Holy crap, Jeff updated his blog

So, my running blog has sucked pretty much from the day I started it. However, that is because I basically got hurt about 4 days after I started it and I really don’t have the need to keep a personal journal. Basically, for those that don’t know, I destroyed my Plantar fascia in July last year (let’s be fair, it started in October of 2007 but I am a stubborn idiot). I had a surgery in August but in my dumb ass attempt to try and run a race in Japan, I basically went from 0 to 80 miles a week and got hurt again. I had to wait until February to have the next surgery because of insurance and medical reasons. I also went and saw Dr. Saredella of Providence fame to have a new procedure in addition to the previous surgery. It all went well and I took 2 more months off to be safe.

I guess I should also tell people I have decided to leave my coaching gig in Charlotte. Let’s just say that the head coach and I did not agree professionally and I needed a change. I will be moving to DC to transfer my masters to Johns Hopkins school of Communication, which is a really great change academically and course content wise for what I want to do. As for work, I haven’t figured that out yet but I am hoping to get the online coaching gig going full steam so if you know anyone that needs a coach, give em my name.

In any case this is the start of my running again, or let’s hope it is…

Fri: 5/15/09
4 miles (30:00)
Todays run went about as well as yesterdays. It was mid 70’s and 95% humidity. No matter how much I try, is till suck at running in the heat and humidity. My foot felt pretty similar to yesterday and I am cautiously excited to get back into something serious.

Thur: 5/14/09
4 miles (33:00)
3 days off when you are fit just feels good. 3 days off when you haven’t run in 4 months sucks balls. My foot was a little tight at the start but felt good after 5mins of running and felt good all day afterward. I am optimistic.

Wed: 5/13/09
Off
My log is starting to look pathetic again. I still wasn’t sure about my foot and I had to drive back to Charlotte. I was going to run in the evening but Melanie convinced me that the smartest idea would be to take the day off. I have no idea how she got through my stubbornness but whatever she did it worked.

Tue: 5/12/09
Off
Pretty much the same thing as yesterday. Plus, my foot did not feel great after standing around in dress shoes most of the day yesterday.

Mon: 5/11/09
Off
I really didn’t have the time to run today since I was basically homeless for the day. I was out apt and job interviewing most of the day with my home base being the Panera in Silver Spring, Md. Wasn’t a very productive day for places to live or for jobs. I interviewed at a company in Arlington but I was doing it mostly for practice.

Week Total: 22 miles (HOLY CRAP!)

Sun: 5/10/09
4 miles (30:00)
Melanie and I made the last minute decision to drive up to Penn to watch the Heps. It was great to see a lot of people I haven’t seen in a while and remember how fun competing at the Heps was. We decided that the best use of our time, since we were lazy and slept in and watched tv all morning, was to run after the races before the drive home. We ran on the bike path right by the stadium and the way out was quite windy. Melanie was hauling pretty good and I was getting pretty tired. I used the excuse of “I want to make sure I let my foot heal” so I could turn around with the least amount of embarrassment. I iced all the way home and it felt decent.

Sat: 5/9/09
4 miles (30:00)
Drove into Dc late last night and got to run with one of my all time favorite running partners, Ms. Jilane Rodgers. I have been to Dc to visit her quite a few times since she moved last summer but this was my first run in the nations capital thanks to my injury. We departed her place and dipped down into Rock Creek Park. It was a really nice easy run and good company. You can read her typically over detailed blog for more.

Fri: 5/8/09
Off
Planned day off after being an idiot yesterday

Thur: 5/7/09
7 mile run (50:00)
Well, I pulled a Jeff Gaudette on this one. I decided that 6 miles would be a great idea (there is a reason I shouldn’t coach myself) and decided to accompany Meagan on her jaunt. Unfortunatly, she underestimated her loop and we ended up running closer to 7 miles. My foot and legs handled it about as good as I could have hoped.

Wed: 5/6/09
4 miles (30:00)
This run was much the same as yesterday. It was pretty warm and muggy at McAlpine and my foot felt the same. On a good note, my legs weren’t really sore at all.

Tue: 5/5/09
4 miles (30:00)
I took the team out to McAlpine and decided to put some miles in myself. The logistics aren’t ideal since I can’t heat and it’s tough to ice afterwards. This is one of the reasons that I don’t think coaching really works with my running routine and style. The run itself was good. My legs were a little less sore from Sunday and my foot was pretty good most of the way. It still acts weird. It won’t hurt at all during the run, or sometimes it will be a dull sharp for like 2 secs sometime in a run. Afterwards it hurts on and off, sometimes more than others. It’s a very confusing rehab process.

Mon: 5/4/09
Off
No run today. Partly planned after yesterday but I also drove back to Charlotte and I didn’t really have the time. I consider it good planning.

Sun: 5/3/09
6 mile run (45:00)
Oops, the 6 was definitely not planned. My legs were super soar from my “race” yesterday and I was hoping to get a little shakeout in. My foot responded decently to the run yesterday. It was sore on and off throughout the rest of the day but when I woke up this morning it felt good. I think the 7hr drive from 10pm-3:30am to Baltimore might have helped. In any case, Melanie took me for a jaunt and I got lost in the time and realized that we had already gone out 15mins. The options were to turn around or complete the loop around the pond. She wanted to do six and I just figured, eh, what the hell. My legs were straight up beat afterwards but my foot felt decent. In other news, Holly ran 18:37 for 5k today. I can honestly say this was one of the best moments in coaching I have had yet. The girl’s PR last year was 20:22 and she is one of the hardest workers on the team. She ran the perfect race, just running 6:04’s the first 2 miles behind Meagan. (The goal was sub 19 since her indoor pr was 19:09). Her fault all year long has been going out way to hard. In XC when she was still running 20mins for 5k she was running her first 800 in 2:50. I made her run one more lap at 90’s during the last mile and told her to let it rip. She ran 87,86,85 and crushed her pr. It was so exciting to see someone want something so bad and get it. I was so proud and made me realize how much I love coaching.

Sat: 5/2/09
3.1 mile run (23:30)
First run since about January and it was pretty nerve racking. It was almost like I didn’t remember how to do the whole running thing. On Wednesday night, after my final, a group of fellow classmates and I went out for some drinks. The professor mentioned that they were all doing a 5k on Saturday and that I should join. I politely declined but they added in the extra incentive of breakfast afterwards and I quickly found myself uttering the words “sure I’ll do it”. So, I toed the line at this “race” and started in the 9min mile pack. Meagan and Tanya were also there to join me and my initial fears of getting last in the group were put quickly to rest as we dropped a blazing 8:30 first mile and left the rest of our group in our wake. The next two splits were 7:30 and 7:06 which, for someone who hasn’t run a step in 4 months, is pretty decent I think. I immediately looked for some ice and put it on my foot just in case.