That's More Like It

During yesterday's cross country meet up in Ellsworth, running around the course to check up on our runners had me on the verge of pressing the panic button. Not in regards to our runners (they did very well), but in regards to my left knee. That aching sprained feeling was quite prominent. I was even hobbling around at times.

But by the evening, the ache lessened some. I woke up this morning and performed a series of stretches and foam rolled the buttocks, hamstrings and knee area and felt pretty good. Then I went for a run.

I was going to play the run by ear and not hesitate to turn around if it got bad. For the first quarter of a mile it still ached, only a notch better than yesterday. But after that, it got progressively better. I still noticed a very slight and dull ache here and there during the run, but it was very faint. Other times, I was mindful that there was no pain or ache at all. Very good signs whenever a pain or discomfort lessens during a run, and usually an indicator that something is tight but potentially easily loosened back up on a more permanent basis.

I'll continue to aggressively stretch and strengthen the key areas, which will involve lots of various forms of leg lifts (using both elastic bands and gravity for resistance) and foam roll. I think that'll definitely continue to help, but time will tell. I'm encouraged though. Taking it very easy by running lightly only every other day last week helped physically, and even a bit mentally.

Looking ahead, I'm hoping I can put together a mileage pyramid in the six weeks leading up to the MDI Marathon. In other words, cautiously ramping up the mileage for three weeks and then taper for three weeks.

Worth noting there were more deer flies than anticipated this morning, but that's still not saying much. They were few in numbers and moving pretty slowly, which translated to easy kills. Had I have worn a hat, I doubt I would have even noticed them.

Ran 7.8 miles @ 9:02/mile pace.
Trails and fire roads.
Very hilly.
Around 70 degrees, sunny, humid.
Adidas Adizero XT, shorts, short sleeved shirt, handheld bottle (diluted Gatorade).