Training for a long run is a lot easier than the post-run. I say this because you can easily find all kinds of schedules and suggestions of how much you can and should do leading up to race, but there's no set schedule of things once you're done.
I waited two days before I hit the road again to run after the Middle Half. I took Sunday off entirely from doing any kind of workout and I hit the pool Monday afternoon for my usual longer swim routine.
So it was that I hit the road against yesterday for what I figured would be a slower recovery run. I warmed up in the pool (still my first choice of exercise and my favorite way to get the blood flowing. The only thing that would make the Middle Half better for me is if I could somehow swim to warm-up before I started the long run. It sounds like a lot, but even doing a half mile swim for me would be helpful. I just feel so much better, looser and ready to go for a run after a warm-up swim) and then hit the road.
At first, my legs and hips were determined to remind me, "Hey, you know we did run 13.1 miles the other day" while my stomach said, "Hey you promised us a doughnut and we have yet to see one here." At first, my legs were a bit spongy and sore, but things improved quickly and while I didn't feel like running 13.1 again, I still felt pretty good. The day had turned dramatically cooler from the time I assembled my running stuff (it's really time to start breaking in my new running shoes, but I ran one more time on my older ones) and the cool breeze helped things. (as in, it's time to run faster so I can get back inside where it's warm).
And once I got going, I figured I'd be sore later either way, so I might as well run the distance I'd initially set for myself rather than cutting things short. I don't feel that bad today from it, though my hips are still a bit cranky at times. I suppose it could be a combination of running and the cooler temperatures. But then I'd have to admit I was getting older....
posted by Michael Hickerson at 10/20/2010 12:03:00 PM |
|
