Again?!

You may have noticed there haven't been any updates in the last week. This is because I took last week off because last Saturday (day 2 of running), my left knee decided to go crazy and get irritated on the lateral/anterior surface. So I took last week off to give it lots and lots of time to get better before I started again.

And what happens? KNEE PAIN!! Yes ladies and gentlemen... my left knee hurts again. This time a little bit deeper than before. SO annoyed at my knee. How am I ever going to get anywhere if my knee is like "whatever!"

I checked continually during the run to make sure than my feet and knees were tracking straight like they should; and from what I can tell, I was pretty much in line the entire time I ran.

Anyhow... I pushed a little further than I maybe should have, but in the end, cut the run short. Runkeeper says I ran 3 miles in 26:31, with an average pace of 8:48.

Also, I still have a headache.

Pre-training day 2

I'd like to start off by saying, no, I have not google mapped the route I ran yesterday or today yet. I will when I'm done with this. Probably. It actually turns out that even though my ipod has no internet connection while I run, it DOES somehow track where I've gone. Granted, it looks like a psycho drew the route, but its generally where I ran all the same.

So tonight. GOOD run. I'm very pleased with how it went. They say the right pair of running shoes make all the difference. So I went with the best running shoes of all: NO SHOES. And it made a big difference for me. As it always does. I felt a bit lighter all through the run. Even during warm up, my movement felt better.

Before I get too far though, I should probably say that there ARE a few differences between tonight and last night's run. First of all (and probably most important), I went on a run yesterday. My body, though a bit sore, was MUCH more prepared to do it again after having done it once before. And two... well I'm a massage therapist. I know a guy. And this morning he worked over my deep hip rotators and my TFLs. Then I worked my adductors over a bit with my elbow.  Having clarified that...

According to Runkeeper, I ran 3.82 miles tonight. Just a touch less than I'm expected to run starting Monday. I could have gone the full 4 miles (plus a few 10ths), but I was feeling really good about the run and didn't want to push TOO hard on day 2. Both knees had anterior aching, and my right medial arch was a bit sore. Probably indicative of said medial arch being collapsed/collapsing. Or just generally being messed up from that foot flicking out, around, and back in every time I step. Stupid foot. I'm going to start re-pattering my lower limb muscles in hopes of correcting that. Some toes up foot up... foot circles... other things...

My air was much better than yesterday-though still needs major help. That fascial chest band is killing me!

Run keeper STILL says I ran mile 3 in 6:07, but I doubt that. 8 minutes I'll buy or even 10. Not 6 though. My pace felt pretty steady.

Anyhow... My final numbers according to Runkeeper are:
  3.82 Miles, 28 Minutes, 57 Seconds. I'll take it.

I'm Serious this time! (I think)

Oh yes. It's that time again. But I'm doing it this time. You're told when you have a goal you should tell everyone you know about it because then they ask you about it and it helps you stay motivated or some crap like that. Well I'm telling everyone. Nevermind that no one knows this blog exists; I'm going to run a marathon and no one is going to stop me. Plenty will mock me and call me names and laugh, but no one is going to stop me.

So night -2. 2 Days until my actual running program starts. I found an app in the itunes store called "Runkeeper" which has several training schedules to get you ready for a marathon. (All of this is free of course.) I chose the easiest, most beginner training schedule it had. I also found one online here: http://www.halhigdon.com/training/51137/Marathon-Novice-1-Training-Program

The Run keeper app wants me to start out running 4 miles per day and then a long run on the weekends. The schedule I picked up from that link wants me to start with 3 miles and a long one on the weekend. Based on how tonights run went, I may have to put off starting either one until I can run at least 3 miles again. And/or create some sort of modified plan out of the two I already have in order to get going. And since I don't have a deadline for a marathon to run (this way I can take my time and train properly instead of rushing like I like to do), technically this gives me forever to complete training. I won't take that long though.

SO. Tonight's run. I'm A LOT rustier than I thought. Let's start with how I felt. My chest isn't expanding fully so I don't have the air intake I should have. My arms and shoulders are held tight and high. Wasting energy and making me look stupid in the process (lol). I can feel my right foot coming off the ground, flipping out laterally, and coming back down again. The left foot feels straight but we'll see. I had heart burn and felt very heavy the entire time I ran. Even as I type this I'm coughing and experiencing hiccups an a burning sensation in my trachea. (Did I mention I HATE hiccups? Like worse than I hate SATAN?!)

I figure I only ran about 2 miles or maybe 2.5. Not the 4.7 that Runkeeper says I ran. (Not sure how it knows anything anyway considering I run with an ipod and therefore it has no access to internet and therefore no gps to determine how far I've gone.) I could have pushed, but that isn't what tonight was about. Tonight was to see how where exactly I am.

The first "mile" (according to Runkeeper) was nothin. Other than my right medial arch hurting (I ran in shoes tonight), which it had from the beginning of the run, I barely noticed it. I was probably ok through "1.5 miles." Then the inferior portion of my left medial mallelous  started hurting. I pulled over and ditched my shoes, socks, and hoody, and massaged my ankle for a minute. Then continued on my run. The second loop was better in some ways and worse in others. The same spot on my RIGHT malleolus started to ache as well.

The ache in my arch started to ease up as I went, but I decided that since I was in rougher shape than I had realized, I would cut the run short. Then after running about 3/4 of a block on cold, wet grass, I decided it would be best not to run barefoot this winter lol. After the grass, I headed back to the house, alternately walking short distances, and then jogging longer than I walked, then walking again when I felt like I needed to. And all the time, Runkeeper was telling me my mile times were getting better! lol Got all the way down to 6 Minutes per mile. AWESOME!!

Did I mention my TFLs (Tensor Fasciae Latae Muscle) are DESTROYED? I could feel them not really working the entire time I ran. Then when I got back to the house, I almost couldn't lift my leg enough to clear the baby gate at the top of the stairs. Awesome.

So anyhow... that was my preliminary run. I'll see how I feel tomorrow, but my calves are already sore and stiff, so maybe run tomorrow but maybe not. More tomorrow. I'll post where I run or not. Just decided that.

New Year... Still a fatty.

I know this will surprise you all, but I've started running. AGAIN.

I figured since I wasn't super motivated to go tonight that I would go but do something short. Especially since it's been so long since my last run. I decided to run around the block. Gotta start somewhere, right?

Well, I'm ashamed to say that I made it about halfway around the block and I was ready to DIE. Flat out panting and breathing heavy and all other sorts of nonsense. Pins and needles and whatnot as well.

So around the block... I remember the days I was running something like a mile or a mile and a half... right now it seems like it will take me the rest of my life to get back there again. I will of course so long as I keep this up.

Thinking about going again when I get up. We'll see how that goes. Got Steven bugging me to help with his car but he insists on doing it early in the day which really doesn't work well for me most days.

Anyway that's all.

Bleck and Suck

So for the 48 millionth time, I've started running again.

I quit running just after my last blog on here because the pain in my feet was getting so bad I didn't dare run at all til tonight. When I went to bed my feet hurt, when I got up they hurt just as bad, and during the day they hurt worse because I was on them all the time. If I didn't have plantar fasciitis before, I do now. So in the interest of not having to have my feet amputated or operated on in some fashion, I'm sad to say I've quit wearing my Fivefingers for the time being. I'm even sadder to say that it has helped my feet NOT to wear them. My feet still hurt of course... more during work of course because I'm on them and the shoes I wear are worn out in a bad way, but at least I can walk to work now. Thats about a mile give or take just a tad. And I can walk back too so considering walking around is what I do during work I think I'm doing pretty well. And thank God the pain when I wake up and first step on them has just about cut in half. I hate that all this amounts to not running. I've just been feeling so fat and gross lately. My attitude has been pretty good about all this though so there's some good news at least.

Tonight however, I couldn't stand it any more. I've been wanting to run, and started reading "Born to Run" for the 2nd time and that exacerbated things even more so I decided to do just a short run. You know. Breathe heavy for a bit cuz I'm out of shape, then shower and go to bed.

I gotta say it didn't go terribly well. My body was willing to go and do and was surprisingly able to (it felt like) resume almost normal distance even considering its been a month or so. My mind however was not in it. I tried to run without thinking. Just run. Let your feet do the talking. That worked for about .5 seconds, and after that the run was pretty much over. I was just over a block from my house and the run was over. No enjoyment, no relaxation. No feeling of contentment when the run was over, or an almost certainty of actually going to sleep quickly (for me) once I got back.

It's amazing how one little piece of information-incomplete though it is-can ruin everything. I'm a night person. My body operates in the wee hours of the morning. That's what it's always done. Thus I run at night. I LOVE to run at night. Everything is quiet and peaceful and no one is about. The entire world is different. I find a strange beauty in the parking lot lights of car dealerships. All the cars perfectly parked, waiting to be picked up; the cleanliness of the parking lot itself due to the lack of people... it sounds stupid when you say it, but it's why I love to walk on main street at night. It's not where I run, but it's something I love about the night.

But when the thought occurs to you that a body was found 2 blocks from your house, everything changes. The night is no longer beautiful. Suddenly every shadow is a danger spot. Every rustling bush is a ghost or some sort of demon laying in wait to have at you. Every dark area between street lights is an ambush where someone is waiting to murder you. It makes me sad. I don't even know if the body that was found WAS a murder or if it was a suicide or accidental death or what. Yet the night is ruined. Even though I took my dog with me. Don't hold me to this, but I'm pretty sure I've gone on the last of my midnight runs. I guess I'll have to start finding beauty in the day or something lol.

I do want to run. I want to lose this stupid gut once and for all, I want to get so damn addicted to running that I have to have my daily run or I can't function. I want to get my body in shape so my mind will follow suit. I want to have a sense of self for once.

I still need to find some sort of winter footwear that is waterproof. Turns out the Fivefinger Flows are NOT waterproof so for now I'm looking for alternatives. Who knows in the end though. I may just end up getting them and then only running on the days the roads are some kind of clear.

Alright that's it for now. I'm reading one more chapter of Born to Run and then I'm putting me and my fat gut to bed. Hopefully my running will continue. Maybe even with the Lady Disdain but I'm not counting on anything.

Update of Everything Else

In the interest of keeping these blogs kinda short, I decided to give you all an update on everything running in my life in a separate entry which hopefully won't be that long.

So here goes.

It is SO HARD to run with my feet and ankles relaxed! Which, if memory serves (and it may not), is the way I'm SUPPOSED to be running. I'm basing this on the theory that my body knows how it wants to move and therefore how to land its' own feet when it's running so if it's wrong, my body will slowly correct it until I'm running the right way. But as my feet DON'T hurt when I'm running, my guess is that I'm doing ok so far.

I think I need to go back to a chiropractor. My back is much improved from previous adjustments, and who knows how much or little from being minimalist in the shoe department, but I really feel like I have too much anterior pelvic tilt. Feels like I'm walking with my ass sticking out all the time. And not in a good way lol. I do actually have a back injury and have been told by chiropractors that it can be fixed, but they want me to come in 3 times a week for probably forever at $40 a time. I'm not that rich right now so I'm just being careful in the meantime. But I think finding a new chiropractor and getting adjustments at reasonable intervals is a good idea and would help me out quite a bit.

My feet hurt pretty much all the time now. I would give it a 3 out of 10 on the pain scale. Enough to notice but not enough to do anything about lol. It used to be my feet were fine as long as I didn't walk too far (less than a mile at a shot), but over the last 2 years I slowly built that up to where it's not TOO much of a problem. Now they hurt all the time. This COULD be my plantar fasciitis getting worse maybe (or may be my feet rebelling because they walk basically unprotected on tile all day at work and sidewalk and more tile at the grocery store when I'm OFF work), but I subscribe to the theory that my feet hurt because I'm wearing minimalist shoes and the pain is my feet getting stronger. :)

I'm surprise how easy it has been to become addicted to running. I'm not even doing it completely regularly yet. Intermittently, but usually at least twice a week. I think for about a month. Maybe a bit more. A good and healthy addiction. I'm also surprised tonights run went so well. I've been feeling kinda think physically and short of breath when I go up the 2 flights of stairs at work. But for some reason running was running and I'm happy for that.

I can feel my creativity slowly growing back. It's not quite ready to come out and play yet, but I remember how it felt when I was there all the time and it's a welcome feeling to recognize in myself again. It's also not entirely due to the running, but it sure doesn't hurt. I've heard some authors say they're more creative when they're healthy. Looks like I might be that way as well. :)

I'll probably think of 10 more things to say as soon as I post this, but for now I think that's all the updates I've got. Oh yeah. I gotta get my Fivefinger Flows ordered before winter gets here. I'm excited for that.

Happy Running!

:)

My Burgeoning Addiction

I'm happy to say that it's pretty much official. I may in fact have an addiction on my hands!

All I wanted to do tonight is go for a walk. See I know I'm supposed to be taking it easy with this whole barefoot transition thing, but let's face it: I'm too excited and too impatient to do this any other than the way I'm doing it. Now Keeping in mind that I've got what is probably a mild case of Plantar Fasciitis, the process goes something like this:

I read a bit about barefooting life and everywhere says the same thing: "Transition SLOWLY. This way when your feet hurt (due to muscle development in the foot)you can go back to normal shoes and your feet will having the padding they're used to." Well in my mind, I've been barefoot my whole life. (Not entirely true.) I'm even known to some people BECAUSE of my barefootedness. (All true.) Therefore I should get to skip this step.

So I go for barefoot (or mainly my VFFs) for a long time no problem. Then my feet start to hurt. At which point I ignore the pain (which to be honest is a combination of I forget to put normal shoes on, and just plain refusal to put normal shoes on lol), and continue to be barefoot or VFFd until my feet hurt bad enough I don't dare go on walks for fear my feet will fall off and I'll never return.

But all I wanted to do was go for a walk tonight. I didn't want to push anything with said hurting feet. I just had that feeling that I needed to do something outside or I would go insane and die. So I thought to go for a walk. Even if it was a short one. But alas. I got as far as the driveway with my dog (who because she only goes out for runs with me at night now kept racing off down the driveway and turning around to see why I wasn't running along side her-funny!) and it was all over. My body yelled "RUN!!" and so I did. I ran to the drinking fountain by the Police Station and decided to walk for a bit in the name of not pushing it. Then I ran, then I walked, then I ran... Every time I ran, it was great! And every time I walked, it felt like there was this force kinda pushing on me from behind to GO FASTER! I tried to ignore this feeling but running just feels so good! Even though I don't run far and I don't run fast it's awesome!

So I'm going to go ahead and say I've got an addiction to running. Might be a small one, but that's how it all starts right?