Knee Surgery Journal: 5K run and last PT

 I am doing my best ti not ramp this up too quickly and luckily behind both out of running shape and trepidatious over the knee have helped keep me in check.  But after two days of running 2 whole miles I decided to run a 5k on the treadmill at a more relaxed pace than I had done the previous days 2 miler where I went out at 7:54 and brought it home in a 7:04.

Truth be told I was thinking of simply doing a 3 miler and then realized with a half mile to go, I might as well tack on the .1 to get that 5K time in the bank to then go off of. I have to say that I was more that pleased when I ran relatively even paced miles of 8:00, 7:54, and 7:35.  Throw in whatever my time was for that last .1 and I ended up with a 24:11 for this 5k or a 7:48 pace.

Doubting greatly I will be able to run 7:48 pace for the entire marathon in three weeks but this was a decent start.  I woke up today to sore shoulders and back muscles. I vividly recall running my first marathon and then having the antecubital space or "elbow pit" of my arms being so unbelievably sore from holding my arms in a run position for about two hours longer than I ever had before. So I wasn't surprised that the traditionally "running" muscles weren't sore but my arms and back were. 

Today was supposed to be another 5k but I dropped it down to 2 miles when I remembered I had a physical therapy session. After a warm-up, I hopped on the treadmill again as my excellent PT fella watched me run for about five minutes. When I was done he said I was looking great and that this was likely it for my therapy. I scheduled a visit for the week after my half-marathon just to follow-up and see how I feel but as of today, I have no other sessions scheduled for the first time in 468 days.

The Ides of March was my first PT session last year and boy was that a foreshadowing I did not catch onto.  I now have a little over three weeks until I see not only how healed I am but also how quickly I can get into racing shape. I have run 123 half marathons and only 8 of them have not been under 1:40.  All 8 of those are special circumstances races (end of a half Ironman, pacing a friend while carrying a camera, running on sand, carrying an 6- foot vinyl banner, etc.) so it would sure be nice if I could not add to the 1:4x list.

Only time will tell, of course, but I am ready to move forward. Time to make some history.

Knee Surgery Journal: My first mile back

 

It ain't much but it's honest work.

Thought about inserting that meme here because that's how I felt after today. One mile.  I ran one mile.  For the first time in 196 days, I ran a full mile without stopping.  Bear in mind that 196 days ago I was barely two weeks after running my first mile in 8 months after my meniscus repair surgery.  A repair surgery which I didn’t know at the time had not worked.

I ran that 3 mile run 196 days ago and was in pain. I thought it was a good pain, but it was a pain telling me the knee was not fixed.

Today I ran pain free. I am out of shape. My muscles are weak, but I seem to be, four hours later writing this, to be ok. Just a little over four months after my surgery, I am running. (It could have been even less but I decided to throw a wrench in my plans by getting surgery on my perforated septum in my nose two weeks ago and delay everything.)

So, now, I have 28 days until a half marathon I am planning on running in Alaska. I have 4 weeks to hopefully build up enough stamina to make this NOT my worst half-marathon ever. (A position currently held by a half-marathon at the end of an 70.3mile triathlon a little over a month before I tore the meniscus in my knee originally. My time:1:59:02. I walked most of the last three miles of this very hilly, very hot day, where I was on fumes. The next slowest, if you are interested, was a 1:48 that I ran fully on a beach in hot humid Galveston where I added an extra mile.)

I should be able to finish this race and I should be able to do so in a healthy way that helps me build back my racing.  That is what is important. Not just getting out there and slogging through. I want to be able to race and race fast again. Otherwise, there is no point of racing, to me at least.  Running, absolutely.

Regardless, it all starts today with one single 7:35 minute mile.

Knee Surgery Journal - 4 months Post-Surgery

I will admit that I was waiting on this next update because I thought I was gonna have a surprise to share with everyone. But instead of running what would be a shockingly slow half marathon even if I was where I thought I would be this weekend I decided to hold off for a little bit more and continue my progress.

This decision was made for me as I thought at the beginning of May I was going to be able to begin what I've just started last week. Basically, I was given the OK to start a walk-jog program and I'm excited where I currently stand. I started with a 4 minute walk and one minute jog for 30 minutes about a week ago.  I have progressed to 2 minutes walking and three minutes running. I got up to 8.5 mph on the jog portion of the final section of my jogs and other than feeling massively out of shape I have no complaints.

Well-meaning friends have told me to not get injured by going too much and honestly there's nothing I can really injure. It's just that after approximately 18 months of virtually no activity like running, my muscles are weak and atrophied. Granted I have been swimming and lifting weights but that is completely different. All of this is to say that I'm doing very well and there is virtually no pain in my knee even when I run.

So I have pushed a potential comeback race to July. It might be my slowest race at that distance ever but if I can get through it pain-free I will consider that a success.