Week in Review

74 Miles
9 Runs
4 Days of Pain Free Running
1 Bruised IT Band
1 (Temporary) third roommate in Jordan

So this week started off with a snow storm, followed the next day by ice, and then followed the next day with ice remaining on the sidewalks of uptown. Needless to say, there were three days that I spent on the treadmill because my physical therapist warned me that running on a slick surface could make my IT Band condition worse instead of improve. Fortunately for me, I had company for 13 miles on the treadmill with John, Jay, and Meagan in the morning and a double later that evening. Given the icy conditions of the sidewalks and roads, I am glad that I had a Pura Vida gym membership so that I could still get my runs in without worrying about re-injuring my IT Band.

With the ice, that meant that I had to drop one workout (8x3 min) and just do two workouts within two days of each other: 3x2 Mile and tempo + long run. Given that I ran my first discomfort free run in over two weeks on Thursday, both these workouts went better than expected and were good indicators that my goals for the Houston Half Marathon are still within reach. While I did have a scare on Sunday after my tempo, with a stabbing pain in my knee, I iced and heated in hopes that it would be fine by Monday. I was right as I was able to walk down stairs pain free and run across the street the next day. I also updated my orthotics (they were over two years old), which will again correct my leg length discrepancy. I'm hoping this will help prevent me from having issues again.

On a personal note, Jordan ran with me three out of the four days this week. He also became our third roommate for the weekend as Meagan was out of town winning the 13.1 Los Angeles race. John, Jordan, Garrett and I all enjoyed a lazy day of calf massages, blog updating, tv watching, and eating together. It was a fun way to enjoy my last weekend in Charlotte before I head off to Asheville this weekend, Houston next weekend, and Las Vegas the following weekend.

I will also note that several people have reached out to me offering advice on IT Band recovery, which has been really helpful! On the same note, however, several people have asked me what I've been doing that allows me to continue running 70+ miles without pain. Look for a blog post early this week with my keys to IT Band recovery!