The Qwer Old Fella's Marathon Method

a.m 16 metres (ish) slow:).

Decided to give the leg a test and stopped after a few seconds - I must have looked like a lame dog hobbling up the road. So, before somebody put me out of my misery, I sought the comfort  and security of home. I'll just have to wait and see what's what. C'est la vie!

No run today but I did 30 mins of AIS and trigger pointing and then followed that up with some serious cross training: made a beef casserole - peeling and slicing and dicing carrots and celery and onions and parsnips; chopping leeks and red peppers; seasoning with sea salt and black pepper and smidgeon of cumin; concocting my secret sauce. Very tired after this workout. Might need forty winks. Should I or shouldn't I? Yes, I'm off for a codger's nap.

No run today. 30 mins AIS - no trigger pointing: thumbs are killing me from poking and prodding (might have tendonitis and  carpal tunnel syndrome now; is there a syndrome I don't have?) I think I've neutralized all the pertinent and active triggers. Must say, feeling much improved, but I'm still going to wait and make sure it's fully cleared before I get back to the running.

Feeling rather rotund. That's probably because I don't believe in cross training :) and I've continued to eat as though I were running 100 miles a week. A bit more than a tad stupid. I'll suffer when I start back, but that'll make it all the more rewarding. At least, that's how I'm blagging myself.

a.m. AIS and positional release followed by 3.5 miles easy and some more AIS and positional release.

Yep, much better. I was able to run rather than hobble. Most of the aches and discomfort have subsided. There's still a bit of a niggle around the right gluteal sulcus as opposed to the wrong one. Must be a cheeky little trigger somewhere that's escaped the wrath of my banjaxed thumbs. You can hide, Trigger, but hear this, I'll find you, and when I do, as sure as Zeus is my witness, I'll destroy you...

Feeling rather tired from this morning's cross training. - probably went OTT.  As cross training is under the microscope at the moment, I can divulge what cross training I did this morning and prove that cross training isn't always appropriate. I read the comments from yesterday's blog without taking a break. Too much in one go - ended up cross-eyed:)

a.m. AIS and positional release followed by 3.5 miles and then some more AIS and positional release. Did a few improvised MET's on the S.I. joint too - not pretty but efficacious. More AIS and P.R. later.

In terms of pain/discomfort, much better than yesterday. Only the odd twinge, which is great. The glutes seem to be working much better and I felt as though there was much more power in my stride. That might be wishful thinking.

I think I'll stick to this routine until Sunday as it seems to be working. I could proably go and run a 6 no bother but I'm not going to risk it. In fact, I'll probably keep it like this until everything feels 100%. Happy to report that I'm a happy bunny:)

a.m. AIS followed by 3.5 miles easy and another blast of AIS.

Things are looking good. All the hip and butt stuff have completely cleared. I have noticed a slight twinge in the distal mtj of my right biceps femoris and I suspect that that might be the cheeky little blighter that was responsible for my woes. The right achilles was a tad tender too, but nothing too troublesome.

Anyway, now that the boring stuff's out of the way, let's get ready to rumble...

What a week! Some may feel exhausted from the cross training debate but I feel as though we're just warming up. But, as the week draws to a close, I'll leave it for another time. That said, I want to sum up my thoughts on the initial forays into the murky world of cross training...

Earlier in the week, Andrea asked the question about my thoughts on cross training or if I remember correctly, what cross training I do/did. Before I answered I thought carefully - I knew my answer might incite responses that would differ from my views. Not one to sit on the fence, I answered with candour. I don't cross train. I gave some very general reasons that lacked substance but they were ok on a general level. Then we had some great opinions and views - JG's thoughts were really thought provoking and forced me to think hard about my opinions on cross training.

Anyway, I'm sure most of us will think about what we do or do not do when we're injured in future and that has to be a good thing. It's got to be a good thing to think carefully about what we're doing when we're injured. Is it better to cross train and maintain fitness even though it may prolong the injury or is it better to rest and lose fitness but get over the injury quickly? I'm still not sure and, for me, that's one of the many reasons why we're just lifting the lid on this can of clichés:)

So, I had an idea... I think I'll pick a topic each week and post my thoughts on the weekly topic. The reasons for this are many, but mainly because it might be a laugh:). Yes, I will be provocative - that should ensure good debate:)

Hold your breath, this is a good one... Next week's topic - Coaching. Some initial things to consider: are coaches and parents living vicariously through their athletes/children? Do coaches push kids too hard so that the coach receives the kudos while the child/athlete ultimately ends up disillusioned/injured. What motivates a coach to leave the family environment and coach other parents' kids? Do parents make bad coaches? I'll leave you with this gem - a proposition propagated by some senior British coaches  - teachers make the worst coaches, discuss.

Laters.

a.m. 3.5 easy.

We took Grace, aka BabyBam, to the Killarney Spring Series 5k at the National Park. I ran around with her and I have to say she surprised me. In fact, she blew me away. She ran a good bit faster than I expected and although she's only 10, she finished ahead of all the under 15 girls and all bar one of the under 15 boys. She beat loads of adults too.

Great day. Think I might send her over to coach Murphy. Not sure what to do with her. I think she could have run well under 24 today.

It was good to see the leading men battling it out as they came back in. Made me wish... Ah well, maybe in a few months.