Bret

AM - easy 4 before church. At 6 am it was 82 degrees and 76% humidity. Not exactly a crisp morning. Run was a little tight but acceptable.

AM - very early 4 miles before a flight out this morning.  Found some voltarin gel that I had from some prior injury / issue.  Seems to work on the soreness and tightness in the groin/hip flexors. Beginning to be more concerned about a stress fracture (not seriously yet) - the more I try to self diagnose online.  Anyone have an anti-gravity treadmill to let me use for a while?

PM - did 10 miles on the treadmill at the Y just to keep things flat/even to allow for little stabilization/balance adjustments.   Run was ok - not great - felt pretty fatigued in the groin areas afterward, and nearly expect to be fully injured soon or recovered completely - but certainly one of the two.

AM - so I am reasonably certain that I have tendinitis (osteitis pubis) or a sports hernia -because I awoke from sleep last night due to pain in that area. (So I did not run this morning.)  The question is what to do about it.  As with most of my injuries, I am not ready to stop training yet. It is at times painful but not debilitating - It is definitely a nuisance and chronic and at times more limiting than at others.  Thinking a course of more pointed strengthening exercises of the abs and adductors along with stretching active release for a while until it gets better ....or much worse.

 Noon - so of course I went out for an easy run at lunch and though I was a little tight, it was a pretty decent run - though not completely normal or good.  6 miles.  Nice day.

PM - tried to drive to a nearby town to use an Alter-G treadmill - but I left the office late and got stuck in traffic and the place was closed by the time I got there.  Drove back to the hotel and did 7.5 miles on the treadmill there.  First mile or so was tight, but the rest was ok.   

PM - 6 miles on the treadmill at the gym.  Was planning to do more, but I forgot to bring socks - so went sockless until I started getting a blister, and then I stopped.  Felt reasonably ok - but still tight and painful start.

AM - 4  miles this morning before work.  Very tight with pain and weakness - lots of stretching and strengthening exercises afterwards.  

PM - 6 miles on the treadmill at lunch. Oddly - a pretty good run. Started very slowly but by a mile and a half I no longer was tight or felt any constriction or guarding of my gait. Gradually and cautiously increased the pace to feel to where the last two miles were at HM pace. Felt so good to run like that. Will see what the next run brings. It was almost like the muscles in that area which were previously engaged - finally released.

AM - 4 miles easy before work.  Tight again - but not as bad as yesterday morning - but nowhere close to as open as I felt on the treadmill yesterday afternoon.   Did foam roller and strengthening exercises following.  Hoping for a nice treadmill run later today.

PM - 6 more on the treadmill at a late lunch.  Not as good as yesterday, but not as tight as this morning.  Decent pace too.   

PM - family in-town visiting, so I was tied-up much of the day doing local touristy things to entertain them - (went to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium where the dolphin with the missing tail resides - "Winter" from the movie "A Dolphin Tale".  Interestingly, I have lived here most of my life and this was my first ever visit to the facility).  

Anyway, went out around 7 pm.  Started with a slow jog in the vibrams (to keep it slow) - very tight groin/adductors/hip flexors - for 1.5 miles then changed shoes and did about 6 which were reasonably ok miles after the warm-up got the blood flow to the tight muscles. Never completely free gait, but not bad.