Training Log Archive: fletch

I'm so stupid. A 12km race is not the way to test an achilles injury.

I can't walk.

Crap.

Decided to use a Harriers race to try to find the motivation to run with a bit of discomfort and see how bad the niggles are. Bette news than expected.

Right knee - much the same. Will need management and glute rehab.
Right achilles - sore. Quite sore, but not bad enough to noticeably alter running form. Hopefully will be manageable with lots of ice, nurofen, stretching.
Left shin - seems to have settled back down pretty well. Didn't notice it today, so hopefully not a problem after all.

Had some breathing issues today, despite using puffer before I started, and felt like I was working pretty hard to go not very fast, but it was my first proper run in three weeks, and I didn't arrive in time to do a proper warm up.

End result is that I feel like it is worth seeing if I can train through things for the next few weeks. If I fall apart, so be it. If I don't then I might make it to a couple of O races.

New shoes felt pretty good.

On Thursday I got a cracker of a reminder about why I hate letting kids take mobile phones on camps.
Year 10 ODE camp doing a 4 hr farmland rogaine in hroups of 3-4. Despite being given safety bearings and instructions only to use their phones if they were incapacitated, I got a call adter about 90 minutes from a group that was lost (actually on tight hilltop but couldn't find the control.)
Because ut had been raining solidly the whole time, and because I'm soft, i left my spot by the side of the road where I was camped so that I had phone reception (none at our campsite), showed them to the control , had a quick scout around for another lost group, then headed back to my car. Did a quick drive thru camp to check for early returns- still empty, so headed back up the hill. Then the fun started.

Got a call from my boss asking how camp was going. I say 'all good' and he says he's just had a call from one kid's dad (in Onslow) saying he's received a message from a kid on camp that his daughter has been hit by a car.
Student who sent the message is now uncontactable. Drive up and down road looking for evidence of accident and some spare jocks for me. Find another group of my kids at a river crossing who say they saw the group in question 'on the road about an hour ago'.

Slightly more panic followed by a trip back to camp to inform other leaders of situation. Find two groups of kids have now returned, including the girl who had apparently been hit by a car.

Use every ounce of self control not to dismember students on sight.

Turns out the original message was a picture message, of a dead rabbit squished on the road, with accompanying text of xxxhas been hit by a car.

Only the picture didn't send. Needless to say, I had some company to drive back up the hill to phone reception and sort the mess out with school and famies involved.

All because I was trying to make the whole camp 'safer'.

C • Sounds horrible 5

So. a few days of stretching has almost got my achilles back into a useable condition / pain level. Disturbingly, the top of my left shin is really sore. Could barely shuffle around in class today. Just like me to get all enthusiastic about finishing of a 'season' of running/orienteering, just to fall in an injured heap once again.

Fair chance at this stage that I won't bother entering the sprint champs.

C • No! 3

Hanging controls for this week's Outdoor Education camp. After 2 weeks off, I was hoping that my achilles would be pretty much back to normal. Today's effort would suggest otherwise. Hobbled and walked a huge chunk of this in the end, as I just couldn't toe off on my right foot.
Poo.

Normally I'd avoid Athletes Foot stores. They aren't generally big on super specials and 2 year old models of shoes going on mega sale.

But the store manager at the Geraldton store is very friendly and for some reason decided it would be good to support local runners. She's given me and two other locals (2nd local male and first female in the marathon) FREE shoes, socks and running singlet. Wore the socks and singlet in the race so they could get some publicity shots and did my bit by not sucking. Picked up free shoes today. Yay.

Brooks Glycerin 13. But will probably keep them in the box for a bit until I destroy my current Mizunos. Went into the shop to buy Saucony Triumphs, which I had worn for a short jog a couple of months ago, but the Glycerins felt just as comfy and look like I'm less likely to put my toe through the end.

In other news actually felt like running today, but my right achilles is still giving me a fair bit of grief, so might lay off for a bit longer.

Yay. more to come.
Splits from gps:
5km - 20:42
10km - 41:32 (20:50)
15km - 1:02:19 (20:47)
20km - 1:23:11 (20:52)
Half - 1:28:05
25km - 1:44:07 (20:56)
30km - 2:05:14 (21:07)
35km - 2:26:28 (21:14)
40km - 2:48:00 (21:32)
--> Finish - 2:58:13
2nd half 1:30:08

Had a very token warm-up before I started. It was enough to know that my legs felt relatively good, which was a pleasant surprise after a long day in the car yesterday. Nose was pretty blocked, but the first 15km or so got that cleared up alright and the cold from earlier in the week wasn't having any discernible effect.

Tired hard not to start too fast, but was still a bit quicker than planned. Right achilles was annoyingly sore and it stayed that way for a long time. Strangely, my left hamstring was sore early too, and stayed that way fora bout 15km, but then seemed to settle down.
It felt really cruisey through the early stages and the first five guys headed up the road and off into the distance. Or so I thought, but then the fifth one of them stopped getting away, and I was probably within 100m of him before finally catching him pretty much at the half way mark. I had actually intended just to sit on Michelle Duffield's heels for the entire race, as I knew she was aiming for 3hrs and was more likely than anyone else to get the pacing right, but by starting a little quick, I got a small gap on her. The gap seemed to stay relatively constant - you get pretty regular updates on this sort of thing on a course that goes out and back over 6km, then the other way over a 15km, and do the whole thing twice.

Still felt pretty good at half way, but the little rise past the port at 23 and 25km was enough to let me feel that fatigue was starting to kick in. Tried very hard at this point not to get too excited, as I accidentally threw in a little surge when I moved up to 5th. Had in the back of my mind to get to the last turnaround, then to try to lift for the final 7km home. Got to the final turnaround and I was really starting to feel the fatigue setting in. Breathing was still well controlled, but legs were feeling pretty empty. Tried to lift, but a glance at the watch told me it was going to be a case of limiting the damage rather than blitzing it home.

Michelle came past with about 2.5km to go, and I tried one last surge to go with her, but she had accelerated as well as me slowing down and it just wasn't going to happen. Have the slightest curiosity how this might have turned out if I had been able to run it in Mid-May (if I hadn't done the rogaine), as my training has been pretty hit and miss since then, but feel like I got it pretty close to right today.

To put it in a bit of perspective, I was about 4 minutes slower to half way than in my last marathon, and got to the finish line 25 minutes faster. Have to be a bit happier with that :)

Also nice not to embarrass myself after the local Athlete's Foot store were nice enough to get in touch and offer me a bit of support with some shoes for training and socks. Their running singlet chafed my nipples a bit, but probably no worse than any other top I might have worn today.

C • Nice job 10

Nearly better. Probably would have started today, but it would have been a stupid idea. Long drive back to Geraldton. Didn't manage to get out for a little loosener as planned, but did make it to bed at a reasonable hour. Lots of pasta for dinner. Nose has stopped running like a tap and thickened up nicely ;-)

On the improve. No way I would have been able to start a marathon today, but feeling a bit more normal by evening, energy levels starting to return to normal. That, or pseudoephidrine is doing it's thing well.

Worse than yesterday. Had a little nap in the afternoon when I wasn't needed to do anything on camp for a while.

Blergh. Woke up with a blocked nose and got progressively worse. Hooray for my body's regular response to upcoming races.