Injury sidelined :(

The foot pain got worse and worse so I opted to "rest" for 1-week.  I've been in the gym on the elliptical and/or stairmachine - enjoyed getting the heart rate up and a sweat going but man, it's just not the same.  So tonight I finished a meeting at 4:40 so headed down to the ferry and parked - determined to get a run in.  Made up my mind that slow was ok and didn't care about the distance, was simply going to run at an easy pace and let the foot tell me the right pace.  So off I wnet and although the foot was "sore" I didn't have any shooting pain.  I fought the pace and when I got going too fast the foot started "speaking" and I slowed - a couple of times actualy moved down to a walk and then gently flexed the foot as I walked to stretch out the muscle.  So not too bad for a first run, probably pushed the distance a bit hard ending up with a 6-mile run but was ok on the run/walk/stretch.  Time will tell as the evening goes on, I've been using a foot roller to massage while sitting in the car and I'll ice it tonight when I get home.  It was great to be out and running the legs, even if it was at a slower pace.

Good to be back in the game and looking forward to a regular trining week and some real mileage.

Slow start to 2011

No posts in the last few weeks and that's been a combination of work demands, family schedule, and some foot pain.  The foot pain is somewhat concerning since 2-years ago I had plantar fasciatis and I DO NOT want to go down that road again.  Been hitting the gym more than road work so I can be on the treadmill and then pivot off that to either the stairs or the elliptical  -  all boring indoor work but trying to allow time for the foot to heal and not get any worse.  I must be a true runner since I'm highly concerned about "what will I do if I can't run"... especially with a very stressful schedule in January and February.

On top of the issues above, January has been difficult, lost two friends in the last 10-days to cancer and that certainly is sobering and causes pause to ponder and look at priorities.  One friend I know had claimed Jesus as his Lord and Savior so I'm at peace for him.  The other friend I don't know.  He passed away sunddenly and unexpectedly Saturday and I had spent 50-minutes Saturday morning on the treadmill praying for him - only God knows where the heart was - I hope he is in the loving care of God.

Ferry is docking and I'm off the gym for some treadmill and elliptical work - based on the above I am grateful and thankful for strong legs, lungs, heart, and body - I have much to be grateful for.  God's blessings are new every morning

New Years day 10-K

2011 is here and underway.  The mileage tracks roll back to zero and we start adding again and the year is full of hope and opportunity.  The year started for me with a New Years day 10K down in Gig Harbor, WA.  The race started at 9:00 so we left the house at 7:30 to get there and get checked in, at race time the temp was 23-degrees, chilly for this Western Washingtonian!  It was a small race which made it really fun but also very hilly, over 1,000' total ascending according to my trustee Garmin.  It was a fun run and I was pleased with my time and pace right under 8:00/mile, especially with the hills.  My wife said I was a bit frosty at the finish and when I saw the picture I agreed - sunny but cold!  After the race we celebrated with a Starbucks coffee and a donut and then drove to Bellingham to pick up my daughter who had spent the week with her cousins.  It was a nice day to be with my wife and just have time together and starting the year with a race is a good thing I've decided,  Sunday was also sunny and cold so I got a run in at home which worked out some of the kinks from the race and sitting in the car for 7-hours right after the race.  Here are a couple of pictures from the race;

 


Frosty finish