"Always move forward;
going straight will get you nowhere."
~Green Day
Having run one marathon before training for New York, I've been excited about how I can do this one differently. And when I say differently, I really mean better. And by better I don't necessarily mean faster, either. I mean smarter. Stronger. Did I mention smarter? So along with the knowledge and experience I've gained over the three years since the last marathon, I am also so very lucky to have an incredibly knowledgeable and experienced coach to guide me through this journey. And by guide me, I mean give me a little smack upside the head when needed and keep my eyes on the prize of running strong in New York. He may be Leprechaun Bob to a lot of you, but he's now Coach Bob to me.
One of my mantras for this training cycle is "Let go and let Bob." I have a tendency to overthink each run and each decision I make when it comes to my training, and it has been amazing to be able to shoot Bob a text, pick his brain, and have him offer a solution that's so obvious I smack myself in the head for not coming up with it myself. This week was a prime example of that. Coach Bob suggested I simply swap weeks so I'd have a cut back week this week instead of next week, let the hip settle the F down, and see where to go from there. Duh. Brilliant. I started the week relieved to have an easy week when I wasn't feeling 100% instead of pushing through tough miles and making things worse.
MONDAY
Easy 5 + massage
This has been a very common view for my runs lately. Run a few miles, stretch, repeat. The tightness high in my hamstring just keeps creeping in after a mile or two, and I stop to stretch in hopes I can complete the miles I have planned. Since I had a spin class planned for Tuesday morning, I decided this would be a great day to cash in on a massage gift certificate I've had since last fall.
Ahhhhh. Heavenly. Lorri at Natural Balance by the Sandbridge Harris Teeter has some good hands. She's worked on pro baseball and hockey players before, so she can certainly handle these little legs. I left feeling loosey goosey and great.
TUESDAY
MY Ride with Mike
Normally getting up at 4:30am for this 5:30am class is absolutely brutal, but after waking up around that hour most days all summer, it really felt like any other day. There was a low off the coast that morning, and I woke up to driving rain, howling winds, and a huge sense of gratitude I didn't have to run in it that morning.
WEDNESDAY
3 easy miles + 3 miles walking
This run actually earned the title of "shit show" on my garmin app. First mile was great. Second mile was meh. By the time I finished the third mile I knew I better stretch my hamstrings a bit...the left one was tight and throbbing by this point. I stopped at a spot with a pretty view, where an unexpected rain shower began. I started to get cold, so I picked up the run again, deciding I'd cut 3 miles off the run for 6 total. The hamstring actually felt worse than before I stretched, and I slowed to a walk, hoping I could run/walk the 3 miles back home. After a short walk break, I picked back up to a jog again and knew I had to stop. The hamstring was throbbing and the discomfort was throwing off my gait. I sent Ryan a mayday text to come pick me up, but he never looks at his phone and didn't see it until I was turning down our street. Frustrating, but it was just as well because I got to see this as I walked mile after mile home:
The huge rainbow made me smile and reminded me that things could be worse and time is on my side. I made another mayday text to Kerry to get the name and location of the PT she speaks so highly of. Thankfully I was able to get an appointment that day because panic was starting to set in.
Enter Lauren. A physical therapy wunderkind who evaluated my body and my running form and concluded I'm not getting enough hip extension when I run, which doesn't tell the glutes to fire, which makes the front of the hip and the calves do more than their fair share of the work. Stretching the front of the hip and strengthening the glutes should do the trick, and sweet baby Jesus I can keep running - albeit slower - while we work on the rest. So a little dry needling and a little massage later, I was on my way to happy hips.
Not gonna lie...lying there for a while was pretty awesome, even if I did have needles in my ass.
THURSDAY
Elliptical + PT exercises
My hip was moderately sore from the needling, as expected, so I held off on any running and hit the elliptical before doing the glute strengthening exercises Lauren gave me. One thing she won't have to worry about with me is patient compliance. I do my homework.
FRIDAY
Hip check - easy 3.4
I was nervous at the start of this run, but it went in the win column by the time I was done. Lauren told me I can run as tolerated as long as my pain levels don't go higher than a 3/10. By about mile 1.5, the high hamstring started talking, so I stretched the hip flexors - not the hamstrings - and continued on my merry way. Pain stayed at a minimum and all hope was restored. We headed off to Busch Gardens for one last hurrah before summer ended.
8 miles of walking the park and my hip was no worse for the wear. #winning
SATURDAY
Easy 5
I planned to do 4 miles but these felt soooooooo good I snuck another one in. And of course did my stretching after.
SUNDAY
Easy 5
This is where the crazy comes out and I have to keep myself in check. I calculated my mileage for the week and saw that if I ran a few more miles on Sunday, I'd be pretty close to where I originally planned to be before this hiccup of a hip issue. Because I was feeling good - and only because I was feeling good - I ran an easy 5 miles before cheering on the nut jobs running the Rock n Roll half. I'm happy to report I was smart enough not to run all the miles I needed to equal the original plan, but just enough to ease my mind while resting my body as well. Some beach time and Green Flash time with these gals was exactly what I needed to finish up a tumultuous week of training with a smile on my face and a skip in my step.
Training for a marathon is hardly going to be a straight line from start to starting line, but as long as I keep moving forward and relying on the advice of others who want to see me succeed, I'll get there strong and smiling.
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