relentless forward progress

Met at Matt's for a great new year kickoff run. Cold and slick thoughout, but still lots of fun. IT was foggy/hazy until the sun got high enough to shine through and then it was very good. Matt planned a great route and like these seem to do, it went by very fast. The group was Jake, Matt, Chad, Dan, Mike, Toni, and me. Dan and Chad checked out early but it was still good to see them. Matt and his awesome wife had a tasty breakfast ready when we got back. Thanks again Matt!! It was just about a perfect kickoff to the year :). A solid 2 1/2 hours. 7:15

Very easy 10 just to move some blood around. My legs were cranky today and are feeling much better now. 7:40

Woke up with a sore hip flexor so i hit the stairmaster hard after work. That thing is no joke on max level, legs were on fire by the end. I bought a "the stick" today and rolled the sore area to death afterward. Yowch.

Well... not sure what happened, but I can't run. My right hip flexor is really sore. Feels fine when I walk. I can do the 100 ups without pain (run in place). But when I land and start to push off when running it just says no. I got pretty frustrated this morning. Stretched, rolled, walked, tried to run, stretched some more, got on the elliptical for a mile, tried to run again, got mad lol. 

Then I snapped out of it and put a smile back on my face and got back to work. I did an awesome 45 minute circuit training session and worked most everything really good. Then I got on the stairmaster and hit it pretty hard again before doing a couple mile cooldown on the elliptical. If I have to adjust and take a couple days to get it all better then fine. I will find ways to stay fit and get stronger in the process. 

Easy 3 mile warm up on the elliptical then tried to run. I felt better the longer i went and finally just cranked out a couple of mp miles at the end (5:42). The whole thing felt easy although the start was a little awkward from not running for 4 days. I know I'm not the smartest person ever but sometimes you just have to run :).

I was able to get in to my masseuse and think it's a sore adductor/groin. I'm pretty sure it happened on the new years day run as the footing was not the best in my flats and i had quite a few slips. I will have to play it by ear and exercise care when necessary but I'm sure I'll be ok for the half next weekend. 10.2 miles in 1:05:40. 6:30ish

Subbed in a hilly hour on the elliptical instead of an easy run after yesterdays brainfart when I ran too hard :).

1 hour of hills on the elliptical. Kept the level at 12 which kept my HR around 142. A couple more days of this and I'll be good to go. Stretch, strength, and rolling at home.

am - 1 hour+ weight/circuit training. 3 sets each of: hip felxors/inner, hip felxors/outer, lat pull down, back extension, glutes, leg raises, hammer curls, push ups, planks, side planks (each side), crunches, resistance band curls, dips.

pm - 1 easy hour on the elliptical. Kept the HR in recovery area between 120-130. 

Only had time for 5 on the stairmaster so I made them at a harder effort. Stretch, rolling, and strength training at home after. My wife and oldest are gone until tomorrow night so I am partying hard with the little kids :).

Easy 2 mile warmup on the elliptical. I stretched good after and then started a very easy 5 mile run. A dime sized spot on my adductor/groin hurts just like it did on Monday when i last ran. It doesn't hurt like something serious but it's more discomfort than a niggle. Several emotions. At this point the half next weekend is not looking like the race i wanted it to be. 7:40

I'm going to get in to muscle works in alpine next week and see if they have any ideas. 

Had a great workout tonight on the elliptical. 1 mile warmup then 1 hour at marathon pace effort. Measured by HR and effort, it felt right there. Easy cooldown.

It's easy to get frustrated but i just need to be thankful for what i can do pain free and continue to work at it. My business is with Boston and by then business will be booming :). Thanks for the calls and support :)!

70 minutes at early group run effort :). I feel like this thing is finally healing. 

Went to Muscleworks after work and saw a new therapist. She loosened me right up. We made a plan for this weekend and she told me to test it a bit tonight. Warmed up 3 then did a 2 mile tempo 5:38, 5:34. Felt really good. Going back tomorrow for a small tuneup. Hope i can rock and roll this weekend. This did wonders for my confidence.

Another session at muscle works. Went well. She thinks i will be ok to race this weekend so I'll give it a cautious go. Stretch and strength at home after.

2 easy barefoot miles around the hotel (so fun) after some rolling and stretching. I feel pretty good about tomorrow.

I have been nursing a sore hip flexor for the past couple weeks. After some great therapy and cross training I thought I would be ready to go. The conditions were perfect in St. George. Sunny and clean air was a welcome change from the frozen inversion we have been living in.

Warmed up 2 easy with the North Utah County crew. So good to see the guys today. We sang, laughed, and peed under a bridge. It was fantastic :).

It was a great race and a learning experience. As far as the race I'm just looking at the positives. I felt really solid through the first 9. It was fun to run with Caleb and take turns pulling each other. Aerobically I felt great and my legs were fresh. Just after the mile 9 marker my glute and hip flexor really tightened up. I decided to make the smart choice and shut it down. It was very hard to watch people pass and not just tough it out, but i wished them all the best, slapped them all five and jogged it in. Finished 24th in 1:22:22. (I was 52:56 at 9 miles)

I have to remember that Boston is the goal race right now. I feel good about where my fitness is at I just need to get healthy. There were many great performances today from fellow Sojourners and friends. It's cool to see everyone running well to start the season.

I'm going to take some time and get healthy. More low impact cross training and therapy are in order for the next couple weeks. I have a large base to draw from. If I can do enough to maintain my fitness there is still time to get some solid work in and run strong at Boston in April.

Am - 10.5 miles on the elliptical. Kept the hr around 150.

Pm - 6 miles on the AlterG. I found a place in Provo with access to a Huber machine as well as an AlterG (they have 3).

Dr Knudsen is a spine and pain doctor that also does muscle activation therapy and treats muscle imbalances. I have several in my glutes contributing to my compensation which has helped cause some of the pain i am experiencing. I have also been going to Muscleworks to try and get everything working again and feeling better. 

I feel like i have a good plan for active recovery that hopefully won't set me too far back. The important thing is to get healthy. Goals for Boston may need some adjustment but i am determined to line up healthy and do the best that i can. Lots of low impact x training, strength, and muscle therapy. My hope is to be much better off moving forward when i am healed than before. Some of this stuff i have been dealing with for too long.

Thanks for all of the support. It means a great deal to me.  

Pm1- had a great session at muscle works today. My psoas and my glute were both firing today :). The psoas is still sore around the attachment point but there is definitely progress.

Pm2- 7.5 on the stairmaster at golds. I had a good workout and realized that i missed people watching some of the weirdos. Weights at home after.

Bams blog got me thinking today on the topic of cross training so I tried to come up with something "fun". 

The logic was that if the incline was high enough to minimize the impact that I could get a good tempo effort in on the treadmill at lower speed. I think it was a success.

45 minutes tempo at 25 incline (the treadmill goes to 30). 5 minute "warmup" at 3mph then 40 minutes at 4.5mph. This was hard and I got some funny looks but oh well. The HR got up to 168 towards the end of the "tempo". Cooled down for 5 minutes at 12.5 incline. The treadmill said I climbed 4430 feet :). The miles logged are coverted based on time and effort. The treadmill said 3.69 miles.

The good part is that with the incline that high and keeping the cadence up didn't irritate my hip flexor. It kept the effort on my quads and calves mainly. Good stuff. I will actually enjoy the soreness tomorrow. Weights at home afterward.

Progression run on the AlterG at 80% body weight. Lots of progress has been made since last week, though still a ways to go. Felt really good today. Easy warmup and cooldown. 7:03

Strength training on the Huber Motion Lab. Focused on adductors and abductors. Also did some muscle contraction and breathing drills... nope... not pregnant :).