Adjusting

Just a quick update….

I’ve figured out job and commute. At present my exercise is a walk around downtown Long Beach during my lunch break. I think my schedule is sorting out nicely, so beginning this week I’ll be working short runs in during the evenings after getting home, and longer runs on one day a weekend.

Unfortunately, one of the things that will change will be updates to this blog. I’m going to have to store up and update once a week moving forward.

Stay tuned.

Let’s Try This (Again)

Last I left the blogosphere, my knee was ailing and my life was changing. That was Sunday morning. By Sunday afternoon, I was doubled over in pain giving birth to my first ever kidney stone. Thank goodness I had a valium around the house.

But, I made it through that little episode and have settled into the new job. The only thing left to test is the knee. Tonight I laced up the shoes and took an easy two mile walk around the neighborhood. We’ll see how things feel tomorrow. If things seem fine, I’ll head out into the hills on Saturday morning.

By the way, I hope I’m not around (only because it would mean I’d be working way early on a Sunday morning), but if I were, I’d be able to watch the Long Beach Marathon from the building I’m working in:

Too bad that’s not the view from my office….

Details details

It's finally official, so I can let the cat out of the bag.

You may recall that I used to share a lot of pictures of planes and airports. I used to do *some* treadmill work. That all came to an end in the middle of January as I rolled off the project that I had been working. Since then, I've been on the prowl for my next gig. Well, that all came to fruition on Friday. Beginning tomorrow (Monday), I start a new project. I'll be a Senior PM at a major managed care company in Long Beach. I'd be able to watch the Long Beach marathon from my office. No more planes and hotels. Just lots of time in my car braving the madness called the 405. You Los Angelenos know what I'm talking about. This means that I'll be working a regular 8 to 5 (or 6) and a hour in traffic each way (the small price I pay for 80 degree winter weather).

This also means another major adjustment to my exercise schedule. Of course, with my knee at the moment, the adjustment is down to zero. Yesterday it was so bad I could barely walk! I'm hoping a couple of weeks will resolve the pain and swelling. Sigh. The good news is that I'm going to get a new pair of shoes out of the deal. Have you seen all the cool colors!?!?

 

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Sigh. Grrrr!!!!!!

It’s been a few days since posting here. I’ve basically been on my butt since then. I took Sunday and Monday off as planned. Then I had some last minute things crop up on Tuesday that kept me on the sidelines (good things – not bad). So I couldn’t get out and test my knee until Wednesday.

Instead of actually running, I laced up the shoes and briskly walked over to the local supermarket, loaded up on some groceries (I had dinner duty on Wednesday) and then hoofed it back home – a 4 1/2 mile round trip – the second half with a 20 pound knapsack. I got an extra serving of chicken breast.

Move ahead to Thursday. I went to put my shoes on and I couldn’t bend my knee into a right angle to put a sock on. Sigh….

This is the injury that started the big downward spiral in the spring of 2010. Pain, swelling, cracking and popping – all signs of runner’s knee. Unlike spring 2010, I’m going to follow the recommended course of action:

• First off: One of my good Twitter/FB friends asked about my shoes. Well, they’ve been in service since November. Of 2011. So the first thing I will do is retire one pair of Asics GT2160s.
• Next: I will be taking some time off running until the pain and swelling is gone. Like really gone, not just convince myself gone. This was the huge mistake I made the last time around. I kept convincing myself that everything was good to go when it wasn’t. And it never really did until I shut down everything for good.
• Third: In the interim, I will do some walking around the neighborhood (in a pair of shoes other than 2 year old Asics GT2160s).

Now for the grrrrrr!!!!! All this means that I’m probably going to go back to the beginning of the Higdon Spring Training Plan in a couple weeks. This is a real disappointment because I felt like I had just started making some real progress. Sigh. I mean Grrrr!!!!

Is That a Grapefruit or are You Just Happy to See Me?

Don’t ask me how, but I’ve managed to do something to my knee. Yesterday it was swollen about the size of a grapefruit and painful to bend. Today it’s more like the size of an orange. I’m going to Motrin and rest until Tuesday and then try to get the show back on the road.

In a Whirlwind

It’s been a busy week. I know it shouldn’t be an excuse, but for me personally, running (and poker) are hobbies, so they must always take a back seat to life.

To give you an idea, I flew in here Sunday night, and flew back out Monday evening:

I was there for less than 24 hours, and didn’t even get to see the water.

I’ve been putting in some runs when possible, but have been a little short on miles. Likewise, I’ve been logging food when possible, but have been a little high on calories. I hope to get back to some semblance of regularity this weekend.

My Bipolar Run

For as good as my Wednesday run was, my Friday run was as bad. I just couldn’t find a consistent rhythm anywhere on the trail.

At least it was a spectacular day. Let’s see – March 1 = Summer in Southern California!

At my first stop on the way up the hill:

Having a good sit down in Deer Canyon:

And finally back at the car:

Pinch me!

On the calorie front:

• Budget: 1530
• Consumed: 1796
• Adjustment: 3.6 miles, 563 calories
• Deficit/(surplus): 270