Howdy, Stranger!
Categories
The materials in this website are in no way intended to replace the professional medical care, advice, diagnosis or treatment of a doctor, qualified personal trainer, therapist, dietitian or nutritionist Runners's World, Part of the Hearst UK well-being network © Copyright 2017
Comments
My run today felt like a bit of a breakthrough :) I am coming back from my first 'proper' injury and was able to run just as lockdown changed the world which meant the things I was relying on to get me back on my feet (parkrun, running with my club and friends etc.) aren't accessible. This last week especially I have missed running with other people and can't stop comparing my old times to where I am at now. Sigh, the runners curse I guess...
But after a week of plodding along feeling frustrated and slow I went out nervously this morning with an intention of running a bit of a Tempo session. And I did it! So my run today was 4.3 miles, include 3 at a 'comfortably hard' tempo pace and I finished with a smile on my face. It felt good to run fast again.
Happy running everyone.
Welcome jesreeves - getting a run in after a long period of injury is one of the best feelings. I often dream of running when I'm injured - I obviously miss it a lot.
I don't think this headache is a normal headache, I think it's a virus. Hopefully not Covid...! I had a nap this afternoon and woke up feeling cold (despite it being 20 degrees in my room) and achier in other places. Not sure how I've caught something given all the hand washing and social distancing. It feels a lot like a bug I had when I attended a mate's wedding - that lasted only two days and was better on the second day, so hopefully it'll go.
Wolverine recovery ability would be good, Cal, although tricky if you get an itch somewhere. How are you feeling now?
Good running and cycling as well Hazelnut. Nice to do a bit of cross training as well. I am still missing the gym and considering buying some weights. And good bird spotting as well.
Welcome jesreeves and good to have you here. You're so right about missing the social side of running, be it Parkrun, club runs or running with training groups. And all the best for getting back after your injury. What did you have? I think we've all experienced set backs like that and I can only say from recent personal experience it is very frustrating, especially when you do the inevitable comparisons.
Out early for a 5 miler along the seafront this morning. Clear sky but a rather chilly NE wind which was rather swirly and gusty. The sun not quite clearing some of the taller buildings meant that long shadows were cast which made for conditions being a tad colder. That probably explained the sub 9 min first mile and things got quicker after that. Negative splits with the last mile in 7:56. Strangely apart from that last mile the others didn't feel particularly quick.
The worrying aspect is that my partner has now declared an interest in the 400m intervals training I've been doing on my own as my secret plan to keep up with her. Not that it's a competition.
I had Anterior Tibial Tendonitis in my right leg which put me out of action from 1st Jan to the end of Feb. I missed running like hell all the while I was out of action (although volunteering at parkrun was a weekly highlight while I was laid off) and was excited to get back to running but just feel that without my usual support network I have been overthinking every run, comparing myself to the past and just generally being frustrated!
Does anyone have any tips on keeping spirits up post-injury?!
Like the sound of your seafront 5 miler Guarddog - sunny with a nip in the air sounds like ideal running weather to me.
GD - GI issues seem to be occurring when I run further than 7/8 miles, will definitely keep an eye on it, I may try eating more fibre throughout the day. Great work on the negative split! Don't let your partner beat you - start doing hill sprints too just to totally dominate her all over the run
Welcome to the thread jesreeves! Like you, I am missing the comraderie from running with others. My running club is approximately 117 miles away but we still communicate via groups on Facebook and we hold weekly challenges. Things from fastest mile, to 5km PB tournaments, to maintaining even pace. It's entertaining, and helps to vary training too - should one wish to partake (I don't, purely as I want my training to revolve around running further and faster).
Hazelnut - a thunderstorm?! Blimey, not had one of those for a while! At least it wasn't for too long, though. Shame about the shoes but you can't predict the British weather.
Went out for a quick 5 miles today, then a gentle 3 miles with my fiancée. Average pace was around 8:08mm for my 5 miler. As even pacing is not my thing, I set out way too quickly. Definitely feel like getting myself a watch that'll help with my pacing - I reckon if I slow down a tad, I'll be able to run further. So that, along with shoes, are my next buys.
Its bittersweet getting your Tokyo memorabilia Cal.I'd still wear the t shirt,the race that never was.Hope you're getting over your virus.
Nice early seafront run GD.It's still chilly first thing in north Wales too.Good last mile.
Welcome jesreeves.Good to hear you're back running after injury,it's always a relief after your first hard run and everything is fine.
After an extremely wet winter we've had a very dry spring Hazelnut,great for keeping new trainers clean.
MM,make a note of what foods your eating and when.GI issues have affected every runner,so it's just knowing what works for you.That's a hell of a commute to your running club.Great average pace for your 5 miles.
5.27 miles along the canal,straight from work yesterday evening.It's to a spot overlooking the town,golf course and River Dee,lovely to stop and gaze across the valley.
Malteser - I've had a lot more GI issues since going through menopause, not that that applies to you, mind. I eat a very high fibre diet - oats, potatoes with the skin on, big bowls of popcorn, so usually everything moves pretty well unless I get dehydrated. Make sure you're getting enough water.
Re: this virus, don't know if it's Covid or not (no coughing or temperature) but I've had chills and really bad aches and pains. Normally I get hot when it's around 20 degrees but I've had to dig out the hot water bottle (it's good for the achey parts). I've also been sleeping a lot, or at least napping. I get periods when I can get out of bed and do a bit more, like go on the computer for a while or even do a bit of gentle yoga, but I was in bed dozing the whole of this morning. Chills stopped at least but I don't have much appetite and my body does not seem to like a lot of the foods I normally eat. This morning I had a cup of (black) coffee and projectile vomited into the bath. Fun times.
Hazelnut I took your advice on board today and looked around me while running and even tried smiling as I ran along - it made a huge difference to how I viewed my run today and I was a good 30 seconds faster per mile than my doom-and-gloom plodding last week! I am feeling much more positive and confident so thank you for your words.
Cal - your illness sounds nasty
Happy running all.
Guarddog - it's surprising what influences the wind/breeze can have, especially near the coast, where there's little shelter. I check the wind forecast before heading out! Interesting to hear views about social side of running: my last club had 10 members but you'd never see them all together in the same room! You lost me at 400m btw...intervals or no intervals
Cal - hope the headache's cleared. The Tokyo memorabilia sound cool. I can endorse the comfort to be had from a hot water bottle: I think it goes right back to childhood, when it was often cold oop north!
Hazel - that choice of pre-exercise food/drink/food & drink is never simple. You're back to your desired schedule now, I hope. Quite a debate on a farming radio prog about gamekeepers and raptors. I've never really understood nurturing grouse, say, for them to be blasted out of the sky. A funny sort of sport....
Welcome to jesreeves12 - I've seen some virtual parkrun groups, running the 5k and logging garmin trace or something [Luddite!] My layoff was 10 months, knee/osteoarthritis but I'm terribly ancient. Walking allowed me to picture running on similar routes, and the exercises from NHS physios simply *worked*. Sticking with a forum can be double edged but I tried to share in others' progress and successes. MalteseMalteser has some interesting ideas too.
Forgive long post - I've been researching a demolished 15th century timber framed building in my home city, Wakefield - oh, and writing a blog about Florian Scheider, co-founder of Kraftwerk.
Last run: 8.30 pm yesterday, calm, still, quite close. Kept crossing with a woman runner on the trails but all clear up the beach. Final 10 minutes needed the head torch. 5.9 miles, 1:00:11
Think a watch is the way to go MM. As Hazelnut says once you can get that pacing discipline going you should see improvements, especially in the later periods of runs. But excellent average pace for the 5 miles. If it didn't seem too much of a struggle a sub 50 10K is certainly on. Any idea what shoes you might get?
Good run JD and nice to stop and take in the view. I think sometimes we're just so wrapped up in the running we forget that some of the places we run are great and we should just look up and enjoy what we have. I'm going to try that the for the next run.
Sounds a bit rough for you at the moment, Cal. I'm not sure if the symptoms are consistent with Covid-19, but a nasty bug for sure. Hopefully you're feeling better today, but take it easy. If you're sleeping a lot it sounds as if that's what you need.
Well done on the pace improvement jesreeves and having a smile on your face. It is a case of easing your way in and, as Cal says, trusting your body. We all worry if we'll ever get back to where we were, but things do improve and relatively quickly. Just give it time and don't push too hard.
Easy 30 mins yesterday around Hove Park. Partner wasn't working from home so no early morning run and I'm trying to get into the habit of breaking mid-morning and getting away from the laptop. Tried to run at a nice steady pace, although did speed up in the middle.
Today we did the 400m repeats. Drove to the seafront at Hove where the prom is quite wide. Although my partner had expressed an interest in it last week today there was a certain reticence, especially when she found out it wasn't 5x400 repeats but 10x400. Doggedly she kept at it and the last 2 repeats were our fastest, which was pleasing. Made sure we did 10K in the end and like last week the latter runs seemed easier. The hardest parts were the 400m recoveries.
We're due to do a virtual 10K run tomorrow and post the times.
Guarddog - Your interval session sounds killer! I wish I could get my partner to do something like that with me. He is a fair-weather runner (and even in this fair weather I can't tempt him to come with me) and doesn't like to do anything other than head out there and doggedly grind out the miles. Enjoy your virtual 10k
No running for me today - just some yoga and a walk along the canal to get some fresh air. Planning a fake parkrun tomorrow after I realised that 6 laps of my local park is a perfect 5k. I will head down there at 9am and have a coffee after - classic Saturday.
Swittle - the only 10k I've done in Liverpool was back in 96,I'm sure it started from Sefton park.Good to see you're keeping yourself busy.
GD - fantastic intervals,10 x 400 is a toughie.Good idea to give yourself a break from the laptop,you'll come back refreshed.Good luck with the virtual 10k.
Jes - enjoy your fake parkrun and coffee,perfect for a Saturday morning.
8.32 miles late afternoon today.Felt good so wanted a tougher run.5 miles averaging 7:30 mm,and threw in a mile at 6:25mm,good run overall.When I got home Polly just collapsed onto the cool kitchen floor,heavily panting,so she's had a good run as well.
I
Thanks, jesreeves12 - pragmatic was my watchword while I couldn't run - and now I can!
Hope you enjoyed a good like-a-parkrun :-)
JD1: very encouraging switching up in pace. A friend's yellow Lab, Brutus, used to 'train' with us - up to 9 miles - he'd have the garden hose on hime when we were done.
Warm, close conditions always take their toll, I think, Hazel. Lovely cycling for a pleasant change.
Off at sunset, warm, wind down to 2mph from NW - almost unheard of for it to be dead calm at Crosby. Antony Gormley was on the radio and explained that there were 23 slightly different 'Iron Man' templates, e.g. different arm positions. Looked but didn't see this! Groups of youths on bikes enjoying the cocktail hour: 2 felt the need to drain themselves - one apologised to me as I passed! I've broken out a fairly recent pr of road shoes and feel more set & stable. Getting closer to sub-10m/m: 40:35 for 3.9 miles.
After several days of rest, a couple of walks and some yoga, I went out for an experimental run this morning. I still have some discomfort in my back and neck (the tension from which is what I think was causing my headache) otherwise feel about 85% OK. I did 6 miles at a recovery pace. It wasn't hugely enjoyable as it was still very warm and felt humid, but I got it done. Now I just need to wait and see if there are any adverse effects from that.
Glad you're feeling better, Cal - the heat & humidity has left us...for now. Positively chilly & cloudy on Costa del Crosby, winds ENE, 15mph.
Hazelnut, enjoy the sunshine whilst it lasts! That hill sounds like a horrible one though, think I did do everything possible to avoid it!
Taken a few days off recently as I felt like resting my legs, so not run since Wednesday. Went out for 14 miles today, with an undulating start. Nasty headwind to begin with. Tweaked my calf at mile 9 when I turned round to come back along the home stretch. Not much GI trouble either thankfully. Managed to get a PB for the half though with 1:49 so under the 1:50 marker now! Need to add calf sleeves or compression socks to my ever growing list of running gear I need...
MM - brilliant sounding run (except the calf tweak) and well done on a PB.
Cal - hopefully this is the beginning of the end for your illness - just keep taking it easy and don't rush back too quickly (easier said than done I know!)
Hazel - that sounds like a bit of a beast but I bet the views were incredible! I am longing to see something other than the Thames so I can only imagine how beautiful your run was.
Weekend running for me was a little different to what I had planned. No fake parkrun (a combination of waking up late, 24 degree temps in London and just feeling very lockdown-lethargic) but I did do 6.5 steady miles with my partner on Sunday - my longest run since returning from injury! - and this morning a fast 4-miles which came from nowhere! So today I feel like the running Gods are smiling on me
You're getting close to the sub 10 swittle, won't be long now. Are the 'Iron Man' templates very subtle? Is it a case of really having to spot the difference?
Glad you're on the mend, Cal, and good 6 miles. Hopefully there are no adverse affects.
Sounds like a wonderfully scenic run, Hazelnut, even with the killer hill. I would imagine the 200 steps at the top weren't going to help with the legs either.
Well done on going sub 1:50, MM. Hopefully the calf tweak is not too bad, plenty of rolling on the cards I would imagine. Compression socks or calf sleeves would be a good idea. I've worn those on occasions when my calf has played up. Just take it easy for a couple of weeks, what is a tweak now may become a tear.
Shame about the faux PR, jesreeves, but at least you managed to get out. And with your partner as well. Was it the promise of just doing the mileage that was the tempter?
Virtual 10K done on Saturday, which was probably a bit of a mistake on two parts, a) it was rather warm and b) I still had the previous days training in my legs.
We decided to do the Adur route we normally do on a Saturday as it's fairly flat and not that crowded. Even so there were a number of walkers and cyclists out that meant we were having to dodge around on occasion. The agreement at the start was not to go mad and just enjoy it. That being said I couldn't help but think of what would be a decent time. The route is normally 5.5K out and back and we had decided we'd run through to the whole distance. This wasn't going to be an issue as far as the time was concerned as they'd take the average pace and work out the 10K time. Steady pace to being with going around 8:50 for the first couple of miles, wind up to 8:45 for the middle part and then stretching out to sub 8:30 for the last part. I did check the time at 10K and I was a shade over 53:45, but carried on for another half mile or so before deciding that my legs were feeling it and, like Geoff Boycott protecting his average, decided it was better to stop my watch rather than see my average pace suffer.
I'm still some way off getting to the 50:00:02 I agonisingly did last year, but at least I'm a lot better than I was when my back eased up just over two months ago. Having said that yesterday it was having a bit of a gripe at me and so decided to have a rest day. And today I'd planned to have an easy recovery run, but a nice glut of meetings gave me no decent gaps in my day.
GD - in the 16 years the installation has been on Crosby beach, I've taken hundreds of photos but never noticed any clear differences. Gormley spoke of arms at slightly different attitudes. The most obvious changes are wrought by nature, in this case, some barnacles not native to UK shores. The other 2 pics are for comparison.
Those mid-run calculations can work for and against, I used to find, but you're running well.
8.30pm A huge, burning orange orb disappeared below the dunes as I trailed and beached it by the docks and coastal park. 4.9 miles in 50:38, so consistent in 10:xx territory.
I found the prose rather descriptive, Hazelnut. I could almost have been there. And was that a sneaky move by your OH to go out for a run without you?
5 miles along the seafront this morning. The clear skies and gentle breeze belied the fact that it was bloody cold. The car had a frost on the windscreen and pinged a warning to me when I started it to watch out for ice. Leggings that I'd consigned to the winter draw were dug out along with gloves. Buff wrapped round my head to keep it warm rather than just soak up the sweat.
Again the discussion was around making the pace easy, something I'm all in favour of. So the first mile was 8:53 - not too bad and quite happy to maintain that. Second mile 8:38 - OK, slightly quicker than I was expecting, but at the moment it feels comfortable. Third 8:35 - achieving some consistency. Fourth 8:22 - now where did that come from as I was sure I was running slower. Fifth 8:05 - given that we had the scent of the finish in our nostrils that would partially explain that. Average pace 8:30 without the first 4 miles seeming to be particularly fast or hard.
A nice footnote was seeing one of the run leaders from the training group out for a run. Just a wave and a "morning" as we passed in opposite directions.
Good to see you're on the mend Cal,whatever you've had it's taken it out of you.
Fantastic 16 Hazelnut,I bet the 200 steps were a leg killer.
Great effort in going under 1:50 MM.Good idea to buy a calf sleeve,always come in handy after a tweak.
Jes,well done on your longest run since injury.Let the running Gods keep on smiling.
GD,good effort on heavy legs.You can't get much closer to going sub 50 than last year's effort.Hope your back is behaving itself.
Swittle,barnacle man is looking worse for wear.
6.24 hilly trail run,through woods on Saturday.Appreciated the shade and cool,as I think it was the warmest day year.Plenty of walkers out so you had to stop and give way a few times.And two easy 5 mile runs Sunday and Monday.I'm on a 4 day streak,longest consecutive runs for a long time.
Like Cal, I didn't run yesterday. I had a banging headache and I had shivers which felt like an early onset of the flu. Needless to say, early to bed at 9pm!
woke up today feeling a lot better, so did 8 miles after work. My right knee started niggling so it was a slower run but still running at target pace so pleased with that. Calf muscle was fine, but right knee made it feel like somewhat of a lethargic run.
Calf sleeves ordered. Twelve quid from Amazon, should be arriving on Friday