Ok, like the 400 (recovery) 800 (recovery) 1000 (recovery) 1200 (recovery) 1000 (recovery) 800 (recovery) 400 pyramid that we did last summer -- I think maybe that workout even came from you Rick. That's a pyramid, and the first half of it is a ladder -- got it

Yes... the workout DR described is what sent me into a downward spiral of overuse injuries. The second and third 200 intervals were ran all out. All other intervals we ran at 5K pace, with a recovery jog in between. That workout screwed up my right calf and achilles. I took about five days off to rest after that... when I started running again, I did too much too soon, which screwed up my right knee. Doing the Turkey Trot 5K only exacerbated things. The conclusion is that I think it's really a workout that needs to be worked up to, and not done too soon.

I'd figure that, given the hard/high mileage training you gone through over the past few months, you're due for a period of maybe 4-6 weeks of just base mileage (with maybe a fartlek or tempo here or there) before getting back into any serious training. Of course, you're the exception to every rule of running, so you can probably do whatever you want.

I had to make the decision on Tuesday evening whether or not to delay my interval workout until Wednesday. However, a quick look at Weather.com helped me decide that Tuesday would be the safer bet for a track workout. The wind chill would be roughly the same both nights... even though it was rough running in the winds on Tuesday, it probably would have been worse running on a slick, snow covered track on Wednesday. Of course, I'm only running four days a week right now, so I'm not in DR's boat of having to run on two consecutive days with poor weather. Speaking of poor weather... we're supposed to get a lot of freezing rain up this was starting at 6-7 am, which may continue throughout the day (this may also be preceded by snow for a few hours). I have three miles and hills planned for tomorrow evening, so this could prove to be detrimental. The last time we had serious ice, the sidewalks were so slick that I could barely keep balance while walking. Worse case scenario, I'll have to wait for a treadmill to open up at the very small gym at my apartment complex. I already took Sunday off this week to let my shins heal... I don't want to miss two days in a week.

It was still light out and the snow was coming down hard. But it isn't unusual for two ends of the county to get very different doses of weather. Lots of ice is supposed to be coming tomorrow, but I never run on Fridays, anyways. Things should be cleared up by Saturday for my 10-mile run.

I seem to have bruised my foot. Last Tues I did the 800s at Ryken. Wed I did 8mi easy. Thu I did a 6mi progression run (first mile at 10min/mi, second at 9:30min/mi, third at 9min/mi, fourth at 8:30min/mi, fifth at 8min/mi, last at 6:48min/mi). Fri I took off. Sat I went 4.5mi with Crystal, and my left sole hurt when landing on pavement. Then I continued another 4.5mi entirely on trails, but my sole started hurting all the time. I had been trying to decide whether to try for 20mi that day or the next day, so I gave up then. That afternoon it hurt to walk. We went to a concert that eve with a friend with kids, and I played with them before and at intermission, and I could still walk and walk fast enough to run around with them, but I could feel the pain on and off. So I haven't run since then. It is getting a little better, but I still have twinges of pain when pushing off my foot in some certain rolling fashion -- haven't figured out exactly when it happens. So I don't know when I'll start running again. I need to start swimming at least to get some exercise

You may have to take more than a day or two off... some injuries may require up to 2-4 weeks of rest, depending on the severity. I'm not going to suggest that you sit out the marathon, as that's likely not an option. However, if this problem doesn't clear up this week, you may want to consider altering your workout to make sure you make it to the marathon okay (for instance, cutting out speed work). Ice three times a day, etc. I'm sure you know how to nurse injuries like this. Additionally, I'd poke around online for any kind of physical therapy / rehab exercises related to your symptoms. Discovering the cause of the injury may take a little more work. It may have come from increasing mileage / speed work too soon... my injuries have been much more tame since sticking to the 10% increase per week (while backing off every 4th week). However, it may be something as simple as shoes (age, mileage, etc). If you don't have too many injuries, like DR, you may not need a full gait analysis like I did. These can be done at specialty running stores, usually for free. If it's any consolation, I hear that swimming is the top form of cross training for running.

Everyone in the world seems to be coming down with that, except me. I keep feeling what seems like the onset of symptoms... a mildly sore throat, and slight sinus headache, an occassional barking cough, etc. However, my body seems to have fought off the full blown plague. I wish you a speedy recovery. Hopefully you'll at least get some sick time out of this.