Running Stupid

Sometimes my stupidity amazes even me.  When asked for recovery advice from a runner who’s feeling especially sore, I’m always the quick to say, “Rest, rest, rest!”  However, when it comes to following my own pearls of wisdom, I’m just plain stupid. Or am I stubborn?  Perhaps a little of both! 

A week ago Sunday, I ran most (nearly 20 miles) of the Rochester Marathon.  The first 6.5 miles I ran at my race pace as I was responsible to my team for that portion of the race.  My biggest mistake was not taking time to warm up my muscles prior to running fast.  I guess I figured that since I was running nearly 20 miles that morning I’d save my legs, even though I KNOW that I have to run at least 2 or 3 easy miles prior to racing.  Stupid, stupid, stupid! 

After the race I didn’t bother to stretch.  Instead, I jumped in the car and drove an hour and a half to take my son back to school.  Just long enough for my legs to get nice and stiff.

I’m sure you’re thinking, “Surely, you took Monday off and ran easy on Tuesday!”  Well, I did rest Monday, but on Tuesday I ran 9 miles of hill repeats on the very challenging Cobb’s Hill in Rochester.  Prior to the workout my legs, particularly my right quad, hurt.  After the hill workout, they really hurt.

“Okay, so you took Wednesday off to rest, right?” you ask.  Wrong again!  I went out and ran 7.2 miles and as I was nearing the end of my run my right leg was screaming for me to stop. 

Immediately after my run I started stretching.  As I stretched, I felt something foreign in that quad:  a golfball-sized knot.  Time to call the chiropractor,  (my chiropractor is a genius, a miracle worker) and time to take a couple of days off.  That is, until Sunday’s race and 20 mile run.

Yes, I raced on Sunday.  I purchased a rubber wrap for my quad (try running fast with rubber squeezing your leg, I dare you!) and set off for my race.  I couldn’t run as fast as I usually do, but I still managed to place 3rd in my age group and 9th overall women, so I was happy about that.  Then I set off to finish my 20 miles and ran 20.1.  So, I met my goal.

Trouble is, I didn’t rest the next day.  With a 60 mile week and 3 challenging workouts staring me in the face, I went out the next day and ran 6.2.  Let me rephrase that, I attempted to run 6.2.  I’d call my run a plod, a slow plod at that.  It took me 54:30 to run my miles, and when I was finished my entire body - head, shoulders, glutes, legs, feet - were so very exhausted that it took all of my strength to eat and shower. 

Tuesday my tired body forced me to rest.  After I got home from work, I made dinner, watched 30 minutes of t.v., and called it a day at 7:30 and slept straight through until 4:45 the next morning. 

The new day, to me, always means a new opportunity to run, and run I did.  After work, I ran 11 very warm, very humid miles.  When I finished, I noticed that my left hamstring was bothering me.  “Probably nothing,” I thought.  Wrong again!

Thursday evening I set out to run my 2 x 2 mile tempo run (9.1 miles including warm-up, cool down, and 2 minute recovery jogs).  When I finished my workout, my hamstring was begging me to rest it.  By Friday morning, it hurt. Period.

Now the smart runner in me said, “Get a massage, no race, and run easy, if your leg permits.”  Luckily, I was able to get a massage Friday afternoon, and by Saturday morning, my hamstring was feeling considerably better.  However, I still chose not to run the Rochester Runner of the Year cross country race that I was registered for. Instead, ran my scheduled 20 miles at an easy pace for 13 miles and my marathon goal pace for the last 7 miles (8:45).  By the end of my run, my legs loosened up and felt much better.

Lessons learned?  Overtraining does absolutely nothing to improve one’s fitness.  In fact, it hurts one’s fitness and makes running painful and something to be feared.  From now until October 21 I’m running smart.  If my body is tired, I’m resting it.  I’ve worked far too hard to throw away the Columbus Marathon!