little more.

 

I finished and stood on the chip mat extra long to be sure - Over 5 mins faster than my goal.

 

Great Day.  Great Race.  WIll definitely shoot to make it back next year.

 

 

Uggghhh... What am I doing!

Work has been a bear!  The upside is that I haven't had any time to screw up my foot more - no pain since running on it last weds.  Just 4.5 days to Chickamauga!

 

I spent an hour on the elliptical over the weekend (only and hour I know I know...).  Burned 870 calories and did 6.6 miles according to the machine.  I'm seriously considering buying one as they seem like the perfect cardio for a runner - no impact for when you've got the aches, and indoors for when its cold out.

 

Anyway If I can make it through the week at work then I'm off all weekend - The Chickamauga 10mile on Saturday and the Multiple Myeloma 5K (cool down) on Sunday.

 

Hope to see you there!

Foot Pain Blues

Halloween morning I went off to enjoy a long 10 mile run.  Note this is coming on the heels of my pretty tough 5 mile run the morning before.  Immediately I had a pain in my right lateral foot (on or about the 5th metatarsal).  The pain was a dull ache that pounded with each step.  It got worse and worse and at 0.9 miles I quit running.  I walked back to the house.

What frustration!  It is a terrible feeling being hopeless and hurt.  My 10 mile race is coming up - supposedly my mental springboard for a marathon next year.  Now I've got an injury to nurse.

I don't think its a fracture - no tenderness I can find and no swelling. Just pain in the general region of that bone, especially when I supinate my ankle and give it a little more pressure.  Probably some tendon or joint space in there inflamed.

The plan is to chill on jogging until the race next weekend.  I will work on the eliptical machine this weekend to keep strength up.  I probably won't get a chance to run during the week as my new rotation has begun at work and it is insanely busy (some 30 hours just thursday and friday alone).


Stay posted.