First off, a huge thanks to everyone who expressed concern, gave advice, and sent “good vibes” my way on overcoming my calf pain.  The general consensus was to foam roll, ice and rest, so I did a little of everything.  I foam rolled on both Wednesday and Thursday along with doing some extra stretches.  I also have been icing my calf almost constantly as well.  (Side Note: I got an ice bag (two actually) for Christmas and it has made icing so much more pleasurable.  Gone are the days of leaky Ziploc resulting in wet pants.  Highly recommend one.)   I even did rest a bit – sort of.  Thursday was supposed to be a 4 mile run and an hour big ride.  I did still run, but only did about 3 miles.  I was relatively pain free and mainly wanted to get out and see how it felt.  I skipped the bike ride entirely, but that was more due to an emergency session of online Mario Kart Wii than the injury.  Yes, I have my priorities in order.

As for my run today, I am happy to announce that I completed all 21 miles pain free.  Well, at least I was free of any pain that was out of the ordinary for a 21 mile run.  Yes, my legs were killing me for the finale 5 miles or so, but they were just tired, not hurt.  My calf didn’t bother me at all the entire way.  Even now that I am done, it hasn’t even tightened up.  My hamstring is a bit tight, but I guess I’ll just have another appointment with the foam roller tonight and work it out.

Overall the run went fairly well.  I got a later start than I wanted (this seems to be becoming the norm) and headed out at 10:00.  My original plan was to do loops around Reeds Lake.  This way, I would be able to stay relatively close to home in case my calf acted up.  On my first lap, I ditched my water bottle in some bushes so that I didn’t have to carry it on the first loop.  I wouldn’t need it right away any ways. 

After finishing the first loop and picking up my water bottle, I decided to change up my planned route because I didn’t have any pain.  And, I realized that laps around the lake were going to get boring really quickly.  So, I ventured out and headed towards downtown, did a loop around Aquinas College and a loop through Calvin College before finishing with a second loop around the lake.

 
I definitely got slower as I progressed, but I’ll take it.  I am a little disappointed in the two miles that came in at over a 9 minute pace though.

It was actually pretty a good route.  The sidewalks were still covered in sloppy snow, but the roads were clear so I stuck to running on them.  Not too bad considering we just got 10 inches of snow on Wednesday.

After I got home, I immediately took a snow bath for my legs.  I didn’t have any ice again, but had plenty of snow.

I followed that by gorging myself with left over pasta and a gigantic chocolate milkshake.  It really hit the spot.

I get to take a rest day tomorrow, which I desperately need.  I may still head up to the pool though because I missed my Wednesday swim.  That may sound like breaking the rules of a rest day, but sometimes swimming is almost more therapeutic than doing nothing.

Again, thank you to everyone for your well wishes and advice!

Today was my first 20 miler of my training program.  I was dreading it all week despite the fact that all my runs were going well – better than expected in fact.

I prepped for my run with a great pre run dinner last night prepared by the lovely Jennifer.  Pasta, breadsticks, broccoli, salad, and chocolate milk.  It was delicious. 

This morning, I got up around 8:00 and ate an energy packed breakfast.  While I digested a bit, I got some work done before heading out around 9:30.  I wanted to get started earlier than I have for my past couple of long runs so that I wasn’t running into the lunch hour and getting ravenously hungry. 

I started out headed west because it felt like that was the direction the wind was coming from and I wanted to get that out of the way so I wasn’t running into the wind at the end.  However, it seemed no matter which way I turned, I was running into the wind.  Not sure how that is possible – must be global warming or something.  I stopped by my dad’s house along the way to say hello and refill my water bottle.  That was 9 miles in and I was still feeling pretty good.  After that, I headed back east. 

The next time I looked at my watch, I was at 14 miles.  I was ecstatic.  I still felt great.  And only 6 miles to go.  That meant less than an hour of running left.  I had one more stop at the library to refill my water bottle again.  I brought a single serving of Gatorade powder along with me and used that for the refill.  After that, it was just a lap around Reeds Lake and I would be done.  I’ve done that a million times.  No big deal.

Then I got 16 miles in.  That is when I really started to hurt.  I think part of it was mental because up until the 14 mile mark, I was really running blind on what my distance was.  I avoided looking at my watch because I didn’t want to look down and only see 11 miles when I thought it should have been more.  But now that I was at the 16 mile mark, I knew exactly where mile 17, 18, and 19 were going to be.  Nevertheless, I pushed through it and only stopped when getting a drink at each mile mark.

I made it home in 2:51 for an 8:35 pace.  I am very pleased with my time.  It is right where I wanted to be.  My last three marathons had final paces of (8:32, 8:38, and 8:52).  So, I am hoping that by already being in that range with my first 20 miler, I’ll be able to bring that down before race day.

After my run, I took my ice bath.  I had to use ice this time because most of the snow has melted.  I followed that up with my favorite post long run meal of a Red Baron supreme pizza and Coke.  Dessert was a tall glass of chocolate milk.

Unfortunately, I must have been a bit dehydrated because a couple hours after the run, I got a splitting headache.  I took some Advil and laid down in a dark room for a bit and it seemed to clear up thankfully.

And before I go, I’d like you to meet the newest member of my training team – a set of Bowflex dumbbells!!  I have been scouring Craigslist for months since deciding I needed to add more strength training to my weekly workouts back in August.  I have had a couple of hits, but they were gone by the time I called. I got lucky yesterday though.  I met the seller at a parking lot nearby and bought them (over half off the price of a new set!!!).  The only thing wrong with them is that one of the dumbbells doesn’t work if you set it to 20 pounds.  Not a big deal though as there are settings for 17.5 and 22.5 and they work fine.

I actually broke them in last night with a quick session to try them out.  I didn’t want to do too much because of my run today though.  I am going to try and at least do two workouts a week on Tuesdays and Saturdays and possibly Thursdays on light running weeks.  I’m super excited!  Tickets to the gun show will be available soon.

Today was my long run for the week.  18 miles.  My longest run since the Grand Rapids Marathon in October.  I was not looking forward to it as it was. And then good old Mother Nature had to drop by and dump a boatload of snow on us the past two days and lower the temperatures into the teens.

I got up early to shovel the driveway before Jennie left for work, so I was all geared up to get the run done early and out of the way.  Unfortunately, I got caught up with work stuff and didn’t get to leave until after 10:00.

The first few miles of the run were very slow going.  The plows had been down most of the roads, but they were still covered with a slushy, snowy mixture that is like running in sand.  I did a lap around Reeds Lake, which was occasionally clear, but more snow than pavement.  6 miles in, I got to Calvin College’s campus.  The sidewalks and paths through campus were in great condition compared to the roads.  I ended up basically doing laps around the campus for 6 miles to take advantage of the sidewalks.  I was even able to duck into the gym and refill my water bottle at one point.

After doing about 6 miles on the campus, I headed back home via the same 6 miles I started with.  It was amazing how much the roads had improved in the hour I spent at Calvin.  They still weren’t perfect, but it was much easier going than when I started.  I ended up finishing in 2:36:28 for a pace of 8:42.  I was actually surprised to be under a 9 minute pace considering the road conditions, so I’ll take it.

Not leaving until 10:00 led to an all too familiar problem.  I got halfway into my run and I was starving.  I ate breakfast when I got up, but by 11:00, my body was ready for lunch.  So, as I ran, all I could think about was food.  That didn’t help; it just made me hungrier.  I really need to work on better nutrition and eating habits before my long runs.

When I got home, despite being hungry, my first priority was to take an ice bath for my legs and to shower.  During my run, I had a great idea for my ice bath.  Why pay for ice when Mother Nature had provided a yard full of snow?  And thus, the Midwest-Style Ice Bath was invented (patent pending).  Armed with a plastic container, I filled it up with snow and readied the tub with water.

Previously, for my ice baths, I would add the ice to the water before getting in. However, taking a cue from Chic Runner, I got into the tub first and then added the snow.  This helped minimize the shock of getting into a freezing tub.  I started by just taking handfuls of snow and adding it to the tub, but that was slow going and freezing my fingers.  So I dumped the entire container in at once.  YIKES!  It was instantly freezing.  Colder than ice.  I basically had a mound of snow on my legs.  I suffered through it though and it was definitely worth it.  I am pretty much pain free now.

I was sort of worried that the snow would melt too fast and wouldn’t be as effective as ice.  I was wrong.  Here is a picture of the snow that was still left in the tub AFTER I sat in it for 10 minutes.

There was even snow left in the tub after I took a hot shower while the water drained.  Next time, I don’t think I need as much snow.  Lesson learned.

So, there you have it, a Midwest-Style Ice Bath; something that all you warm weather dwellers are missing out on.  Or not.

Next week is another light week; only 20 miles total.  After 41 last week and 43 this week, I am very much looking forward to it.  Hopefully the lighter running schedule will give me more time on the trainer, which has been lacking.

Stay tuned!

As you may recall, I decided to give Twitter another shot back in August.  However, it took until November to really get into it.  And now I am semi-addicted (follow me at @kevinneumann).  I have TweetDeck installed on both my computer and iPhone (which has quickly become an extension of my hand) and find myself checking for updates throughout the day.  I started following only a few people, but have found more and more interesting people to follow along the way.

The first two times I tried Twitter, I really didn’t have a reason to use it; there was no goal.  However, now with such a large running and tri-ing community online, it finally has a purpose for me.  It is my guilt trip and occasional motivator.  Today for instance, I really, really, really did not want to run.  It was cold out.  I was tired.  And I could make up excuse after excuse in my head on why I could skip this long run.  Then, this tweet comes through from @kwizbee:

are you going to be running in the snow or are you going to make excuses? it may be cold, but bad weather just makes you tougher, SO GO RUN!”

It was like it was meant for just me.  I thanked @kwizbee for the motivation and told him it was enough to kick me out the door.

This was quickly followed up by a:

@kevinneumann kick ass man!!! have fun!

from @triblogcarol

It is like a personal cheering section.  How cool is that?!

In the end, I did my 14 mile run and I felt good about it.  I am glad I did it and even more glad that it is over.  I have 6 miles scheduled on Saturday, and then I have an easy week before it picks back up.  I am looking forward to the lighter mileage.  This week has been very crazy and I could use some time to rest and relax.

I did my long run today.  I wanted to get out early and be done before lunch rather than running later in the afternoon like I usually do.  I headed out at just before 10AM, not as early as I would have liked, but I got wrapped up with a couple of work things.  Initially, my legs felt pretty tired and sluggish from my bike ride yesterday afternoon.  After a couple of miles I found my stride.  For the most part, I felt great.  I had good leg speed and wasn’t feeling overly tired. 

At mile 11, this changed for the worse. That is when the chafing began.  Ugh, I thought.  I knew I forgot something.  I forgot to Sportwax my legs.  (Full Disclosure: I know the owner of Sportwax).  However, I have never had a chafing issue when I remember to use Sportwax.  According to their website: “Sportwax is a natural, beeswax-based formula that guards against rashing, chafing and skin irritation that come from physical activity and athletic competition. Sportwax is hypo-allergenic, waterproof, and long lasting. Unlike petroleum jelly, Sportwax isn’t messy or heavy, and it won’t damage clothing or equipment.”  I highly recommend Sportwax for anyone that has chafing or skin irritation problem.  I might even try and get some free product from them to use in a give-a-way.

So, there I was,  11 miles in, no Sportwax, with plenty of miles to go.  Time to HTFU and push on.  Step. Ow. Step. Ow. Step Step. Ow Ow.  It was another 6 (painful) miles until I was back home.  Looking at my splits, it doesn’t look like I let the pain slow me down too much.

 
My slowest mile (9:21) was on the Calvin Cross Country course. 
It is amazing how much running on the grass slowed me down.

After I got home, I took a quick sit in a cold water bath tub to hopefully help my legs recover quickly.  Now that I am clean and swass-free, it is time to get some stuff done around the house.  We’ll have to see how this goes as I hobble around like a cowboy.