Well, here we are. This season has truly been a roller coaster so far. Things have been on the upswing
overall, but I have to admit I'm tired of hitting speed bumps. Even knowing that a few days here or there where I can't execute on my training plan won't make that big of a difference in the long run, it can be really frustrating when I feel like I'm getting into a groove, only to have another setback spring up. It's hard to stay patient when you feel like you're doing all the right things, but progress isn't happening as fast as you'd like.
Monday: Rest Day - a little bit of easy yoga and foam rolling to loosen things up.
Tuesday: Today was a hill loop. Unfortunately this is where my week came to stuttering halt. Around 4 miles into this run, I took a weird step and caught a crack in the road with the top of my right toe. Now, if you've followed along with me for long, you might remember that my right hamstring has been an ongoing issue for essentially 15 months. I have tendinopathy on that side, and I've been working my butt off (no pun intended) to strengthen it, heal it, and relieve the discomfort. Well, I caught that crack with the top of my toe while my right leg was extended behind me, and when I tried to move that leg through my stride, I managed to yank on that tendon as I tripped.
I don't believe it's torn or seriously injured, but it hurt quite a bit more than usual, to the extent that I chose to take some unscheduled days off of running in the interest of helping it settle back down. Recently it's felt as though I was finally turning the corner with this injury, so it's extremely frustrating to have another setback - even a relatively minor one. (7 miles total).
Wednesday: Scheduled for an easy run, but instead I did 45 minutes of walking (per my PT's recommendation to ease off on the runs this week).
Thursday: No running again today. Can't say that I was too sad to miss out on a hill loop, given that it was very, very humid outside this morning. I did include a 45 minute strength workout in the evening, with some core and upper body work along with some of the less-intense hamstring exercises I do regularly.
Friday: 30 minutes of walking in lieu of my usual easy run, along with some foam rolling.
Saturday: Even prior to my tweaked hamstring this week, I was not planning to do my usual long run on Saturday because I had to be at the hospital fairly early for work. I had planned to do a long run on Sunday, but figured at this point it was probably smarter to rein in the miles. My PT said it was fine for me to run if I kept things easy and stopped if my leg started to feel worse, so I suffered through 7 miles on a muggy morning. My leg felt pretty stable, but I really hate running in warm weather, and I'm not emotionally prepared for summer yet, so I can't say it was a fabulous run. However, I do feel grateful to be able to run at all after several days off, and I'm pleased that my leg held up. In fact, it really felt better after running that it did the rest of the week (the only time it hurts significantly is when I'm sitting, which is pretty inconvenient for a lot of my life, but works fine for running)! (7 miles total)
Sunday: I opted for some extra sleep thanks to Daylight Savings - a little sad it's that time again, as I have been enjoying the early light on weekend runs. Eventually I pulled myself out of bed to do some more easy miles. No major issues today, so I am hoping I can make a return to my normal weekly routine next week, with modifications in pacing or mileage if needed. (6 miles total)
Weekly Mileage: 20.
One positive of this past week was that I was able to get a lot of sleep given that I didn't need to be ready to run at 5am most mornings! I'm sure my body appreciated the extra recovery time, foam rolling, and lack of sitting (I've been standing a lot at work due to the discomfort when I sit for a long time). However, I hope I'll be able to get back on the horse next week and have no further incidents throughout this training cycle. I bought some Saucony Endorphin Pros and I'm looking forward to some fast running to test them out!