Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Week 6/17 HM Training - Run #2 10K+ and 8 striders

My running path was not quite this peaceful or beautiful this morning. :) Pave it, add some sounds and signs of a city around it, and then it is a closer representation.

I had a very good run first thing this morning. I enjoyed it so much because there was no humidity for a sweet, sweet change. The running temperature was ideal for me, the dogs were eager to run, and I felt strong from beginning to end. This was a great feeling and I hope I feel it more often in the future, as well on longer runs. :) Clearly, the temperature had a lot to do it. It was nice for a change not to arrive home soaked from sweating.

My skill at striders is improving. I found my faster pace, "HM race pace", without starting out overly fast, and my recovery time from the striders was much improved because of it. I like how the striders kick start me to run faster overall as well. My pace was clearly faster by the end of the run than at the beginning.

I am beginning to think I may be able to run 5 days this week and all my scheduled mileage. I really hope so. :)

On a side note ... I haven't referred to my achilles tendon in quite awhile. This is because it is not bothering me any more. :) I iced it regularly when it was so tender at the beginning of my HM training schedule, and I have added additional calf stretches after my runs during this phase. This seems to have done the trick. I am pretty happy about this, but still cautious. If anything, the one 'injury' from running that I am currently nursing is that I still have slight tenderness on the front of both shins. They don't bother me when I run at all. The only time I notice my shin splints is when the area is pressed. The best description is that it feels bruised, like I was kicked in the shins, but the bruise tenderness remains longer than a few days. I have started icing these areas, too.

And on a second side note ... running with my arms relaxed and down by my side, hands unclenched and shoulders relaxed, has really improved. I haven't given this much thought until this past weekend - this is when I ran by multiple runners whose shoulders were clenched up so tightly, it looked painful. Two runners in particular had their necks kinked to their shoulders, and it was affecting their gait. Regardless if they have a pre-existing condition or not, seeing them reminded me to double-check myself, and be grateful that attention I paid to this earlier has had positive results.

I run 13K in the morning. :)

GYM UPDATE
Kundalini Yoga tonight was more than excellent. Some things really clicked tonight and it felt great. It was like an "aha" and I loved it. I didn't have an opportunity to speak to my instructor as I intended to tonight because there was another student needing her attention, but my instructor did celebrate my success with me during the class because she was watching. :)

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