Clovelly Canter

Saturday, April 29, 2006
20.15km | 1:56:36 | LSD Week 10 of 13 I met CRs Blkbox and SydneyGal this morning at 6.30am at Queens Park for a LSD. We decided to run the Clovelly Canter as it is a challenging run with quite few nice hills to negotiate. I wore my new SKINS shorts this morning for the first time and found them quite snug and supportive on the pesky quad. In fact, the quad thing held up just fine for the whole 20kms so I'm pretty wrapped. We ran at an easy pace for most of the way and I took the opportunity to take off a few times and run some of the harder hills at race pace just to see how the quad thing coped. No problems it seems so I'm pumped for Nail Can next week. We finished feeling pretty fresh so we added another lap of Centennial Park to top the morning off. A very pleasant morning with good company. Happy days ! Mood: --->

City run.

Friday, April 28, 2006
10km | easy Week 10 of 13 I ran the City loop again last night setting off about 8.30pm. A crisp clear night with a bit of a wind made me wear a dri-fit t-shirt rather than a singlet. The t-shirt thing was a dumb move as I was uncomfortably hot by the time I reached Hyde Park. I was so hot that I had to lose the shirt and tuck it into the back of my shorts. I must have looked pretty stupid to those wearing long coats and scarves as I ran up William Street and through the Cross. Then the wind went straight through me at Edgecliffe so I had to put it back on, then I was hot again .... My quad thing was still there but it doesn't hurt all that much nor get any worse during the run. I think I'll get through normal training this weekend and then have an easy week of mostly spinning before I fly down to Albury for Nail Can. I've noticed that the quad thing seems to feel better when I put some pressure on it with my palm, so i might pop out today and buy some Skins and see if compression shorts make my life any easier. ==================== FAT FRIDAY ! Weight @ 01/01/06: 83.0kg Weight last week: 77.2kg Weight this week: 77.0kg Comment: 200 grams huh ? Not exactly the Biggest Loser ! ==================== Mood --->

Static Bike

Thursday, April 27, 2006
Week 10 of 13 These exercises that I am doing to fix my twisted mind spine and hips have given me a whole bunch of new niggles (DOMS probably) in the muscles that have hardly been used before. So instead of going for my 8km run required by my program I jumped on the bike for a brisk 60 mins. Other than a sore bum from the seat (how does Lance do it ?) I finished feeling pretty fresh. I then continued with my daily stretching and strengthening exercises. The DOMS in my legs, hips and lower back were feeling a tad better and I finished nearly all the exercises as per instructions. I have decided not to tackle the Bondi Barefoot on Sunday. Too many little pesky niggles lay dormant that I fear could blow up with a play in the sandpit. It's disappointing but realistically it's Nail Can next Sunday and SMH in May that are priorities. I aim to run 10kms tonight and then a gentle 7/8km on Saturday followed by 18km on Sunday, however I may drop the Saturday run if my legs are still complaining. Sometimes I feel like I'm constantly walking on egg shells trying to avoid injury... Mood --->

ANZAC Day

Tuesday, April 25, 2006
8km | easy Week 10 of 13 I took the kids into the city for ANZAC Day again this morning. I think its important that they grow up with an understanding and respect for war and those heros who fought on their behalf. In our family we have both close and distant relatives who died in the two World Wars. My two kids (aged 7 & 4) cheered and waved their flags proudly and showed genuine gratitude to many, many diggers. They made their Dad proud today. I managed to squeeze in a run in the light rain before it got dark and ran the outside fence of Queens Park and the inside/outside fence track of Centennial Park. My quad (not ITB, more of that below) was feeling good with only a little of the niggle left from the past weeks. About the ITB thing: I saw Larry the Physio on Monday afternoon and had a long chat about the whole drama. His conclusion is that it's not ITB at all but probably a quad/glute/abductor thing. As it seems to be fixing itself, we didn't really dwell on the remedies, but moreso on the cause. Larry has a holistic approach to these things and adopts a philosophy that these injuries are a result of an imbalance further up the trunk. For me, its a weakness in the left hip and a slight twist in the spine. Larry has given me a series of exercises which are designed to align the hips and strengthen the muscles which are currently under used. Add these new exercises to the bunch of stretches that I already do daily and I am now bending and twisting for nearly an hour a day. Just call me Swami from now on. ;-P

Beaches run.

Saturday, April 22, 2006
15km | LSD | about 90 mins Week 9 of 13 It was such a beautiful autumn day in Sydney that I just had to get out there. So after a hectic day doing stuff with the kids, I headed out at 3.30pm for a run. It was only when I was lacing up my shoes that I remembered that my ITB/glute thing hadn't complained all day so I decided to make the most of it and give it a bit of a test. This is why I run. Forget PB's and goals yadda yadda. Running on a georgous day in beautiful surroundings at a comfortable pace like today just makes me smile. I ran (smiling) up through Randwick and then down to to South Coogee, chucked a left and followed the coastal walk north through Coogee, Clovelly, Glamarama (took the pic facing south) and then to Bondi. Ran a lap of Bondi and then headed up Bondi Road to home. The ITB thing was happening but not enough to winge about. I was able to tackle all the stairs and hills of the run easy and only found going down the occasional dip a little bit niggly. Happy days ! Mood: --->

Not much happening...

Friday, April 21, 2006
Week 9 of 13 Yes, not much happening at the moment. Whilst the injury is sort of behaving itself, I've had a migrane for all of Tuesday and Wednesday (queue violins) which with all the medication knocks you about a fair bit. Thankfully, I'm on top of it this morning (albeit a bit seedy) but I won't be mucking about running until Saturday afternoon at the earliest. I have an appointment with Larry the Physio on Monday and am looking forward to his assessment of my niggle. My money is on a tear in the glute which has caused a tight ITB or something like that. We'll see what the guru thinks on Monday anyway. Hey, a big thanks for the 50th birthday wishes Don Juan (!!!) and also everyone elses wishes on Owl's CR Birthday thread. I'm actually 42 on Saturday (the answer to life, the universe and everything is it not ?) so not quite eligible for a Seniors Card, unlike you DJ ! ;-p ==================== FAT FRIDAY ! Weight @ 01/01/06: 83.0kg Weight before Easter: 77.2kg Weight this week: 77.2kg Comment: I actually put on 1kg over Easter, so I am happy with that result. ==================== Mood: --->

City run.

Wednesday, April 19, 2006
10km | easy Week 9 of 13 I pulled up a little sore in the hip/quad/ITB area after Saturday's run and the Easter Show walkathon. So I spent all available time on Sunday icing and stretching. Ice seems to do the job on the ITB and I felt good enough to go for a "turn the legs over" 5km run in the afternoon. Last night I ran into the City along Oxford Street around at the Museum and then headed home via William Street and Edgecliff. I didn't run at any real pace, it was more about just getting some miles in my legs and trying to build my base for the half in May. Running the hills up to Edgecliff and then up through Woollahra were testing on my ITB but not impossible to put up with. A little pain is OK by me as long as I'm still able to run. Mood: --->

Easter Bunny etc

Saturday, April 15, 2006
45:00 | moderate I met up with Cool Blogger Blkbox today for a quickish run through Queens & Centennial Parks. I felt pretty good today with only a slight tightness down the outside of the thigh (ITB I guess). I spent most of Friday stretching not only that area but my glutes, abductors and other hip type stuff. A revelation was rolling my butt on a tennis ball. Doing that I found a nasty patch deep in my glute which I reckon (based on the level of pain) could even be a tear. Berta the Massage fiend's advice of warming the ITB etc with a heat pack before I stretch and applying ice afterwards, things seemed to work OK and made the run go OK. Today at the Easter Show (groan, am I just a cranky old man or is a $350 for day out with the family a tad ridiculous?) my ITB was not troubling me but moreso little niggles deep inside the hip and glute. A warm shower this evening and stretch seemed to fix it OK though. So, for today anyway, I'm feeling OK and confident that I can kick this sooner rather than later. I shall now tuck into an Easter Egg in celebration I think. Oh yeah, Fat Friday was cancelled for this week. Today I had a pie and a beer and fairyfloss and some fudge and a milkshake and (I won't go on) .... then stopped off at Norton Street for Pizza tonight. Back on the diet on Monday or Tuesday I think. Mood: --->

Back in the swing ? Who said that !

Wednesday, April 12, 2006
5km | Recovery pace Week 7 of 13 Yes, recalcitrant. That's my left quad and upper ITB right now. Walking home down from Bondi Junction after work last night I was feeling sweet. I had a run down to Bondi Beach and back planned, about 10kms. After the kids were in bed I headed out for my run and it only took 5 paces for my Beach run to be canned in favour of maybe a run out to Moore Park and back. Another 5 paces and the Moore Park run was quickly switched for a most uninspiring lap around the block. So this dull ache in the upper ITB has not gone away and simply chose to be dormant on the weekend. I ran last night at about 6min/km pace and finished feeling sore but OK. This morning however I'm very sore and hence a bit cranky. I'm seeing Berta the Masseuse tomorrow for my hour of pain and may have to flick her for a session with Larry the Physio next week if things don't improve. I found some ITB specific stretches on the Running Times Magazine website, so I will give these a crack twice a day over the long weekend and ice up often as well. I'm scheduled for 6 hours of cross training on Saturday (taking the kids to the Easter Show) which will probably only stuff things further. If my family loved me they would push me around in a wheelchair for the day, wouldn't they ? ;-) Mood: --->

Back in the swing.

Sunday, April 09, 2006
30:00 | Cliff Young pace Week 7 of 13 My last massage session has worked wonders on all my sore bits and my new stretching regime has kept them somewhat under control. I set off this morning for a nice easy lap of the park and managed that without too much stress. I do have a residual ache in my left glute but that seems to be getting slowly better with the deep hip and glute stretches that I doing. The good thing as that my ITB seems to be behaving itself now which is a relief. With all the talk of others having ITB issues I was worried that this might manifest itself into a long term problem. A combination of Berta's massages, "denting" with the rolling pin and a daily lashing from the Marathon Stick seems to have worked a treat. I'll remain conservative with my runs for this week, continue with the daily deep stretching program and will hopefully be able to resume full training by the weekend. Mood: --->

Sore bum.

Friday, April 07, 2006
Week 7 of 13 I saw Berta yesterday for my hour of pain. It's funny, I leave office saying to my PA "I'm off to get a massage" and she always replies "lucky you!". I'm sure she thinks that I lie there with yoghurt on my face and cucumbers on my eyes for an hour whilst being painted with some smelly mud extracted from the hot springs of Tierra del Fuego. I must get her a deep tissue massage for her next birthday to show her just how much I care. ;-) By yesterday morning my ITB had settled down to a mild pull but my left glute, abductor and deep hip area were really sore. Why is the pain moving around for gods sake ? Anyway, Berta concentrated on that area and gave me 20mins of shiatsu on my bum. I don't know if you bloggers have ever had shiatsu but yesterday I discovered a whole new level of pain. Between you and me I think she was punishing me for not stretching enough in this area. It appears that she has successfully released a fair amount of tension in the muscles and I have been given homework consisting of multiple new stretches for the lower back, glutes, hips etc and spent 30 mins last night struggling through them. I'm no Swami that's for sure. I'm feeling good this morning (apart from a really sore left glute) and will have on run on the flat grass in the morning and see how I pull up. ==================== FAT FRIDAY ! Weight @ 01/01/06: 83.0kg Weight last week: 78.6kg Weight this week: 77.2kg Comment: Somebody stop me ! ==================== Mood: --->

Totesterone overload.

Wednesday, April 05, 2006
6km | soft sand | not timed Week 7 of 13 It was shirts off at 20 paces at Bondi Beach as the beach runners came out of the woodwork last night, all obviously training for the Bondi Barefoot at the end of the month. So instead of me being the lone runner in the sand, I was joined by at least a dozen other gents all vying for alpha male honors in an impromptu dress rehearsal for the event. Yes the sand was wet with totesterone as the boys all ran hard ensuring that nobody passed them as they completed each 1km lap. I on the other hand refused to play a part in their little game, just plodded through my laps and ignored their subliminal challenges. By the way my ITB is still sore. Its a niggle rather than a pain, but it doesn't seem to be improving any. I am seeing Berta again tomorrow for a massage and will monitor it over the weekend. If after my Sunday LSD it's still there then I will have to see Larry the Physio next week for some treatment. I need to nip this in the bud quickly before it gets worse as April is an important month for my base leading up to Nail Can, the SMH half and beyond. I've been doing the rolling pin thing (on my side in feotal -sp?- position with rolling pin under my ITB, moving it up the thigh every 30 secs or so) and also stretching it the only way I know how (sitting on the floor and pulling my bent knee up and across towards my chest). Does anyone know other stretches that can help beat this niggle ? Mood: --->

SLIP SLOP SLAP

Monday, April 03, 2006
Week 7 of 13 A family friend is a semi-retired plastic surgeon and now operates his home surgery as the Woollahra Skin Cancer Clinic. Getting checked for these nasties has been on my to-do list for some time, so I finally found the time to see him on Saturday. I basically got the all clear but he did freeze of a few "crusty bits" from the tops of my ears and one on my back. So heads up bloggers ! The message from the Doc for runners was to watch the scalp, tops of ears and bottom lip. I always wear a cap and put on the 30+ on my face and back of neck but think I have been slack on the ears over the years. I have never used any sun screen on my lips so I will have to make that part of my routine from now. I entered the Sydney Morning Herald Half Marathon this morning. It's a great race and a really fun day. As the late, great Big Kev would say - "I'm excited!" Mood: --->

To PB or not to PB

Saturday, April 01, 2006
10km | race | 45:15:95 | PB ? Week 6 of 13 So with a 45:16 10km PB, can I claim a 45:15:95 finish as a PB ? Yeah splitting hairs really. I think I'll just say that I equaled my PB today then. Having said that the Striders Fleet Steps course is much tougher than the Olympic Park course last month with 3 laps of a 3km or so loop. Each loop has two tough hills so I can walk away from this one knowing that I did better this time around and that 45 minute barrier is mine for the taking very soon. I caught the 5.55am train from Bondi Junction to Martin Place and walked down Macquarie Street in the dark towards the Opera House. Down by Bridge Street I was joined by an American couple, Jack and Helen, who were out from Atlanta visiting their new grandchild. Jack is a keen runner and found the Striders race on the web. Same goes with a young Irishman who was running as well whilst on holidays. I was a very proud Aussie as we walked through the Opera House forecourt in the pre-dawn light and out through Farm Cove. What a beautiful place to be on a crisp still morning. 10km | LSD | not timed After the usual catch up with everyone I ran home through Woolloomooloo (it smelt like stale beer and spew, yuck), up through Darlinghurst and then along Oxford Street to Centennial Park where I did a lap of the horse track to add a few more Ks to the run. I ran it very slow and just plodded home at a steady Cliff Young pace. All in all I'm a little tired but very content with my morning. Mood: --->