5km waimea and vanguard

I was meant to do a 3km fartlek but with pain still in my glutes I decided to be smart and leave it for a day.  Well go figure .. today was very very windy and not ideal for a fartlek.

I have still not decided what to enter this weekend.  With my hip injury just healed but still having residual glute pain.....I figured I would head out and do 5km and see how the body held up.

I started out nice and quick.  If felt easy tonight until I get to the wee sharp rise by the hospital.  I push up this as fast as I can and sure enough, I get to the top and feel that familiar snag in my glute again.    Pox I thought!  its down hill for the next 1.5km so I stretched out and made the most of the slope.  I turned and started heading up Vanguard Street .... straight in to a strong head wind..UGH!!  the next two km are a gradual up hill anyway and add a head wind to the mix....it makes it unpleasant at best.  I could feel my glute pulling as I pushed against the wind.  I picked up the pace for the last 400ms to home and was really pleased to stop my watch in 29:50 and even more pleasing is seeing my heart rate starting to drop now....with my avg heart rate 151

5km waimea and vanguard

5km waimea and vanguard

I missed out going for a walk yesterday so I figured I would go out and do my 5km today.

Its been really odd weather here .... torrential rain through the night and then hot muggy days.  Today is no different - it was about 18degs and I was sweating like it was 30 degs.  I felt ok on this walk.  My left glute (proformas) was smarting abit today and am guessing that is why I just had no "oommpphh"  so I decided to just settle in and cruise.  I am going to try a 3km fartlek tomorrow so didnt want to bust my gut on this walk.

I figure its going to be a slow 5km next week.....be lucky if I can push for 28mins or if I feel up to it ... the 10km....still have not made up my mind which one I will enter.

so today it was a nice 31:03 with avg heart rate of 149

5km waimea and vanguard

10km out and back monaco

We went for a walk up the Maitai this morning..about an hour.  Its a wonderful day and as it is ANZAC day lots of people were out relaxing and enjoying a mid week day off work.   When we got home I decided I would head out and do a walk.

I had said to my coach that I would try 8km to day and then do 10km on Friday.  Well we are now going back over to Blenheim on Friday so I figured I could try and see how I feel today.

My hips were a little tender when we got back from the walk.  Its been  along time since I have ambled along for over an hour.  I decided I would do the Monaco course ... I could stop at the bottom of the hill for 8km or I could carry on and finish up for 10km.

I started out taking it nice and easy.  I was breathing good, not puffing or gasping.  Once I got down off the hill and onto the flat, I just ticked along and felt good.  I was surprised to reach 5km in 29:44 and so I turned and knew I would slow down now as its more up hill all the way back to home.

I just walked normally over the over pass and again going up Beatson Road.  I could feel my IT band and my hip pulling as I walked up hill so it was better to just rec walk.  It was still nice to finish up the 10km in 1:01:37

The good news was I had no pain today.  It was achy in places, but no pain.  yay  so now I will go dig out my stick and attack my legs with that.

10km out and back monaco 

5km waimea and vanguard

I am frustrated!! I just want my leg and hip to heal.  I know I cant push too hard on it as it will just deal the healing.

It annoys me when I am told that people are talking about me....saying .. man she is always injured.   I guess to outsiders it would appear that way.  But those that know me, know that this is a year old if not longer injury that I have had to live with and train over due to having big international race commitments.  I just kept pushing and nursing it and then pushing it some more until it finally stopped me in my tracks.   As you will all remember the NZ Nationals 20km race - it stopped me dead in my tracks!  It would be nice if more people were more interested if I was healing and looking after myself .. instead of running me down and mocking that I am not doing so well.

But .. anyhow...... I thought I would pop out and give the 5 km around the block another shot.   I was really pleased that my shins didnt hurt this time.  Yay, I hate that burning pain as you start back into it again.  The body seemed to hold up ok.  Heart rate is through the roof but I knew to expect that.

Tomorrow if my body is feeling ok I might give 8km a shot.  Need to try and walk 10km in the next week so I can try to decide what if anything I will enter on May 6th.

5km waimea and vanguard

5km waimea and vanguard

I decided to head out and do a 5km walk.  I picked the normal round the block course.  It is a slightly undulating  course so I decided to take it easy....and really take it easy.

I started out and completed the first km in 6.26....see nice and easy....yes it is up hill but I till took it quietly.  y shins were fair screaming!!  I found that if I walked with a shorter stride, my hips didnt drop too much and so I was able to keep the pain in my hip and IT band and a minimum.  Around the 3km mark I had some pretty good sharp twangs but they passed and I just slowed down a little more.

I headed for home and tried very hard to not push myself.  My hip was aching but no more sharp pains.

Total time was 30:36  avg heart rate was 151

I felt very heavy and chunky today but I guess that is to be expected.

5km waimea and vanguard

3000m fartlek

I have booked into see Bex at Sports Therapy for Monday.  After my very painful walk for the 5km I was unsure about walking again.  As I had my walking group at the track today, I thought I would try 3000m.

My coach had given me a 3km fartlek to do and a 10km this week.  I knew there was no way I could do the 10km but he said to try the fartlek.

As I walked around to warm up I was thinking I would be lucky to just finish this lap.  I was getting sharp pain in my hip with each heel strike.  I went through the drills with all my walkers and then when they all left I decided I would try to complete 3km.  After my first km, I decided to try making it a fartlek and it did go ... ok...

My hip ached but there was no sharp pains that I was getting earlier on.  My hip flexor pulled when I tried to increase speed but didnt hurt.

total time for the fartlek is 16:44

3000m fartlek

5km atawahi - first walk

I have had so much to arrange in the last week and time just slipped away from me.  It dawned on me that it has been a week since I last did any exercise.  The good side of this is that in the last 3 weeks I have finally been able to gain some much needed weight.  Although I dont feel so comfortable, it is needed.

My hamstring seems to have healed up nicely, my hip on the other hand has slowly gotten more and more sore.  I am thinking the running did it no favours.  I started out and felt pretty good.  Legs felt strong and no pain in hamstring.  Hip was giving me little twinges at the outter side of hip...but seemed to be holding ok.  At about the 1.5 - 2km mark I felt pain starting in my right hip flexor.  I knew it would just be a spasm due to over working.  So I tried harder to tuck my butt and to get my glutes working.  It seemed to work a little.....speed wise....but the pain didn't go away.  I turned at 2.5km and headed back in.  The more it hurt the more I tucked and the faster I went.  I guess in a way I just wanted to finish the walk as quick as I could.

Time was 28:59  and I am more than ok with that.  In fact it is way too fast.  So for my 10km on Friday ... I MUST slow down.  Plus buy some kensey tape!!!

5km atawahi - first walk 

5km jog

It took nearly 4 days for my muscles to not feel sore after my little 3km jog.  Wow....I never expected to feel so sore!!!!   My heels hurt, my quads REALLY hurt, my hips hurt, my back hurt and my calfs hurt.  GOSH thats way more hurts than you get with racewalking.

So today I set out to do 5km and this time I slowed it down a little.  Again it felt so good to just jog along and not think about your style.  Freedom!!  I took the route that goes along Waimea Road and then back up Vanguard Street.  So I had a small rolling hill first and then a long gentle sight rise back home.  I normally walk this in 30mins and today I jogged it in 27.39 and I feel great.   I made sure that I did a good 5 mins stretching this time and then I got my stick out and gave my legs a good rub down.  Will be interesting to see if that makes any difference in soreness tomorrow.

I get to try a walk this weekend.....I just hope like mad that my hamstrings will be ok and I can get back into it.  I have submitted an Expression of Interest for the Oceania Track and Field to be held in Cairns in June.  I doubt I will be selected but if I dont put my hand up ... how do I ever know.

5km jog