Yeah, so I haven't blogged in a while...

Yeah, you probably noticed I haven't blogged in a while.

Still running, just battling mentally a bit at the moment - sort of feels like running's getting in the way of life, rather than the other way around, and when it's like this the blog tends to drop off my radar.

So, I might give the ol' Vatblog a bit of a rest for a while. I'll come back to it in a while, but would like to reclaim the 'mental space' it fills at the moment.

Cheers

In the wake of the storm

Another easy 35 minutes around Bedlam Bay Oval after work, after a storm with spectacular lightning and hail (in the Sydney CBD). A little tight in the right upper leg.

Scales - 73.8kg. Guess there was a bit left over from Sunday yesterday. Apologies to people who battle to shift a couple of hundred grams over months...

Okay, back to work

Right - time to focus on the next target.

Aths NSW has announced a provisional calendar for the summer track season, with the State 10k champs on October 28. So, focus shifts to my sub 35 minute 10k goal.

Got out on Monday evening for 35 minutes. Felt a little sore and beaten up, but was moving okay, with a little tightness in the right hip, but nothing more than that.

At physio last week I was given a left heel lift to fool around with - have had it in my day shoes (my 'dress' Frees) and tried it in my running shoes for the first time last night. Wasn't aware of it being there, which I guess is a good thing. Also have a strengthening exercise to do.

I'll also now log my weight, as I want that under 70kg by the end of the year. I'll weigh myself on getting home before eating, even if it's just after a run. Last night was 75.4kg - put a bit of weight on post Gold Coast. Too much chocolate. Will stick strictly to diet.

I'll also log when I do my strength work. The only time I really get to do it is in the morning, and I need to get up a bit earlier to do so, but this hip thing has driven home that in order to cope with training loads I really need to do it.

City 2 Surf 2006

So, I managed to justify my preferred status and run 53:22.

Pretty meh about the whole race. It was a good, fun day, but as mentioned previously I've been pretty flat the last three weeks mentally and physically, and while you might be able to bluff your way through a flat 10k, C2S is a different matter entirely.

Still, it was a good, solid run. I was through 10 in around 38:30, figured 4 minute ks would do it from there, and just let the hills do the work. Some good runs from Mohammed, 26 Miles, Uncle Dave, Sailaway and a few others I forget.

To be honest, I was glad to get the event out of the way. Feel like the deck is clear for other projects now.

Saturday in the sun

Out at about 1:00 for an easy 20-25 minutes, was supposed to be half an hour but all of the local ovals were being used for sport so there was nowhere soft to run. Plus I was hungry.

Leg felt the best it has in weeks, a little tight and restricted, but no actual pain, even on a couple of solid climbs and descents. I missed it, in the way that a cancer patient misses a tumour after surgery, grateful for its absence, but watchful for its return.

Friday night cruise

Started the day with a physio session. Felt much better after quite a bit of manipulation around the hip and upper leg, picked up a little heel lift for my left leg to try out. Have some exercises to do, and some thoughts on running pose to think about.

Got out for 9.08k in 44:27 - again, fairly constant low level of pain, but no twinges, which was pleasing, as I ran from home after work along my old Hunter's Hill course, which includes some fairly steep ups and downs. Nice night to run - clear, cool (but fine in a singlet), little wind.

6 x 400

Acupuncture and some manipulation at the Horned one this morning.

6 x 400, run clockwise for a change. Times went 80, 76, 76, 77, 76, 77.

Leg felt stable, with a constant, slightly lower level of pain. Running form felt good, with some more 'on toes' running through the first three reps.

Post-treatment

Home from work, bit over 45 minutes for a bit over 9k. Would be more precise but Gaf had a bit of a fit at the start and the plot shows me starting at The Rocks and performing a deity-like water crossing to McMahons Point and then teleporting to Gore Hill. Still somewhat restricted, although hip/pelvis was better. Legs were as dead as wood, though, combination of Tuesday night's session and the massage.

3 x 2k

3 x 2km reps. Right leg pretty proppy through the warm up, and pretty tentative through the reps, which went 7:16, 7:16 and 7:11. Leg felt a bit better in the third rep, I had considered pulling out in the second.

Thoughts on Saturday - I was a bit disappointed with the time, but cast my mind back to Scarborough Park on the first weekend in June where I ran 14:05 for my 4k leg of the relays. So I guess I'm not travelling too badly.

Fairly painful massage with Easy Tigert this morning which seemed to free things up again. Day 2 of treament continues tomorrow.

King of pain

Just short of 9km in 42:34, home from work. Upper right leg hurt pretty well the whole way, with some nice twinges.

Ow.

Update

Wed - hip/pelvis very grindy, attempted run home via CBD, pulled up in Pyrmont after about 8k or so in around 35 or so minutes
Thu, Fri - off
Sat - ANSW Short Course Relays. First leg for Striders B team, 4km in just over 14 minutes, hip/pelvis fairy sore
Sun - home to 5k mark of Bay Run CR course around lunch time, a touch over 19k in around 1 hour 25 minutes. Hip/pelvis not too bad apart from two quite painful twinges, one at around 6.5k and a longer one at about 10k.

Massage, chiro and physio appointments this week.

5 x 1200

Physio in the morning - issue seems to relate to glutes allowing the right hip to rotate forward and down during footfall. Result is weird leg angles and adductor doing much more work than it should. Got some exercises to deal with it, and have to focus on the lower abs by drawing the belly button to the spine to keep the hips level and not 'dip' as weight shifts from one leg to the other.

Session was down as 5 x 1600, but there was too much of a gap between me and the front lads, which combined with the short recoveries meant I would have pretty well had an 8k tempo session (that would be Thursday's session), so at the 1200 point of the first rep, went to 5 x 1200. Times went 4:16 (feeling leg out), 4:11, 4:06, 4:02 and 4:05. Times were pretty solid once I was confident on the right leg.

Short cool down as the right leg got sorer.