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Oct-Nov 2012, 5 Mile Turkey Trot and Knees Screaming

Oct-Nov 2012, 5 Mile Turkey Trot and Knees Screaming

For October I gave my knee time to recover, but didn’t really do much to fix it.  I should have stretched it lots, but didn’t.

Then we decided to run a Thanksgiving Morning 5 mile turkey trot.  I did a run each of the 2 weeks prior (5 miles at 9:02 min/mile, and 4.7 at 9:44 min/mile), and the knee gave me trouble each time.  Stretching mid-run helped, but it still hurt.

Race day was cold and windy.  To make matter worse, the first 2 miles were a steep descent.  I have come to find out that illitibial band problems are exacerbated by downhills.  Needless to day, I had to stop and stretch lots – but I finished.  5.5 miles at 9:05 min/mile.  Not horrible for me.

And, the apple pie I ate when I got home never tasted so good.

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Julianne and Me post-run.

September 2012, First Race

September 2012, First Race

The planned 5k race was 29 September 2012, so I decided to give my knees a break and only do bike rides for the month.  7 days out, I went out for a 1 mile jog.  Knee felt fine, but I didn’t want to push it.

The race was early on a Saturday morning.  At the fire of a cannon I took off, adrenalin pumping and pushing me to run faster that I ever had before.  I posted a PR 5k time and pace (7:45 min/mile) and felt great.  I was exhausted but the excitement of the “Race” atmosphere made me run fast.  And no knee pain!  It was great.

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Julianne and me before the race.  It was a bit chilly out.

Boat ride 8

Going wakeboarding later that day probably didn’t help the knee injury….

August 2012, Illiotibial Bands Raise Their Ugly Heads

August 2012, Illiotibial Bands Raise Their Ugly Heads

In late July I got a pair of brand new, real running shoes.  Some Mizuno Wave Inspire 8’s.  They felt great.  Maybe too good.   Feeling emboldened with my new foot gear I went out for a run on August 7th, and instead of stopping at 3-4 miles, just kept going.  A full 6.3 (10k!) by the end.

The problem was that with each mile I felt better and better.  It was exhilarating.  A full 10k and it felt great.  Even better, I clocked a 8:29 min/mile pace, which for me was great.  An awesome improvement from the 9-10 min/miles before.

A couple days later I put in a 4 mile run at 8:27 min/mile, again feeling great.

Unbeknownst to me at the time, I was upping my mileage faster than my body could handle.  On August 15 I went out for, what I assumed would be, another PR run.   About 1 mile in I got a sudden sharp pain on the outside lower corner of my right knee cap.  If I walked the pain went away, if I ran it killed.  WHAT?!

I walked home, got online and diagnosed my symptoms.  My Illiotibial Band.  Arg.

I was so frustrated.  Right as I was starting to honestly enjoy running, my body says “I don’t think so!”

I took the next month+ off, only doing bike rides.

July 2012. It Begins, then stops.

July 2012. It Begins, then stops.

Sometime in July 2012, my wife and I decided to run a Breast Cancer benefit 5k to be held in September.  This meant we needed to figure out how to run.

I put in a few 3 mile runs over the course of a couple weeks, pace at 9:18 min/mile, 9:38 min/mile, 9:56 min/mile, and 9:43 min/mile.  I was pleased as punch.

These runs were a mix of running/walking.  I was lucky to go a straight mile w/ no breaks.

Unfortunately, I also incurred the first of many stupid injuries.  I was running pavement wearing old, worn-out Nike Alvord trail shoes I had used for hiking previously.  They were the only athletic shoes I owned, and while technically trail “running” shoes, they didn’t work well on pavement.  And, after 4 runs, I got a bad case of shin splints.  Ouch.  Couldn’t walk for a few days and had to switch to riding my bike for a bit.

Something had clicked though.  I was kind of enjoying it – even though I hated myself mid-run as I panted and gasped for air.  The July heat probably wasn’t helping.

A fateful January 2012 evening in Kearney Nebraska

A fateful January 2012 evening in Kearney Nebraska

By February 2012, I had moved to Kearney, NE.  On a particularly cold evening in February – we’re talking single digits – I thought:

“Man, its crazy cold outside.  I should totally go out and run.  That would be nuts.”

So, out I went.  I strapped on some old trail running shoes I had around for hiking and general outdoor use – some old Nike Alvords.  I put on a beanie, cotton long-johns, sweat-shirt, gloves, and hit the road.  It was cold.  The frigid air hurt my lungs – made me cough.  And, my long-johns had lost all elastic in the waistband (very old ones from snowboarding days) and kept on falling down, sagging in the crotch, and pulling my shorts down with them.  Very embarrassing.

I think I made it 2 miles, and that included a lot of stopping to walk.

On Facebook I wrote,”I am not a runner. I abhor running. Yet, for some reason, I found myself outside in 28 degree weather running tonight. What is wrong with me?!“

I was sore for the next week.  But I kind of liked it.