Easy Run on the Trail

This morning I met Anne for an easy 7 on the trail. I have to say the last day has sucked as far as the "toe." Running 13.5 on Saturday really messed me up. I have a huge blister on the "toe" foot and my other leg has some pains in weird places. I think it is all from my new gait which favors my left foot. I did OK today, but decided that I am going to take the rest of the week off and hope to run long on Saturday. I should have done this last week, but you know how us runners are...never want to stop. I am hoping I can still run Decker on 12/6 even if I have to run/walk just so I can stay in the Distance Challenge. The marathon is still TBD, but I know I won't be able to run it as strong as I would like if I still do it.

Anyway, Happy Thanksgiving!

Trip to Mt. Bonnell

Today I attempted to run 14 miles round trip to Mt. Bonnell and back. I felt good for the first couple of miles on the trail, but my toe pain caused me to shift my gait a bit. I started to feel it through the scenic portion of the run and my running mates went ahead of me. I made it to the top of Mt. Bonnell, but the way down really hurt. The pressure of my foot sliding forward and against the shoe really sucked. I had to stop a few times on the way back to stretch my left leg and rotate my ankle. I developed a big blister on my big toe on the same foot as the broken toe. It shows how much I was favoring it. I ran really slow the last 5 miles and finished up on the north side of the trail so I could cut a little mileage. It was a really long day, but I got the miles in. Hopefully I didn't damage the toe more. I may take it really easy this week and see if that helps. I just need to keep my long runs going if I have any hope of running the marathon in February.

Easy Run at Home

Today I did a loop in the park with Wish. My toe is feeling a lot better and I just have to get used to the pain so I don't screw up my gait. Still shooting for 14 miles on Saturday after a day off tomorrow.

Another Elliptical Trip

I went the safe direction today and rode the elliptical trainer for 50 minutes today. I followed that with some weights and stretching. My toe feels a lot better and after a short run tomorrow I hope to be able to run at least 14 miles on Saturday. The issue is my gait and not so much the toe. Hopefully I can figure it out before Saturday.

Easy Run at Home

I met Wish this morning for another "toe" test. Winter has returned and it was 39 degrees at the start. It was awesome running weather...two days too late for the San Antonio marathon runners. We did one loop around the park and headed back home. My foot felt a lot better this time. I iced it when I got home just for security reasons. Running on the toe is causing me to change my gait which concerns me. I have to really focus on trying to keep it normal.

Back to the Gym

My foot swelled up a bit after I ran yesterday so I went to the gym this morning and rode the elliptical trainer for 50 minutes. I am trying to be patient, but not being able to run just sucks. I think I am going to take it conservatively this week and hopefully make my long run on Saturday. The long term goal is to finish the Distance Challenge and the next race is the Decker Half Marathon on 12/6.

Easy Run

After church this morning I went for a brief loop around the school and back home. The distance was only 3 miles. My foot hurt, but not too bad. The issue was my gait was off and my leg started to hurt. I must be compensating for the pain and not running correctly. There was no swelling when I got home so I am going to try and make the Gazelle workouts this week and go on easy recovery runs on Tuesday and Thursday.

Gym Workout

I was able to get my running shoes on this AM so I went to the gym for some time on the elliptical trainer. I did 30 minutes and then lifted some weights. I didn't want to push it. The swelling is going down and the bruising is setting in. I am hoping that is a good sign. I am hoping to run sometime next week.

Broken Toe

I am in day two of my broken toe so no running to report. I hope to be able to get a shoe on tomorrow so I can go to they gym and abuse myself on the elliptical trainer. It is feeling better so I am hopeful that I can run next week sometime.

Recovery Run

After resting yesterday I ran 6 miles from home this morning. My legs felt good after Sunday's longer mileage and race. I know I have a lot of work to do before 2/14 and am eager to plow into it.

2009 Race for the Water 10 Miler and Pre Race Run

I got up early this AM to meet Brian for the Gazelle Run for the Water which is the race for Gilbert's foundation. It has become one of the my favorite races of the year and very popular here in Austin. The beneficiary is a great cause and it is great to see Gilbert be very successful with this race.

We started the morning with a 6 mile out and back on the trail. The trail was barren and kind of spooky with the fog. It was a kind of warm, humid morning which sucks for racing. We took about 55 minutes and were back in time to change, hit the potties, and take in some nutrition and fluids. The 10 mile race went OK for me. I was starting to feel tired by mile 4 and we still had some hills left. I just kept pacing and got through it. Once we got out of the hills and onto Lake Austin Boulevard I picked it up a bit. I actually ran the first and last mile at the same pace, 7:47. Everyone seemed to have a good day which was great. I definitely have some work ahead of me if I have any chance of running an 8:00 pace for the marathon in February.

Easy Pre Race Run at Home

Today I ran easy for 4 miles just to warm up so I could stretch when I got home. Tomorrow is the 3rd race in the Distance Challenge and I am treating it as my long run by running 6 miles prior to the race. We are already building mileage and up to 16 miles. I haven't run that far in a long time.

Run in Circle C Park

Today I met Wish for a couple of loops in the Circle C park. It was an other great morning. We must be due for some rain soon! I was trying out a new pair of Mizuno Wave Inspire 5 shoes. They felt really good and were a lot lighter than my current Asics GT2130s. I have been wearing Asics for most of my years running so it was weird wearing something else.

Fartleks at Lady Bird Lake

I met the group for fartleks at Lady Bird Lake. I am not sure how many we were supposed to do. I opted for 13 sets of 1 minute on/off. I hung with the main group until the Rock and then jogged back. I felt pretty good and it was another perfect morning.

Long Recovery Run

Today I met With for an 8 mile recovery run from home. The morning was great and once we got started I felt really good. I didn't have too much soreness from the mile repeats yesterday and my back is starting to feel much better.

Mile Repeats at Zilker

After a couple of days off to get back on my normal schedule and a couple of Halloween parties this weekend, it was time to get up early and get back to marathon training. We met for mile repeats at Zilker. I started out with the faster group and got dropped so I finished my last 3 repeats with the next group. It was a great workout.