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Week 120
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Greetings my 50+ fleet-footed friends: It is my hope that a collective cloud is lifting: Rtype reports that he is pain-free, Spikez reports that she is pain-free, AlanB seems to be on the upswing (fingers crossed), and hopefully, Edgewood will join those ranks soon.
And I am finally on the road to recovery, as well. I'm feeling much better than even one week ago, but have not started back to running-training other than a couple of 5-mile runs this week; it's been mostly PT since my Tuesday session. The PT guy says I have a strained psoas as was surmised by DrT from the get-go. The PT also says that the despite where the pain is, it is actually a lower back issue, and that the cure is going to be to work on my pelvic tilt. As I've mentioned before, and confirmed by the PT, a large imbalance has lead to this chronic condition, and so the exercises he's having me do work directly on that. The exercise classifications include: Bridge (trunk stability), Pelvic tilt, Abductor, Hip Extension, Knee extension/Press-up combo, about 10-15 reps a piece a couple times a day. I'll scan the sheet and post it online at some point, but let me tell you that the pelvic tilt exercise is doing the most good and is one that I would not have guessed to do based on videos I've seen online related to this condition. It is not a painful exercise, but it is frustratingly hard for me to do. He says I have muscles in my lower abdomen area that have basically stopped firing (either because they are fully contracted and don't loosen up, or they never contract...from what he told me, it seems like there is bit of both) as they've let the psoas do all the work. So, the objective is to reengage those muscles; in my case, these are especially some lower lateral abdominal muscles.
For those interested, here's the pelvic tilt exercise he's having me do: Lay flat on my back, knees bent, hands behind my head. Start with my back arched, then flatten my back so that the spine touches the ground. (and here's the kicker) With my spine touching the ground, now draw the lower belly (not the stomach) in....this is very hard for me. A female patient of his said "like trying to fit into a tight pair of jeans." And if I conjure that image it helps, but it's still hard. I can already feel some of these muscles responding, and the PT guy says we'll probably only need four in-person sessions over the next month and I should be good to go. He also said that he thinks that my other lingering hip-issue will resolve itself in this process, and that I also should gain another 4" or so of stride length once we get this whole thing straightened out; it's a prospect that intrigues me, although I'm not holding my breath on that one.
So there you go, for me it says I need to be conscious of my whole kinetic chain, and, unfortunately, work on those things that are most frustrating/least enjoyable. I just want to run, why can't it be that simple?
Enough about me.
Props to MikeF for his 1000 straight days to add to his 100,000 mile club from the end of last year:
http://www.100klifetimemiles.com/2012/12/mike-fanelli-has-passed-100000-miles-11.html
Gretehund, you're getting towards the countdown to NYC, and your training seems to be going well. Predicting Marathon success based off others times/training has been a crap-shoot for me, but your mileage alone gives me confidence that you will do well.
Horst, I share your amazement at those that can pound out 60+ miles week-in and week-out. I'm hopeful that once I get this core stuff straightened out, those other niggles will work themselves out, as well, which will help.
1962! Welcome to the thread, you've got some nice goals set for yourself in the coming year. I hope the thread will be a source of support and inspiration for you.
MG, it is so awesome that you get to race in these college XC meets up in the northwest. Our USATF committee here in Kentucky has just voted to allow open competitions starting next year at many of the meets (college and HS), I hope that it'll spur a general resugence of interest in XC around here.
Good luck to those racing next week at the USATF Masters 5k Road Championships in Syracuse. And it's a couple more weeks to Worlds, too!
Finally, later this morning, it'll be my distinct honor, privilege, and pleasure to go celebrate the 57th birthday of a good friend and former Cornell track stand-out. We will celebrate that she is a cancer survivor, but will also share in the immensely joyful spirit that she possesses. The celebration always starts with running few laps around their neighborhood (it's about 1k per lap) followed by food and story-telling. It is always a life affirming affair that will reenforce my gratitude for the gifts I've been given.
With Joy and Thankfulness!
PS-I was thrilled to see that a kid from my HS was second at the Griak XC meet this weekend. He's currently not natioanlly ranked, but that'll change since he beat a couple of top-20 nationally ranked HS runners! OK, he's not just any old kid, he is Tim Hackers youngest.