jfa
"A small trouble is like a pebble. Hold it too close to your eye and it fills the whole world and puts everything out of focus. Hold it at a proper distance and it can be examined and properly classified. Throw it at your feet and it can be seen in its true setting, just one more tiny bump on the pathway of life." - Celia Luce
Hey all, I'm not nearly as eloquent or expressive on the keyboard as Leslie, so forgive me while I copy and paste my log report here:
( 4:13 @9:40 pace) 50* partly cloudy. Wind NW at 16mph w gusts later on.
"Not my best day. Went out too fast the first 2 miles. Wind picked up throughout the race and was compounded by being mostly right by the ocean. Hip was acting up. Stop and squat to realign it then be on my way. Was looking to break 4, it will have to wait. Relay race meant a lot of fast people passing me because they are only running 5-6 m at a time. Saw 2 other "Ironman" div, young girl and older guy. Girl passed me, I passed older guy. Last 6m were a slog. Quite a bit of walking. Nice party in Convention Hall afterward. But it was a cruel trick to make us walk up 2 flights of stairs for free beers. Food mostly gone by the time I felt like eating. Chalk it up to experience, there will be better days."
So not so good a race, and a bit disappointing that this was the first marathon where I didn't improve on the last one.(4:11). But I keep it in perspective. I have to finally admit to myself that something is wrong with my left hip when I run far and long. Really, it's only an issue in my marathons but after 4 of them have ended in varying degrees of managing the hip, something has to change. It's more of a tightness than pain and if I stop and squat down for 3-5 seconds, it gets better. It doesn't seem to have any lingering effects on it even my 23 m training runs I don't feel it. Maybe it's the flat races. Maybe I'll have to do some squats and lunges. Maybe yoga will help. But I'm patient, and my slow times are certainly not from lack of effort during training..
Like I said, perspective. A few hours after getting home and cleaned up and fed, I took Buddy down to the beach in Bayhead, where we usually go, He ran around while I slowly walked. I stopped and came upon something. As I look south, the farthest thing I can see is the Ferris Wheel in Seaside Park, about 10 miles away. As I turn and look north, the farthest thing I can see is the lone condominium tower in Asbury Park, about 16miles away. I stood there and realized that today, in a little over 4 hrs , I carried myself as far as my eyes could see. And that , my dear running freinds, is pretty cool in my book.
Thanks for listening.
I stood there and realized that today, in a little over 4 hrs , I carried myself as far as my eyes could see. And that , my dear running freinds, is pretty cool in my book.
Yes, that IS exceptionally cool! Today was different than you hoped, but that's the thing about all this. Some things you control, some you learn from, and others just come your way. Your training was superb, you are already processing lessons learned, and you did your best with all that the day brought. And 4:13 ain't too shabby either. And what were they thinking to put the beer upstairs? That's just wrong!
Beer station upstairs?!? They just wanted to make sure you kept walking so your legs wouldn't seize up on you.
This may not have been the race you were hoping for, but you did a damn fine job, Joe. I could only hope to carry a 9:50 pace over that distance. And Carol already quoted what the part I think is very cool - that you could stand on the beach and actually see the distance you had run, from one end to the other.
Re your hip - where in the hip does it feel tight? I have a couple of good stretches that, if done consistently, might help loosen up whatever the heck it is that's going on. Or maybe get a couple of appointments with a sports PT?
Again, congratulations!!
Leslie Living and Running Behind the Redwood Curtain -------------
Trail Runner Nation
Sally McCrae-Choose Strong
Bare Performance
A huge congrats to you Joe......a great pace in windy conditions. Heck, a great pace in any conditions. Wow, you can see the ferris wheel from standing on the beach by where you live? Have you watched that reality show "Jersey Shore"? C'mon admit it, you've watched it!
Again, way to go.....you'll see that sub 4 sooner than you think!
Jewels
Joe, sorry for the dissappointment. But yes, as your quote mentions, it's all about the perspective. I've heard from othr marathoners more experienced than myself, and it's been said the marathon is elusive in that it is very difficult to figure out. So many things must come together to get the optimum performance. Many things within our control and many things outside our control. I think each race is a lesson for the next one.
Sometimes I'll get tight hams, hips or a tight lower back when doing the long runs. I stop and do a very gentle stretch and that helps things out. For me it's like a maintenance thing. Maybe this is all your hip needs...although the strengthening things you mentioned would certainly be good.
This race was a fine one for you, Joe. Rest up and continue to enjoy the mystery of the marathon.
flatland mountaineer
Well done Joe!! Pretty dang cool indeed.....
Although not what you may have hope for I think this quote from Jonathan about his fall marathon kinda sums up the racing experience from this article http://runningtimes.com/Article.aspx?ArticleID=18906:
"Rather than a contrived calculation of what could have/should have been, what I feel good about regarding my marathon is that I trained well for six months, adjusted to the conditions as best as I could, ran solidly as long as I could, and then, when I couldn't, didn't give up, allowing only one runner to overtake me. In this race, time was largely irrelevant." JB
Again good job!
The whole world said I shoulda used red but it looked good to Charlene in John Deere Green!!
Support Ethanol, drink the best, burn the rest.
Run for fun? What the hell kind of recreation is that? quote from Back to the Fut III
Have you watched that reality show "Jersey Shore"? C'mon admit it, you've watched it!
No Jewels, you can't make me. I have no idea who Snookie and J-WWOW or "The Situation" are. Nope. Not a clue.
Thanks guys. You are the best people I can discuss this stuff with.
No worries here. Like Ev and Jim point out, every one of these things is a mystery until it's over. The fact that I run them 6 months apart adds to the mystery and I tend to put a lot of emotion into it too. My hip deal is a tightness that forms on the left front side. It restricts the forward movement of my left leg. Something feels like it gets out of alignment. I went to 2 Dr's who each told me that I shouldn't run so much. Sigh. Anyway, I'm going to try some different strengthening and stretching things and get on with the process. I'm not going to get down about it, I have been mostly injury free for all 3 of my running years so I consider myself lucky.
Legs (and hip) feel tired but otherwise ok today. Think some more slow walking (behind the push mower) is in order.
First Leslie, then me, now it's Ev's turn for race week. How ya feeling Ev?
How ya feeling Ev?
Feeling like a million bucks and change!
Two weeks ago I did my last 20 miler. I developed some issues from either that run or maybe just cumulative stresses. A fairly minor bout with achilles tendon and then a funky kind of knee tightness/soreness thing. These annoyances cut my taper mileage down quit a bit, but the downtime did wonders for these issues. But taper is for resting and healing and that's what I'm doing. The AT is 100% and the knee is 98.7%.
I'll have a 6 miler latr today, then a couple of 3spots next week.
The OKC Memorial Marathon has some kind of tracking deal with a free downloadable app to your phone, so if you're into that kind of thing...... The link I have is not yet working....I'll post the link when I know more about it.
Joe, I knew it........
When is your race Ev? This coming weekend?
Joe - Seriously, see if anyone in your area is doing Muscle Activation Technique (MAT therapy). I know I keep harping on this, but it's not just me who has been helped immensely. It helped my knee, my lower back, and my hip flexor. My boss' wife and his son is going. The other attorney at one of my jobs, who is in terrible, terrible physical shape (lots of back surgeries) is going and is most definitely being helped. My coach, Karen, her sister - we've all gone to Dave and it's made a world of difference.
Okay - I'm done.
Today has been just as lazy as yesterday, sort of. The Hub and some of his cohorts are having the First Annual Spam Cookoff, vying for the coveted Spamly Cup. Everything that's cooked, BBQ'd, etc., has to have Spam in it. The Hub's - Spam sliced thin then cooked in hot wing sauce. Once cooled, that mixture, thin slices of brie cheese, and apricot preserve are wrapped up like a turnover in a small round of pizza dough. It will be cooked on the pizza stone on the grill. Did he try this little combination before we made 60+ of them? No. Should be interesting.
Yes, it's Sunday April 25.
Here's that link.....no idea how it works. http://www.phase2online.com/iphone/memorial-marathon/
I should have a bib number, I think, sometime this week.
A nice 6er in cool weather, no wind.
Did 10 this morn with mostly a tailwind. I did a 1 mile warmup with Lulu came by the house and stretched then headed for town. Pretty sore and tight at the start from yesterdays farm project (Mike Rowe missed a heckuva chance for an America's dirtiest jobs episode). Anyway warmed into it then mile 6. something didn't feel right so stopped and stretched again, then fine after that.
Hey Ev lookin' good coming down the homestretch! Hope you 99 and 44 one- hundreths percent pure healed up by raceday. Trigger point kit worked good on my AT issues, your results may vary.
Leslie ooh I wish I had all your Mat and other PT resources out here in the sticks. As per the spam I really don't mind it as long as its cooked but Spam on Brie, thats like putting ketchup on a Nebraska steak!
....... and I still can't even comprehend running 50 miles.
Joe a little recovery mowing sounds pretty good! I know you take your goal races very seriously. That article was our dinner conversation in December and really made me feel better about my half effort even though I didn't make my goal.
Hiya to Cindy and Doug who I know are having a large time @ Winter Park/Mary Jane!
also shout out to Jewels Kelly Stumpy Frances Carol and any others lurking out there.
Set up to track our local gal at Bawwston tommorow. Her uncle and me are hs classmates and virtually life long friends. Expect her to do well, she is faaast!
We will start planting this week, pretty much ready. Extremely important to do a good job cause it sets the tone for the whole year. Lots of money going into the ground in a short period of time with the hopes of bumper crops, no bad storms and good prices. Lots of things have to come together at the right time but feeling good about where we are now. Rock and Roll next week!!!
jc
Jim....that trigger point kit....what does that consist of? Sounds like maybe applying pressure to targeted areas, then releasing? Let me know more and I'll have to check it out. Ketchup on a Nebraska steak......good one Jim.
Leslie....so how was the hubs spam and brie? It sounds pretty good.
Jim....that trigger point kit....what does that consist of? Sounds like maybe applying pressure to targeted areas, then releasing? Let me know more and I'll have to check it out.
Ev exactly, kind of a high tech foam roller as you can work more angles. A little pricey for what u get but it seems to work for me. I helped JB get his buffalo grass cleaned up and he gave me the kit for payment,. Anyway you set the dumbell looking thing on the foam block and do sets as described in the book, controlling breathing and the angle you roll out your lower leg then trace circles in the air with your toes in between. I could feel it immediately. Not a very good description but maybe you can get an idea. TP has a big website also.
http://www.runningwarehouse.com/descpage-TRIGSS.html