Easing back in....and a Family 5K

This past week was my first foray into running again post-marathon.  I am loosely following the Hanson's post-marathon advice of "two weeks off, two weeks easy" and have really enjoyed having this past week fall into the "easy" camp!  If I wake up and it's pouring rain outside and I don't feel like running, I don't go!  After a season of no excuses and getting it done rain or shine it's nice to have a break from the focused and committed mentality of hard training.  And I've had a wonderful time going for runs with friends and not worrying about getting in a speed session or pushing the pace.  The weather is starting to shape up and we've had some beautiful mornings (like today!) in the upper 40s, low 50s which has made for wonderful running weather.  I'm trying to savor it now before we are catapulted into the brutal heat and humidity that is waiting just around the corner.

I'm back to taking (or teaching) BodyPump three times a week and I've added back in my core work and my PT exercises for hip strength.  Still working on getting around to adding in drills, but plan to add those in once I'm back on an official schedule.   Besides a somewhat over-the-top consumption of Easter candy on Easter (hey - I gave up dessert for Lent!  Don't judge. :)), I'm working on reining in the diet some and getting back to my healthier choices.

The only slight niggle in my return to running has been the return of some foot pain in my left foot.  Running is just fine and doesn't bother me, but my left big toe (or the tendons around it) is killing me when I do lunges in BodyPump with that left foot back.  I'm unable to hyperextend that big toe without some pain.  I'd been dealing with it for two months or so pre-marathon and it's not any worse than it was during that time.  It improved during my two weeks off, but once I added Pump back in and started running it's flared up again.  Not sure quite what it is (flexor tendonitis?  Sesamoid problems? Please please please not a stress fracture...) Podiatrist appointment is schedule for this week so fingers crossed for a diagnosis that allows me to keep running (or at least lets me return to running fairly quickly).

Week in Review

33 miles for the week.  While wearing glasses.  (To all you peeps out there running with glasses on - my hat is off to you!  I'm decidedly NOT loving it.   Having LASIK surgery in a week or so and have to be out of my contacts until then.)

No real workouts to report this week but I did get in a couple of easy runs with friends, a "long" run of 9 miles with my Saturday group, and for something totally fun and different:  I ran a family 5K on Easter!!

My (crazy but fun) family started this tradition 13 years ago to honor my late Grandfather, whom we called "Buggy".  The Buggy Bunny Hop 5K is staged from my parents house and features 3.1 miles of hilly neighborhood roads with two Egg Stops along the way.   Participants wear bunny ears during the race and have to pick up a jellybean-filled plastic egg at two locations (to prove you've completed that section of the course) and then run back to the start.   It's highly competitive (okay, not really) and there's even a trophy engraved each year with the winner and time of completion!    This year I opted not to race it, but I wanted to use the middle mile as an opportunity for a teeny bit of speed work and pick it up a bit.

Mile 1:  First mile I ran with the family at 7:53, enjoying the sunshine but not so much the WIND.

Mile 2:  Grabbed the egg from the first cul-de-sac, ate the jellybeans (better than GU!), and picked it up for a 6:24 mile

Mile 3.1 + some:  Grabbed the second egg, then ran a bit and circled back to run it in with my family at around an 8:10 pace.  My two little girls served as the official jellybean/water stop volunteers and we all had a blast.  It was such a fun way to get the whole family involved and (much like a Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day) it was a great opportunity to get in a little workout before chowing down on Easter dinner!

That's it!   It's been fun getting back on the roads, especially with Boston right around the corner!  I am not going this year, but will definitely be watching and I'm happy to be running some with everyone while they get excited for their race.   Hoping that this week will be a repeat of last week with some nice easy running and my usual core work and BodyPump workouts.  Fingers crossed for a good appointment at the Podiatrist - would appreciate any good luck vibes you care to send!

Anyone out there ever have problems with their big toe?  Who's in the taper for Boston?  

Post Marathon Recovery

Today's workout:  

Thank you all for your congratulations and your awesome advice in the comments on my last post.  I am taking the advice to heart and plan to run a similar buildup for my next marathon, but work on increasing the paces slightly and perhaps doing a few more miles at marathon pace.  I haven't yet picked my fall marathon, but I'm hoping to aim to do one in mid-to-late September.

As I look back on Tobacco Road, I feel very blessed and thankful that I was able to get to that starting line healthy and ready to race.  I am also so thankful that I was able to come back strong from my stress fracture and not only race at my pre-injury level, but go beyond that and set a PR.  I truly believe now that taking my time to come back slowly post-fracture was the best thing I did.  Between that and the strength work/PT exercises I did along the way I think I gave myself the best shot for a strong season.  So if you are suffering from a serious injury now, don't lose hope!  It's definitely possible to come back as strong (or stronger!) than you were prior to injury.  Just be smart about your comeback and you'll be set.

As you can tell from my picture, this week has been all about recovery and enjoying my post-marathon downtime.  I've been sleeping in (well, as much as one can sleep in with a just-turned-3 year old)  and enjoying getting dressed in normal-people clothes.  (while realizing that I think I own more gym clothes than I do regular clothes.  Oops.)  I've not run single step this past week.  Instead I've hung out with my family, celebrated my daughter's 3rd birthday, eaten foods that I'd normally limit (chips and dip for lunch!! Yum!!)  and just CHILLED OUT.  It's been really nice!  But....I'm actually itching to get back to my normal running schedule.  I feel best when I'm training and fueling my body with higher quality foods.  It's been fun this week to relax the diet and not worry too much about what I'm eating - that's definitely been a great mental break - but I can definitely tell that I've been eating more processed/sugary foods than normal!

No real workouts last week for me, though I did do half of a core work class and half of a BodyPump class to ease back into it.  I'll be teaching BodyPump this week so I figure I'd better get my muscles back in shape at some point!   With a little extra time on my hands since I'm not running, I've been working on learning the new release - BodyPump 93!  It's a great workout and I'm excited to teach it.  I've had to practice with very light weights though as my legs still have some lingering fatigue from the race.

This week it's back on the healthy food bandwagon, and adding back in BodyPump and core work.  I'm taking at least one more week off running, but will likely add in some elliptical or cycling this week to get the legs moving again without the impact.   I can still feel a bit of tendonitis in my foot so I want to make sure I give it another week or so before I hit the roads again.  I'm itching to get back out there now that the weather has improved, but I know that taking the time off now will pay dividends later.

Hope everyone had a great week!

What's your favorite post-marathon indulgence?  

How long do you take off before resuming training?  (I usually go with 2-4 weeks of no running)