As I ran my 6 miler on Sunday, I noted again that when I run on dry sand I tend to start twisting left. Basically, it seems as though my right leg is stronger and pushes off a bit more strongly when I stumble. Which I do know has been a problem since I started running. For example, a short list of my injuries:
Left leg: Shin splints, patellar tendonitis, high grade calf strain x 3, iliotibial band syndrome
Right leg: shin splints.
The last time I noticed a huge difference in my quad strength was last year after I hiked the Inka Trail. I still had my ITBS and spent the whole time with a pair of makeshift walking stick-crutches. When I came back and started working with a personal trainer to recover from the injury, the difference in my stamina-especially with lunges-was huge!
It seems I still prefer my right leg, so to remedy this I tried lengthening my stride as my right leg reached forward, making my left leg push a bit extra. This took too much mental focus and I quickly regressed to my old familiar stride when looking out over the sand to find the path of least resistance. What ultimately worked really well to even out my strides and make my left leg feel the burn was to raise my left arm swing equal to the upswing of my right arm. Easy as that! My hips were squared forward, my shoulders aligned with my hips, and there was no more “oops!- twist left” when stepping into the many dips in the sand. So simple…
Though it almost didn’t happen due to 5 loads of laundry, getting only 3 hours of sleep the night before, and getting out of work late, I did go for my midweek “long” run. Since I was rushed for time, I ran the whole 5 miles on pavement. Oh, and also I developed a blister on my left foot from using a new push-off point while running in sand! So I just put a patch on it and took off.
As I ran, I did enjoy it but it did kind of feel like I was going through the motions a bit. I wondered why I don’t install a treadmill in my living room and run on it while surfing the internet or watching tv.. I mean, just putting one foot in front of the other is pretty easy. Even if I just spend an hour walking as I watch reruns of “Top Chef,” that’s more calories burned, that much more demand on building endurance, and keeping my muscles moving vs. stagnating on the couch.
There are times I feel like skipping…. “it’s too cold… I’ll do it tomorrow…. i could get more sleep if i skip…. ” but it feels like someone outside of my lazy side pushes me into it. Wish I could be more like that side of my conscience! Plus, no matter how much I whine to myself that I don’t want to do it, I am always glad to be there once I’m out there.
I thought I’d just stick to half marathons from now on, but as I flipped through Runner’s World magazine last month, I saw an ad for the San Diego Rock and Roll Marathon. It was in my stale call room on the MICU and I was spending every third night sleeping (ahem, not exactly sleeping… more like sleepwalking…) at the hospital. Spur of the moment, I figured “well that looks like fun. I’ll do that!”
So I started my training last week, again following the Hal Higdon schedule. The difference this time is that
1. I’ve been running further distances prior to starting my training
2. I’m incorporating sand running- my goal is to do 3 dry sand miles per run!
3. No rest days. Still trying to stick to at least a mile a day
4. My cross training will be either kayaking or kickboxing
Due to my work schedule and near-exhaustion, I have only skipped a 5 miler and a day of cross training. Actually, I skipped the 5 miler due to being soooo sore and I’m hoping that kickboxing doesn’t make me as sore next time!
Also, I’m doing Team in Training, which raises money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma society. I went to the initial meeting but haven’t yet been able to meet up with them for the long weekend runs (stupid 80 hour work weeks!) Plus I have to figure out how to raise almost $2,000. I’ll put up a link soon for my website (that I have yet to design) that entails how to make donations! Hope you consider giving!!
