And injury becomes my pal

So, it seems like my hips were not just complaining they are actually trying to tell me something. I tried to run today - an easy 4 miles. Not that 4 miles is easy, but it was supposed to be non-strenous. It started out okay - my hips started complaining very early on. About 1.5 miles in my legs just did not want to continue. So I listened and gave them a couple hundred feet of walking before picking up the pace again. At this point it felt like I was running with a limp and my choice was to keep going and hope it goes away or to stop and realize that something is not right.

So, my next step is to call a chiropractor and see what happens. Hopefully, others experience (like Trace's) will carry over and I will be healed from on high!!

Long overdue post

So, it's been over a month since my last post. Figures my last post was about how hard it is to blog comparing to running.

So, in the last month, I've switched from time to distance measurements. In training for the 1/2 marathon in June, we have to pick up our distances to make sure we can run sufficiently far. Right now I try (I stress try) to run 3 times a week. I get a long run on Sundays and then two shorter runs on Tuesday and either Thursday or Friday. With karate twice a week, it makes for a very hectic schedule. So, I don't always get three runs in.

Right now, our long run is 5 miles. I've done that two weeks in a row. My short runs are either 3 or 4 miles. Tuesday will be an easy 4 miles. Easy pace, not that 4 miles is easy. Then I'll run 3 on Thursday and because or weekend snafus, I'll run 6 on Friday. Yes, 6 miles. Every week we'll be increasing the long run by a mile. So by the end of March I think the schedule has me running 7 or 8 miles once a week. Which is pretty outstanding I have to say. It makes me very happy to be able to run 5 miles at all.

On the problems front, I've been dealing with hip issues. I think its my hip flexors that are giving me the problems, but it might be something else. I'm hoping its not actually the joint themselves or anything else that can't be over come with good stretch and hydration. Today, I was a bit dehydrated so I experienced a pain in my diaphragm (a "stitch") early on and a pain in my outer thigh late. The pain in my thigh made me stop running which was fine, I was at 4.5 miles at the time and I'd rather be healthy than not.

So I've been speaking to many people about my hip issues and it seems to come down to this: See a chiropractor or buy new shoes. My shoes are almost 6 months old which is about the time they suggest replacing them. So, I'm going to go to the running store and buying a new pair of shoes soon. Then I'm going to find a good chiropractor and see them. We'll see what happens.

So, to update: 5 miles in 1 hour and 6 minutes. Weight? Unknown, I'll weigh myself at the gym this week.

Blogging is hard

I think keeping this blog is harder than actually running. Thinking of something new and interesting to say each week is kind of taxing.

Well, ran everyday of the weekend. 25 minutes on Friday & Saturday. 45 minutes on Sunday. Karate on Monday and took a break today. Grades were due, so a lot of pressure makes for a tired Scotty. Tired. Sleep now.

Return to the Gym

So the gym workout was good the first time. We'll see how it is again tonight. I'm running later because of my weird schedule today. And yesterday was my rest day for the week. Tonight, I have a sleep study. I figure a good run, shower and steam will make me nice and sleepy for when I arrive at the hospital. It will hopefully counteract the weirdness of sleeping with all the monitors on me. And in a t-shirt. I never sleep in a t-shirt, and I know that's going to be a hassle. I'll bring my sleeping Yeti (Yeti-Lee) and he'll help me get through it.

Off to the gym and then to sleep!! Sort of.

Gym v School v Outdoors

My town is covered in slush. Covered. Running outside would not only be stupid, it would be dangerous. So, I chose to run inside today - I brought my stuff to work and was going to use the hallways again. Then, something in me snapped. I didn't like running in the school. It was pretty darned awful. So, I went home, got a towel and some socks, went to my old gym and signed up for three months. They have an indoor track that overlooks the pool and the basketball court. So, while the view is pretty static, there are big windows (that might look good during the daylight) and usually several hot guys to stare at on the court. Plus, it was less than buying a treadmill. I think it was a good expenditure. It will last me until mid-April. By then the snow should be gone and I can return to running outdoors regularly. Hopefully by then I'll also have moved.

Oh, and the gym has a scale, so I can more frequently update my weight loss (hopefully).

So, here it is:

Update: ~2.5 miles, 25 minutes, 286 lbs. Note: This is a new scale, so it might be different from the one at the doctor's office. But it went down one, so that makes me happy.

Oh, Sunday was yesterday?

I utterly forgot to post about my Sunday run. It was amazing. We run as a group (but we don't talk about Run Club) so it's a social event and it gives me the chance to get some one on one time with my coach. It's always good to get tips on form and hills and everything.

So, Sunday was a 3.5 mile run which we did in 40 minutes. That was a looooong run with a variety of big and small hills. So it was a good experience to do it all in one go. Last weekend I did it in several pieces, walking on many of the hills. So, to take a week to get back into the swing of things and hit a 40 minute run like that was a great boost to my self-esteem. Particularly coming off of last week's illness.

One thing I need to learn is not to eat so much. I need to diversify my meals, smaller portions with more green vegetables, etc. Saturday I ate an entire medium pizza. Well, in point of fact, I ate two. It *was* all I ate all day, but I shouldn't have eaten that much food. It kills the work that I've done. Now that the holidays are over I should return to a normal eating schedule. I really like salad, so it shouldn't be a burden to make and eat one every meal. I made one today.

Oh, and today was a rest day. Put my feet up and relaxed. No tae kwon do because of the holiday.

Update: 40 minutes, 3.5 miles.

Running 2 days is a row = Tough

So, I ran the same run again today. I think I'm going to have to change up my runs fairly frequently, because I'm already growing bored with the scenery. With the mapping tool at my disposal though, I don't think that will be a problem. I need to drive through a few neighborhoods to make sure they're safe before I map my way through them.

My goodness I'm sweating like a pig. Another 25 minute run today. The first half took me nearly a full minute less time than it did yesterday, which is why I was sooooo tired after the first half of the run today. I believe my running speed is affected by the beat of the music on my iPod. The faster the beat, the faster my steps. That's bad in so far as it's subconsciously controlling my pace. That's good in so far as I'm varying my pace and getting used to the difference between them. It's definitely noticeable. I didn't know there was an 'e' in noticeable - thank you spell check.

I may have to get the timing counts for a variety of the music that I run to and make sure they're all about the same. I can make faster mixes for faster days and slower mixes for slower days. For example, Katy Perry's "I Kissed a Girl" has a definite noticeable back beat that makes my feet want to hit the pavement at a particular pace. He said because he was listening to it even now. Where as Cascada's "Evacuate the Dance Floor" is a bit faster. Hmm, something to think about.

Update: 25 minutes, ~2.0 miles. Weight - who knows? But I feel good.