Guess what I did this morning? I went running. RUNNING! For the first time since my tendonitis incident during the Nike Women’s Classic last year. I did 25 minutes of jogging/walking around Victoria Park, making sure I ran on both the sidewalks and the grass to give my legs some variety. My ass feels sore already and my face is nuclear red, but I feel pretty good!

Done any good deeds lately?
Remember how my sister ran the Honolulu Marathon last year? It turns out that Katie Krawcyzk, a good friend of my cousin Jenny (who you’ll recognize as a frequent commenter here), is running it this year to raise money for AIDS services. She’s got another reason though: she’s doing it to get her Dad to quit smoking. I really liked this bit from her training page:

I have chosen to run a marathon to show him that overcoming most of life’s hardest battles (such as quitting smoking) is an issue of determination and mind over matter – you can achieve anything, no matter how much you may resist, or how much you struggle to get through it. Even if you never wanted to do such a feat for yourself in the first place, you do it for those you love because they want you to, and they need you to; you do it to make yourself healthy so you can make the most of the one life you’re given. Through this marathon, we raise money for those living with AIDS in order to prolong their lives as much as possible until we find a cure. For me, I am not only hoping to help save their lives, but I’m also hoping to save one more.

That’s awesome. Please consider donating a few bucks if you have any to spare. (And Dad, are you listening? Say the word and I’ll start training.)

So… A subluxated cuboid bone. That’s what the physiotherapist thinks I have. It certainly fits the symptoms. We ruled out the whole “plantar fasciitis” because my pain is on the outside of my foot, not the arch. I had a couple X-rays this afternoon to hopefully rule out a stress fracture. (There’s something unsettling about a medical procedure so dangerous that the technician has to stand outside the room while it’s performed.) In the meantime, I’m to keep it iced and lay off the running. The physio also showed me how to tape it up, while seems to help a little bit. I guess it’s back to weight training for the time being!

Running Update
You may have noticed a considerable hole in my training schedule. Basically, the pain in my left foot I experienced after my last run (and the one previous) got worse and worse over several days. I’m fairly certain it’s from the way I “pronate” (i.e. roll) my foot to the outside. I could barely stand to walk on it. I spoke to the doctor about it and she gave me an X-ray referral to check if I have a stress fracture. I haven’t used it yet. The pain is gone and the race is in a week. There just isn’t time. I did a short run on it today and it’s feeling all right. I know I need rest and new shoes, and I figure I can get both of those after the race. And if it hurts after the 10K… I’ll get the X-ray. I promise. I just don’t want to miss the race. I’m planning to take it nice and easy. My goal at this point is just to finish.

New Running Personal Best – 8 kilometers! (That’s 5 miles for you non-metric folks.) Actually I did it once before but I injured myself in the process. I’m feeling pretty good right now. My feet and ankles are sore again, but I’m starting to think it’s just my body adapting to the stress of longer distances*. The really interesting bit is that my pace (12:00/mile) is remaining consistent despite running farther. I’ve set a baseline goal of 80 minutes for the 10K but if I maintain my current pace I should be able to do it in 75. And of course, I’m counting on race day adrenaline to cut it even further. I just might pull this off!

Note: I fully realize that me saying “longer distances” is probably laughable to you guys that run marathons. But take pity on the curvy girls… Five miles is a long way!

Training Update
Last night I had a session with a new personal trainer, Andy. He’d been recommended to me by a friend at the gym as somebody who specialized in running. I have to say, he was a bit of a spunk. (For the Yanks, that means he was a hottie.) Thick as two planks, though. (He was dumb.) He asked how long I had til the race, to which I answered 48 days. He was like, “So that’s, what, four weeks?” Me: “Try closer to seven.” But he was pretty.

So anyway, Andy thinks that I should aim to be running 12K two weeks before the race. (This is slightly counter to other things I’ve read. Hmmm.) Then I just rest and do light training until the big event. He did recognize that my biggest problem is going to be maintaining the mental concentration to run for 70+ minutes. The program he gave me is four days a week: one day of indoor cardio for the full length of time I’d be running the race (i.e. treadmill for 40 minutes, cross-trainer for 30), one day of general weight training, one day of running the whole distance outside, and one day of light weights followed by a yoga class. I think eventually I’m supposed to work in another day of running too, but I can’t even think about that at the moment.

The yoga is to strengthen my lower back, which has been giving me progressively more pain. He thinks I may have something out of alignment, which is why I’m booked in to see a physiotherapist tomorrow. I can’t wait to hear the medical equivalent of “You run funny.” I started the program last night with 40 minutes on the treadmill and 20 on the cross-trainer. My legs feel like jelly today and I somehow pulled a muscle in my shoulder. (I can only imagine how funny I must look running if I’m flopping about so badly as to constantly injure myself.) But I’m on my way!

It’s officially 54 days til the Nike Women’s Classic. I’ve added a training log down there on the right to add a sense of accountability to my preparations. (Feel free to kick my ass if you think I’m slacking.) I’ve scheduled a session with a personal trainer on Monday. He’s supposed to be a running specialist so hopefully he’ll get me on track.

Gym Stuff.
You know what annoys me? People that offer unsolicited nutrition and exercise advice without knowing anything about me. Somebody recently suggested that I increase my carb level since I’m doing all that long distance running. Newsflash! I’m not doing the running anymore. I’ve been on a weightlifting program for over a month. I do cardio training but only for short periods (working at a target heart rate). Also – how do you know how many carbs I’m eating? I mean honestly. Some people doing Atkins (the ones in Lifetime Maintenance) eat up to 100 grams of carbs a day! “Eat more carbs” is vague advice based on nothing but assumptions. I eat plenty of carbs. I just choose to ingest them in the form of green vegetables instead of white flour. I’d certainly consider changing my diet if I expected to run a marathon anytime soon, but I don’t. And besides, it’s not like I’m an Olympian or anything…

…Which seques nicely into this long article on the effects of banned substances in athletes. It’s fascinating. The author actually subjects himself to many of the popular drugs and steroids to see what happens. Some of it sounds awful (especially the possible side effects), but I was surprised to see his positive experience with human growth hormone. Who wouldn’t like to see better and have scars disappear? Reminds me about all the supposed benefits of the DHEA my thyroid doctor put me on. (For the record, I haven’t really noticed any side effects beyond the fact that I’m not cold all the time anymore, which was the whole point of taking them.) Right now I’d love some sort of muscle steroid; I pulled the hell out of my shoulder in Pump class on Saturday and it’s not getting any better. Any ideas that don’t involve thousands of dollars worth of synthesized hormones? (For the clueless, yes, this is a solicitation for advice. So comment away!)

I just had a great session with my new personal trainer Adam. He set me up with a weight lifting program that I’m going to alternate with Pump classes. I’m also going to mix up my running a bit more and alternate between longer, slower runs and short, intense sprints. I’m feeling pretty good about everything. (Well, except for my pathetic tricep strength. You know how you do those reverse push-ups, where you lower yourself off the edge of a bench and push yourself up and down with your triceps? He had me down for thirty. I can do five. Yikes.) He also asked me about my diet and I stiffened, waiting for the inevitable Atkins backlash. But he was totally and utterly supportive! He just reminded me to get enough Omega-3s and iron and told me that I was doing the right thing! It felt so nice to have some friggin’ vindication after a whole year of defending myself. He even thinks that running a marathon next year is a great goal to work towards. (You runners will be happy to note that he gave me a lecture on the importance of running outside. I’m going to work on that.) I feel motivated and inspired. And how’s your weekend?

Since I’ve been back from vacation, every time I’ve run I’ve gotten a side stitch and had to stop. Every time. Until this started, I don’t think I’d had one since elementary school. It’s high up on my right side and it hurts so badly I have to stop and walk. Anybody know why I’m getting them? Am I running wrong, breathing weirdly, pushing too hard, not pushing hard enough? Am I wearing the wrong shoes, the wrong sports bra, not enough sports bras? Please help, because this has been severely limiting my distance.