Post 10K injury

My foot's been really aching like crazy since Sunday. Madhura doesn't seem to be too happy about the pain not subsiding. So I go to this place in Dover and the doctor said that it most probably is a case of Plantar Fasciitis. She prescribed some NSAID and asked me to continue with the RICE procedure. Apparently stress fractures (what Madhura suspects) do not show up on X-Rays very well. And she didn't feel the need to do an MRI or CT scan as yet. So I am still limping around. I have tried taping it and icing it. And with all that limping, my knees and shins are getting sore. No wonder Rest is first in RICE.

The doctor's asked me to go to a podiatrist if the pain does not subside in 2-4 weeks. So its a wait-and-watch game. I really really hope this goes away 

I guess cross-training/weight-training might help me busy doing something atleast. Next 2 weeks I am at home. So the apartment gym can be used, unlike here in Dover where there's not really anything.

Since I have started running, there always has been one foot related problem after another and its irritating to the point that its no longer interesting. Plantar fasciitis, shin splints, arch pain...gosh! I even followed a non-injury training schedule to the dot, got good running shoes (after trying one one and not liking them!). What else am I to do? Lets see what and how this unfolds.

Jingle All The Way 10K race report

Sunday December 13th was Jingle All the Way 10K in DC downtown by the Potomac river. Chavone and Jerome were running too. We were going to drive together but the weather's been nasty last couple of days. We got up at 5:30 (after an interrupted sleep) and decided that we don't want to run. But we still wanted to go to the race nevertheless. "Atleast lets pick up the race shirts", we thought.
I guess Chavone and Jerome were not coming to an agreement if they wanted to go so we decided that we will drive separate. We dressed up and drove over to find a good parking spot. It was just drizzling a tad. So no harm in running. Picked up the bibs and shirts and got to the finish line just in time for the race to start. I didn't really stretch a lot. We were jogging from the parking spot to the start off point. So I thought that should be warm up enough.
We positioned ourselves almost at the back. The crowd was 3,700 strong! Quite a few were dressed up in Santa hats and dresses and sorts. It was a fun crowd. The temperatures were ~34F. Pretty cold. Madhura and I were together for about half mile and then I took off after that.
At the 3 mile marker, I saw the leaders heading back. This time I had my stop watch started. Hit the 3 mile marker at ~29min. Good enough. I was determined to do a negative split this time. I took off my ear muffs at about the 2 mile point. There was too much of a crowd and the roads were quite narrow. So the weaving was problematic. But who am I to complain. All throughout the race, my goal was 55:00min. Then the dastardly cramps set in at 4miles! Gosh! No amount of deep breathing helped. The pain was stabbing! So I slowed down to a walk. Madhura caught up with me. She was going strong! Great girl! But she was worried about her back which she had thrown out a couple of weeks ago. So she prodded me to go on and not worry about her. "I don't have a goal. You go for yours", she said. So I took off trying to ignore the pain. I knew by 5 miles that I was not going to make it at 55min. So I decided that I have to make it within 60 mins. My previous peeve of 61min at the "Life Without Limits 10K" race would be 'avenged'. I hit the finish line at 58min. My tag timing was 56:39. Not bad at all!

Madhura had some problems with her hands getting too cold. Nothing too serious though.

Me on the other hand - after we had breakfast with Chavone and Jerome, the lateral side of my right foot started aching like crazy. Madhura doesn't like the look of it after she did some tests on them. Well, its a wait-n-watch game. Hopefully its just a damaged tendon/ligament/muscle and not a stress fracture. Time will tell. Till then its R-I-C-E (Rest Ice Compression Elevation).

Pictures as we get them.

Rottweiler on the loose

We decided to do this small quick run before our upcoming 10K on Sunday. A small one. Maybe 3 miles. So we take Maggy along. Its dark and its cold! So the base layer and ear muffs and hats are on. We were on Monument, just behind Safeway and Madhura stops in her heels. "There's something rustling there", she says. And sure enough, there was this Rottweiler rustling in the leaves. No leash! We froze right there when he looked at us. I don't know if it was the dark or the cold, but I could feel the hair on my back raise. Imagine this 'thing' staring at you:

We did not want to take any risk to check if it was homeless or whatever!
For this one time, we were of the same opinion - Turn around! Both of us slowly moved back and headed straight home.
Strange Maggy did not sense him. Maybe he was just a lost puppy. But we were just not up to it. Though Madhura did call the ASPCA as soon as we got home to report a dog on the loose.
Now I know what I want when we get our own home with a yard. A Rottweiler. Yes sir! The effect it had on us, I want that exact same effect on any intended prowler.

Regular run [Dec 07 2009]

Its snowed over the weekend in Virginia. Though there was no snow here in Delaware, its very very cold. 40deg F. I donned the base layer, ear muffs, my cap and a tee. I decided I will curb my 'enthusiasm', come what may and try a negative split. There was no way of calculating precisely my negative split, but I am pretty sure I did one! Breathing was a wee bit difficult in the cold, but not impossible as such. Infact, I did the 4miles in 35 min! yaayy!! The left foot was aching near the plantar fascia, but I didnt let that bother me too much and the pain just vanished at about mile 1.5. The ear muffs are a boon! I have to get ones that snuggle better. I will not be able to run till Friday atleast thanks to all these parties at work. But I think I am pretty set for Sunday's Jingle All the Way 10K in DC this coming Sunday. A reminder: target time - 55min.

Meals: Cereal & coffee for breakfast + Quiznos regular turkey sub & iced tea + black eyed peas रस्सा भाजी & beer + usual quantity of water.

Regular run [Dec 04 2009]

I did a short 2 mile run on the treadmill on Thursday which, as always, was as boring as can be. Reason I did the treadmill was because it was raining quite heavily. I really did not care to record what I ate and stuff.
Yesterday was pretty pleasant. A tad chilly. But nothing the base layer could not handle. Madhura threw her back out earlier this week while running in the morning. So she is taking it easy till she is comfortable for our 10K next Sunday.
I did our usual Random Hills & Government Center Pkwy. It was a very satisfying. Concentrated on breathing throughout. No cramps at all! I tried to do negative splits, but couldn't manage that. It sure does take control to do accomplish that.

Meals: Cereal and an egg for breakfast + 2-3 cups of tea + Chicken sandwich at McD (I went out to the American History museum at the National Mall today afternoon while I was free and thats where I had that sandwich) + delicious Mysore Masala Dosa + Bhel Puri + coffee at Saravana.

Early morning (hilly) run in Fairfax [Nov 23 2009]

I did not update this blog last week. Did a 3 mile run in 34 minutes. It was a fartlek run. Comfy run. I think it was Tuesday last week. 
Anyways, I am not going to write about that entry.
Couldn't run this last weekend. So we decided to do an early morning run today (Monday). Got out at 8:45 and got back at 9:45. It was cold, but the gear helped! :-)
Quite hilly for what I am used to. This was the same route that Peggy had taken us on and I had found the return back very very tough. It was not so this time. We were pretty comfortable on the way back inspite of the slight ups and downs.
Concentrated on the breathing to make sure that I avoided the cramps. Works! 

Since we started this morning, I will not be able to update the meals part. So far I know I have had 2 eggs and a cup of tea. More as I go.

Jingle All The Way 10K

Madhura registered us for another 10K. Its called Jingle All The Way and is on December 13th in Washington DC's West Potomac Park. Not for a cause, but well...
Goal: 55 mins or less. Have to work on my stride and negative splits.

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(For this countdown timer visit: http://www.oneplusyou.com/bb/countdown )

Start back up [Nov 15 2009]

A week since we did the half marathon. Decided to slowly start back up.
After a week of rains and gloomy weather, it was a great Sunday. Perfect for a run. Enough rest. So decided its time to start running again. Enough rest.
An easy, slow run on our good old Government Center Parkway route. Took Maggy along too.
Knees are still sore and screaming! But by the second half, they were taking it well.
Heard Frank finished his Grand Canyon run. 55miles in that treacherous canyon - now THAT is something! Kudos to him! Someday I hope to run as well as him. 

Meals: Dosa + Mashed potato भाजी for brunch and sirloin steak + beer for dinner @ Applebee's.
Am planning to ramp up my runs a little more - more mileage per week. To increase pace. Lets see if and how the schedule and weather permits me to.

The first half marathon [Nov 8 2009]

So the D-Day finally arrives! The GCF race was to start today at 7am. We had a sumptuous Thai dinner with Jyothi and Lata the night before and a good night's rest. It was an interrupted sleep, but, all in all, quite restful. Woke up at 5:30am and took off at 6:15 to reach downtown DC's Freedom Plaza at 6:45. Quite stressful to find parking, but we did find a good place. 
Attire: Our base layers, tees, shorts and gloves. Come to think of it, it was an overkill, but we were not 'underdressed', so to speak. Everyone else was similarly dressed. The race count estimated ~1600. That included the half marathoners and the 5K-ers.
The race began 12 minutes late. But that was okay. We decided our target times to be between 2:00 - 2:15. That seemed achievable based on our practice paces. Being first time runners, we placed ourselves almost at the end of the whole crowd. It was a beautiful day. Perfect for running. Temperatures in the 50s. We were to do 3 laps of the course spanning Pennsylvania Avenue, Independence Avenue and Washington Avenue. Splendid view!

Madhura and I were together for about 3 miles after which I took off. The course was really even and smooth. I got the gloves and head cap off within the first 2 miles. Note to self: no 'overdressing' if temperatures are any where above 50deg.
At the end of the first loop, I was making really good time. 4.5miles took me ~34mins. That was way too fast, so I slowed down a tad.
The cramps set in at ~mile 6. I took it easy at the water break station and walked for a minute. The deep breathing and stretching helped. There were 2 water stations. I made sure to pick up 2 glasses - one gatorade and one water, mixed them up and sipped at them slowly. Not many people were really taking their breaks. I don't know if that was good or not. But it certainly helped me.
About around mile 5 the leaders passed me on their second loop. The speed that they were at...amazing! I was like...WTF! Some day...sigh!
I found a partner. Don't know his name. But he was a middle aged guy. We were together for the last 4 miles or so. Our paces matched. So it was good. Madhura waved to me whenever we crossed each other on the other loop. 
After an hour, my stopwatch stopped! Bummer! So I had to rely on the race clocks. At mile 10, the second clock said 1:34! I was pissed! 3 more miles in 26 mins. Impossible! I tried to push the pace up. Mistake! When I started back up, my thighs cramped up really bad! I let out a grumble and there was this other guy who prodded me on. Now that was so motivating. It was great! Asked him the time and he checked his watch to say 1:59! And there was still half a mile to go. I could see the finish line. But the little bit of sprinting that I did didn't help. Final net time was 2:03:38 with a pace of 9:26. Well, I met my target goal of 2:00:00 to 2:15:00. 

Place Div/Tot  Num   Name                    Age Hometown         Gun Tim Net Tim Pace  
===== ======== ===== ======================= === ================ ======= ======= ===== 
  225  78/109    332 Amit Gurjar              33 Fairfax VA       2:04:36 2:03:38  9:26 

392 155/196     25 Madhura Asanare          27 Fairfax VA       2:19:06 2:18:08 10:33

My feet really buckled after crossing the finish line. A good breather and stretching took care of that. Madhura came in at 2:18:08, a pace of 10:33. She cramped a muscle near her hip and looked pretty tired too.
Malli and Chandrika were there at the finish line. They are such a wonderful couple. They had water and bananas for us. We got our medals. I will post pictures as they upload them on their website.
For full results: 
Men
Women
The winners were right besides us. Their timings:
Men:

Place Div/Tot  Num   Name                    Age Hometown         Gun Tim Net Tim Pace  
===== ======== ===== ======================= === ================ ======= ======= ===== 
    1   1/89    1832 Demesse Tefera           27 Silver Spring MD 1:05:07 1:05:07  4:59 
    2   2/89    1420 Abiyot Endale            23 Bronx NY         1:06:22 1:06:22  5:04 
    3   3/89     612 Joel Mwaura              26 Waldorf MD       1:07:50 1:07:50  5:11

Women:

Place Div/Tot  Num   Name                    Age Hometown         Gun Tim Net Tim Pace  
===== ======== ===== ======================= === ================ ======= ======= ===== 
    1   1/196   1203 Teyba Naser              20 Albuqurque NM    1:12:33 1:12:32  5:32 
    2   2/196   1201 Alemtsehay Misganaw      29 New York NY      1:13:54 1:13:54  5:39 
    3   3/196   1205 Salome Kosgei            29 Sleepy Hollow NY 1:16:41 1:16:41  5:51

Look at those paces! Gosh! I have a lot to catch up on. Thats a good thing. I now know what to improve. :-)

There was Mandy Moore and Miss USA as chief guests, who we really didn't care for. Not now. Drove back home and slept like logs till ~3. 

All in all - a very very satisfying experience! I asked Madhura to immediately register us for the next race. That shows how much I enjoyed and want to do this again. 

6 months ago, whoever imagined I would do a half marathon!? Whoever imagined I could run non-stop for 2 straight hours!? In fact, even now friends don't believe it. I did it! And for once I can say, it was by the strength of my own will. And I enjoy every minute of it.

And I still have miles more to go...

A missed turn [Nov 4 2009]

In preparation for the upcoming half marathon, I decide to do another 3 miles. Chalked out a new route before taking off. Had to stop over at Best Buy to get a webcam for work. By the time I was ready to take off, it was really really dark. Well, since the route was in the inroads, I decide, not much traffic, so I should be fine. Started easy and then picked up pace. I missed a turn at ~mile 2. Soon I realize that the roads were not familiar. So I turn back. After getting home, I realize I had overshot by 3.5miles! But the good part is I covered it at a very very good pace! 6.4miles in 50min! A ~7.5 pace! Not bad!

Great part is that I was very comfortable! Had some stitches at mile 5, but slowing down and deep breathing helped. Overall very satisfactory and most importantly, I enjoyed it!

Meals: Cereal for breakfast + A (yucky) burger & fries for lunch + Chicken curry & Sarson ka Saag & roti & bread for dinner. Hydration - adequate. 

Have to do another run this Friday before the big one!

Leggings and top [Nov 02 2009]

I usually don't run on Mondays. But enough is enough! No more excuses. And I wanted to try out the new base layer we got from Dick's; just to see how comfortable they might be.
A quick run to Walmart to see if I could get any reflective items, to no avail. Will try some other store some other day.
A good warm up for 1/2 mile and then tried to keep a 8-9 pace (of course thats just from my judgement). Did the 3.74 miles in 32 mins = pace of 8.3m/hr. Not bad, I should say. Very very comfortable at the end of the run. Infact, I think after ~3 miles I felt I could spike it up a tad. Point to note.
The base layer leggings and runnings shirt felt superb! Infact I didn't feel that I was carrying a whole lot at all! So thats good. No stitches either. (Wonder if both have any link. I wouldn't think so.)

Meals: Cereal for breakfast + Regular Quiznos Turkey & Pepsi & a bag of chips for lunch + Bread  & Chicken curry (from Saturday's Halloween party...yuummmm!!!) & beer & Madhura's brownie for dinner. I didn't drink my regular quota of water. Inspite of that, didn't feel any discomfort.

Break the lethargy [Nov 02 2009]

Its been almost 2 weeks since we last ran. Last week was lost. My car conked out, farewell parties for the consultants rolling out, rain...excuses excuses!
So we decided to break the 'lazy run'. We got the base layer leggings and tops from Dicks. The last 12 freezing miles really got to us. 
Its been raining on and off last few days. So we just did a quick run on the treadmill at the apartment gym. 
I just cannot run on the treadmill! 2-2.5miles and I get 'bored'!
Lets see, weather permitting I may do a few miles this week. Have to try on the base layers too - see how comfortable I am in them.

'Retched' fartlek [Oct 21 2009]

Frankly speaking, I was a tad scared after Sunday's long run to run today. But at the same time excited too! Makes sense? I know it does.

The last fartlek was a lot of fun. And somehow I think it helped me this Sunday. Somehow my body could go longer. So I decide to give it a try again. 

Despite Frank's warnings of not taking off right away, for some stupid reason, I decide to pace right at the start. Initially it was no problem for ~2 miles. Did intermittent sprints and walking. I think I pushed myself too hard there. Was retching at ~2.25mile. I know I am pushing my body. But rather now than the race. Despite the cold, I was sweating like a pig. 

Overall quality of run:- Top class!

Meals: Granola bar for breakfast + Regular turket sub from Quiznos + little chivda as evening snack + instant noodles + rice खीर for dinner.

Chatted with Frank yesterday and he gave me some very valuable advice:

1. Gloves
2. Wicking base layer and leg tights (I have not clue what base layer is...but I guess I will have to find out)
3. Head and ear insulation (cap/headband)
4. Pullover with zipper
5. Gels (Hammer Nutrition or Gu - check out caffeine content)
6. Have to read up on 'negative splits'

A lot to take in. But my confidence levels are good.

I believe I was reincarnated! [10/18/2009]

We decided we would do this one last long run before the coming half-marathon. It was really cold. Lower 50's. We decided not to go buy new tights for winter now. "It's okay. We will warm up as we go". Well...W-R-O-N-G!
For one, we didn't eat a good breakfast. No adequate clothing. Bad combination!
We started off at about 1:45pm. It was a to and back run on West Ox road (familiar street). The run to...6miles were a breeze! I did it really really well. It was on the way back that was the killer! Madhura's hands were freezing. So she said she would come along slow while I was to go ahead and get the car. I could see she could barely hold her tears back because of the cold. So I took off. And really couldn't go that far at all! So decided the 2min run - 1min walk would help. That didn't. 1min run-1min walk didn't either. I'd left my phone back with Madhura, just incase. So missed the music too, maybe! I did get back and so did Madhura.
All in all, though we finished, we learnt valuables lessons: Eat well. Pace yourself such that you take it easy in the beginning and then pick up later, maybe. Good protective clothing is a MUST! Have to buy headbands and tights. Rather, appropriate for the weather.
We ate like animals after we got back. I say "Eat all you can Madhura. This might be the last thing thats going down your throat!"
Lesson learnt and hopefully that will come in handy in future.
I don't even want to note down what I ate. 

First fartlek [Oct 13 2009]

Post 10miler finds me very confident and upbeat. So I decide to give fartleks a try.

It was exhilarating! And very tiring! It got really dark. So I couldn't look at the time. Used the electric line poles as gauges. Sprinted and slow ran every alternate pole for 1.5 miles. Then held steady for the rest.

Its starting to get cold too! I hope I can hold on. We might need to get some gear for the cold. I don't know what they are called. Will have to ask Frank.

Meals: Cereal + Milk for breakfast, a regular turkey sub from Quiznos for lunch, beer + heat-n-eat chicken curry + chapati + spinach-potato भाजी for dinner.

Also, just found out that Madhura has registered me for a half marathon!!!!!!!!!! yaayyyy!!!! This one's in DC. For the Gynecological Cancer Foundation. On Nov 8th! This time I feel totally confident. I am not sure about the time I will be able to finish. Am not even going to set a time. Let me run this just for fun. What say?

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Crossed the 10 mile milestone!!! [Oct 11 2009]

I was kind of tired always chalking out different paths for me and Madhura. So decide, lets catch up with her. So I skip the routine of adding one mile to the weekly long run and decide to spike it up by 3!
It was a tad chilly in the morning (45 F). I would say, perfect for a long run! Took off at 10:15am. Back after 2 hours! It was a really horrible run. Horrible in the sense, the small hills killed us! But overall a very satisfactory run. It was in the inner residential roads. Not much of a pavement as such and Madhura was constantly worried of the traffic. A couple more weeks of this kind and we should make real good time. No doubt about that.
Overall very very satisfactory. And I broke the 10 mile milestone! Sure deserve a pat on the back! :-)
No amount of words can describe the satisfaction. Deadtired, no doubt. But very satisfied.

Meals: 2 eggs + toast + tea for breakfast, juice + alu-gobi sabji + daal + naan + methi paratha for lunch,

Regular one [Oct 8 2009]

Stupid part was inspite of mapping the run course online before heading out, we kind of lost our way by taking a turn earlier. Anyways, no harm done. We still managed to chart out 3 miles.

I slacked on updating this blog on Thursday. So I don't remember what I had for meals. But all I remember was that the day was great and the hilly terrain killed me! :-)

Tempo run [Oct 6 2009]

I decided to do a tempo run today. 4 miles in 35 minutes. Great day. And the run was just awesome! Did it in 32 minutes! I had to really prod myself the last mile. But its a good way to let my body know that this is what is expected out of it.

No soreness whatsoever today morning. The good 7 hours sleep did me good! Tried focussing on the foot fall. Concentrated on mid fall and keeping the feet straight ahead.
Food: Cereal for breakfast + 6" spicy italian sub & cookie + Chitale chivda &  beer & the rest of the 6" spicy italian and cookie for dinner.

Long run [Oct 3 2009]

It was the LONG run today. And we had to drive to Delaware too.
So got up early but eventually started the run at 9:30.
Last week I did 7 miles. So had to do 8 this week. Weather was beautiful. After a little deliberation, we decided to do the same route as last week.
It worked out well, I should say. Madhura had to do 11 miles! So she went ahead. I turned around after 4 miles.

Overall time, I wouldn't say I was proud of. But this is my longest run ever! I did walk a few minutes towards the end. But hey! I had to keep my feet in walking condition with the trip to Delaware coming up.

No pains! Whatsoever. So thats a HUGE improvement. Whatever I am doing, I am doing right! For a change!

Food: 2 bullseye for breakfast + Chicken fried rice and chili chicken from Masala Wok for lunch + Chicken marsala at Dover Downs for dinner.

Easy run [Oct 2 2009]

I still have to figure out how to include my runs given my traveling schedule. :-(
Since we were planning on going to Delaware on Saturday, we decided to do an easy run on Friday and a long one on Saturday.
There were signs of rains. I got my Iphone arm band, and was excited to try it on.
So just did 3 rounds around the apartment block.

I was in a hurry to get back home and work on setting up Ubuntu. More about that in Random Ramblings.

Food: Cereal for breakfast + Parathas & black eyed peas for lunch + rice-rasam for dinner.

Nice 'n easy [Sept 29 2009]

Great day! Great run! I am not going to get carried away running away like a maniac. 4 miles today. Nice and beautiful.
Meals: Cereal for breakfast, Indian buffet for lunch, 3 paneer parathas for dinner. I have to admit I didn't drink my daily quota of water. But made sure to rehydrate soon after the run.

Also, meant to put this tip up: You keep going and in due course, your shoulders start having this sharp pain. Two ideas here. Press the tips of your fingers together as you run. Read this in the 13-week program manual. Strange, but it works. Another one, I think I don't swing my arms well enough. So I worked on that. And shoulder pain - gone! I think it has something to do with my upper body being too stiff during running. Well..one step at a time. Will work on that slowly.

Easy goes it [Sept 27 2009]

After that new muscle pull, and all that icing and anti-inflammatory pills, I decide to run ~3 miles.
Take off on Sunday afternoon. It was Madhura's long run day. (She pulled off a 10miler!)
Beautiful day. Sunny but not hot. Took Maggy with us and did an easy 3miles. Just a tingling of soreness. But good overall.
Meals: 2 eggs + tea for breakfast, BBQ chicken (that grille we got during the Shenandoah camping works great!) + paneer paratha + chicken curry (from last night) for lunch + masala dosa & chutney (at Malli-Chandrika's) for dinner.
Plan to do no more than 4 miles a day this coming week.

Take it slow [Sep 23 2009]

So here I was all upset because I could not run Tuesday. Decide to do 6 miles Wednesday. Chalked out this path and started off. Nice run! The fireflies added to the good scenary. It was hot and humid. I must have sweat a bucket.
It got dark pretty fast and somewhere during the run, I thought I took a wrong turn. The phone's map was not showing me the right location. Anyways, all was well.

Got a call at the end of the run and I couldn't do my stretches. And some freaking muscle on the outside of my arch (on looking it up...I think its called Peroneous Longus/Tetius Tendon) started paining like crazy! Iced it with the hope that its just an inflammation. Taped it before coming to work. Feels much better.
Food: cereal for breakfast, broiled flounder + fries + veggies + iced tea for lunch, cauliflower sabzi + roti + paneer paratha for dinner. Of course, tonnes of water throughout the day.

A smooth 7 miler! [Sept 20 2009]

Yeah yeah! 7 miles! Didn't feel a thing! Beautiful day (actually late evening)! Beautiful music! Beautiful wife! All this together on the run. Good pace. We could chit chat most part of the run.
We actually wanted to go for the run in the morning...but we just slept in. Had a party the previous evening...didn't feeling like getting out of bed. So...well...took off after the trip to the mall. It got really dark soon. But it was a very very refreshing run.
Food: 2 eggs + tea for breakfast; leftover sabji and roti from yesterday for lunch; beer+rice+rasam at night.

Walking - make or break

Couldn't run Thursday.
Ran ~3m with Madhura on Friday. The shoes work like a charm. Touchwood! Didn't need the shin guard either. Terrain was hilly. So I took a break to walk. And that was a mistake. Every time I thought I should stop...I did! Madhura warned me not to do that next time. Its easy to 'give up' by walking.
Food: Broiled flounder + fries + raspberry tea for lunch. Philly cheese steak for + beer for dinner.
I don't think I will run on Saturday. Nitin, his bro + family, and parents are coming over for dinner.
Should be a long run day Sunday. 

LOVE the new New Balance

So I go back to the shoe store and pretend I just want to exchange the shoes. This time its a new female and she lets me get the shoes. (Phew!)
Lesley helped me pick up the NB. Asked me to get a size larger. So I did. 
Couldn't wait to get in them and take them for a run. And BOY! I tell you! I never knew running could be SO much fun...and most importantly...painless!!! I could go keep running! Infact I was trying out different foot strikes just to see if the pain would come back. Zilch! Nada! Heavenly!

Ran 6 miles. I forgot to start the timer in time. But approx. 65min. It was pitch dark by the second half. Seriously thinking of using the mornings.
Meals: Lunch - a huge salad; Dinner - heat-n-eat Chicken biryani + paneer paratha + beer + lots of water.

No shoes...no run

Went to the store in Dover Mall to return the Nikes. The Asst.Manager tells me that the shoes have been worn. Worn as in worn? Or worn out? The former. Duh! I had to wear them on to try them out to figure out they don't work. I need to go back again after I scrubbed the soles of the little dirt. Lets see.
So here's the plan: 24 miles/week. (3 x 6miles) + (2 x 3miles). I carry that on till I can consistently run without the splints and the 6miles within 55min. And then I spike a mile every week. Sounds like a plan?
I am going to have to try to run in the mornings. Me not being a morning person...it sounds impossible...but atleast let me give it a try.

Enthused but 'splintered'

The 61:23 run on Saturday really got to me. I never even imagined I would clock over 60. So here's my plan - consistent 6 milers not more than 55min. (Thats going to be only during races)
I know with my shin splints, that is not a very wise decision. But am going to stick to a plan I have chalked out after reading up several sites. This is the first of my running blog diary posts. Hope to carry on till the goal is reached.
Ran 3miles (30:00) yesterday. The shin splints started like..almost immediately. I did the stretching, had the calf-shin sleeve on. But the new Nikes. Tried changing my stride, my strike, pace. Nothing helped! Stopped and did the stretches again and that seemed to help. Weather was beautiful! Well hydrated. Two 6" spicy italian from subway and 2 cookies. Slept at 11.
Am going to try and return the Nikes and get something different.

New goal Sept 15 2009

When I posted my status on Facebook about completing my first 10K on Sept 12, Swapna asked me what am I training for? Casual question, I am sure. But that set things rolling for me. More about that in Random Ramblings.
So here's a new goal: A 2:00 Half marathon by my 2010 birthday.
So, here's my running blog diary to keep a track of my training and keep me on it!
Meanwhile, a couple of pics from the Run Washington website:
Life Without Limits 10K - 1
Life Without Limits 10K - 2