Ironman Louisville training window - 717 days
Columbus Half Marathon training window - 97 days
Without trying to make this year’s training into a greek tragedy, I have to report the latest bump in my road to the Columbus marathon. I mentioned in my last post about losing steam towards the end of my walk. This has continued throughout the walks since. This caused me to visit my MD again to see what he thought. He ruled out the HBP med that he has me on since it does not work with the cardio-vascular system. He was left with either A: my heart rate and BP drop during exercise for some reason or B – due to my sparse training this year, I am experiencing de-conditioning. The only way to check on option A is to do a stress test (I am scheduled for one on 7/28) and monitor heart rate and BP on a treadmill. My hope is that this will come back OK and it is just option B.
Regardless of the outcome of this situation, I have come to the realization that the Columbus Marathon is no longer feasible for me. I sent an e-mail to the registration folks at the marathon and have asked that they switch my registration to the Half Marathon. With 14 weeks to go, I had fallen too far behind my training to catch up without running the risk of injury. My current mileage is in line with where I would be in a half marathon schedule.
I did 3 miles at Antrim Park on Sunday in 54:00 minutes and an average pace of 18 min/mile. The “loss of steam” hit at about 27 min but I decided to continue and hit the 3 miles. Not a pretty last mile. Split times were: 1) 17:40, 2) 17:10 and 3) 19:10.
Training Report - July 1, 2008
Ironman Louisville training window - 730 days
Columbus Marathon training window - 110 days
With little fanfare, I return to the world of the blogs. I know that there was great excitement when my therapy was completed and I thought that I would be getting back to the training for the Columbus Marathon. Well …….. as fate would have it – the training would have to wait a little while longer. The week that I cleared therapy I ran into another bump in the road. Without going into great detail, I ended up with 5 stitches in my leg and put off training until now.
I am back at it.
Sunday was my first real attempt to get back on the training schedule. I was at Antrim Park and did 2 miles in 35:29 with a pace of 17:45. It was nice to be there but the weather looked like it was going to cut loose with a nasty storm so I cut my day short.
Today, I was at Creekside and it was wonderful. The temp was in the mid 70’s and there was a slight breeze. I did 3 miles in 54:47 and a pace of 18:16. Not the best but much better than what I was doing a couple of months ago. I started to lose steam towards the end of the second mile and noticed that my feet are not used to the distance. I am sure that both of these things will ease with time and training.
I did find the following online today and wanted to share it with you (I’m amazed how many of these I can relate to!)
26.2 Ways You Know You Are a Runner/Walker
1. You know how many miles there are in a marathon.
2. Your weekly mileage is how much you run, not your commute to work.
3. You know how many miles you get out of a pair of running shoes.
4. You can convert Kilometers to Miles in your head.
5. You measure your running route in your car to get the exact mileage.
6. When someone tells you their age, you automatically know their Boston qualifying time.
7. You know Grandma's as the route from Two Harbors to Duluth, not the person.
8. You can drink, blow your nose and pee on the run.
9. The problem with the treadmill is there's no place to spit.
10. You have less than ten toenails and that's normal for you.
11. Body Glide is your friend.
12. Ibuprofen is affectionately known as "Vitamin I".
13. Navigating casual walkers, dogs and baby strollers annoys you because it interrupts your pace.
14. When you participate in an organized event, you know not to run in your race t-shirt.
15. You have a favorite energy gel and flavor.
16. The "Picasso" above your fireplace is last year's TCM poster.
17. You have pre and post race rituals.
18. The journal you keep is in miles and pace not feelings or thoughts.
19. When you look at the weather conditions, you calculate how many layers to wear.
20. The pride you feel after a good run is worth the pain it took to get there.
21. You have more t-shirts than you could possibly wear.
22. When you hear the word "bib", you think of race numbers not babies and Gerber food.
23. The "no carbohydrate diet" does not apply to you.
24. You know that Fartlek is not vulgar terminology.
25. A hill is an opportunity just waiting to be challenged.
26. You know the phrase "you're almost there" only applies when the finish line is in sight.
.2 Your vacation destination is determined by your race schedule.
Columbus Marathon training window - 110 days
With little fanfare, I return to the world of the blogs. I know that there was great excitement when my therapy was completed and I thought that I would be getting back to the training for the Columbus Marathon. Well …….. as fate would have it – the training would have to wait a little while longer. The week that I cleared therapy I ran into another bump in the road. Without going into great detail, I ended up with 5 stitches in my leg and put off training until now.
I am back at it.
Sunday was my first real attempt to get back on the training schedule. I was at Antrim Park and did 2 miles in 35:29 with a pace of 17:45. It was nice to be there but the weather looked like it was going to cut loose with a nasty storm so I cut my day short.
Today, I was at Creekside and it was wonderful. The temp was in the mid 70’s and there was a slight breeze. I did 3 miles in 54:47 and a pace of 18:16. Not the best but much better than what I was doing a couple of months ago. I started to lose steam towards the end of the second mile and noticed that my feet are not used to the distance. I am sure that both of these things will ease with time and training.
I did find the following online today and wanted to share it with you (I’m amazed how many of these I can relate to!)
26.2 Ways You Know You Are a Runner/Walker
1. You know how many miles there are in a marathon.
2. Your weekly mileage is how much you run, not your commute to work.
3. You know how many miles you get out of a pair of running shoes.
4. You can convert Kilometers to Miles in your head.
5. You measure your running route in your car to get the exact mileage.
6. When someone tells you their age, you automatically know their Boston qualifying time.
7. You know Grandma's as the route from Two Harbors to Duluth, not the person.
8. You can drink, blow your nose and pee on the run.
9. The problem with the treadmill is there's no place to spit.
10. You have less than ten toenails and that's normal for you.
11. Body Glide is your friend.
12. Ibuprofen is affectionately known as "Vitamin I".
13. Navigating casual walkers, dogs and baby strollers annoys you because it interrupts your pace.
14. When you participate in an organized event, you know not to run in your race t-shirt.
15. You have a favorite energy gel and flavor.
16. The "Picasso" above your fireplace is last year's TCM poster.
17. You have pre and post race rituals.
18. The journal you keep is in miles and pace not feelings or thoughts.
19. When you look at the weather conditions, you calculate how many layers to wear.
20. The pride you feel after a good run is worth the pain it took to get there.
21. You have more t-shirts than you could possibly wear.
22. When you hear the word "bib", you think of race numbers not babies and Gerber food.
23. The "no carbohydrate diet" does not apply to you.
24. You know that Fartlek is not vulgar terminology.
25. A hill is an opportunity just waiting to be challenged.
26. You know the phrase "you're almost there" only applies when the finish line is in sight.
.2 Your vacation destination is determined by your race schedule.
Graduation Day - June 6, 2008
Ironman Louisville training window - 785 days
Columbus Marathon training window - 135 days
Columbus Marathon training window - 135 days
Great news again today !!!!!
I have “graduated” from my physical therapy sessions. I have shown enough improvement that Brian feels that I can continue the exercises at home. I thought that today would just be a consultation like session – boy was I wrong. No, he handed me off to the athletic trainer for my workout. I thought that they felt that this was their last chance to kill me off and they didn’t want to miss out. It was a beast of a work out. The trainer ran me through my exercises but changed up the order and added sets to some others. I felt “great” at the end. Truthfully, I will miss going to the sessions. They have done what they told me could be done – if I followed their directions.
Marathon training here I come!
Training/Rehab Update - June 3, 2008
Ironman Louisville training window - 788 days
Columbus Marathon training window - 138 days
Columbus Marathon training window - 138 days
NEWS FLASH >>>> NEWS FLASH >>>> NEWS FLASH
Just got back from my training walk at Creekside. Completed 3 miles with a time of 57:24 and a pace of 19:08 !!!!!! Not the greatest times but once again quite a psychological boost. I did finish with some pain in my hip but the pain was gone within about 10 min. and I am now walking around – no pain present.
My split times were: 1) 19:59, 2) 18:48 and 3) 18:37. About a mile into the walk, I was feeling some soreness in the hip but then it went away and I was able to do the rest of the walk at a pace that is closer to my usual pace. This is what I needed!
Rehab Update - June 2, 2008
Ironman Louisville training window - 789 days
Columbus Marathon training window - 139 days
Columbus Marathon training window - 139 days
Haven’t been in here for quite a while so I thought that I would bring everyone up to speed.
Since my last entry, I was seen by Brian - another PT at Banyan Tree. He did some additional testing and determined that my left hip was rotated forward. This is probably causing pressure on the nerve in my lower back and has caused my left leg to be a little longer than the right leg. He was able to manipulate my hip back into the correct position. He said that we will concentrate on my core muscles because they will help to hold my hip in the correct position. I haven’t done so much exercising with my stomach muscles in a very long time (I guess that was no surprise to him).
The physical therapy has come along very well. I was supposed to have 3 sessions this week but was told last week by the PT that I would only have to come in on Friday. This was as long as I was able to do some walks without the hip pain over this last weekend and this week. I am amazed that the hip has recovered as fast as it has. I am still doing at home the stretches and the exercises that they have taught me.
Yesterday, I took another try at Antrim Park. Throughout the morning, I felt some pain in my lower back but did some stretches before leaving. That seemed to help. I decided that I was not going to time myself – as I just wanted to get back into the saddle again. It was just a leisurely Sunday walk in the park. I did look at my watch at the 1 mile mark to see how long it took (I couldn’t help myself!!!). It took me around 20 minutes to go 1 mile. I decided at the end of the loop that I would end there. There was a tightness in my hip that was starting to become more noticeable. Best not to push too hard too soon.
While 20 minutes is not my best time, it was great to get back to the park. A psychological victory and one that I needed. I was starting to think that the marathon goal was going to have to wait.
Injury Update - May 16, 2008
Ironman Louisville training window - 807 days
Columbus Marathon training window - 156 days
Just wanted to bring everyone up to speed on my training and an update on my injury. The last time that I walked was the Sunday that I reported on in my last post. Since then, I have been back to my doctor. Since the anti-inflammatory meds didn't make much improvement to my situation, he wanted me to have x-rays taken of my hip and lower back to rule out bone problems. The results came back on Tuesday (5/13) with nothing showing except some slight arthritis. He didn't believe that this would cause the problems. The next step would be to get some physical therapy.
Yesterday was my initial assessment at Banyan Tree Rehabilitation. It went well. The end result of the meeting with the PT was that my hip flexors and hamstrings are tight and that I will need to start on some stretching to loosen them up. After that, exercises to strengthen my core muscles. The PT believes that I should see a marked improvement in about 3 weeks if I follow their instructions.
Columbus Marathon training window - 156 days
Just wanted to bring everyone up to speed on my training and an update on my injury. The last time that I walked was the Sunday that I reported on in my last post. Since then, I have been back to my doctor. Since the anti-inflammatory meds didn't make much improvement to my situation, he wanted me to have x-rays taken of my hip and lower back to rule out bone problems. The results came back on Tuesday (5/13) with nothing showing except some slight arthritis. He didn't believe that this would cause the problems. The next step would be to get some physical therapy.
Yesterday was my initial assessment at Banyan Tree Rehabilitation. It went well. The end result of the meeting with the PT was that my hip flexors and hamstrings are tight and that I will need to start on some stretching to loosen them up. After that, exercises to strengthen my core muscles. The PT believes that I should see a marked improvement in about 3 weeks if I follow their instructions.
Trainng Log - May 5, 2008- One Step Forward - Two Steps Back
Ironman Louisville training window - 818 days
Columbus Marathon training window - 167 days
Columbus Marathon training window - 167 days
Well, the end of last week brought about a slight setback on the walking front. My Thursday walk at Creekside was about the same as the previous day. The temperature was better at about 66 degrees and the sun was out in force. I was able to finish the 3 miles but the final half mile was at a much slower pace and with the hip pain once again. My time was 57:43 and my pace was 19:14.
I was hoping that Sunday would be a better walk. I woke with some of the same hip pain that I have had before – not a good sign. Once again, it was a beautiful day with temps in the 70’s and sunshine. Antrim park was packed with folks out riding on the bike trail and those walking on the trail. I had to park about a third of a mile from the trail. The first 2 miles were OK (18:22 and 17:33) and I felt good heading into the third mile. By the time I hit mile 3, my time was 19:02 and I was in pain. It was a foregone conclusion that there would not be a fourth mile. My problem at that time was that I was on the far side of the lake and it was 0.6 miles to the trail exit. After that, there was the 0.33 mile walk to the car. By the time I got to the car, I was limping pretty well. Not sure what the doctor is going to say about this.
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