You OK, man?
Appreciate the concern!
It was a rough week with a really bad cold. Great run today.
What was I chasing again?
Hey all...
My son just went to the doctors today at my nagging after two weeks, long story short...
Diagnosis is that he pulled/strained his hip flexor. Anybody have any experience they can share on this injury? All my problems have been from the knees down myself. Apparently he did it catching himself after tripping over something.
Present course of action will likely be 2 weeks off (with RICE). Then a diet of RICE and light stretching and easing back into running when he is pain free, with some rehab work, leg raises, squats, ect.... I'm a little nervous at the doctors suggestion that he might be able to run sooner by starting some rehab now. Being a freshman in HS, it isn't like he is going to be a major factor to his team now, but will be next year, so I rather see him get it healed now vs potentially making it worse.
Hey Rob - sorry about your son - I've got nothing to help, though.
My salty dogs
Hey all... My son just went to the doctors today at my nagging after two weeks, long story short... Diagnosis is that he pulled/strained his hip flexor. Anybody have any experience they can share on this injury? All my problems have been from the knees down myself. Apparently he did it catching himself after tripping over something. Present course of action will likely be 2 weeks off (with RICE). Then a diet of RICE and light stretching and easing back into running when he is pain free, with some rehab work, leg raises, squats, ect.... I'm a little nervous at the doctors suggestion that he might be able to run sooner by starting some rehab now. Being a freshman in HS, it isn't like he is going to be a major factor to his team now, but will be next year, so I rather see him get it healed now vs potentially making it worse.
Rob -- long term solution -- most runners run with hips -- square as they run and this aggravates the hips. It's why in a marathon they often hurt after about 18 miles or the next day.
Since you have tried ChiRunning -- the body loosener for hip-rotation should help. Also working towards him getting rotation at the hips with the rear-stride will reduce over use of the hip-flexor.
The Sugarloaf Blog / Report 2012 (Thoughts and notes from the past 18/20 Weeks)
Training Summary:
I started training for the Sugarloaf Marathon in early January. Originally, I was going to follow one of Hal Higdon’s advanced plans and started out with it. However even after coming off the knee problems that prevented me from starting the Maine Marathon, initially this didn’t seem to be challenging enough. I ended up doing some more reading during the first few weeks and with 17 weeks to go, opted to go for the Pfitz 18/70 plan. I figured I could drop down if the knee didn’t hold up.
My knee required that I wear the band the vast majority of the time or it seemed to get angry but in general it was ok. I was hoping at some point I could strengthen it to the point where it might not be needed, but the wear and tear from 60 & 70 miles week didn’t allow it. I also found it difficult to balance rehab, training runs, personal life and work. Of these four items, typically rehab lost out, especially if I was a little sore from the training runs. I hope to put more focus on knee strengthening after the marathon is done.
As far as my training itself, I am very happy with what I have done. I had to shift the days around from time to time, but at most I think I only missed one or two workouts or workout targets. Between work and home, I managed to average about 9 hours worth of running a week, with the 70m weeks being about 10 hours. I set a half-marathon PR along the way and had some of my best runs ever. It was interesting watching what the others running Boston & Sugarloaf were doing as well. I didn’t do as many miles as some, but I think my miles were quality ones or run with a purpose in mind. I’m not saying others didn’t have a plan or a purpose, just that they all have different approaches I figure based on their experience, lifestyle, injuries, available time, ect…
Taper & Prerace:
I felt a rush just making it to the taper. After having to pull out of Maine last October, I am so thrilled just to make it through the training in one piece. I also feel much more prepared then I did last fall. I would have been happy with anything around 3:45 last year, I have since reduced my goal twice, to 3:40 & again to 3:35, and if the weather and everything falls in place, I don’t think sub 3:30 is out of the question. I feel like I have the speed, just not sure I have the endurance, but we will see how I react to the taper and how good I feel that day.
During the taper I am trying to focus on my race strategy and mindset. I ran the Great Bay Half-marathon just the way I wanted to, hoping to do the same here. Some of my key thoughts are a controlled start, run smart on the big hill and try to enjoy the experience. The other key thought is I am only running against myself, not Doug, Dave or anyone else. If things don’t go well, try to keep in mind all the great training over the past 20 weeks that got me here.
May 18-19:
It was an incredible stressful week at work. I had to travel to Dallas and my flights got all messed up. Multiple days of getting up early may ultimately help me get up for the marathon. The late nights may hurt a bit. I also had a lot of reports and projects due but somehow I got them all done. Taking Friday off was a necessity and allowed me to catch up on some rest and race preparation. I left the house for Sugarloaf at 3:30pm, sure I had forgotten something, but now that we’re here the only thing that was forgotten was my wife’s laptop power cord, not my fault. :P
Stopped half way up for dinner with my parents and carbo’d up on some Chicken Parmesan & fettuccine. We pulled into the Sugarloaf Mountain Hotel at about 9pm; a beautiful hotel, nestled in the shadow of the ski-sloped covered mountain, the parking lot near empty. Checked in, found out late check out not an option, but they said I could use the fitness center after the race to shower before heading home. After that it was just time to relax.
Saturday morning got up early again and did an easy 3 miles, running down the hotel road in the moose tracks. Wife and I had a nice breakfast then decided to take a drive to scope out the marathon route. The course looks nice and the road slope doesn’t look as bad as I expected. Miles 8 through 11 didn’t appear to be much fun, but at least after that it is mostly down hill. Later I picked up my packet… #321 this time… seems better than last race (#666), though the total adds up to 6, not that I am into numerology. The rest of the afternoon was spent laying out my gear for the morning and watching an epic European football match. Scooted out for the pasta dinner at the base lodge and ate with Doug & Pam, and Noel & Mike. Enjoyed one beer and settled in for the evening.
Race Day!!!
Well race day was finally here. I felt anxious but good. I gave the wife a kiss goodbye at the hotel, made it onto the first bus while the masses gathered. I tried to force myself to eat something as the normal breakfast for me is usually 3 cups of coffee. I met up with the Winner’s Circle gang at the start and everyone seemed ready to go. I really didn’t feel that nervous, was able to check my bag and got my last business done.
Sugarloaf Marathon
The start was a bit funny as the gun went off with no announcement that I heard, I was expecting some instructions or maybe the American Anthem. I hit a snag right away as my heart rate monitor tweaked out and wouldn’t display right from the gun. I played with it a little in the initial half mile, but it didn’t want to work and I figured it wasn’t worth worrying about it and just settled into my run.
I started right on my target pace and felt good at the start which while it wasn’t as cool as I was hoping for it didn’t seem too bad. I ran the first 8 miles right on pace and still felt good and in control. During the initial few miles I was close to Dave, Doug was somewhere ahead and the others behind somewhere to my knowledge at that time. I decided I would wear the fuel belt to try to combat the heat and hydration issues later. I sipped my Gatorade along the way and tried to keep up on my fluids in the early miles. I was sweating but it didn’t really seem to be excessive as the first 8 miles passed without any further complications. The long steady hill was coming up and I started to throttle it back for big climb. The first climb was the worst, but I took it easy and at times it became a plateau for a spell before continuing up. I made it too the top of the hill and still felt great.
The back side of the hill was steep, I tried my best to stay in control and not burnout my legs and quads on the way down. I knew Maggie would be around the next bend and decided to unload the HR monitor on her as I went by. At that point, just after mile 11, I pilled even with Doug. He looked great at that point and I was still feeling good as well. We chatted a bit and he pulled ahead. I figured I would settle in for the next phase of the race and enjoy the downhill segments. As I got to the mile 15 water stop I was starting to feel a little flushed and hot. I dumped a cup of water on my head, which felt good. I’m not sure where it was but Dave passed me in this stretch somewhere and was cruising right along. I wasn’t too concerned at the time since that mile was a little faster than the prior. Sometime after mile 16, I started to feel a bit off, but was looking forward to mile 17 where I knew my wife would cheer me on and pick me up.
Speaking of the pick ups, all the girls (hoping they don’t mind the term girls: J) were great. Pam, Alicia, Vangie, my wife and other spectators were awesome. Anyway, I went by 17 and started to feel worse and a little nauseous. My head was super hot at this point and my body started to completely shut down. At first I thought I could just push through it, thinking this must be that wall people talk about, and still hoped it might pass if I slowed down a tad more. By 17.5 or so, I realized I was in a lot of trouble, and was starting to worry that I had stopped sweating. At that point, I tried to focus more on finishing and surviving. I tried to alternate between running and walking. Tom & Sailor passed me and trucked right along after giving me some encouragement. By mile 22 I was totally fried and my legs were twitching. If I even thought about running, I took maybe two steps and my right calf would just completely lock up. Mike came up on me and was still toughing it out and was hoping to still break 4 hours. He gave me a pat on the back and forged on. Here is where the true death march as others called it began. At mile 24 I had to stop and get in the shade for a few minutes as I was starting to feel faint. At times my stomach hurt, I sat there trying to get my mind clear. I turned my watch off, saved the data, hoping I could learn something from it for the next time. Once I felt better trudged on. My wife helped walk me to the finish and handed me off to Doug for the final few yards.
Sure I am disappointed, after coming off a great training period, a PR in the half marathon and some great practice runs. I had much higher hopes but tried my best and perhaps a bit too hard. I will learn from the experience and hopefully be a better runner in the end. After all is said and done, this was my first attempt at a marathon and I was never strong in the heat. I will have more respect for the combination of sun, heat and distance in the future. All my Circle North friends were extremely supportive as I know many of them learned some of the same lessons long ago. I certainly appreciate their support and friendship and because I know I did all I could, really don’t feel too bad. There will be other races and opportunities later this year. I am still in the best shape of my adult life and that was the main reason why I started down this path to begin with, so whether in the end I came in first or last, that is more important. My wife was amazing, and took great care of me after the race.
Once the nausea passed and I wasn’t worried about being sick, I ate lunch and felt a little better. I slept on and off on the way home, especially when I was sure my wife knew the rest of the way. I got home and went upstairs to bed as my head still felt very hot, my brain just felt like it had boiled in its own juices. I fell asleep again and woke for a later dinner. I figure before I went to bed for the night I would try to document the run the best I could so I could learn as much as I could from it. Thanks to all my friends and my wife who accompanied me on this 18 week journey, I cherish you all.
Hey Rob - That is a really good, desriptive pre-race and race write up. That will be really good to look back at.
Sounds like you (and Doug) have really put this in it's proper context, and have taken as much as you can from this. Of course on one hand it's terribly disappointing on one hand. We've all been there, and I've specifically really been there. I didn't handle it as well as you are.
Your training has been great. Your running has been great. It seems like you've already accomplished your main goal, which was to simply be running well again after a 20 year hiatus. I'm glad that Maggie was there for you and was so supportive.
Anyway, lots more good to come for you - hope you feel better today.
Anything can happen on "any given Sunday" or any given race. That you forced yourself to finish in the circumstances is a victory. I almost dropped out in much less disappointing circumstances (Virginia) but was glad that I finished. I know you are too, Rob. This "victory" over the feeling of disappointment and defeat rivals Lance's in Boston a year ago. Neither that race for him nor this race for you reflects your training accomplishments. Your half PRs, on the other hand, do. A comparable performance in the full is not far off for either of you, IMHO.
Older, slower, and trying to keep up with Tall Dave.
Where are you headed in the Philippines, Rob? I spent two months there back in 2009. May head back later this summer for a couple weeks (but don't tell my dad yet). I was mostly in Manila, and am happy to provide you with some recommendations if you haven't been there before. The best place I found to run was around the University of the Philippines Diliman campus EARLY in the morning (though be prepared for laps...). There are likely lots of other spots around metro Manila (Makati for instance), but this was near where I lived and very safe. Hope you have a nice trip, and please let me know if I can help you out with any information!
I will be there all of June. I will be staying at the Edsa, Shangrila Hotel... looks like a nice place. I hope to get out to run some, as I am sure the hotel treadmill will get old very quickly!
I will gladly take any suggestions on where to run or eat. Besides that and work, I'm not sure what else I might do or have time for.
Awesome--I know exactly where that is. A lot of my work was at the Philippines Overseas Employment Administration which is right near there. I'll send a bunch of recommendations when I get home from work.
Sweet, thanks... that is if I get there. I got stranded in San Francisco with no luggage, hopefully everything will come together in one place later today or by Friday.
Go get a hill workout in "out of crisis comes opportunity"
Or some playin on stuff. Build those core muscles by hurdling the homeless.