Training log - Week ending 7/19/15

This week was 70 miles of running, 10 "miles" of pool-running and 4000 yards of swimming  -- training log is here.

The 70 miles this week was a bit of a whoops...I've been trying to keep my mileage in the 60-65 range until marathon training starts in a few weeks.  But my team's workouts have been temporarily relocated to sites about 3-4 miles from home - I jog each way, and those miles (especially the cooldown) add up.  I am keeping my non-workout miles very easy, and I'm hoping that controls the risk from a high mileage week.

This week was also my first full week of workouts, with mile repeats on Tuesday.  We did the repeats on a bike path that has a slight grade, meaning that the odd-numbered uphill reps are a bit slower than the even-numbered downhill ones.  It also means that when given your choice of 3 or 4 repeats, you'll just automatically do four, since it seems silly to skip the last downhill rep.

(of course, when it's your first workout back, and a fairly humid day to boot, it's not THAT silly to stick to three repeats.  Unfortunately I didn't figure that out until I had already started the fourth mile.  Oooops.)

Other than that, the week was pretty uneventful, and highlighted by a decent long run on Sunday, where I (hopefully) successfully tested my formerly bad hip by running fast on a long downhill stretch.

The back story is that my right inside hip has historically HATED running fast downhill for extended periods of time.  Hate in this context means a pretty strong stabbing sensation, followed by a few days off from running.

The issue was originally diagnosed as osteitis pubis on the right side, with a treatment plan of "try not to do anything that makes it hurt - if it hurts, you have to rest it."  Then an MRI about two years ago confirmed the osteitis pubis and also noted a chronic tear in my groin on that side (where an abdominal muscle and my right adductor attach to the pelvis).   The fancy language in the formal report was "[c]hronic degeneration of the adductor­rectus abdominus aponeurosis with small focal tear on the right."

It was theorized that the groin tear was causing pelvic instability, which then led to all sorts of injuries.   So, we addressed the tear with two rounds of PRP injections last year to kickstart healing, and I've also been working like crazy in the gym/at yoga on my pelvic stability (there's about 10 jokes you can insert here).

My hope was that the healed tear and improved stability would fix the pain-while-running-fast-downhill issue, but a test run last summer resulted in the same stabbing pain.  So, I've been avoiding running fast on downhill stretches, which means that I've avoided running my team's 21 mile "loop" during marathon training, in order to minimize the risk of setback (the loop finishes with a significant downhill stretch).

But...this morning was the perfect time to test my hip out again - I've got a few weeks before marathon training starts, and the upcoming week is going to be pretty bad heat and humidity-wise.  If I have to skip running for a few days due to my hip acting up, let it be this week.

So, I ran out (uphill) and back (downhill) on that troublesome stretch.  And deliberately pushed my hip pretty hard, hitting 6:45 - significantly faster than my marathon pace - on the last 2 miles on that section.  As a marathon workout it was too fast and counterproductive (and I'll pull back next time); but as a "let's really test this thing" it was right on.

And the good news is, no stabbing pain during the run or immediately after - a refreshing change.  If nothing hurts tomorrow (and I don't expect it to), I'll consider my hip to have passed the test.

Dailies

Monday:   Yoga, some upperbody strengthwork and injury prevention work, and 5 "miles" easy pool-running in the morning; foam rolling at night.

Tuesday:  12 miles, including a workout of 4x1 mile with 3:00 recovery - split 6:43 (up), 6:26 (down), 6:31 (up), 6:28 (down), followed by some injury prevention work and 1250 yards easy swimming.  Foam rolling in evening.

Wednesday: 3.5 miles easy (10:05), followed by a yoga class and then another 8.5 miles easy (9:06), followed by drills, 2 strides, and 2 hill sprints.   Foam rolling in afternoon, plus 2.5 "miles" easy pool-running.

Thursday:   5 miles very easy (9:13), followed by a yoga class.  Later, another 3 miles very easy (9:10) with drills, and some upperbody strengthwork and injury prevention work,.  Foam rolling at night.

Friday:  13.5 miles, including seven hill repeats.   Followed with some injury prevention work and 1600 yards easy swimming.    Foam rolling at night.

Saturday:  10 miles very easy (9:03) plus drills and four strides, followed by upper body strengthwork/injury prevention work and foam rolling.  2.5 "miles" easy pool-running in the afternoon.

Sunday:  14.5 miles progressive, split as first 4 at 9:36, next 6.5 at 8:48, next 2 at 7:20, and last 2 at 6:45.   Followed with some injury prevention work and a yoga class.  1150 yards easy swimming in the afternoon.  Foam rolling at night.