Back With a Capital Vengence!

AM: Hiked the Highland Mary Lakes Loop in the San Juan Mountains. Pretty much the most bang for your buck hike I have ever done. The views were incredible in every direction for the entire hike, we're talking absoultey AMAZING. A majority of the hike was over 12,000 feet, which is the most time I have ever spent that high. The photos barely do the area a justice.

PM: 2 miles on the dirt roads of Silverton with the JAJA crew. I think there is something to these shake-out runs :)

Chill day in the mountains...

AM: 6.5 miles on the Colorado Trail from Molas Pass. Most of the run/trudge was over 11,000 feet and I certainly felt it!

PM: 1 x 400 on the Silverton town track (elevation ~9,300 feet) and FIRST TRACK "WORKOUT" EVER. I just wanted to beat James' estimate of 97 seconds for my first 400 and I did it in 87 seconds, so yay! I thought I was going to hyperventilate after and my lungs burned for the next two hours but were eventually soothed by an icy cold Fat Tire. I am psyched for more TRACK work!

So much for easy days in mountains... 

My first 14-er!!! Climbed Mt Sneffels (14,150') via the SW Ridge. Lots and lots of scrambly fun plus a few minor freak-outs in some fairly exposed sections. Been a while since I climbed things, but SO FUN!

The six hour hike followed by a 7-hour solo drive home made for a good endurance training day!

Don't fall - eeks! Photo courtesy Jake.

Rest day after returning from high altitude training camp.

Spent the evening helping a friend prep for the Wasatch 100. He is making all of his own food using this Feed Zone Portables book - neat idea! He is a 5th grade teacher and got a card today from one of his students that included a GU and the following quote: "100 miles is really not that far to run." ~Karl Meltzer. Not sure if that is a real Meltzer quote or if the kid's parents are just having fun, but cute nontheless.
 

Another rest day of sorts. Couple mile walk around the Ave's. Came home with five boxes of popsicles. Why is it still so darned hot?

Good Luck Wasatch-ers! Track FRB'ers (and former FRB'ers :) here.

ScottW (70), Matt VH (227), Craig Lloyd (275), My Friend Kev-o (171)

Did I miss anyone?

AM: Paced Kevin Q from Lamb's to Brighton, from 10pm to 6:30 am. Can't remember the last time I was up for 28 hours straight, kinda fun! Took a really long time so I am counting all those miles because it was hard and I had to be happy the whole time! Climbed 6300 feet, which is just a small pecentage of the entire Wasatch 100. So happy he was able to finish the race, an incredible feat with all that heat!

Can't hardly wait for the Peruvian Downhill this afternoon. Going to wear my roller shoes...

PM: Thought it would be pretty stupid to run the Peruvian after 22 miles through the night and 2 hours of sleep, but then all the coffee kicked in and I was overly deliriously stoked! It ended up being worth it even if I can't walk for a few days since I won a FREE NIGHT at the Peruvian Lodge, which is going to be awesome come ski season - yay!

I had planned to run the first mile as fast as I could and then meet up with Jake and Abby. The first mile was 5:58 (ha, ha, ha!) and then I physically couldn't slow down due to gravity and inertia aka ridiculous downhill and the next one came in at 6:08. Around mile 4 this honest downhill course turned into an adventure race with speeding cars, torrential down pours, and crazy lightening strikes - so, so very frightening, I cannot believe they didn't stop traffic! Was so happy to be finished! Then an absolutely wonderful evening with great food, lots of fun with FRB-ers, and SLEEP!

I think my 2 runs today balanced each other out so I am pretty sure I wil be okay.

90 minute restorative yoga class left me feeling not even slightly restored.

Let's combine the longest time I have ever been on my feet continuously with the fastest run I have ever done in my life all in the same 24 hour period with essentially no sleep. Yesterday was SOOOOO FUN, but SERIOUSLY I think I am started to act like an FRB-er :)

Wandered around the Ave's for a good 90 minutes. I LOVE FALL! Picked up some vegetables and stopped by Hatch's for some mood-enhancing chocolates. My right glute/pirformis and left shin are still really sore. Odd combo. Running tomorrow hopefully!
 

Still sore. Up Memroy Grove not so bad. Down Memory Grove no bueno.

Bike, core, and arms.

I love that the NYTimes is always covering ultrarunning events - Tour du Mont Blanc Slideshow! Cannot believe I was in Chamonix for this last year - CCC 2015 is my goal!

Lazy run on the BST with the last quarter mile at 6:55 pace (uphill to make myself feel better). Saw my first tarantula, going to be an early winter! I once met an old man up City Creek who told me that the tarantulas come out one week before the first snow.

Too busy. Forgot to exercise today so I guess I will run a half marathon tomorrow. 2 goals: finish in under 2 hours and don't look at Garmin too much.

Ummm... that was SO HARD! Was lying oh so comfortably in bed this morning wondering which race would be easier, the Park City Trail Half or the Flat as a Pancake 5K. I opted for a half hour more of sleep and didn't make my final decision until I got on I-80. I got to the start of the Park City Trail half with 5 minutes to spare and thankfully they had pushed back the start 15 minutes. It was a lovely 52 degrees and foggy as crap, but at least the rain hadn't started yet. 

The first mile was rough, the mud was deep, the shoes were heavy, and the stokemeter wasn't even registering -  I didn't know how I could possibly continue through this for 13 plus miles. Thankfully the trail was slightly more dry after the first few miles, but ughhh my legs never felt like they didn't have 10 pounds of something weighing them down. This was the closest I have ever felt to leg cramping-ness, my legs just didn't want to move, they just really, really wanted to be sitting in a hot tub. Seriously, I was barely breathing hard and my legs were like heck no we're not going to go anywhere. My diet has been pretty crappy this week and I hadn't run much so I was wondering if that is why my legs felt like DEATH. Perhaps there is a little residual fatigue in the legs after last weekend's Wasatch/Peruvian ridiculousness :)

Anyways... I finished just short of my goal of under 2 hours, but the course was a half mile long (course was re-routed due to life sucking mud holes) so I say GOAL ACCOMPLISHED! I am feeling pretty confident that I can make my sub 1:42:32 half marathon goal in Moab next month since there will be no rocks, mud puddles, slippery slides, 1000 feet of elevation gain, residual Peruvian-nes and well... trails :) Won some pretty nifty Pearl Izumi arm warmers, which would have perfect for today! Pretty exciting stuff!

Oh and I haven't talked about this in a while because I don't think about it much anymore, but the hip is as good as new!  Seven months out from the second surgery this week and couldn't be happier with it :)

I am looking for ADVICE! I signed up to run a half marathon 5 weeks from today and since I have never followed a training plan, or well any kind of plan ever I don't really know what to do. I really want to beat my one and only (road) half marathon (Bryce Canyon 2011) time mostly as a fun challenge to myself, but also because of spite :) I had lots of ortho peeps tell me I should never run again after my hip injury and that I would never be as good as new and well darn it I feel better than new so I want to prove it! Yeah, I recognize that Bryce Canyon is a way easier course than The Other Half and that my goal may be a longshot, but whatever I want to go for it!

So what I am wondering... (1) How do you figure out what kind of pace you are capable of when your running has been all over the place? I am thinking I should maybe run a 5K in the upcoming weeks to gauge my fitness. I have no idea. (2) What kind of runs should I incoporate into my week? Up until now I just run when and as far and as hard as I feel like.

AM: 2 hour ride on the Legacy from me casa.

PM: Core, glutes, and feets. Operation back to PT starts today!

Biked up to Red Butte for the final concert of the year with a backpack full of beverages and a lawn chair strapped to my back. Nearly tipped over on the final hill by Huntsman.

Sat in a car for 3 hours, got blasted in the eyes with sand for a good 2 hours, and then saw the Lumineers play 5 songs before the concert was called due to wind?!?!?!?

Never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever go to a show at the Saltair!!! Ever!

The Saltair should only be used for windy X K's.

PM1: Hour of PT trying to get my SI joint back into place :( Followed by another hour of squats, planks, and ughhhh!

PM2: Took Jake's advice and tried to run 3 miles at 8 min pace at LP (that is Liberty Park). Wasn't too hard except for the mind-numbing boriness of it all. Miles were 7:53, 7:43, and 7:28. Had to speed up for the last one because I had a flight to catch. Flying to BEND now!!!

Hips felt surprisingly great and dare I say normal after the afternoon beating!

AM: Rode bikes all around Bend.

PM: I have been wanting to try stand up paddle boarding for nearly ever so I was stoked to find out that my friend Jamie just bought two boards. We spent the afternoon cruising up the Deschutes River and then floating back down. FUN!

Beer Count = 2: Bend Brewing Company Metolius Golden Ale and GoodLife Descender IPA

AM: Chill trail run in Shevlin Park. I like Bend's trees :)

PM: McMenamins Terminator Porter and Boneyard ESB

AM: A friend of a friend of my friend's offered to give me a tour of some Bend Trails this morning. I was very nervous about my ability to keep up with said fit looking Bend male, but I did alright. Trails were very lovely and rolling. Ran alongside a herd of Elk for a half mile or so. Awesome. Next up wiener dog races, or as Fiddy would say, sausage dog races :)

PM: Crux Off Leash Northwest Session Ale and Crux Doublecross Dark Belgian

Deshutes River Trail Lost in Bend Coffee Run.

And this is why they call it Bend...

Squats, planks, belly things, and other fun at PT. Adductors super tight, need to stretch daily! SI joint still in place - yay! No running today: 3 days on 1 day off may be a good plan from here on out.

Can't believe it is dark at 7:30 rarrrrrrrrrr! Almost headlamp season :(

PM: Easy run up the City Creek Trail. First day since the Wasatch/Peruvian combo my kneecaps didn't hurt.

PM2: Planks, side plank clam shell dealies, fire hydrants, rolling, and adductor and hip flexor stretches.

I went to an adventure film festival when I was in Bend last week and the films were mind blowingly inspiring. Most of the films can be viewed online at the 5Point Film Festival Site, but my personal fave is The Road From Karakol starring a Salt Lake City local. The first few minutes are priceless!

Work to home via the BST.

I started running this route several years ago so I thought it would be fun to look back at my times. Back in the summer of 2011, just before I started having my hip trouble and thought I was in the best shape of my life, I was running this in about 95 minutes. And well today I ran it in 77 minutes so I think I must be in decent shape now - yay!

Rest day.

Going to go for a baby run this afternoon and if I feel good I am going to regsiter for the Dugway Isolation Run happening tomorrow. I just can't resist another run through otherwise off-limits terrain and exploding land mines.

PM: Ha! I was dreaming this morning! 2.5 mile run up City Creek followed by a 1.5 mile limp of shame home. Bummer.

Here's the deal:

• Right hip pain (non-op side) in the front/side - not groin pain or bursitis, TFL possibly?
• Onset of sharp pain last Thursday. SI joint had been out for weeks prior so the only pain I had been having was right lower back and glute. Thought new pain was related to brutal SI adjustment at PT last Wednesday, but hasn't gone away.
• Pain is sharp on impact during walking or running. Nearly non-existent on uphills, but borderline excrutiating on downhills. No discomfort with sitting, only with impact.
• Adductor and piriformis are very tight and I have been stretching and rolling twice a day.
• I have positive impingement signs in the right hip, but good internal rotation so my PT doesn't think it is an FAI flare-up (yes, I have FAI in the right hip too)

The Plan:

• I have made appointments with both my sports med doc and hip surgeon and I am getting a massage this Sunday and a gait analysis next week and I just opened a bottle of wine (Thanks Allie :)
• No running until no pain with walking. Find cross-training that doesn't hurt.
• Keep up PT exercises since none of them seem to be aggrevating the problem.
• Ice, ice, ice and roll and stretch a ton!
• Do not freak out! Trust that this is going to go away soon and you are not going to have to have another hip surgery so help me ughhhh! Be happy with those few months of running you had :)

Any ideas on what the cause of this pain is? I think it has to be related to some sort of pelvic instability related to my SI joint dysfunction on the right side. I am 8 months out of surgery on the left hip and would say I am at about 95% - only problem is the occasional hip flexor tightness but whoopie do. Please, please don't be FAI issues!!!!!!!!

Can't put much weight on the right leg this morning without a whole lot of pain. Not really sure what I should do or what is going on with it, but I am going to stay off it as much as possible. Got my crutches out of the closet. Seriously?

It was a good thing I wasn't running the Dugway race because I wouldn't have been able to get out of my driveway this morning anyway. The apartment building across the street from me went up in flames, we are talking serious flames! One of the scarriest things I have ever seen, I could feel the heat in my living room. Just glad no one was hurt.

So much for not freaking out...

Just had a 90 minute massage to try and loosen up my right hip (see new hip drama) and well we couldn't find anything tight or any knots or trigger points that are causing the pain. And then I still had the sharp pain upon standing. WTF? Ibuprofen is not doing a thing, red wine is not doing a thing, and the only thing that works is not putting any pressure on the darned thing.

Seeing as I can't get into my hip doc for five more weeks, I am just going to show up at the ortho center tomorrow morning and not leave until someone will see me!

Looks like someone needs to change her name to Lulu Walls...

Rest day #3.

Two hours of a team of PT's trying to adjust my SI joint. Couldn't get it to budge so I cried and ate a donut and then we tried again and it still didn't budge. Pain hurts :(