When Differences of Opinion Collide: “Let’s Slow Down”

5k tempo. Because I’d skipped the hill session of the previous day, I had a lot of energy AND I had no pain in my legs, so I was ready to push.

It started off slow and easy…around a 6min pace. By the second km we had picked it up to a 5.45 pace, and I was still feeling strong and fit. There were six of us running; four in the front group and two in the back group. One of the other runners in the front group slowed down off the pace and dropped back towards the back group. Not long after, another suggested that we should “slow down to run with the others”. This is where I inwardly balked. On long slow run days, I have no problems going a bit slower to keep people running together. If there was a newbie to the group who didn’t know the trail and was in the back by themselves, of course I fully agree that at least one person should slow down to make sure they don’t run alone. But I disagree with the principle of running slower on a tempo day solely to keep the group together. Sure, there are days when I’m not feeling it and am happy to ease off the pace. Sure, I love the social aspect of running and love talking with my fellow runners. But I’m also running for me, and there are times I need to be selfish. As I promise my running friends during a race; “let’s start together, and then I’ll see you at the finish line!” Because at the end of the day, running is an individual endeavor.

So I didn’t slow down; me and one other person kept our pace up, and even picked up the pace to go faster. By the end of the 5k we were running around a 5.20 pace and I wasn’t sure who was pushing whom. How refreshing and exciting to see improvement! I remember one of my first tempos of the season when I couldn’t even hold a 5.45 pace. We finished the 5k in just over 30 minutes, which included our 2 walk breaks, then jogged back to the group to cheer them in. Honestly, they weren’t far behind. Hard to believe this 10k clinic is almost over!

Up, Down, Repeat

I love hills. Say what you will, but I LOVE hills. Last week we had 6 repeats. It was the same hill that we had done before, and this time I even bothered to measure it...320m of twisting, winding, changing slopes.
I decided not to make the same mistake as last time by starting out too fast. My goal was simple: do the first hill relatively "easy" and then keep the same pace or get faster afterwards.
Rep 1: 2:20 (which is much slower than my last hill session when I tried to keep everything under 2:00min...)
Rep 2: 2:15
Rep 3: 2:05
Rep 4: 2:10
Rep 5: 2:15
Rep 6: 2:12

I'm happy to say that my first hill was the slowest, so I know if I go again I can push that little bit harder.

One thing I love about hills is the camaraderie. Because you're only ever 320m away from the first person or the last person, and with 6 repeats that's 6x you get to cheer on your fellow runners.
Six of us started out, but a couple of gals left a bit early so the rest of us keeners stayed to the end...exhausted, but satisfied.

All smiles after hills!

An "Honest" 10k

The distance: 10+ km, or “an honest 10k” as other people called it. The actual distance I ran was 10.8km.

There were only 4 of us in the group. Initially I ran with the two guys in the front, because they were talking about heart-rate training and I was intrigued to hear more. Every time we hit our walking break, we walked back to reconnect with the other gal in our group who preferred to run a bit slower. But after a few kms, my guilt over letting a runner run alone out-weighed my interest in the conversation. After all, that was not how I had been “raised” in the running community. So on one of our walk-backs, I stuck with her. We had a lovely time, chattering away and the kms went by quickly.

My calf/hamstring muscles were appreciably less tight than they were on Thursday (score one for yoga!), but still quite tight, so I didn’t mind the slower pace.

I did considering adding an extra 200m onto my run to make it an even 11km, but decided I didn’t really need to. I’m very happy with the distance I ran.

Tight Fight

5k tempo day. Since I was still recovering from the previous night’s hills (curse my tight leg muscles!), I decided to take it easy. It was to the point that not running with a limp took some focus. No injury…just tight, tight, tight in the backs of my legs. Fortunately, we had a mini yoga class afterwards so I knew I would get some good stretches in.

The first km started off nice and easy at around a 6min pace. Then, we slowly picked it up. By the third km, our small group of 6 runners was decidedly staggered. My focus remained on strong effort but a relaxed run (it sounds like an oxymoron, but it is possible to do both), and – most importantly – making sure that my foot stride remained even to avoid causing injury. And I'm happy to say I was able to do negative splits, so I finished around a 5:35 pace.

Success! And I’ve also decided to (again) take up yoga. Specifically, “Yin” yoga, or the kind that focuses on stretching, stretching, stretching. Time to grab those muscles by the knots and stretch that tightness right out of them.

Head Slap

Sometimes you see other people’s problems and you think. Geez, you idiot! The solution is SIMPLE if you bothered to think about it.

Then other days, you’re the idiot, wondering if other people are shaking their heads at you.

 

Here’s the thing. Almost 10 years ago I started on my journey of running. Coincidentally, I also started training to be a speech-language pathologist (SLP). Now, although neither seem related, there is one thing that my studies – and career – as a SLP taught me, which is all the different ways that the swallow can be affected (called “dysphagia”). I’ve spent my whole career working with people with dysphagia from a variety of causes, but never once did I connect the dots. Until last night.

 

You see, every now and then when I’m training, I get the sensation of – for lack of a better way to describe it – a “mini heart attack”. Not that I’ve ever had a heart attack, so I really can’t compare. But on occasion when I’m running I get an awful pain deep in my chest that spreads to my back and lungs. Not all the time, mind you. But sometimes, when I do a very intense run (e.g.: hills, or speedwork), that pain comes and nearly cripples me. And for hours afterwards my chest and back ache fiercely.

 

Last night I was running hills. And sadly, the mind was willing but the body was weak! We had 4 sets of hills. It was a complicated hill, too. With a changing slope and multiple tight switch-backs, it seemed I could never find my rhythm. But up I went it, four times. I was frustrated to find a tight Achilles crippling my progress. I just can’t seem to shake these tight leg muscles this year, and it’s really slamming me hard. With all the discomfort I had in my Achilles and all my exhaustion from the hill repeats, it wasn’t until the cool-down jog back to the store that I started to really feel the pain in my chest, particularly as it spread to my back. It continued after I’d stopped and stretched. It continued on my drive home.

 

And so, since I was in the car, I started to wonder why I was having such chest pain. (Yes, I’m sure some of my readers are smacking their heads – or their screens – and screaming the answer at me). But since I no idea, I decided to describe the pain to myself as if I were a patient. Why would I describe it as a “mini heart attack”, for one? And then I remembered there were other times when I had a deep aching pain that spread to my back after a run. So this wasn’t a singular occurrence.

 

And then the answer hit me, and with all my years as an SLP and all my years of running, I was annoyed I hadn’t thought of it earlier. Reflux. I went home and opened up a trusty google search to see if reflux could be induced by running. Turns out, it very well can be! And while I’m happy to say I don’t suffer the symptoms of reflux on a regular basis, it appears that every now and then I suffer the effects of it when I’m on an intense run. I guess that’s what I get for shoveling down a big dinner an hour before starting the run.

 

It’s a bit ironic that I joined the 10k clinic thinking it would be easy, breezy this year. Instead, I’ve been plagued by injuries, tight muscles, and now…reflux. Ugh, I’m starting to feel like a very sensitive runner: I used to just go out with the mantra “run and be done”. That is, walk outside, start my run by the end of the driveway, end it by the end of the driveway, and go inside to eat and shower. No warm-up, no stretches, no worries.

 

Now I need to start taking extra time to warm-up first and do stretches after. And I’m going to have to start planning my meals and the timing of meals before my run. I’ve been hoping and planning to train for a full marathon next year, but I’m really not sure how to feel about how this year’s training is going…should I be happy all these problems/revelations are happening on shorter distances and a not-important-race-year so I can work out all my kinks and revamp my training plan before the marathon training begins next year? …Or should I be worried that my body is no longer able to handle even the 10k distance, and I might have to give up the marathon training before I’ve even started?

[Insert Title Here]

Last weekend I went for a long, slow run of 8k. I was a little shocked when I was the only one running that distance, but fortunately a couple of gals showed up at the last minute to join me.

The cool part was our coach (who can’t run due to injury) joined us on his bike. It was like having my own personal bike coach!

The run was very slow to accommodate the pace for everyone, but I enjoyed it more or less (more being the easy and social aspect of the run, less being the last few km when the rain came and I got a bit chilled).

It was so, so nice not to have any pain in my knees, or Achilles, or anywhere!

Geez, I'm starting to feel like I'm past my running prime. It's depressing to think I may have already peaked and am now just sliding down the other side.

...and apologies for the lack of title and lack of zest in my blog entry. It's uninspired, but some days are like that.

3.5

Today I ran for 3.5 minutes. My goal was 5k in less than 29 minutes, but I'm sad to say I did not gain super-human speed.
When I started my Achilles was sore and my breathing erratic.
After 3.5 minutes my Achilles continued to ache and my breathing continued to be erratic as I tried to compensate for my sore leg which threw off my rhythm.
So I stopped running and walked home. Clearly, my body is saying it needs a rest day, so rest I will!