Listen to Your Stupid Body

I ran 5K in 36 minutes (ok, 35:59) this morning, bringing to an end a week of really good runs. But, normally, I'd say "It's ok.  At least I got out there.  That's what this summer is all about."

But no.  I shouldn't have gotten out there, I should have stayed in bed with a heat pack on my back.

You see, I got trounced at badminton on Monday for about an hour and 15 minutes, my first time playing any racquet sport in several years.  I knew my back and shoulder would be sore.  And they were.  I was a little sore yesterday, but I felt ok yesterday and went on my run without incident, finishing 3.1 miles 34:29.  Pretty good!

Today...MUCH worse. It started to feel worse last night, when I was having trouble getting into a comfortable position to sleep, but it was even worse this morning: every motion was agony and if I did find a comfortable position, the muscle would painfully spasm after a few seconds.  "Maybe a run will loosen it up", I stupidly said to myself.

I got over to the school, back still spasm-ing, and my legs felt weak as I walked up a slighly inclined part of the parking lot.  "I'll feel better once I warm up", I stupidly thought.

I was wrong on both stupid counts.  I felt terrible, legs week, stride uneven, suffering through my 3.1, with my back feeling even worse when I finished.  At one point, around 9:30, I got up from my office chair, couldn't straighten up, and fell back in the chair with a "thud".  After a miserable day of back spasms, I'm only starting to feel a little better 13 hours later with a heating pad on my back.

I have been trying to tell myself that I won't always feel strong and have motivation, so I have to take advantage of the days that I do and get out there, rather than depending on that motivation to still be there that evening (when it's 85F) of the next day (when bed is so comfy).  But on the other hand, all the motivation in the world isn't going to help if you're legitimately injured.  Think before you run, and rest if you need it.  Don't be stupid like me.

To add insult to injury, my new Nike singlet looks very unflattering on me.

The Comeback is Real

On Monday, I ran my fastest four-miler of the year.  Today, I ran a 33:54 5K.  That doesn't stack up against my 5K times from 2007-2012, but it's my fastest 5K distance since the beginning of February.  In the 3 good months of running that I've had, this is the first time I've been under 34 minutes and kept a better than 11-minute mile pace.

And they have been good months:

I was a little bit faster in January in February, but far less consistent in getting out there.  Since August, when I got the Garmin Vivoactive, which made tracking all this stuff automatic and totally Brian-proof, my previous highest monthly mileage was 21 miles in January, followed a 13-mile February and a 14.7-mile March.   In April, I ran 38 miles.  May was 43.2, and June, unless I run tomorrow instead of Saturday, will wind up at 42.1 miles.

I used to run 30+ miles every week, and sometimes I can't help but remember that and be frustrated, but the picture above tells the story of the longest stretch of consistent running since January, February, and March of 2016, and I'm sticking with it even as the weather warms up.  This is huge for me.  If I can keep this up during the dog days of July and August, it will be the first consistent summer of running that I've had since 2011.

That plateau that you see above, that's not going to get much higher over the summer.  I'm ok with that.  The mileage I'm running now compares to what I was doing in summer of 2008, when I was reliably running 2.8 miles (2 laps) 3-4x/week at Cousler Park. I ran for almost two years before I attempted a distance over 3.1 miles, but building that base helped me when I did move up to the 10K and half marathon, and it'll help me again now.  If I can grind through the summer, I'll be ready when fall and winter come.