Recovering

It's been awhile.  I did the Irish Fest Parade 5K.  And although I did not push it to the max, I did run a decent race, 23:14, finishing 2nd in my age group.  Still had a bit of glute pain, but it was not the direct cause for a slower time than the Mid-Winter Cruise 5K.  I just wanted to see what I could do without going overboard.  It worked out well (this included working the race both before and after).

I am back to my normal running routine now.  Nice and slow running under my maximum aerobic heart rate (Maffetone & Primal Endurance) with a day or two of mixing power walking each week.  My long run last Sunday hit 17 miles.  My plan is to keep to the Maffetone/Primal Endurance running for the next three weeks, with no real set structure except getting a long run of 13 to 18 miles in each weekend.  Then leading up to the Frankfort Half-Marathon and Starved Rock Marathon, cutting mileage and adding some intensity.

I do have the Mountain Goat this Saturday, but I know I will not be anywhere near what I did last year.  I can't afford to pound those downhills and hurt the glute again.  I will try to work the uphills hard, however, giving me a real nice workout and just have some fun.  I'm actually riding with someone down there for the first time and will most likely make it to the after party, also for the first time.  So -- Fun City!