TITLE: Opening Day -- with a Slight Delay
AUTHOR: Eugene Wallingford
DATE: April 03, 2006  5:58 PM
DESC: 
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BODY:
Since I took up training for half-marathons and
marathons back in 2003, the first Monday in April
has been the traditional "opening day" for my
training season.  I usually run the Sturgis Falls
Half Marathon, which is part of our major city
festival.  The race is always the last Sunday in
June, and starting at the beginning of April gives
me almost three months to prepare specifically for
racing a good half.  Today is opening day for 2006,
with a race date of June 25.  Countdown: 12 weeks.

My training is on hold for a day or two, though.
A couple of week ago, I started feeling a little
soreness in my hamstrings.  I ran normally that week,
in hopes that it would pass.  It didn't, and got
worse instead.  So last week I cut my mileage way
back and further ran very, very easily -- no speed,
no acceleration, no hills, just short, slow, easy
miles.  I may never have run a 10-minute mile before
(well, except perhaps while
<A HREF="http://www.cs.uni.edu/~wallingf/blog/archives/monthly/2005-10.html#e2005-10-02T21_48_51.htm">
   struggling to finish my last marathon</A>.)

By last Friday, my hamstrings hurt even more, so I
decided to take drastic measures: I skipped my Sunday
run.  Believe it or not, I had never had to cancel
a run for injury!  The 48-hour break helped my right
hamstring, but the left still felt a little tender.
So I chose not to run today, either.  The left
hamstring is feeling better today, and I may take
tomorrow off, too.  With hamstrings, it is safer to
be a little more cautious and let those boys heal
well than to foolhardily race off too soon.  I have
friends who have suffered through full seasons of
hamstring pain.  They affect walking and sitting,
and then you can't run at all.  A day or too of
rest is a price worth paying when a plausible
alternative is weeks or months on the shelf.

Not that I have ever been one to be cautious when
it comes to canceling runs.  I usually run through
things and let my body win.  But I've probably
been fortunate not to have the sort of injuries
that made that strategy impossible.

I didn't suffer any particular injury here, so I 
guess this is what athletes call an "overuse injury".
I've been running about 38-41 miles per week this
winter, and between miles and shoes and a little
speed, I may just have overdone things a bit.  And
maybe I'm getting a little older, and this is my
body's way of reminding me who's in charge...

So, my half-marathon training may not start until
Wednesday morning.  Another day of rest, then a
short, easy jog, then -- if all feels okay -- a few
easy miles for this week.  Eleven weeks is plenty
of time to prepare for a half, and I want to enjoy
it.

Besides, next week I spend a few days in Carefree,
Arizona, and I want to enjoy the trails, hills,
coyotes, and javelinas!
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