Not quite out the woods with my hamstring/pirifomis issue but certainly far better than last week. Since my last post it's been weighing heavy on my mind and definitely letting me know who's in charge while running. My mind and body have a fairly cohesive relationship. I am kind to my body and in turn it treats me well. Even when I ask it to go beyond it's limits I generally get my way. Each run my issues have lessoned which is great. I am for sure on the mend. I can run Chuckanut and though I assume I will have some trouble and pain on the last flat 6 heading to the finish I will be fine and cause no further problems. Dogging a bullet is always awesome but I am not out of the woods and need to continue strengthening some weak areas. Another possibility is my body is just adapting to the different kind of workload. Maybe a mini protest. I am hoping we have come to an agreement and a new understanding. ;)I have been getting my butt kicked on training runs. I am the last to arrive at the junctions and the most thrashed. It's been humbling and rewarding at the same time. Watching my friends gain speed and strength is exciting. I am nervous with anticipation every time I show up at the trail head. What's in store for today? These workouts have been really hard but I am certain it's just what the doctor ordered. As a good friend said, "You needed to work on your short game". Those words really hit home because their so right on. Well, this weekend I will get to see if all this trail tempo work is starting to make a difference.
Looking back I found I have run Chuckanut 3 times. I must have blocked out the 6:10 finish because I completely forgot about it. The other two times I ran 5:44 and 5:43. Do you think those are close enough? I hope to run this in the 5:35 to 5:40 range. My plan is to control myself on the first 8 which are fairly flat. I don't think my hamstring can take the fast start. Once I get it good and warmed up I should be fine. If I feel like I am cured I will run faster. It's probably a good strategy to practice self control on the first 8 anyway. Since all the 4000+ feet of climbing comes in the middle going out too fast probably will leave me shuffling very slow on the flat finish. It's going to be a quick but fun trip with friends. The weather looks awesome too!
Ronda,
ReplyDeleteIt's nice to see that we are on (sorta) the same race schedule, as my first 50K of the year is on the 27th (Clark Zealand's Terrapin Mountain 50K). Having raced it only once---last year---in 5:40ish, my goal this year is sub-5:30. So it was nice to read your post and see a similar thread of trying to put the hammer down a bit and see what your tempos on trails (and M pace runs) will do for you this weekend. I have been training with a group going to Boston at their 3:20 M pace for tempos and track work and it's been fun pushing through the pain with them. You and I have very similar "short game" times from what I can tell (but you are the faster 100 miler by far!!), so I always like seeing how you did on the shorter ultra courses---gives me hope! Have a great run, take care of the piriformis and I will look forward to your race report as inspiration for next weekend. Run fast, run tough!
I'm glad to hear the injury is behind you. These things really consume your thoughts and energy. It's hard to stay positive when you know something is not right, and pushing your limits is like rolling the dice every day. Keep pressing forward Rooster - Looking good and strong, and the marathon training will work in your favor.
ReplyDeleteI'll be thinking about all of you!!!
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear the problem is resolving. Coincidentally, I got a new piriformis problem last week from doing too many lunges apparently. It's better now- the poor thing needs rest to heal though. Hopefully you have enough taper to let it recover more.
ReplyDeleteYou might try that test where you get video-ed and watch to see what happens with your wasteband, i.e., do your hips stay level or does one of them drop with each stride? It's diagnostic for hip weakness.
Good luck!
Cynthia
Awesome blog, thanks for sharing!
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