I need to run!

I thought I would get more running in during my Christmas vacation, but somehow it's not working out that way!

My last run was Wednesday. I took off Thur & Fri due to sciatic nerve/hip & knee pain. That was so I could get thru Saturday's long run. Well, I was "sick as a dog" last weekend, so I missed my long run.

Sunday evening I picked up my god daughter, and I have her until this evening (Tuesday). Of course, by the time I drop her off at home, it'll be raining.

Guess that leaves tomorrow - Wednesday - it is also supposed to rain but I guess I could go to the gym and do the dreaded treadmill. Thursday is New Years Eve, but I can always run then to. Not like I have any big plans (haha)

I think I do much better when I have my set routine. 5am Tuesday's and Thursdays before work. 6 am long run on Saturdays. And sometimes fitting in a Wed run. When I'm off a routine, I tend to lose focus in all areas of my life.

I am feeling really antsy/jumpy right now though. My body NEEDS to run. It misses it!

Pain in the A$$

Yes, currently I'm experiencing a pain in the piriformis! Which means I'm also experiencing knee pain. The issue is related to the fabulous sciatic nerve, which many associate with back pain...which is probably why my back is also bothering me.

For a little background information

(below from www.eorthopod.com)

Pain in the buttock that radiates down the leg is commonly called sciatica. Problems in the piriformis muscle can cause problems with the sciatic nerve. This is because the sciatic nerve runs under (and sometimes through) the piriformis muscle on its way out of the pelvis. The piriformis muscle can squeeze and irritate the sciatic nerve in this area,leading to the symptoms of sciatica.

The symptoms of sciatica come from irritation of the sciatic nerve. It's still a mystery why the piriformis muscle sometimes starts to irritate the sciatic nerve. Many doctors think that the condition begins when the piriformis muscle goes into spasm and tightens against the sciatic nerve, squeezing the nerve against the bone of the pelvis

I'm sure that is more than you ever wanted to know but this is not a fun feeling - especially when you are running, although I think it's more bothersome when you are at rest and still feel it. I shouldn't call it bothersome - I should call it what it is...which is painful!

I am stretching more thru out the day, just to try and relieve the pain, and I think I may do a yoga tape tomorrow. The yoga tape that is still in the shrink wrapping. I really need this pain to go away before Saturday's long run. It's only 9 miles, but Tuesday's 3 miler was nearly unbearable, and today's 4.5 mile run was not a walk in the park either!

If only my races were as good as my training runs....

Had another great training run on Saturday. 13 miles, my last long run before the Aramco half marathon. My time for this run was 20 minutes faster than the San Antonio R&R half marathon, and that was with 3 rest stops. Without the rest stops, I would have probably been 26-30 minutes faster. That would bring me to my goal time for my half marathon.

So I seem to have the long run down pat - My 12 miler a couple of weeks ago went great as well.

So how can I take this to my half marathon in less than 4 weeks? My long runs before San Antonio seemed to go great as well and San Antonio was a disaster!

I still haven't quite figured out a few things, one being my pre-run diet. I haven't found that one food works better than another. In fact, for the 13 miler, I didn't eat my normal pre-long run breakfast due to waking up at 5:20 - the time I normally leave the house. My alarm clock - i.e. my cell phone - seems to have a mind of it's own on Saturday mornings and freezes up.

Anyway, I had about 5-10 minutes to get dressed, get my stuff together, and get out of the house so instead of my normal 2 packets of instant grits, I ate 1/4 of a PB/Jelly sandwich in the car on the way to the park and still had a great run.

The night before I had pizza (maybe that helped), but the night before my 12 miler a couple of weeks ago I only had protein - a chili cheese burger with no bread, and still had a great run. The night before the San Antonio half I had pasta and we all know how that race went! So does the diet even come into play with my running?

I do know the one thing out of my control, which seems to make the most difference, is the weather. And all I can do is pray for low to mid 40's on January 17, 2010!

A 360 degree turnaround?

So last week’s blog (which never got written!) was supposed to be about excuses – as in listing all my excuses for not getting any runs in that week. I got in a 3 mile Christmas light run on Thursday with my running group. And that’s it.

But all of a sudden, this week I’ve turned it around. I got in a 12 miler on Sunday. And surprisingly I felt really strong during the 12 miler! Went a little faster than normal, going about the pace I had wanted to run for San Antonio. At the end I was thinking “If only this were Nov 15th instead of December 6th.”.

Although I felt good during and after the run, I was still sore on Tuesday. But I decided to meet my friend at the gym that evening anyway. I rarely see her and I actually joined this gym so we could work out together! I was going to run 2 miles on the treadmill, and switch to the elliptical. I could not even run for 2 minutes! So I switched and just walked a fast mile, and then did 40 minutes on the elliptical.

So for some reason, I decided it would be a good idea to run 3 miles on Wednesday morning. Yeah, that run sucked. I guess the only good thing is that I finished it, although it’s a loop so you kind of don’t have any choice but to finish!

So I decided, let’s run again on Thursday. I was meeting a new running partner. I had run the 12 miles along side her on Saturday and we were a good match pace wise. I had mentioned that I run at 5am and she wanted to meet me. She even sent me an email Wednesday morning about running together on Thursday. So I responded back with the time and place (Memorial Park swimming pool parking lot) and my cell phone #, in case something came up and she couldn’t meet me. Well, 5am, and I’m the only car in the parking lot! I gave her until 5:05 and then started running. Luckily, there are many others out there running at 5 am. I usually hate running by myself and rarely do it, but I had a fantastic run! Fast for me! My run intervals were 12-12:20, and I even went into the 11’s! So I guess the good thing that came out of being stood up is that I realized that I can run at 5am by myself. And I can have a good run, even if by myself.

Today is a well deserved rest day. I ran and worked out 4 out of the past 5 days! So I’m getting a deep tissue massage, because I also decided it was a good idea to run 8 miles on Saturday, and then do a 5 mile Jingle Bell Run on Sunday!

Let’s hope this burst of motivation lasts!

Making Peace with San Antonio

San Antonio Rock and Roll has passed. That half marathon race was way below my expectations. Hot and humid weather (a "warm" front in the middle of November - gotta love that Texas weather), countless mistakes made. The worst run or race in my 16 month running career. By mile 3, I literally felt like crying and walking off the course but alas, I had 10 miles left to go!

Somehow I managed to make it thru. Well, I shouldn't say somehow. It was with the help of 2 coaches from my training group. Also, since it wasn't in my home city, I had to follow the race course to find my way back!

I threw my time goals out the window pretty early. At some points during the race I had to switch to running to 1 light pole, walking to the next light pole, running to the next, etc. I had a ton of unplanned walking during this race. I also had nausea, cramping, etc - all things I've never experienced on my training runs, even in the heat of the summer. Upon completing the race and returning to my hotel room, I just put the medal in my purse. I was upset with my performance.

Now that the race is over, and a couple of weeks have passed, I am happy that I managed to finish, although it was 22 minutes slower than my first half marathon, and 32 minutes off my goal for this race. Many others struggled during the race, so I'm at peace with my performance in the race now, and proudly display my medal in my car. Notice I said I'm at peace with - not happy with - my performance

Things to keep in mind next time I do this race (and there will be a rematch)

• Bring something to eat while waiting! My breakfast was at 4:20 that morning and I didn't cross the start line until 8:30am. Usually I eat and I'm running an hour later. I didn't think about the fact that I wouldn't start the race until 4 hours later. I need to be more flexible - i.e. don't worry as much about sticking to what I've done on my training runs.



• Salt matters - I am a heavy, salty sweater. I need to increase my salt intake the day before the race and get salt on the run in hot and humid weather.



• Do a few runs in the evening to better adjust to running under the sun - I was out there running past 11 a.m. I usually do my runs at 5am. Even though it may be hot at that time of morning (over 80 degrees and over 90% humidity), that's not the same as having the sun beating down on you.

Time to start training for my next half - It's only 1 1/2 months away!