Running with the sub-3s: unfinished business (Read 365 times)

First a word about my injury.  Running a marathon on an undiagnosed stress fractured pelvis wasn't a bight idea.  Even at an easy pace.  I had the strangest experience at the Newton hills; my legs were fine.  But Deric and I stopped and walked a bunch of times because I couldn't muscle through the pain.  3:31 -- still faster than my first marathon.

Before going to the doctor I couldn't figure out what was going on.  After the 5th mile of an easy run pain in my crotch just got overwhelming.  My pace would go from 8min to 12mins in a hurry.  I'd grit my teeth to finish a run.  But you know how it is, when you don't know what's going on everyone's story sounds like it could be yours.  One guy in the group had a Sports Hernia.  When he described it, I yelled, "Yeah, that's it!  I must have one of those!"  Then the next guy started telling me about his testicular cancer and I thought, "oh, shit, that sounds like what I got!"  So, of to the chief of sports-medicine at UVA: pelvic stress fracture and osteitis pubis.  Basically, I got "the girl running injury".  For those looking to self-diagnose: it feels like you jumped on a bicycle but missed the seat and landed on the cross-bar.  The pain is in "the taint".

9 weeks off.  Then 1-mile walk-jog x 4 / week.  Running this pitiful distance was damn hard.  Like running in someone else's body.  I went from 172lbs (a good training weight for me) to 180lbs in a hurry.  Might have had something to do with the incredible food here in Chicago -- or the beer.

I slowly ramped up.  Adding 2miles a week.

I avoided all runners and didn't look for a group.  The last thing I wanted to do was introduce myself with, "Yeah, in the spring I just ran sub3 and Boston . . . uhm when are you guys running next?  I can join you for 4miles.  9:30pace okay with you?"  So, I ran solo through some of the hardest training miles because with every pinch and tweak i thought, "oh, crap I over-did it."

The weather in Chicago's cool summer of 2014 was perfect . . . just to goad me.

It took about 3months before a 6mi run was no longer a horrible slog.  After I got to a 10mi long-run, I decided it was time to look for a local running group.

My wife picked our apartment in Lakeview specifically because it was close to the Lakeshore running path and because we heard there was a running group in Lincoln Park.  I moved to Chicago for her.  But she moved to Lakeview for me.

The first group on my radar was the "Fleet Feet Racing Team".  I was already prepared to dislike it just based on the "Racing Team" thing.  To me a "Racing Team" is a bunch of peeps who can snatch local purses at will.  Cville had one (RMR), and those guys were all a lot faster than me (14min / 15min 5K etc).  One woman on the team took 4th in her even at Nationals.  That's a racing team.

The average age of the FFRT is probably 30yo.  The Sub3s of Cville was about 42.  The "Boston Bound" group at CVille is probably around 45.  I find it pretty inspirational to see the 58yos in the group still knocking back PRs and putting in 60mpw.  So, this group of young-ins was going to be a bit of cultural adjustment.

It didn't start off well.  The first practice (doing 800s in a parkinglot) the 23yo leader of the group had us make a hand-tunnel to high-5 the last group to finish.  *sigh*.  In another, right before Chicago, guys were talking about their goals.  Some of them had just PRed a month ago and were planning to do it again at Chicago.  "Wow, that's an interesting plan.  Never heard of that working.  Good luck."  (for the record, none of those guys PRed and a few pulled out).  At a particularly cold day, I had to put a windbreaker on.  I only have two.  One is from Boston that I'm bashful about wearing because my policy when joining a new group is "show up, and shut up."; I try to dodge questions about PRs too.  Here I am agonizing about wearing my sweet jacket and when I show up this rather gregarious guy is in the full getup.  Sweet jacket, unicorn leggings, unicorn hat, unicorn gloves.

This just isn't my old group -- a bunch of serious guys who just like suffering the miles with each other.  No song and dance.  Just a time and location, a distance and a pace.  Show up or don't.  But I'm trying to give it a chance here.

The last practice before the December break was followed by a meeting at the bar across the street.  There I found the groups sub3 guys.  2:55, 2:57 etc.  Again, I'd be the slowest of the pack.  I ask them about winter training and they point me to Fleet Feet's "Boston365" training program.  So, I signed up for that.  $130-sheesh.  At least it comes with some car-pooling out of town for some hill runs.

I've had a bit better luck finding my kind on the Lakeshore path.  I look for Boston jackets and pace rabbits.  Then I reel them in, ghost them for a few hundred meters or a mile.  Say hi.  Last week I found Scott (2:39) and Eli (2:50) buzzing by at 7:10 pace.  So, I joined them for 6miles and chatted away like a school-girl because I work from home and my wife is out of town.  So much for "show up and shut up".  Scott seemed to like the jabber.  Eli never said a word.  I couldn't tell if he was shooting daggers out his eyeballs into my back or not.

Last night I was pooped from work and not enough sleep.  Planned for 10mi at AHR, but decided on 6mi slow (8:30) . . . maybe 8.  However, around mile 3 I passed Scott and Eli again, so I U-turned and chased them down.  They were out doing 12.  I stuck with them at 7:20 pace, but then had to make it home too.  14miles total.

Running 12 fast with good guys is easier than running 6 slow alone.

TCM-14.

I'm 93% sure Charlottesville, VA is part of Greater Lowell.

Yeah, FF may be fine in other cities, but for many, many various reasons, I would avoid it like the plague in Chicago.

 

And we know Chicago is.

 

I don't recall anyone with a green singlet residing in Chicago.

I think CVille was annexed into Greater Lowell around 2012 . . . or maybe 1982.  If you guys are ever in that town, let me know and I'll hook you up.

I've met a few guys who are part of the "Track and Trough" group.  It's a bunch of sub3 guys who sound pretty serious.  I think Scott and Eli are part of that group.  I've gone to a few of their standard meetup times during the week (at the Trough), but nobody showed.  Scott said that post-Chicago people aren't training as much.

I also talked to the guy at the New Balance store just south of me.  Nice guy.  28yo.  Trying to get something started. Seems weird to open a single-brand running store, though.

I'll check out Sole this monday.

Do you have any indication of what caused the stress fracture? Obviously running, but was it just bad luck or are you at high risk if you repeat the same program without some modifications? If I were to put together a program to take myself from 2:59 to 2:55 it would involve ramping up mileage, intensity, and workouts which will all stress the system ... or I could drop 15 pounds.

What's your plan or are you confident you can repeat your program healthy?