Marathon Training: Week Twenty

And then… potential “disaster” strikes this week.  I know there is a school of thought that says, for first-time marathoners, be very careful with speed work and hill work.  My old friend and fellow drummer, Blas – who’s a veteran endurance athlete – recently warned me about this in a phone conversation.  And yes, while I took the advice to heart, I’ve also noticed a steady improvement in my pace and overall conditioning as a result of my weekly speed or hill work.  So I’ve kind of proceeded with the program my coach (and running group) has been on, which of course, has included the special alternating speed and hill training on Tuesdays.  I’ve also remained injury free, although I feel like I’ve been on the verge of injury on several occasions.

So, on Tuesday of this week – even after coach said to take it easy – I probably took a hill a bit too fast and… sure enough, I felt a bit of a strain between my calf and my Achilles (around my soleus, I believe).  It wasn’t anything major, but it happened all at once, and it was enough to make me cut the run a mile short.  From there, it was a troubling week of having to deal with this thing.  Son of a bitch!

Note to Self: It’s always when you’re feeling GOOD that you risk injury the most, because you tend to push yourself harder.

Sun – 2-12-12: Workout #1: 16 miles on my own, with a 9:53 pace.  (Saturday was just not meant to be this week, which is why I was out here on a Sunday.)  Feeling so much stronger than those similar runs I did in Panama City Beach just a few weeks ago.  Once again, I feel like all the training is really starting to kick in.  Workout #2: Weights at the gym (#2 HST-style routine – 10-rep feature.)

Mon – 2-13-12 – Quick 35:00 minute late-night powerwalk.

Tue – 2-14-12: Workout #1: Weights at the gym (#2 HST-style routine – 10-rep feature.)  Workout #2: Light hills with running group and, as mentioned, I strained my right soleus.  So now, for the first time in my entire training, I had to cut a run short (did 5 instead of 6) and start the “rehabbing” process, hoping that it wasn’t a tear or something else really bad.   What a bitch!  I really didn’t think I was pushing that hard.  Don’t know why it happened…

Wed – 2-15-12: Super windy afternoon today.  I started the run – which was supposed to be 10 miles! – super slow, only to discover that, yes, the strain was still dogging me.  So after about a mile or so, I headed to the gym (which was near my route) and did an easy hour on the treadmill in such a way that didn’t aggravate it too much.  This sucks!

Thu – 2-16-12: Weights at the gym (#2 HST-style routine – 10-rep feature.)

Fri – 2-17-12: day off

Sat – 2-18-12: After a couple more days of intensive ice and rolling this strained muscle out, I did feel notably better for my long run today.  Only thing is, I wound up doing a measly 14 miles instead of the 20 that was on the schedule.  Why?  Because once I got past 10 miles, that strain began to get noticeably worse.  So coach told me to call it good at 14, then jump right back into my usual rehab routine.  He said there was no sense in pushing it  since I was so close to the race.  Made sense, but it felt horrible calling it early… especially since I was feeling good and could’ve knocked out the 20, no problem.  Man… let’s hope this thing heals up quick, because these next two weeks will be the most critical of my training in a lot of ways…

Let’s see what happens –

BR