Simple Fix

One week ago, Karen suggested I try a night splint to make my left foot get better quicker. I'm all for quicker...get fast quicker, strong quicker...anything quicker. So I got one and have slept in it for 4 days now. Today I have no pain in my heel or arch. The only thing I did different was the night splint. It was almost surprising today...I could focus on landing on my heel/midfoot without the fear of soreness.
Did a 3 mile loop with alternating miles of easy and HMGP. It was rolling hills with some long down hill sections and long gradual climbs. We ran 2 laps. I feel like I ran well...a little slow on the long gradual up hill but not too far off pace. Right on target on the section with the short steeper climbs so that was good.
I continue to be a little surprised that my legs are never sore. Thursday looks like a similar sort of workout. I am going to try a little harder on the uphills and recover better on the downs. I am already looking forward to the long run this week.
In the new more positive me, I am trying a new approach at work. Better communication between my team and less bitching. If someone has a complaint, I want to hear about it now not next week. I also realized that I can't get after people for doing a lousy job if I can't do that part of the job. So I am focusing at learning some new stuff at work. I have been carried by the LVN's I work with for years and had a real eye opener last night when I had to do the stuff they normally do. Yikes...am I disorganized! I can sit and interview inmates all night long, but when it comes to paper/computer stuff, I'm useless! Oh well, as in running, if it doesn't kill me, it can make me a better person, employee and nurse.

Running on the edge

In regards to an exchange I had with Mike in my blog comment section, how does one know when you are running too hard on the long and easy runs??  From my experience, it's when you blow up somewhere along the way and then need several weeks to recover.  Do I trust the McMillan charts??  I dunno.  I have always kind of run where I am comfortable on the long runs and I think do best when I am on my own.  This weekend was a good example...sure I can push a little and keep up with the faster guys but then my legs are tired by the end and I am flailing for the last few miles and more likely to get injured.  I am also pushing through my normal aches and pains at the start instead of easing into my pace over a few miles.  I'm feeling surprisingly good right now so I'm going to keep doing what I'm doing.  I just need to pay attention to excess tiredness etc OR poor performance on the quality w/o's and ease up a little if necessary.

Had an amazing run today on my usual 5 mile out and back,  Agonizing at the start (as usual) but I felt loose and fast by a few miles in.  Worked on pushing a little up the small hills.

I love this weather...cool in the morning and gorgeous in the afternoon.

Cruisin'

Tried to sleep with my night splint last night - lasted one hour and I decided sleep was more important than a less sore foot.  Had annoying cramps and aching on the bottom of my foot.  I decided to try a new pre run nutrition routine - had 12 oz of accelerade and an ww english muffin with jam.  Went down easy and I left for the run not feeling full (good thing).  Since I'm trying to use up long run food I took a package of shot bloks with me.

Was planning to do the 16 mile Campus loop today.  Happily the distance of the long runs is long longer an issue.  I still get nervous at the start that I'll run out of gas and have to shuffle the remaining miles.  Only has to happen once for me to worry for the rest of my life!  Started of with Javier and a few other shirtless runners.  Let them go on Congress and some how caught them again at Speedway.  As we were heading north on Speedway, I knew the pace was too fast - at mile 4 I had clocked 32:08 - way to fast.  I let them go for go and worked at settling into a steady pace.  I know I can maintain an 8 min mile for 16 miles but I also know that would be plain stupid and Karen would likely tie a heavy weight to my ankle for the next long run.  Water seems to be a minor issue with Rogue these days - no cups at Bull Creek and Hancock.  Everyone was just drinking out of their hands and of course there was a lot of wasted water - hopefully there was enough water for those behind us. Amy, at the next waterstop said she would take some cups back tot hat stop.  

At Amy's stop, Jason caught up...forgot he was low on gas so was a little late and had to play catch up.  We ran the rest of the way together.  He was obviously feeling good as I was feeling the run once we hit the trail.  Once we got back onto asphalt though, the aches in my glutes eased up and I felt a lot better.  Did some pathetic strides although by the last one I did feel my feet relaxing a little.

Good - stayed off my toes way better today, was smart and backed off the pace before it was too late, ate a big recovery lunch and had a massage.

Not so good - ran too fast at the start, should have eaten all of the Shot bloks - not just 3.  Might need a little more calories before the long run.

Overall pace 8:17 - need to back off a little more as we add miles.

Last but not least - a shout out to Scott McIntyre who's kicking some Lake Tahoe ass this weekend!

SPLAT!!

Due to scheduling conflicts during the day, I postponed my usual Wed 5 miler until Friday.  I went to ART and PT.  My foot is making great progress and I am cautiously optimistic that it is getting better.

Have a horse event Thursday night so got up on Thursday morning at 4AM for the 5:15 run.   Decided to wear a new pair of shoes - fresh out of the box.  For the record, they are neutral shoes - Saucony Tangents.  I have worn them before and liked them.  Got them on sale at Rogue a while ago.  The shoes I have been wearing since September 2007 have been Stability shoes - Nikes and Mizunos.  Like the Mizunos, hate the Nikes.  Overall the Nikes keep my feet the most comfortable but they feel like boats.  The Mizunos and Saucony are a little snug in the forefoot and cause so discomfort from the darn neuroma in my left foot but the feel good on the road.

As I left my house, I realize I am still wearing my glasses.  I remember that I have some contacts in my purse so all is good.  At Northwest park, I put the contacts in and as I get out of the car, realize I only have one contact in - have no idea where the missing one is other than it is not in my eye.  So I have to run half blind!  It is dark - really dark!

Ate the Sport beans I brought along and head out for the warm up mile.  Feel OK.  Just a little soreness in my heel.

Get back to the start and swear to myself I will not go out too fast.  Start with the guys and their slow 2 min section seems a little fast so I let them go.  Todays run is 2 min easy and 3 min push at HMGP to below MGP.

I quickly get in the groove and am feeling good - much better than Tues.  Of course, there are no hills!  No probs on the push part.  I have no idea where we are going but keep the guys in sight ahead of me.  Follow them on the turns.  At Shoal Creek I see 2 people ahead to the right, so I turn right.  As I pass them, I realize I should have turned left.  These are not people in our group.  I get lost a lot so I'm good at just making it up as I go along.  I'm still doing well with the pace.  

In the last mile and a half, I am running fast down a dark street when SPLAT, I am on the ground.  I tripped over a speed bump.  I lay on my back for a few seconds, then got up, assessed my injuries - a few scrapes and got going.  No problem getting back to speed.  I really don't like to run in the dark when I'm not familiar with the streets.

Got back to the park at a little over 4 miles and did my strides.  Still feeling great.

Today, I will go to Rogue and work on the shoe thing again...I think I'm going back to neutral shoes.

Warm up - 8:57

3 min on/2 min off 4 miles - 7:42,7:27,7:43,7:44,3:50(1/2 mile extra)

Cool down - 9:00

No gas in the tank

I ate on Tues AM, got plenty of sleep and was more organized than last week about getting to the workout and then to work. So I figured I'd be good to go on the run.
NOT!
The warm up mile was fine as were the first 2 miles of our "easy" rollers. Obviously, I have been babied in Rogue in the past. My legs completely ran out of gas and by the time I got back to water stop #1 I felt a little sick and was running pretty slow and once I got to water #2 where Karen was she kindly let me bail and run the easy way back to the start. My brain was kind of fuzzy during most of the run and when I got back to the start to do strides and core work, I figured that my problem was low blood sugar. Obviously I have to look at my diet. I am not eating enough. I'm eating better than I have in a while but not enough. Once I had my chocolate milk I felt fine.
After showering at the gym, I ate way more than I normally might have and then had a chicken sandwich at 2:30 am. Will have a snack before I go home and then will go to bed.
While I was eating dinner, I read a recent edition of Texas Competitor...there was an article about eating before you run directly related to low blood sugar but saddly it didn't give any worthwhile info at all. Did suggest drinking some Accelerade prior to a run, so I might try that.
Anyway, that is my second crappy hill workout in 2 weeks...gotta work on that. Karen wasn't concerned, just told me to stick with it and I would get stronger and learn to love the hills.

Why do I run?

Steve, in a pre marathon pep talk a few yrs ago, told the runners they needed a reason for why they were doing it beyond a time.  Honestly, I couldn't come up with one.  Yesterday, as I drove to work, I realized I was still in the happy place I get to when I am in the zone of my run.  I had dreaded going in but when I realized I was still having a major endorphin rush 3 hrs after my run, I decided just to stay there as long as I could and not worry about work.

Thus, I decided, my reason to run is to reach the happy place and to balance the less happy moments of my life.

So you're thinking I must have had a life changing run yesterday.  Nope, just a day after long run workout - 5 miles.  Nothing fancy, not fast.  Just enjoyable.  It seems more enjoyable these days.  Maybe it's the cooler weather.

At work a coworker left The Kite Runner for me to read.  I am sure I'm the last to read it.  Awesome book.  Thankfully we had a slow night so I read 1/2 of it.  Had to leave it in the living room when I got home so I would go to sleep instead of reading all day.  Will be taking it to work tonight.

Burger King to the rescue

Today's run was a shortened Runtex to Rogue (14miles).  The PP group joined Team Rogue who did 22 miles plus an all out mile at mile 1 or so.  I suspect that influenced the problems I had at the water stops.  Saw Steve on Balcones - he tried to egg me on by yelling "they're right behind you".  Steve got to the first water stop shortly before I got there.  That was the only water stop ready by the time I got there.  At 35th and Jefferson - no water - I had water courtesy of Burger King.  After accidently turning on Windsor instead of Enfield, I got to waterstop #3 - no water that I could see.  At this point, one guy from Team Rogue had passed me - hadn't seen anyone else.  I knew that this would happen so I had brought my IPod.  Wasn't sure where the guys from PP were but suspected they had stopped to watch the torture on the track.  It was cool out so the lack of water was not a problem.  Ran the final 4 miles back to Rogue through downtown - completely uneventful.

Ran pretty consistant pace with an increase of effort in the last 2 miles.  Averaged 8:30 - right where I should be.  Tried the new Gu Roctane gu.  I have not tolerated gu's in the past but am getting sick of carrying all the shot bloks with me.  The Orange Cream flavor was good - went down easy, not to sweet and didn't upset my stomach.  Thanks Sadie for the tip.  Should be easy to carry 2 or 3 of those in a marathon.

I had left a bag and recovery drink at Rogue yesterday so I had dry clothes and drinks when I got back - then I had a bowl of oatmeal from Progress.  Chris, Jason and David had finished by that point and after they stretched we drove back up to Gateway.  Now I had 2+ hours to burn so I grabbed a few things at Whole Foods and sat outside with a magazine and fruit for an hour.  Perfect day for that.  Took a nap in my car after that and then got to Performance Wellness and they got me in early.

I live on the Longhorn Half Ironman course and there were tons of people biking and running on the course as I drove home.

Saw a sign on 183 telling people not to drive to Houston due to shortages of gas.  It's interesting that while there is some coverage about IKE, it's nothing like Katrina.

Overall a good day - now it's time for a nap.

Finally..nailed a progressive run

In all my years with Rogue, I have always come up short in the progressive runs.  Today we did one that ended at HMGP.  Granted it was a total of 7 miles with the first mile being at a very easy pace.  I did get lost by turning left instead of right on White Rock but figured out that I had made a wrong turn and added a couple of loops to make up for the lost miles.

Warm up mile 9:20

Mile 2 8:20 - supposed to be 8:30

Mile 3 8:15 -   8:15                 

Mile 4 8:02-   8:00

Mile 5  7:37 -  7:45

Mile 6 7:22 -   7:30

Mile 7 6:59 -   7:15 (was only .94 miles).

Finished with strides and some crunches and push ups.

Foot killing me but that's just life.

Got home and whipped up a pot of chicken tortilla soup.  Sorry Rachel Ray, you ain't the only one who can whip a healthy and delicious meal in 30 min.

Free Run

Here's my definition of a "free"run.  No Garmin, no ipod.  Just me and my dog.  Used my watch but didn't look at it.  Ran 5 miles very easy and worked on bio mechanics.  Noticed that when my arms are too much in front of me, so are my legs.  Move my arms back and my legs go back too.  Practiced going from easy, easy pace to strides by just leaning forward and keeping my legs behind me.  Effortless.  I was very tired today and slept way too much...no motivation to do anything when I got up but after doing nothing for an hour or so, I went and spent a couple hours of quality time with my horse (that means, to him, no riding!) brushing him, taking care of his feet, and giving him treats.  After I got the horses  fed, I got the dog and did my very relaxed 5 miler.  I haven't run with her in ages.  I am impressed at how easy it was for her - the cooler weather helps a lot. Now I'm going to eat light and try to go back to sleep.

Sleepy right now.

Work has been extra tough lately so maybe I wasn't quite as rested as usual Tuesday.  I didn't run on Monday but instead spent an hour doing TP massage, stretching and doing my ankle strengthening exercises then rode horse Riley for 30 min.

Tuesday was supposed to be an easy workout with the PP group at the FarWest HEB with a little extra effort on the few big uphills we encountered.  I suck on hills and hopefully Karen will help me get better.  I ran with Jason and it seemed like he wasn't working very hard.  After we were done, I felt like I had been working way too hard.  Average pace for 6.60 miles was 8:07.

Worked on my biomechanics during the strides and I think I'm getting it.  At least I know what I'm doing wrong and now I just have to practice doing it right, over and over and over.

Looks like were going to have a team for the Silicon Lab relays this weekend.  I hope my team doesn't have any dreams about winning because I'm going to run the 1st leg and I'm not going to be running fast!!  Karen is just great...taking care of all the little details like entries/singlets etc.

Overall...things are looking good.  Weather is nice and cool, I'm down another pound, my foots doing OK, my legs are not hurting this morning!!

Nap time...zzzzzzzzz

Focus

After reading everyone's posts recently, it seems like everyone has a focus for their running. Last year, I pretty much raced myself into the ground from October 2006 all the way through Boston 2008 with no break. I never focused on any particular result in any particular race - I was lucky to qualify in 2007 AT&T for Boston.
This year my #1 race is Austin. Why...because I think racing at home gives me an advantage because there is no travel, sleeping in an unfamiliar hotel or eating at restaurants. I know the course really well and I don't think the Austin course is all that slow.
I'm not racing the distance challenge races unless Karen thinks it will be beneficial.
My goals at the Austin Marathon are to run at least 3:20, finish as high up in my age group as possible and to recover quickly so I can get ready for Boston.
So everything I do on and off the road will be directed at that those goals. Like Sadie - I just want to get faster.

Long run check list

Todays plan included a long run starting at 7am, breakfast, shower, ART treatment, quick stop at Central Market and a long nap.  Got up at 5 am expecting to hear torrential rain and howling winds - NOT.  Had breakfast and turned on the TV to see how IKE was doing.  IKE was kicking Galveston's butt.  Got all my stuff together including post run clothes, TP stuff and recovery drink.  Managed to catch the cat and put her inside - I'm still thinking we are gonna get torrential rain.  Drive down to Rogue and get there with plenty of time to work my calves and stretch.  Once at Rogue I realize I don't have my purse - ie no money so I'd have to go home to have breakfast after the run and then drive back into town.  Following Karen's directions, I find David and Jason and we get started on the long run.  Within 1/2 a mile I realized that I would kill myself if I tried to hang with them the whole way.  Not a new story for me...this is the story of my life.  I take a long time to get going and do better if I start really slow.  David and Jason are young so they can leave the barn flying.  My quads were a little grumpy too - I assume from the strides on Thurs where I was trying to change my running form a little.  At mile 3 I let them go.  By mile 4.5 I felt my legs kick in finally and then cruised along pretty easily.  Ended up running with a few guys in the regular Austin Marathon program.  One guy was working kind of hard and I figure we were running around 8:30/mile.  I asked him what his MGP was and he said he hoped to run a 4 hour marathon - at this rate he is gonna be running the marathon in the pool in between PT sessions.  I suggested he might slow down a bit.  He said he was doing a tempo portion - this was the 2nd "long" run of the program.   Hmmm.

Anyway I finished up the 10 mile portion and then added on 2 more miles and 5 strides.

Summery of run:

12 miles  - 1:41:38

Average pace - 8:28

Mile 1 - 8:47

         2 - 8:11

         3 - 8:33

         4 - 8:51

         5 - 8:34

         6 - 8.33

         7 - 8:29

         8 - 8:08

         9 - 8:41

        10- 7:45 (WTF???)

        11- 8:32

        12-8:35

Overall I feel pretty good about the run - I'll be ready for my nap when that comes up!  I'm tired.  By the way...found my purse on my porch.  I'd lose my head if it wasn't attached.

It's all in the look!

Yesterday, I stopped in at Foot Solutions to get some cushioned inserts for my work shoes and while there, the guy working there first told me that they had sponsored a runner from Russia who placed 3rd in the women's division at 3M this past winter and then said "you look fit, are you one of those sub 3hr runners?".  I wish.  I said no, that I was shooting for 3:20.  He did give me a free pair of running socks.  Gotta take what you can get!

All right...great group

Today was my first day with Karen's group.  I had my worst night's sleep in a long time last night and my left heel was aching all night - problem solved with 1 Aleve and 1/2 a Vicodin (sorry Mike - I'm keeping the foot details to a minimum).  Went to have ART done to my foot - felt great afterwards.

Decided I needed to experiment with eating before a weekday quality group so I took a risk and had a bowl of cereal at around 4:15pm.  Finished my NUUN liter, did some TP massage on my calves and headed out.  Wasn't sure how long it would take me to get to NW Park but surprisingly it took less time and aggravation than to get to Rogue.  Things are looking up.  Did some stretches while I waited for the rest of the group to arrive - seemed like most of the Team people had done their workout in the AM (Karen gives everyone a choice) but there were a few of them there and one other guy for the Austin Marathon workout.  Lucky for me, his goal time is similar to mine.  Tonight's workout was pretty tame but a good one to start with - 1 mile warm up, 4 miles of 2 min (HMGP-MGP) and 2 min recovery.  We mostly ran between 15K and HMGP (7:04-7:14) and recovered at about 8:30 pace.  It felt comfortable.  Stretching and core work when we were done.

Broke a Meredith rule and am chowing down on a bowl of pasta and veggie marinara sauce at 9:30pm.  Guess I'll have to stay up for a few hours.  Tomorrow is a day off, so I'm sleeping in.

The cereal worked well as a pre run meal - didn't bother my stomach at all and I had lots of energy.

I really like Karen - she seems very dedicated to her coaching job - had some biomechanical tips for me and the group seems happy and to be enjoying themselves.  It must be hard to have people joining them who have fresh legs from slacking all summer.

New plan for Austin Marathon

After much thought about what group I was going to switch into, I decided that I would do Karen's PP Austin Marathon group.  I had seriously considered Geezer's group but the deciding factor was getting 2 quality w/o's a week with Karen.  Thanks Ruth for making that work.

Anyway...see you Sat and then Tuesday Karen.

Almost forget....

I guess marathon's are just too tough for Lance. Looks like he's "100%" sure he'll compete in the 2009 Tour de France. I will admit he had an impressive 2nd place in the Leadville 100 MTB race recently. He is gonna have to go back on his diet and lose some weight in order to be competitive. It will make next year's Tour interesting.

Rude Awakening

So I got down to Rogue for our first quality w/o. Apparently, there are not enough people NOT in Team Rogue interested in 2 quality w/o's a week to make it worthwhile for Rogue. So that's not happening. We are been moved to Amy Anderson's group on Thursdays and will be doing the quality w/o on Tuesdays on our own. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little disappointed. I think it would be cool for Rogue to encourage a group of runners to do something similar to the Cali Team Rogue, in the Distance Challenge. What better advertising than having a bunch of Rogue's kicking butt locally! I'm going to Amy's group on Thurs but may look at other options within Rogue after that.

The good news was that a guy named Andrew (marathon PR 2:57 and shooting for 2:50) didn't realize he was supposed to meet his group at the Rock so myself, him and 2 other people that were in the former Distance Challenge group went off to do a steady state run. Since we had not been informed that we would not be doing a track w/o on Tuesday I did not have my Garmin with me. The workout was 7 miles with 3 at MGP. I can assure you that I ran way faster than MGP (by perceived effort) and Andrew was very nice and ran my pace...I'm sure he barely broke a sweat. We ended up doing around 9 miles so all in all a great workout. My legs were running out of gas by the end. Andrew will be joining the Team Rogue group and giving y'all a run for your money.

After a quick shower at Rogue, I went off for dinner and on the way to work stopped at Quacks Bakery for something sweet for dessert. I had an oatmeal cookie but couldn't help noticing the cupcakes. Not as many varieties as Polkadot's but it looked like they had Chocolate, Vanilla, Carrot and then several with frosting and large flakes of coconut and others with cream filling. I passed on the cupcakes as I believe I would slip in to a sugar induced coma and I need to be home for that. They also had a write up posted comparing the different bakery's cupcakes - didn't have time to read it.

Rain....

....OK it was more like drizzle but it rained today. I got wet in the last 1/2 mile of my run.  I ran 5 miles randomly around the downtown core this morning.  I felt good, I am surprised at how much stronger and faster my legs are getting.  Ran 5 miles in 42:45 - average pace 8:33.

Mile 1 -8:07

Mile 2 -8:49

Mile 3 -8:32

Mile 4 -8:38

Mile 5 -8:45.

I'm happy with that given it it still pretty warm and humid in the morning.

It is amazing how a short run like that makes a crappy night at work all better.  I need to win the lottery or find a better, equally paying job.

Oh well, I slept well and I'm ready to start all over.  I was right - straights and curves for 2 miles tomorrow.

Good vs bad choices

So last night someone had brought this chocolate with buttercream frosting birthday cake into work. It was good but not that good. Next time I have a hankering for something sweet and rich like that, I'll head to one of the cupcake stores. Portion controlled and quality. I felt full all night. One the good side though, while I don't keep a detailed joural of my weight, I would say my average weight is down about 2 lbs. How many minutes is that in a marathon...I dunno know but it has to be a few.

Following the Austin Marathon advanced schedule, I ran 3.5 miles. Seems ridiculous but once I see the weekly schedules, I'll add on where necessary. It was somewhere in the ninties, humid and windy. I still had a good run. I have no idea what next weeks plan is but I'm going to do a 5 mile easy run in the morning. First quality workout is scheduled for Tuesday. I'm putting bets on straights and curves!

Kicking butt

I told Jim Gelb I would be taking it easy today....oops, I kicked his butt (sorry Jim).  OK you darn near caught me at the end but almost caught is like didn't catch.  Considering the fact that I don't care to run on the trail, I felt very good today.  Once we got past I-35 on the south side, the rest of the run was spent dodging Austin fit groups.  I will say they are very polite, yelling runner up and runner back and hugging the side of the trail as scores of runners flew past them.  There were millions of them...I don't think I've seen that many before.  It is annoying BUT they didn't stop to use the Runtex water (would have caused a major traffic jam) and they are out there getting fit.  YAY!!

I got out of control between the end of the trail before E Riverside and the Statesman - ran way too fast.  I can't help it.  I like the pavement as a running surface so much better than the trail.  So I waited for Jim at the Runtex waterstop.  He dropped off again once we got to the I-35 bridge and enjoyed some Gazelle refreshments.  Then we saw the Rogue coolers under the bridge - oops!

Back at Rogue, Geezer was hanging out with what looked like a beer - I'm thinking that this must be his new nutritional thing.  Maybe he had a few on his run too.  Turns out it was a lemon-lime soda.  Panthers group was drinking beer - good grief, it wasn't even 9am yet.  Oh well, each to his own.

Off to my massage - Rachel at Kneadz appears to have dropped out of sight so since I had a gift certificate to Performance Wellness, I went there.  Blaze did a great job.  Was very specific about checking each part of my calf and working the spots which were problems.  worked on my foot too - OUCH!!  Then I ran on the treadmill for him so he could see how I ran.

Treated myself to lunch with a non running friend at Zu Zu and now I'm getting ready for a nap.  Exciting life huh!!

Can't wait

I can't believe it's time to start training for Austin Marathon again.  I'm excited like I was 2 whole years ago when I started this venture for the very first time.  I'm dying to get into a regular training program - it will be great to be with my team 3 days a week.  

They posted the long run schedule which included the distance challenge races...I'm pumped.  I can't wait to see how it goes this time.  I am going to remember how tough it was the first time around.  If it seems much easier then I'm not working hard enough.

Time to go to bed...hopefully I'll sleep tonight...I feel like a kid before Christmas.

Is it possible?

My goal for The Austin Marathon is 3:20.  I'm making it public so I can have no excuses when all is said and done.  I believe a 3:20 marathon is possible but realize that there are obstacles to over come on the way and during the marathon.

The first of those obstacles is my feet.  I am having some trouble with Planter Fasciitis in my left foot but instead of pretending that there isn't a problem, I facing it head on and dealing with it.  After last Saturday's run where it was unbelievably painful for the last 5 miles and then again when I got up from my nap, I have rested it, iced it and taken anti-inflammatories.  I am pleased to say that I ran an easy 3.5 miles today with no pain.  I did do a tape job similar to what Geezer did and I think that helped a lot.  I can still feel some discomfort in the heel area but not pain.  I would be fooling myself, if I thought it was all better.  So I am going to a Dr recommended by Ruth to develop a management plan so that my dream iis not ruined by something stupid like my feet.

I am taking a page from Mike's training book...a very positive attitude.  I am not at all concerned about my heel, if it means several weeks of light workouts and no speed work, so be it.  I am fit right now.  Don't have a lot of speed but I think my overall fitness is really, really good.  I'm running my long runs at the right pace even in 100% humidity.  My diet is under control for now and I have lost a little weight.  YAY!

I am looking forward to meeting my fellow Rogue team mates and getting to know Coach Dwayne.