So this was a good week. I did 4 and 5-mile "runs" (not really running, is it?) on the elliptical several days, one day getting up to 8 miles. And today, four weeks away from race day, I got OUTSIDE for long a run. This involved actual running: lifting one foot, then the other, repeat, repeat, repeat.
Shelburne Farms has miles of dirt roads (more forgiving that asphalt, prettier than the suburbs) so I went there on Tiffany's advice. (She neglected to mention it would be "Calf Open House" and that oodles of families and Volvos would be tearing up the place. Baby cows are very popular.) The terrain was good: open roads, tree-lined roads, lakeside roads, wooded roads. I think I got in 11.5 miles of running, mostly, with some walking and several generous breaks to stretch and look at farm animals.
Right now I'm tired and achy, but shouldn't one be tired and achy after going 11 miles on three weeks of rest and sedentary living? I think tomorrow morning will be the real test of whether I'm ready to pick up the training again.
Revised training plan!
So typically, you would train for a marathon on an 18 week schedule. You start with a lower volume of miles per week, and one weekly long run that gradually gets longer - up to 18, 20, 22 miles. Those really long runs are what most people are doing now, and they'll keep doing that distance for the next couple of weeks. Then in mid-May, about 2-3 weeks out from the marathon, they'll begin to taper (reduce the weekly mileage, cut way back on the distance of the long runs) and arrive at marathon day well rested and ready to attack to the race course.
I wasted my taper time getting injured. Instead of taking a break before the race, I'm going to try rebuilding my mileage from where I am now and hopefully get up to 18 miles range the week before the race. It's not ideal, but it's the best I can manage with the time that's remaining.
So what was that injury all about?
In a nutshell, crappy biomechanics. From the look on Tiffany's face (chiropractor extraordinaire -- she had this diagnosed perfectly from the beginning), this was only a matter of time and I think she was surprised only that it took so long to happen. I don't *think* I'm one of those truly awful looking runners who spastically fling their arms around, or slap the pavement in a duck-footed stride. However, everything from the top of the my spine to below my knees is out of whack, with bones and muscles all twisted and pulled in ways that aren't intended. And basically my right hip flexor felt like it had been taking for the team for far too long. Point taken. Treat hip flexor more kindly in the future.
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