18 and Life

My training schedule tells me I am suppose to do an 18 mile run today. Considering I have run about 18 miles total in the last 3 weeks - this did not seem like a very bright idea. Luckily I am not a very bright man.

My gracious family drove me out to the marathon starting line in Hopkinton this morning and I set off with a bunch of other runners at 9am. It was a little cool (20's) but the sun was shining and I felt good through Ashland and Framingham. The knee started getting a bit cranky right as I was running past my house (about 8 miles into the run). I took this as a test of my will and kept going - as I wanted to do at least 11 miles. I eventually made it to Wellesley Center (13 miles) and turned around to head back home (a 5 mile return trip).

The benefit of running with this group is they have people out along the route handing out gatorade and water. The knee pain seemed to subside about 12 miles into the trip but perhaps that was because the other parts of my body were competing for pain attention.

I was pretty pleased to complete 18 miles and it gives me confidence that I can finish even if my knee is not 100%

Back in the Saddle

Two weeks off to rest the knee and I went out for my first run on Sunday. I went out for a 6 mile run to get back into the swing of things. The knee felt OK but not totally pain free. At this point I am going to keep doing the rehab exercises and run as much as I can....

Went to a marathon meeting in Boston that was designed to outline the logistics of the race for us first timers. They apparently start shutting down services (water stations, etc.) and start opening the road to traffic - at the 6-hour marathon pace. Many of the first timers seemed concerned about their ability to keep pace. If I am still on the course after 6 hours - please shoot me....

Rehab

I have taken almost two weeks off to rest the knee. During that period I have been riding a stationary bike or eliptical machine to try and keep in relatively good shape. I have also been doing a series of stretches and exercises to attempt to strengthen the area around me knees.

I picked a good week to enter rehab as we got our first significant snowfall and running has become more of a challenge as the sidewalks are not clear and the roads more narrow.

Here are my top rehab related songs from my iTunes library:

King of Pain - Police
The Waiting - Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
I Don't Want to Miss A Thing - Aerosmith
Don't Cry - Asia
The Show Goes On - Bruce Hornsby and the Range
Two Steps Behind - Def Leppard
Basket Case - Green Day
I'm Not Running Anymore - John Mellencamp

On the Shelf

Loyal readers of this blog know that I have complained of knee soreness during my runs. I sent an email to our team's virtual coach and he believes I have a laterally tracking patella. This is a common injury for runners and related to poor biomechanics during the run.

So the challenge is figuring out what to do about the situation. I obviously do not want to fall behind on my training but don't want to keep aggravating the injury and make it worse. My last run was on Saturday (14 miles) and my knee is still a little sore. I think I am going to take next week off too (continuing to ride the exercise bike and elliptical machine) and try to start running again next weekend. There are a bunch of rehab exercises that I will also be doing to improve my flexibility and strength around the quads and hips.

Although a bit discouraged - even if this time off results in little improvement I am confident that I can continue to train and complete the marathon with my some knee pain. It is also helpful that the temps have not been above 30 all week - making the decision even easier...

Governor - Look Out !!!

I was dodging pedestrians as I ran through Wellesley Center during my long run on Saturday. I was squeezing around a couple walking along the sidewalk when I almost ran into (and over) our newly elected Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts - Deval Patrick. He was getting out of his car and running into a restaurant when the near collision happened. Fortunately for him I was not quick enough to shout "No New Taxes!!!" when I brushed by him....

Saturday was a 14 mile run and it was tough from start to finish. Last week I felt like I was ready to conquer the beast but yesterday I struggled. My right knee continues to provide some problems but not enough to prevent me from finishing. Beyond a slight soreness in both of my knees this morning - I am pretty happy with my ability to recover from the long runs.

Next week is an 18 mile group run that begins at the Marathon start in Hopkinton. Hopefully I am up for it....