Uphill

On Sunday, I ran the now regular 2.5 mile route in 18:56. This is 3 minutes and 30 seconds faster than the first run back last Monday. Good progress. Before I race again, I want to get this down another 3 minutes. This'll take at least a couple of months. I'm getting really sick of this blog.

Running ...but very slowly

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday - 2.5 miles each day - 22:21, 21:56, 21:39. Took today off.

Better Days

Yesterday, after the Super Bowl and "the Office", with a belly full of queso and a couple of beers in the tank, dressed in blue jeans and a sweatshirt, I ran around the neighborhood; 1 mile at 10:30 pm; probably took me 10+ minutes. When I finished, some of the cobwebs had fallen off. Today, when I got home from work, I ran two 1.3 mile loops in 22 minutes. If I'm okay tomorrow, I'll do another 2 or 3. I've got a long way to go, but I just ran longer than I'd run in months. So far, so good.

More Little Steps

Last Saturday, I ran just under two miles before I had to stop. It wasn't really painful; it felt like a joint that need to be popped. Tonight, I ran a mile loop around the neighborhood. It wasn't easy, but it felt about the same when I finished as when I started. ...so, that's positive. Man, am I in terrible shape! I've more or less given up the gym regiment. It's gonna be a long road back. All my work pants are tight.

First Steps

Today, I covered a total of 1.5 miles alternating walking with running. It was hard to tell if everything was totally better, but I ran really slow so as not to do any damage. Yesterday, I did 2.5 miles, mostly walking. I'm "listening" for pain, and not hearing it. On Saturday, I'll do three. Between now and then, it'll be more of the same - walk/run/walk/run.

No gain, more pain

The past two days have been a frustrating return to the pain level of a month ago. Maybe this is a good thing as it prompted me to do some web-surfing on rehab from stress fractures. Most of what I found proscribed a very gradual build-up. I probably would have rushed it. Right now, I'm making deals with myself. I don't think God answers these types of prayers. Until something changes, I'm retiring the blog. Talk to you when I'm on the trail.

Progress

I woke up yesterday, the first day of 2009, with no pain. I had trouble putting my right sock on and had to sit down. But I'm used to this. At this point, it may just be stiffness. The gym was crowded on New Year's Day, but the pool wasn't, so I paddled around and generally worked on motion. All good news. This morning, I felt even better and actually managed to get both socks on while balancing on alternate legs. Another big plus is that when I sneeze, my lower abs don't hurt - It's been a while since I could last claim that. I expect to be sneezing much more in the coming weeks. If I don't have any more setbacks, I'll run next Saturday. The trick will be to start easy and build strength over several months. I'm in terrible shape. But I'm encouraged.