Monday, August 12, 2013

Training Truths: ZOOMA Week 5

I have really been liking my summer running schedule of 4 days per week. In preparation for my September half marathon, I have been running 5 mile routes 3x per week and then following my long run plan on either Saturday or Sunday. The bad news is that my left hamstring has started bothering me, so I did a couple of walking workouts using the new laptop board my husband made for me and took some extra rest days.


Wanting and needing a change of scenery, on Monday I drove into town and ran 5 miles along the river. The weather was cool and the route was semi-peaceful - just a little morning traffic and one barking black lab protecting his domain.


Spoiled by my bike trail run in Ohio, on Wednesday I recruited mr. C for an adventure. We drove 25 minutes to Peterborough to check out the bike path I heard about from my Daily Mile friend Colleen. It was a mix of paved path-sidewalk-neighborhood road. We loved it. We parked on the south side and ran north through Depot Square where we found a quaint collection of shops and cafes.


I developed a pain in my left hip- turned out to be a tight inner hamstring muscle - that went from nagging to almost making me limp, so on Thursday I went for an easy walk of 4.15 miles on the treadmill and used my brand new laptop board. I told mr. C that I wished I could multitask during my walking workouts and voila! He's the greatest.


My 5 mile run on Friday became a another rest day to give my tender hamstring more rest time before Sunday's long run. I still completed my daily exercises for the #AugustCoreFocus and #SweatADay challenges I am doing this month. I also iced, rolled, and compressed in my Aspaeris pivot shorts.

Feeling in good shape, Sunday we went back to the Peterborough Trail to do my scheduled 9 miles. This trail is a gold mine for runners who like paved paths, peace from traffic, and shade. I made a point to stop to stretch my crabby hamstring a few times during the run, but overall it was a good run.


Heading into next week, I know I need to take it easy or this hamstring issue could get worse. I'm thinking I might return to a three day running week again and cross my fingers.

How do you deal with injury?



21 comments:

  1. Your post sounds a bit similar to mine this week! I'm sorry to hear your hamstring is unhappy!
    I was having some ankle tenderness this week that I could really feel when running. I skipped a 5 mile run and cross trained instead. I also broke up the second 5 miler into two runs 3:2. The extra day of rest and breaking the miles up seemed to help and I was able to get through my long run no problem yesterday.
    Hope your feeling better soon!
    Karen @karenlovestorun

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  2. You're doing so great Amy! Thanks for being a trooper with the #AugustCoreFocus challenge and your training overall!!

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  3. Amy sorry that your hip's giving you trouble - I'm still trying to get mine to cooperate too! An extra rest day this week might be a good bet. Good luck with it!

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  4. Sorry about the hamstring :( Keep icing, rolling and do other things that don't hurt. Work on glute strength too. I had good luck with ART for my hamstring. Also do you take fish oil?

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  5. You got to run in some beautiful places! I love getting to mix up routes for runs. It keeps things fun. :)

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  6. Beautiful scenery- thanks for sharing the pictures! It's amazing how changing up your surroundings will revitalize your runs. I hope you heal quickly!

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  7. Bummer on the hamstring - ice, foam roll, stretch are the best for it. I'm jealous that you are only 25 minutes away from that gorgeous trail. Maybe we need to make a run-date soon? Hope the hammie is feeling better soon!

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  8. Some nice scenery there, I can't wait for spring, bring it!
    Love the modification to the treadmill, when when rebuild I plan on getting a treadmill, and a desk like that so I can blog and walk.
    As for injury - foam rolling. Seriously since I got my foam roller when ever something doesn't feel right, I foam roll it out and it helps immensely.

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  9. Not very well is how I deal with injury LOL


    I love it when I have the time to drive to a kind of close trail for a training run. It's like a breath of fresh air and a great break from my regular neighborhood runs.


    Hope the back to 3 days works out!

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  10. Thanks Karen! I'm hoping some rest days this week will help.

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  11. I'm loving the challenge! Thanks for hosting ;)

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  12. Thanks Michelle. I'm hoping to bounce back like you are!

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  13. Other things that don't hurt...walking now hurts, ugh! Planning to rest until I'm pain free. What will fish oil do? My husband has some, but I don't use it.

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  14. New routes are the best, and mixing it up helps keep me from feeling bored.

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  15. I'd love to! I'll let you know when I'm pain free ;)

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  16. My hubs is the best! I have been rolling, hoping it starts to work soon ;)

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  17. Thanks Jill. I'm not loving the rest thing, but I've decided that I need a break until I'm pain free. Hopefully we'll both be healed up ASAP!

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  18. Love your new laptop board...but sad for the reason you have to use it! Hope you recuperate soon!

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  19. Love the laptop board! I'm not good at dealing with injury. I have a tendency to push through it too much. I need to learn to rest better and listen to my body...which is happening as I get older! Haha!

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  20. I"m so bad at dealing with injury! I always push myself, but luckily I haven't had anything too serious. Hope you're taking care of that hamstring! Good luck on your training and the half marathon

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