« May 2003 | <<< Back to Ben Hauck's Marathon Page | July 2003 »

Jun 30: ~4 miles in Astoria (2 laps)
--I am trying to use a little new "motivator" in my running, to get me through the hot weather and the little running slump I've been in over the last couple weeks. It's essentially the same kind of motivator I used to power me toward training for the marathon in 2001, but for now it will remain a secret. I just finished a hot afternoon run, 85 degrees with about 50% humidity. I'm dripping right now with sweat. My legs were perfecto (no problems to speak of), which practically opens the gates toward a freer mind and longer runs. I have noticed my speed is fast at the starts of my runs until about the 3rd or 4th mile then I struggle with spurts of speed and slowness, but I think it's the hot weather overheating me. I am actually liking running in the hot weather--I feel like a machine!

Jun 29: ~5.8 miles in Central Park (<1 lap)
--It was nice to be back running after a hiatus. My training had succumbed to an increase in creativity and a decrease in motivation. After biking a little over 30 miles yesterday with my friend Sue around Red Hook, Brooklyn, and Manhattan, my body was ready to take on a run today. I had no leg problems to speak of in the 77-degree, humid weather. However, it had been almost 2 weeks since my last run (when I stopped because of shin splits in my right leg), so I wasn't sure how far I'd be able to go today. The start of the run was very strong, with controlled breathing and some short sprints thrown in, but at about the 4-mile mark, I stopped to walk about 90 feet. (A couple had challenged me, and I lost.) After the 5-mile mark, I stopped again to walk another 90 feet, and finally, at around 5.8 miles, I gave up and walked the rest of the way. All of this was because I was overheating and my body was saying "WALK!!!!" I'm okay with the early finish given my recent break, but I'm even more okay that my legs were feeling great! And no shin splints!

Jun 17: ~2 miles along the Pacific Ocean
--I was in Santa Monica, CA, along the Pacific Ocean so I planned a morning run along the path stretching from the Santa Monica Pier to the Venice Pier and back. However, about 2 miles into the run, my right shin caused me a lot of pain. I've had this pain the last few runs, but I figured it was regular running aches and pains. This time, I had to stop, and I needed to limp part of the way back to my hotel. The pain is on the medial side of the middle part of my shin, sensitive to touch, and feels as if it could be bone and/or muscle. I am going to try some stretches to free up the area, but it's a difficult muscle to get to. Anyway, I think I'll be fine, and hopefully this new ailment won't get in the way of my training.

I later looked up my sensation on Sports Injury Bulletin and it seems I have a classic case of shin splints. I do particular stretches to prevent shin splints; it looks as if I need to do more, with more range of motion.

Jun 15: 6.1 miles in Central Park (1 lap)
--What a fantastic run today in CP!! It was in the 70's, just humid enough to make you sweat but not die, and sunny. I felt extremely strong, only lapped once by an obviously superior male runner, and my pace was noticeably faster than a couple weeks before. I attribute that to the faster-paced treadmill action I've gotten in recently, which probably boosted my strength over the short-term. By the Biography clock at Columbus Circle, I ran the 6.1 miles in 47 minutes (7:42-minute mile); just before my last marathon, I was doing the loop in about 44 minutes, so I'm doing great with my training.

What was especially promising about today's run was that I had no knee problems to speak of. Last Friday, I went to see a specialist in Manhattan about my left knee problems, and he found that I had tight quad tendons. (The difference in tightness between my right and left was pretty noticeable in his test.) He prescribed quad and hamstring stretches I already do, only to do them twice a day and three times each leg, for 20 seconds at a time. He said in two weeks I should notice a difference, and in four weeks I should be cured. (If not, see him in six weeks.)

Jun 11: 2.75 miles on treadmill
--Tiring! I ran at 8.5 mph for a solid 2 miles of this run, and it slaughtered me--what a great workout. I ran the rest averaging 7.9 mph, I would estimate. No knee problems to speak of. Since I was at a hotel again, I hopped in the pool afterwards and it felt good to work my whole body this time.

Jun 8: ~8 miles in Astoria (4 laps)
--A surprisingly good run today, and my longest run this year! I didn't have much in the way of time constraints, so I could go as long as I wanted to. I was thinking I'd only be able to take 4 miles, but about 3 miles into the run, I decided, Let's see if I can go 8! There were even times during the run I flirted with a 10-mile run, but I eventually decided against it. The beginning of the run felt really strong--I attribute that to the fast, 2.75-mile treadmill runs I banged out at hotels earlier in the week. I had no knee tightness to speak of today, even though I had a few left-knee episodes while walking late last night. I still am trying to pinpoint how my knee episodes erupt--it might be when my knee bends and weight is exerted on it in a certain way, making a "grabbing" feeling in the back of my knee and leg. I think I sometimes have episodes when I've mounted steps. But anyway, a great run today in 65-degree, cloudy weather, with a little bit of humidity to keep it interesting.

Jun 5: 2.75 miles on treadmill
--Again at a hotel, this time I didn't experience any tightening in my knee when running on the treadmill. I was sweating a lot again. I ran much of the time at 8.3 miles per hour. At the airport later in the day, I remember feeling a little pain under my kneecap when walking.

Jun 4: 2.75 miles on treadmill
--Traveling, I got on a treadmill at the hotel where I was staying and had time for 2.75 early-morning miles. At mile 1.49, my left knee tightened, but I got through it. The gym was really warm, and I sweated like a dog but felt good. I was running at 8.3 miles per hour for a good amount of the run. Then, I got on the stairclimber for 2 sets of 5 minutes.

Jun 2: ~2 miles in Astoria (1 lap)
--This darn knee. I got up early for a run before a long flight today, and after about a mile and a half my left knee started to go whack again like Saturday. It's starting to feel like a large disc or something sliding up and around in there. When I concentrate on bending my knee more as I come up for my forward stride, I seem to alleviate it a little bit, but I can only keep that up for so long before my stride drops. It's really slowing down my run, too--I had another slow run this morning. I'm gonna try to hit the treadmill while on my trip, and I'll see if I still get the problems. I'm only two days into my anti-inflammatory medication, so hopefully there's something it can offer, but now I'm starting to think I have surgery coming up for that knee. [Please, let me have a summer this year without a cane!]