The Road to Recovery

Ever hear the saying, "The road to recovery is paved with good intentions?" No, wait, maybe that's the road to hell....

This time, I'm going to do this recovery-thing RIGHT. No more skipping from point A to point K (my newest physical therapist's words), I'm going to go from A to B to C to...... you get the picture.

Last week, I was allowed to run 2 miles nonstop. Whoo-hoo. This week, I can run 3 miles nonstop. Next week, I'll work my way up to 4 miles. Even though my calf feels AWESOME at this point, I cannot let myself build up faster than that. I'm going with the conservative approach this time.

The only problem is my next 13.1 race is in 4 weeks. If all goes well, I'll be up to 7 miles by then. Looks like someone isn't going to PR and will be run/walking the race! I'm actually hoping to maintain a 9:1 or an 8:2 run/walk ratio in the race. The great thing is there will be absolutely NO PRESSURE in this race other than to have fun and finish without re-injuring myself. I'll be babying this calf and stopping to walk, stretch... sit a minute--- WHATEVER it takes on race day. I really didn't enjoy my last half-marathon, so maybe I'll have fun with this one.

My Women's Half Marathon training group is going so strong. They are putting in the time, logging the miles, and really getting excited about race day. They have avoided injury so far. We are taking a fairly conservative approach to training, and it's paying off. (Note to self....)

The walkers are totally hard core. They walk at a 15-minute or faster pace. I'd rather run a slow and easy 12 or 13-minute mile pace than walk thirteen 15-minute miles! I've been running part of the workouts with the runners and walking the rest with the walkers. It's been good to spend some time with both halves of the training group. I have grown to be good friends with several of these ladies, and, as with my other groups, I'll be sad to see it end.

Honestly, for me, I have little passion for running right now. There, I said it-- right here on my very own running blog. I enjoy my coaching job, but when I've faced disappointment after disappointment and aches and pains all summer, my own running is a bit.... tarnished.

I'm really excited about cycling though. Isn't she pretty? It's an entry-level women's road bike. It comes in baby blue, too!

I've been cycling a lot at the YMCA during this injury, and I've been wanting a road bike for a while. My 40th birthday is in about 3 weeks, so I can ask for a fairly big present. It's not every day one turns the big 4-0.

I was excited about turning forty, actually. I thought maybe I'd be slightly more competitive as the youngest in the 40-44 age group instead of the oldest in the 35-39 age group. But then I got injured and have to start back at square 1.

It looks like there is a 5K in a couple of weeks. I'm thinking about doing it. I need something to get my excitement back for running. Even though I won't run it fast, at least I'll feel like I'm back in the game, you know?