Artichoke's Running Blog (Ken Spence)

40 minutes walking at 5:10 a.m. with Elaine and Savannah, my out of shape chocolate lab.  3 easy miles running this evening on the trail behind Little Mountain.  Felt a bit better than last week.  Try every other day or so for a while.

40 minutes walking with Elaine and with Savannah.  5:10 a.m.

Gold's Gym this morning.  20 minutes on the elliptical and 20 minutes on the recumbent cycle.  No pain.  MRI scheduled for Friday.  It's nice to live in a small town where you can run into your doctor and your therapist at the same time and have a consultation right then and there including my wife in the meeting.  Is that multi-tasking or what?  

40 minutes walking with Elaine and Savannah at 5:10 a.m.  3 miles running at 4:30 p.m.  Gorgeous day.  Behind Little Mountain on the trails mostly.  Back felt a bit better than it did on Monday, which wasn't bad, but I felt a bit worse afterwards.  MRI tomorrow.

40 minutes walking with Elaine and Savannah this morning.  MRI at noon.

Gym this morning.  20 min. elliptical, 10 min. upright cycle, 10 min. recumbent, 20 min. on treadmill at 8:30 pace, then ran 1.25 miles home.  Locked out of the house, so I worked in the yard for an hour until Sharon got home.  It was a conspiracy to get me to do some yard work.

40 minutes walking this morning in the rain with Elaine and Savannah.  3 TM miles at 6:00 p.m.  Progression run from 10:00 min. pace to 8:30 pace.  Raining outside, so I wimped. Spring is not really here.

Gym today.  20 minutes on elliptical, 20 minutes on upright stationary cycle and 10 minutes on recumbent.  A good sweat.  Also 40 minutes walking with Elaine and Savannah at 5:10 a.m.  Finished up with 1/2 mile run.  Elaine's foot doing better.

4 miles in Settlement Canyon, up to Legion Park and back.  Easy running, nice day.  60 degrees and sunny at 6:05 p.m.  Best I've felt in weeks, but still quite slow and not pushing. Didn't feel much other than a bit on the steeper downhill.  Still waiting on MRI results.

40 minutes at gym at 5:00 a.m.  20 minutes on elliptical and 20 minutes cycling (10 upright, 10 recumbent).

30 minutes walking this morning w/ Savannah.  10 minutes at home on the Total Gym tonight.

5 easy miles from gym to Grimm's gate and home direct.  Felt decent after first doing 50 minutes at the gym.  20 min. elliptical, 10 minutes on upright cycle, 10 minutes on recumbent, and 10 minutes on spin bike.  Encouraging workout today.  Next week Tina and I plan on hitting the trails in Settlement Canyon, barring anymore snow/rain.

Gym this morning at 5:00 a.m. with Sharon.  20 min. elliptical.  10 min. upright cycle and 10 min. of recumbent cycle.  4 miles on TM tonight at 6:10 a.m., easy in 38:13.  Felt decent.

40 minutes at gym at 5:00 a.m. 20 minutes on elliptical, 10 minutes on upright cycle and 10 minutes on recumbent.  Couldn't get heart rate up this morning.  Total gym weights for 20 minutes at 6:15 p.m.

40 minutes at 5:00 a.m. at Gold's Gym.  20 minutes elliptical, 10 minutes on upright cycle, and 10 minutes on recumbent.  Heart rate nearing optimum.

5 TM miles at gym tonight.  46:40 progression run from 10:00 pace to 8:30 pace.  Gave blood today, felt okay during run, but about passed out when I bent over to put things in my gym bag afterwards.  Achilles a tad sore.  Back felt decent.  Seeing the Spine doctor tomorrow about my MRI. 

Walking with Elaine and Savannah this morning, 5:10 a.m.  40 minutes, with 1 mile running.  Gym at 7:15 a.m. with 20 minutes elliptical, 10 minutes upright cycle, 10 minutes recumbent.  Got my  heart rate nearer to optimum today.  Walked in and saw both my doctor and my physical therapist talking so they asked how I was doing and whether I got scheduled with the spine specialist for reviewing my MRI.  I told them that's why I was at the gym so late, my appointment was at 9:45 a.m.  Weights tonight for 20 minutes at home on the total gym.  

The specialist said I actually have a tear in one of the disks and a small bulge in the other.  He has scheduled me for an epridural cortisone injection on June 3 and July 1.  Hopefully that will help me get my running back up to par.  It works for many, but not everybody.  He said if it doesn't work, my long run days or marathoning may be over, but hopefully that won't be the case.  I am tolerating the every other day running without much residual pain, so I'm somewhat optimistic.  He doesn't want me running for 7 to 10 days after the injections.  That will barely get me to Ragnar.  Wants me to continue what I'm doing now with the alternative exercises and the running easy up until the injections, as long as it's going okay.  The gym  has been good for me and  I need to continue doing that even if I can get back to running well again. 

Rest.

5 miles at 6:30 a.m. with Tina in 43:50.  Felt pretty decent throughout, not much pain until standing around afterwards.  15 miles this week.

Went to the gym with Sharon at 7:30 a.m.  30 minutes elliptical, 15 minutes recumbent cycle and 15 minutes upright.  15 minutes on stair climber for 51 floors.  A good workout today. 

40 min. walking with Elaine and Savannah at 5:10 a.m.  with 1 mile running.  40 minutes at gym tonight at 7:15 a.m., 20 minutes on elliptical, 10 min. upright cycle and 10 min. recumbent.

40 minutes at 5:10 a.m. with Elaine and Savannah, walking with 1 mile running plus 5 mile run this evening easy in 47:15 to mouth of Middle Canyon and back.  Zig-zagging through town.  Felt pretty good tonight.

40 minutes at the gym at 5:00 a.m.  40 minutes.  20 elliptical and 20 cycling.

40 minutes walking/running with Elaine and Savannah, 5:10 a.m.  1 mile running.  5 mile run tonight at 6:00 p.m. in 46:03 into the mouth of Middle Canyon and back via cemetery. Best I've felt, but hurting a little bit afterwards.  Still encouraging.  I'm handling the every other day running pretty well generally.

40 minutes walk/run with Elaine and Savannah.  5:10 a.m.  Jeez it's cold in the morning for nearly June.  1 mile running.

1:45 at the gym this morning.  30 minutes elliptical, 30 minutes cycling (15 upright and 15 recumbent).  Then hit the treadmill for 5 miles in 44:59.  A good workout today.  19 miles this week without much trouble.

7:30 a.m. at the gym with Sharon.  30 minutes on the elliptical and then 30 minutes cycling (15 min. upright and 15 min. recumbent).  Then over to Tina's for a 5 mile run.  5.28 in 45:01.  42:24 at 5 miles.  Faster than I wanted to go.  She pushes me pretty good.  Glad I ran after the gym.  My back wasn't the best getting out of bed this morning, but after 1/2 hour on the elliptical was feeling pretty good.  No real issue during the run.

Gold's Gym at 5:00 a.m.  20 minutes on elliptical and 20 minutes on cycle (10 min. upright and 10 min. recumbent).  Last day of May.  You wouldn't know it with the snow we woke up to on the lawn yesterday morning!